Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-01-04

NAMED upon the island. There was
wood to be picked up along the shore.i
and some small trees and bushes grew
upon the island. so that he had no great
trouble in getting a supply of fuel.
AS to shelter, he found this already
provided for him, as there were some
Sheds used by the fishermen who Il axe
periodical visits to the place for the
purpose of catching and curing fish.
These fish were q species of mackerel,
which they cure by splitting them, as is
customary with Yankee fishers, and
then lay them upon the dry ground to
cure, In addition to the mackerel is a
kind of shark, which is very fat, and is
taken and melted down for the oil, the
bones being saved and made an article
| of traffic and used in manufactures.
The large iron kettles used in this bust
ness were sitting in their positions Just
as left at the end of the previous fishing
season, and by putting some sea-watcr
in one of them and drying it out again
by means of fire, Mr. Wohl secured a
supply of salt, He found plenty of
good oysters at low tide, and in basinsI
among the rocks many fish were lett in
a condition to be easily taken. There
was thus no danger of absolute starva-
ton. Being thus thrust into this utter
solitude. a species of lethargy or tor
por seemed to seize upon the steward,
which almost bereft him of the use of
his faculties for some eight or ten days,
but it gradually Wore away and he
found him. elf again possessed of his
normal mental activity and physical
vigor. He soon found that for him the
supreme virtue YVES patience since to at
tempt escape by any effort OF his own
making was quite out of the question.
He saw that if he lived his rescue was
a mere matter of time, as the people
who were in the habit of visiting the
island would certainly return. At least
he had the best Of reasons for expecting
them to do SO, since they had left prop
erty there and the place afforded them
profit. He 500 became tired of his
fish diet and looked about for some
means Of varying it. The island is
some twenty miles in extent in one
direction and is destitute of any game.
There were. however, some small land
birds sometimes to be seen, but without
a gun he could not secure them. After
enduring this sort Of life for some fifteen
weeks the japanese boats arrived and
the steward rushed to meet them. AL
though unable to speak an ineligible
word to these people he grasped one by
the hand and found it more welcome
even than that of a brother in a for
efgn land In short, these people were
kind to the stranger and did all that
they could to make him comfortable,
and in a few days the first boat started
for Teobe and he went with it, and
thence to Yokohama. Reaching that
city he was protected by the American
Consul and sent by that official to this
city, where he arrived a few days ago.
Wohl is a very well-informed man and
repeats the story Of his adventure in a
very entertaining manner, despite his
foreign accent and imperfect command
of the English language. He has two
mother]ess children living near San
Francisco, and he has set about the
business of gaining a support for them
by commencing again as steward on
board of one of the Northern coast col
liers, with the captain of which he has
long been acquainted. The story as
told by it's hero does not equal the
famous picture of Robinson Crusoe, as
painted BY the brilliant pen of Defoe,
but in the very important particular of
reliability It far surpasses it. being, as
the reader may rest assured, entirely
true. The genius which changed Sci
kirk into Crusoe, removed an island TIC
the opposite side of a continent and
magnitied a lonely life of four years q
term of two decades, and called tribes
OF warlike cannibals to engage in dis
tant and unnatural expeditions, is quite
too fertile to- be lightly challenged
ANa California.