The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1903-09-19

y lowered their bags and Nancy
brought up a big bundle Of things hom
the cabin.
They had no jeera or insults TO
fling after those they had sent afloats
but at once made more sail on the
brig and headed her on a new course.
Nancy had smuggled the chart and a
spare compass into her bundle. and
as the hoat drew away she was fafced
BY the wind toshala.a true. course for
the English channel. Therawere pro-
visions in plenty, and scarcely a word
was uttered before breakfast had been
served out. Then Nancy quietly asked:
elisha, what We agoin' to do about
it,"
I'm goin' to stan to the eastward
for awhile" he replied after thinking
it over. "Tn Jest keep track Of the
Mary Ann as long as / can, and it's
Jest possible that we may be piekedsup
and have a show to git her back. II
we don't meet anything by tomorrow,
and the wind allows it, IN head for
home, though I don't see how I'm v
to hold up my head IN Boston or Salem
ag'in. They'll say ! was coward not
to make a fight fur il"
"Then they'll be fools! The Dutch
men would have killed every one Of
us but what they'd had the brig, and
we ought to thank heaven we got on
as well as we did. Don't We despair,
Elisha. We've seen some tight squeaks
but we've allus come out all right.
Don't We remember how a whale once
saved u.s."
And the same whale may eat US
this time!"
All that day the boat ran her true
course, but as the brig bore into the
north and sailed the faster her top
sails were only a speck on the sea
when the sun went down. AS the
breeze did not fall with the sun, the
men were divided into watches, a Ian
tern was run to the head of the mast
as a signal, and hour after hour, the
boat danced Over the seas
I There were two men on the look
! cut, but after midnight Nancy reused
I up and spoke to them and found that
? both Of them were asleep. She sal
Gown beside one Of them in the bow
: wide awake with her thoughts, and
long hour passed when the sight Of
a ship suddenly danced before her.
1t was a craft with all her sails set
and having been taken aback she wa
drifting away stern first, though this
q fact was not known till later. A CRY
from the woman reused everybody il
an instant, and pointing into the south
: she chOkingly exclaimed:
d "There-there-a ship-a ship!'
. "By Josh, and there isl" answered
Capt. Elisha a second later. Now
men, all together and hail her"
A great shout went over the water
1t but it was not answered, and neithe
was a light displayed. The shout wa
it repeated again and again and again
le and then after a long look Capt, Elish,
# cried out:
W why, / believe she's an %abandOne
1t craft and takin' care of herself! Wei
n run right alongside in five minutes!
They reached the decks of tn
stranger to find her a ship a good dea
larger than the Mary Ann, and a scare
of ten minutes proved that not a Twin
soul was aboard. There was a dea
ir man though.
Lying in the main cabin, full
It dressed, was the corpse Of the captain
m and a sailors sheath knife was sti
sticking in his back. Murder had bee
ir done before the ship was abandoned.
Did you ever read an account Of thI
IA ocean mystery? The ship Voorne, Cap
N Bergen, master, had set out from Mort
Sea ports bound for New York with
valuable cargo. That was the era
ne Capt. Hopewell found adrift in mil
er ocean.
oh Her crew, from the mate Down, wei
the men who took forcible possessic
of the Mary Ann, after killing the
at captain and abandoning their vessC
All What drove them to the deed of bloc
why they didn't stand by their sh.
10 afterward-where they headed for
the stolen brig-these are question
IN that have never been answered.
he Perhaps the mate and his chi
~ quarreled and murder was lone
,at passion. Then fear Of the law ma
"a the whole crew clamorous to get o
of the ship. They took n3thing wi
,,,+ them which was not their Dwn.
They even left over a thousand d.
lars in gold and silver beh ind them.
any human eye e sighted the Ma
Ann after her crew lost sight of h
the fact has not been reported to Il
day. Ii is easy to guess her fate, no
ever. She either went down in a g
at sea or was wrecked o. some ire
bound coast to the north, and eve
soul persisted.
No sooner had the body of the Ii
captain received burial and the shi
papers been overhauled to find her pt
= of destination than she wa headed
the port of New York to be deliver
nv up to the c~onsignees. 1t was a sho
handed crew to work such a big era
. but every man tried to do two me
n0 work, and it was recorded OF the
that Nancy Hopewel steered her trio
I'm ~ the wheel md kent Iookouts "
70 the men.
way while thew had been despoiled
the Mary Ann, they were to find the
It! selves largely the gamers by it, AT
cts a run which was bare of event
d~arnIFnf was safely mOnred In N