The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-06-16
Guided byaSpirit
New York SIM

New York Sun.
. They're a queer set of sperrits that
frecuents the seas and they do some
mighty queer things, as any sadIorman
knows" said Capt. Bill Kinsman as he
cut pipeful off a plug and proceeded to
roll 1t between his horny palms. But
the queerest spook I ever see was one
that put itself out Of business for sixty
odd years by making a. mistake
1T happened when I was a young man
on voyage from Maracaibo to Liver
pool on the bark Ingomar with a. cargo
Of mahogany. A chap by the name Of
Teague was the captain, and the sickest
looking skipper he was that ever let a.
ships crew do as it pleased. He was a
powerful, big-boned man, but gaunt as
wolf, with his clothes hanging loose all
over him and his eyes burning away
back at the end Of two sort o. caverns
Instead Of taking his rest like a
Christian, he set up on the taffraiI, in
his watch and out of it, fair weather or
foul, sleeping sometimes but most while
looking out over the sea like a man in
trance. Bout once a day he'd come
down for bite to eat and a look at the
first mates fggers and then back he'd
go with never a word out of him
ut didn't take many days out Of port
before they begin to be whispers among
IL wanted
know, thatd make a man like league
decent mems neighbornood? What was
ii his burning eyebalIs saw out yonder
in the black water?
Mates, says Ben Wfcks, who'd lost
one Of his eyes on a nan-n'-war, L know
the signs. It's blood spots he sees out
there--blood spots of his own making and
theys no good goin' to come to them as
travels with him.
II don't know just what the crew'd a.
done if it hadn't happened that Ben's
remarks come to the ears Of the first
mate soon's they did the mate comes
humping into the fo'c'sle and lays Ben
out with d smash under the ear.
g Now We swine, ne says, turning to
the rest of US, is they any of you ever
mad quits enough to love woman? Two
years ago they was feller about to get
the Hkelest gal in Portland. Me. for
a wife. She quarreled with him a week
before the wedding, about nothing, as
women VIII, and up and married a dub
that was worth no go0d woman's
thoughts. Well. the chap that got left
Is him that's sittln, up there on the taft
rail. Ye dirty snakes, that's what love
does sometimes to a man. Now if they
any one of you wants a broken head let
me hear another .yaP about blood Spots
After that nobody felt called upon to
give his opinions Of the captain. Ueck-
on the crew was more sorry for him than
anything else, though Ben Wicks shook
his head and did a heap of mumbling
under his breath And we certainly be-
gin to have a queer voyage. We was on
a nor nor east tack and we had a purity
fair breeze most Of the time but somehow
that ship seemed to make mighty lit
tie Roadway. The sea was dirty oil
color and it seemed to sort of ketch hold
of US and stick on. 1t was like sailing
through nolasses.
" It's coming soon, says Ben Wicks
one dog watch when the first mate was
out of hearing.
''That same night It come up to rain
on the captains watch and he sent me
down after his oilsdns. Foot OF the
companionway l looked into the cabin
and there at the captains table. as I'm
a living man, sat a little brown-haired
woman writing. Everybody aboard knew
they was no woman on the Ingomar and
hadn't been. I took one look and then
made for the quarterback
" Where's them skins?' says league.
d" IF you please. sir. 1 says, there's
a lady at the cabin table writing
'STeague looked at me for full half a
minute and his eyes was like them Of
a man that's gone blind. Then he spoke
kind OF soft
I" What kind OF a looking woman waa