The daily Alaskan., 1904-07-06
OVER BOARD
 AT LEA
rcOpyright. 1904, by c. B. Lewls.l

of a float flung at me, the Drlg cOulO do nothing toward a rescue. For the first three hours my hopes and fears
 made me alert, but after that l felt dull languor and was only half con scious of what was going on.
 An hour after midnight was arou, cd from what seemed to be troubled dream. l was pumping against some taing hard, and my first idea was that I had been cast ashore. It took me seY' eral minutes to shake myself together and make out that was alongside the hull of vessel. had scarcely more to do than lift up my hands s2nd seize the low rail and draw myself aboard. I had found derelict bark. Her masts were gone close to the deck, much Of her bulwarks swept away, and l knew by the feel of her that she was water logged. took one glance over her and then dumped myself down on deck and was asleep in five seconds. When I again opened my eyes the sun wal three hours high.
 was surely aboard of derelict, and it did not take me long to master the details of the wreck. In the first place, She was loaded with Australian red wood and could not sink beyond a cer' tain point. Next, she had been floating about for months and months. There was some wreckage on her decks, but masts and yards and booms had gone clear of her as they fell She had set tied down until her scupper holes were only a few inches above water.
 I was sorely in need of food and drink, and after a few minutes work l broke open the cabin doors, which had become swelled and jammed, and got into the pantry. There was wine in plenty, as might have been expected, and found meat and biscuit
 When my meal had been finished l began overhauling the main cabin, All the charts and nautical instruments were there, nor had any of the spare clothing of the officers been taken away. found the log book, and, though I could not read French, I made out the latitude and longitude last recorded
 1 was so tired and exhausted that l slept the greater portion of the first day, but on the second I made a more thorough overhaul. In the rear of the captains staterOom I chanced upon closet which had escaped me the day before. and here 1 made a great find. There was money amounting to over SS,OOO. together with jewelry worth S1.OOO more. The plunder was In two tin boxes, but whether 1t belonged to the captain, the ship or to other people found nothing to signify. It was grand fortune to poor sailor, and l remember that acted very foolishly over the find. counted 1t over and over again, and when at last realized that was rich l rushed on deck with a wild hope of seeing a sail close at hand. But for the money l believe that the long days and dreary nights which followed would have driven me insane. There was plenty to eat and drink, no danger of the wreck going down, Nnf the weather was fine for five days o'li of seven. but felt my isolation mOfe keenly than I can describe. l was out of the track of ships, moving with wind, wave or current, and the same empty horizon greeted my view day after day and week after week.
 While I became llstless and discour- aged and almost lost hope, I still kept a record of the days as they passed. Ac- cording to my record, I had been on the wreck forty-nine days when l sighted my first sail. Very likely ships had passed and repassed without my see ing them, as 1 could set no signal by day and always slept straight through the night. This sail was discovered early one morning coming from the south, and her course was such that she must pass close by. When l noted this put the plunder into bags and the bags into clothing and after that had nothing to do but eat a hasty break fast and wait.
 The breeze was very scant, and 1t was above three hours after being sighted that the strange sail drew near. She proved to be an English merchant man bound for India, but having been blown far of her course by a gale which had not felt at all.
 She was within half a mile of me and had set a signal to gladden. my heart when a big whale suddenly broke water close to the wreck. Half min ute later he was followed by a second, which attacked him with great fury. The monsters put up terrific battle, flashing and biting each other and kick ing up a sea like gale of wind. They at first drew away from me, but after few minutes made a circle which brought them back again.
 What had feared from the first came to pass after a quarter of an hour. Half blinded by pain and fury or feeling himself overmatched and de- sirOus of getting away, one of the whales suddenly whirled about and came for the wreck head on. He was fully eighty feet long, and he came like a moving mountain. made sure of my hold when saw him coming, but he struck the wreck on her port side with such force that I was thrown across the deck and into the sea be- yond. I heard the crash of blanks ano timbers, was tossed about by the waves, rubbed against the whale as he sounded and reached the surface to find the wreck a hull no longer. IL was but heap of floating debris. The strange ship drew nearer and lowered a boat, and was picked up as clung to Q plank. The money was gone, anu