Griggs courier., 1898-03-18

having cargo FOR Australia, she was
admired by all men. She was new
ship, fitted out in the best manner, and |
Don Mcdonald, her captain, was also
her full owner. He was then man
about so years old, and had been cap
tain for many years. He had good
reputation among owners and sailors.
1t was said that no man aboard one of
his ships had ever been struck blow in
anger, and he fed his crews so we'll that
he could always have his pick of the
best sailors in port. He sailed away
on his long voyage with the good wishes
of all, and for weeks all went we'll with
the Highland Chief" She had got
down below St. Helena when there
came calm.
The brig ran into the calm one night
at midnight, and it was not until she
had been delayed three days that Capt.
Mcdonald began to lose his temper.
He had been hopeful of q quick pas
sage, and the heave of the ship and the
looks of the sky told him that he had
been caught in what sailors call
smooth" A man sent aloft with
glass could see ships passing far away,
and when the smooth had lasted five
days the captain indulged in such Ian
guage as had never been heard from his
lips before. He ordered his boats down
to tow the brig beyond the calm, and
though the crew responded cheerfully
enough she was so deeply laden that
they could make but snail's progress.
This aroused the captains temper still
more, and on the morning of the eighth
day of the calm, as the two boats start
ed in to tow again he ordered a bag of
bread and a breaker of water into each
boat and said to the men:
"Not one of you shall step foot on
board again until we have breeze. ]
take my oath that will shoot the first
man who tries it'll"
He was left on board with only the
cook and cabin boy, and oil day long
the crew of the boats tugged away ut
the brig with no more result than to
move her three or four miles. When
night came they gave up and wanted
to return aboard, but Capt. Mcdonald
! menaced them with q pistol and so
frightened them that they set off to
the east and were picked up by trad
ing craft three days later. Thus the
brig was left without crew, and that
! was the beginning of long adventure.
On the eleventh day the calm was
broken by gale from the north. The
Chief went scudding away before it,
but after run of 100 miles was dis
masted and left wreck on the tum-
bling seas. The cook was of no account
as sailor, and the boy Of little help,
but the wreckage was cut loose, and
four days after the gale the hulk was
riding high and dry and as tight as a
bottle below. This was when she was
sertion of the crew. was one of the
crew of the English bark Hawthorne,
homeward bound from India, and one
morning we sighted the wreck and bore
up for it. Our mate was sent aboard,
and from Capt. Mcdonald he got the
particulars have given yon. Finding
the hull sound and the cargo valuable,
the mate offered to send men aboard
to rig jury-masts and sail her into
port, but the captain would not allow
it. Neither would he consent to be
taken off the wreck. If the cook and
the boy wanted to go he had no objec-
ton, but he had started on a voyage to
Australia and he would finish it or sink
with his craft. The cook, who was a
relative of the captain, decided to stay
but the boy had had enough of it and
was brought aboard of us. We lay by
the wreck for three hours, hoping the
pair left aboard would change thei,
minds, but as they did not we finally
sailed away.
1t was two weeks before the High
l6nd Chief was spoken again. In that
ktime she had drifted $50 miles to the
south. This time she was overhauled
by the steamer Congo Prince, India
bound, and boat was sent aboard.
Capt. Mcdonald was found at dinner.
He had weathered another gale and
the hull was still sound. The steamer
offered him tow to Cape Town, but he
rejected the offer. The cook had tired
of the situation and wished to be taken
off, but the captain had made up his
mind to stick and no arguments could
dissuade him. The cook went aboard
the steamer and the man was left
alone on groaning hulk in mid
ocean. It was 81 days before she
was boarded again, and the wreck had
drifted over 500 miles, though not alto
gether to the south. She was in the
highway of commerce, however, and
had probably been passed by score
Of crafts which failed to make her out.
One morning she was sighted by the
American tea ship Flying Scud, home
ward bound, and as usual boat was
sent aboard. Capt. Mcdonald was in
good health and the hulk sound as a
dollar. He admitted that he was a bit
lonely, but was more determined than
ever to stick to his craft. What he
wanted were spars and a few men, and
it so happened that the scud could ac-
commodate him with both. Then he
raised the question of price and re-
fused to pay what was asked, and he