Pomeroy weekly telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy, Meigs County, Ohio) 1860-1866, 1860-03-13
added the Captain in stern manner.

l N,
slate before him, in deep thought, A
last, turning the, slate over and pushin
it toward Bruce, he said, "Write dow1
"Steer to the nor west"
The mate complied, and the Captain
after narrowly comparing the two hand
wsitings, said, "Mr Bruce, 60 and tel
the second mate to come down here"
| He came, and, at the Captains request
he also wrote the same words. So di
the steward, So in succession, di
every man of the crew who could writ
at all. But not Que of the variou
hands resembled, in any degree, tn
mysterious writing. s7g4
/ When the crew retired the Captain sa
in deep thought. 'eCould any one hav
been slowed away?' at last he said
''The ship must be searched; and if
don't find that fellow he must be>a gooc
hand at hide and seek. Order up al
hands,
Every nook and corner of the vessel
from stem to stern, was thorough,
searched, and that with all the eager
ness excited curiosity-for the repor
had gone out that a stranger had shown
himself on board; but not a living sou
beyond the crew was to be found.
Returning to the cabin after thei
fruitless search, "Mr. Bruce" said tn,
Captain, "what the devil do you make o
all this?''
"Can't tell, sir. Isaw the man write
you see the writing. There must be
something in it.
"Well, it would seem so. We have
the wind free, and I have great mind
to keep her away, and see what will
come of it,
81 surely would sir, if I were in your
place. It's only few hours lost, at the
worst s5y
"Well, we'll see. Go on deck and
give the course nor'west. And, Mr.
Bruce" he added, as the mate rose to
go, "have lookout aloft, and let it be a
hand you can depend on. -
His orders were obeyed. About
three o'clock the lookout reported an
iceberg nearly ahead, and, shortly after:
what he thought vessel close to it.
AS they approached, the Captain s
glass disclosed the fact that it was dis
mantled ship, apparently frozen to the
ice, and with good many human beings
on it. Shortly after they hove to, and
sent out the boats to the relief of the
sufferers
It proved to be vessel from Quebec,
bound to Liverpool, with passengers on
board. She had got entangled in the
ice, and finally frozen fast, and had
passed several weeks in a most critical
situation. She was stove, her decks
swept-in fact, mere wreck; all her
provisions, and almost all her water
gone. Her crew and passengers had lost
all hopes of being saved, and their graf
itude for the unexpected rescue was pro-
portionally great.
AS one of the men who. had been
brought away in the third boat that had
reached the wreck was ascending the
ships side, the mate, catching glimpse
of his face, started back in CONSERVATION.
It was the very face he had seen three
or four hours before, looking up at him
from the Captains desk.
! At first he tried to persuade himseli
it might be fancy; but the more he ex-
amined the man the more sure he be.
came that he was right. Not only the
face, but the person and dress exactly
correspondent.
As soon as the exhausted crew and
fanlished passengers were cared for and
the bark on her course again, the mate
called the Captain aside. 1T seems. te
me that was not a ghost. that I saw ovday
sir: the mans alive" a...,.a 4.as
"What do you mean? Who's alive?'.
'"Why, sir, one of the passengers We
have just sayed is the same man I saw
writing on your slate at noon. I woulc
swear to it in court Of Justice -
"Upon my. word, Mr., Bruce" replied
the Captain, "this is getting more singu
lar. Let us go and see tkis man."
They found him in conversation with
the Captain of the rescued ship. They
both came forward, and expressed in thu
twarmest terms, their gratitude for deliv
erance from horrible fate-sloW-c W-comins
fdeath by. exposure and starvation
The captain replied that he had bu
done what he was certain they woult
have done for him under the same cir
cumstances, and asked them both to stel
down in the cabin, then turning to tn
passenger, he said, II hope, sir, yot
will not think [ am trifing with YOU
but would be much obliged to you,
j.. n
slate And he handed him the slate
with that side up, on which the mysteri
Gus writing was not. stI will do any
thing you ASK replied the passenger
"but what shall I writer -
ga few words are all I want. Suppos
you write, Steer to the nor'-west. "
+ The passenger, evidently puzzled t
make out the motive for such request
complied, however, with a smile. Th
captain took up the slate and examine
/ it closely; then, stepping aside SO as t
conceal the slate from the passenger, h
turned it over, and gave it to him agai
, with the other side up.
"You say that is your handwriting?
said he. =
: II need not say so,'' rejoined. th
e Others looking at it, "for you saw N
write it
nAnd this?' said the captain, turnin
/ the slate over.
e The man looked first at one Writin.
!. then at the other, quite, confounded.-
At last, "What is the meaning of thisi
!, said he. II only wrote one Of these
: Who wrote the other?'
CHATS more than can tell You, 81
t My mate here says you wnote it, sittir
r at this desk at noon today -
d The Captain of the wreck and the pa
senger looked at each other and exchan
it ing glances of intelligence and surpris
n and the former asked the latter. I'D
YOU dream that you wrote on this slate