Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1882-08-20
AN Old TAR's TALE.

aOne day in March, 1863, while we
wore Iyin' in port off Bunbury, in ives
fern Australia, / was ashore, and 1 see
nice-lookin' young fellow. about twenty
four years old, eyein' ae pressy snaIP'
Watchin' his chance ne said 20 me-
Are you mate Of that whaier?
eyes" said /.
'Then says he Has the priest said
anything to you aboutme? =
MNo,' says I.
"Well' lies agoin' to- says be- and
SThe priest follored right along, and
asked me If I'd ever seen 1hsf young
man before.
WiNeyer, to my knowledge, says L.
srThen he told me it was Jack Brown,
a Fenian prisoner; that he had been con,
fined in Dartmoor prison in England
for seven months and then sent to Aus.
tralia for life that he'd been there soin
on eleven months, and wanted TO get on.
And the upshot of it was the priest Of
fered me 500 to get him Off,
az told him I didn't want his money.
III he'd been o thief or murderer L
wouldn't have tried to help him any.
vay; but couldn't make cut that he'd
committed any crime; so the priest ana
/. we fixed 1t the next day, when my
ship got under way l should PICK MIN
up i'm the yawl-and did.
'sIt beat all how quick everybody on
board took to that fellow-he was so
pleasant and such u handsome young
chap.
"Well come August We had TO put
into Rodriques for water. 1t was that
or die of thirst. That's not far from
Mauritius, in the Indian ocean.
"By this time the news OF Jacks es-
cape had got ahead of US and was
known all over the world. 1t was just
before sunset when a boat from shore
came alongside, and her officers board
ed us.
"Jack was standin' just as near me As
be to you, when the officer up, ana
says to me; 'Haveyou got anaboard
by the name of -"
~ kind of thought minute-it SEEM
ed as if twas about an hour-and then
saws, No. says |, very quiet, we did
have a fellow aboard by the name OF
Brown, but he died two months ago, AZ
Sava.'
He looked at me minute; then
says he, We'll, you've got some ticket
of.Ieave men aboard, haven't you"
II was mighty glad he asked me
that: for thought ii would take up his
attention and give me little time to
think.
"I can't say as to that says /.
-" WELL says he, call your men up
forward, and we'll soon find out
Ono says I; Il don't want nothin'
todo with that kind of business. You can
look for yourselves, if you like
$50 he and his gang went forward
and haulded out the stowaways, ana
put 'em aboard their boat, and pulled
ashore, appearin' to be satisfied.
"As soon as they were gone, JACK,
half crazy, says to me: My God, it's
all up with me. They'll come back iol
me, but I'll never be taken alive.
~ knew he meant what he said, FOL
the priest had told me he'd tried To
commit suicide, and IL he couldn't es.
cape and determined to kill himself.
called him down; told him to go be-
low and keep out of sight, and I'd try
to think ND something, butt says J.
YOU shan't be taken rs long as can
stand by you'll.
IL know very we'll that as soon ~
they got ashore those ticket-of.leavt
men would blow on him, and l really
didn't know what to do. Things look
cd black. :,
sBy this time it got to be dark, and
sat down by myself To think. Then
remembered kind of locker up stairs
where the steward sometimes KEEP th'
/ dishes he wasn't usin'. 1t was shet by
pushin' one of the stairs right over 1t
knew they'd never find him there
| Then went to Jack and told him II
| 90 and find o little grindstOne ther,
was on the ship. while ] KEEP the e.,l me- T..
| stop a spell and talk with the steward
and when be heard me talkin' he mus
throw the grindstone and his hat over
Loard, give shrek and then run ant
| stow himself i'm the locker.
"Wben i came along back I stopped
and says to the steward, q don
know what will happen when thos'
fellows come aboard tomorrow morn
| ing. Jack will never be taken alive
"He'll kill some Of 'em and kill him
self: he threatened to do it in Australia.
"Just then we heard great splasi
and scream. whats that" says |
" It's Brown says the steward; 'he'
thrown himself overheard
Everybody heard it. The Captain
[ was of that day. rushed aft, told tn,
| other officers and ordered out the boats
The men felt terribly. Every one o
'em was fond Of him. We got fou
boats and swept that harbor for hours
| / was the last boat in. When 1 go
aboard found the second mate leanin
over the ships side, cryin' bitterly
He's gone, poor fellow! Here's hi
hat, says he, the men have just picked
it up. We never shall see him again.
"There wasn't wink of sleep OF
board that night. The next morning
put the flag at half-mast. Everybod.
was solemn as death. Jacks wet ha
lay on the hatchway. They all though
he was dead.
1.-THE captain came Off to see wha
wasthe matter. | told him the story
how we heard the splash, got out thu
boats and picked up Browns hat
Right in the midst of it the officer
from Rodriques come aboard to claim
their man. We told 'em the story ant
showed 'em the wet hat. They nevel
offered to search the vessel. They saw
how bad the men felt, and they be
licved it all and pulled off.
| Late that afternoon We got our wa
ter all aboard and bore away to sea.
waited till we was almost out o. sigh
o. land, then / says to the captain,
guess I'll 60 below and get a cigar
went, and hauled the step away; AM
there was Brown all in a heap. I cal
see that fellows face right before m
now, white as chalk, eyes as black a
night. He looked like wild man.
"What now?" he says, tremblingal
over.
"'Come out of that" saysI.
What do you mean% says he.
| Don't stop to ask questions, man
says /. Get out of that and come up
you're safe for this time. Land l
almost out Of sight
HE crawled out and We went OF
deck together. Now says /, go ant
shake hands with the captain
Il went to the side of the ship AM