Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-06-12

I-ASMZ. .ESAgtsA1yg. nal which exported k=aSYiarycsI.E~j k=aS teas and other com 19<....S>saxR modities. It had at A -SfsSs-1<<R one time eleven ves-
 sells, eight of which were small schooners and brigs, which were 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.
 l had run away to sea on a vessel bound from Liverpool to Shanghai, and had left her on arrival. I found that the captain of the Silver Crown, one of the company's traders, was an old friend of my fathers, and so it came about that 1 took service in tho company under him, with the rating of cabin boy. The Crown was a fine new fore-and-aft schooner, carrying crew of eight men, all told. She had a native cook, but all the others were foreigners.
 When we got away it was with orders for the Phllipine Islands, among which the company had many resident agents who collected products. Our course was to the southeast, to pass between For mosa and the Loo-Choo Islands, and we had made the run without incident, when one day about noon a junk-rigged native craft, which doubtless came from some port in Formosa, intercepted 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 afterward came to know, was only an excuse. When she learned that we were bound for the Philippines she had three passengers to transfer. They were three natives of Formosa, who were going down there to found a colony and would pay libcrally for a passage by the schooner. They claimed to have contracted with the junk for the round trip, but she had sprung a leak and must return to port.
 am only giving you the gist of what was urged in excuse. We lay to for a couple of houH, and 1 heard only part of what was said. It did not seem to strike Captain Wharton or Mate Williams as queer or suspicious, and after haggling over terms for awhile, tho three natives were transferred to our decks and the ves- sels separated. Then had time to look the stringers over, and I was not long in concluding that I did not wish for an in- timate acquaintance. They were a tough looking trio, and the cook had scarcely set eyes on them before he declared that we had made 0 great mistake in taking them aboard.
 took an early opportunity of commit nicating my suspicious to the captain, but he laughed at me in a good-natured way. I tried the mate, but he saw noth- ing to arouse distrust. It was singular,
 
 outside of the two officers, was satisfied that there was something wrong With the trio. While their excuse was req sonable enough the looks and actions of the men were suspicious, and it was plain to all that they were sailors. They let us all severely alone except the cap tain and the cook, and I called it to mind afterward that while one interested the former the other two were occupied with the latter. I could ''chin-chin" a bit and the cook could speak a little English, and so we managed to understand each other pretty well. Three days after the men were aboard ''Slop-Ship' as we | called the cook, assured mo with a very serious face that the strangers were evil minded men, who had planned to cap | ture the schooner. They had asked him | to join them, and he had refused. l | posted off to the captain, With this news, l and he greeted it with contempt.
 ''If you and the cook have nothing bet l ter to do, I'll set you to rubbing the | rust off tho anchor chain" he grut1iy re- plied
 l The mate also laughed at me, but when l 1 went quietly among the men, every one of them was ready to believe. Each 1 one had noticed something to arouse his 1 suspicious, but in the absence of orders | we could do nothing but wait for what l might turn up.
 l We were gettng well down toward the l norihernmOSt island of tho group, when | something happered which should have l opened the captains eyes. The leader Of the three borrowed the glasses and went up to the crosstrecs of the mainmast and and took a long look around. We saw 1 the sailor in his every move, and he had l not been down an hour when a native craft came creeping up from tho south, 1 bows on to us. She had free wind IL, lorJ Il oil h1 l forenoon. We were at this time forty ol fifty miles to the northward of the group | with beautiful afternoon and smooth
 sea. Half an hour after the native craft l had been sighted one of the natives and 1 the captain retired to the cabin Five | minutes later the native showed his head above the deck and called to the mate l who had just come on watch. He diSap
 peared down the companionway, and al
 the same time entered the forecastle tc
 look for something wanted l was dowI l there about five minutes. I heard nc | particular row on deck, but when reap
 peared I was struck dumb by the spec
 tacle. One of the natives was at the
 wheel, and was bringing the schooner
 into the wind to lie to. The decapitateC
 bodies of the two Americans and the
 cook were lying amidships, while the two
 Swedos were at the foremast crosstrees
 Not shout had been raised nor cry
 uttered. The work had been done witt
 terrible rapidity and in silence.
 As reached the deck one of the natives
 came forward with a bloody creese in his
 hand and called me "good boy" and saic
 I should not be hurt. He left me sitting
 on tho windlass so scared and weak tha
 could not stand, and then assisted his
 companions to lower the sails. Whel
 this had been accomplished they called
 to the Swcdes to come down. Tho poo
 fellows began crying and lamenting, ane
 refused to descend. The natives picked
 up the bodies from the deck and tossed
 them overheard, and then descended t,
 the cabin and brought up the bodies O.
 captain and mate and served them th'
 same way. Both had been killed by th'
 one native who enticed them down l About the time the last body was fun:
 over the rail the native craft drew along
 side. She had thirty men on board. al
 of whom seemed to know our three pas
 sengers and their plans. There wal
 great rejoicing over the capture of tn T ,I>,,.~ ~e 1.>,,