News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-10-21
WHY WE DIDN'T Do 1T.
A Blockade Running Story Told by tho
Second Mate.

SccOnu hdLe'
In the spring Of 1868, just after my
return from voyage to China and back
in British barque, | was loating around
I1verpool to wait for a berth when one
William Savage, an old sailor mate of
mine, run across me one evening and
offered to ship me in steamer which had
run the blockade into Charleston three
times. and was about to attempt
fourth trip She was a fair-sized side
wheeler called the Isle of Wight, and
had nearly finished her loading. She
carried a crew Of about twenty men,
and Savage was kind enough to say that
should be second mate, and that the
pay would be the highest l ever re-
ceived.
In a day or two I found that the
steamer was loading with two or three
field batteries, two large guns for crul-
sers, and an immense amount of other
war material. When everything was
aboard heard it said that steamer and
cargo were worth full million dollars,
and we were to touch at Nassau and
take on 3, 900 muskets, lot of hospital
stores, and some odds and ends badly
wanted by the Confederates. Our crew
we're riff-raff set, with nothing of the
sailor about them, while the Captain
was a typical John Bull named Graham
heard it said that our venture was
known to the American Minister, and
that be promptly notified his govern
ment, but no cruiser would have any
business with us until we left Nassau.
We made that port i'll due season, every
thing working smoothly, and although
we took in our additional cargo inside
of twenty-four hours the steamer delayed
her sailing to the fifth day, on account
of q Yankee man of-war lowering on
the coast in hopes to nab us. Mean
while the crew had jolly time among
the taverns, and Savage and myself bore
our full part. 1t was one evening when
we were both the worse for liquor that
he took me aside and began:
"M lillian, believe you 10 be relia-
BILE man. You are poor, and l can put
you in the way of hauling a snug
$50, 000
His language sobered me up and as
tonished me. He beat around the bush
for awhile and then came to the point,
which he stated as follows:
stHere's a steamer and cargo worth at
least $4,000. What's to prevent us
from selling her, making a Yankee
port and coming in for the prize mon
ey?"
"Why, the Captain and crew will
prevent" replied.
"The Captain may try to, but the
crew are all right. Pve sounded 'em to
o man: and they'll stick by me-
wouldn't it be mutiny and piracy ?''
Exactly. If any one of US are fools
enough to return to England we must
stand our chances. The Yankees will
be only too glad to welcome u.s."
10 my discredit, perhaps, 1 needed
but little urging to join the conspiracy,
and when we finally put to sea every
thing was ripe for the seizure. The pi-
lot, who was Southerner, was the only
man besides the Captain not in the plot.
Savage had sounded him a bit, but
found him loyal to the core, and gave
him up. 1t was arranged that the seiz-
ure should take place at midnight. At
that hour the pilot was asleep in his
berth, the captain doing with his
clothes on, and the steamer was running
through a calm sea, with the stars shin
ing overhead As the moment arrived,
Savage and l went down to secure the
Captain, while two others went to take
care of the pilot, The latter was the
one who got the start of us. The men
went down to find him just turning out,
and though they threw themselves upon
him he knocked them right and left and
got up stairs to the pilot house. There
he was attacked by the two men at the
wheel, but the row ended in his shoot
ing one stone dead and bouncing the
other out with a broken head. The
racket raised by the pilot when first as
saulted alarmed the Captain, and he
greeted us with a shower of bullets and
forced us out of the cabin, Savage being
shot in both the arm and leg.
Then began high old time. Every
man of us had a revolver and we divi-
ded off so as to keep the Captain below
and the pilot in his house. The engi-
neers and firemen quit their posts to
take a hand in. and in about an hour
the steamer Law idle on the sea, having
no longer any steam. We were now in
for it and bound to have the craft. We
could keep the Captain below, but we
must down the pilot. l should say that
one hundred bullets were fired into the
pilot house between midnight and day
light, but none of them wounded him.
In return he killed one man and wound
ed two. When daylight came we were
scattered about wherever we could find
cover, and we opened on him again. 1t
became evident, however, after we had
wasted good deal of lead that the
only way to get him out was to make
rush. Nobody wanted to head one, as
two or three men were certain to be
killed. We had him penned up, but
he had us rolling on the sea as helpless
as log.
1t was about nine o'clock, and we had
gone aft one by one for bite to eat,
when a Yankee blockader hove in sight.
Indeed, when we first saw her she was
only ten miles off Less than an hour
later she was alongside and we were all
prisoners. We told our story, claiming,
| believe, to have been melted to cap
ture the craft by patriotic motives, but
all the prize money which we got out of
it was three months in Jail apiece. Eth.
er the story didn't wash or the Yankee
commander didn't want to whack up on
his rich haul