The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1895-06-19
A MARITIME FREAK.
NARROW ESCAPES FROM WATER.
SHOUTS IN MEXICO.
4 Traveller Relates Two Experiences He
Had With These Twisting Terrors-A
Congregation Of Them. Each OF which
Was Nearly 1000 Feet In Height.

y Aso~O e D"
The narrowest escape / ever had wa
from a congregation of waterspouts.
was making a trip to some of the SINAI
islands in the gulf Of Mexico, about 5
miles from Cuba, a spot famous for it
w~aterspouts, and in the summer month
there were few days that one or NOR
were not seen. Generally a long, atten
uated black cloud would appear, from
which would drop a pendulous cloud
Lower it would descend, resembling tn
lower portion of a balloon, and whe,
about half way to the water a CORE
spending figure would be seen rising t.
meet it. Finally the two would join
and the column. from 400 to 1000 fee
high, more or less, would move away
before the wind, bending before it lik,
a gigantic bow-a thing Of terror, 6
frightful object of the sea.
l had been visiting an island abou,
ten miles from u camp and was in 9
heavy sailboat-too heavy to manipu.
late by oars readily. When half way
home, on the edge Of the channel, the
wind died completely away, and I no.
ticed all about us a number of strange
black clouds.
Watching them closely and comment
ing upon them to my man, I suddenly
saw the ominous dropping Of a pointed
index finger not a sixteenth Of q mile
away. AS mentioned it my companion
pointed behind me to another, and in
less than five minutes five Of these dread
objects dropped from the clouds about
us.
There was not a breath of air, and
there was an ominous silence. Even the
ever present gulls seemed to have de-
serted the place. We got out the oars
and endeavored to pull, but the boat
was too heavy, and we We're compelled
to await developments.
The cloud tips slowly dropped, and
all about MS mysterious columns rose ND
to meet them, until in q few minutes
we We're surrounded by these huge pill
lars, so that in one direction the heav-
ems appeared to be supported upon
these watery columns. A more remark
able sight cannot be imagined, and
when they began to move we gave our
selves up for lost, MS Two appeared to be
bearing down upon us.
As good luck would have it, they
seemed to bring a breeze, and we were
able to get under way, and, fortunately,
escaped. The two giants came careering
down upon us-a spectacle to democrat
ize the stout hearted. One passed not 200
feet away, rushing on with a noise
like that of a steam engine. I could dis
tipctly see the terrific twisting and
whirling motion Of the water, and for a
large area about it there was what ap-
peared to be q heavy rain.
The spouts began to move as soon as
they We're complete, and very soon as
sumed the bend or bow shape that char
acterizes them, and went sailing away.
These giants were so tall that I could
not venture to estimate their height.
My companion said a mile high, and
they certainly looked it; but they were
under 200 feet.
My nearest approach to a waterspout
occurred later, and dissipated some of
the theories l had concerning them. One
was that a spout was broken when
touched or interfered with in any way,
yet l saw this water giant cross an is
land.
/ was lying in the sands near our
camp one day when a lofty spout came
into view from the south. 1t was head
ing directly for US, but we felt perfectly
safe, as there was a large reef and long
canal key between us. On came the col
umn, passing the reef in safety, a grand
spectacle, and every one in the island
was seen watching it as it moved rap
idly up the lagoon, its upper portions
apparently lost in the clouds. If it had
continued it would have passed between
the w islands, and so reached the open
sea-, but for some reason it's course was
changed, and in a few momentsi it struck
the island at an angle. We fully expect
ed to see the whole mass drop, but it
kept blowing up the sand, and soon
struck a good sized schooner that had
been hauled on the beach, whirling it
about end for end like a feather. Then,
to our CONSERVATION, the spout headed
for our island, and with a great bow or
curve rushed on.
The distance from island to island
was a good rifieshot, and there was not
much time to debate, as the spout was
now half way across. Seeing that it was
veering off and would probably not
reach US, l ran out on to a sea wall and
watched it. 1t gradually drifted to the
south, and il a few moments struck our
shoal with O roar like that Of a locomo-
tive.
As I looked up the top seemed a great
canopy Of water lost in the black clouds,
down from which poured great drops
which soon drenched me through. The
center Of the great curve I could not see
at all for some singular reason, while
the lower end or portion, now but 100
yards away, was rushing by me, a mag
nifcent column Of water, boiling and
kissing like some living thing. liter.
ally raced with it for the length of the
wall, 600 or 500 feet, and had all
could do to keep pace with IL.