The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1875-08-19
Upton. IOWA, AUGUST 19. 1875.


CAPT. DOYTON.
81s Adventures - . D1ver-H0v
He PaoyoA q - . oAaFk.
| A correspondent who has inter
viewed Capt. Boyton, sends a repor
Of the Captains statement to tn,
GensIcn,an's Magazine: "Soon after
ward worked down into the Gulf o
Mexico. The first coral ! raised VA
in Catoche. Knocking round abou
there, l heard Of the loss Of til,
schooner Foam. The first mate anc
three men got saved. but the Cap
tain, his daughter and three men 90
lost. l slung round to see if sh,
could be raised. After we'd spen
the best part of the week, we sailee
over her and dropped anchor. L
was . lovely Sunday morning wher
We struck her. She lay in so feet o
water on . bottom as white as the
moon. Looking down l could see
her leaning over on one side upor
the corAl reef. When I got down t.
her saw she'd torn = great gap in
the reef when she ran against il
The mainmast was gone and hung by
the fore. | clambered up; saw
whole shoals Of fsh playing in and
out Of the matches. First | went te
look for the bodies, for l never like
to work while there's any Of them
about. Finding the fo'cas,le empty,
went to the two little state-cabins
1t was rather dark, and I had to feel
in the lower hunks. There was
nothing in the FIRST, and in the other
the door was locked. I pried il
open and shot back the lock with nv
ADJ. 1t aew open, and out some
thing fell right against me. l felt at
once it was the woman's body.
was not exactly frightened, but it
shook nae rather. l slung it from me
and went out into the light bi. un-
til l got hold Of myself. Then
turned back and brought her out
poor thing! She been very pretty;
and so l carried her in my arms; with
her white face Nesting against my
shoulder, she seemed rs il she was
only sleeping. made her fast to
the line, as carefully IS l could, to
send her up, and the fish played
about her Is if they were sorry she
was going. At last I gave the signal
and she went slowly up, her hair
floating round her head like q pillow
of golden sea. weed. That was the
only body ! found there, and l man.
aged after to raise pretty considera-
BILE of the cargo. One Of my expedi-
tions was among the silver banks of
the Antilles, the lovliest place I ever
saw, where the white coral grows in
to curious tree-like shapes. As l
stepped along the bottom it seemed
as If was in frosted forest. Here
and there trailed long clouds of green
and crimson ses-weed. Silver-belliei
fish flashed about among the deep
brown and purple sea-ferns, which
rose high as my head. Far ss
could see al round in the transparent
wafer wcrc Different colored lcayes,
and on the floor piles Of shells so
bright in color that it seemed as If
had stumbled on = place whore they
kept q stock Of broken rainbows. |
could not work for hi i, a,r! had a
quarter determination 10 sit down a
while and wait for mermaid |
guess if those sea girls live anywhere
they select that spot. After walk
ing the inside on, ol half All i.onr |
thought had better get To work and
blast for treasure. A little bi, on
from where sat were the remains OF
a treasure ship. 1t was a Britisher.
! think, and corals had formed all
about her, or rather about what was
left Of her The coral on the bottom
and round her showed black spots.
That meant . deposit of eithe, iron or
silver. made fairly good hauls
everv time | went down, and sold one
piece ] found to Barnum, of New
York. After left there | had
curious adventure with q shark. I
was down on nasty rock bottom.
A man never feels comfortable on
them; he can't tell what big creature
may be hiding under the huge quar-
ter-deck sea leaves which grow
there. The first part Of the time
was visited by porcupine fish, which
kept sticking its quills up and bob
bing in front OF my helmet. Soon
after ! saw big shadow fall across
me, and looking up, there was an in.
fernal shark playing about my tubing.
1t makes you feel chilly in the back
when they're about. He came down
to me slick as looked up. ! made
at him and he sheared off. For an
hour he worked at it, till | could
stand it no longer. If you can keep
your head level, it's all right, and
you're pretty safe if they're not on
you sharp. This ugly brute was 90
feet long, ] should think, for when
laid down oil my length on the bot.
tom, he stretched considerable way
ahead of me, and l could see him be-
yond my feet. Then I waited. They
must turn over to bite, and my lay
ing down bothered him. He swan
over three or four times aud then
skulked of to . big thicket of sea-
weed to consider. ] knew he'd come
back when he'd settled his mind. It
seemed long time waiting for him.
AT last he came viciously over me
but, like the time before, too far from
my arms. The next time I had my
chance, and ripped him with my
knife as nearly as could. A shark
always remembers he's got business
somewhere else when he's cut, 40 off
this fellow goes. 1t seems a curious
thing, too, that oil the sharks about
will follow in the trail he leaves. /
got on my hands and knees, and as
he swan off ] noticed four dark
shadows slip after him. l saw no
more that time. They did not like
my company"
After short period of experience
in pearl diving, and the loss Of nearly
everything that he possessed, in
cluding bis diving apparatus, in
great confagration, Capt. Boyton, in
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