The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-01-19

ton of "cur1os" for his wife, who was
particular admirer of things from for
eign parts. was only a youngster, as
have said before, but if the captain had
only known how lnadly was in love
with his wife he would doubtless have
kicked me around the decks. think l
was fifteen years old at the time, and
was as foolish as I was young. 1t is as
tonishing what influence kindly word
from a pretty woman has upon a sailor
boy accustomed to fewer halfpence than
kicks! Besides, my love was akin to
spiritual worship.
However, made up my mind that II
curios would make Mrs. Crowninshield
happy I would do my best to afford her
pleasure. So when we were bowling
along through the northeast trades and
the flying fish came aboard l used to
pick out the finest and largest and pre-
serve them for keeping, after the recipe
of an old sailor, who was something OF
taxidermist. These fish would mount
on panels of wood given to me by the
carpenter, and with their wings extended
with ingenious skill Though say it who
shouldn't) they looked quite ornamental.
The captain did his best to make a
smart passage. The Coromandel was in
her best trim and was kept moving all
the time. When we got down to about
IS dogs. south latitude, and were in hopes
of getting piping westerly breeze with
which to run down, we were hampered
by dead calm. 1t was quite lucky for
me, but the skipper fretted and furned
like newly caught bear in pit. He
wanted to make the smartest passage on
record. The ship was surrounded by
focks of Cape pigeons, Cape hens and an
occasional albatross. The pigeons, which
are birds Of beautiful plumage, were
caught easily with hook and line. All
YOU had to do was to throw over your
line baited with morsel of salt pork
and haul them in hand over fist. |
caught several hundred and grew quite
expert in skinning them and curing the
skins. They were all intended for Mrs.
Crowninshield.
It was triumphant hour for me when
I captured an albatross. | am an old,
broken down man now, having been a
sailor boy and man for more than fifty
years, and chiefly in the southern trade.
For voyage after voyage have tried to
catch an albatross with bait, but failed
always. Cape hens-the vultures of the
sea-you can capture at will. They will
bite at any garbage. But the albatross
is a clearly bird and never knew one
to be taken with hook and line.
This morning, however, l was on the
forecastle head, hanging out shirt to
dry, when the albatross Numbered Oh
board. He was a magnificent bird, one
of the finest ever saw. He settled down
on the deck and looked like sailor that
had lost his bearings. In a moment en-
sued battle that beat hollow the tilt of
the Knight Of the Sorrowful Figure in
his duel with the windmills. | grabbed
him by the neck and he thrashed at me
with bill and wing. The watch below,
hearing the noise, came running on deck
and rescued me, all covered with blood.
For the next two days was engaged on
his skin. 1t used up all my arsenical
soap. and I had to get a bottle of red
pepper from the steward to complete the
task. 1t was all for Mrs Crowninshield.
Did any misfortune happen the ship
after the killing of the albatross? Not a
misfortune.
The ancient mariner was an adept in
romantic fiction. You can kill alba
trosses without any weather breeding
results. | have no superstition, but |
will tell you something CLEANED from
ripe experience Fish, flesh and fowl
may be sacrificed at sea without any SUI
pernatural results. But | have never
known pig to be stuck aboard ship
but that either a gale of wind followed
or something disastrous happened. This
| will swear to.
We got to Colombo on the hundredth
day out from Salem-a capital passage
in those days. Every rupee could scrape
up was spent in gathering together curios
for Mrs Crowninshield. My father, a
well to do Salem merchant, had thought
fully placed in the captains hands
couple of hundred dollars to be doled
out to me during our stay on the Indian
coast. l bought big cedar wood trunk
with quaint silver handles, and in this
moth proof receptacle slowed away all
my precious bird skins and mounted fly
ing fish My love grew madden than ever.
| had letter Of introduction to
charming English family living near Kar
duwella, a Singhalese village on the
southern bank Of the Kalany river, about
a days journey in bullock wagon from
Colombo. l easily obtained leave of abb
sence while the ship was discharging her
cargo, and spent a week there thoroughly
enjoying myself. My host made things
very pleasant for me, and we took many
excursions in the neighborhood that
pleased me much.
One Of the famous resorts thereabout
was Il Buddhist temple, irreverently
called joss house by heathens and bar
barians. Cut out of the natural rock, it
was shaded by banyan trees, whose big
leaves. shaped like heart, quivered con
tinually in aspen fashion.
Inside the temple, which was guarded
by fat, good nattlred priest clad in
,,oJloxu ,.ohn rac1iued the image of R11d-