The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1865-12-16
The Haunted ship.

THE following narrative Is from Washington
: Irving. bat II i rot included IL his collected
/ works. IL must be Tow 10 most Ji our readers.
The worth ab5unls with ghost stories.
I bu. it : exceedingly difficult 10 - them al first
/ haud-rhat Is ~ say, from persons who nave
: actually seen the ghosts tlls may BE- the reason
WHY tneT have fallen into Giscr-L.J with the tu-
bi5u=. 1 once. however. heard q story Of the
kind from one who came within an ace IF being
an eyewitness. and who believed in II most hon
c-:ly. lie Was . worthy Captain Of the So. =
native either Of Nantucket IT Martha 5 ' Vineyard.
! forget which ~ any rate q place noted Tor its
breed # hardy mariners. l met with him in
the ancient city VI Seville, having anchored
with his brig IN the GuadalqUiyer, il the course
Of a wandering voyage. Our conversation. one
day, turned upon the wonders and adventures IF
the sea. when be informed me that, among his
mu.-iftrious crui-ings, he had once made . voyage
on beard II ! haunted ship. l. was a vessel that
lad been met with, drifting, half dismantltd,
and with tagging sails, near the Gulf Of Florida.
between the main land and the Bahama Banks.
Those who boarded her found her without q
living soul on board the Latchways were broken
open the cargo had been rited; the decks fore
and aft We're covered with blood the shrouds
and rigging were smsared with the same, a If
soc wrrtchet beings had been masSacred as
they clung - them. Il was evident that the
ship had been plundered by pirates. and, u all
appearance. the crew had been murdered and
thrown overheard.
The ship was taken possession Of by the finders,
and brought 10 Boston, IN New England bat
the sailors WHO nayIgated her u pJrL declared
they would not make such another voyage for all
the wealth 9. Peru. They had been harassed the
whole way ~ the ghcsts OF the murderer crew
who AZ night would come NJ ont IF the CJMTan-
IJU-v-aT and the fcreca=tl-. run up the shrOuds
station Themselves on the yards and az the mast
heads, and appear L perform all tie duties II
the ship.
As 10 harm had resulted from this gLostlv
seImanship. The story was treated lightly, and
TIE vessel was fitted Out for another voyage but
Wnen ready fyr sea. no sailors could be got u
embark IN her. She lay Tor some time in Boston
harbyr. regarded By the super=,itious seamcn IS
= tatel ship: and there she might have rOt;ed,
had not the worthy Captain who related to NE the
story. undertaken 20 command her. He sue
ce-ded ia getting some hardy tarS, who stood
less IN awe Of ghosts, u accompany him, and
Lis brOther-in-lIw sailed with him a. chief mate.
When they got fairly 70 SEA, the hohgoblin
crew began u play their pranks. 1T night
there would be the deuce to pay in the hold
such racketing and rummaging, a. If the whole
cargo was OverhaUled, bales JuIubled about, and
sometimes ii seemed a II all the ballast was
shifted from side TO side. All this was heard
with dIsuay by the sailors. and even the Cap
tain's brOther-in-law, who appears 10 have been
= very spacious man, was exceedingly troubled
at il. As u the Captain himself. he honestly
confessed u me that he never saw or heard
anything but then he slept sOUndly. and when
once asleep, was hard 10 be awakened.
Notwithstanding all these yagiries, the ship
arrived safely ut the destined end Of her voyage,
which was one Of the South American rivers
under the line. The Captain proposed 10 20 in
his boat to q town some distance up the river,
leaving his ship in charge Of his brOther-in-ldw.
The latter said he would anchor her opposite to
an island in the river. where he could 90 on shore
at night, and vet be on hand 70 keep guard
upon her, but nothing should tempt him u sleep
on board. The crew all swOre the same. The
Captain could not reasonably object To such an
arrangement 50 the slip was anchored opposite
to the island, and the Captain departed on his
expedition.
For L time all went we'll; the brother-in-law
and his >agaciCus comrades regularly abandoned
the ship at n;ghtfaIl and slept on shore the
ghosts then took 0mmand and the ship remained
n quietly ~ anchor Is though she had been man
ned by living bodies Instead Of hOhgoblin spirits.
One night. however, the Captains brJther-iu-law
was awakened by a tremendous storm. lie hast
en-d 10 the shore. The sea was lIshed up in
fJaming surges; the rain came down in torrents;
the liELtnings flashed, the thund-rs beloved. Ii
was % e of those sudden tempests only known at
the tropics. The brOther-iu-law cast a rueful
look al the poor tossing. lab9ring ship. He saw
numbers Of UncOuth beings busy about her. who
were only II be deserted by the flashes Of light
nins or BIZ pale fires that glidei about the rig
ging he heard occasionally the piping Oft boat
swans whistle, or the believing Of 4 hoarsc
voice through a speaking trumpet. The ghosts
were evidently trying 70 save the ship; but a
tropical storm Is sometimes an Oyermatch for
ghost. or goblin, or even the d himself. In
a word, the ship parted her cables, drove before
the wind, stranded on the rocks, aud there she
laid her bones.
When the Captain returned from his exredi-
ton NJ the river, he found his late gallant vessel
q mere hulk and received this wonderful account
OF her fate from his sagacious brother-in-law.
Whether the wreck continued 20 be haunted or
not, he could not inform me; and l forgot 10 ask
whether the owners recovered anything from the
underwriters, who rarely insure against accidents
from ghosts.
Such Is one OF the nearest chances | have ever
had OF getting to the fountain-head Of a ghost
story. | have often since regretted the Captain
should have been 50 sound a sleeper, and that |
did not see his brOther-iH-law.