The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1872-10-25

ana so we nOpeu tlflb tlic HimIoN
would bringus succor. Ateigllt o clock
Jack ordered me to turn In until mid
night. when | should relieve him ut
the wheel. The brig was making but
little headway, and it looked to Jack
as il the wind would blow out entirely
by midnight. | could not think of
going down into the forecastle after
what had occurred, and so | stretched
myself out on the port quarter aud was
soon asleep.
slept just two hours. and then a
frightful groaning aroused me. Run
ming around to Jack, saw in mo
ment that he was done for. The
symptoms were the same as in all the
other cases, shouted to him, bnt he
could not answer. In less than fifteen
minutes after reached his side. Jack
stitlened ont and was dead. and | was
the only living thing aboard the King
George. 1t was a great shock TO me.
as had lain down strong in the belief
that Jack would pull through and that
we would work out ofthe scrape togeth-
er in day or two.
The wind had fallen until there was
not a breath. The brig was swashing
and swinging on the long swells. her
yards groaning and her rudtler creak-
ing. | was almost dumb for time,
and believe that only good crying
spell saved me from going stark mad.
began to get afraid of the body and
of the ship itself. My presence at the
wheel was not necessary, aud so COW
cred poor Jack with the end of tar
paulin, and went forward. Closing
the fo'castle door and bolting it, my
fears drove me forward clear to the
bow. and | clambered up on the bow
spirit.
The feeling of being alone on a
broad prairie is nothing to the feeling
of being alone on the ocean, and III
such circumstances as was placed.
The groaning of the yards made me
shake and tremhle, seeming to be the
groaninss of my shipmates as they
struggled with the terrible disease
which had so quickly swept the ship
of every soul but me. | scarcely re-
member anything about the night,
more than that | did not sleep again,
and that the hours seemed years.
As daylight came my courage rose a
little. Men are not superstitious eX-
cept when darkness covers the land,
and the sight Of the sun dispels some
of the gloom from the mind so de-
pressed. | got down from my perch
and walked aft. was very hungry,
but before eating | must get rid OF the
remains of poor Jack. The corpse
was too heavy for Inc to lift by main
strength, and so brought tackle
into Use, and the purchase enabled me
to swing the body onto the rail. De-
taching the rope, gave the body q
push, and saw it descend. 1t had
barely touched the water when an
enormous shark turned on his back
and seized it, hardly closing his jaws
on the prize. before a dozen of his
species were shooting alongside of the
brig.
| felt much relieved when the slip
was clear of dead. | opened every
thing so as to give the ship ventila-
ton, and then burned sulphur in cabin
and fo'caStle, thinking that it might
be cholera which had taken the men
off. When through with this | sat
down and satisfied my hunger, and
then overhauIed the Captains charts.
Having fair knowledge Of geography.
| soon saw the course which | must
keep. Everything would of course
depend OH the weather. II had fair
winds | could keep the brig jogging
along seven or eight miles an hour
under what canvass was set, but If the
wind was uniayorable, would have
to beat and tack and would have to
leave the course and perhaps lose
ground as well.
The forenoon dragged Itself Away
and the weather made no change. The
ocean was like a mirror, and there was
not swell enough TO move the main
sail boom which struck at anlidship.
Knowing that | might have to stand
by the Wheel all night, determined
to obt.in all the sleep | could during
the afternoon. Stretching ont Oh the
quarter, was soon fast asleep, and
did not waken until Just at shutdown,
when the creaking Of the yards aroused
Inc. A wind had sprung up, but to
my sorrow found that it came from
almost dead ahead. The brig had
swung off to the northeast, so that she
headed for the Lower Guinea coast,
and was already under headway.
Of course. the only thing | could do
was TO keep her Oh that tack, and to
hold her as near to the wind as posi-
bic, SO as not to lose the course more
than could be helped. could not ac-
count for the calm which | had exper-
fenced, except on the theory that dur
ing ollr trouble the brig had drifted to
the north beyond the influence Of the
trade winds, which almost invariably
accompany a honeward bound ship to
the equator. Taking this theory as
the correct one, | trimmed the sails as