The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-05-27

my life. There were several things
| which / had noted from my hiding
place that caused me to wonder In
the first place the Good Fortune" Gas
| i had ascertained the name of the
| steamship TO be) carried a surprisingly
large crew, although the majority OF
them were not visible until the second
day out. And for another thing, the
! strict discipline that had always here
tofore seen on shipboard was not main
tanned; for almost every evening was
| occupied in carousing and i never
| heard the slightest protest from the
| captain or any of the officers of the
deck. Finally the fragments of a con-
versation which / overheard between
two of the sailors impressed me as be-
! ing remarkable. to say the least.
Last cruise. Ell. Bill" said one.
And I'm glad of IL, too growled his
| comrade.
| well. so am I, to tell the truth. 1t
is wonderful that we've never been sus
| pected in a whole year.
| That's the shippers skill-and 7, for
one, don't grudge him his half share,
| specially as he provided the vessel"
We'll, you and l have near 5000
apiece an it'll be nearer 10 when we
| quit. That's more than we'd make in
| a year at cattle punching"
but it's in such mean stuff. Ear
rings and watches are all right. but 1t
won't be so easy to sell them"
Melt down the solid and" here the
speakers walked away and left me won
dering. but still unsuspecting.
on the fifth day out l was apprised
! by the hustle around me that some
| thing of unusual interest was transpir-
ing. To my great surprise l noted that
spars and ropes were scattered round
the deck in seeming confusion, that the
smokestack was partly taken down.
| that the boats We're swung inboard and
hidden under tarpaulins and that the
English flag was fastened to the main
shrouds, union down. This. of course
I knew was a signal that the ship was
/ In distress and required assistance
but when l noted that every man on
| board was equipped with two revolvers
and murderous looking bowie knife,
/ felt sick at heart and a mist came be-
fore my eyes.
Overpowered by fear, / kept well hid
den I'm my packing box. but / will brief
| ly narrate what happened as over
heard by me from conversation during
the next day.
The good bark c. b. Jones of Brox-
port, Me, bound from Buenos Ayres to
| Boston. with a cargo of hides and tai
low. sighted the steamer Good Fortune
of Bournemouth with flag of distress
| flying. AS all the steamers boats were
| gone, the first mate and four seamen
| took the long boat and rowed to the
| Good Fortune with the humane inten-
tion Of relieving the signaled wants of
the steamer, bringing a barrel of pork
and a bag of biscuit. So weak, as il
seemed. were the crew of the steamer
that they could hardly lend a hand to
| hoist the provisions aboard. After
quite a long delay the long boat started
To return. but Captain Jones was as
tonished to see that the boat contained
six others i'm addition To his own men.
And as they neared the vessel he failed
to distinguish the smiling, CHEEKY face
of his first mate. Before he could re-
cover his presence of mind the men
clambered up the sides, and as he ad-
vanced to speak with them, the fore
most intruder drew a revolver and
shot him through the heart. The
scanty crew eagerly threw up their
hands in surrender, but after they were
bound the cold-blooded monster muir
dered them as well as the captains
wife and child. a few hundred dollars
In the captains cabin, a few watches
and "A little money from the forecastle
and some miscellaneous articles COM
prised the whole plumber and the ship
was scuttled and sunk. In due course
she was doubtless annouored as over
due and missing, as many another
good ship has been before; but what a
flendish ingenuity was displayed in de-
stroying the ship and her entire crew.
SO that not one should live To tell the
tale. Some prizes, il seemed. netted
them thousands. but in the majority of
cases a dozen human lives were sacri-
feed for a mere trifle.
With my brain almost unhinged by
the horror of being i'm the power of
these demons, l lay long I'm a sort OF
stupor. When | came to my senses
found myself struggling in the water,
with nought between my life and eter-
nifty but my packing box. 1t fioated
me bravely, however, and when the
darkness had cleared away l was
picked up by the Atlanta of the Gu
nard line and conveyed back TO New
York.
Whether the Good Fortune-lying
name. as she herself was a lie-sunk
i'm collision with a rock or iceberg. or
whether she still ranges the seas UNI
checked. l know not: but drowning
seems TO me all too light a punishment
for the wicked deeds OF its crew.