Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1898-01-18
Observation-Disclosures ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Just Fad Gold 10 fire.
TALE BY A SAllORMAN OF A GALE
IN the SOUTH SEAS.
MO-" SAID the man, sitting list
~ lessly on the pier, as he pulled

away languidly enough at a pipe of Pc
culiar shape. mo, amt got no heart
to splice myself to hope and go to the
klondike country. Nor no other coun-
try, for that matter, except git job
that takes me there and pays me for it
by the month regular. Course, under
stand how a man might fall down
well and come up with a bucketful of
gold, but I amt the man. That kind
of luck is meant for somebody else.
Once. though, there wasn't any kind of
snap that wouldn't mndertake; but
since the setback we got in the Pacific
ten years ago next March amt had no
wind in my sails to speak of and don't
so much as keep lookout now to see
which way we're goin'. If there's land
ahead, all right; but if there amt, all
right, just the same"
The man sitting on bag of peanuts.
adjoining the speaker asked a ques-
zion.
Didn't You never Of that?" said the
man in response. II thought every
body knowed what blow l got out
there. OF course I'll tell you if you'd
like to hear. 1t happened down in the
Pacific somewhere, about $50 degrees
west, 20 degrees south, where the seas
rs full Of islands as yeller dog is of
f|cas. and, as l said, just ten years ago
come next March. I wasn't in the
sailor business exactly, being a trader
ON the seas instid of a navigator and
havin' friend in Auckland, New Zea-
land, who liked my style, he fixed me
up with Il sailing vessel and crew of
sen men and skipper. and we went
sailing around among the islands Of the
archipelago looking for bargains. as it
were.
II guess we'd been splashin' around
in the water for five or six weeks or
such matter, and DOM like Riley did
with the hotel when one night the
weather thickened ON us, and by mid
night there was a wind a-blowin' that
would take the hair off the head of
barrel, and we were skinnin' before it
like scared dog. By morning there
wasn't any land in sight, something
shat don't happen often among all them
islands scattered everywhere, and our.
boat was maxim about 40 miles min,
srte. but she was goin' around in circles
1nostly and tearin' up the water worse
than bull in chiny shop.
along in the afternoon the wind
laid down q bit, and when we sighted an
ISLAND off our weather bow we kind of
beat up to it, or whatever them sailor
fellers called it. and we got in under
he lee Of it and found little harbor
shat looked like it might afford us
enough protection to make some re-
pairs after the wind had got done hav-
Sng fun with us. There was chance.
too. that we might find bargain in
something layin' around waiting for
our arrived.
There wasn't any signs of life on the
ISLAND that we could see. but there was
plenty Of good water and nice fruit.
and the boat that we sent off as soon
as we got settled brought back not
s,nly fruit and water, but an animal
that looked as near like one of our rab-
Bits as anything could look. and that
aasted the same way. We had about
got ready to turn in, say at nine o'clock
shat night, when we heard voices of
people on shore yelling in some queer
language that none of us understood.
The people didn't seem to like US bein'
there, though, that was plain enough
and we begun to send word to them that
we were all right. and if they didn't
want us we would get out as soon as
The weather would permit. It didn't
sound that way to them. likely, for at
si1idnight they had filled the shore and
had fires burning all along. We could
see they were black and that they
didn't wear any more clothes than was
needed, and that they were armed with
bows and arrows and spears and few
old muskets like most of them natives
nave. The sea was too rough for them
30 try and get at us in boats in the dark,
so they took it out in slingin' stump
speeches at us from the shore.
THAT'S what they slung at first, but
when we began to yell back at the
Saowlin' devils they changed their tao
sizes. and along about three o'clock in
the morning they let off one or two
of their old muskets with a roar that
sounded like war times. We gave them
the laugh on this, but pretty soon they
got the range. and the first thing we
got serious about was shot that went
through our first mate and buried it.
self in the foremost. They were ounce
balls that were comm our way over
the waves. and every time one of them
nit the ship it sounded with dull thud
that meant business clean down to the
bottom of the sea: After the first Is or
20 shots. don't think they ever missed
our boat again. hitting either in the
hull or the rigging. and six of our men
got bullet through them somewhere.
We got out on deck with our guns and
banged away ten shots to their one.
out they had the whole island to hide in.
while our; boat1was the only thing they.
could hit except wind and water. so
they counted more than we did, !,
'4All the time the shooting was going
ON our skipper was trying to get the
ship headed around SOS we could escape
as soon as light came. for we would
1,a - 20.