Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1898-03-12

Hollander was for making sail again,
but we refused to touch rope. He and
his mate, both armed with Delaying
pins, sought to drive us aloft, but we
disarrIed them and loched them in their
statcrooms. Among us was a man who
had made several voyages as mate and
was competent to handle ship, and he
WIS installed as captain and given an
able seaman as mate We had hoped to
get the provisions to the wreck before
night, but the gale continued, and we
had to stand by her for 80 hours before
it was safe to launch boat. We had
mutinied and taken possession of the
ship, but we felt that circumstances jus
titled it, Neither harm nor insult was
offered our officers. After few hours
they were allowed full liberty, and not
one of us entered the cabin. There were
many threats as to the punishment we
should receive when the ship arrived in
port, but we stood firm and kept clear
of any further quarrels.
When wind and sea finally subsided,
we boarded the wreck, to find that one
woman and four children had died in
the last "a hours and that the living
were entirely out of food and water.
There was no doctor aboard, the leak
was hardly to be kept under, and it was
plain that another "a hours would send
the wreck to the bottom of the sea. 1t
was therefore resolved to transfer every
body to The ship. Our captain and mate
raved like madmen when they heard of
this decision, and the last named be-
came so violent that we had to bind
him hand and foot. The wreck had lost
all her boats, but the ship had three,
and when the work of transferring be-
gan it was not interrupted until every
person had been brought safely off.
Then we secured most of the personal
baggage of crew and passengers, and by
the time the last boatload was along
side the Star the wreck rolled heavily
to starboard and port and went to the
bottom of the sea.
The ship had no accommodation
whatever for passengers, and you can
imagine the muss we We're in when
that crowd of people were taken aboard.
The Hollander fatty refused to act as
captain or to have anything to do with
the castaways. He said we had deposed
him by mutiny and must now run
things to suit ourselves and take the
consequences. Everybody had to be put
on quarter allowance at once, and a
shift was ma up whereby the women
and children were at least sheltered.
After consultation it was decided to
make for the Bermudas, and on the third
day after taking the people off the
wreck we sighted the American ship
Ocean Queen and secured from her sew
eral hundred gallons of water and a
quantity of -four and biscuit. 1t was a
run of seven days to the islands, and
during the last four days no adult had
food enough to keep down the pangs of
hunger. The mate proved so obstinate
and dangerous that his bonds were not
released, but he shared the food and
water with the rest and was treated as
kindly as circumstances would permit.
None of us believed that we could be
punished for taking the ship out of the
captain S hands to save human life, and
am sure we should not have been med
died with but for the presence of Brit
ish man ofwar in port. We had i'll
formed the Hollander of our readiness
to work the ship to her port of destina-
ton, and he seemed to think favorably
of the matter, but no sooner did he
learn of the presence of the man of war
than he appealed to her commander
As a result the ten of us We're at once
arrested and flung into prison to await
the action of the law. l never found
out just where they intended to send us
for trial. but presume it was Holland.
For some reason or other there was a
long delay, and at length matters were
complicated by our being claimed as
deserters from an American man Of
war. The people whom we had saved
were grateful enough, God knows, but
all others looked upon us as Il lot of
pirates who ought to have been hung as
soon as captured
When we had been in Jail for five
months we got word from an American
who was pretty thoroughly posted on
the case that we should soon be sent
away lOT tTldl anu tudG we ullSuJ 6S-
pect at least five years imprisonment
apiece. This news decided us to make
an attempt to break Jail, and one night,
week later, using tools which guard
had been bribed to pass in to us, we
sawed away the bars of Il window and
gained our liberty Proceeding to the
harbor, we found an American schoon.
er ready to sail and awaiting our com,
ing, and before our escape was discover
ed we were miles at sea. Five of us sur.
rendered to the naval authorities and
took our punishment and served out the
remainder of our enlistment, hut what
became of the others | do not know
But for our action 200 people would
have been left to go down with wreck
on which they had drifted and suffered
for days and weeks, and yet that action
was rank mutiny, and had the ship been
English instead of Dutch our two lead
ers would probably have been hung and
the rest of us got long terms in prison.
To Attract Capital.
Manufactures Good country roads