The Yazoo Whig and political register. (Yazoo City, Miss.) 1840-1842, 1842-09-16

Tiled this matter among themselves; what !
division they made, and with what temper |
thew carried on their consultation, is, Of |
course, only matter OF conjecture. But ira
dition, which is always sufficiently courage |
GUS for conjecture, asserts, that having pos
sessed themselves of all that was valuable in |
the ship-all that could be easily appropria- /
ltsd-they determined to set her on fire, as
the only mode to conceal, though roughly, |
the bloody testimonies of their crime. Their
boats were accordingly lanched at midnight.
The night was still calm, still beautiful, still
Hooking down as innocendy as if there were
no crimes-as if death had never been born
among the children of men. Having trans
ferred their spois to the boats, and compile
ted their preparations, the vessel was set on
fire. The FIRE, fed by tar and other matter.
seized instantly upon the combustible fabric.
The flames rose triumphantly into the air,
rushing from stem 20 stern, from keel to bull
wark, from the deck to the highest point Of
the towering mast, involving shroud and sail,
rope and line, spar and stancheon, in one
of the murderers, these objects very soon
became distinctly aTticulated, each inits own
outline, by the bright, burning, but uncon-
suming fire. Fast as they hed-stoutly as
! they pulled for land-they gazed with hor-
J ror and CONSERVATION upon the wondrous
: spectacle behind them-a ship on FIRE that
would not burn!- fire that would neither
destroy its object, nor conceal, in its smoke,
the form which it so completely enveloped
: Strange and wondrous spectacle indeed!
: 1t continued all night to burn-speeding
! on with the wind-now passing out from
: sight, and anon visible, flaming forever, back
: again, on the very spot where the crime had
h been committed. With the dawn of day i
e had ceased to burn-but there it stood
e erect as ever, with the spars, sails, masts
uncOnsumed-every thing in its place, bu
n every thing blackened, charTed, as if the FIRE
!. having penetrated sufficiently to discolor it
D object, had been extinguished, This wa
q no sight for the wretched criminals, but the
,r watched it through the day with fearful in
g terest. Every moment they looked TO SCI
Il il 60 down. But, strange to say, while
h never sunk, il never moved. There was n
D. anchor to hold it to those shores-there wa
r no fast to bind it in lis place-nor was Their
h. calm upon the face of the deep. Wit
,e eyes upon which some powerful spell haI
he fastened itself with the force of fascination
d. they watched the strange spectacle. Blu
n. with the return of night. new interest c
he dread was awakened in their bosoms. A
no the sun went down, and twilight darlene
ne the earth, and the pale stars came forth
ire long the great SUBMITS of heaven, the flame
lin re-kindled upon the vessel. Spar and mas
Ell. became re-illumined--oncs more the fiji
ill ragged, and the frame of the ship reddene
an from the bulwarks to the waye-from dec
on to mast-head-from stem to stern. tt
lev dreadful sight could be borne no longer
,er. The murderers fed from the shore-fed
md the forest, and buried themselves in the va
the interior.
,m- Never, says the tradition, has the penal
nth of blood been paid. The criminals we
set free. No justice followed on their footsteE
sseI Whatever may have been their regrets, thI
/ 10 remorse, it is very certain that human la,
tim, have had no share in their punishment.
eth. They lived on their ill-gotten spoils-th
gle descendants still enjoy them; and thus il
With that the burning ship of the Palatines
pas appears, each year, on the anniversary
"a that night of crime, on the very spot wht
ned it was committed. Thus it burns from st,
the TO stern, from deck to mast, but still unc,
the sumed; and thus it will continue to bu
until, upon the last descendant of 4
men. bloody crew, the eVeT-aVenging ProvideI
the shall have consummated the requisite re
,erth button. Magnolia.