Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-03-28
DAILY, STORY
THE MAN ON THE ICE.



less eye, having made out that we had |
nothing to fear from its presence, when |
all of a sudden Il man stepped into |
view. After moment of establishment
| ran for the glass, and when L got the !
proper focus l could even tell the color |
of his eyes. He was Il man six feet
high and dressed entirely in furs. But
for the glass | might have taken him
for an Eskimo. With it it was easy
TO make out he was IL European. He
stood with arms folded and looked into
my face, and l saw Il smile on his. lie
did not so much as lift hand.
Naturally l was considerably eXcit
ed and ran down to the cabin and
shouted the news. The captain and
several of the men came Oh deck, and
we shouted and waved our arms at the
man on the foe. He made no signal.
The gripes of the boats were frozen
fast, and it would be a half hours work
to get one aflOat, but we had Ec~uu
operations when the man, who see. ID
To know what we We're at. turned his
back, walked away and was hidden BIZ
small berg. We stared after him for
awhile and then retreated to the cabin.
Did we see Il live man on the ice. or
was it one of the many strange illu-
sionS of these frozen seasf" asked the
captain.
Al Of US insisted that we had seen
man. There was no mistake.
We would make no attempt at res
cue. but you may be sure the mystery
was one 10 puzzle us for many days.
If the man had shelter he had no
fire and dressed as warmly as was pos
sible. 1t did not seem that any human
being could stand that cold for half 4
day. We had the cabin stove red hot
and vet six feet away water was freeZ-
ing in dish. To thrust your face
through the cabin doors was like sub
hitting it to cuts and slashcS from q
razor. 1t was so for two days more.
and then the weather moderated. As
| near as we could estimate. the ice field
| on which we had seen the man was ten
miles long by half as many broad. We
We're far out OF sight of it when the
weather broke, and we lowered for
| whale. \ week later after we had
and We're driven to the west At the
| end Of two days we had ice in sight in
| every direction but one. We were fight
| ing our way through it and it was .
| O'Clock IN the afternoon when Il man
who had been alOft cried out that we
| had come upon the stranger again. So
we had. His field had been broken up
by the gale. and he was left on an area
not over half mile in extent. with Il
| berg forming its center. This time we
| ran through lane and within stones
| throw of him. He stood surveying us
rs before. Il grim sort Of smile on his
| face. and every man Of our crew had
him. fairly under his eye. At the near
asst point the captain shouted at him:
"AhOy, you. What are you doing on
the ice? Who are you. and where IFS
your ship? DO you want to he taken
off,"
For answer the man stared at us for
half Il minute, and then. with Il gesture
signifying contempt, he turned his
back and walked away. the berg hiding
him as before
The man is crazy and should he
brought aboard, whether or no." said
the mate to the captain.
I'VE will leave him where he is an
swered the other. Il am not quite sure
yet whether he is q man or ghost.
If he is man he doesn't want to bc
rescued; if he is a ghost we don't want
him aboard"
During the next three days we spoke
/, three WhalerS and gave them news OF
the man. Later on each one of them
saw him. Two of the ships were two
miles away and making heavy wcatheg
of it, but when he was sighted by the
| third the day was pleasant and the
sea calm. The captain determined to
land and bring the unknown off or to
at least find out all about him. He
sailed his ship to within Il quarter or
a mile of the ice field and then lowered
a boat, and the mate and four men
rowed ashore, as you might call it.
They We're making their boat fas.
when they were startled by the ping
Of Il bullet and the report of rifle
The man was firing on them to drive
them off. When the second bullet
came humming about their ears they
cast loose and rowed back to the ship
While the captain was veXed with the
man, he hated to leave him to whaI
must be sure death sooner or later, and
he rugged up Il blackboard and wrote
messages on it in chalk. From his
hiding place the man could easily read
them, but he made no sign.
The man had rifle and was deter
: mined to prevent a rescue, and the on
" ly thing to be done was to sail away
and leave him. He was later on seeI
and reported by two other wnalers
One of them, off Cape Horn, reported
the case to n British man-of-war, bu
her captain refused TO take up th'
search. There was reason to believe