The Republican journal., 1877-01-11
NUMBER %
Pedro serrana.


BY turtles and sea fowl, who roost there
at night 1t was upon this deserted spo
that Pedro Serrana, a Spanish sailor O
the sixteenth century, found himself a
cast away, after his ship had been wreck
ed upon the quicksands surrounding the
island
This island, which has since gone by
the name of the poor sailor who lived
there seven years, is only about six mile:
in circumference. When his ship broke
up. Pedro, who was a strong and skillfu
swimmer, directed his course to this land
as being the nearest but when he hat
gained the shore, the spectacle that met
his gaze was not calculated to revive his
dropping spirits.
The only man left of numerous ships
company, he found himself alone on 8
barren island, whose only elevation was
OF volcanic origin, and whose surface was
destitute Of vegetation Without fresh
water, wood, or vegetables Of any kind,
his future life seemed most likely to be a
short struggle against death i'll the form
OF hunger and thirst. Bitterly did he be-
wall his condition, and made up his mind
that it would be far preferable to have
died, ms did his shipmates, quickly and
without pang IN such gloomy medita-
ton did he pass the night, for n his state
OF mind, sleep was impossible, even the
pangs Of hunger and thirst which he sui
tered were sufficient to have prevented his
rest after the fatigues of the day
With fairly the first light Of the next
morning he wandered here and there over
the sands, surveying his domain. lie
found on the shore some oysters and
crabs which the receding tide had left
stranded on the beach, and quickly gath
cred enough OF them to satisfy his great
hunger, but Of course he had to eat them
raw, for as vet he had no means of max
lng q fire. Such was his food until near
evening, when he saw slowly coming out
of the sea a large turtle. which was fol
lowed by another and another, so that the
beach was covered with them. He pun
sued Tie one that WIS nj rest To him and
succeeded IN turning il on its back, 50 that
it was unable to move, and so proceeded
with those that We're closest 1T hand until
the rest had all been frightened back into
the sea. Then to qunnch his fiery thirst.
he drew his sheath knite-such 4 one as
all sailors carry even to the present day
and killed one OF the turtles, drinking its
blood. Indeed, his dire necessity forced
him to repeat the operation more than
once before his thirst was satisfied. Cut
ting the flesh OF the turtles into long, thin
stripes, and drying them in the sun, which
shines so tiercely in these tropical regions,
he made a store of provisions which would
last for some time OF their shells he
made small water tanks, by embedding
them in the sand to catch the fresh water
of the rains that fell nearly every day
throughout that part OF the world.
Saved now from the immediate danger
OF death by famine OF thirst, our hero
wanted fire to cook his meat with, more
than anything else that was net to be
found on the Island of Serrana. SO he
set to work to find tlinty rock, where
with, by the aid OF his knife, he might
strike tire All the rocks on the island
proved to be without sufficient slick OF
flint; and he was tain to go back to 1.-The
great sweet mother, mother and lover OF
men, the sea-" where, after pIunging
many times to the bottom without sue
cess, he ut last found two pieces Of real
llint and brought them safely to the land.
BY breaking them in pieces, making tin
tlt'l vi lIS sun - gnu ms NilIiC iOt Il
steel. he at last succeeded in obtaining
fire feeding it from time to tine with
dried seaweed, pieces of wreck, and all
kinds OF tlotsam and Ietsam that could De
tound on the beach.
Now that he had fire, he felt himself
indeed we'll of, ior he could have roast
meat three times a day, and could signal
4 passing ship by showing u large column
Of smoke, and sooner or later, he might
be rescued and sent to Spain, to home and
family Such were the thoughts that
cOurscd rapidly through Pedro's mind, AS
lie studously preserved the spark from his
rude nint aud steel, and famed the tiny
comforter into flame. Having obtained
u fire, his first care was to preserve what
had cost him 50 much time and trouulc
therefore, thai the showers OF rain might
not eNtingush it, he built Il sort Of hat
over it from the shells OF the turtles, OF
which he had now great number
About three years had Pedro lived there
alone, when one evening, at the moment
he least expected such an occurrence. he
saw :; man on his island-a white man,
who had been wrecked the night before,
and cast on a little islet called La Sierra
nilla, near the Island of Serrana, whence
he had seen Pedro's fire, and came across
the narrow strait by the aid OF a plank Of
the wreck When these two met face to
face, Pedro held out his arms to the other
ana embraced him tenderly; and they
mingled their tears and sighs over their
lonely condition, thus united by the same
disaster, aud without hope Of release, iol
this second shipWreck taught them that nc
ship could approach the island without
running into great danger.
Pedro now gave his tamished guest
plenty to eat and drink, and they mutual
ly told each other their various adventures
by land and sea to pass away the time
They divided the few duties to be done
each day to provide for the wants of the
next but particularly that of collecting
seaweed Tor the fire, and watching it un-
less 1t should become extinct.
So they lived together several days il
peace, but soon there came a quarrel; the
possessions of the two were parted, anC
they lived on separate portions OF the is
land. Not long did this separation last;
however; each came to the other, contes-
sed his FAULT and was forgiven 50 they
became the best friends in the world
living together from that day till they
were taken Oft the island, tour years after
ward.
The cause OF their quarrel was this
from the fact that neither of them report
ed any vessels in sight during his watch
while the other slept, each tancying that
the other slept on hi& watch. From sus
picion came GOODNESS. from coolness re
proaches, from reproaches anger, and al
most blows.
During the four years that these two
exiles lived together they often saw ship:
passing, and in each case sent forth vol
umes of smoke to attract attention, bu
were invariably unsuccessful. 1t canno
he doubted but that these fires We're seer
by the ships; but as the island was pu
down on the chart as of volcanic Origin
and surrounded by shifting quick sands
the sailors thought that volcanic erup
ton had taken place, and therefore let
the neighborhood as quickly as possible.
At last ship came so close to them tina
taey could plainly distinguish the forms o
the men on the deck and in the rigging
| Rv their fire and ppSticnlatiOnS theV sue