Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1877-07-11
A Boy Who Went to Sea,
Baltimore American.

Among the crew of the Nova Scotia
schooner Bertha Ellen that recently ar
rived in this port was a boy named
Richard Fielding, whose experience as a
runaway is worth recording as a lesson
to adventurous young fellows whose
greatest ambition is to pillow the raging
main in Glow, rakish, swift. sailing
clipper Young Fielding is about ff-
teen years of age, with a bright, hand
some face, pleasing manners, and of evil
dent intelligence. His father is a
wealthy landowner in Hampshire, an
English gentleman of family and posi-
ton. Richard had been sent to school
in Dorset, where Bracebridge Hemyng's
wonderful lies about the happy issues of
all Jack Harkaway's adventures fell
into his hands, and were eagerly perused.
The natural result followed He longed
to emulate the romantic glory of Jack s
impossible actions, and yearned for a
field to display, as Jack had done, the
heroism and pluck. which he supposed
that he possessed Unfortunately, his
father had no influence with the Board
of Admiralty, or the boy might have
gone into the navy and found a legiti-
mate channel in which to develop his
adventurous longings. AS it was
Richard determined to run away and go
to sea. Tying up the customary bundle
the little fellow slipped away from school
and went to Liverpool Here he found
it impossible to ship in any capacity,
but, determined to go to sea at all haz-
ards, he slowed away in the hold Of a
Mediterranean fruit brig bound to
Messina. He was soon discovered, and
after undergoing no end Of abuse from
the captain, was set to the dirtiest kind
of work, swabbing the decks, scraping the
masts, and tarring down the rigging, and
on every calm was put over the side to
scrub copper. Before arriving at Mes
sina he was one day tarring down the
jib stay, swung in a boatswain's chair
when the man who was attending to the
hosting rope carelessly lost his hold,
and Dick was precipitated to the
deck, falling on the anchor stock and on
the rail. His arm and leg were broken,
and he bounded into the water. He was
rescued, however, and, after being freely
cursed by the Captain for the detention
of the vessel which the accident had
caused, he was passed below, where,
without any medical treatment, he was
permitted to stay till the vessel arrived
at port, fortunately only twenty-four
hours afterward. He then went to the
hospital, where incompetent physicians
dressed his limbs, and after three months
he was discharged, penniless and without
friends, and a cripple. All the British
Consul could do was to get him a berth,
which, owing to the fact of the boys
crippled limb, was difficult thing to do,
but which was finally accomplished, and
Richard sailed as a cabin-boy in an
American bark for Rio. His situation in
this vessel was more tolerable, but on ar
irving at Rio the bark was condemned as
unseaworthy, and Richard was a second
time cast adrift in foreign land. He
finally shipped as cook in West India
trading schooner, where he got more
kicks than ha'pence, and in this vessel
came to Halifax, where he shipped in 6
schooner that afterwards came to Balti
more with potatoes. Previous to sailine
be wrote to his mother, telling her Tx
name Of his vessel. His father cabled tC
Halifax and ascertained his destination
and then cabled to friend in Baltimore
to look out for Richard on his arrival
Dick came here in the schooner Berths
Ellen, after thirty days tempestuou
voyage. Richard left for home wisel
boy, a cripple for life, and one not likely
to again be filled with glowing
enthusiasm at the stories of writers O.
melodramatic fiction.
The Rev. DR.. Stephen Tying is reputec