The Iola register., 1881-09-16
BEWITCHED IN MID.OCEAN.
''Thrice the brinded cat hath mewed."


/.
''Thrice the brinded cat hath mewed."
Old superstitions, like old religions, take a
great deal of killing. About no four-footed
creatures have religious beliefs or supersti-
tiOns ciung 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 fireside. 1t is difficult, however,
to believe that, in this quarter of the nine
teenth century and among sane Englishmen,
pussy should 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 unusua ly stormy and strange
passage from Baltimore.
We had a 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 to the mate, who has sailed
with me in the Seamew q many years, "home
in thirty days. Eh.'
"Humph,n said Jack, ''maybe." Jack was
a Scotchman, and cautious about an opinion.
Well, on March IA q have reason to remem-
ber the date. little after tweive O'Clock, in
latitude forty-One degrees north ndlOngitude
fifty-three west q had just taken our bearings
and remember 'em), l was sweeping around
with my glass careless like when sighted a
ship on our starboard bow. l had good
lOChs SilC Was u DdTh, duu Was uSluS SlAudlS
of distress. called Jack.
"Jack," said !, when he had looked, s'what
do you think? We must bear down on her,
"Humph," said Jack. gay, suppose"
We shortened sail and bore down. We came
bark. Presently, though, 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! Ahoy!' in a half-cracked
kind of voice. This was strange, and
tramped up and down, impatient to hear what
they wanted.
GIVE are starvngr' That's what the Cap
tain that stood up in the middle said. "We
are starving" said he. ''The Lily of Ply
mouth, outward bound for Baltimore
We got 'em up the side. l took the master
into the cabin and sent the men fOr'ard. Lord!
to see that man drink and eat With delir-
ious 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
this 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; some
times 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 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 dro1 ,
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 binnacle.
"N e ate my dog last!" And the poor fel-
low burst into tears. GAS sure as fate" said
he, looking oddly at me, ''we have been be-
!. Bewitched!'' said I. "what. now-what
makes you think of such a thing:'
s'Ah, well," said he, " don't know. But
we'll see."
After that he was in a hurry to return to his
ship. We filed their long boat and boat of
our own with all the provisions we thought we
could spare (and there were thirteen Of 'em,
an awkward number to feed). Jack went
with our boat, and when he came back, says
he to me:
"That skipper's not bad sort, though he
be Cardiff man. He's sent We this keg O.
spirits-and it's maybe as well out o. their way
now and, what dye think! four bottles o.
champagne in the basket here! They had
thought o. saving them for land sight, but
he's sent them to you"
We looked in the basket of champagne at
once. The bottles lay sloped in, with their
heads out. Underneath was lifting packing
straw, and underneath that-oh, Jacks face
and language when he saw tia tabby, a
brinded cat, lying curled up asleep.
..O!" cried Jack. go, the sly, ungrateful
devil. This is your Welshman, your Taffy
This is what IL thought he was bewitched
VII! And he's been afraid to make away VII
it! So he sends the witchcraft here! The
coward he isl But Wen play Jonah's trick
and chance the whale"
so he seized the cat and swung out his arm
to toss it overheard; when my little Maggie,
that sailed with me this voyage, and that
scarce understood his words, but understood
his action, caught his wrist and cried:
80, no. please, Jack! Give it to meo'
Now Jack was very fond OF her, SO he ar
rested his act at her bidding at once; but he
said: sIt's bewitched, though, Maggie lass.
If don't believe in that sort O thing, there's
them here that do," with glance at the men
for'ard.
"Ay. sir, there be-" said Dick Sandys, an
old seaman who had been standing by all the
while helping to haul up the boat by the davit
line and keeping as had observed, sidelong
eve on the basket. "There's them aboard this
here Seamew. and don't say as what amt
one on em myself, as III straight of begin to
think the rare luck of this present wage is
gone. But they'll dread worser luck, sir, If ye
throw overheard brinded cat as has been car
ried aboard across water"
s'Is that so!" asked Jack.
sYes," said /, in low voice. i've heard
that before. But" said aloud, and looking
at Dick and trying to work off my uneasiness
in a Joke, show can you have sea- or any
other NEW withouta cat?"
.sThis cat" said Jack, scarcely looks as Il
she would new again. Just look at her-skiu
and bone"
strokino and the wretched creature tried tC
etond and tc walk rubbing against Maggie's