Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1878-03-06

Captain Higbee, of the schooner
Speedwell, of Somer's Point, n. j., re-
Gently narrated terrible sea tragedy.
He says:
''We left Charleston, December IL,
loaded with phosphate rocks-a terrible
bad cargo to carry in rough weather.
We were bound for Baltimore and had
provisions for a short voyage. Up to
Dec. 80, we had light, pleasant winds,
but on the night of the 3Oth hurricane
burst upon us. We were then about
twenty miles off Cape Hatterss. The
wind lasted seventy hours. When it
gave us chance to clear up our decks
we found our gafis gone, our sails split,
our boat stove and everything washed
from the deck that the water could get
a purchase on. We made the best sail
we could, but our progress was slow.
On January Is, was startled with the
thought that our provisions might run
short. All hands were put on short al
lowance, but what we had left lasted US
only five days. The last mouthful was
eaten on January 90. The men were
feeling very weak, and, to make it
worse, northwest gale took us on the
very next day, starting the upper deck
and causing us to spring leak. Three
days after that, the men having been
without food four days, and weakened
by laboring at the pumps, three of them,
David Barrett, George Seaman and Wal
ter Sampson, all colored, gave out.
That left the mate, James L. Somers,
the cook, Sylvester Herbert, one sailor,
George Hicks, and myself, four men, to
manage the vessel. We four are all
white. We were fast becoming exhaust
ed.
"On January 80, we had all been ab-
solutely without food for seven days.
We had plenty of water, because it
rained nearly every day. We had chew
ing tobacco. but no spirits of any kind.
George Seaman was the first of the col
ored men to give out. After he had
been without food for four or five days
he became crazy. On the morning of
the 30th the three colored men were in
the forecastle together. There were no
white men there. | was afterwards
told by the other two colored men that
Seaman declared that he would kill
Walter Sampson to eat him. Each of
the three had pistol, as | afterwards
discovered. Suddenly Seaman made an
attack on Sampson. He did not fire at
him with his pistol. He either drew it
or else attempted to strike him. Samp-
son, however, was too quick for him.
He drew his own pistol and killed Sea-
man instantly. He fired three shots.
Seaman did not fire. heard the shots.
went into the forecastle and found
Seaman dead. The rest of us were
afraid of our lives. II the negroes had
not got into the quarrel and killed one
of themselves, probably they would
have attacked us. We had no pistols.
That afternoon we cut piece off of the
fleshy part of the leg and broiled it on
lilt w VIC AloN VIC put
in barrel with some salt, because we
did not want to run the risk of having
another man shot. The rest of the body
we afterwards buried with proper cere-
monies. ate a piece as large as my
two fingers only. 1t was handed to me
as it was taken off the fire, and l co YER
ed it on both sides with mustard, but
that night L felt bad effects from it.
resolved that would eat no more of it.
81 don't think any of us were in our
right mind on January 30. l am pretty
sure / was not. 1t seemed to me as if
my blood had stopped flowing. l felt
throughout my whole body just as a
mans foot feels when it is asleep"
On the next day the Speedwell rescued
u.s. The schooner went to the bottom,
probably, the night we left her."