The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-12-05
A ROMANCE OF THE SEA.

/
injected from the poison bag.
A ROMANCE or THE SEA.
| PLUCKy AND PRETTY LITTLE woMAN-EIGH-
| TEEN DAYS IN A SMALL BOAT AMID TEN
| PESTS, SNOW AND ROCKY ISLES.
[San Francisco Chronicle, Nov. 22.i
| On the steamer Mikado, which arrived in
| this port on Saturday last, came Capt. Groves
and his wife and two chldren-one babe
who have had a most remarkable escape from
the never-satisfying jaws of old ocean. All
that human beings could suffer, endure and
| live, fell to their unfortunate lot. The cap
| tain and his wife are both com parativey
young, and look sufficiently careworn to have
borne the burdens of many more years than
have yet rolled over their heads. The lady is
small, delicately turned, and yet plucky, or
courageous, and full of animation when de-
failing the thrilling adventures through
which she and her husband have passed. On
April 80 they left Antwerp for Callao in the
ship Albert Gallatin.
They had a prosperous voyage for three
months. But August 2, off Cape Horn, Sc
degrees south and 70 degrees, west, heavy
sea struck the ship and carried away the rud-
der at about 10 o'clock P. NJ Then for four
teen days every effort was made to replace it,
but the weather continued severe and the
rough winds and waves tossed the rudderless
ship to and fro like cork. And all this time,
as the heavy seas rolled over the vessel, every
soul on board was continually drenched SO
that not one of them wore dry garment for
two weeks. At length, August Is, the over
washed ship was found to be within two miles
of the Ildetonso Islands and drifting on to
the lfocks. Immediately all on board the un-
manageable vessel were compelled hastily to
abandon her. which they did in two life boats
at about A. NJ.
The captain, his wife, two children and five
seamen took ono boat, and the remainder of
the crew the other, and the latter have not
been heard from since. After all were in the
small boat
THE CAPTAINS BRAVE LITTLE WIFE
rushed on to the ship and snatched the chro-
nometers and charts and brought them away
safely. The life-boat soon filled with water
and was we'll nigh swamped beside the ship.
The boat got away with sixty pounds of
bread, but this was saturated with salt water
when she filed They brought away no fresh
water, and for two days were without drop
while driven about by the boisterous waves
and seeking landing place. August II they
got on shore on Hermit Island, but the six
days they remained there it Numbered and
lightened and showed, and was SO cold that
they were little better off than on the ocean.
The rocky isle was barren, uninhabited
and desolate. August "a they left this island,
hoping to make Staten Land, some hundreds of
miles distant, but near the Straits of Lemaire,
through which vessels often pass. They were
out but single day, however, when the sea
became too heavy for them to proceed, and
drove them back into Scourfeld Bay, on
Herschell Island. But the sea was SO rough
that they could not land, and had to stay in
the boat all night. Everything was wet, and
they had to bail constantly to keep the boat
from going down with them. That night was
very cold, and the canvass over their heads
frozs stiff They could not lie down nor
sleep, and had to sit in q stopping position,
which Mrs. Groves did with
HER BABE ON HER LAP,
while the snow on the awning pressed it down
so low and hard upon her head that her atti
tude was anything but comfortable. Next
day they navigated around this island and
landed on Wollaston Island. While on these
black, barren and rocky islands they often
found it difficult to get a fireand suffered in
tolerably from the cold. Here they found
little wild celery, which they mixed with their
salt sea-soaked bread and some preserved
meats, which they had served in small guam
titles The daily allowance of each one was
but compile of ounces of this coarse fare,
which was warmed altogether and each one
took spoonful There were nine souls OF
them in all. They remained in this distress
ing condition until the following Tuesday
when they again started for Staten Land, with
a light wind from the southwest.
At midnight they were becalmed an hour
or two, after which the wind freshened from
the northward. Next day it blew gale from |
the north-northwest, and in the evening the |
tempest became SO fierce they were obliged to |
make raft of their oars and lash the boat to |
them and let her drag, while they were kept |
constantly bailing. They again lost all the
fresh water on board, the boat filed and de-
stroyed all their provisions, and Mrs. Groves |
looked up to her husband and said sadly, 81
guess we are gone this time" That night |
they drifted back about forty miles from the
land they were approaching. Next day was
more moderate. Some of the men
FELL ASLEEP ON THEIR OARS
and lost three OF them. Bat in the heavy
SEAS whenever wave came, they were all
obliged to pull for life. After week of such
voyaging, the captains wife one day saw
ship. They pulled for her, but were not OBJ
served The day following, about 3 p. NJ,
they saw an island about twenty-five miles
off. At P. NJ they sighted vessel, and
made for her. She proved to be the ship
Syren, from Boston to Honolulu. The ship
wrecked wanderers had now been afoat or on
frozen islands for eighteen days, in all of
which time they had never had a change of
having lost everything when they
abandoned the ship. When they were
taken on board the men were almost
blind. All were nearly starved,
and one sailor was out of his mind. They had
to be raised on board the ship, and not one
If them could stand or walk, their knees be-
pg almost stiff and their strength being
nearly exhausted. Yet during all those eight
zen days of dreadful suffering Mrs. Groves
,ad managed to nurse her babe and preserve
both its life and her own. Captain Newell. of
he Syren, was extremely kind to the suffer {