Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1890-11-29
AN OCEAN CHASE,

In the year 1860 was one of the crew
of the British survey brig, the Advance,
which was surveying the islands to the
south OF the Sandwich group, Kingman
Shoal, Palmyra Island, and other shoals
and islands had not been closely surveyed.
and we were spending the summer in
this work. The brig was craft of 200
tons, and being Government vessel, was
under strict discipline. She was armed
with two cannon, and carried supply of
small arms. In those days the inhabitants
of some of the South Pacific Islands were
a bad natured lot, and nothing but the
slght of strong force would prevent
them from making troublesome visits to
a vessel anchored close inshore.
About the middle of September we
were at Tanning Island, when heavy
gale came up from the west, and we had
to run for the open sea to the east. The
gale struck us about three o'clock in the
afternoon, and hung to us until noon the
next day. During this time we were
running little east OF north. and having
all we could do, and when the Gale broke
We were at least 200 miles to the north
east of our island. 1t was mid afternoon
before we got the brig about, and she
had scarcely been headed back when a
whaleboat came down upon us from the
northwest, and after half an hour of hard
work we got her crew aboard. Then
we heard very interesting story.
'lhpTn airrbt rs Il
a first mate, two harpooners and five
hands. All belonged to the British
whaling bark Penrose, of Liverpool.
Twenty days previously she had run into
Honolulu and discharged half cargo of
oil, and shipped three Portuguese sailors
to replace hands who had been lost at
sea. On leaving Honolulu she had
eruised to the southwark, taking whale
occasionally, and on the day the gale
broke she lowered for whales about 200
miles north of the group we had been
surveying. Three boats were down
at once as the bark ran into a
school. As the breeze was light only
shipkeeper was left aboard, and he was
sailor who was just recovering from
hurt.
The three Portuguese were in the Can
tain's boat, which made fast to big bull
whale within a quarter of mile of the
bark, and was Immediately struck and
disabled, and the line had to be cut.
Meanwhile the other two boats had gone
to the eastward after the school, and they
had no sooner made fast than their vic
tim ran off at full speed. Owing to the
direction of the wind the shipkeeper
could not work down to the Captain.
His boat was wreck, but was acting as
a float to sustain the crew. In this
emergency the three Portuguese offered
to swim to the bark and return with
spare boat, and they were told to go.
They reached the craft in safety, but had
no sooner got aboard than the yasds were
trimmed, her head was brought to the
south, and she sailed within three hun
dred feet of the Captain as she made off.
The dark-skinned rascals made no bones
OF the fact that they were running away
with the ship. Indeed they boosted Of
- "!" o0iiue" anu Insuiteu the men
hanging TO the steven boat.
1t was neartlesS, cold-blooded thing
10 90. The two other boats were five
miles TO the eastward, and 1t was an hour
aiter the park made OIL before the men
cut loose from their dead whales to
fathom the mystery. They found the
wreck OF the Captains boat, to discover
that only one single man remained with
H. the others having been pulled down
oy the sharks. BY the time they had
neafo MS story the bark was more than
nun down, and Just then the gale broke.
ne 9oats We're laid head on to the sea
anu urlI'ed slowly to the east, dividing
tneir men, so as to give each an equal
snow 10 i've out the gale. During the
night the second mates boat was lost
si9nt OF, ana as 1t was never heard of
again, 1t must have been swampcd. Had
we been running a course the surviving
boat could not have fetched us, but as
we Drought about to return to the island
sne got the chance to do so.