The gazette and Democrat. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1860-1860, 1860-05-31

maps you regard me as an ola man. III so
you are mistaken. / am now in my thir.
ty ninth year, You seem astonished and
wonder not. Ny lot has been so strange
--the scenes which | have passed through
so wild, and my suffering so great that /
wonder not that / seem old but that live
at all. Ten thousand times have rela-
ted my misfortunes and sufferings and ten
times have I been disbelie yed.
Yet this has never turned me from the
truth-ncver have avoided truth for the
sake of obtaining credence, nor shall l ev
er. You will not believe me, | fear, and
yet my story affords me a melancholy
pleasure, and, by all the obligations ofa
Oltsis.ian; I viii give you irae sketch Of
my later experience.
''For four years after leaving New York
1 was employed on an East India Packet
plying between Bombay and the Red Sea.
Becoming wearied of this monotonous
course, | hired on Dutch Merchantmen
but owing to continued sickness it was
deemed improper for me to continue OF
the sea. therefore disembarked at Bata-
via and was put in tie cafe Of an estima-
BILE Dutch family where soon so far re-
covered as to think Of going again TO sea
l therefore sought berth designing to
come 10 America by way Of the Cape Of
Good Hope and Liverpool-but could find
no good cpening--indeed there was but
one vessel in port which would start to
Europe for some months, and she having
been used many years in the fisheries of
the South Pacific was the morest hulk, en-
tirely unseaworthy. Her commander,
however, becoming tired of the sea, had
determined to return 10 Amsterdam and
retire from business. He was confident
in the fitness OF the Liebling-her name
for another voyage and had resolved
once more to trust his treasure and family
to her keeping on the ocean wave. Isaw
that it was perilous to embark yet there
was no alernaive-either i must go with
her or remain in the sultry climate of ia.
va. I chose to embark and trust my life
to God and the Llebling.
Fair was the morning and kind the ga'c
as losing Of Batavia, we tur6ed our bark
to the wide Indian Ocean. Smoothly al
first we passed but as we left he IslaLt
and got fairly TO sea it was with no little
apprehension that we heard the limbers q
the ship groanng and creaking as sh'
rose and sunk am ong the long and increa
sing waves. Indeed when We reflected
that we had more than four thousand mile
10 traverse ere we should reach the Cape
we could not avoid likeLing the hoarse
deep groans issuing from the hold Of on
ship. to the complaints OF a dropsied oil
man on the approach of chilly and wind
r winter. Tedious days and weeks passe
by and as they passed, the creaking an
J trembling and leaking of the Lebling in
| creased while thc sea rolled higher and W
+. got farther from land. Some ofthe pump
a had been worked from the first, but noV
when many oflhe seamen were sick "
: had to work every pump day and nigh
Y Thus days Of anxiety ware passed and v
were vet far from the Cape. Most of Il
It crew had become unfit fos service and
o was evident frem the haggard counter
y ance of the Captain that he despsired {
n his life, treasure and family. You sha
n soon see how sadly his forebodings We
realized.
10 At o'clock P. NJ, August 18th, Of
= captain announced that we were about &
s. ty lies East Of Cape st. Mary, Mad
a gascar, that storm was threa. ened al
N shat the passengers need not retire.
N he spoke the last, words his voice falter'
Q, and We saw the saddeniDg anxiety whi
VI disturbed his bosom. For some days t
shin had become more and more una
10 ageable and her hold was half full Of W
IT, ter; and all the pumps could not gain
it. Wild was the wind and black t
u clouds which rose and threatened us frc
a the South East. At IL o'clock the S
r. was fearfulIy rough and the water f
n. gaining on the pumps. 1t was clear NJ
Us that we should sink; the gale hurry
e. us toward the shore, the ship could T
ed tack from the Island, and the captain h
in lost all hope ant ceased to give orde
'e- All OIL board was confusion and despa
,s- vet, scarce voice was heard. The ca
ne tam with one or two seamen were maxi
Ise ready the beats, four in number, but
D. was evident that such boats could not HI
a. out on such sea; and if they could
I'm would be impossible to leave the sinki
ler wreck without being capsized by the d
of pairing seamen who would leap aboard
Inc | therefore sought no place in the bo
So but bound on my life.preserver and avn
ted ed the event. One by one the boats W
ast lowered, and by good luck all but the
ilh next to the last got ont without capsiHi
- The captain and family left in the seco
la They all instantly disappeared in the bl
III, night which added new horror 10
as scene. fear they all perished save
s last boat which will be heard of here
ter.
Ing One or two huge seas now rolled o
ar the sinking hulk, washing the dozen .
of pairing sailors and myself over the !
Oh. and INTO the vast deep. | had so h
to contemplated this last scene that l hat
lad waited il with GOODNESS. Yet, as / felt
lew cool waves swallow me up and bear
ERE off into the black night, | felt thrill
me horror, such as you can never adequa
the conceive without the experience. A
he went down, my limbswere caught by "
ay- thought we've denizens of the sea,
Nth after reflection, concluded 10 be my
my ishing fellows. With maddened strugI
y Of escaped from their grasp, and sconfS
,oid myself on the surface, dashed by the fol-