The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-07-23
Semmes, Terror of the Seas.

\ =
Oh. s. Garfield in Chicago Times-Herald)
Raphael Semmes, long dead, was in his
day, a terror of the seas. Commander first
OF the Sumter and then OF the Alabama.
Northern commerce rotted in China ports
tor the dread of him. He was called '.buc-
cancer, pirate" and other choice names
ny the Federal press. The passions of the
war nave lessened and men now are wiilins
10 grant that he was a regularly commits
stoned officer of a regular navy, belonging
10 regularly organized government whose
rights had been recognized by many OF the
european powers. One man met him who
preserves vivid recollection of him. This
man is Old Captain Strout of Lewiston,
Me-, grizzled sea-dog now IN his seven
| ties.
Il was master of the American brig
Cuba he told me- land sailed out OF Trim
| dad on July ?. 1861. 1 had a cargo of
sugar and was bound for London. The
| Cuba was 23S tons burden, and with the
wind dead astern she walked the waters like
a thing o life. Which IS poetry. Two
days out-which is 10 say, on July 1--WE
| sighted vessel on our starboard bow. She
was travelling nearly a parallel course, and
pretty soon she veered in and fired a shot
| across our bows. Naturally, 1 stopped.
The rebellion has broken out and Confeder-
ate cruisers were securing the seas snap
ping up our merchantmen, but / relied on
our bills of ladlng 10 see US through. They
bad the stamp of the British consul al Trim
| dad l was ordered TO go on board the
| Sumter and Semmes took my papers. He
! was a sour looking man enough, and
when he saw the consul's stamp he grim
ned. That's a id Yankee trick he said.
Then he added: I am sorry 10 inform you
that you are prisoner of war told him
that he wasn't half as sorry as I was, and
| ne seemed to believe me- He sent me
| back to my vessel along with a prize crew
| that was armed 10 the teeth.
| tine Sumter took us in tow at ten o'clock
| in the morning. At three O'clock next
morning the hawser broke. Semmes tried
three times 10 refasten, but the sea was too
| high. He then ordered the captain of the
prize crew TO take the Cuba 10 Cienfuegos.
We were only sixty miles west of that point,
| We were unarmed and were allowed TO
walk the deck. 1 got chance TO talk to
| lin Bebbage and Jim Carroll my two
| mates, and We determined 70 recapture the
vessel. On July found the prize master
asleep on the round-house. Immediately
| We go. possession of all the arms. The
| prize crew got onto the racket and ran for
| their arms. Finding them gone, two drew
| their sheath-knives and one got an axe and
| they rushed aft where We were. The main
sail was down and lay between US. One of
| them tried to jump over it and hit him on
the head with a clever that 1 had in my
| hand. He fell. scrambled back, and did
| not attempt 10 return. My mates and my
cook were now armed with revolvers, and
one OF my seamen had a cutlass. IF you
STIR shouted 10 the prize crew, 4 will
blow your heads off, They didn't stir.
When I ordered them to surrender they
yielded and went forward, followed by my
self and the crew.
II had on board only four pairs of irons.
l put one on the prize master and the 9TH
ers on three of the most dangerous of the
prisoners. The rest We tied with ropes.
That day 1 fell in with the brig Costa Rica,
which took two Of the prize crew. l then
headed the Cuba for New York Nothing
of importance happened until the 14th of
July, when the prize master, whose irons
had been removed at his urgent request,
managed to get hold of pistol and perched
himself in the ma.ntop. Then ne rolled
a cigarette and lighted it. blew some smoke
through his nostrils, and called down that
he had something to say to me. DO you
told him that did. He took some more
smoke into his mouth, blew it out, laughed.
and said: Well, you'll never do 1t alive
All right said 1 then I'll carry you dead
At that he yelled out: It's your time to
dodge and fired at me. The bullet struck
the deck at my feet and did dodge. John
ny Reb told the truth that time. He fired
again and l did some lively hopping. Then
l ran below and got my pistol AS my
head reappeared in the companion-w he
turned loose one more time and the splin-
tiers few into my hair.
II got On deck at last and proceeded to
even things up. He was swinging around
up in the maintop and was dancing around
on the planking. / suppose it was the fun
niest-looking duel that ever was. He used
up all his loads without hitting me, and l
shot at him three times without coming any
where near nm. Then lodged ball in the
mast just above his head, and the next shot
I got him IN the arm. 1t was the right
arm, and was broken above the elbow He
dropped his weapon 10 the deck. All of
this time he had been holding his cigarette
in his left hand. He was the neryiest
devil l ever saw. He threw the cigarette
away and came down. ! dressed his wound
and locked him up. kept guard over him
until we reached New York. on July p. Ii
was Sunday. l remember, and, though We
did not know it, the guns Were roaring at
Bull Run, the first big battle OF the war
1 delivered my prisoner to the United States
authorities, but the prize master. whose
name was Thomas, went TO Bellevue hos
pital, where some northern women nursed
him until he got well. He stayed in prison
awhile and there was some talk OF hanging
him for a pirate, but 1 did the best ] could
for him, because he was a brave man. and
finally they exchanged him and he went
back south"