The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-01-29
THE GHOST OF THE CAROLUS
MAGNUS.

81 SUPPOSE, SIR" said the Old Sailor
rehectively, "that there amt nobody as
don't believe in the supernatural. No
body never see no ghost, leastwise no.
body in his material senses, cause of
course arter prolonged spree men see
lots of things that never had no exist
ence; but no man in the full possession
of his faculties ever seen a ghost, and all
ghostly appearances ginerally are salts
factorily explained, Notwithstanding
which the very next that turns up are
believed in, jist the same as if all the
others had been genuine. Folks livin'
ashore where there's graveyards and
SIGH may be excused for believin' as
them as they've tucked away under
ground might turn up agin, but there
amt no excuse for sailormen supposin'
as chap as they'd slid off of plank
and sailed away and left could ever git
aboard agin, and yet, if you'd believe
me, sailors amt bit better in this
respect than people as lives ashore.
knows a many cases of SIGH, and partic-
ularly one as happened aboard of the
Carolus Magnus, which were into, be-
in bound from Liverpool to New York
in the month of August, in the year 1912,
or thereabouts.
1.-The sklpper's name were Jackson,
quiet, steady sort of man, turned of
forty, and the mate were a young fellow
of the name of Williams, as were dread
full fond of strikin' porpusses, the iron
bein' always out on the martingale.
She were old-fashioned hooker, as
had in her day been swell packet-ship,
but when | were into her she were what
old Betty Bark, a old lady as used to
furnish supplies to ships in Liverpool,
used to call 'transom' ship, meanin'
translucent, you know.
GO She be to have a poop-cabin the af-
ter part of which were bulkheaded off
for ladies' cabin, while she were in the
passenger trade, but when 1 were into
her she didn't carry no passengers and
the old man took the whole of this here
ladies' cabin for his room, givin' him a
nice large apartment, well lighted from
skylight above and with plenty of VEN
tilation from old-fashioned starn win
dows, which was so high up that they
could be kept open except in very bad
weather. She had another thing, too,
which went out of fashion in the newly
built ships, and that were rudder chains,
somethin' that never hadn't ought to
have gone out of fashion, as many and
many ship has lost her rudder by not
havin' 'em. In this ship, short iron
tiller were morticed into the after part
of the rudder, with double eye on its
after end into which the rudder chains
was shackled.
1t were along about seven bells in
the last dog-watch and jist afore dark
one day, when there came q school OF
porpusses under the bow, she bein' a.
reachin' along on wind on the port
tack, a-headin' about nor'west by west
under all sail, and a-goin' about five or
six knots, bein' jist to the BASTARD of the
Banks. Jim Baker, about as smart a
young chap as you'd most ever see,
jumped out onto the back ropes for to
try and strike fish, and the rest of the
watch tailed onto the line for to be ready
to pull him in:
"However it happened nobody never
knowed; but Jim missed his holt as he
thrust his iron into porpus, and away
he went overheard. The alarm was
Civ at once and the helm was put
down, and quick as we could do it we
let 60 the fore tack and bovine, fore
sheet and lee fore braces, and let the
head yards run in aback, stoppin' her
almost instantly. The boats was all
slowed inboard, as were the custom
them times, there bein' no law then
obligin' to have davits, and suppose it
took matter of fifteen minutes afore
we got boat into the water. The man
at the wheel said he heerd Jim sing out
two or three times right in the wake,
and we pulled in that direction for a
while and then circled all around the
ship, but there were no moon and ii
were pretty dark; SEEM him were out
of the question and we never heerd
nothin', and so arter s'arch of hour
we Civ up and come aboard, dividin
his dunnage pretty fair amongst the
chaps in his watch, the other watch
claimin' but not bein' allowed
alt were my wheel that night from
ten to twelve, she havin' a open whee
on the poop deck. About five bells the
old man came up after companion
which led up from his room and said tC
the mate:
"'Mr. Williams, have you heerd any
thin unusual'
"'No, SIR says the mate.
{" I'm afeard, says the old man, "a
the loss of that man has sort of unset
tied me. Sartin' it are l amt been {
drinkin' anythin', but just as sure a.
you live heerd that poor Teller hail the
ship and ask for to be took aboard
"You was dreamin', sir, l guess,
says the mate.
"'No, hadn't been asleep at all.
was layin' in my bunk broad awake anC
all of a suddint 1 heerd jist as plain as
hear my own voice now, only it wer'
fainter, like he were pretty well tuck