The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1881-01-06
A Strange Story Of a Sea Captain.


Captain j. Niven, of Thorntown, In
diana, is grandson of Sir Hugh Niven,
of England, but his older brother got
shipped before the mast. After many
years he rose to be master of his vessel,
the Ramsey, and the famous mission
ary Adoniram Judson went to India
with him. Under his ministrations
Niven was converted and baptized in
Qangoon, Hindoostan. Soon afterward
the ship was struck by lightning and
destroyed. Niven made his escape to
England, where in 1916 he was en-
trusted with the ship Earl of Englanton,
built on the Earl's estate and sent by
him on her first voyage to the United
States. He was beset by a terrible
storm off Nantucket Island, and after
beating about all day and night in a
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 disobeyed him, 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 cart, "Stay aboard, -
and then, Filing off an oar.'' The
Captain followed these directions the
oar, with a line tied to it, was
cast off and caught with a fish
drail, and, by that means, cable was
rugged from the masthead to the rocks,
with 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 him to land. When he heard
that his six men were lost, he was tenn
porarily deranged and jumped again
into the boiling waters. Again they
rescued him and put him into custody
He was badly bruised and was a long
time recovering. The ship was tota
loss. He returned to Great Britain
where his friends again fitted him out
and he started whaling voyage in the
Pacific. There again his vessel went
to pieces in simeon and he returned
disconsolate, to Nantucket. His seafar
ng reputation was badly damaged
Indeed, it is probable that the red let
ter of bad luck'' was set opposite hi
name in the records of the commercial
marine of England and that he coulC
not have obtained another ship. A
any rate he resolved to face the sea nc
more, but to get as far from it as posi-
BILE in some quiet town in the middle o
the continent. So he started west OIL
foot with 81 in his pocket. Walkin!
the tow path of the Erie Canal, boat
man hailed him pleasantly with ''Hello
you are two good-looking man to b
walking the tow-path. Jump aboard.
The Captain jumped aboard, and mad
himself SO useful in syiicing ropes ant
putting things in shape that he wa
gladly carried to Buffalo. There b
got job to rig sloop for the lake, an
received enough for it to take him t
Cleveland. There he shoveled sand O.
the new railroad at 81 a day, was pre-
! NOTED to the charge of a gang at S1.2
day, was advanced in the winter t
be schoolmaster, became a farmer b
slow degrees, and is now president {
the First National Bank in Thorntowr
Ind. He has handsome home know
as " Chrome HiI;' but he occasional
visits Nantucket, and lives over agai
+, his perils and his escapes.