The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1909-05-14
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knV% az well as the biggest science
'pan. And this knowGthat we're af-
~ yea Oy Influences we don't see.
&c people calls em spirits; Others
em transmission, or something like
" thought. l don't know what
are. But one thing 1 do know,
that Is something a good many
'pls.tSat know a lot more than I do
'ohpooh. know these things that
1uences US areNthere. Can't nobody
Dol me on that point. and why know
It is this:
Ihe biggest thing l ever was let into
was the hurricane that swept Calves
ton in 1898. happened to be in Chi
cago during the great fire of 1871, as l
was there running a tug on the river
ana lake. but 1t was nothing but stage
spectacle show compared with the Gal
weston hood. I'm not going to tell
ABOUT that, only an incident that Oc-
Cured in connection with 1t which has
made me dead sure ever since that
something or other we don't see often
steps in and gives us a pointer.
we were some time getting our
bearings after the storm was over. and
1t was a week before we began to rec
onnoiter the gulf to find out what
wreckage from the harbor might be
floating around there. was part own
er of trim little steamer that wasn't
wrecked, and / decided to go out to
Pee what could find There was a
good chance for salvage, though if one
saved anything there was no money
left to pay us for doing it. Anyway,
wanted to see what was out there.
The water was full Of driftwood and
wreckage, but there was nothing of
any value, for most everything had
been split into kindling wood. Most of
the stuff we saw was wreckage from
cabins that had lined the shore. Pref
ty soon one Of the men sighted gov
eminent buoy over to the southwest.
1t was out In deep water and had evil
IDENTIFY broken loose from its moor
ings. The man who discovered 1t, and
the others. for that matter, thought we
might turn an honest penny by going
lOT IL tOWluS IL Ill.
Now, they were right about it. We
might go farther and fare worse.
There wasn't any sense in letting go
of haul that was sure pay to hunt
for something that probably wouldn't
pay at all. The government was the
only owner that could be counted on.
Nevertheless I refused to go for the
h,xo Skr atnh II
said and why I said 1t don't know.
As have remarked, the thing to have
done was the other thing.
It wasn't long before we saw among
the wreckage dead ahead something
that looked like raft. I brought
glass to bear on II, and after examin-
ing it awhile I concluded It was the
floor of some cabin that the storm had
wrecked. But what startled me was a
boy on It, He was sitting with his
head hanging down on his breast,
clutching the planks with his hands.
ran up to within sixty yards Of the
raft The boy didn't change his posi-
ton, and I didn't know whether he
was dead or asleep till I rang the bell
to stop her Then he Strengthened up
and stared at us with his hollow, hun
CRY eyes He had on no clothing but a
shirt. indicating that he was in bed
when the storm swept down on him,
trtNwas either alone or the others with
him lad been lost. He sat there without
changa of position, staring at us while
we lowered q boat and pulled for him.
When we reached him he had strength
enough to Climb into the boat, but be-
fore we could get him into the ship he
tainted
Not having morsel Of food aboard,
! headed for land. On the way we
hailed q fruiter and got some brandy
and a can of condensed milk. a few
spoonfuls Of the milk had very
strengthening effect on the boy. This
sufficcd till. we reached quarantine,
where 1 turned him over to the doc
tor. In week he was all right again.
Then, his, people having been discov-
cred and notified, an uncle came for
him and took him away.
He was the son of an FISHERMAN
who lived on Grand isle and when the
storm came was alone in his fathers
cabin. 1t tore the hut to pieces. but
left the boy on the floor unhurt. Then
came the waters and foated him on
his raft. But how or when he drifted
away is a mystery. He could not
have been in the turbulent waves dur
ing the storm or he never could have
kept his place. But think Of the little
fellow drifting for seven days without
food or water at the mercy Of the sea!
There are more things to be explain
ed I'm this case than any l have ever
met with. How did the boy come to
be left on the floor of cabin wrecked
over his head by hurricanef How
did he escape the frightful waves that
hurricane stirred up? How did he
survive so long without food or water,
shelter or surviving, have the
strength to hold on while danced
about on the gulf? You may search
accounts Of either land or sea disaster.
and in neither will you find so remark
able an escape as this which purtalns
to both land and water. The explana-
ton Is that truth is stranger than nc
tion. The incident was an actual oc-
currence.