Democratic messenger., 1894-09-29
TALES OF THE SEA.
WEIRD YARNS OF THE SUPERNAT-
URAL SPUN BY THE CAPTAIN.


lucky Bark In the Demerara Trade That
Was Said to Be Haunted The Story Of an
Exile From Salvador.
We We're eating dinner one night ON
the old cargo ship and talking of the
happenings at sea and ON shore that are
called supernatural when the captain
said:
.'One sees some things at sea not su-
pernatural which are fit to make nery-
Gus man see ghosts. There was that case
i'll one of Greens liners to the colonies,
where man WAS sent down to clean
out the chain locker The locker had
! seemed foul all the passage home. and
20 they hoisted out the chain and sent
this fellow down with his brush and
soap and bucket, with a lamp, to clean
it out. I'll wager !,e saw ghosts for q
year after that, for when he'd got down
on his knees to begin scrubhing he
found himself bending over the skull of
u dead man.
lit was most likely a man that had
slowed away ont in the colony and had
been caught under the cable when they
We're running it down quickly, and SO
had the life crushed out of him.
However, did know of a case that
seemed supernatural right enough 1t
was in the Demerara trade. and was
acquainted with the first officer of the
bark where it all happened.
In the first place, while el.a was out
there loaded and ready to sail. the cap
tain had trouble with one Of the seamen,
who drew ont his knife AMI stabbed him
to death then and there The mate after
ward took her home. but on the way a
passenger touk 10 ailing i'll some mysteri-
Gus fashion and mp and died very sud-
denly.
'.Of course she was a haunted ship
when she arrived home, and so the
owners had her name changed, and she
was refitted and painted mp entirely
different from what she had been. Then
she sailed away with new captain, but
on the way out he took to drink, and by
the time she reached Demerara he was
off his head and killed himself with q
| revolver.
Now she was haunted. sure enough,
| II you could believe the mate. Mind
you. after she was refitted the mate said
never wor,l to the new captain about
what had happened in her before. and
even when u new captain came ont from
home to take charge Of her, believing
that the last captain was naturally n
drunkard, instead of one who had taken
TO it after coming on this ship. this first
officer never said word, because he did
not believe in ghosts or even in future
| state.
However, the first night the new
| captain was on board the trouble began.
| The captain ut about 0 o'clock went to
| his room and retired. An hour later he
was calling the mate and telling that
| he had gone to sleep and then had been
awakened by light in the room. On
opening his eyes he saw short, thick
set man. with side whiskers, in the
armchair ut the desk, leaning over, with
his elbows on tho desk, holding his
head between his hands and saying:
oh. my poor head! oh, my poor head!
THAT was enough for the mate. He
left the vessel that night with all hands.
This new captain knew nothing of the
| style or manner of the one who had
killed himself. and yet the picture
| ghost or what you may call it-in the
chair was the image in appearance and
| dress of the suicide and had complained
in precisely the words and voice Of the
| dead man.
This brought ont the story of an exile
from Salvador whom the narrator met
in Guatemala Having got into trouble
| with tho authorities, Senor Don Sebas
tian Mojarieta saved his life by fleeing
to Amapala. Honduras. rs many another
exile has done. and there taking u
steamer north to San Jose, Guatemala
A friend of his who was involved in
| like manner was to have reached Amap-
ala by different route i'll time for the
same steamer, and to prevent any possi-
BILE delays Mojarieta engaged staterooms
and secured passes from the Amapala
authorities for his friend and himself rs
soon as he arrived. But the steamer day
came without his friend. and Mojarieta
was Obliged to sail alone.
| AT the usual hour, OH the first night
OUT" the story teller went on, Mo-
jarieta retired and went to sleep. but
had no sooner doZed off than no awOke.
hearing his friends voice. as he says,
| In the next stateroom, which he had
supposed to be empty. Leaving his berth.
he went out into the passageway and
opened the door TO the adjoining room.
and there. he says, he saw lying in tho
berth the body of his friend fully dressed,
but with three bullet holes in the breast
of his coat and ono i'll tho right cheek.
| "At that Mojarieta tainted and was
found on the deck by the steward and
put to bed again. Thereafter it was u
most miserable passage. for the vessel
touched at both of the Salvador ports
and was about week reaching San
Jose. Mojarieta was sure his friend had
been shot and expected force to CINE
off from each of the Salvador ports to
demand him. Moreover. he was haunt
ed continually by that picture of his
dead friend.
| ''Once in Guatemala he obtained EN-.
ployment quickly and then began to re-
cover something of his former spirits.
He ascribed his vision 10 his over
wrought imagination and was begin
ming TO hope that his friend would yet
appear when letter was received from
q relative in Salvador. 1t not only told
that the friend had been shot by the
government soldiers, but described the
wounds of the body after it was dead.
Mojarieta declares that the description
accurately portrayed the vision he had
! of his friend. and he believes that his
friends spirit. being unable to rest or
wholly throw off its desire to take pas
sage on the steamer. had come on board
and was Occupying that berth. New
York Sun.