Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1896-05-15
re blame for this terrible sacrifice Of In.
HOCent lives placod where IL belongs -


ping was scrnwled in Calamity Dick &
eramped script, And 30 of en- wimmpn,
and Lalor says the captain died a-cussin
the owner as the seas swept them pore
folks Oncn tlo Geek into tho surf.
Baxton stared at the paper before him.
Ny Gcd! lie Lad heard Of the Bucephr us
before.
True he was net born until years after
this terrible event, yet the memory of 1t
had poisoned all of his mother REMAINING
days. BaAtUn, the bucephalus murder.
er, he had heard somebody say in his
fathers lifetime but until tonight he
never knew the meaning of the words.
ana here, on the very scene of the horror,
inc SON OF its author was domiCiled under
the cabin walls of that long lost ship.
Honder its tigurehead Knocked him with
staring eyes.
1.-THE hull is breaking upl" 1t is no Ion
ger the 1isherman's house, but the cabin
of sinking ship See how the timbers
strain and wrench AS the keel pounds on
the Iemorseless sand hear how the waves
thunder on the deck above, as though to
crush the trembling fabric; listen to the
creaklng of the OVelstrained tImbers The
water Is slowly rising yunder, where the
cabin floor is lowest. Who are these that
crowd down the cOmpaniUnway-wo women
scantily clad terror in their eyes, their
hands bleeding, their naked feet raw from
contact with the cruel ropes? One is an
aged gentlCWUinan who leans ferhly on
the shoulder of young man; her gray
hair streams over her brows, Ter dim eves
look with mothers tender love Oh her
son S resOlute young face. All these puur
creatures are chilled with exposure, weak
with suffering. Two of the women lead.
another carries a child. Better to drown
here, says one bitterly, ethan to freeze to
death on deck (I5nxtun does not hear
these words, but he sees the lips move and
Knows what they are saylngD Then the
little group huudlUs CLOSE tuget her in the
gloom, the mothers gather their children
to their breasts, and one, all ancient gen
II, woman, prays silently as she locks
hands with the STRIPPING. Il pray thee, o
Father, II II be thy Will, take ms and spare
him"
Now tho pale lips OF the woman are still
her head sinks On her breast and the son
rises with the terrible cry (Baxton cannot
hear that cry, but he sees the man S awful
eyes ana know what he says), MY mother
Is utau Ihcn the waves pound harder
Oh the deck, The timbers shrink and creak
ana gruan, tllo fabric lifts ard falls with
uull, terrible tauus-it Is high tde--the
ship Is breaking up. Although it is day
the cabin grows darker and darker. The
water rises higher. Bnxtun must save him.
sell. lie staSgrrs across the heaving floor
where mother and son lie dead in each
others arms, reaches the companionway.
gains THO deck-and then, before him.
ma -.
cling half IL hundred miserable, drowning
creatures, looms great towering wall of
gray green water dashed to the mizzen
shrOuds, the captain trumpet in hand
sees not the coming avalanche-his glance
rests only on the face that is emerging
from the umpaniunway-B axton's face.
Casting off the rope that holds him to this
place OF safety, with livid stare and blaz-
ing eye, he points straight at Baxton.
See see, ~ he cries, 1.-THE murderer Bax-
ton! CURSES Oh yOu-curses on YOU
ourses!' In second it is over. The mon
struus hill of water, the double wave that
marks the flood tide strikes the shattered
ship full, fair blow, mounts as high as
the yardarm, clear over the decks, shutters
the weakened hull to fragments and bears
down mast and bOWsprt in one common
rum, amid an awful grinding and crush
ING ana "a spllnterng of timbers. Then
Rises great shrith that pierces to heaven
over the tulnult OF the sea (BaXton cannot
hear that shrek, but he feels it, followed
by the boiling seethe Of waters, and the
wave PASSES ON, leaving naught to tell the
Iate OF the Buccphalus save IL few scattered
slars' lew battered corpses (ghastly play
things of the tide and-that is all.
The following is from The Daily Record
of April rs, 1896:
"A strange accident happened at Coffin
Beach ON Friday last. Mr.. Clarence Bax-
ton, well KNOWN New Yorker went
down Oh Thursday for bit of snipe shoot
ing expecting to return that night Pre-
vented from doing SO by the storm. he
sought refuge in 1sherman's cabin on
the beach, where the life patrol left him
at 10 O'Clock in the evening" comfortably
housed ana provided with light and fuel.
he lldo rose to an extraordinary height
uurlng the night so much so that the flood
wave (as the last wave of the high tide is
calleu) swept clear over the sand dunes
that line the beach, overwhelmed the cab
III ana swept II out to sea, carrying with
II the unfortunate gentleman, whose body
was east up on the shore by the returning
tlde next morning. Not vestige of the
cabin remained save the fgurchead of
snip which formed "a part of the structure.
1t Is curious to note that the succeeding
ebb tide which was an extremely low one,
exposed upon the beach the hull of "A large
ship supposed to be the remains of the
clipper Bucephalus, which was wrecked on
the sands some 40 years ago The deceased
was the soh of the late II. b, Baxton,
prominent merchant of this city. Van
ity.
A Strange African Race.
Strange stories are told of the Dokos.
who live among the moist, warm bamboo
woods to the south of Kalfa and Susa I'm