The Bessemer indicator., 1893-01-14
R0WED BY BoNY HANDS.
THE. SPECTRAL JoLLY-soAT
OF THE MARTHA KANE.
How They Haunt the Waters whore Their
Bioodthirstlneas brought on
-. Them tho Curse Of One
of Their Victims.

Any sailor familiar with Porto Rico
xaters will tell you the story of the
jolly boat of the Martha Kane and
the crew OF spectral tars she carries,
The legend goes back to tho early
days of the present century. and runs
that the Martha Kane was slave ship
in command OF Captain Hawke, saws
the Philadelphia Times Among
those of his calling, mono OF them
noted for compassion and gentleness
he was famous for unparalleled cru
city and cold. blooded ferocity.
Among the captives she rried on
this her last voyage, was negro
prince, fellow of more than ordi-
; nary intelligence. who was SO moved
by his own sufferings and those of his
| people that he arranged a plan for
their deliverance. The plot was that
when the hold was opened to let down
food to them certain of them were to
lend their backs to others to leap to
the deck. where Il rush was to be
made upon the crew and officers who
were to be knocked down and secured.
The first part OF this plan worked
very well. The captives leaped to
the deck and sprang toward their
tormentors but the latter being
armed and the miserable slaves being
weakened by privation and the want
OF air. they were knocked down and
killed with cuts OF the cutlasses and
the officers pistols until the blood
flowed off the deck in rivulets when
The bodies were thrown to the sharks
that hung about tho vessel as if in
anticipation OF the feast that was fur
nished them. Some of the slaves
were not yet dead when thcy were
thrown overheard. there to find
speedy ending in the jaws OF these
horrid sea wolves
The matches were then hammered
down upon the remaining human
cargo who us u punishment were
thus deprived OF FREQ air for the day
Or two that were left before the ship
was to make port Hundreds died
their reeking bodies polluting the
foul air OF the hold still more MANY
went mad and bit and tore their com.
panions who were too weak to defend
themselves That Captain Hawke
would thus jeopardize his freight
seems incredible. but the mans
cruelty got the better of his greed;
besides it was matter of course
that good percentage would die on
the voyage.
But for the prince who had planned
the revolt was reserved the weightiest
punishment of all. He was stripped
naked and lowered into the water
where the sharks were allowed to
snap at his limbs before he was drawn
up again. tearing them away almost
inch by inch He was crazed by hun.
ger and thirst. us well as his suffer-
ings. and going quite mad. cursed the
ship its captain officers and crew
foretelling that the vessel would burn
by fire sent from heaven, and that
such OF the crew us did not perish in
her would be doomed to haunt these
waters ever more. But he died amid
the jeering OF the wretches about
him.
That night however the rigging
was found 10 be on fire the flames
descending instead of flaring upward
and licking the men from the decks
as if they had been so many knots of
wood. Tho captain and two of his
officers and three or four OF his mon
fled to the jolly. boat and succeeded
III ihuhShiuS hol upou lue stormy
waters that surrounded the ship. al
though beyond her the sea lay tran
quill. When the men were gone and
the jolly-boat had pulled away the
flames ceased us suddenly as they
came and tho slaves came troopiup
up from the hold unharmed. They
tloated about for IL day or two until
they were discovered by an outward
bound ship, when they told their
wonderful story but forgot to add
how. when the flames had died away,
the crew OF the jolly-boat had tried
once moro to board the vessel, thew
were beaten back by the desperate
| blacks.
Since then the jolly boat has been
often seen. SO sailors declare. in these
waters with her crew pulling away
for dear life but when overtaken thew
are seen to be only naked skeletons
looking back over their shoulders with
hideous grins and their eyes ablaze
with a horrid fire not of earth. This
boat invariably runs before the fear
full gales that are experienced on this
coast !. and every captain who sees
this spectral craft dancing before him
keeps his weather eye open. An old
sailor who now pulls fish and