Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1870-08-05
FIfty.one Days on a Coral Reef.

LlV6LpOOl.e Dix S1llOIS nave just pdSSeu
through accession of adventures on q
desert island. which more than realized
the most thrilling of the many romantic
stories Of shipwreck written fer our
youth.
The fine new iron clipper ship Mereu-
RUS left San Francisco early in January
last On her return to England, having
previously made her first voyage from
the Clyde to Sydney. She was com.
manded by Capt. Cuthbertson, an expe-
rienced navigator, and all went well with
her until the 25th Of March. In the early
morning of that day, it being then dark
and raining heavily, the good ship struck
upon dangerous coral island, known as
the Rocas rect. in latitude 3:52 s., longi-
tude 1920 w. No one on board had
thought of danger until five minutes be-
fore the Mercurius struck. The lookout
man then gave the alarm, "Breakers
ahead - The captain was called, the
course Of the ship was altered, and her
helm was put "hard over" But it was
too late. A few seconds of that intense
anxiety in the endurance of which men
seem to live years, and then all doubts
were solved by the Mercurius first grazing
her side below the water against the
sharp edges of the cora, and then striking
violently on it twice. She began tofll
instantly, and as she was hanging as it
were over the ledge of, the rock, the
word was passed to man the long boat, in
the hope of saving all hands. But while
this was being done, the ship lurched
suddenly edwards and went down like a
stone, in eight fathoms of water. It may
be remarked that one Of the characteris-
tics of coral reefs is that they have FREE
qdently deep water right up to them, and
the rocky islands in the Red Sea, the po-
sition of which is wrongly given on the
charts, are especially dangerous from this
fact, and because Ike the Rocas Reef, they
lie low, and at night or IN thick weather
elude observations thoroughly. sGItL
I Out of the twenty-five hands on board
of the Mercurius the morning found but
six alive, and these, after swimming two
hours and until the tide feel, gained q foot.
ing on the ledge and proceeded to explore
it. Their story reminds one from this
time of Philip Quarles and Robinson
Crusoe, of Juan Fernandez, the Swiss
Family Robinson, and the ingenious hero
Of Mr.. Reads and Mr., Boucicault's novel.
Looking to the sea, the tops Of the fore
and main-mast of the Mercurius were Just
visible out of the water; looking over the
Islands which were to be their home,
some fifteen acres of barren rock, inter
spersed with patches of sand, and con-
nected by q narrow isthmus with another
rock equally barren, of the same size, met
their gaze. One cocoanut tree formed the
only sign of vegetation. 1t was the sole
survivor of those which were planted
there some years ago by order of Her
Majesty's Consul at Pernambuco, in order
that the reef might be seen more easily by
vessels on the Brazil or Cape Horn route,
in direct track Of which it lies; but there
had been wrecks here previously, and
with the aid of articles left behind by the
survivors, the shipwrecked men contrived
to bend circumstances to their will, They
found two iron tanks deposited in con.
venient positions and filled with water, as
well as a considerable quantity of broken
timber, out of which they built them
selves log hut 1a h.
They found, too, that pearl of price, a
broken knife, hammer, two ounce
weight and large copper bolt, and with
these clumsy tools they made two boats
out OF the planking strewed about the
rocks, fastening them with nails which
they extracted from the broken timber of
other wrecks. 1t does not appear that
the poor fellows had any thought of es-
Gaping In these boats, but they were en-
abIed to make fishing excursions and to
sail with signals flying in search of pass
ing ships in the early morning and in
evening, when the Guns ferceness was
subdued. r, ~r-. .g,-s,-.r -
They had no clothes, and except in their
hut no shade, and the tropical heat was
terrible. The majority of the men saved
were in their berths when the Mercurius
struck, and swan to the rock in, their
shirts; and it was not until one of their
number made hat out of the fibre of the
solitary cocoa tree, sewing it together with
q needle made out of piece of brass
found on the island, that any protection
for the head wast to be seen among them.
10 add to their misery, the reef swarmed
with venomous ants, which bit the
strangers numerically, and with an effect
which can only be realized by those who
have suffered from insect life Of tropical
climes.
The commissariat question was settled
IN q way which will make every school
boys mouth water who reads of it. They
went in their boat and caught fish and
turtle, and they had an abundance of
birds eggs and shell-fsh. They manufac-
tured bird traps and caught young birds,
cooking them by fire which they never
suffered to go out by night or day. They
mad, OF course, no matches, and no means
OF procuring light other than the time
honored one we have all read of in Coop
ers novels that of rubbing two bits of
wood together till they ignite. There was
no fuel belonging to the island, and the
broken Ge6Tgs of former wrecks supplied
the only material for the all-important
IRE. Three times during their soiourn
on the rock was this fire suffered from
some accident to go out; and three times
was the experiment in fricti on anxiously
and successfully tried. AZ "A Al p ! :
80 the time wore on until fifty-one
weary days had been spent on the reef,
days IN which every man scanned the
horizon, and in which the strong man
cheered the faint hearted, and all spoke
hope in turn. It is easy to picture the
existence these men led, The first graf
ltude OF escape; the anxious search for
fellow survivors: the mournful conclu-
sion that the rest of their shipmates
were mo more; the stern NECESSITY which
babe them work, invent. contrive; the
- oSy Wy oay, Oh some iiesh
ingenuity, some little suspected quality
IN each, and the gradual accumulation
OF reilefs,l and even comforts-.can all be
traced. They were prudent men-men
taught. by calamity to prepare for rainy
gay Tor, when rescued, they had two
hundred eggs in store, and are described
as being in good condition. Gf 1B89
Their rescue was not effected until the
18th of May, when the commander of the
IRON clipper bark Silver Craig, Captain
COIN was annrna ohi,,r Dar,a,-rr.