Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-16
and the harbor police were put on

the ship.
Helping Apprentices to Escape.
There were four apprentices with US on
the voyage-nice young men. sons Of ship
owners. 1t was their first experience and
what with seasickness and the mutiny they
were heartily tired of the sea. Two Of
them came to me and begged me to get
them away. So after awhile I promised
them that I would and one day I ran
line from the bow of the ship and fastened
boat to 1t. ! kept the police busy talking
while the boys slipped into the boat Then
1 went over the side after them and cut
the painter. They missed us directly and
flashed light on us. But there was a "a
foot tide there. 1t was going out with a
rush and We were away before they could
90 anything. There were 200 sail in the
harbor, but / knew of brig among them
that was going to Providence the next
morning and l put the boys aboard her
Then, the tide not being SO strong, / rowed
back to the ship. The captain was on
board by that time and there was a great
fuss They wanted to know where 1 had
taken the boys. but l wouldn't tell them
So they put me under arrest and took me
up to the police court. There they told me
that II 1 would tell where the boys were
they would let me off. But I wouldn't
They kept me there all night, but the next
morning they sent me back to the ship and
when the brig sailed out Of the harbor
saw the two boys aboard.
Five years ago | was in my office in
San Francisco. when a man walked ina
tall. thin fellow-and said: Are you George
PERKINS" / told him was. From Mane?'
Yes. from Kennebunkporti Did you ship
on the Lizzie Thompson at st. Johns in
1872 Yes. DO you remember the two boys
that you helped to get away from the ship?
Well. / am one Of those boys Then he
told me his story. He had learned a trade
at Providence and had done well. When
the war broke out he enlisted and he served
q b. =
Colorado and later to California where he
was doing nicely. 1t was thirty-fo four years
since had last seen him.
Now call those two experiences stran-
ger than any fiction" said the Senator as
he concluded his narrative.
I asked.
"Oh: I saw some pretty rough weather
and did some pretty hard work But was
rather fortunate. I WAS never In a ship
wreck and l always had plenty to eat such
as II was; My last voyage was around the
i hGrn 70 San Francisco. There I left the
snip and went to the mines"
Drawn by the gold excitement?'
No l had no idea Of becoming rich. My
highest ambition at that time was to get
together enough money to buy a schooner
SO that could cruise among the islands on
my own account. ] worked my way up the
river to Sacramento. Then / walked with
my blankets on my back 160 miles to the
mining camp. I never made any money in
mining. did not understand it. / was a
sailor. not miner. No, l never made a
cent in mining
Not even 'grub-staking' some miner?"
NO. 1 have done that often enough, but
never made anything by 1t. Mining has
a great fascination for me, though
when 1 gave up mining. drove a mule
team. l had never seen a mule before ex-
cept on the leveeS at New Orleans I drove
this team for six months and then I took
the place Of porter in a store got $50 a
month and out OF that I saved $50 I did
my own cooking and made my own cloth
ing"
DID you ever make anything in little
speculations?"