The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-05-17
THE ADVENTURESO OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

son and eight others were wriggling on
the top Of each other on the floor, and
the blood and the brown sherry on that
table turn me sick now when [ think Of
it. We were so cowed by the sight that
l. think we should have given the job
up if it had not been for Prendergast.
He beloved like bull and rushed for
the door with all that were left alive
at his heels Out we ran, and there on
of his men. The swing skylights above
the saloon table had been a bit open,
and they had fired on US thru the slit:
We got on them before they could load
and they stood to it like men; but we
had the upper hand Of them and in five
minutes it was all over, My God! was
there ever a. slaughter-house like that
devil, and he picked the soldiers up
as if they had been children and threw
them overheard alive or dead There
was one sergeant that was horribly
wounded and yet kept on swimming for
a surprising time, until someone In
mercy blew out his brains. When the
fighting was: over there was no one lei, left
Of our enemies, except just the Warders,
the mates and the doctor.
"'It was over them that the great
quarrel arose. There were many OF US
who were glad enough to win back our
! freedom, and yet who had no wish to
have murder on our souls. 1t was one
thing to knock the soldiers over with
their muskets in their hands, and it
was another to stand by while men were
being killed in cold blood. Eight Of
US, five convicts and three sailors, said
that we would not see it done. But
there was no moving Prendergast and
those who were with him. Our only
chance of safety lay in making a clean
job of it, said he, and he would not
leave tongue with power to Wag In
a witness-box. It nearly came to our
sharing the fate of the prisoners, but
might take boat and go. We jumped
; at the offer, for we were already SICK
Of these bloodthirsty doings, and we
, saw that there would be worse before
, it was done. We were given suit OF
sailor togs each, barrel of water, two
, casks, one Of junk and one Of biscuits,
, and a compass. Prendergast threw us
wrecked mariners whose ship had
! foundered in latitude Is degrees and
longitude IS degrees west, and then cut
r the painter and let US go.
! And now I come to the most sur
3 prising part Of my story, my dear son:
The seamen had hauled the foreyard
t aback during the rising, but now as we
t left them they brought it square, again
the north and east the bark began to
t draw slowly away from us. Our boat
/ lay, rising and falling, upon the long
$ smooth rollers, and Evans and l, who
/, were the most educated of the party
s were sitting in the sheets working out
our position and planning what coast
e we should make for. 1t was nice
: question, for the Cape de Verbs were
] tnl h,,r 70
y of us, and the African coast abou
s seven hundred to the east. On tn,
e whole, as the wind was coming rount
s to the north, we thought that Sierr;
O Leone might be best, and turned gu
O head in that direction, the bark beins
y at that time nearly hull down on GU
Q starboard quarter. Suddenly as W,
l. cloud Of smoke shoot up from her
d which hung like a monstrouss tree upol
It the skyline. A few seconds later roa
n like thunder burst upon our ears, ant
as the smoke thinned away there wa
I no sign left of the Gloria Scott: In a.
instant we swept the boat ith IS ali he en
,e strength for the place where the haz
n still trailing over the water marked tn
]scene Of this catastrophe.
s." It was long hour before W
=. reached it, and at first we feared tina
v we had come too late to save any one
t A splintered boat and number o
a and falling on the waves showed u
u where the vessel had foundered; .bu
- there was no sign of life, and we ha'
!, turned away in despair when we hear
- a cry for help, and saw at some dis
h lance piece Of wreckage with maj
"a lying stretched across it. When W
% pulled him aboard the boat he prove'
~ 1>n nf
:, Hudson, who was so burned and ex
! = hausted that he could give us no &C
-. count of what had happened until tn
- following morning.
z F It seemed that after we, had left
10 Prendergast and his gang had proceed
- 70 prisoners. The two warders had bee
a shot and thrown overheard, and so ais
y had the third mate. Prendergast the
IL descended into the 'tween-decks an
with his own hands cut the throat Q
rs the unfortunate surgeon. There oni
& remained the first mate, who was boil
" and active man. When he saw the cor
le knife in his hand he kicked off hi
a bonds, which he had somehow contrive
s, to loosen, and rushing down the deck h
le plunged into the after-hold. A doze
At convicts, who descended with their pis
If tolls in search of him, found him with
" match box in his hands seated beside a
is open powder barrel, which was one of
te hundred carried on board, and swearin
n, that he would blow all hands up if h
Mt were in any way molested. An lnstan
Re later the explosion occurred, tho Hue
IS. son thought it was caused by the misd
to rected bullet of one of the convict
III rather than the mate IS match. Be tn
70, cause what it may, it was the end 9
It. the Gloria Scott and of the rabble VIII
held command Of her. ~
* ~ Such, in few words, my dea
ne boy, is the history of this terrible bus
10 ness in which I was involved. Next da
IN we we're picked up by the brig Hotspu
IN found no difficulty in believing that "
D. which had foundered. The transpo,
Id ship Gloria Scott was set down by til
as admiralty as being lost at sea, and 4
To word as ever leaked out as to her tru
ha fate. After an excellent voyage tn
Ia Hotspur landed us at Sydney, whe1
he Evans and I changed our names an
Il made our way to the diggings, wher
ID among the crowds who were gathere
to from all nations, we had no difficult
70 in losing our former Identities. III
he rest I need not relate. We prospere
~ 40 we Travelled, we came back as rich c.
~ ~ lonials to England and we bought coul
- - try estates. For more than twent
~ years we have led peaceful and usef1
I'll lives, and we hoped that our past We
se forever buried. Imagine, then, m
~ feelings when in the seaman who can
y to us I recognized instantly tt
~ man Hudson, who had been picked O
oo n the wreck. He had tracke