The free citizen. (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1874-1876, 1875-07-17
THE LOST FLORINDh.
S"w orleans ricayunr, Junc as.


intense and growing interest in tho fate
of the fifteen or twenty men vino, moro
than n quarter of Il century ago, char
tered the schooner Fiorinda and get sail
Tor the golden shores of California;
For twenty-.iX y ears tho fumilic; of the
adventurous have mournCd them rs lost
The last news OF Tho Fiorinda was re-
relved late i'll the year 1919 from Rio
Jarciro. Sho had put in at that port
some timc prcvi,ms and then proceeded
Oh her way, leaking badly. it was said
a vessel touclinS at Rio Janciro short
~ aitcrwnrd. lcmricd having spoken
the Flnri.'da IN the Pacific Just beyond
Carn Horn. From that tino forward
nrthii,G moro w'w ever heard Of the
Fi"rinhn. mrni it lrcamc m accrrt..d Il
iisc,ry iha! :>In, I,:,i been cas-! away
and her crsw lost somewhere on th,.
Snnti, !'tciiir coast. Nniid,,,;.s; reached
| the fpniiirH of hr III fatrl nrunnaIts.
md twenty six years %iinu,'l by without
Il waif or whisper to diSt;lrb the mel
record ct their hives. Th i, children
hood without the knuwlc,lgc. with
scarcely the memory Of q inthrra love.
| The hopes that clustered around them
have long ago been transferred to that
other world i'll which they wcro be-
| licved to br
| Such Is The story as ii has passed cur
rcnt all this time, with tho general pub
lie ana with the greater number Of the
rclatlves OF the E!Onnda company. At
first, of course, there wcrc doubts aud
fears and expectations, more or less re-
inctnntly resigned for certainty, but to
ibis conclusion all eventually c;lmo and
The loss Of tho schooner with all on
board has, for fully quarter Of n cen
tury, been regarded ~ Il fact about
which there could be no sort of 0ucs-
ton. The unfortunate men have been
rs utterly given mp rs though their
burinis had taken place in presence Of
the whole comm unity, and to have told
any Of tlcir families that they were
still alive would have been to nsi thcn
10 believe that the dead had risen after
twenty-five Years OF scpulturo and
wnikei forth once more nlnuDg the
living.
Within the PAST fcw days however,
precisely this proposition has in effect
been made. The strange and startling
statement has t:'ansl,ircd that Harmon
Jones and his fellow yoyagcrs were not
!: loSt s, !, as we hayc thought, but are now
unknown island in the lower Pacific.
About mouttl aeo iriend oi Mrs.
Harmon Jones rcsd III an Eaglish paper
an nc ount OF some British vessel having
been driven ont Of her course in storm
and sighted nj, unknown island. Much
to thc surprise OF the csow the island
turned ont to l,3 inhabited, Gll still
moro astonishing, by men who spoke
he English langu uagc. Tie rest Of the
story, rs given in thc paper referred to,
il i!lnt the castaways told the ships
company thut tiicy were the Florida
pRr:y who had sailed from New Orleans
Ill 1919 bound for California, that they
had been wrecked on the island and had
dwclt there ever since, it being then
more than twenty-five years that they
had not $, cM Il human face or IL sign of
ihc world from Which they were so
names of several all Of whom arc
known TO huvcb.cn OF Florin,ias crew,
and in many Oth.: Wnya, 4ecnrlin8to tic
version Of Mrs. ,onc' friend, tho i1rn-
tity Of tho party WAS cstni,li:,licd rs none
but themselves could have established
ii. 1t was further hti,t, q that ti0 British
vessel offered to take The men Oh board,
bit they declined, saying they had hccD
lost for Il quarter ri century that
thcT knew not in what situation they
would lind he families they hii lrft,
a;d that they preferred staying and
ending their days Elelc rather than
venture back tu such IL doubtful and
uncertain future. f'Lis paper was four
months Old wien Mrs. Jones friend saw
IT. one month ago, nnd the events mar
rated were desc,ihrd as having occurred
four lnonilli prcvioua to the issllo Of
the paper. Ills inst nine months then
since the island was discovered by the
British vessel, and nt that timo all, or
n"nrly all, Of the Florinda party oppcar
to have been alive.
IT need not l.e sad HAT this news has
aroused tie deepest interest To the
community ut i;irH" IL recalls The fnml-
lar occIirrrucn OF IN" Fjorndn's sailing
from New OrIeslns with its adventurous
company. To The fumi:,s Of the i'll
fuicJ men il comes like IL ,nrssngc from
unnttrr worli, and is ~ thou Ii it were
the announcement Of II resurrection
Within the l,ns' few days tie relatives
have been livluG in n state nf constant
excitement, an,i many ui ihCm eSpe
t.;air the aurs Of Harmon Jones, Jno
a. Sidney, aud Cnpt. Kenmore, the
skipper Of the Fnrindn, have devoted
themselves tn the task Of following The
clue gwen hy the friend wiio saw the
English pnper. Extensive inquiries arc
now on foot, and tl;c British consul hns
kindly Interested himself il Tie affair
30 fnt III to aErcc "a forward to The war
Office in London II full statement of The
circumstances 80 t!Iat the Damc of The
vessel wl,icii touched ut ihc ca.taway's
home can br c"Iiain"d and the 'p,ar-
Jugs Ci the island taken from her Io1
! + 1ubuiI rt,.,lt ~