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I searched the National Archives and found a site for mariners that had limited BMD info but still a lot.  I was able to locate a David Sclater that had died at Sea in 1874 (not a master, though).  you can get greater detail if you log in and pay for it.  I found that by NOT logging in I was able to get a full date that I could not see otherwise.  But full details of the event and to view the log cost money. 

I would love to visit places in Britain to get information,  but I'm in Portland, Oregon USA, about 8 time zones away.  Thank you for all the great  leads.  I check them all out and kept "drilling down" until I  found something I could search by name.  I  also found a site where could search by a person's name and it brought up all kinds of arcane information, not of which was not pertinent to me but perhaps might be to others.  I'll try to re-enact my stumble to the site and post  it.  I've put in what I think is the link to the records archive for mariners.  I'll try it out myself in a few minutes  and correct it as appropriate.

Thanks again.


http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/displaycataloguedetails.asp?CATID=1629&CATLN=3&accessmethod=5

I think there were a couple Slater families in Sanday around 1800.  I have run into 2 James Slater families.  I'm descended from James and Jane Slater, both born abt 1801, who had 8 children, 3 born in Sanday and 5 born in Kirkwall.  I am searching for ancestry of both James and Jane, and information on their son, David Drever Slater, born abt 1833, who became amerchant seaman, married Harriett Sleep in Cardiff in 1859, and died a Master Mariner before 1883.  I can't find a death certificate or anything of his professional life.  To my knowledge all of the Slaters I'm related to left Sanday and moved south, some to N. Shields.  David Drever Slater's children were all born in Cardiff.