Cañon City record., 1899-04-06
.srHopoHr suoinliza
GREW MONKEYS.
TRAINED ooRILLAs SAVED THE
BRITISH VESSEL.
Tsn Tkat DsAn't arswi-Capeain Bs-
A.sss . Rsnark.bss Iassasns ne a.d
nzs Grow witnessed IN ths BsA sss-
MaAs Coed BsAnsA

Prof. GARNER, whose startling theo-
ries regarding the possibility of gurtI-
Las being trained for useful occupa-
tons caused 80 much comment last
year in scientific circles. would doubt
leas be much pleased could he have
the pleasure Of talk with Capt Nc
Lauchlan Of the British steamer Ny
anna, which arrived recently in Phila-
delphia from Sourabaya- Capt. Nc
Lauchlan brings an account OF a vio-
lent storm in the He'd sea, during
which he observed q dhow saved from
destruction by her crew. nearly all Of
which were gorillas.
The Nyanza left Sourabaya, Java, on
Jan. 4 for the Delaware breakwater.
Her course was through the Indian
ocean, straits of Babel-mandeb and
the Red sea When on the latter In
hospitable sheet Of water the incident
occurred which has been the source of
unbounded wonder to Capt McLauch-
Ian and his crew.
I'VE were well up the straits" said
the former. when the barometer fell
Of the approach of one of those tenn
pests SO dreaded in that vicinity Be-
tween 4 and o'clock in the evening of
Feb. there was only one sail in sight,
an Egyptian dhow with lateen sails,
on the same plan as the generality of
craft in those waters. She was of
large size and was apparently endeay-
oring to make port at Colino ahead Of
the brewing storm.
Soon we were within one-half mile
of her. To my surprise saw but three
men on deck and no other sign of life
anywhere. The hurricane was almost
upon us and called the mates atten-
ton to the dhow, implying that she
was in a very dangerous position
He had better get some of his rags
in,' he replied. and in short order. too,
II he wants TO stay afioat-'
Scarcely had the words left his
hibition took place on the deck Of rne
dhow. One Of her men raised the fore
hatch cover. and in the twinkiing Of an
eye eight big gorillas swarmed out into
the daylight In an instant they had
ascended the rigging. each to his ap-
pointed station. and in less time than
II takes to tell it the odd-looking ves-
sci was stripped of every sail and snug
~ hove to, awaiting the oncoming cy-
clone.
THE tempest broke over the Nyanza
and her strange consort- The latter
disappeared into the foam and mist
and was lost to sight for nearly forty
minutes. When the sun reappeared
she was seen riding TRANQUILITY only q
mile or so on and apparently unin-
jursd-
Capt McLauchlan. scarcely believ-
ing the evidences OF his senses. resolved
to further investigate the crew Of the
Egyptian vessel Luckily. he had an
Interpreter ON board and sought an In
terviev with her captain 1t only
served to verify the facts as related
Several photographs were taken by
Mats walker. but all attempts to solve
ths mystery attending the methods
pursusd in training the odd crew
failed.
Imagine crew Of dociIe chimpan-
xees or gorrillas." said Capt. McLAuch-
Ian. ~I don't know which they were.
but each more powerful than a couple
of men. No need of donkey engines to
help hoist sails. double topsail yards.
or other labor-saving devices One of
those fellows on the tail end of a brace
or sheet would make a .bucko' mate
with q Delaying pin laugh with glee.
ho II ~
murder as q result of collisions which
might occur between oncers and
crew"
Can't. NcLauchlan thinks that the in
auxuration Of monkey crews would re-
orxanixe things afioat- The cost of
sailing vessels would be reduced to a
minimum, Jack the grumbler" would
disappear from the forecastie and it
would require only two or three human
s.hands' would be as well taken care
Of a. possible. also. for as property
they would cost money, and ON the
same principle that = man takes care
of his horses the owners would keep =
strict account Of them
The idea of employing big monkeys
as sailors is not without precedent
Even Admiral Schley has had an ex-
perience with them, which furnishes
one Of his most interesting stories. Ac-
cording to the New York Marine Jour
nal IL was when he wss executive ON
Ger Of the Benicia. In the East Indies.
in 1868. that he had highly intelli-
gent ourang- g-outang as q member Of his
crew. 1t was educated by the boat
swain's mate and picked up . remark
able degree Of culture. audacity and the
nnsr trimmings OF humanity among
the men. 1t learned its hammock
number. slept in 1t regularly and
picked it out OF the bunch unerringly
every evening. Its services In short
ening sail or other work aloft. the ad-
miral says. were worth those Of any
five men in the crew. While Capt Nc
Lauchlan realizes his experience is not
without precedent. he thinks that the
wonderfully able manner in which the
dhow was handled makes a most re-
markable story
M>v = Prss~s n, Kt..sA