The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1890-04-22
THE MATES ANTIPATHY.
IT Results in His Death In a Ter.
rible Manner.

Twas dining with q merchant who re
sided in the picturesque lite town Of
Port Louis, Mauritius, whenp first met
old Captain Brundage. He had just
brought his ship from Calcutta, with
cargo in the lower hold, and between
deck load of Indian coolies, Under con-
tract to work for term of years on the
sugar plantations. The captain told US
that cholera had broken out soon after
they got clear of the Hooghley, and that
not only had it carried off some fifty OF
the coolies, but it had reduced his crew
by four of the best men; and this the old
man evidently took to heart He was
pleasant. white-haired and griZz.e-
bearded veteran, hale and full of en-
ergy. well-informed, with good man
ners and plenty of conversation. After
dinner we rode over the island and en-
ioyed the view over the harbOr and
along the hillside, and, presently, the
talk drifted on the trustwOrthiness Of
first impressions, and the origin and sig
nificance of those curious aVersiOnS to
strangers which sometimes crop up in
the best regulated minds Captain
Brundage listened for some little time,
and then said, in a reflective tone:
''Some years ago, at this very port, or
close to it, / witnessed the exclusion of
as strange a case OF sudden PROPOSES
sion as, think, was ever head of.
OF course we all expressed desire TO
hear the stor-. and the captsin, who
was a good narrator, prOccededto tell it
as follows:
''Ten years ago." he said, Il Fas sail
ing from Liverpool to Bombay then, In
a heavy gale just before read ing the
Cape of Good Hope, | lost nNsecond
mate, who was washed OyerboT In so
heavy a sea that it was impslble to
lower boat. /, therefore, annto the
Cape and shipped another ME. He
was a likely-looking young flow, an
Englishman from the north, VeItteady,
pretty well as far as seamansH went,
but slow and inclined to distst his
own abilities-not slight fat in an
officer. My first mate had sal with
me before. His name was Mich: he
was dark man, in the prime life,
fine sailor, an excellent navigat, quite
active in mind and body. FIJI of re-
source and thoroughly trustw thy. /
had always regarded him as of cheer
full and agreeable disposition, al he got
on well with all the men in e fore
castle who knew their duty, thgh he
was inclined to be severe wit shirks
and the kind of half-baked frais that
sign articles as able seamen, though
they don't know enough to pass serv-
ing-mallet let alone take their .ick at
the wheel.
Young Norris-that was th new
second mates name-came abo.d two
or three days before we sailed, ah went
to work. / soon noticed that e and
March didn't seem to cotton 10 one
another, and took the first oppdunity
of speaking to March about it. TO my
surprise, his face darkened the rDment
I mentioned Norris, and curiGs ex-
preston, suggestive of strong Sslike
and equally strong perplexity, assed
over his features. He was silentfor a
moment, then turned to me and said,
quite eagerly, as though he felt arelief
in expressing his thoughts:
Captain, it's very curious hing,
and I'm half-inclined to be ASHAMED of
it, though / can't help it-but iron the
first moment 1 saw that man, Ihave
hated him. AS have said, no rason
goes to this feeling. 1t is simpy an
impression which the sight of him
created. All / can say further is, that
it is associated with dim suggestion
] don't know what else to call it that
this fellow will do me great harm. He
colored little and continued: 1dare
say you will laugh at me. 1 feel in
clined to laugh at myself, but somehow
/ am always checked by the cropping up
of the original aversion, which really
seems to be like sort of warning of
danger
''Of course" observed the captain, 81
did my best to laugh off the mates
moodiness; told him he must be bilious,
and prescribed blue-mass for him, and
so forth. But l could see that the i'm
preston had really been deep, that he
was in serious earnest, and that he was
brooding over the matter. / dare say I
should have forgotten all about it had it
not soon become apparent that March's
temper was changing for the worse,
and also that he was getting into the
bad habit of trying to haze" the second
mate. In short, his aversion to the lat
ter was growing every day, and while
Norris did not share it, and was gen