The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-04-19
QUEER OPTICAL ILLUSIONS.
Extraordinary Experience Ofthe Off
GERS and Crew ofa French Bark on
the Philippines.

the Philippines.
Examples of collective hallucinatiuns
are very numerous. Let us cite one
that certainly is not generally known,
and of which a lieutenant in the French
navy, NJ. Lestonnat, was the victim.
"In May, 1881" said he, II was on
board the bark Caroline. We had Just
left Iloilo, in the Philippines, and we
Wore travelling toward the Sunda
Strait. one morning we We're moving
slowly, at the rate of about four or
five knots, in a very light wind. when
the man on the lookout shouted to me
that he saw n pirogue or sharpie on
the starboard quarter. Everything that
we see at sea, however insignificant, is
interesting. Consequently, / placed
myself in a position to see the object
that the man reported. But. on ac-
count of the lower sails, l was obliged
| to go forward. From there | saw, at
about two points in starboard. the
| pirogue, which seemed as if she was
about to cross our bow. Suddenly the
mate shouted: 1T is not pirogue; it is
| a yawl boat Then the sailor came
| down from the rigging and reported
| that he saw distinctly a man standing
| in the boat and that he was making
| signals
"1t is not necessary to be aloft to
| see that replied the mate. L can see
| him distinctly here
After having observed the boat with
| attention, / saw as plainly as possible,
| and all the crew saw just as l did, a
| man making signals with something in
! his hand that we could not yet recog-
! 90
| of an oar, at the end Of which was
! fixed a piece of cloth.
"There was no longer any doubt. We
had discovered an unfortunate ship
wrecked man. whose vessel doubtless
was lost upon the rocks of the shores
called, if my memory serves me cor
rectly, the Thousand Isles. / imme-
diately reported to the captain, who
took his glasses and followed me to
the forward deck. He recognized, just
as we did, a boat painted white, and
in the bow there was a man dressed in
a blue ganzy, who was waving an oar,
at the end of which was fastened "A
| piece of sailCOth.
""That poor devil is lucky said the
captain; for if we had more wind yes
terday we would have passed him in
|
have seen him.
But the current was drawing the
boat away from US, he gave the order
| to the man at the wheel to let the YES
sci fail off 50 as to get the boat well
on our starboard. In this way we
could easily reach 1t without the neces-
sitY of lowering a boat. which is al
| ways a tedious operation on board
sailing vessels. The man. seeing that
| we We're coming for him. ceased to
signal, and sat down in the stern, and
| with his oar he Steered the boat to-
| ward us. We could distinctly see the
boats mast broken at about three on
four feet above the sailing thwart
When she was about 300 metres from
us, the captain, who was on the poop
asked the mate if everything was ready
and on the latters affirmative reply
he gave the order to head her up lit.
tie to starboard. At this moment the
emotion ON board the vessel was in.
tense. The entire crew leaned over the
rail. Then suddenly as if we all haC
been reused from a dre-n, the man anC
the boat turned into a block of pumice
stone on which We're several branches
Of banana trees. After drifting slowly
along the side of the vessel before the
stupetied sailors, it vanished out o
sight. The men We're so utterly aston
ished that several of them could no
help crying out, But. by jingO. there
was a man on it, sure! We all saw
him.
If the sea had been rough. so tina
we could not reach the floating island
we would certainly have been con
WINGED that fellow creature had beer
| left To perish.
Nevertheless, our mind was fire.
from all anterior preoccupation. Not
withstanding the spontaneity of tn,
thing that had startled 1t, the sugges
tion was none the less vivid. Its in
tensity was as strong In the mind o
the officer as it was in the mind o
each sailor; and this goes to prove tha
in the case of a crowd the mental quail
ity of the individuals that compose
is without any Importance"