The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-23
A CAsTAWAY.
But He Didn't Enjoy Himself as
Robinson Crusoe Did,

But He Didn't Enjoy Himself as
Robinson Crusoe Did,
q If boys did not get the idea of going
to sea the supply of sailors would by
and by give out, but | do not believe
that one boy out of twenty who has
grown to be a sailor came by the occu-
patton l~egitimately. The majority OF
them ran away from home to go On
their first voyage, and would have been
glad to quit the sea forever before they
had been out a week. | had the ro-
mantle ideas of the average boy, and |
ran away to ses, and the reason l be-
came a sailor was because circumstances
afterward obligG me to be. / sailed
for the best part of sixteen years, ship
ping in all sorts of craft and with all
sorts of crews, and it was rarely that i
found a sailor who would not have
gladly traded his occupation with a
wood sawyer. The romano is all in
the books A sailing craft. either in
port or on a voyage, is surrounded with
any thing but romance.
/ found, too, that almost every boy I
encountered on shipboard had a Robin
son Crusoe life for his pet theory. He
was aching to be cast away on some un-
inhabited island, and he had it all
planned out how he was to live on the
fat of the land. It was my foftune to
be thus cast away once upon a time,
and / will give my experience in order
that the boy readers of The Sun may
draw conclusions. There was also a
curious coincidence connected with my
adventure which will bear relating.
We were on the run down from Yoka-
hama, japan, to a port in Cochin
China, on an English tea brig called
the Russell. Our course lay to the
south down the Pacific to the island of
Formosa. and then around in the China
Sea. 1t was the season for squalls, and
the first four days out gave us plenty to
do, although we made good progress.
On the evening of the fourth day, just
a twilight was coming on, a sudden
squall laid us almost on our beam ends,
and while in that position we were
swept by a sea which carried me over
board. | don't suppose l Was even
missed for the next quarter of an hour,
and ] was no sooner in the water than
understood that the brig could dc
nothing for me. No craft leaves a man
to drown If there is the slightest show
save him, but I kneM the brig had
her hands full with the squall. / was
near done for before i got a breath o.
- air, and had not yet pulled myself to.
gether when I flung out my arm and
touched d solid object. Improved to be
a cage containing about twenty live
fowls, which had fetched Away, and
wasn't over five minutes making fast te
1t BY means of my belt. BY the time
could look around the night had come
down and the brig was nowhere to bt
seen. The squat lasted about twenty
minutes, and then passed away, to b
followed by a steady breeze during thu
entire night.
I had no idea that the brig would re
turn to look for me, and the best thine
could do was to make myself com
Portable. The water was warm. thu
night balmy and starlight, and the SCI
was not heavy enough to annoy MI
much. / had every hope of beins
picked up next day, as vessels were M
merous on that route, and SO, taken al
in all, / was not in despair. / wa
driven to the west at a steady pace VI
to- about midnight, and then q quee
thing happened. ] was on top OF til
coop or cage, which was buoyan
enough to float me a foot above tn
surface. Il had no doubt been lashe,
to tho deck BY a rope or two. and por
tons of these ropes might have beel
entrailing underneath, or it may be tina
in going overheard IL entangled rope
At any rate, at about midnight Their
was a sudden commotion under an,
about me. and then my craft started o.
ut almost railroad speed. ] have q
idea that q big shark cane nosinl
around after me and became entangled
but 1t might have been some other larg
fish. Whatever IL was, was fast an
acting S a tug, and the way he towe
that cage along the surface was a cal
ton. He tried diving, but he could ne
pull il under, and seeming to be NOR
frightened BY this discovery, he set o
with increased speed.
For bit least three hours the shark. {
whatever II was. to the west at
rate of speed which could not have bee
less than ten miles an hour, and Il
first flush Of day was In the horizon
my back when there was q shock and
crash and ! went end over end of n
float. ~ tell the truth, / was aslee
he'd been towed 30 steadily and rot
80 easily that ven to sleep witho
knowing that my syes had closed.
struck out and began swimming, co
fused and frightened bv the shock. b