Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1874-07-25
FATE OF THE SCHOONER PEARL.


with One of the Crew-The Rest
Escape.
From the India Homeward NALL.
The following strange story has been
communicated to as by James Floyd,
late master Of the schooner Pearl;
We had left Colombo in the steamer
Strathowen, had rounded Gale and
were well'in the bay, with our course
laid for Madras steaming over a calm
and tranquil sea. About an hour before
sunset on May 10 we saw on our star
board beam, and about two miles off, o
small schooner lying becalmed; there
was nothing in her appearance or posi-
ton to excite remark, but as we came
up with her | lazily examined her with
my einocular, and then noticed be-
tween us, but nearer her, long, low
swelling lying on the sea, which, from
It's shape, l took to be a bank of sea
weed.
AS l watched, the mass hitherto at rest
on the quiet sea was set in motion. 1t
struck the schooner, which visibly reeled
and then righted; Immediately afterward
the masts sWayed sideways, and with my
glass could clearly discern the enor-
nous masts and the hull of schooner
coalescing-I can think of no other
term. Judging from their EXPLANATIONS,
the other gazers must have witnessed the
same appearance. Almost Immediately
after the collision and coalescence the
schooner's masts swayed toward US,
lower and lower; the vessel was on her
beam end, lay there a few seconds, and
disappeared, the masts righting as she
sank, and the main exhibiting a reversed
ensign struggling toward its peak. A
cry Of horror arose from the lookers-on;
and, as if by instinct, our ships head
was at once turned toward the scene,
which was now marked by the forms of
those battling for life-the sole survivors
Of the pretty little schooner which only
twenty minutes before hoated bravely on
the smooth sea.
As soon as the poor fellows were able
to tell their story they astounded us with
the assertion that their. vessel had been
submerged by gigantic cutie fish or
calamary, the animal which, in smaller
form, attracts so much attention in the
Brighton Aquarium as the Octopus.
Each narrator had his version of the
story, but in the main all the narratives
tailed so remarkably as to leave no
doubt of the fact.
AS soon as he was at leisure, pre-
vailed on the skipper to give me his
written account of the disaster, and l
have now much pleasure in sending you
copy of his narrative was lately
the skipper of the Pearl schooner, $50
tons, as tight little craft as ever sailed
the seas, with crew OF six men, We
we're bound from the Mauritius to the
Rangoon in ballast to return with paddy
and had put in at Gale for water. Three
days out we fell becalmed in the Bay
(lat. deg. so min, long. 81 deg. min.
E. J; on May 10th, about 8 pm. (eight
bells l know had gomez, we sighted
two-masted screw on our port quarter,
about five or six miles off; very soon
after, as we lay motionless, great mass,
slowly rose out OF the sea, about half a
mile off on our larboard side, and re-
NAMED spread out as it were and sta
tionary; it looked like the back of
huge whale, but it sloped less, and was
OF brownish color; even at that dis
lance it seemed much longer than our
craft, and it seemed to be basking in the
sun.
What's that2' l sung out to the
mate. Blest if / knows; barring its
size, color and shape, it might be whale,
replied Tom Scott And it amt the
sea serpent, said one of the crew, for
he's too round for that ere crittur.' /
went into the cabin for my rife, and as
l was preparing to FIRE, Bill Darling, a
Newfoundlander, came on deck, and
looking at the monster, exclaimed, put
ting up his hand, Have care mister;
that ere is sqnid, and will capsize us
if Won hurt him. Smiling at the idea. /
let fly and hit him, and with that he
shook there was great ripple ali round
him, and he began to move. Out with
all your axes and knives, shouted Bill,
and cut at any part of him that comes
aboard; look alive, and Lord help usT
Not aware Of the danger, and never hav-
ing seen or heard of such a monster,
] gave no orders, and it was no use
the helm.or ropes to get out of
the way. By this time three OF the crew,
Bill included, had found axes, and one a
rusty cutlass, and all were looking over
the ships side at the advancing monster.
We could now see huge oblong
mass moving by jerks just under the
surface OF the water, and an enormous
train following; the oblong body was at
least half the size of our vessel in
length and just as thick; the wake or
train might have been one hundred feet
long. In the time that have taken to
write this the brute struck US, and the
ship quivered under the thud; in an
other moment, monstrous arms like
trees seized the vessel, and she keeled
over; in another second the monster vas
aboard, squeezed in between two masts,
Bill screaming, Slash for your lives
but all our slashing was of no avail, for
the brute, holding on by his arms,
slipped his vast body overheard, and
pulled the vessel down with him on her
beam ends. We were thrown into the
water at once, and just as went over l
caught sight of one of the crew, either
Bill or Tom Fielding, squashed up be-
tween the mast and one of those awful
arms. For few seconds our ship lay
on her beam ends, then filed and went
down. Another of the crew must have
been sucked down, for you only picked
up five. The rest you know. l can't
tall who ran M the ensign"