San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-05-07
PITTSBURG'S CRUSOE.
A CASTAWAY WHO SPENT FOUR
YEARS WITH A RACE OF GIANTS.


Island and Is Royalty Treated.
Mr. Dan F. A Mcintyre has had some re-
markable experiences. on the seas. He has
spent good part of his days whaling in the
Arctic ocean and hunting the sperm whale in
the South Pacific seas. Mr.. Mclnryre's ship
was once wrecked on q coral reef, and he was
the only man of the crew who was saved.
His companions were washed up on the rocky
beach of the Marquesas Islands and killed.
Mr.. Mcintyre still bears an ugly scar over
his right eye that he received during the
storm, and, when he came to his senses, he
found himself lying on the rocky shore with
group of natives bending over him. Here
he remained for four and half years, the
only white man on the island, when he was
picked up by French man-Of-war. Relating
his experience, he said;
THE Marquesas group on which | found
myself consists of sixteen islands, twelve of
which are inhabited. The greatest distance
between any of them is about forty miles.
The natives, away back in those times, passed
from one island to the other in big canoes
and small sail boats. During certain seasons
of the year the Pacific was stormy; but the
natives were well acquainted with the
weather, and knew when to venture. The
islands are located in latitude degs south
of the equator.
The people belong to the Malay class, hay
ing dark, straight hair and swarthy corn-
plexions. Like the FIJI Islanders, they are
very tall and muscular, plenty of them
measuring seven feet in height. l never, be-
fore or since, saw such powerful fellows.
They are rather bright men, and live, like
the Samoans, on the fruits of the islands,
that grow in abundance without much cult
walton. Wild hogs and sea fowls were the
only game to be hunted; in fact, there were
no other animals on the islands The natives
spent most of their time IN taking life easy,
occasionally hunting and fishing.
THE KINGS PET.
MY life for four and one-haf years
among these people was pleasant, taking it
altogether The first SIX months | could
scarcely endure it. If had been impris-
oned in a cell | could not have led a more
miserable existence. Day after day | climbed
the highest mountains, and sat for hours
scanning the horizon. looking for a SAIL but
none appeared. The people were friendly,
and tired to console me in their unCOuth way
| appreciated their kindness, and, after a
while learned enough of their language to
be able to converse with them.
Life then became less unbearablC. and !
prepared myself to wait for a vessel to come
along The king of the island made ME q
namesake of his, and lived with him for the
first year When | found | would have to
stay for some time, built a house, and, to
amuse myself, | was in the habit of going
into the forest and pulling up young orange
and lemon trees 10 plant about my home.
The king tattooed his name on my leg,
which made me a privileged character, and
equal to one of his relatives. If | broke any
of their laws was not punished, and the
king would not allow any OF his people to in
suit me or treat me rudely. In this respect
must say that | was greatly admired by all
the natives They have a vast deal of respect
for white man, and many Of them envied
my white skin.
The natives on the different islands were
hostile to each other, ard most of the time
were at war The king would never allow me
TO mix up in any of their fights. He held mo
in too sacred a light. Once wss captured by
neighboring tribe. They knew by the tat
too On my lee that belonged to their enemy
and they decided to tattoo me all over. They
started on my lower limbs, but tho pain was
so great that | could scarcely stand it. 1t
seems some French missionaries had visited
ChTislanize the natives they left One of the
old men had learned from them TO talk lit
tie French and m that language begged
him to 90 TO my king and inform him Of my
plight This he did, when my master made
peace with his enemies and was released. If
they had distigured my face | don't believe
should ever have come back to America.
when the French ship came along l
hroo,gaJ want with thau1 IN tba ISLon6
Obeite, where number of Europeans live
There remained for two years before re-
turned to San Francico The French man
of-war was making soundings and surveys
for the purpose of locating a naval station
Since then | have learned that they sssab
lisbed a coaling station on the island wtSrSl
spent four and a half years of my kfs"
THE BAMBOO PIPE LINE
Mr. McIutyres story Of how he astssinASd
the natives with an engineering feat q tbs
MsnQuesas Island, where he was SO kang .
castaway, is very good. They had, from
time immemorial, been in the habit of carry
ing al their drinking water from springs
away on an eminence in the back ground of
the principal settlement In that tropical
cline this was quite task, yet they could
conceive of no way to improve upon it.
First convincing the king that he had
much better plan, Mcintyre was granted the
necessary assistance, and succeeded in con-
structing a sort of bamboo pipe line from the
springs to the settlement, so that the natives
thereafter got their drinking water without
any labor whatever. 1t was great scien-
tific triumph to their notion.
When Mr.. Mcintyre came back to Pitts
burg he found it so greatly changed that the