Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1881-08-17
From Belgravia.1
BEWITCHED IN MID-OCEAN.
CHAPTER [.
:" Thrice the brindled cat hath mewed,n

Old SuperSt1t1Ons, like old religions,
take great deal of killing. About no
fourfooted creature have religious beliefs
or superstitions chung more tenaciously
than about the cat, from the feline deity
OF Egypt, and the gaunt grimalkin of
the witches, to the tame tabby of our
Preside. 1t is difficult, however, to be-
lleve that, IN this quarter of the nine
teenth century and among sane English
men, pussy chould ever be an object of
fear and foreboding. Yet hear the story
OF my friend, the captain of the Seamew,
recently come into port after an unusual
~ stormy and strange passage from
Baltimore:
We had capital run for several DAYS.
After dropping down the river, we gave
her sheet across the cold belt of water
that lies along the coast, and out we
"swished . into the stream and away
along it.
"Jack, " says I to my mate, who has
sailed with me in the Seamew a many
years, home in thirty days. Eli ?''
Humph, said Jack, "maybe." Jack
was Scotchman, and cautious about an
opinion.
Well, on March Il q have reason to
remember the date) little after II
o'clock, IN latitude IL deg. north and
longitude 53 deg. west q had Just taken
our bearings and remember 'em), was
sweeping round with my glass careless
like when [ sighted ship on our star
board bow. / had good look; she was
barque, and was flying signals of dis
tress. / called Jack.
"Jack, said when he had looked,
hot N 10 L.
down on her, [ suppose ?'
"Humph,' said Jack. cay, sup
pose"
We shortened sail and bore down.
We came within hail, but nobody an
swered from the barque. Presently,
though, q boat was launched and pulled
toward US; but their pulling was weak
and "dippy."
Then man stood up in the middle of
the boat, tugged his coat off and waved
it, and sang out, ''Ahoy! Ahoyw in a
half-cracked kind of voice. This was
odd, and L tramped up and down, i'm
patient to hear what they wanted.
eve are starving y That's what the
captain that stood up in the middle said.
g We are starving" says he. "The
Lily of Plymouth, outward bound for
Baltimore
We got 'em up the side. took the
master into the cabin, and sent the men
for'erd. Lord to see that man drink
and eat With delirious eagerness, as
you might say, and yet afraid to eat too
fast or too much. He knew he must
keep In his awful appetite and still it
would keep breaking from him. He
told us their story in scraps between:
They had been provisioned for three
months, and that was their 125th day
out! The weather they had experienced
had been most peculiar not stormy, but
playful and perverse-like; sometimes
blowing this way, sometimes that, often
not blowing at all. Near eleven weeks
had gone by before they sighted Cape
Henry, and when they did, down came
a furious, sprawling nor'-wester, and
drove 'em out to sea again. And so they
had beaten about in adverse winds, of
course, ever since. Their last drop of
water and their last scrap of biscuit
went five days ago. Then they came
to cooking their boots, and sucking the
oil from the lamps-even from the bin
nacle.
GIVE ate my dog last !" And the
poor fellow burst into tears. s'As sure
as fate, said he, eve have been be-
witched."
"Bewitched ?" said I. '.What, now
makes you think of such thing"
"Ah, well, said he, 81 don't know.
But we'll see"
After that he was in hurry to return
to his ship We filed their boat and
boat of our own with all the provisions
we thought we could spare (and there
were thirteen of 'em, an awkward num-
Der to feed). Jack went with our boat,
and when he came back, says he to ne:
'tThat shippers not a bad sort, though
he be Cardiff man. He's sent YOU this
key O. spirits-and it's maybe as well out
O. their way now-and, what do you
think four bottles of champagne in the
basket here They had thought of saw
ing them for land sight, but he's sent 'em
to you"
We looked in the basket of champagne
at once. The bottles lay sloped in, with
their heads out. Underneath was a lit
tie packing straw, and underneath that
oh, Jacks face and language when he
saw ia tabby, a brindled cat, lay curl
ed up asleep.
"OhY' cried Jack. "Oh, the sly,
ungrateful devil This is your Welsh
an. your Tafyl This is what he
nught he was bewitched wi And he's
\ afraid to make away WI it! So he
the witchcraft here! The coward
But we'll play Jonah's trick, and
e the whale"
he seized the cat and swung out his
toss it overheard; when my little
e, that sailed with ne this voyage,
I'd scarce understood his words, but
stood his actions, caught his wrist
led.
i, no, please, Jack Give it to
Jack was very fond of her, so he
ed his act at her bidding at once;
e said, It's bewitched, though,
lie lass. If / don't believe in that
J thing, there's them here that do, -
glance at the men for'ard.
Ay. sir. there be" said Dick Sandvs.