The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-30
RESTORED TO HIS FAMILY.
A Pretty Romance Connected With
the Great Atlantic Hurricane.

the Great Atlantic Hurricane.
From the Brooklyn Eagle.
Mrs. Frances Briggs of this city is one
of the principal characters in a pretty
romance which has for its chief scene the
storm desolated coast of New Jersey.
Among the shipwrecked sailors who were
rescued by life-saving parties along that
coast in the cyclone of last week was one
griZzled old salt who was picked up near
South Amboy in an exhausted condition,
but still clinging TO a broken spar. When
able to speak he said his name was Jacob
Wood, and that quarter of a century
ago he was well known in that section Of
the country. He had sailed as captain of
the bark Emma in the early part of 1871,
leaving a family at Morristown, n. ].
For twenty-five years he had been drift
ing about the world, and what had become
of his family he did not know. Captain
Wood had been injured by the floating
wreckage, so he was cared for in a house
in the neigh borhoOd, while some of his
rescuers carried the story told by the old
man to their friends and neighbors.
Among those who heard the story was
Mrs. Frances Briggs, a residento of Brook
Ign, who happenened to be visiting some
friends near South AmbOy. When Mrs.
Briggs learned that the shipwrecked
sailors name was Jacob sWood, she aston
ished her friends by saying he must be
her grandfather, who was supposed to
have been lost at sea over twenty wears
ago. Then she hurried to the house where
the old man lay. Mrs. Briggs, who is a
young woman, had never seen her grand
father, but after a few minutes talk with
the injured sailor she became convinced
that he was really the Jacob Wood who
had been missing for score of years or
more.
Captain Wood set out on voyage for
the South Pacific in 1871, leaving behind
him wife and three children, two sons
and daughter. AS months passed and
nothing was heard of the absent vessel
Mrs. Wood finally concluded that her
husband had been lost at sea. The times
were hard and, having relatives at Yon-
kers, the Wood family left Morristown
and moved to the Hudson river town.
One of the sons finally decided to become
a sailor and embarked on a long voyage.
The other found employment in New
York, while the daughter married and
became the mother of the present Mrs
Briggs. Upon returning home after sew
eral years of seafaring life, Edgar F.
Wood, the Oldest son, found that dur
ing his absence his mother and
sister had died. The young man settled
down in Yonkers, where he finally
became a member of the police force,
which he still is. Nothing having been
heard from the missing father for twenty
two years, Mr.. Wood was more than sur
prised, a few days ago, TO receive a letter
from his niece saying that Jacob Wood
had been wrecked on the Jersey coast
and was lying i'll at South Amboy. This
letter was followed by one from Capt.
Wood Obtaining leave of absence, Po-
liceman Wood FASTENED to South Amboy.
There was warm meeting between the
father and son. The former soon cleared
up the mystery of his long silence. Near
the end of his voyage as captain of the
bark Emma he had been wrecked among
the South Sea islands. After months Of
drifting about from one place to anotherhe
was finally able to send letter to his wife
in New Jersey. AS the family had moved
to Yonkers by that time, the letter mis-
carried, and Capt. Wood, believing his
wife and children dead, shipped from a
foreign port for long voyage. Again be-
coming captain Of vessel, he continued
his seafaring career until he was ship
wrecked of the New Jersey coast and
was so strangely found by his grand
daughter Policeman Wood told the
facts of the story TO a reporter yesterday.
my father is now ~ years old.' said
Mr.. Wood. las soon as he is able to
bring lin to Yonkers. Ii
seems queer that we supposed he had lost
his life in a storm, and then, after all il
was a storm which was the means of Civ
ing him back to u.s."