The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-01-03
gotten the English language. or had

gotten the English language. or had
at least grown rusty in its use.
The name of the sole survivor, as
we soon found him to be, was James
was not a long one She had been
caught off the island in typhoon,
and had lost seven of her crew by a
wave sweeping her decks at the be-
ginning IF the storm. Her reaching
the bay was purely a matter of acct
dent. She was trying to get into the
open sea, but drifting upon the coast
and everybody had given up hopes
death, when she was lifted up by
great wave and carried over a coral
reef and into the bay without injury.
The thing was to anchor at once, but
while this was being done the captain IN
met with a. fatal accident. This lett
twelve of "a crew. wish the CHIEF mate
IN command
AS soon as the gale had subsided
it was ascertained by soundings that
the Gainecock could not be got over
the reef. Then the men, as 1t nearly
always the case, declared the voyage
at an end, and refused to longer OBEY
orders Two of them were, however,
induced to go with the second mate
in search of assistance. Taking one
of the quarter boats they sailed away
to the west expecting to speak snip
within a day or two, and return with
assistance, but they were never heard
Of more. OF the nine men LETT, the
steward was drowned While bathlng,
the cooks back was broken by IAN
from a tree ashore, ana hVe men Wen ls
ashore to live, leaving only Lane and
the chief mate aboard. Within four
months all the five men were dead
one being killed in braWI, ana the
others dying of drunkenness ana
snake bites
For eighteen months the two men
aboard were in good health II the
mate ever told Lane the name or latl-
s-I.- ff0n inf .
was forgotten. They talked almost
daily of fitting out another quarter
boat and sailing away In search OF re-
lief but it seemed that the mate was
lacking in self-reliance, and for many
long months was also in hopes that
the other boat would be heard from
1t thus transpired that no move was
made to secure relief, and none came
through native fishermen or traders
and at the expiration of eighteen
months the mate was seized with
fever that quickly carried him OIL
Lane managed to get the body ashore
tain, and from thence on he lived
entirely alone. For over two years he
had not seen a human face or heard
any voice but his own. He lived
mostly on the provisions of the ship
but found plenty of fruits ashore, and
during his idle days he pretty thor
oughIy explored the island. He stuck
to the imprisoned craft through a
wished to desert her he could have
taken one of the boats.
The Titan had a. supply of ex-
p1osives aboard, and the first move
was to blast a passage through the
coral reef. which now almost showed
above the surface. It took us five
days to blast and clear this passage,
and then we had to turn to and tar
down and repair and bend on such
new sails as could be found in the
fore-peak. 1t was three weeks before
we towed the long-imprisOned craft
through the passage and got her into
in the shallow bay, which gave her
only three feet under her keel at low
tide, the bottom of the craft was
thick with grass five feet long, and
she looked like an island floating
along.
Lane told us that he had kept track
of days and dates with perfect ac-
curacy- As long as paint and tar
order. When they had been used up
he spent his time in reading, writing,
fishing and exploring. He had the
whole cabin to live in, and the stores
We had a slow. dull time of sailing
the Iong-lost craft to Yokohama, but
got her safely into port at last She
was a we'll known ship, and her
furnished an interesting item to the
marine statistics. There was salvage
money for all of US, for ship and
cargo We're practically unchanged,
but while we got pennies Lane was
awarded Shillings- The sum paid over
to him by the courts was about 500
0OO and with it in his pocket he left
the sea forever and settled down far
inland to become a farmer. If any
one begrudged him his good fortune
It was none of US who found him and
knew what a desolate time he had
passed while waiting for Providence
to send him relief.-( Copyright 1905,
by II. G. Mcclure