The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-05-26 00:00:00

AN ISLAND WITH ONE INHABITANT.

St. Paul's was not uninhabited at the period of our visit, which was
made for the purpose of correcting oar chronometers. Wo found a
solliery individu roaming about upon its lonely beach. He had been
there two years I—two years upon a barren island 2,000 miles away
from any civilized community. tee h id, however, managed to
survive, and was to pleased with his island that he positively refused
to leave his singular home, where we left him when we took oar de-
parture. He had been left t sere two years preciously by a whaler to
catch seals, tho captain having proms d to call for him on his return
to America, while lie in the mean time, with his ship, departed to a
distant sea, for the grander purpose of killing whales. When first
left upon ht. Paul's he had a companion, and they lived together
pretty amicably for some time. But one of them, it seem-, was a
desperate character; indeed, our Robinson Crusoe was one of tee most
ruffianly-looking fellows imaginable. His story was, that he suspected
his companion secretly intended to murder him, and by that me:ms
obtain a double share of the produce of the seal skins they had col-
lected and dried. " Dead men tell no tales," saidour friend, " and of
course it was easy to tell the captain when he called that he died from
natural causes." When this idea once got possession of him he lived
in contirmat dread, and the conduct of his companion daily becoming
more suspicions, he quarrelled with hire. Between two such spirits
words were soon hatched into blows, and they fought like furies,
staboing each other with their seal, knives so seriously that they lay
for some time helpless, expsssd to the effects of the sun and the hot
vapours of the subterranesn fires that slumbered in comparison of the
raga that burned in each of their breasts; they had tried their best to
kill each other, and had faikd. Sl,wly recovering, they par Led, and
lived in oppoate peals of the island, but aa,necesEnty brought them in
contact at the cnterovhen they seat, they scowled and passed on in
slence. They, however, lived in mutual dread of each other, and at
night they crept into sly and sequestered nooks to sleep. It would
have been dangerous tor tho one that was caught sleeping, as our
solitary said, "he would never have risen again. ' Under such cir-
cumstances, life at length became unbearable, for the dread of being
murdered in their sleep weighed heavily upon them, and they came
to the conclusion that one of them should leave St. Paul's and depart
for the sister isle of Amsterdam. -.F.:ach man must have an island for
himself.. With characteristic indifference they tossed up which should
go ; and the reader mast be told that the lo:,er would in all probability
lose his life, for the trip to the file of Ams'erdem, though only. about
thirteen leagues, was am cat daugertus exploit to attempt in an opsn
boat single-handed. They tossed up, at d the man we found there
won, when the loser, true, to his word, in less than an hour took the
boat left them by the ship, and safely navigated her to the island of
Amsterdam, where, however, he would have starved had he nut
been taken off, tegether with about a dozen oilier persons (who had
been wrecked there a few drys previously), by a brig four days aster
ho so singularly joined them.—United Service Magazine.

TER GOVERNMENT AND Ma BAKERS —At the Southwark Police
Court, on Thursday, Mr. James Troschell, a baker, carrying on busi-
ness at 209, Bermondsey- rest, we, summoned before Mr. Combs by
direction of Sir george Gyey,,under. the Sm,:.ke Nuisance Act, for
unlawfully using a furnace, attached to hia oven for baking, whlclawas
not constructed ao as to consume its own smoke. Mr. William
Sandistm, the government enginber, stated that lie went to the
defendant's premises about half-pa-A eleven on the morning of the
18th ult., when he found the furnace attached to the oven lighted,
and dense volumes of black smoke issainr, from the chimney. It
lasted a long tame, and must have been a great nuisance to the neigh-
b nrhood. Witness entered the place, and perceived that the farnace
was not constructed so as to consume the smoke, and he called
attendant's attention to it, and told him where thus were several
bakers In the neighbourhood who had successfully altered their fur-
naces. The defendant contemptuously turned round to him and said
he should not altar his until all the other bakers were compelled.
Mr. Poland asked wlee'her there was any difficulty in altering the
bakers' furnaces ? Mr.•Sandium replied that there was not. All
these who had done so had informed him that it was a great saving to
them in fuel. Witness added.'that on the 18th inst., he visited the
defendant's place'igain, and found that no alteration had been made
whatever, but the smoke was worse than ever. Henry DX, 219 M,
proved having 'een dense volumes of smoke issue from the chimney
daily from the 18th of April to the 18th inst. Mr. Combo said that it
was a very bad case, as the defendant had had plenty Of time to make
the alteration. He must pal a env of 5/. and costs'