Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-09-01

u6t dIIlfeu Atum
Australia, reported that while rounding the
Cape Of Good Hope, she had been driven
southwark far out of her course by storm.
and that away down in the Southern At
lantic had sighted vessel drifting aimlessly
about. The first mate boarded her, and re
turning reported that The derelict was the
ship Albatross. That she had been
abandoned, was plain, for all the boats were
gone, and so were the log and the ships in
struments. On the deck, close by the COM
panion hatch, lay two bodies, or rather
skeletons, clad in weather-rotted garments,
that showed them to have been man and
woman.
These bodies were headless, but the heads
were nowhere to be found on the deserted
deck. The mate found on the cabin table
an open book. with writing on its pages. A
pen lay on the table, and small inkstand,
in which the ink had evidently long since
dried. The book was evidently Journal or
diary, so the mate reported, and he put it in
his pocket meaning to carry 1t aboard the
Empress, but when be was getting down
into his small boat the book slipped from
his pocket, dropped into the water and
sank. The Albatross was badly water
logged and. he thought, could not have
foated much longer. To this report the edi-
tor Of the paper added nsse saying that
the readers would all doubtless remember
that the Albatross had sailed from Liverpool
several years before bound for Australia
and it was thought to have gone down with
all on board, as no news OF her had since
been received.
That was the substance of the remarkable
paragraph. What was almost as remark
able to me, newspaper man, was that the
Liverpool paper had evidently made no
effort to learn the owners of the Albatross,
the name of her captain and crew, or
whether or not she carried any passengers.
/ carefully searched files to see if there was
any further reference to the case. There
was none. Alter the manner OF his kind
the editor Of the paper had. so it seemed,
taken it for granted that his Intelligent
readers would remember" all the particu-
lars that they wanted to know.
was much impressed by the paragraph
My pro essional instinct told me that there
was good story there, and was disguised
that any editor could let it go untold.
also experienced more than usual curiosity
to know how those headless bodies came
there; or rather why they should lie there
on the deck headless. Then there was that
journal that had been found lying open on
the cabin table, as though the writer had
been interrupted in the writing which had
never been finished. What ght might that
little book not throw on the mysteryl And
now it was lying fathoms deep in the South |
ern Atlantic. OF what use to speculate |
over the matter. Thanks t. the careless
mate and the stupid editor, that mystery
would remain forever unsolved. But in
spite of reason did speculate considerably
over the matter, and, try IS did, could not
Danish the story from my mind.
A few weeks a. ter that went into North
ern Vermont to report the Benton murder
trial, which was attracting much more than
local attention. was pleased to find that
the Prosecuting Attorney was an old class
mate OF mine, George Judson. had known
him pretty well, as hard working and re-
markably bright man, with a curious streak