The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1880-11-02
STORY or q Sea Captain.

captain John Niven, of Thorntown,
Indiana, Is q grandson of Sir Hugh Nlven,
OF England, but his older brother got the
patrimony, and John defantly shipped be-
| lore the mast. After many years he rose
to be master Of his vessel, the Ramsey, and
the famous missionary Atloniram Judson
went to India with him. Under his minis.
tratioDs Niven was converted and baptized
In Rangoon, Hindoostan. Soon afterward
the ship was struck by lightning and de-
stroyed. Niven made his escape to Eng
land, where in 1846 he was entrusted with
the ship Earl of Eglanton, built on the
Earl's estate, and sent by him on her first
voyage to the United States. He was
beset by terrible storm off Nantucket
Island, and after beating about all day and
night in dense fog, went ashore at Tom
Never's Head. Two boats containing four
men each were lowered. The captain or
dered that they be not launched until they
saw how bad the breakers were, but they
disobcyed hlm; and six of the eight men
were lost. The islanders had now arrived.
The breakers drowned their voices, but
they chalked on the tail board of q cart,
'Stay aboard" and then; ''Fling off an
oar" The captain followed directions; the
oar, with line tied to 1t, was cast off and
caught with fish dra.l; and, by that means,
cable was rigged from the mast head to the
rocks, with a horses names on it, IN which
the men slid safely ashore. Captain Niven
was the last man to leave the wreck, when
the names broke and he was flung into the
sea. The islanders at once formed line
by holding hands and sprang into the
breakers after him, thus bringing MIN to
land. when he heard that his SIX men
were lost, he was temporarily deranged
and jumped again into the boiling waters.
Again they rescued him, and put him into
custody. He was badly bruised, and was
long time recovering. The ship was
total loss He returned to Great Britain,
where his friends again fitted him out, and
he started on whaling voyage in the Pa
clfc. There again his vessel went to pieces
in srmoom and he returned, disconsolate,
to Nantucket. His seafaring reputation
was badly damaged. Indeed, it is proba-
ble that the red letter of "bad luck" was
set opposite his name in the records of the
commercial marine of England, and that he
could not have obtained another ship. At
any rate he resolved to face the sea no
more, but to get as far from it as possible
in some quiet town in the middle of the
continent. So he started west on foot, with
81 in his pocket. Walking the tow path of
the Erie Canal, boatman hailed him pleas.
antly with 'Hello! you are too good. look
ing man to be walking the tow path
Jump aboard" The captain jumped
aboard, and made himself so useful in
splicing ropes and putting things in shape
that he was gladly carried to Buffalo. There
he got job to rig sloop for the lake, and
received for it enough to take him to Cleve-
land. There he shovelled sand on new
railroad at $l day, was promoted to the
charge of gang at $1.2b n day, was adj
vanced in the winter to be school. master,
became farmer by slow degrees, and Is
now president Of. the First National Bank
in Thorntown, Ind. He has a handsome
home known as "Chrome Hill," but he oc-
casionally visits Nantucket, and lives over
again his perils and his escapes.