Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-07-18
AN OCEAN ADVENTURE.
Terrible Encounter in the Pacific with Say


Company when only IA years of age, says
a writer in the New York Sun. The
United Company was an organization of
English and Chinese capitalists at Shang-
hal which exported tea and other COM
modities. had at one time eleven YES
sells, eig hit of which were small schoon-
er5 and briggs, whichever employed in
visiting ports along the coast and various
islands in the China Sea and Pacific
Ocean. It is of my first trip am going
To tell you about.
I had run away to sea on vessel
bound from Liverpool to Shanghai, and
had left her on arrival. l found that the
captain of the Silver Crown, one of the
company's traders, was an old friend of
my fathers, AMI so it came about that l
took service in the company under him,
with the rating of cabin boy. The Crown
WIS fine new and fore-an-daft schooner
carrying a crew of eight men, all told
She had native cook, but all the others
were foreigners. The captain, mate and
myself were English, two of the men
Americans, and the other t~o were
Swedes. While l rated as cabin boy. |
had to assist In sailing the vessel, and
was sort of clerk to the captain. The
schooner carried a dozen muskets, lot
of bearing pixies, and half dozen cut
lasses as an ornament, but everything
was boxed up and stored away, if not
forgotten. Capt. Wharton had been in
the service for six years, and had not met
with any trouble.
When we got away it was with orders
for the Philippine Islands, among which
the company bad many resident agents
who collected products. Our course was
to the southeast, to pass between the
Formosa and Koo- Choo Islands, and we
had made the run thus far without Incl
dent, when one day about noon junk
rugged native craft, which doubtless
came from some port in Formosa, inter
cepted us to the eastward of that island.
We were about thirty miles off shore
when she hailed us. She claimed to be
short of water, owing to an accident;
but this, as we afterwards came to know,
was only an excuse. When she learned
that we were bound to the Philippines
she had three passengers to transfer.
They were three natives of FOrmOsa, who
were going down there to found colony,
and would pay literally for passage by
the schooner. They claimed to have
contracted with the junk for the round
trip, tut she had sprung leak and must
return to port.
| am only giving you the gist of what
was urged in excuse. We lay to for
couple of hours and 1 heard only part of
what was said. 1t did not seem to
strike Capt. Wharton or Mate Williams
as queer or suspicious, and after bag
Cling over terms for awhile the three
natives were transferred to our decks
and the vessels separated. Then 1 had
time to look the strangers over, and l
was not long in concluding that did not
wish for an intimate acquaintance. They
were a tough looking trio, and the cook
had scarcely set eyes on them before be
declared that we had made great mis-
take in taking them aboard. We had no
accommodations for them aft, and as the
schooner was in ballast they had agreed
TO oscupy the hold. This wasn't such a
bad place with the matches off, and they
looked like fellows used to roughing it
ashore and ahoat.
I took an early opportunity of com
municating my suspicious to the captain,
but he laughed at me in good-natured
way. l tried the mate but he saw moth
ing TO arouse distrust. 1t was singular,
however, that every smSn of the Grew out
side of the two officers was satisfied that
there was something wrong with the trio.
While their excuse was reasonable enough,
the looks and activns of the men were
suspicious, and it was plain to all that
they were sailors. They let us all severe
ly alone except the Captain and the cook,
and I called it to mind sfterward that
while one interested the former the other
two were occupied with the latter. could
schin shin" a bit and the cook could
speak little English, and so we man
aged to understand each other pretty we'll.
Three days after the men came aboard
"Slop Slip" as we called the cook, assured
me with very serious face that the
strangers were evil minded men, who had
planned to capture the schooner. They
had asked him to join them, and he had
refused. posted off to the osptsin with
this news, and he greeted it with con-
tempt.
IF you and the cook have nothing
better to do, I'll set You to rubbing the
rust off the anchor chain he gruffiy
replied.
The mate also laughed at me, but when
I went quietly among the men every one
of them was ready to believe. Each one
noticed something to arouse his sus
picions, but in the absence of orders we
uO Oub NdLb lux Nndb IL
turn uP.
We were getting down toward the
northerumost island of the group when
something happened which should have
opened the Captains eyes. The leader of
the three borrowed the glasses and went
up to the crosstreet of the main mast
and took long lock around. We saw the
sailor in his every move, and he HAD not
been down an hour when native craft
came creeping up from the south, bows
on to US. She had q free wind while we
had been beating down all the afternoon.
We were at this time forty or fifty miles
to the northward of the group, with g
beautiful afternoon and smooth sea. Half
an hour after the native 3raft had been
sighted, one CT the natives and the Cap
tain retired to the cabin. Five minutes
later the native showed his head above the
deck and called to the mate, who had Just
come on watch. He disappeared and at
the same time entered the forecastle to
look for som ething wanted. / was down
there about five minutes. / heard no par
ticular row on deck, but when I reap
peared I was struck dumb by the specta-
Gle. One of the natives was at the wheel
and / was bringing the schooner into the
wind to lie TO. The decapitated bodies OF
the two Americans and the cook were
lying amidships, while the two Swedes
we're at the foremost coross trees. Not g
shout had been raised nor cry uttered
The work had been done with terrible
ND ,eHI