The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1890-02-06
ALMOST A SAVAGE.
A WHITE MANS STRANGE LIFE IN
TIE SOUTH SEA ISLANDS.

| PORTLAND, Me. Jan. 30.--Thc story
Of the wreck of the Portland bark
Tewksbury l.. Sweat in the South Pa
c6c, and the strange story Of the rescue
Of her crew, as told by Capt. VIM.
Gooding Of Yarmouth, Me, has a
strange sequel.
The bark sailed from Newcast", New
South Wales, Mach 7, 1889, for Hong
Kong, under charter for New York.
She proceeded until the 9th of April fol-
| lowing, when in latitude 7 deg. min.
North and longitude 140 deg. II min
J East she encountered gale aud was
| driven ashore on Susannc Reef, near I'o-
zcat Island, one Of the group Of Caroline
! Islands, in the South Pacific
The crew escaped in one Of :hc ships
boats and manugcd with great difficulty
10 reach a small islet to the Northward.
From this isle, ;itcr the storm subsidized
they made the Island OF Pozcat, which is
| Inhabited by race of fierce savagGs. AS
tho boat approached tito island a fleet of
can"ca put or to intercept them. There
wsr4 about thirty car .s, with eight or
with knives and spears. Some OF the
aavages could not wait for the boat to
come alongside, hut jumped overheard
and swan - her, each man carrying a
long wicked, docking knife, held between
ms teeth.
The first slvaGus to reach lhe boat
chm 5rrcd in until the boat Was nearly
"'ntnpcH. Then they began 10 St Ip the
sailors thrlr 70
throwing The garments aboard their own
Canoes; which by this time were pad.
| ding alongside. rhc whtc men were
! soon despOilcd Of everything but their
undcrshirtS, these being left TO them,
And the whole fleet drew in toward the
land.
When they got ashore, AID while the
shlpwreckcd crew were standing sur
rounded by the noisy crowd Of natives
| man dressed as all the others, only
with Cloth about his hips, pushed his
way through the crowd and spoke TO
them in tns EOglish language
10 the establishment Of Captain Good :
lhg, to whom the man addressed him
self, the seeming native introduced him
sell as Charts Irons, an Euglishlnan, and
OllcIGd to render any assistance it was
possible for him 20 give.
aaLatcr the captain learned Irons's his
.ory. 1t appears that he WAS left at
PoZeat Island by a trading vessel about
four years ago, his business being to rep.
resent the trades in the cocoanut oil
| trade, but the vessel had never called for
Irons since leaving him, aud be had
gradually assumed the habits Of the ma
tives and finally became so much like
them in appearance and manner Of life
he was not IN any way to be distinguish
cd from the people among whom he
| lived. lie had taken to himself seven
wives, and was regarded by the natives
as Il man Of importance second Only to
| the chief Of the Tribe.
Irons had been so long among the na-
tivcs that he had forgotten many Of the
| common things Of civilization. A day
or two after landing at Pozcat Captain
| Goodlng, who had become in degree
uncertain about his reckoning Of time,
not knowing exactly whether the day
was Thursday or Friday in the week,
askcI Irons If he knew what day of the
week 1t was. Irone answered that he
did not, and more that he did not know
| what year 1t was.
Captain Gooding says that the natives
would never havC allowed him and his
crew to leave Pozeat if it hal not bccu
for the good Offices Of Irons. Irons in
tcrestcd himself in behalf of the ship.
wrecked men and hired a canoe from
the natives with presents of English cal
ico, from stores In his possession. With
this canoe Captain Gooding, Second
Mate George w. Harrison and one OF
the ships crew set sail ten days after
their arrival at poZcat, leaving the re-
maindcr Of the ships company and First
Mate Richard Walchmar, seven men in
| all, at POzcat.
The captain and his men made their
way in the canoe by II roundabout course
from island to island, touching AT eight
different ones anu making stops at each
varying from two days to months du.
ration, finally arriving at Ruk, where
there Is II missionary station.
Hero they were cared for by the mis-.
S;onurics and obtained the use Of tn,
boat belonging to the station. In tho
missionary boat they made sail back tt
Pozcat direct and taking the members OF
the crew they had left there returned tc
the missionary island.
Two months after their return the
missionary vessel, Morning Star, arrived
and took them all to Honolulu, whcr,
they landed November 1S. From Homo
lulu Captain Gooding and part of tn,
crow were brought by the steamer Aus
tratia to San Francisco. arriving ther,
November 20.
This story, told by Captain Goodn(
on his return, WAS published in the New
York IIcrald's London edition, and to
day the managing owners Of the wrecked
bark, Chase Lcayitt & Co.. of this cit,
and Captain Gooding OF Yarmouth, ar,
IN receipt Of letters from London max
ing inquiry in regard to the Irons VIII
appears to figure as prime minister o
the savage Pozcat.
Both letters are from the same source
the "Probate and Divorce Registry
Somerset House, London" and are sigu
ed 10y Lancelot G. Irons. The write
: says he has reason to believe the whit
man on PoZeat Island is his youngest an,
only living brother, and says: "W
. last heard Of him IN December, 1875
when he was trading with the savages G
r New Guipca in q ship that chartcre
! from Brisbane.' He gives minute dc
u scriptIon Of his brother as he appcare
u u at that time, and says bis full name
y William Charles Frederick Irons.
u The letter to Captain Gooding cor
tains questions as to particulars Of idcr