One thing I didn't mention in my other post was the story of the SS Ferret
(she wasn't an American ship).  Built by G. & J. Burns in the 1870s, the
steamer ran goods between Glasgow and Belfast.  In 1880, she was chartered
by a fellow to give an invalid wife a cruise to the Mediterranean.  After
she passed through the Straits of Gibraltar and signaled her numbers, Capt.
Smith had her repainted and modified, and items that could float and had
the name of Ferret were thrown overboard.  Capt.  Smith renamed the ship
the Benton, and took on a load of French coffee which they illegally sold
at Cape Horn after renaming the steamer the India.  You get the idea; the
SS Ferret had become a pirate ship.  Capt.  Smith was caught in Australia
and locked away, and since the SS Ferret had been thought lost and the
insurance company paid her off, she was sold at auction, ending her life
ferrying goods and passengers along the Australian coast.  In the late
1920s, the SS Ferret was sold for scrap and broken up.
 
Still, I have always thought it was ironic that a ship named Ferret would
be used for thieving.
 
Oh, the last bit of irony?  Capt. Smith was not caught on board when the
Australians seized the ship.  He had slipped away.  He was accidentally
caught after being arrested on charges of being "disorderly."
 
Well, *I'VE* always loved the story.
 
Bob C and 15 Mo' Disorderly Demons
[Posted in FML issue 3186]