The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-12-16

wine, priorato, and Taragona ~port-when
I boarded her in the Great Bahama Chan.
mel, but nary cask did I find in her."
When you. boarded her, Captain Yer.
heyden? Gracious goodness! what had
you to say to her? I was just going ia
ask you whether you could help me to
trace her in the Cuban port, and now you
tell me you knew the ship"
knew her! Yes, by thunder, knew
her, and ner captain and oil her ~rascaIly
crew."
go on, please, tell me all about her.
"'Tain't a long story, but it's full Of
meat. In that year, 1856, I was Lieuten.
ant Commander of the United States
sloop Opossum, cruising in the Gulf OF
Florida, in and about the Bahamas, and
round the Havana. You know we'd Just
put down slavery, and We didn't mean to
let no one else carry on the trade IN hu.
MANS, either. My orders were to keep a
sharp lookout for any craft with niggers
on board, and seize her then and there.
I fell in with nothing, sir, for weeks and
weeks, and might not till now but for the
master of q cutter from New Providence,
WHO told me a rakish-looking craft, with
heavy spars and strongly manned, had
been driven northward by stress OF wealth
er, and when he met her was trying to
beat back toward the Havana.
Suspicious description this. 80 !
cruised her course. 1t was still blowing
a fresh breeze from the south southwest;
but at daylight on the third day we
sighted her sailing on the wind. She
must have seen US, too, for she fell away
at once, and went before it, cracking on
canvas and trying hard to give us the
course had the legs Of her. But she was
a clipper, you bet, and gave US a long
chase. It was late in the afternoon be-
fore I overhauled her. WAL, We ran
within q few fathoms' length Of her, and
hailed.
what ships that? Show your colors
and send a boat aboard I sung out on
the trumpet.
sShe ran up Spanish c~olors, but still
sheered off, and seemed anxious to avoid
close quarters.
Lie to, or I'll sink you,' I shouted
again, and, as she continued her course, I
ordered o gun to be fred across her bows.
The blackguard now opened his ports
and showed his teeth. He'd have given
m6 u DTOdOSlu0, DuI i 3oh o1OaSoio0
grappled and boarded him. The crew
were at their stations; the Captain with
q drawn cutlass ready to show fight, but
he saw how strong We were, and oaVed IN.
This is an Outrage on the Spanish
fag,' he said, sullenly, in fairly good
English. you will have to answerfor it.
Il ran down with the quartermaster and
saw the tween decks. There was not o
J--1L H. 1a-aI&n fhn nhoS~o
scraps Of food, water-gourds, all the
signs that tell the story of human occu-
pstion. But where were the wretched
beings that had so recently been cooped
up here in filth and utter misery? Then,
at least, they were alive. What had become
of them now?
Il returned to the upper deck, deter
mined to fathom this to the bottom.
"'Send all the hands aft I cried; and
when every man was mustered l made
them q short speech. I told them what
I suspected-that some black deed had
just been done-and I promised, in the
name of the United States Government.
a full pardon to any one who would
sneak out.
They were as ugly a lot as you ever
clapped eyes on, Mr.. Leslie-Spanish,
Greeks, Maltese, and mongrels Of all ma
tions-black-faced, Misunderstanding,
villains who would not 60 back upon eny
bloody job. But my address touched
them in the right place, for it gave them
o chance of selling n another.
Half Q dozen chaps came forward, and
more would have done SO, but that they
were too late.
"You never heard such a story! It
sickened US, maddened us. I believe my
fellows, if they had not been under disci-
pline, would have lynched the lot"
"What had happened9 What had he
done with them?"
drowned them-two hundred and fifty
human souls drowned like blind puppies
in a pond"
"But why, in Gods name?"
ITO get clear of our clutches. he
thought he'd escape US, that We should
have no evidence against him."
1T was the captains, this Iriarte's do
Not entirely, although he was held re-
spoIsible. He tried to shelter himself
under his instructions. Said his owners
had told him to make away with his
Was that proved2" I asked eagerly,
seeming a reason at last for Yriarte's
threatening MI. Sarsfeld. Who were
these owners?"
-Cooch & Iziuierdo. We got their
names right enough. But what could we
do against them? They were merchants
of Havana, beyond the reach Of Ameri-
can law. Besides, the captains state
ment was never substantiated; he could
not produce his instructions"
Anyway, he did not escape"
4'Taint likely. I took him and his ship
into Galveston with a prize crew or
board. They were tried before the SUI
preme Court for murder on the high
seas, found guilty.
But not hanged, as they surely ought
to have been?"
1T was not a hanging State, Mr.. Les
lie, so they got of with imprisonment.
The captain was put down for life, but he
seems to have got away somehow-es-
capped, pardoned."
Fate brought retribution to the end.
To be stabbed in the back with his own
clasp-knife-"
Was a death almost too good for him.
I am inclined to think that the man who
killed him did good service to society"
That would be a rather dangerous
doctrine to publish, Captain Verheyden,"
I said, protesting; besides, in this case
the murderer shared his victims crime"
mo, no, you must not say that; you are
not certain Mr.. Sarsfeld was a party to
the massacre"
There was q strong suspicion against
his firm, anyway, and if his conscience
was not sore, why did he 60 to such
lenpthsp Ifhe could have braved Yriarte's
threats he need not have killed him."
You still charge him with the murder2"
Can YOU doubtit, now that we know SO