The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1879-08-23
S for myself, / had no explanation ID

!. being the worse for liquor, he hurled
. Delaying pin at him, which struck him Of
0 the head. Clapping both hands thereon
Q with q yell he rushed into the iorecastle
I II was evident the skipper expected Il
hear the voice, for he looked ~lervousl,
aloit; hut when all was silent in that di
3 fection his courage returned, and he de
a sired the second officer TO call ChesteI
a back TO the deck. Getting no answer Il
his call, the mate went below, when HI
found the poor fellow delirious. Return
ing from the deck, he reported him 10 bt
a In q dangerous condition,
/ This filled the captain with fear. HI
ordered that every attention should bt
] paid him, which was done. That night Il
became necessary to have all hands on
deck to reef, and while We were on the
yards an awful cry, like that Of q maniac,
arose from the bow Of the vessel, and the
next moment several Of US Jaw q human
form on the rail near the i~ore.swifter, and
then q loud splash was heard In the water
under our lee.
The captain and chief officers who were
on the deck rushed to the side. A hat
was seen for moment bobbing on the
crest OF a wave; the maniacal scream was
repeated, when Captain Phillips, himself
uttering o cry, fell senseless on the deck.
The mate then hailed us who were on the
topsail yard: "Come down from aloit!
Clear away the small boat We thought
he was US near beside himself as was the
captain; andso he was for a moment, for
when We had gained the deck he was
ready to countermand the order.
EVnFykbinU unu 0usfN1 hnUaaI n.anon
sion; the wilma and the water were raging
wild; 1t was impossible for u small boat TO
i've IN so rough a sea, so making a virtue
OF q necessity, the search for the poor mad.
ened fellow was abandoned, amid VOWS Of
vengeance against the captain and tears
for our lost messmate.
Forty.eight hours after this we entered
the port OF Hilo. Avast change had come
over the crew, The captain, knowing
their peculiarities, had supplied them
with money and Copious libations OF whis-
Ky; so, instead OF reporting him TO the
Consul, as they had declared they would,
they, were ready 10 shout his praises all
day long. In this, however, I did not
agree; but, unable to bring the tyrant to
justice s~ingle.handed, l resolved 10 quit
the Niger.
l did SO. After hiding in the woods
several days, | was caught and brought
back to the ship. As my adventures as a
fugitive are not essential to the unfolding
Of my story, | pass them by, and take up
the thread OF my narrative.
We set sail on our return v Can.
tain Phillips was an altered man. He alb.
stained from spirits, he controlled his tem.
| nor. and fhiu with thn o15;Iiaa =. A..
steady breeze, made our lives on board
happy, But alas! we were doomed to a
sad ending up Of the voyage. Keeping too
near the land, and a sQuall laying hold on
the ship, We were driven on a lee shore,
1t was just after midnight when We struck,
and thedarkness wasterrible, and leaning
out oil my hammock, l ran on deck.
could sec nothing save the wild waters
racing over the deck. l cried out 10 inv
shtpmates, but gotno answer. It was not
possible to reach the after part OF the yes.
sci where the life bells we're kept, so, act
ing on the impulse OF the moment, | leap
ed into the sea. Catching hold OF a friend
~ rock, l was saved. Daylight came after
a weary waiting. The first thing | saw
was the dead body Of poor Captain Phil
lips, and not far from it that OF our Chinese
cook. The rest were saved.
We made our way to Portland, where
We were paid of. Thence l proceeded to
San Francisco. l had often asked myself
whence came those strange voices and
fearful words which had SO alarmed our
captain and put most OF the crew in terror,
and had so OPPORTUNITY on one occasion
saved me from the vengeance OF the cap
tain. But it was beyond my power to an
swer the inquiry; neither could the mate
nor any of the survivors throw light there
upon. Had We known what ventriloouism
was, We might had therein a solution of
the mystery; but l had never heard an
adept in the art, neither had any Of nv
shipmatesi otherwise l Judge such fact
would have been mentioned and the
voices accounted for on that ground, Poor
Chester, when with us, our most intslli-
gent shipmate, seemed tosbe as much in
the dark as the rest Of US, though he was
not in the least put out OF the way by the
occurrences.
Strolling along the streets OF San Fran
cisco n night, about a year after the
wreck, ready for anything in the way Of
amusement that might turn up, my eve
caugh a large poster which announced the
wonderful doings OF Professor Meredith,
"the unrivalled and world-renowed ven.
triloquist."
This, thought l, shall be the source of
my eyening'sI enjoyment. Turning my
face in the direction Of the "Hall OF Sci
ence and Emporium Of Amusement" l
was soon seated in a snug corner of the
body OF the building, and was not long in
being carried away by the wonderful say
ings and doings OF the professor. At last
he told us that he would hold an imarina.
ry conversation with a person up the chin.
ney. He did so. When, in the midst of a
dialogue, the person up the flue gave a dc.
risivO "Hah, hah, hah"
| was startled. l sprang from nv seat,
Surely" said !, half aloud, "that is the
voice and tone and words which more
than once came from the maintop OF the
Niger" And while I was staring at the
professor, with eyes ready to leap out OF
their sockets, he came to the front OF the
stage TO perform his part. Then, in spite
OF his flowing beard and other decorations,
l saw in Professor Meredith the identical
Jack Chester who, over twelve months he.
fore, was believed to have leaped, in a III
"a hlhNhcSpt AAtS tnV nGl ullu WAS
"ChesterF | cried out in my excite.
ment.
"sit down." cried one; put him outl'
said some others. In tho meanwhile
had come 10 myself and resumed my seat,
but not before l had got from the probes:
sor o sign Of recognition.
When the performance was over, my old
shipmate, for it was he, beckoned me to
him, and, taking me to his private room,
he grasped my hand in all the %fervency Of
ardent friendship. "sit down, Henry, my
boy" he said, "and you shall have a solI,
ton Of the mystery which hangs Y Q me
and the past"
"How came YOU to be saved from q
watery grave on the awful night when
you plunged into the raging sea3h l impa,
tiently asked.
~ did not jump o~varboard," replied
Chester, laughing; neither was Iany less
sane than l am at this moment. Tho en-
\ Ittrn affotr poa a trtOly ~ a., 3, ~, tn,,anIsa.