The times., 1897-08-29
aeeeeeeeeseee~
sgseeeegeeeeg~

sighting the black ship it goes TO the
brig Sea Gull, bound from Boston S0
Liverpool L was second mate Of the
brig On that voyage, and on the night OF
April 80. 1853, we were lying almost
becdlmed, in mid-ocean. There was no air
along tie decks, but a draught aloft kept
steerage Way on the craft At midnight
when | came ON deck to relieve he chief
mate, the moon was shining so brightly
that it was almost like day. There was
na change of weather To look out for, ami
more quiet night at sea could not be
imasined. / had been pacing the deck
for half an hour Or more w neu | suddenly
caught sight OF vessel coming do Yn
on CIR g.ndwaId quarter. fhe stranger
seemed to have stolen out of some log
bank or cloud of mist anGs yet the atnius-
phare was clear as a bell. As | stood
rubbing my eyes the man at the " heel
caught isnt of the craft and calA.d my
attention, and just then she luffed sharp
up and took course parallel with ours.
/ ran for the glass and leyeled it at neT,
ami, as she was not above two cable lengths
away, l had o<ery detail as plain as IL I
stood ON her rail She was "A small full
rigged ship and anything about her which
would bear a coat of black was painted
that color. This applied even to her nasts.
The hull was much finer model han ours,
but there was a sloyeniy look al0ft and her
sails were not well set. To my amazement,
| could see only one person on her decks
the man ut the wheel There was noofficer,
no lookout, no sailors looking ut Us over
the rail. IL was about ten minutes after
tine stranger came down upon us before
called Capt. Crawford He took the glass
from my aand and gave her loo king over,
aud there was troubled look on his face
as he turned to me with:
''Thisis about the queerest thing that has
overtaken NE in AL my experience. She
seems to have a dead man at the wheel,
and if she has crew aboard they are IL
hiding. I'll hail her and see If l can
wake anybody up
The captain had voice like foshorn.
and his tones would have carried TO a
craft fun mile away. He roared out a
Ship ahoyl" and hailed again and again,
but there was never rnoyemneJ aboa rd
the stranger The black ship was hold
ing true to her course, and seemed to be
as Well steered as our own craft, and
while things had queer look it was only
a mystery as yet. Finding that his hail,
We're not answered, the captain took tbs
glass and spent a full five minutes with
il at his eyes. He had just lowered ii
when the five men of my watch came ar
in body, and one OF the oldest OF the
men doffed his hat and respectfully said:
Capt. Craw ford il | may be so bcid
as TO say it, that there craft is either
pirate which Is going To lay US aboard
yery soon, or it's death ship, and VT
can't get way from her any too quick.
There are 10 pirates IN these seas, re
plied the captain, as lie rounded on tbs
uan, land as for a death ship, that's al
nonsense. Dead men can't make sail an,
steer ship"
But look at her sails, siri'' persisted
the man. ''They are rusty and old. aut
l don't believe they have been toGche,
for weess. What she S carrying is onI,
enough for gale, and if she wasn't 1
racer we'd be drawing away from her il
no time"
With a gruwl at their superstition, th
captain ordered the men forward, but
could see that he was both puzzled ans
troubled as he ordered the man at thi
wheel to luff q point and bring US neare
the stranger. The wheel had sCarceI.
been moved when the stranger also iuffed
| The man was then ordered to let he
fall off two points, and the yards wcr
trimmed for tie new course, hut III;
| men were still pulling and hauling whei
| the stranger fell off and thus preserves
] bis position. Neither in luffing nor il
| falling Oft was there any pull at hi
| yards or sheets, but as the wind wa
| light there was no actual need OF this u
| keep his course
| He can't be a pirate whispered Capt
| Crawford to me, as We stood gazing an,
| wondering. IF il Were any one meaning
| us harn., he knows the size of our GREY
| and that We are unarmed. and he woul
| have been aboard long q CO. 1t may be
| craft which has lost everybody aboard b
| fever or plague, but how is it that sb
| sticks to US as she does? Haven't see
| the man at the wheel make the slightes
move since we first set eyes on him.
py this time the chief mate and all IA
men of his watch had turned ont, and fo
| time all discipline was forgotten in tn
eagerness to solve the mystery. Twic
| again we luffed. but the black ship wa
| not thirty seconds behind us. Then W
fell off, bIt she performed the same nis
neuver, and her course was still parable
| OF 4 sudden there was a long-drawn W I
| from the south, and the light wind b
! came rafting breeze in moment. W
! We're not only off our course, but the Tte
had to rush to stations to trim sheets an
| yards, ard for five minutes all Were S
| busy that no one paid any attention
| the stranger. When the hustle was ovi
the black ship had tisa appeared. The moo
was shining Just as brightly rs before, bl
| though a man was even sent aloft wit
a glass and swept the sea foot by fot
not sign of our mysterious visitor eoul
be discovered. An entry was made in I'll
log book, wrote tie matter out in detail
| and every officer and man signed h
name TO the statement. It was publishe
on our arrival in Liverpool, aud while son
sneered at it others Were inclined To b
lieve that we had seen what we had seel
1t would have probably gone into histor
as a sailors yarn, however, had not 81
English merchantman, Good Hope, IN
with fs queer adventure three weeks late
She had called at Fayal, in the AZore
| and had made a run of l 80 miles TO I'll
| north, and was jogging along under all "a
one night at 10 O'Clock when she owe
took and passed an unknown craft.
| was a starlight night. without the slighte
sign OF mist rising from the water TT
unknown had no lights out, and hS
passed within hundred feet, The chi
mate had the watch aud hailedher, but q
no answer H. return. He was still cursiI
her carelessness in sailing the highwS
without a light when the craft ca me saiIii