The Washington weekly post., 1899-06-20
Bride Spent Seven Years on
the High Seas.
CRUISE ENDED BIZ SHlPWRECk
story of a Plucky New England Woman
Who Accompanied Her Husband on His
Cruise for the Fasi-disappearin= Ceta-
ceans-warned of Impending Wreck In
a Dream-saiIors Laid the Blame To Her
Black Cat-An Accomplished Sailor.

This Is the story OF an American "'
/ man who would a-Whaling' go. She ran
/ the garut Of nautical adventures from
: the ice fields Of the north seas. from the
4 typhoons of the Orient. 20 the wreck OF
! the bark Horatio on the reefs near the
| Caroline IslanGs-the wreck that still
/ clings 10 the rocks In the harbOr Of ku-
/ sale; the wreck which she predicted
/ weeks before from i significant dream.
/ These experiences have made up her life
/ aboard ship in Just twelve months
She did not 20 a-sailng for the mere
J love OF adventure. nor in the cold serious
( ness OF skirts, but in the more comfort
/ able. II less lovely. bloou1er uniform. And
she chose the life Of the sea To share
I lifes vicissitudes with her husband. Capt.
West was the skipper ana she the first
mate Of the Inflated bark Horatio. that
| IS now pounding itself to pieces on the
| Caroline shores.
Seven years ago. Mrs. West, the Cap
tain's bride stepped aboard the whaling
bark at Martha's Vineyard 10 try her
new home on the deep. For seven years
bark had been her only dwelling. and
in thai length Of time her voyages have
extended oyer 50,O00 leagues.
These years she has devoted to the
eNNt%g VI iAet lSoAiDiif anu Aitl dtEbAIi VI
them is freaked with untoward events
Last week the barkentin Ruth arrived
from the Caroline Islands with the crew
OF the wrecked whaling bark. and Mrs
West spoke Of her cventfuI year in a
matter-of-fact, New England way.
Honeymoon un The High Seas.
Upon the first day of my voyage" she
said. Il began TO learn the names of the
sails and the rigging. In a very little
while | understood the theory Of steering
and how TO box the compass | would
often take the sun and get the latitude.
and from that time on / looked upon
navigation seriously instead of as an
amusing pastime.
1T took some time, however, before
during storm | could muster up the
courage which l always had ashore and
every time there was strong breeze /
asked Capt. West If il were gale.
And so the life on the ocean wave
grew upOn me, and the fiercer the hurri-
cane The more my courage rose. inspired.
have always thought, by the knowledge
that the Captain knew how to control his
ship.
The first serious danger we encounter
Cd occurred in the Arctic Ocean about
thirty-five miles south OF Herald Island
For TWO weeks / had our satchels packed.
ready 10 leave the ship al moments no
tlce. Neither night nor day did | change
my clothing. for We were frozen up in an
open lcepack and We're not provisioned
Ior an extended blockade. Ii is a fearful
thlng IN the Arctic to be imbedded in the
Ice, especially the young ice which every
mariner breads. il is so sharp and cuts
both wood and steel.
The Captain stood i'm the crow's-nest
NJ he. I
Starboard and steady and then PORT
ana 80 on. working his way through the
field ice. The anchors were dropped AMI
hauled up like Il pump handle to cut the
PACK ice, which was six feet thick about
the bark. The crown of the anchor was
soon polished as bright as a new dollar
r or days and days We watched for
breeze, and when at last through the
gidSS some one perceived a swell that
llfted the great white plain into bilious
from the southeast there was a shout
from the sailors and thank God feeling
from the hearts Of US all. Within twelve
nouts the southeast wind had chopped the
ice up into small chunks and We were
soon out of our difficulty.
Typhoon Near Japan.
But the most terrible storm thar Cant
West ever weathered swooped down unon
Us on the coast of Japan less than a wear
ago. Ii was a regular typhoon, and we
Were in the vortex of it,
The waves broke right In ON dacl, aud
over the stern and washed awav q heavy
tool chest that had been lashed and two
OF the boats on the cranes were smashed
and carried away. Oh, it was terrific
sea our oil bags We're all emptied 70
hatten it, and the ship laid over with her
lee bulWarks UGder water. The barometer
fell 10 y So
When the ship hove down. If the wind
mad not knocked the sea down. the H6ra-
ITO would have been dashed to Diece5
As 1t was We sprung the main topmast
and twisted the rudder-head off Every
man was aft-nObOdy forward-and the
sailors were lashed or had ropes about
their waists when venUuring to obey or
cers That's the worst strain when the
ship is hove down like that with the wheel
her rudder
Up TO that time the wind had been
blowing from the southeast and the whole
nam tOpSali was set in the calm between
The shifts of the wind from Southcast IN
northwest Then the wind came down
with ali its force, butt end to- as the
Captain expressed it, Ii came SO sudden
N that We could not furl the SAILS ami
then We expected the mast to be carrie /
away
The Captain had dashed me 70 a chair
below because / insisted upon being near
him, and the fury of the storm made il
impossible to stand upright anywhere
hen the lower main topSail. main spen-
Ger. ana fOreSall were carried away Cant
West came below and ordered mo 10 mi
on all the warm clothes | could wear and
To make haste about it. was so fright
ened that my fingers We're numb buT
somehow | managed TO put on four dresses
over my boomers. l knew without ques-
tioring that | was preparing for an omen
boat In that awful sea. Ii was blowing 50
hard that looking windward We could see
nothing but the spray off the top of the
sea. That was the very worst storm. but
il suddenly left US. and the Horatio
though badly strained, weathered the gale
Forebodings Of shipwreck,
Now comes the strangest part of my
whole experience. the part that almost
every one will say is too extraordinary, n
admit of belief From the time III. Ho-
ratio left san Francisco last December
had a sOul-pervading horror of being shin
wrecked. The great big dangers thar had
jutted out on our horizon previously did
not seem 10 fear. for / relied upon the
Captains skill 10 evade them. But the nm
definable Clingtng premonition that We
were 10 be IN danger when We least ev-
pected it filed me with a fearful FORE
boding.
This fear did not possess me until va
were crossing The bar. and I fclt -han
that the Horatio was on her last VOYAGE.
that she would be shipWrecked.
THE Captain laughed al my supersti-
tions. even while he respected them. tur
the Gays went by, and as nothing occur
Ted Jnat was not anticipated. ]. too ne
gan 10 doubt The prediction would come 10
pass.
But one night had a singular 5--,r, /
TIT . !.
sessickness. Aboard ship / am nor .roI-
bled Win indigestion. 50 that th,. dr.tr,
aud its subsequent fulfiIlmrnt was 1ITn-
g~thrr remarkable. Much Of the vtsion
ot course, was inrNplicaDic. bur enough nf
u poftrudrd The disaster which actri. f,- /
happrHvd 10 make NE ever af.erygard a |
believer IN dreams
The pets which I took with me- from
SAh fF@hclsSo Mere canary, 4 r4J ter
rleT, and = black kitten
The entire crew or thlrty-six men
looked askanCe Al the black eat and s61oE
their heads disapprOyingly Once | he9ri
a sailor say. Let's throw IL o,a-hna "a