, 1889-11-16
THE LAST CRUISE.

gray. He was of commanding stature
and very erect he spoke excellent Eng
lish, and his conversation showed that
he possessed some advantages Of educa-
ton which placed him far above the plane
of his semi barbarous fellow islanders.
His history had beer an eventful one.
When he wa 16 years old the captain OF
a British vessel had taken him to Lon
don, where the ships owner gave him
employment as a porter in his warehouse.
The boy. who was bright and active, re-
ceived the name Albert johnson; he be-
came favorite, and one of the clerks
taught him to read and write. He re-
manned five years In London, and then
returned to his island home.
As l looked through the open doorway
OF his dwelling, before which we stood
while he told me the story ef his early
life, / saw what / at first thought was an
idol, but a second glance showed it to be
the figure head of a vessel
1t had represented, in high relief, a fe-
male clothed in a flowing robe, with one
arm folded across the breast and the other
pointed upward. The lower limbs were
broken, the hand of the uplifted arm was
missing, and n portion OF the nose was
gone. There was little left of the gliding
that once embellished it, but the lines
were gracefully drawn, and it had evil
IDENTIFY been executed by an artist in wood
of no mean pretensions.
What ship did that belong tor" ] asked.
THAT was the figurehead of n schooner
that was lost on the island many years
ago" johnson replied. Its n long story
and a sad one, too" he continued, as he
gazed wistfully toward the mutilated
figurehead.
He hesitated n moment, and then mo
toned me to n seat upon a palm log
which served the purpose Of n bench In
front Of his hut. He seated himself by
my side, lighted his pipe and told me
this story;
lone morning, just after sunrise, in
October, 1S47, about a year after my re-
turn from England, q sail was seen
standing in toward the island from the
eastward. Soon afterward one OF our
people, who had climbed to the top of a
cocoanut tree to have a look, sung out
to US that it was a topsail schooner. The
wind was fair and she came along ut a
lively rate until she was quite close,
when she clewed up her topgallant and
gait tSpsail, threw her topsail aback and
lay to not above four cable lengths from
the beach.
"a beautiful craft she was; her long,
black hull lay low in the water; her
mssts. tall and tapering till they looked
not bigger thar this pipe stem, raked
way aft; they weren't stuck forward as
if they wanted TO tumble over the bow,
as is the fashion nowadays. Her rigging
was as trim as any man-of-war's, and
there was a crowd of men on her deck.
"A ~slaver,' said /.
Yes said my father, who stood at
my side, and she's got her cargo aboard,
too
'As he spoke, n BOAT was lowered from
the schooner, and pulled for the shore.
A tall, longfaced man, whom l took for
a Yankee. and who was evidently one OF
the mates, sat in the stern sheets. When
the Loaf touched the sand. the crew
sprang out, while the mate rose to his
feet, n looking at u people, who
stood in a great crowd on the beach, said
in Portuguese: Who's king herey
"All looked toward my father, and
moved back n little, leaving him standing
almost alone a loot or so in front of the
Others.
1--WE have no king in Annobon,' said
my father; what do you WANT
"'Haf and he ripped out a big oath.
I've heard Of you Annobon niggers,' he
replied; what we want is water
"'How much water do you wantg'
asked my father.
Enough for our crew and passen-
gers
"'Passengersf exclaimed my father,
making believe he was astonished,
though he knew all the. time what the
mate meant.
"'Yes, passengers; we have a lot of
gentlemen and ladies aboard there, who
who have taken passage on board our
schooner for the Brazils, and we hain't
got enough water TO last EN- the voyage
My father hesitated, and then said,
IN so on board and see the captain. ]
s'pose you amt himY
"'No.' was the reply. I'm second
mate of the craft
my father stepped into n canoe,b beck
oned TO mc ard half a dozen others, and
we pushed off toward the schooner, my
father calling out 70 our people in their
" AALhaa6C ~ W cav nv y Au-
til he came back. Passing under the
schooner's stern Ia get around ON the
~starboard, l read her name, Clelise, of
Bordeaux,
AT the starboard gangway stood a
small, slender built man whom we found
to be the captain. He wasn't more thar
five feet and a half high, and his face
was as smooth as a romans; he had n
large nose anG light gray eyes. Dressed
in a blue cloth jacket with white duck
trousers, and a jaunty little cap on the
side Of his head, he looked more like a
smart young naval officer than the cap
tain of a SLAYER.
As we drew alongside he sung out to
us not to come on boani, and asked in
Portuguese, which he spoke with a
French accent: Is tho chief in that
canoeF
You can speak to nue. replied my
father; what do you wanty
al want water for my schooner, and
want you natives to help my men gel
it on board. Where is the best place to
anchor?
THE decisive manner in which the