The times., 1897-08-22
The adventures Of
John Somebody"
Oseeeeeee0esss

some would even dash into the sea when
! pursued them. As near as / can figure
had been ON the island twelve weeks, and
was quite Content and taking things easy,
when Gne night there came gale from the
east.
The storm lasted all night and all next
day, and was widespread. Toward night
OF the second day, as W as ON theeast s,,Ie
OF the isianl, watching the tremendous surf
rolling in. the waves began To throw wreck
age on the beach. A ships toprnast. a sec
tion of bBlwark and a lot OF boards had
come ashore when John Somebody ar
rived. He was not man then, but boy
about two years old. He was clothed in 4
UighUgown and was lying in a cedar chest
which was without Il lid. l saw the Chest
afar ont, and thinking IL Rad be
loaged 10 a seaman / stood by to
secure it when it came rushing in- I had
At safely beyond the surf before l saw the
contents In fact. John Somebody squealed
O1t before 1 realized his presence You
Will say that his arrival was q singular
thing. SO 1t was. but there were many
Other singular things connected with IT,
To this day no one is sure from " ha atdoomed
craft he was launched, nor how far he
floated. It is generally thought, however.
tnat lie is the sole survivor OF the India
man, Farewell which was lost about that
time with ESQ people aboard. She nIust
have been hundreds OF miles cut OF ayr
course 90 have reached that locality. bus
that can be accounted Tor. She was 10 the
west o. the COcos and crippled al0ft when
last sighted.
John Somebody was half drowned when
/ he came ashore. and the sight OF him
upset me more thaE the sight OF a dead
body. [ was Tor running a. way at first,
bet Presently / realized that there had
/ been disaster nearby. and / got him
/ out OF tie chest, rolled him around On the
/ sands for awhile, and when he began
kicking and screaming / started for the
shan.s with him IN nv arms He clGng 10
NE and crird and sObbed, and as hurried
/ asOng | wondered what ON earth / should
/ do with him. II was well for me that hss
/ wss no longer al infant After / had got
/ him home and given him water / pre-
/ pared food and found him ravenousIy
/ hungry, and soon after eating he fell
/ asleep ana did not awaken until noon
/ next day By that time 1 had thought the
matter over and overhsuled the best II
my provisions, and l prepared him meal
| which he relisised exceedingly well. He
! could speak about a dozen words, AMI
! when ( asked lis name he uttered a w0rd
! so near like johnny that l called hi,s,
| by that name thereafter. He was unGrr
the weather Tor a DAY or two, but after "A
bit he Came out all right aud I had "A
! thousand reasons for being glad If his
| arrival He could get about fairly Well.
| and we were great friends from the start.
He accompanied HE everywhere tv day
and slept on my arm at night. and took
far more comfort with him than Is If be
had been man
l mag say that when l went back to the
east shore he morning after Johnny SoTue
lOdy came ashore. found the bodies of
| woman and three men. There was, he
sides, LIT of wre, kage and provisions,
but on nothing did / flnG the name OF tie
lost ship l also found two chests which,
had evidently belonged to sfeeTace pas
sengerS, and from the female apparel ia
them ! managed to make up a sgit fOs
the child 1t was poor fit, no doJbt, hJt
good enough IN der the circumstances.
Wreckage continued To- come ashore Tor
several days, hut as tad enough and 20
spare of everything did not hunt among
the stuff as closely as / should have dcne.
else l might lave found letters and other
things to prove what was subsequently so
earnestly longed fol-
! After q week a high tide swept in and
cleared the beach Of everything had Iefs .
andI was not sorry 70 see thestuff go Tlr
three dead bodies We're disposed of as in
the former instance It was thre- nonUhs
before Js.Gn Somebody came. and it vas
five months after mis- arrival when d trad.
ing schooner touched at the island for
water. The surprise of captain and crew
to find a boy and baby living there alone
made them almost duIali, and they utterl V
refused to credit the Ihann-r Of the child's
coming ashore During the five months that
had elapsed since l found him Johnny had
grown three inches taller and picked UP a
lot in weight, and a moIe rugged yOun gstcr
could not be fcand anywhere. He was not
Ill for an hour N all that time and both
| of US were sHaburned until we looked like
negroes We were taken off the island, an d
after several weeks reached Singapore
and Were turned over TO the English consul
on board the lost Indiaman were no less
than six families to whom the child might
have belonged Inquiries We're being made
: for several years, but as his identity could
not be established he was finally called
John Somebody, and today that is his
: legal name 1t broke my heart TO part with
l him, and he also had great love for me
2 but we were to meet again and again, ant
: we are still Keeping track Of each other
He has no memory OF the ship or his parents
a and only an indistinct recollection of tbs
d many days he passed on the tr0picaIiSIant
: and was carried through the woods ans
ovcr the sandy beach on my back
CHARLES b. LEWIS.