Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1891-04-18
Exciting Voyage From the Gulf Of
Darien 10 the Port Of Phila-
delphia.
Rough Weather Causes Business
Man on Board the ATLANTA to
Long for Home.
Account Of a Briggs PerilOus Voyage
and Experiences With Monsters
of the Deep

| a b u J.,
a short distance from. the town Of Carta-
gena, the most northcrly point of the
! United States of Columbia, and which
country is washed on the south by the
waters Of the Caribbean Sea, and with the
| lsthmus of Panama as its northwestern
extremity, and with tie Gulf OF Darien
running inland between the lsthmus and
| Cartagena.
While sailing vessels from that part Of
| South America but sel1om make the port of
| Philadelphia their destination it is still
rarer to find a Philadelphia business man
making the voyage from the Guls of Da-
rien to this city on one o. these vessels
William A. Coon, representative Of an
| importing house, has recently arrived home
after spending one year in business opera
tons in the interior of he United States
of Columbia and it cost him thirty-days'
time and stormy passage to tnd himself
sailing up the Delaware,
! While taking about his recent voyage
/ Mr. Coon said THE Rio Atrato is
stream that drains an extensive tract of
| country, from its source near the equator,
and the river is fed 10y numerous streams
! from the mountains east and west, extend
| ing almost the entire distance and enter
| ing the Gulf of Darien at its head at
about eight degrees north latitude. The
country for many miles surrounding the
! Gulf of Darien is an immense marsh, and
| the Rio Atrato, which is the fourth river
! in size in South America empties its i'm
mense volumes of water through fourteen
branches or mouths, forming delta equal
| TO the one at the mouth of the Mississippi
river. The volume of water that pour,
into the Gulf from these mouths Of the
| Rio Atrato is so great that the brig Alta
anta, on which | took passage home
while loading with timber, found the
water where she was loading to be so
/ fresh that the captain had the casks filed,
then and there, for the return trip.
at was about 6 O'Clock one bright
morning when the Atalanta, Captain II.
! S. Aldrich, weighed anchor and set sail
| for Philadelphia, but the many currents of
the Atrato and the rough water of the
! Caribbean Sea made it difficult to proceed,
and as the water was still fresh before we
got out into the gulf those who could do
80 washed their clothing, as they could get
no Washing done while at anchor, as there
were no inhabitants for many miles.
! Soon after we started 1t commenced to rain
! in torrents, and the wind not being strong
enough to overcome the strong incoming
current we were forced to lay at anchor
all day.
1.-The next morning. was the early
part of December-there was a strong
| head wind and we spent all day and night
| beating out OF the gulf, and for four or
/ FIVE days after that we were backing up
and down the coast from the San Bias
nearly to Cartagena, After dark, about
! the 4th of December, there was the cry of
I 'Porpoise! Porpolsel and rushing 10 the
/ bow Of the brig | saw what appeared 70
/ be great number Of large balls OF fire
| darling hther and thither through the
water with almost lightning rapidity. To
| a novice the effect was decidedly startling,
1 for it seemed as though old Neptune
\ was throwing FIRE balls around from out of
| the deep.
! The phenomenon was soon explained
4 from the fact that the porposes IN these
waters are highly charged with phOsphor-
eScent light, and they swim with great
rapdity. Although we tried then and
afterwards during daylight flor we saw
/ hundreds Of them during our passage) we
| failed to harpoon single pOrpoise. We
| had, however tie good fortune to capture
! two splendid specimens of that rare fish,
/ the dolphin, and | watched with great in
| terest the surprising changes of color they
| give out when they are dying In quick
succession follow all the changes of the
rainbow When we had been out a few
! days we goa into the trade winds and
and they lasted four or FIVE days and then
we skinned along at the rate of $50 miles
rer day. but on the 10th instant we got
/ into regula, 'norther. For two days
/ the sea was very heavy and then we had
/ light, but very contrary winds,
/ About this time | had another sight
which was not SO pleasant A number of
/ large sharks regular 'man-eaters, swarm
ed about the vessel for some time, and they
/ often showed their caplcious mouths, as
/ though asking for a meal Of human flesh,
and shortly afterwards We passed two
/ schools of whales, in which there was an
/ aggregate Of not less ;han one hundred Of
/ the monsters OF the deep,
/ We had up TO this time when south
west Of Cuba and In about 20 degrees
/ north latitude. worn slippers and the thin
est of clothing, and when no breeze stirred
/ We would be tanning ourselves ON deck.
/ Suddenly IL got bitterly cold for this part
/ of the world, and linen busters gave place
/ 20 overC0ats. We sailed along for two or
Z three days under hight sails but contrary
/ winds and kept lacking from east 70 west
and vice versa. About December II we
sighted "a schooner that appeared 20 be
/ aboring hard and a day or two after We
/ harpooned another dolphin, and had some
amusement and little excitement with a
school OF PROPOSES, this time by daylight;
( but we had our previous luck IN trying to
/ harpoou any Of them. Other whales came
4 In sight. but they kept otf from our YES
81 About the middle OF December a nice
I breeze sprang up that gave Us hopes q
] being aUle 70 eat our Christmas dinner
/ in Philadelphia, but it soon died out
Z ana vhat did come was always Ia The
Iolhsr direction. and we crept along at a
I snaiI pace.
I "On the morning Of December H. the
4 light 81 Cane Antonio. On the western cad
+ oil the island ai Cuba. broke on cur view
and IL we ga2ed on 1t with much sa'lstac-
4 t1n. and i number Of other vessels BE-.
4 Sides ours were CauEat waiting here % get
around Cuba. We we're one entire day oH
/ C..ha. but on the l7th heavy norther
srranz up and itau-cd a sea nat tossed
our vessel about hee 4 eoCkie shei!. We
ware two or three days IN sight u Cuba
. a-,a f3aa t,tl,f4s4rs4fllre WAS quite cold he