Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1898-10-28


our decks were alive with men.
I was captain of No. 3 gun crew and
had the honor of firing the first shot.
1t was a solid ball, and it struck the
craft OH her port bow and went clean
through her and dropped into the sea
beyond. This opened the fight. The ma
tives instantly realized that they had
caught a tartar, and they saw, too, that
their only means Of escape lay i'll cap
turing the ship. Therefore, instead Of
running away, as we had looked for,
each craft bore down on us to board.
They were handled as easily as an H.
dian maneuvers a canoe, and 1t wasn't
five minutes after the first gun was fired
ere they were on our quarters like
wolves seeking to hamstring a deer, l
fired another solid shot and then loaded
with grape and this last charge was
fred right into a mass of natives wait
ing to Chamber up the side. The gun
next to me fired a solid shot, which
tore through her bottom, and two min
utes later she foundered right alongside
of us. The second craft got lear enough
to grapple, but the irons were thrown
off and two guns played solid shot into
her hull until she went down stern fore
most, leaving 30 men struggling in the
waves.
The third craft had forged ahead,
sailing five feet to our one, and would
have boarded us at the bows but for the
sudden destruction of the others. Their
fate frightened her off, but she had
scarcely laid her head for the island
than it was brought around, as if her
crew had made some desperate resolve.
Now occurred a curious thing. She had
about 80 men on board, and she came
down on us with every one Of them
shouting and screaming and tried to lay
us aboard. We could have sunk her
with one gun even, or we could have
picked off the whole crew with our
muskets before they had crossed the
rail. Word was passed to give her a
full broadside at command, and when
the smoke cleared away she was not
to be seen. There were over 20 Of the
pirates hanging to the wreckage around
us, however, and a boat vas lowered to
pick them up. You can judge Of their
desperation when I tell you that every
one of them fought like a tiger against
being rescued and that we got only five
out of the lot. The others we had to
kill as they f1oated about, with the
sharks swapping at them. Two of the
five leaped out of the boat after being
pulled in and were seen no more, and
the others gave us so much trouble that
the captain swung them up to the yard
arm.
Thus not n single man Of the 100
or more who came out to attack us es-
capped with his life. | was in one Of the
boats afterward sent ashore to see what
sort Of lair the pirates had made for
themselves. The only human beings
ashore were an old native woman, a one
armed japanese and a white boy about
IA years of age. The boy vas off an
English trader captured a year before
and had been held prisoner ever since.
He said there were 1917 men in the gang,
and we found enough plumber on the
island to load our ship.
They had captured about a dozen
different vessels, large and small, and
in every case had p%lundered and sunk
them. They did not always kill all the
crew. Soon after the boy was captured
they brought in ar American sailor off
a spice trader. The lad knew him only
by the name of William, but remem-
bered that his home was in Boston. It
turned out that they had spared his life
to make use Of him as a blacksmith, but
when they found he had no knowledge
Of that work he was put to death with
great cruelty. By order of the chief he
was hung in chains on a tree about a
quarter Of a mile from the village and
was five or six days in dying. The boy
went with us and showed us his bones,
still hanging.
The one armed man and the old wo-
man, assisted by the boy, were the cooks
for the gang. They at first seemed very
much alarmed and protested their inno-
cenoe of any completely in the crimes of
the pirates, but when they came to un-
derstand that all the villains had met
their fate and that we had come ashore
to clear the island of it's last bale Of
plumber they suddenly ran into a rude
storehouse. blocked up the doorway
with boxes and opened fire on us with
pistols. We had two men wounded be-
fore we could dislodge them, and they
were then hanged to the same limb and
their bodies left to the birds. What
plumber we could not bring off we
burned on the island, and before leaving
we set the forest on fire in a dozen
places, and the flames did not die out
until the whole length and breadth had
been swept clean Of vegetation.
DEPARTMENT. FTHE INTERIOR,
Survey, Washington, D. c.,
October s., 1S9S.-Sealed proposals, in
duplicate, will be received at the Office
of the director of the q. s. Geological
Survey, until IL o'clock M, Saturday,
5, 1893, for the sinking of
wells and shafts to ascertain the depth
to bed rock at a place on ella river, in
ella county, Arizona, known as The
and also on Queen Creek, Art
IONA. The right is reserved to waive
defects In proposals and to reject any
and all bids. Specifications and details
can be had by addressing TIE Director,
U. s. Geological Survey, Washington,
D. G. H. G. R1zER, Acting Director.