Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1898-02-26
TRIPS OF a SAVER
THE WANDERERS TWO VOYAGES TO
THE AFRICAN COAST.

i IL ~ Rt0retN N><tSh
Her Commander Was Admiral semnIcs'
Brothsx-she Landed Two Careoes Sec
cessfully Tho Story - It Il Told BY
One Of the Owners.
Captain A. G. McGhee Of Columbus.
Ca, was one of the four owners Of the
slave ship Wanderer. Captain Semmes. a
brother of Admiral Semmes of the Confed-
crate cruiser Alabama, was commander of
the ship.
In the early summer of 1858 a regatta
was arranged to come of in Brunswick
harbor, on the Georgia coast, and owners
Of vessels north and south were invited to
participate In it. Just before the big day
a strange vessel sailed into the harbor. and
the captain gave his name as Semines and
the name Of his vessel as the Wanderer,
hailing from New Bedford He applied for
permission to race, but was ruled out by
the managers The beautiful lines of his
vessel attracted much attention. and her
sailing qualities were manifest. Captain
Semmes protested that he had not been
fairly treated and appeared to be very in
dignant over the refusal, but his indigna-
ton was assumed. He had really gone
there TO familiarize himself with the vari-
Gus passages between the bays and sounds
of the Georgia coast and the main without
exciting suspicion. He had sailed up the
Great Oeeechee river, which was not much
frequented by vessels at that Time and
had found suitable hiding place in case
of emergency in dense swamp about 40
miles up the river.
Having completed his arrangements for
the outward voyage, he took on cargo of
trinkets, brass wire, bright colored cloths
and other gewgaws that were likely to
tempt the African savages, and placed in
the lockers of the ship flags of all the diff
ferent maritime nations, SO that the Wan
derer might show any colors she chose
Then he placed her in charge of picked
crew and instructed his first mate to pro-
coed to the mouth of the Kongo river and
await his appearance. Captain Semmes
himself took passage on O steamer and
reached point on the African coast, where
he communicated with King Dahominey
the petty ruler of one of the river prov
inces lying along the Kongo. king
Dahominey was not a hard man to deal
with" said Captain McGhee, in speaking
of the expedition, land as he was very fond
of personal display and great lover of
rum it was not long before he and Cap
tain Semmes had come to an agreement
The latter had taken along with him on
the steamer a small stock Of trinkets, and,
to disarin suspicion, had given out that he
was going on combination trading and
exploring tour. A judicious exhibition of
the trinkets, and the assurance that there
were plenty more to be had, induced the
savage chief to agree to deliver on GER
tain date, at the mouth of the Kongo, $50
of his subjects, between the ages of 10 and
18 years. The males cost a little more
than the females, and the prices ranged
from 81 to 50 a head, paid for in bright
hued cloth, trinkets and gewgaws King
Dahominey appeared to find little difficulty
in securing the captiyes, and at the time
appointed, they were marched down to the
mouth of the river, a crowd Of miserable,
naked young men and women and boys
and girls.
1.-THE death rate among the poor crea-
lures was terrible, so Of them dying during
the homeward passage. Through the
skill of Captain Semmes the voyage was
made without any serious mishap. The
most difficult part of the voyage was to get
into port. The only way to enter the
mouth of the Savannah river was under
the black muzzles Of the guns of the fort
and it would have been madness to attempt
to enter with that oontraband cargo in
open daylight. Instead Captain Semmes
crept into the mouth of the Great Ogeechee
by night and assembled the river to the big
swamp and there lay concealed while be
communicated with Lamar in Savannah.
Lamar thereupon announced that he
was going to give grand ball in honor of
the officers and garrison of the fort, and
insisted that the soldiers, as well as their
superiors, should partake of the good
cheer. When the gayety was at its height,
the Wanderer stole into the river and pass
ed the guns of the fort unchallenged in
tae darkness and mado her way to La
liars Plantations some distance up the
river. The human cargo was soon disem-
barked and placed under the charge of the
old ricefeld negroes. who were nearly as
savage as the new importations. Attempts
were mado to put clothes on the savages,
but they looked upon the garments with
aversion, and some time was required to
induce them to wear even the scant gar
ments of the slaves of the rice plantations.
They were kept there for several months
and then taken to New Orleans, where
slaves that had been purchased for few
beads and bandanna handkerchief were
sold in the market for from 5000 to $500
apiece. The owners of the vessel paid Cap
tain Semmes So, 500 for his services and
cleared upward of $40, 600 apiece on the
venture for themselves A year had been
required to mako the voyage, and Captain
Semmes certainly earned his salary be-
cause Of the hazardous nature of the expe-
dition.
SIN the spring Of 1859 tho Wanderer
again sailed for the west coast of Africa,
and again Captain Semmes found King
Dahoniney ready to trade on the most lib
eral terms. On the second occasion he
had to go farther up the river to secure the
cargo but he succeeded in delivering 900
captives at the mouth of the river. A num-
Der of them died during the voyage, and
the Wanderer was put to her best speed on
several occasions to get away from undo
sirable acquaintance, but she was never
overhauled, and she arrived off the Georgia
coast in December. Lamar was again
notified, and he gave another big ball and
a second time the Wanderer assembled the
Savannah river under cover Of dark
night, and her cargo was disembarked at
Lamar's plantations and turned over to the
old rlceneld negroes
THE nature of the last cargo brought
home by the Wanderer became noised about
and an investigation was made which
caused the arrest of number of the par
Elephants in the affair, and the trials that
followed caused great sensation through
out the nation, although nobody suffered
seriously.
The profits were quite as largo as from
the first expedition, and, but for the break
ing out of the war and the blockading of
the port at Savannah, the Wanderer might
have made another voyage in 1860. AS it
was, she was hemmed up in the river by
the blockade and finally sold to the Con-
Tolerate government. Atlanta Cor. New
York Sun.
Quite a Sound Sleeper.
Grimpus-Do you sleep sound?
Crimpus-Well my wife tells me snore