Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1898-05-04
starlisht might. without the slightest sign

WlGnln luO leet. ne CnitI mate nau the
watch and hailed her, but got no answer
in return He was still cursing her care
lessness in sailing the highway thout a
light when the craft came sailing after
him and soon took up position to leew ard
and only a stones throw away.
What happened to us of the Sea Gull now
happened to those of the Good Hope. The
stranger was repeatedly hailed, but made
no answer. Only one single person could
be seen aboard of her and he was the man
at the wheel-the figure which was with
out motion except such as the tossing of
the ship gave him. He stood there clear
enough under the naked eye, but the glass
brought him so close that the hairs stick
ing out under his weatherbeaten SOU
westcr could almost be counted. For an
hour the black ship ran a parallel course
to that of the Good Hope, and the crew of
the latter got bad fright over it. There
was no increase of the breeze, as in our
case, but as the 10 men aboard stood star
ing at her she suddenly vanished from the
face of the sea.
1t was three months before the black
ship was seen again. The American ship
Benny Belle, bound from New York to
Bordeaux, had left the Azores to the south
and behind her when one day at noon the
breeze left her and there came dead calm.
The seas soon went down until there WAS
only CLASSY ground swell, and when
night came on there was not u sail in
sight. At midnight the moon rose, and so
bright was its light that one could have
read a book on deck. Half an hour after
midnight, without enough air stirring to
move a feather, strange craft suddenly
came into view from the east, and when
first seen was about a mile away. She was
bows on at first, but coming down within
half mile of the Belle she swung around
and displayed her broadside. The second
mate had the watch, having come on at Il
O'Clock, and after pulling for few min
utes he called the captain. Captain and
mate united their voices in hail which
was not answered, and a musket was
brought up and fired three times without
elciting any reply. Captain Finch of the
Belle was a hard headed fellow, with no
superstition in his composition, and when
his halls were unanswered he said to his
mate:
MIR. Davis, that is undoubtedly the
black ship we have read and heard about
and here is our chance to solve the mystery
and perhaps do a nice thing in the way of
salvage You will take boat and pull
off to her and see if she is abandoned.
The mate hesitated for moment and
then refused to go. The second mate was
appealed to, but he likewise refused. The
captain could have ordered them locked up
in their staterooms for the rest of the yoy
age, but he could not sail his ship without
officers, and after roundly cursing them
for towards he declared that he would go
himself. For time every man of his crew
refused to obey the order to lower a boat,
but when Captain Finch set about single
handed and said he would pay the visit at
all hazards two sailors stepped forward to
accompany him. The captain said OF his
adventures:
when We had approached within few
fathoms of the strange craft, l ordered the
mon to cease rowing that l might look her
over. She had no name painted on her
stern or quarter. She was sadly weather
beaten aloft and there was much rust on
her black sides. Her model was half eIip-
per. and any sailor could see that she was
easily handled and sailed like a witch. We
rowed twice around the ship, hailing her
several times, and then l ordered the men
to row me under her bows, that nigh.
climb up by her chains. They hung in the
wind and would have refused had l not
menaccd them with the revolver had
brought in my pocket. As climbed Up the
chains | ordered them to make The boat fast
and one of them to follow me up. l counted
ten objects lying about which | verify be.
lieve were dead men WRAPPED up in blan-
kets, though for ceasons shortly to be Civ
en- l could not make sure of this. The
decks We're not otherwise Uttered up,
though even in the moonlight | could see
they had not been cleaned for months.
Il was ready to 90 aft and was waiting
for the men when | heard the splash OF
oars and turned about to discover that the
towards were making off. l at once fired
"a shot over their heads and threatened to
make targets of them, but menace them as
| would the most they would do was to
hold the boat at Il distance of about ~ feet
from the ships side. TO reach it had to
leap into the sea, and on my return to the
Belle | could not induce Others to row me
back to the derelict. The men did not
seem to fear her as ghost ship so much
as a plague ship. The entire crew We're on
deck and looking full at the black ship
when she suddenly began moving away
from us, beaded to the north. There was
not a breath of wind, and if there had been
a current we should also have moved. but
yet she slowly and gradually drew away
from us, and in the course of an hour Was
entirely out of sight. My belief is that she
was u plague ship, but at the same time l
confess to being greatly mystited by her
strange actions
The black ship was seen once more and
for the last time about a month later A
British manof war was sent out to look
for her, and after "a cruise Ct two weeks
back and forth without sighting her, the
government craft found herself becalmed
one night about midway between the
Azores and Madeira. At half past Il
O'Clock the black ship was discovered. OF
a sudden she appeared within half "a mile
of the man-of-war. Ten minutes after
sighting the mysterious ship Captain
Crimmins of the Grampus had two boats
in the water, and the officer in command
had orders to board the dereliet and over
haul every foot of her. Away went the
boats, put they never reached her. Al a
point aBsnt midway the black ship sudden
ly settled 6usL, and two minutes later her