The Portland daily press., 1893-05-09
SOME ODD STORIES.
The Narrative of the Loss of the Marion
Jarles-How the Ship and Captain Were
Cursed-The superstitious Sailors and

The Narrative of the Loss of the Marion
Jarles-How the Ship and Captain Were
Cursed-The superstitious Sailors and
the Sable Cat.
copyright, 1898, by American Press Associa-
toni
am a veritable landlubber, but 1 took
fancy to go to sea in sailing ship once on
time, thinking to pick up knowledge of
seamanship that would be of value to me
In my general newspaper work. Happen
ing TO know Captain Mark Carter of the
big 3-master Marion Jarles and learning
he was about to sail for Japan, l sought
him out and succeeded in making arrange
ments with him whereby could go along
as sort of companion, the captain having
decided to leave his family behind.
The Marion Jarles was handsome ship
of 1880 tons burden, stanch and seaworthY,
and to look at her as she lay in the dock
one would have thought her capable of buff
feting the severest seas and outriding the
most terrible storms. She was to carry a
miscellaneous cargo Her crew was mot
ley one, picked up at the shipping offices
along the water front Besides the cap
tain, the first and second mates alone were
Americans. There were three Danes, two
Italians, Portuguese, a negro steward and
various other nationalities. Still the cap
tain assured me they were all old seamen.
trustv and reliable.
My luggage had been sent aboard and
had sauntered out on the pier when of sud
den there arose a commotion on the ship
I heard Captain Carter shouting some or
ders, and then I saw several of the sailors
rushing wildly about the deck. Tony sur
prise observed they were chasing large
black cat. In few moments they pursued
the cat from the deck to the pier, and the
creature disappeared amid pile of lumber.
Scarcely had the cat vanished when an
old negress came rushing out from some re-
treat in the lumber and burst into a tor
rent Of vile language and abuse, shaking
her knobby fists at the captain and fairly
screeching:
''Curses on yo' vessel an yo' crewi Ole
satan will hab de boss fore de voyage is
over, an de ship'n go to de bottoml'
Then she hobbled away, muttering and
snarling, and was once more lost amid the
timbers.
was astounded to discover what an i'm
preston the old crone's words had pro-
duced on both crew and captain. The face
Of the latter, usually bright and cheerful,
was clouded and somber, and the men
seemed awed and frightened. Captain Car.
ter greeted me pleasantly, and even as he
shook my hand Dave Bunce, the second
mate, came up and said:
s.We'd better get away lively, cap'n. The
cat and that old bag have stirred the mer
up SO some Of them'll be desertin if they
have the chance" ave
An hour later we were dropping down
the bay in tow Of a tug. It was glorious
day, but almost fancied shadow how
cred over the Marion Jarles. After time,
however. this passed away, and everything
seemed all right enough on the surface. /
little understood the natural superstition
of sailors, and / did not know the discov-
cry of the cat and the curse Of the old ne
gress would be talked over day after day
in the fo'cas'le.
Everything went so well the captain
came to laugh over the matter in time, but
he once gravely declared:
81 wouldn't have sailed with that cat on
board for the wealth of Jay Gould. have
horror of black cats, and the creature
surely would have brought us bad luck.
Somehow that old negress made me think
of the cat. Did you notice she came out OF
the lumber at the very spot where the ami
NAL disappeared she had cats face too.
do hope nothing Will happen to us this
voyager
The final words were uttered in way
tnat plainly told ne mad not entirely recov-
ereo lfkm MS rear OF disaster. .
iesNaays later the hrst mate brought
us information That the portuguese de-
ciared ne had seen cat IN the hold, and the
creature was snetyery counterpart OF the
one 1ne crew drove ashore. 10 my surprise
the captain did not laugh at this, only
pressed MS lips togetner ana SHOOK MS head,
In snort Time half the crew were ready
10 swear tney had seen Une cat or heard Il
screening IN tne nlgnt. LOOK no STOCK Id
0nese yarns, pellevlng Their eyes lad de-
ceiveo them ana they mad simply heard the
WIND Walling IN the rigging
But although everything had moved
smootnly great and growing dlscontenf
ana restiessness seized upon the crew. Al
times detected them talking together In