| When the Mary Celeste sailed from New York in | | | | instruments with him as they were not found |
| late 1872, there was no indication that it would go | | | | anywhere on the ship. |
| down as one of the most mysterious ships of all | | | | Captain Morehouse had the Mary Celeste taken to |
| time. It was carrying a cargo of oil and barrels of | | | | Gibraltar. He handed over the ship to the |
| raw alcohol to Genoa, Italy. Its skipper, Captain | | | | authorities and claimed the salvage money. |
| Benjamin Briggs, who was also a part-owner of | | | | Rumors, Theories and Clues |
| the ship was a veteran of the seas. | | | | At first everyone expected the survivors to turn |
| For this trip Captain Briggs had with him his wife, | | | | up. But they did not. Nor was any trace of their |
| two-year old daughter, a mate, second mate and | | | | boat found. It was then that wild rumors and |
| cook and four seamen on board with him. They | | | | theories explaining the disappearance of the |
| started on the voyage on November 7. But little | | | | people on the Mary Celeste started making |
| did anybody know that this was the last time | | | | rounds. |
| anybody was to see the Captain and all the | | | | Maybe the captain of the Mary Celeste had gone |
| people going with him. For twenty-eight days later, | | | | mad and killed everybody and then then killed |
| on December 5, the Mary Celeste was found | | | | himself. Some pirates had captured the ship and |
| floating helplessly about 600 miles west of | | | | done away with everyone on board. More bizarre |
| Gibraltar. There was nobody on the ship. | | | | still, an octopus had attacked the ship and |
| It was Captain Morehouse of the brig Dei Gratia | | | | devoured everyone as well as the ship's papers |
| who found the Mary Celeste. Morehouse knew | | | | and instruments. Then there was Captain |
| Captain Briggs very well in New York. In fact he | | | | Morehouse. Couldn't he possibly have done all this |
| had dined with the Briggs just before the Mary | | | | to claim salvage money? All these conjectures |
| Celeste set sail for Italy. So when Captain | | | | proved groundless by the court of inquiry that |
| Morehouse saw that there was apparently no sign | | | | was held to look into the affair. |
| of life on the Mary Celeste, he sent his mate to | | | | Then there were some "clues". Why was an |
| investigate. | | | | antique sword on the ship cleaned recently? Why |
| What Had Gone Wrong? | | | | was the clock on the ship hanging upside down? |
| The mate found nobody on the ship. Its only boat | | | | There was some stain on the deck of the Mary |
| was also missing. Apart from that he saw nothing | | | | Celeste. Was it blood of the victims? |
| much wrong on the Mary Celeste. | | | | The "clues" also fell flat on further investigation. |
| There was no sign of fire or any other calamity. | | | | The sword was an antique piece and the mate of |
| There was plenty of food and water. There was | | | | the Dei Gratia had tried to clean it to pass his |
| some water in the bilge but the ship was not | | | | time. He had also tried to re-start the ship's clock. |
| sinking as there was no hole in it. The ship's log | | | | When he could not, he hanged it up not caring |
| was in the mate's cabin but there was no entry | | | | whether he had done that upside down. And the |
| of any unusual happening in it. In fact there was | | | | doctor found that the stains on the deck were |
| no clue as to why the ship had been abandoned | | | | not blood. |
| and in so much haste. The seamen had not | | | | So what had actually happened? Where did all the |
| bothered to take their pipes, tobacco and oilskins | | | | people go? What caused their sudden |
| which were left behind. But strangely enough the | | | | disappearance? Nobody knows. |
| captain did have time to take his papers and | | | | |