The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1897-05-01


gave her bad manner Such was the
/ case.
The Memo" was clyde built ship and
was launched in 1870. She was built for
and owned by Perry Joslyn of Liverpool
who was the owner of six other ships,
all Yoyaging to India or Australia. AS
a rule, two or three men are killed ana
| so many more badly Injured IN the pnild-
| ing and rigging of a ship, but in the case
of the Memo" no man met with the
| scratch of a finger. The launch was the
| fairest of a score of ships from the same
yard and when fully rugged and ready
| for her maiden voyage the new creation
was said to be the handsomest vessel
| haiIing from the great port. A yalusoie
| cargo was ready for her, and the owner
| had the luck to secure skipper in the
| person of Captain Halpin, who had COM
| manded half dozen different ships ana
| never met with a serious accident The
| Memo" had the name of being a lucky
ship before her cargo was under matches
/ and that went far to giving her the pick
of the best seamen in the port. II she
| had been a Friday" ship one might
| have argued that her ill-luck was a nat
/ ural sequence, but l have told you that
everything was in her favor all the way
| around.
We got to sea one day in a way to
| please all hands, and inside of "a hours
we found the craft to be witch for sail
1 "
pace she showed the speed of q steamer,
and carried favorable winds for the first
seven days out. Then, one night at 10
| o'clock, the breeze died away until the
| Memo" lost steerage-way, and it was at
/ II o'clock that the ghost was first heard
of. A man named Charles Jones was on
/ watch on the bows at that hour He was
i a sober, dignified man, and the best sea-
| man of the crew AS third mate of the
| ship I had the watch at that time, while
i ~ka,Eva
/ asleep and seven or eight men were loung-
| ing about on the fore and main decks.
| OF a sudden Jones screamed out and
| came running aft in a state of great ex-
| element. He was in such a state Of
/ alarm that it was five minutes gefore ne
could relate his story. He was pacing
to and fro, he said, keeping a bright look
| out and not thinking of anything in par
| tictular, when he suddenly found some
| thing walking beside him. He heard no
step or sound, but something" stood
/ shoulder to shoulder with him. 1t
wasn't exactly a man, nor yet was it a
| shadow The sailor felt it's breath on
| his cheek and turned to seize it, but the
| something laughed at him and glided
away. I was greatly provoked with the
] man and charged him with having slept
on his post, though / knew that did him
/ injustice in this. 1t was a cloudy night
| with the moon breaking through now and
| then, and 1 cOntended that his some
| thing" was but a shadow and ordered
| him back to his post. Nothing further
happened that night and the next morn
| ing the captain called the old man aft
| and gave him to understand that If he
/ saw or felt any more ghOstly visitors it
| would be bad for him. The crew would
| talk the matter over and side with Jones.
| but that anything farther would be seen
| of the something no man believed
| Four nights later and two hours after
| midnight, while the ship was making
| good eight knots per hour and every
| thing was going smoothly as the first
mate had the deck, the entire ship was
| aroused by something which happened
| in the deck house. There were eight or
| nine men sleeping there ami a man from
| the watch on deck went in to his chest
| to get a plug of tobacco. The slush lamp
| had been turned down so that the place
was but dimly lighted The man was
| bending over his chest when something
| seized him in a Clammy embrace and
| forced him to the floor. He thought it
/ was one of the crew playing him a trick,
| but he scrambled up to find them all in
| their hunks and to see a shadow glide
| away. The sailor set up a shout the
| watch below turned out and presently
| everybody was on deck and excitement
/ reigned fore and aft. In return for his
story the sailor got dose of ropes end
though after the flogging he still main
| tanned that he had been Rugged by n
ghost. On the quarter deck we explained
It away by saying that the man was
| lervOus, but every man forward believed
| his statements and was satisfied that the
ship was haunted. We thought it the
| best policy to treat the affair with CON
| tempt, and although we could not help
| but notice how the men hung together in
pairs after night had come we gave the
natter no attention. When ten days had
gone by and nothing more had turned up
| We looked upon the ghost as good joke
md the two men who had seen it were
| the butt of ridicule. At / o'clock of a
ertain morning, the breeze being small
md the night without a moon, though
| 'airly light the first mate stood looking
o windward over the port quarter at
what he believed was a sail. His watch
we're all wide awake, and he could hear
the footsteps of the man on lookout as he
paced to and fro. The man had been
standing still for perhaps five minutes
when he felt a hand laid on his arm, an
Icy breath on his cheek, and, as he
wheeled about, there was the sound of
low laughter. To his surprise and con-
sternation no one was visible. His i'm
preston as he turned was that one of
the other officers had softly approached
aim to test his nerve. The man at the
helm was nearest to him, but he could
not be suspected of having left his post
20 play a trick on his officer. In fact no
sailor aboard would have dared to take
such liberty. For a few seconds the
uldNC was tS sure llldI ne udu u human
being to deal with as that he lived, but
when he found nothing before him, and
yet heard the hooking laughter, as If
ONE one were moving away, his flesh
began to creep. Going back to the bin
nacle he said to the man at the wheel:
Williams, have you seen or heard any
thing queer?"
Can l speak out, sr?" asked the man,
who betrayed excitement in his voice
Yes of course. What did you see?"
Il seen sunthin like a, shadder beside
you, sir, and heard a laugh that never
come from the throat of human being.
It's ghost, sir, and this is a doomed
ship!"
The mate pooh-hooed and bull-dozed to
make light of the affair, as it was polite
to do, but though the man was reduced
70 silence 1t was evident that he was full
~ satisfied that a spook was aboard
Next morning the mate related his eN-
pertence to the cabin, and as he was a
man whose word could not be questioned
no one brought ridieule to bear On the
contrary, taking it as an accepted fact
that ghost had been felt, If not seen, by
three different persons, we began fishing
Tor some natural and plausible reason to