Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1900-02-02
SAVED BY CARPET .TAcKs.
Memorable Experience OF a yoyageI
Around the World At Terra
del FueEO.

Capt. Joshua SIocum, In his solitary
voyage around the world in the sloop
Spray, found new and exciting use for
carpet taoks. He thus describes an en-
counter with the natives of TERRA del
Fuego:
Canoes manned by savages from For
tesque now came in pursuit. The wind
falling light, they gained on me rapidly
till coming within hail, when they
ceased padding, and a bow-legged saw
age stood up; and called. to me: yam
merschooner! yammerschooner!" which
is their begging term. said mo"
Now, I was not for letting them know
that was alone. and so stepped into
the cabin and, passing through the
hold, came out at the forescutt1e,
changing my clothes as l went along.
That made two men. Then the piece
of bowsprit which I had sawed off at
Buenos Ayres and which l had still on
board, / arranged forward on the look
out, dressed as a seaman, attaching
line by which l could put it into motion.
That made three of us, and we did not
want to ''yammerschooner," but for all
that the savages came on faster than
before. 1 saw that, besides four at the
there were others in the bottom, and
that they were shifting hands often.
At so yards fired a shot across the bow
of the nearest canoe, at which they ell
stopped, but only for a moment. See
ing that they persisted in coming near
er, fired the second shot so close to the
chap who wanted TO 'yammerschoon-
err that he changed his mind quickly
enough and beloved with fear. 'Bueno
10 via isla," and, sitting down in his
canoe, he rubbed his starboard cathead
for some time. was thinking of good
port captains advice when pulled the
trigger and I must have aimed pretty
straight; however, miss was as good
as mile for Mr.. "Black Pedro" as he il
was, and no other, q leader in several
bloody nlassacres.
He now directed the course of his
canoe for the island and the others fol-
lowed him. knew by his Spanish lin
go and by his full beard that he was the
villain 1 had named, a renegade mon
grel, and the worst murderer in TERRA
del Fuego. The authorities have been
in search of him for two years. The
Fuegans are not bearded. At
night, March s, at anchor in snug cove
at the Turn, every heartbeat counted
thanks. Here pondered on the events
of the last few days and, strangely
enough, instead of feeling rested from
sitting or lying down I now began to
feel jaded and worn, but hot meal OF
venison stew put me right SO that
could sleep. AS drowsiness came on l
first sprinkled the deck with the tacks
that my old friend SambIch had given
me and I turned in. saw to it that not
few of them stood business end" up,
for when the Spray passed Thieves
bay two canoes had put out and fol-
lowed in her wake, and there was no
Disgusting the fact any longer that I
was alone.
Now, it is well known that one
cannot step on a tack without saying
| something about 1t. A pretty good
| Christian will whistle when he steps
on the commercial end" of carpet
] tack; a savage will howl and claw the
air, and that was just what happened
| that night about IL o'clock, while was
| asleep in the cabin, where the sayages
| thought they chad me-" sloop and all.
| They changed their minds, however,
when they stepped on deck, for then
4 tASy IHOukut t1dl Ok sOnCOOOJ CiSr
had them. had no need of dog; they
howled like pack Of hounds. had
| hardly use tor gun. They jumped pelI-
| mell. some into their canoes and some
into the sea, to cool off, suppose, and
| ihere was a deal of free language over
| Ii as they went. I fired the rascals q
salute Of several guns when came o.
deck, 10 let them know that was al
| home and then I turned IN again, feel
| ing sure that should not be disturbed
any more by people who left in so great
hurry.-Chicago Chronicle.
A Boer Christening.