The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-09-18
DREAMS THAT CAME TRUE.
SOME FAMOUS PREsENTnIENTs IN
THE HISTORY OF our NAVY.

Bainbridge FOresaVY His Fight with
the Java-stcwnrt's Prediction OF
the Engagement with the Cyane
and Lcvnnt-Cnpt. WadswOrth's
Dream of the Death of Perry.
There is no place where a frmer belief
in dreams and presentimeuts can be found
than among sailormen of all classes. in
this respect the jack tars Of our ships of
war prove themselves true sons Of the sea-
There are, moreover. many wen auihentl-
Gated instances in the history OF the navy
which al least afford vivid excuse for the
fervid belief in dreams and portents which
is to be found in every forecastle. Three
of these stories of sailors dreams that
came true are concerned with names ia
nous in our naval history ana are vouch-
ed for by witnesses who cannot be doubt
ed. One of the stories is to be found in
the dairy of one of the best-known officers
of the olden days.
On Sept. Is, 1912. Commodore william
Bainbridge hoisted his pennaut on board
the Constitution, having received orders
to take her with the frigate Essex, Capt.
David Porter, and the sloop Hornet, Capt.
James Lawrence, on a cruise against Brit
ish commerce in the East Indies The Es-
sex was at that time in the Delaware, but
the Hornet was in Boston, and the Constl-
tuition and the Hornet sailed away to-
gether, bound first to Porto Praya, on St
Jago island, one of the Cape de Verdes
where the Essex was expected to join
them.
The Essex having failed to come in time.
the Constitution and the Hornet proceeded
to the coast ofsBrazils aud pm -atriVingD of
Bahia 0hen called San 1SalYador) found
fine British sloop of war at anchor in the
harbor.
For several days the Yankee cruised off
this harbor, Vainly striving to coax the
Englshman to come out and meet the
Hornet, and While awaiting the issue of
this correspondence Commodore Balm
bridge had a dream that, because Of the
clearness of its procession Of events, made
a very great impression upon him-so
great, in fact, that he related it to some
of the officers associated with him, and
also noted ii In his diary.
If the theory that ones waking thoughts
cause the visions of sleep, then this was
such a dream as might naturally have
been expected by the commodore, for he
was looking and hoping for a fight, and
he dreamed that he was in one. But as
said, this was not an ordinary vague vis-
lon;it was dream in which he plainly saw
frigate come down the wind in chase
of the Constitution, saw her strive to gain
a raking position and fail saw in de-
tail a battle that ensued. and, then, hav-
ing whipped her, he saw a boat coming
from her to bring her officers as prisoners
to the Constitution. As this boat drew
near he noted the individuals in the stern
particularly, and was surprised to see Sit
ting where he had expected the captain of
the defeated ship, a man who had nota bic
features, and was dressed in the uniform
of a British general. nj ...,
Very naturally the events of the days
that followed drove this dream from the
commodores mind. The British captain
in Bahia refused to come out, and as the
Essex was expected to arrive off Cape
F'rio on any day, cambridge felt obliged
to leave the Hornet to blockade Bahia
while he went down to the cape in the
Constitution to look for Portes
II was early on the morning of Tues~
day Dec. 20. 1915, that the Constitution
sailed away on this mission, but before
she was out of eight of Bahia the look
out hailed the deck 10 say that two sails
were seen well up to WndWard and bound,
apparently for the port the Constitution
was leaving
That was right Interesting news. A
couple of British frigates might be COM
ing, but the commodore was the kind of
all about it.
1t was o'clock that the sails were re-
ported. At 10 one of them headed for port,
while the other came down the wind for
a look at the Constitution.
As was learned later, the bold stranger
was the Java, Capt. Lambert, fresh from
port, full' manned and with 100 able SUI
pernumeraries on board. And from cap
tain to midshipman, from boatswain TO
powder monkey, every soul of them was
animated with that mild contempt which
all British sea fighters felt toward all
other sea fighters at the latter end of the
Napoleonic wars.
At 1850 o'clock. being then half a mile
away and TO windWard, The bold Briton
thought to run down and rake the Const-
tuition. 1t was a trick that might have
worked with a Frenchman, but not with a
Yankee, and when the maneuver had been
met, cambridge opened the battle with q
single gun, and a general action with
round and grape then commenced"
How the two frigatcs reached TO and fro
across the wind; how their crews. stripped
to the waist, worked over the guns; how
cambridge, in spite Of raking, luffed
up until he was in pistol range Of the en-
envy; how a towering cloud OF smoke fog
ged them ina cloud that was illumlned
with squirting flame and roared like a
tornado as 1t rose high in air and sagged
away dOWn Inc Wlnui now tne SparS or
both ships were poked out of this cloud
first on one side and then on the other
as they reached and wore how q time
came when the spars of but one appeared,
and those held aloft the Stars and Stripes
to fiutter In the gentle gale-that is one
of the stirringest tales known to Yankee
history.
As the fight began Cambridge was pac-
Ing the quarter deck, but after a time
musket bail lodged IA his hip and sent
him to lean for support on the frame Of
the steering wheel Then a round shot
knocked the wheel to spinters and drove
a copper bolt into his thigh. sim, he re-