The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-10-15
TURNED ADRIFT.
How Lorenzo I. Cobb Deserted His
Family at Sea.
SAD STORY TOLD IN THE SUPREME
COURT YESTERDAY.

Left in Open Boat at the mercy OF
Wind and Waves-Judge Walton Grants
a Divorce at Once.
A remarkable and pathetic story was
told to Judge Walton in the Supreme
Court yesterday forenoon. The narrator
was a woman of 27 years, who should be
still young and comedy, but instead she
seemed an old and infirm woman, so
much had hardship and affection told
upon her. Her name was Estella f.
Cobb, and five years ago her sad story was
in the mouths of all the fishermen who
frequent the Bay Of Fundy. Mrs Cobb's
home was formerly on Long Island,
where her mother, Mrs. Mckinney, now
lives. In 1878, when she was q mere
school girl Of IA summers, she met and
married young fisherman of %, named
Lorenzo r. Cobb. For eight or nine
years their married life was fairly peace
full. Four children were born to them,
the last one in the spring of 1887. At
that time they were living on Stave ISL
and, one of the remoter islands of Port
land harbor 1t was in the summer of
1887 that the first shadows seemed to
have invaded the household. They came
with sailor who came to board with
the Cobb family. This man seems to
have exercised a pernicious influence
over the husband and father, for from
that time he began to make his home I'M
comfortable for his wife.
The first of the summer, in 1887, Cobb
informed his wife one day that he had
decided that they should move to Seal
Island, in the Bay of Fundy. The young
wife did not have much of an idea
where Seal Island was, but, like dutiful
wife, she began to get her little family
and the few household effects ready. The
oldest child was but eight years, and the
youngest only a baby in arms, less than
six months of age. Cobb had small
sloop boat, so small that it had no cabin
OF other accommodations for shelter in
case of storm, and in this he placed his
family and family effects. Then, taking
along the sailor whose unfavorable infiu-
ence has already been commented upon,
he set sail.
The voyage was not happy one for
Mrs. Cobb and the children. Getting
along in the boat was like living in the
open air, their stock of provisions was
scanty and had to be supplemented by
such fish as could be caught, and the
cruise was unreasonably long. AT the
end of five weeks the party were in the
Bay of Fundy, apparently nearing the
Seal Island of which Cobb had told his
wife.
1t was in the Bay of Fundy, on the 9th
of July, that Cobb committed deed,
which for cruelty and infamy has rarely
been equalled. Mrs. Cobb says that the
boat was ON that day about 80 miles
from land, when Cobb and the sailor
took the dory, which was attached to the
little vessel and pulled away. The
poor woman was not long in discovering
that she was left with her four little
children to the mercy of the wind and
waves in one of the stormiest bodies OF
water on the Atlantic coast. The terror
and despair of the deserted young wom-
an may be imagined. The hardships OF
the voyage had already told severely up
on the children. and the babe at her
breast and the next oldest were nearly
dead from hunger and exposure.
Co, I, @I,a tno Crsff orl
| with it's agonized and distracted tenants.
In her despair the poor woman was prob
ably unable to give the children even the
poor care which the boat permitted, and
the baby seemed about to give up its
slender hold on life altogether. AT the
| end of the twenty-four hours Mrs. Cobb
saw sail approaching, and managed to
| attract the attention of the sailors. They
bore down upon the lonely craft and
soon their eyes rested upon spectacle
which smote the hearts of men so &C.
customed to suffering and hardship as
are the fishermen of Fundy.
The tbaby and the child next in youth
seemed nearly dead, while the poor
| mother showed plainly the effects. of the
horrible strain to which both body and
| mind had been subjected. The plying
sailors took the family aboard, and in
due time they were brought to the home
of Mrs. Cobb's mother.
Careful nursing saved the lives of the
two youngest children and brought them
back to their usual health. But the
mother did not recover so readily. The
exposure brought on sciatica, and she
was very sick for long time, and has
not yet ceased to suffer.
The wretched husband, with his sailor
companion, pulled their dory towards
the Mai ne coast, landing finally on that
long island which lies near Mt. Desert
lii the course of time he drifted BAG k to
this region, and now lives on small ISL
and just off Freeport. There he was
found when the officer went to
serve on him the papers necessary to the
divorce suit which Mrs. Cobb was bring
ing.
This suit was heard yesterday fore
noon. Mrs. Cobb appearing in person and
also by her attorney, W. H. 'Looney,
Tohncap 1ubn 1ua G