Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1886-05-01
A NARROW ESCAPE.

tSgll y kS@it AG' " IN 'f1Gat - 49,
one morning quietly reading the paper in
my Office the following advertisement met
my eye:
@OHE THOUSAND DOLLARS RE
ward will be paid to any person who IAN
give precise information asto how the late
James Smithson met his death on board
the William Curtis on the night of the
sd of August, 1854. Address,
JACOB SHARPER, ESQ,
No. 246 Fulton street, New York"
You will wonder why this made me
torn pale and sick, but it did, and for this
reason: | knew the late James Smithson.
l was his fellow-passenger on board the
William Curtis, II | was IL ef the per-
sons who last saw him alive. We were
coming from England. J. to make my fort
une, heBto return TO his native land; and /
had felt Tor him ell instructive repugnance
that / took little pains to conceal.
| remember one day after dinner we
were sitting in sulky silence over our
grog, when q sudden lnrch of the vessel
sent the scalding fluid out of my glass all
over his clothes.
Course you" he exclaimed, you awk-
ward fool-what are you doing? Can't
you hit out like a man If you want to vent
your spleen, and not throw boiling water
over ME like a dangerous IDIOT"
! had already began to explain, but was
silent for a little after this attack, and
then merely said: There was no inten-
ton to insult or vent spleen; the occur
renee was merely accidental"
Hang accidents! I've found accidents
happen very conveniently sometimes; and
| you shall pay for this as soon as ever we're
out of this accursed tub. Ii you are a man
which doubt-you shall give me a meet
ing for this, ! promise you; Tll try whether
you can handle a pistol as we'll as you can
throw glasses, you cowardly Britisher."
"If you use such language to me Il--"
"Throw another, won't you? you plucky
bantam"
81 was maddened beyond all endurance,
and | rushed at him and struck him full in
the face as he stood up. He fell, N as he
rose drew out his revolver and shot. at me.
l stopped, and the ball shattered the swing
compass i'll the skylight; he raised the re-
yolyer again, but the steward md captain
having by this time arrived, the pistol was
taken from him.
explained the circumstances, and the
captain at once said that unless we would
| give our word not to renew the dispute in
any way he would put us both under lock
and key.
After some little demur we agreed to
this.
Invent to my state-room and turned in,
and determined that | would not again
speak to the brute. In the morning ! met
the captain at breakfast, and he cautioned
me in a friendly way against Smithson.
"Mind what you're about; don't give him
a chance. He would think no more of
dropping you overheard or putting a knife
into you han l of cutting this bread.
Don't you go too near the rail, and see that
there is a bit of rope over the side if you
go forward; and if you do find yourself a
mile away over the quarter some fine
night don't say / didn't warn you. Clear
away steward"
"Mr. Smithson hasn't set down yet, SIR
aNeyermind; he's sulking, perhaps; clear
away
l went on deck and zane down again at
dinner time. We were all seated-that is
the chief officer, the captain and myself
when we missed Smithson.
Call Mr.. SmithSop, steward. We
mustn't spoil our dinner with his sulks.n
The steward opened his door and came
back.
Hes not there, SIR
"Not there? Where Is he, then? Has
anybody seen him this ~morning2n.
Inquiry was made and no one knew
anything about him. The men had seen
him go forward at about eight bells, but
no one had set eyes on him since.
Where can he besn said the captain.
3He must be in thu ship, unless you took
my hint the wrong way and put him ous
of the way, youngster."
u can assure you | never left my room
until breakfast time his morning cap
tain"
I'm a further search we failed to find
any trace OF the missing man except one.
Alarge brass Delaying pin. was discovered
Jammed betV'een the iron that supported
the starUoaru forechains and the vessels
side. 1t must have been thrown over
board, and by one of those mysterious
chances that sometimes occur, lodged it.
self there. 1t could not have been put
there, for the man who saw it could NOT
reach it without the assistance of two
others. 1t was brought on deck, taken to
the cabin and examined. Nothing was
found on it; it was as clean as if it had
never lett the rack. Where did it come
froms 1t was soon found to be one of the
spare pins round the foremost rail. The
two things looked like foul play. Icouii
not deny it. The steward remembered
that Mr.. Smithson drank a good deal after
l left b cabin the night before, and the
man at the wheel thought he seemed a
little unsteady, but he lost sight of him as
he went forward,
The entries were made in the log, and
life went on in its old course, except that I
was regarded with a suspicion and mis-
trust that made me envy the victim or
Suicide who calmly slept in the sea be-
meath me.
The voyage ended, the whole story was
laid before the authorities at New York.
and after a merely formal examination I
was told that there was no evidence
against me, and / left the place, yowine
never willingly to set foe in it again.
1t is no wonder, then, that knowing all
this, | should be startled to see this adver-
t1sement. 1t had for me the horrible fas-
clnation of the snake. knew that out of
1t wonld spring misery and trouble unend-
ing, and yet l could not take my eyes off
1t. The ten years interval shrank up into
a dream time, and the feeling was as if I
had but That heard the stewards
| voice: Hes not there, sir" 1t upset me-
for the day. l could do nothing.
mad not long to wait the fIlfillment of
/ my prophetic feelings. About a fortnight
after the date of the advertisement. I was
waited on by an extremely polite person,
who said: Il ave called to settle this little
account of Messrs. Wilson Brothers. VIII
you give me a receiptss
SGT at the desk, wrote out the receipt.
end signed it: he looked over my shoulder
all the time. When l turned the line I'M
der my name, and put the dot at the end.
he touched me on the ShOulder and aoid.