The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1880-02-11
lee shore some ten minutes before we

| iOS euOtO SOhe tSu AAauutSc uciOIe we
heard them. ~ n a ri
| ] tell you we had to tack and tack
to get away from those rocks lit,
tie longer and we would have all
gone to Davy Jones together in 600
athoms of water. sss.'.ss'sss.'as -
We kinder looked up. to the, skip
per's wife after that, for if it had not
been for her / would not be telling
you about her. After we rounded
the Cape, the old man squared away
for the Marquesas Islands, where we
had run ashore, and brought off
two or three boat.loads of oranges,
bananas and cocoa.nuts to keep away
the scurvy. Somehow or other the
atmosphere did not agree with me
and fore | knew it I was down in
my bunk with scorching fever. The
captain got out mis- big book, unlocked
the medicine chest, and was going
to prescribe big dose of EPSON
salts-they always give 'em board of
ship. If man falls from the mast
head. it's salts. If he has the tooth
ache. same medicine. But the skip
per's wife took me in tow and
stopped that nonsense pretty quick.
Her father was land doctor and she
had picked up something better for
tevers than salts. She Owed into the
medicine chest and brought out mum.
Der seven; that is the only name /
ever knew it by; gave me some OF
seven; opened can of mustard, got
a tub of hot water from the cooks
galley, and made me take a mustard
bath, until you could wiring water
enough out of the sheets / had
around me to float whale-boat. She
didn't stop there, however, but toast.
ed and tead me just like a mother.
The captain hadn't a word to say,
but just let her have things her own
way and what with doctoring, nurs-
ing and watching me O. nights she
fetched me through until was en-
tered on the log book cured-but we
had to get number seven filled up
when we got to Valparaiso.
The cabin-boy he also had touch
ofsomething-might have been home
sickness much as anything-but she
took him in tow and in four or FIVE
days set him right side up with care.
We had been out going on nigh
to three years, with 700 barrels in
the hold and 500 that we had sent
home by the Hector, when 1 noticed
that the skipper wore a troubled
look. Besides, his wife didn't come
on deck so often. One evening,
just as the dog watch was on, he
comes up to me and says Ben, he
always called me Ben when none of
the men were around-'Ben,' says he,
my wife's sick ..s BIB ... ..
What's the matter with her,
Captain?' says l rI.,sf l..
why, blame it, man'-that's the
only cuss word he ever used-'can't you
guess what's the matter? And here
we are 400 miles away from land
Don't get low.spirited, Captain,
says |; perhaps We can run in be-
fore she needs DOCTOR
No, we can't, and I'm fool
says he.
Whatever you do, don't finger
once that big book and medicine
chest 1 said; for l had epson salts
in my MIND, don't you see?
mo, won't, Ben; but what is
to be done p ns.a
well, we'll square away, any
how, and do the best we cam
But it was no use; she grew worse.
The George and Satsa,a pitched and
rolled so heavily that 1t made her
suffer all the more. We broke two
casks of oil and dashed them to the
rail, knocked out the bungs and let
the oil adritt. 1t smoothed down
the water little, but it did not last
long. If the skipper thought it
would have done any good he would
have emptied every cask on board to
save his wife. s, u e..,
The next night, while / was ON
W atch, the old man came bouncing
OUT OF his cabin. Ben, for heavens
SAX, }, come down. Rouse out Mr..
Ked, ge to stand your WATCH he sung
out. l reused out the third mate
and fc flowed the captain. When /
reached the cabin could hear his
poor wifi, crying, and l tell you it
went all o yer me. slJ 5i.....ll b.
Captain said /, my good mother
has told me some things that might
be OF service and I'll give it to you
nc a4a:L / can, So I told him