Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1883-08-18

0o8tQ OokOk6 OlbuONOK IOUUQ RartlCulhx
favor with the 6pAniards, and in short
order the current of popular opinion
whirled around, so that those who had
used every effort to dissuade the Captain
from his undertaking suddenly became
its warmest supporters. The remainder
Of this narrative is best told in Capt
Boyton's words. tkft Ah
"On the 7th of January, 1877" he
says, II began my journey down the
Tagus. The weather was extremely
cold, and q dull leaden sky seemed to
the shivering throng around me omi-
nous of my fate. With many adieus
slowly padded from the shore into the
center Of the stream, which was shallow
and narrow. The senoritas on the
banks waved their bright-colored scarfs,
and 1 think I noticed some Of them
weeping. My joints were rather stiff
from want of practice, and to restore
warmth to my body I rapidly increased
the power Of my stroke. Jagged stones
were distributed with rather too prod
igal hand, as thought, in the course I
was totake, and in my anxiety to keep my
eyes fixed on the dear friends lining the
shore against these several times
bumped my head with unpleasant We
locity. Too soon bend in the stream
shut out the group from view. Left to
my own reflections, began to specu-
late on the chances OF success or failure.
I thought of my distant home, and
SILVER crept through me as seemed to
see with startling distinctness my up
turned body, pulseless and inanimate,
tossed high on some barren rock by o
treacherous rapid. I cannot tell why
my mind ran on such horrible ideas.
Neither before nor since have I felt the
same degree of doubt, fear, INDIGESTION,
perplexity. In my little tender I car
ried the usual supply of precautionary
articles. had plenty Of food-but of
such quality In water-tight bag
we're piece of dried meat-it might
have been horse flesh, from its cohesive
ness; about three pounds of a species OF
hard-t tack as obstinate as rock, and q
dozen losves of alleged bread, soaked to
responsiveness in rancid oil. As I ban
quoted on these dainties 1 consoled my
self with the trite maxim that visitors to
Rome should model their actions after
the example of that city's inhabitants.
"The Tagus is perhaps the most re-
markable river 1 ever navigated. left
Toledo, in Spain, and padded down
through that country and Portugal to
the Atlantic ocean, distance Of $50
miles. For 700 miles it is not naviga-
BILE for vessels, but winds in an cratic
and-to me-annoying manner through
the most weird scenery that Spain pos
sesses. Between Toledo and the ocean
it's descent is $500 feet. At its source
| and for short distance down its shores
are lined with luxuriant trees and
grasses, but soon these utterly disap-
pear, giving way to arid and stony
banks, which in turn grow into precip-
itous mountain sides. For the first
three days padded along satisfactory
| lily, but as the number of days since
began my journey increased my troubles
augmented. Then my course wound
through continued series of canyons,
whose gloomy walls were in places so
high and steep that they almost met and
nearly hid the sunlight from the yawn-
ing chasm beneath. Toward night it
required no great stretch of fancy for
me to imagine that I was being swiftly
carried along through mysterious pas
sage. The river was studded with
powders, hurled from the mountain tops
by fearful storms, and often as was
bowled along under the pressure of the
roaring wind and rushing current was
thrown against one of these obstacles
and my senses nearly shaken from me.
$40 increase my peril the river was
full of falls and rapids of unusual vio-
lence. In places a shallow current would
dart toward the rocky mountain side and
then turn at sharp angle and merge in
to deep and peaceful sheet of water.
blessed these Ravens for they afforded
me q chance of taking much-needed
rest. Looking into their clear depths I
could see hideous fish darting about,
but the bottom was fathomless pit.
Words are wanting to picture the lone
illness of my situation. For ten days
saw not q shrub, not blade of grass,
not single sign of mans abode. My
diet was nauseating and felt with
alarm that 1 was gradually losing my
strength.
"One day, it was the twelfth of my
journey, as [ was floating on the bosom of
q sort of lake, suddenly was plunged
head-first over fall and struck with
such force against the PERCEPTIONS wall
of the canyon that lost consciousness.
Happily my rubber suit saved me from
what would have been otherwise GER
tain death. recovered my senses after
an interval, 1 know not how long, and,
with prayer on my lips, was about to
resume my voyage, when to my horror
1 found that my tender was lost 1t
had been sucked into whirlpool, prob
ably, and the current was rapidly bear
ing me away from the scene. L was
nearly frantic. My tender was gone,
my hopes were blasted, my life was not