Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-01-26

BILE Hurricane Hcwls 1t Rides Easily
With All Sails Set.
"These tales of the ships that never
came back are sad enough, but it's the
ship that never went ont, the ghosts Of
the sea. that give the sailor man q
creepy feeling when he meets them out
where the waves are rolling high and
the winds are singing funeral songs"
The speaker was Mate Bob Alling,
.-ho has followed tine sea rs boy and
man for nearly SD years. Surrounded by
group OF interested listeners in the
public room Of the Sailors Happy home
in South street, Mate Bob. as all the
sailors call him. was telling stories of
strange sights that he has witnessed at
sea- Alling is now mate of a coastwise
fishing schooner, but in the old days he
sailed in some of the largest trading ships
and the strongest whalers that ever
sailed out of an American port flying
the stars and stripes.
AS I said, boys" the old man went
on, its the ships that never went ont
from any port that q sailor never forgets
when he sees one of item. We may re-
member the ships that went ont and
never came back~fcr 4 time if We had n
shipmate aboard. but we can forget.
But there's no forgetting = ghost Of the
sea
1T was back in the early fifties that
| saw my first sea ghost, and today l
can shut my eyes and SEQ it Just as plain
as could see il then. was a sailor on
n fishing schooner, and we were catch
ing cod OF the coast of Newfoundland.
We had been out ten days and were al
most ready to start for home with q full
cargo when a nasty off shore breeze
came on late one evening. We stood out
to sea, for there was a heavy fog along
with tho wind. TWAS stiff and steady
blow, so we rode tho waves under bare
poles during tho night, waiting for day
light and the fog to lift before shaping
our course for hcme.
''All through the night we sent up
rockets at intervals and kept the ships
bell going, because we could not see
ten feet ahead at times on account of
the fog. But it was nearly morning. be-
fore we heard or saw al answering sig
nal to warn US that another vessel was
near.
Il was ON the carly morning watch,
and about half an hour before daylight
/ made out a signal light n short dis
lance ahead on our port bow. 1t was q
strange light, pale blue in color, and
it flashed up and down at irregular in
Tl,n Stf rol- nd
was impossible to tell how near we were
to the vessel.
Il called the mate on deck and point
ed to the strange signal light. He look
cd at it n long time, and, with q shake
of his head, said he could not make it
out at all. The lights showed that the
vessel could not be far away, so we
changed our course little, and then
fred gun. There was no answer, and
we fired again and again with the same
result.
by and by I saw that the mate was
very grave and queer looking. He was
pacing back and forth on the deck, not
minding the cold. misty rain that was
falling. and all the time he kept his
eyes fixed on that queer looking blush
light that flashed Up out of the fog and
darkness ahead. At last l made so bold
as to ask the mate what he thought of
it.
90 It's q ghost,' he said, looking at
me with a plying look.
A ghost" says |.
eyes, n ghost of the sea. Wait till
the fog lifts. You may see it them
H. ~,
came, and then l saw the ghost, as the
mate said would.
Rising grim and white out of the
fog and waves that We're rolling high, /
saw n full rugged ship of queer design.
The wind was blowing half a gale, but
not a mast or pole Of the ghost ship
bent an inch. and not one of the broad
white sails seemed to strain ut the ropes.
"The phantom was close on our port
bow, and as the fog cleared away we
had q splendid view from her water line
to the top of her masts. With the waves
pitching and rolling mountain high, and
the wind bowling around our poles, the
ghost ship was riding out the storm as
steady as q painted ship on q painted
canvas ocean.
Every man on board crowded on
deck, and while they had to hold ON to
the railing to keep from being washed
overheard they stood and gazed at the
phantom ship rs long as it was in sight.
Some of them that were bit religious
like made the sign of the cross. and 9TH
ers tried to say a bit Of prayer. The
fact is that every man on board thought
the phantom ship a warning of death.
THE captain went below and drank
hot grog till he was that reckless no
ghost had any terrors for him. Then, as
the wind went down a bit, he ordered
Us to make sail and bear down ON the
phantom ship.
up went our sail in jiffy, and we
| flew along before the wind, but we
could get no nearer the phantom ship.
Suddenly we saw the white ghost ship
lurch forward, her sails trembled for an
instant, and then she seemed to sink
straight down into the sea Ten seconds
from the time we saw the first culver of