Middletown transcript., 1875-04-17
Correspondence Of the Danbury Neacs.
A Startling Discovery in South
America.

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America.
New BEDFORD, Mass, Jan. 18, '75
One Of the most singular spots in al
| geography is rock bound bay recently
discovered on the western coast Of South
America. 1t lies behind two mountains
where the sea dashes its tremendous
columns against the rocks. Few sailors
would dream of approaching such q
dangerous locality In fact, it has
always been considered absolutely in.
accessible either by land or sea until
the late adventures of Capt. King. whe
was formerly of Norwalk, Conn.
He was returning from the North
Pacific with cargo of sperm oil and
walrus skins,a when terrible storm
struck his ship, 1,500 miles northwest
Of the Straits of Magellan. For three
days and nights the sea was lashed into
foam. The wind in its madness swept
away the masts and canvass, and drove
the ship helpless before it. In their
wild desperation the crew threw over
board five hundred casks of oil, which
.lightened the vessel and soothed the
waters. This probably kept them from
going to the bottom. On the morning
of the fifth day line of precipitous
rocks loomed up directly before them,
and destruction seemed inevitable The
ghastly whiteness of the foam, the roar
Of the sea, and the appalling spectacle
at the foot of the rocks. utterly par
alyzed the crew. Swiftly and uner-
ringly the ship sped on, but at the
moment of supreme despair an opening
appeared in the cliffs. Into the mouth
Of this hungry canon the wreck was
driven with the speed Of the wind.
For few minutes nothing could be
seen but darkness, and nothing heard
but the thunder Of the sea- Suddenly
the hulk shot into quiet waters, and
vision of brightness broke on the be-
wildered mariners.
All around them. tremendous heights
arose, breaking into lofty spires They
were in mighty amphitheatre, and the
only outlet was through the chasm
they had entered. Strange to say, the
walls of this sea-chamber were of
creamy white, and the pinnacles were
like alabaster They were so high that
the sky seemed to rest on them like
dome IF pearl. Capt. King says that
no mortal man could describe the
grandeur of that scene. From ten
o'clock in the morning until three in
the afternoon the sun filled the place
with its splendor. The water was
frightfully deep, but SO transparent that
the vessel appeared to be floating in
mid-air. Far down in the depths were.
curious formations, and shadowy col
umps Of coral, and trees with all kinds
Of strange fishes playing among their
branches.
The neon happened to be full, and
when it reached the tops of the cliffs SO
as to illumine the water, hundreds Of
these fishes came to the surface, and
some Of them sang few Dotes in
minor key. This may seem fabulous.
but there are standard works on pisci-
culture in the Astor Library that cite
the best authorities on this subject, and
they affirm that fishes do sing in the
tropics. The old Greek and Roman
give minute accounts of ex-
periments with different kinds of fishes,
and they not only prove that they sing, |
but that they whistle on nights when
the moon is full. After few days of
rest, Capt. King and crew took small
boat and set out to explore the farther
shore of this enchanting bay.
After rowing rapidly for an hour
they came to place where the walls
leaving strip Of land covered
with trees Of peculiar color. Sud-
denly, in rounding point, they came
,n a small. antique vessel in full sail.
Their amazement was complete Had
hey found city their surprise could
not have been greater.
Approaching, they sang out. Pro-
enged and fantastic echoes were the
,nly reply. Then they boarded her.
3hostly looking sailors were seen, but
hey neither moved nor spoke. The
nan at the helm locked vacantly into
he air. Awe-struck and trembling,
Japt King raised his hand to the
,ilot's face. 1t was cold. 1t was stone.
lis garments were stone. The Cap
ain struck the deck with his heel. 1t
vas like adamant. Then the truth
lashed upon him. The ship was petri-
led I; indeed the sails and the flags
we're films of frosted stone. As the