American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1873-05-10

aboardr Tell Him
AT that instant our master spran.
from his doze, crying out, Who called
me? Was it you, Mr.. -
My attention distracted, l turned agair
quickly to the brig. There acas nothing i,
sight mot mast nor sail on the Who'll,
clearly-lighted expanse.
Ibid you call me?' continued Archi
bald, repeating his question, and then
with little surprise, added, No, it was
not a bit like your voice.
ono answered in amazement; 4
have not spoken a word; but l hest
tated whether to say more, when he con
tinued, with a short laugh, but some sur
prise or concern:
"'What a dream-vivid as life! Right
off there pointing to the spot where the
| brig had seemed to me to ride, right there
1 thought was a brig as lazy as our little
craft, and a fellow on deck, whom ! saw
as plain as l see you now, Mr.. -, hailed
| us exactly in brother Ben's voice, but
husky bit-"Ahoy. yacht ahOy, Is
| Archie - aboard? Tell him--'' and
| then wake up, and find it all CANNON
Well, what's the use of being awake, if
that's dream?'
"'Oho' answered l, trying to hide my
uncomfortable amazement under light
speech-'Oho! a skipper asleep and with
nightmare
ale laughed and loaded a fresh pipe,
while l stepped forward and asked of the
watch, ANY sails in sight to-night?'
GO Nary a one, sir, to bless my eyes.
Generally they is most plentiful off here.
Only seen steamers smoke away off
starbOard an hour or better ago; that's all
this watch, so far
GO How stranger
"'What's that, sir?'
"'Ahem. Strange! Why, so near har-
Dor, you see, and no sails
60 Yes, sir; rather so.''
1.-THE captain called up fresh man to
relieve him at the wheel, and he and de
scended to the cabin. l said nothing to
him of my mysterious delusion las much
SO to him as to mel, and we soon turned
in. l lay awake some time that night,
turning the matter over in my mind. 1t
puzzled me greatly, and many times since
have / tried to study it out to some prac-
teal solutions butch, l made en- entry
of it in my diary the next morning-here
it is nOw''
From an inside pocket he drew out
small notebook, and, turning over its
pages for few seconds, he handed it to
me at this item:
"21st July, 1S7O-About II As p NJ, off
Barnegat, hailed by =. ~
Merely memorandum, of significance
to no one but its writer.
Twelve hours afteward, he continued,
as returned the notebook, 1--WE were
landed in New York. Returned to my
usual work and these almost daily trips
by rail, l sometimes recalled that Incl
dent of the yacht trip, but, as 1 have said,
l never repeated its experience to any one.
1t was nut for leisure cracking. l want
ed to keep it all to myself until l might
pick out its meaning. And now to IA
chance companion 1 hand it for his con-
sideration. Is it an intuition or mere
chance that brings us so en- rapport?
However, to resume the stOry''-I had
bowed my head and smiled a recognition
of his implied compliment, but, much alb
sorbed in the narrative, and suppOsing it
unfinished, had spoken no words to delay
its continuance-''to resume the story.
One morning, early in September, as 1 ran
down in the seven O'Clock train to New
York, l bought the Times, as usual, and
my eyes happening accidentally on
Marine Intelligence read at the close
of its column this paragraph" Here he
again handed me his diary, marking
there was pasted printed slip under
the written date of Sept. 5th. 1t
read: "The brig Racer, - master, lost
at sea July 21st, in command of Rollin-
son, first mate, from Singapore and Pa
dang, arrived I'd and anchored on the bar;
came up this a. m, and reports passed
Cape of Good Hope June 81, and crossed
the equator July 10; then had light winds
from s. E. to n. w. to lat. 26 On after
noon of 21st took hurricane from w. S.
W., veering continually until near mid
night, when it struck us fiercely from f.
w. E. Shipped heavy seas that stove bull
warks sails, and bow and stern. The
rolling broke loose top spar that struck
the captain and knocked him into the sea.
The binding spray Immediately shut him
from sight but no boat could have been
lowered in the sea then running, and
probably the captain was instantly killed
by the blow"
Forcibly impressed, l looked up from
the book to my companions face, mutely
asking him to proceed.
do you notice the coincidence of dates
in this and in my former entry?" he ask
ed, and stretched out his hand for the
diary.
Yes" said; "go ON
'Well, what remains is meager, and
gives no clue to the unravelment we de-
sire. Soon after l called on Archibald in
Tenth street. He was settled for the win
ter at his studio. His brothers death had
wounded him deeply. He gave me all the
particulars that he had obtained from
the mate. They were but little
more complete than the newspaper para
graph. What surprised me was that he
had forgotten his dream on the yacht, or
had failed to notice the identity of dates. |
At any rate he said not a word of those
seemed not to connect the two events in
his mind and / did not wish to call his |
attention to them. So the matter remains |
to this day"
When few moments of silence had |
my companions story, l asked |
drawing long breath, ''And, sir, what |
do you draw from that re- |
markable experiences"
''None satisfactory. And you, my |
friend, how think you of it? But first, is |
it not little singular that I should lay |
lime to you? Entire strangers until a |
while ago l took this seat beside you and |
now we are so closely drawn together that
have exposed a very secret drawer of
my mental possessions. Well, perhaps |
you may be able to see through it after |
we part. / can't explain it, He looked |
1t his watch as he spoke. We are but a
few miles from Peekskill by this time. l |
isked another question: care you be- |
lever in spiritualism?"
Il can't answer you, sir, as I do not |
-cally understand what spiritualism is.
know of receptions, excitements, super /
,titions, idle tales, delusive exhibitions,
nd-and-sleiahts Of hand, entitled spir-
magnetic dttrnctions, and proved
humbugs. At the same time | can
not doubt the evidence of some very
wise, very good, and very honest people |
who have reported, rs | have just done,
of some of the mysteries la
beled in that way. Seized as a religious
system, it seems to me a feeble plank.