Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-11-28
DAILY SHORT STORY
FINDING THE HOPE.

lands. and | was one of the crew q
the bark Rambler sent out from sgd
ney. Australia. TO pick up information
as TO her end.
Upon our arrival at the island. after
q tedious voyage, the bark was an
chored in sheltered spot and two ex-
petitions sent ashore 10 search the
coast east and west. While they were
at work the longboat was 10 run
down the other side of the island and
search some of the smaller ones. 1t
was my luck TO be detailed with one
of the land parties. and. as il was sum-
mer time. We had only 4 couple OF
muskets and our provisions To carry.
On the third day of the expedition,
and when we had made about thirty
miles. we came TO what looked like Il
large river. The distance across was
about quarter. OF mile and the
water, very deep. We headed inland
for about n mile and then found that
our river was but II finger of the sea,
stopping short ut the base OF range
Of cliffs. On the rocks and Shingle on
the east side lay mass of wreckage.
There were pieces OF bulwark. an
anchor a broken rudder. lot of chains
and ropes and no end of planks and
beams. Eighty rods away was rude
shelter constructed of boards taken
from this heap. and in the hut we
found several cooking utensils, Il sail
or'S sou'wester. a broken compass and
a seaInan's chest. one of the boards
used in the flooring had belonged ito
Il ships lOngboat. and the first thing
To greet our eyes as we looked i'll was
the name Hope.
The doomed vessel had driven into
the bay with the gale and the tide and
gone To pieces OH the rocks before she
could anchor. The turn of the tide
had carried most of the wreckage out
10 sea, but there was more left than
we could have turned over in 4 day.
Just here the ground fell away To the
south and was covered with stunted
bushes. In searching among them we
found two bales of cloth. black and rot
ten; two cabin stools. a sailors mess
kit and the skeleton of a man, with
fragments of cloth still clinging 10 the
bones. 1t was strange enough that
the Hope should have been driven in
~ tihl ~" bds wv oNa WIN a.
furious gale raging but il was stranger
yet that any of her crew had lived out
the disaster. She was probably dis
masted outside. and in being wave
swept she lost most of her people, but
two of the sailors certainly reached
shore and lived on for weeks or months.
AS we figured it out they had built
the hut in company, and after dwelling
together for awhile there was Il quar-
rel and they separated. There were
few empty boxes and barrels to show
that provisions had come ashore and
been consumed. and there was plenty
of fresh water at hand. The wreck
had been lifted up to come down with
a smash on the jagged rocks and had
not held together ten minutes after the
first crash. We had found one Of the
men dead in the bushes where the
other had driven him, but if the other
was alive he had left the vicinity many
weeks before our arrival. 1t was pos
sible that he had been taken off by
some passing vessel. but under the idea
that he was still on the island the two
parties searched almost every foot OF
IL before giving up. In this long hunt
not a trace of the man was found.
Ii took several days 10 prove up
that the wreckage was the last re-
mains OF the Hope. and then we had
another look Mt the skeleton discov-
cred days before. Nobody had wanted
to handle the grewsome object. and ii
had consequently been left lying in the
bushes where first seen. Now the
ful,t nd 10
searched. and in tin tobacco
box We found a paper of Importance.
The man had been fairly educated.
In note written in pencil he stated
that the loss OF the Hope was owing
to a Inutiny on board and that he and
the leader were the only ones who es-
raped from the wreck. They had lived
together for three months, and then a
bitter quarrel arose, and the leader
stabbed the other and drove him from
he nut. The writer Of the note felt
hat he had been fatally wounded. and
ne left the writing in hopes that it
would some day avenge him. He gave
he names of the most prominent mu- |
ineers and included his own among |
hem. explaining that all had come |
he mates. He stated that they had |
'ome talk OF putting to sea Oh n raft !
md that now and then a sail had been |
teen on the horizon. but he had given
Ip hope OF getting clear when the quar-
'el came and made his death certain.
The document was. OF course. taken
Ilong with us when we set out upon
W return voyage. though not man
Il us ever expected TO set eyes on the
urviving mutineer, who was now also
murderer. Strange things happen ut
ca as well as on land. however. We
ad made a distance OF 500 miles when
We overhauled an English whaleship,
nd. the weather being pleasant, the
wo captains decided TO exchange Wis.,
Is. Our boat was manned and rowed
way. but il had not yet reached the
rhaler when one OF her crew was seen
D leap overheard, and, refusing all as
fS IN ha 81 oh Of |