The Logan County banner. [volume] (Logan, W. Va.) 1889-1903, 1891-07-09
MARINE YARNS.


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No matter what queer, strange things
j sailor may see during q yoyage-what
queer, strange experiences may happen
to him In distant seas he I'll seldom
or never talk toyou about them II he
suspects the particulars are desired for
publication Jack IL mo friend to the
newspaper. He has been held mp to
ridicuie and contempt as story-telIer,
until he is afraid to relate truths which
can be backed by afiidavits
During the last year, according TO my
newspaper clippings no less than sew
entcen instances have occurred where
portions Of shipwrecked crews have
been picked up at sea after voyages in
small boats from one I'd fifteen days.
In all these instances the particulars
related do not, in any one case, make
3hatfalcpfumnEo HesHspAper PRINT
though enough must have occurred to
make pook. Jack simply wouldn't
talk taptain pr matte Gsvc the paftic-
ulars OF the disaster as briefly IS posi-
bic, and tnen got ashore TO be lost sight
OF. 80 -.x..svs,si y
During the years served before the
mast and as second and chief mates
met with some things beyond my power
10 explain or nnravel and at the risk Of
being criticised shall relate some Of
them mere. Inc queerest thing OF all,
perhaps, occurred IN the Indian ocean,
to the south Of Madagascar was in
an English brig called the Helpmate,
bound up the Mozambique channel,
TO the east by furious gale.
We were working back to cur course,
and the weather had become pleasant.
One night. as came on watch at mid
night found We were only making
steerage way there being only faint
breeze from the east IL was bright
moonlight, and about three miles away
was large ship headed to the south.
The course we were both steering
would bring us almost within speaking
distance.
While could see the strange shin
well enough with the naked eve. as
could all the men in nv watch. when I
came to put the glass on her saw her
lookouts on the how and noted all Abe
particulars of her rig / took her for
: an English ship bound around the cape,
and one which had come down from the
gulf Of Bengal to the east of Madapas-
car. The sea was 80 calm thatSwe could
have launched canoe, and when the
stranger was mile. away every rope
stood out in the moonlight like silver
thread. She was apretty sight, and every
man in the watch kept his eyes on her.
She was almost opposite and not more
than forty rods away to give aiands-
mans Observation-Disclosures she sudden
z ly settled away in the water and wss
gone in a minute. thought my eyes
were full of sticks" and that / had
been the victim of an optical illusion,
but while rubbed them two or three
of the men cried out in chorus:
'.She's struck a rock and gone to the
bottom with every soul on .board!' -
Men, have we been looking at q
ship out there?" | asked. A.
''Of course, sir.
ssWas her hull painted black?
.'lt was"
A new foretopsail?" '
Yes. (.
"a gilded figure OF a mermaid or an
angelo
:. Something o. that, sir"
And she W emit down?'s ga
AYE, like D stone flung overboardf'
l ordered the brig hove up to check
her Roadway, and the captain came on
deck to see what it meant. The other
watch was called, two boats lowered,
and away we pulled for the spot, never
i. doubling that we should find men
cEnging to some of the wreckage.
can show YOU in the British museum
to-day what we found and all we
found. A sailors bag marked "P., y
two ships buckets, unmarked, two
oars marked MI sailors oilskin
coat, not marked, a cage with dead
parrot in it. OF all the Thousand
articles aboard of that ship which
would float we. found nothing else,
though we lay by until noon next day.
Now, what sent her to the bottom?
We, of course, expected TO flnd q rock
not charted, butFsthough we made
soundings for two miles garoupda we
found nothing Later on a. man-of-
war spent week in that locality, but
with no better success. 1t was two
years before the lost vessel was ascer-
famed TO be the French merchantmen
Mignon As no rock could be found II
was generally supposed that she was
struck by whale-that monster Of
the deep probably came up directly
under her and smashed ont half her
planking. A French novel writer has
made use of this. incidentto dispose OF
some Of the characters in his pages.
Suppose landsman knew that when.
ever he left his house he was, under
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. sby some one
who meant, him evil, and was only
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