Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-11-04
THE FATAL BLACK BEAN.

George Jones, father of the late Count
Joannes, was an English chemist, who, about
the year 1918 emigrated with his wife and
three children, of whom George was the old
est, to this country. His brother was but
four years old, be only 6, and his sister q
baby in her mothers arms. The vessel was
an old sailing ship, fitted out after the ordi'
nary method of emigrant vessels in those
days, was bad sea boat, and meeting with
terrible storms in the Atlantic was driven out
of her course, and with difficulty kept above
water. When at last the weather moderated
it was found that the provisions, of which
there had been an insufficient quantitity al
the start, were running short Everybody
was put on short allowance, but when at last
the ship was on her direct course for Boston
whittier she was bound, q further reduction
had to be made. This was soon again reduced
and at last there was no food left on board
and starvation stared the crew and passen'
gers in the face. Driven desperate by hun.
ger, the crew mutinied, and the Captain could
only recall them to their duty by agreeing
that beans should be drawn from box, and
the one on whom the black bean fell should
be killed for food for the others. Officers
crew and passengers, women and children,
everybody on board, were included in this
horrible lottery, and with heavy hearts the
famished emigrants came on deck to partlcl'
pate. The beans were wrapped in pieces OF pa:
per. 1t was agreed that none of them should
be opened until noon on the day Of the draw
ing, so that, if during the two hours that in
tervened, a ship or land were sighted, the
doom of the drawer Of the fatal black bean
might be averted to the eleventh hour. The
Captain was the first man to put his hand
into the death box. He drew it out, and un-
able to master his anxiety to know his fate at
once, he tore off the covering and discovered a
white bean. He was saved. AS the officers,
one by one, drew beans from the box, they
followed the Captains example, pulled of
the paper, and showed white beans. The
first man among the crew who came
down from the masthead, secured white
bean, and resumed his lofty post: After the
crew had all drawn, the black bean still re-
mained in the box, and it seemed clear that
the victim was to be found among the pas.
sengers. They drew by families, and COM
paratively few beans remained in the box.
Mr.. Jones with his wife and children ad-
vanced to take their chances. The father
and mother drew white beans, and the little
boy, George. was led to the box. He scarce
ly comprehended the full nature Of the terrible
ordeal he was undergoing, but he plunged his
little hand in and drew out bean. His
father hastily snatched it from him, and was
about to tear off the paper when the shout Of
"Land ashore!" came from the masthead
Amid the tears, laughter and feeble cheers
of those on board, Mr.. Jones cast the bean
into the sea, and the future Count never
knew whether it was white or black one
But the Jones family were not destined to
escape unscathed from the hardships of that
disastrous voyage. Before the land that the
keen eyes of the sailor at the masthead had
discerned far away was much nearer, the
little girl had died in her mothers arms, Of
starvation. Soon afterward, the youngest son
Richard, showed signs of failing intellect, and
before the passengers landed, he was violently
insane. He recovered in some measure after
few months, but the Count used to say that
up to the time of his death, he was subject
more or less to mental depression and mild
lunacy, the result of his suferings during
those eighty-6ve days. AS for the eldest son
George who lived to be the Count Joannes
he was quite blind when he went ashore al
Boston, and six weeks elapsed before he re-
gained his sight.