, 1888-01-21

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said; but the man only practiced on a
small scale what many large grain opera
tors do On n large scale when they get the
chance.
The first time our grcenhorns stood on
the slippery incline of the Ladona's for
ward deck, with ravenous waves surging
past them shoreward, or dashing up the
main deck toward them with an angry
swash and roar. the land behind seemed
a mile away. 1t was difficult to accus-
tom themselves to work, with this briny
uproar about their ears, ever in mild
weather.
The goods were hauled up through the
forward hatch. Tho men had to lower
themselves into three feet of water, that
grew deeper toward the waist of the
ship, and grope, half submerged, about a
dark, Shiny hole for whatever they might
find. Afterward they had 10 dive through
the second hatchway to the lower hold,
securing themselves by q line fastened to
the waist, with the other end held by
their mates overhead. The echoing din
of the breakers outside, the sense Of
weakness and of loneliness down there
amid the darkness and the brine, with,
perhaps, unknown monsters of the deep
lowering near, tried their nerves severely,
though practiced beach combers made
light of it all.
One day an agent of the underwriters
arrived, and announced that, rs all the
wrecking so far lone was illegal, he
would take possession of the goods and
assume future charge of operations him
self. He was Immediately surrounded
by q clamorous mob, that soon began to
howl for blood, or an undisturbed recog-
milton of their rights.
The country was isolated, the goods
perishable, and the beach combers des-
perate. The agent concluded that dis
erection was the better part of valor and
departed, Illuminating direful threats re-
garding certain forthcoming legal pen
alties which were never afterward heard
of by the ones threatened.
The first Sunday at the wreck was sad
dened by the discovery of the body of an
unknown boy, minus an arm knawed off
by sharks. The sickening thrill that
comes over one, on finding a corpse
washed up from the sea, can hardly be
described. Death has n forbidding near
ness, rs though the sightless face turned
upward toward the sky had opened its
dumb mouth and said: lit might have
been thou" One remembers the peti-
ton for deliverance from sudden death,
and men, otherwise goddess, reverently
bear h unfortunate to his grave among
the and hills, and for the rest of the
day go about subdued and reflective.
Several barrels of sugar, hut little dam
aged by their long submersion, were
taken from the Ladona's hold, aud were
the cause Of a laughable affair. Old Mos4
Moore, being an old backwoods r~ecluse,
had camped by himself at a point somo
sixty yards in tho rear of the other beach
combers. One night they were aroused
from their musquito bars by shouts from
that direction, and the sound of boxes or
barrels being upset. In a minute or so
old Messy himself burst into their midst,
with his long hair and undergarments
flying.
Boys" he gasped, "the devil himself
is over thar playin' thunder with every
thing"
But while he was explaining the deep
bay of Old Foot, n veteran hound that
had been Moss Moore's inseparable COM
panion for years, was heard, echoing
down the marsh lying beyond the saw
palmettos at the rear of the sand dunes
bordering the beach,. That familiar sound
recalled the old man to his senses.
Perhaps hit some varsRint after ALL"
said he.
A dozen half clad men were now
standing round bare footed, and with
suCh firearms rs they could lay their
hands on. All started en- masse for old
Mossy's camp, and found, by the light
Of a hastily gathered torch or two, q
barrel Of sugar upset over his bed and
the sane confusedly marked by clawliko
indentations not unlike human feet.
''It's a woody devil, and black at that, "
quoth Boy Blue, who loved hunting
better than eating any time.
With many a whoop and laugh at old
Mossy's expense, the men scattered them
selves over marsh and scrub, following
Old Foot's cheering tones, who seemed to
be making it lively for the object of pur-
suit. In ten minutes fifty half naked
beach combers were careering wildly
over the sand hills, like q tribe Of wild
Arabs. Now and then q shot would be
flied. Finally, half a mile down the
beach, the lover of stolen sweets was
laid low by two shots from O party of
Bahamians, one of whom owned q Win
chester and made good use of it.
1t was one Of the black bears, then
common enough in that region, but it
was so lean they could hardly blame the
poor brute, who, made bold by hunger,
had invaded old Mossy's sugar barrel, and
tumblcd it and himself over the old fell
lows bed and person. The master, sud
donly reused from slumber, fled in ter
ror; but the dog had courageously put
the bear to flight at once.
Our party continued their wrecking
operations for n week longer, when an
event occurred that at once terminated
all desire OF the part Of many to further
risk themselves on board the Ill fated
steamship.
A heavy s~outheaster had blown for two
days, during which no trips to the wreck
could be made, while the heavy cable
stretching from the vessel to the shore
was half the time invisible beneath the
great green "~combers," some of which
burst upward into towering high masses
abaft the stump of the f.remast and fall
over the bow in laundering sheets of
foam. The third night the wind lulled,
then shifted lightly to the west, blowing
off shore, so that by low tide the next
day the sea had greatly fallen, though
there was considerable dead swell on"
1t was not long before eight or ten of
the Younger men were strung along the