Connecticut western news., 1889-02-06
A Remarkable Experience.

of you want a story" said friend to San Francisco Alto reporter, 'come with me, and I will introduce you to a man who will relate to you very strange one."
 The reporter accompanied his friend to the latter's office, on California street, where he met the person alluded to. In appearance this man, the hero of one of the most incredible adventures ever heard of, was corpse. He was of medium height, slightly built, features of remark able strength, but with hollow cheeks, sunken eyes, and with not the slightest color in his face to let one know that the warm ife-blood was coursing in his veins. What added yet more to his ca daverous appearance were hair and moustache as white as the driven snow; altogether an extraordinary man, who would be looked at and pointed at wher- ever he went. But thls peculiar appear ance was not natural to this man, else could he never have lived to an age of probably 45. It was premature age ing, caused by intensity of agony, of suffering of the most awful torture.
 The reporter was introduced and the man shook hands warmly-yet hardly that, either, for his hands were cold and clammy. After little preliminary talk he said: ''You are anxious to hear my story. I was about to tell my friend here the narrative of those sufferings which made me what you perceive am. He asked my permission to bring you here, and as you are a lover of strange things, will gladly include you in my little audience I have not always been such wretched person as you see me now. This age, which weighs me down almost to the ground, was the result of concentration of infinite suffering into the short period of week. If 1 shud- der when tell you of my sufferings, bear with me. It is net often that men are snatched from the jaws of death to tell how near they have been to it.
 "I am an Englishman and come of an old and wealthy family of Essex. I had liberal education in my youth, but never could see why l should lend my years and brains to teaching congrega- ton of country idiots the truth of the gospel, and so, turning my back on the surplice, I insisted on going to sea. I went. What with my influence and my skill as navigator and seaman-for which, indeed, I had a natural aptitude -I soon rose to position of trust. l became second mate of fine ship. From that to mate was short step, and a few years saw me chief officer of one of the finest vessels sailing out, of Lon don. It was in my 26th year that my ship, the Osprey, owned by Fowler Brothers, was chartered to come to this port for wheat. We arrived here safely, loaded wheat, and soon were outside of the Golden Gate heading for home. Everything went smoothly and nothing occurred to forewarn me of the terrible adventure the future had in store for me- ''We were to the southward of Val paraiso when felt i'll. It was kind of ~faintness that would suddenly and with out warning como upon me, so that I often fell on the deck and lay there until some one could come to my assistance. This continued without my getting much worse, until we got down off the Magel- Ian Straits, in the latitude of Cape Pill lar, or thereabouts. One day a gloomy, forbidding day, such as the mariner of- ten meets with down there, | had the afternoon watch, and was superintend- ing one of my men who was fixing q rat-line in the weather mizzen- -topmast rigging. The fellow was very clumsy, to say the least of it. I got annoyed watching his awkwardness; more an- noyed, in fact, than was war ranted, I think, now that I look back. But was grow ing more and more irritable every day, which.w probably owing to my faint ing spells. Suddenly I became so ex- cited that jumped into the m1zzen rig ging, and was into the top in trice I was about to pull the fellow away from his job when a fit came on. A sudden mist cloudcd my eyes. My senses left me; reeled and fell from the top to the deck. In my descent I struck once or twice, which caused me to turn over, with the result that I fell on my head. When I recovered consciousness I was lying in bunk in the hospitable. Still there was thick mist before my eyes. I could, indeed, see everything so as to recognize where was, but somehow my eyes refused to move about, and I could only stare straight up at the deck. I tried to turn in my bunk, but I could not; to raise my arm, but could not; to sit up, but my muscles failed me. At last the truth struggled into my darkened mind.
 I perceived at last that was in a per fectly cataleptic trance. The strange