The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-09-12
A SECRET OF THE SEA

A StCRtl Ut lHt STA.
In the year 1919 the Honorable East
India company's ship. the Star OF In.
din, set sail from Madras for London,
having on board over two hundred pas
sengers and among them Lord Glen
ham, General Swift, Lady Artwell and
her two daughters, and other men and
women OF note at home and abroad.
Aside from her general cargo. the ship
carried treasure TO the amount OF $780,
OoO' The bankers at Madras figured
out that the passengers must have had
nj least 100000 among them, while an
indian p1tentate. on his way TO be re-
ceived as q guest OF royalty, had n
strong box OF jewelry and gems valued
at so great n sum that no one dared
speak It. It was intended that the ship
should be conveyed as far as the Cape
OF Good Hope BY man-of.wnr, as
there were plenty OF pirate crnft stIll
ailoat. but the government vessel met
with mishap ut sea and was detained
somewhere and the Star finally decided
10 SAL without her, us there was little
fear but that she could take care OF
herself, Two days out OF Madras she
was sighted and reported. but that was
the last seen or heard OF her until the
year 1861. r
The loss OF the. Star made great
sensation for several reasons. and when
II was finally concluded that she had
been lost various vessels were sent In
search OF her and every cffor, was
made to ascertain her fate In 1856 n
Malay sailor who died aboard OF an
English tea ship told her captain that
the Star was attacked and captured
by pirates to the south OF Ceylon and
that he was one OF the men engaged
In the attack. He said there were five
native crafts. and that they came upon
the Star In calm and carried her by
boarding. The ship made l1ng and
stubborn resistance. but was finally
captured, and the pirates had suffered
snch heavy loss that In revenge they
Killed everybody to the last child. They
then looted the ship and scuttled her
and the plumber was subsequently d.
rlded on an island In the China sea,
Some people believed this story and
some said II was absurd The general
idea was that the Star foundered NJ
sea during heavy gale. The dying
statement OF the pirate was never fully
investigated for some reason. So far MS
the investigation went. II was proved
to be fact. The pirates mad long been
scattered. many were doubtless dead
and the idea OF bringing the gang to
justice was given up as impossible
In the year 1853 / was one OF tho a wv
or the English brig Swittsure. which
was making survey Of the islands %
the northeast OF Madagascar. At the
ChaSos group, as We were pulling into
land one day. with seven men in the
BOAT, we were upset In the surf and on
~ two OF US escaped death. My COM
panion was a sailor named Wallace.
and while In a half-drowned stute. we
were swept along the coast OF the Is.
iahd by a current and finally thrown
on shore IN bit OF n cove,JA boat put
OF from the brig rs soon as the disas-
Ter was not!ced. but only two bodies
were recovered. The three Others, were
pulled down by the sharks before The
boat got TO them. Believing this TO have
been the sad fate OF all five. no search
was made for the pair OF us cast
ashore and before we had recovered
from our exhaustion and prepared
signal. the brig had departed for an
other Held. The Island on which we
were cast Is one OF n group OF nine and
the lnnermost one OF all. II IL likely
the same today as then, having plenty
OF fresh water. most u II covered wifi,
vcrdure and Wild fruits, shrimps and
shelliish so plentiful that a shIpwreck-
ed crew OF twenty men could get along
there for months. Wallace and | were
inclined to look upon dhe affair as n
lafk. we erected a hut In the woods.
procured fire by rubbing two dry
STICKS together and after a thorough
exploration OF our domain. which was
nor over two miles across In any direc-
ton. We siept..ate and talked and had
pretty easy time OF II.
we mad been on the island about three
months. when we awoke one morning 10
find the sea like sheet OF glass and the
air as still as death. The sky was oyar-
cast, and yet OF n cupp-ry color. and the
birds on the island appeared to be In
great alarm. Great nocks OF them
came In from the sea. and all along
shore the fish were leaplng out Of the
wafer as II 1t was polluted. After sur
ftylng things for awhile Wallace gave
II az his opinion that we yer, I'm for n
typhoon or an earthquake. The sui
phury smell In the air inclined him 10
the latter. and as soon rs W. had eaten
We started for the center of the islonl
There was high hill In the center, bare
OF everything but a couple OF trees and
few bushes, and We sought II on ac-
count nf the tidal wave we knew wnull
surely follow an earthquake, As 10 n
disturbance Of the earth, we were help
less. except to keep clear of the forest
II was midday bfore anything occurred.
The mcnaclng look OF the skyand the sea
Increased and FISH by the thousands
drove UP on the sandy beach to their
death. Just about noon, when we wero
wondering what II was TO be, the whole
Island suddenly began to heave and
trcmblc. For what seemed n full min
ute It was like riding over n choppy sea
In n small boat. only the sensation was
strangely bewllderinG and made tho
head swim.
There was more Than one shock, but
The first waa the most violent and lasted
longest The three or four which sue
ceetled were thrills rather thnn shocks,
They ran through thu Island from east
to west and ont to sea. and We heard n
chorus OF what may be called shrleks
or distress from the birds with each
vibration. Two or tire. minutes after
the fourth or fifth shock Wallace stood
VII and looked out upon the sea to the
east and shouted To me:
Look! Look, The tidal wave IS COM
Ing In and there's z big ship on the crest
OF IT,"
sprung up and followed his gaze. Ten
miles away there wna' n wall OF water
which seemed to LIT its white crest nj
most 10 the sky and to reach north and