The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1888-12-06
SUNK BY A METEOR.
An Old Sailors Account of a Re-
markable Incident.
A Mysterious Ship Scuttled BY
a Fiery Aerolite.

etoA NoiuStoh, III oiA SaAkOE VI Olu
Francisco, who has cruised in every
ocean on the face of the globe, but
whose soafaring day, arc nearly over,
because his joints are growing stiff and
his eyes weak with age, was asked by
New York Sun correspondent what
wastho strangest thing he ever saw at
sea. The old man mused for few
moments. and then said:
"We wero becalm, d in tho Pacific
about nine or ten degrees north of the
equator, and, if 1 recollect right, in
something like 1873 degrees west longi-
tude. The Antelope lay there like
log, rolling on tn, swell fit to make
nan sick. Tho sails Tapped against
:ho mast with dull. booming sounds,
md tho only draught OF air you could
bel was what they made. Tho water
was like molten lead, tapping heavily
against her sides. II you never werc
in any of those calms, you can have no
idea how gloomy it makes man.
| 1T was the second night in the calm,
and the port watch was on deck. Tho
moon was shining clear; overy thing was
still, but for the creaking noises always
about ship afloat, and as there was
nothing to keep lookout for except
Indications of breeze, which didn't
teem likely to come along, although
we had puckered our lips out of shape
whistling for it, the men were drows-
ing under the bulwark', and the man at
the wheel was snoring
II was leaning over the rail, looking
Rt q brigantine becalmed about three
miles away on our starboard quarter.
We hadn't spoken her, and didn't know
what she was or where she was from. l
could tell by the taper of her masts
hat she was American built, but that
vas all. She was trim little craft,
i md it was enough to break seaman's
leart the way she was wiped off the
flee OF tho earth that nj .ht. To be
sire, tho Antelope wasn't treated much
letter, few months later, but fire is
ne Of the things a sailor reckons
mong tho chances of his calling, and
many a good ship is burned at sea.
22t don't suppose any other craft
gs sdch a su lden and unnatural
fate in this world as that brigantine.
Mind, | don't say I know it never
happened before, because strange
things always are happening at sea,
land some of the strangest never get
told. Because whyl Men don't 1.-Two to
He'll EN-.
\ ''Well, l was leaning on the rail at
about six bells, with my cheek in my
palm, looking away where the bryan
ltine lay in the moonlight. The motion
lpf the bark on tho swell was slow and
kind of soothing, and had got sort of
half dreaming with the lazy roll of her,
when was startled broad awake by a
gbright light in tho sky. Looking up l
saw great bail of firo rushing down
Through the air on slant, and there
was dark cloul abovs. BY the time
III had hauled in the slack OF my mind
enough to know that it was shooting
lstar. the glare OF 1t got SO bright that
1.-THE light of the moon was of 40 more
account than slush lamp, and the stars
were put out altogether.
There was rushing, Kissing sound
in the air as the thing camc down.
When it got pretty near, the light al
most blinded me AID l could see moth
ing lut the fiery CLEAN of it on
tho water. 1t wasn't as long from the
time it hove in sight until it struck a,
| I've been telling how it looked. 1t
must have been travelling like cannon
ball, or maybe gool many more KIN OTIS
a minute. In the glare lost sight of
the brigautine. l heard crashing
sound, and the ball of fire disappeared,
leaving everything black before my
eyes for moment.
when l had blinked the right sight
back into my eyes and got used to the
moonlight, that SCENE ! pale and sickly,
! CLAN ced over tho starboarj quarter to
where tho brigantino had been, but
! there wasn't trace Of her to be seen.
could hardly believe my own eyes, al
though they wcr, good pair in those
days before the dust OF the sea had
dulled them, and l thought l must
have been bit daz,d by what had
happened and got confused in my bear
ings. But in no direction was so much
as spar il sight, aud off there on the
quarter there was rising and falling
of short waves, their tops catching the
CLINT of moon beams, that showed where
the shooting star had gone down into
the sea. That was where tn, brigan-
tine had been.
"The flash and roar of the falling
star had aroused the watch on deck, and
the men were gathered in group ly
the foremast, blinking their eyes and
wondering what had happened. They
had seen all that had and didn't know
what had made the great glare of light.
told them to look Tor the brigantinc,
and sent a man aloft to see II anything
could be made out where she had been.
They were just about struck dumb
when they saw the sea clear OF all craft
but our own. and asked me if the brig
antine had blown up. The man aloft
reported that he could not make out
anything.
They were taken all aback when
told what had happened, and being a
superstitious lot. as forecastle hands are
apt to be, they shook their heads and
mumbled amoa: h mselvos about the
| devii hahn N abroad