The San Francisco call., 1910-10-09
Bhe lO8 Of q lPifate Poe
s.! Us = 5: $;$$ Is;

our sails, lighted furtive gleam over
the cabin and put back This time IL
was for Robbins reef, where there were
more seals to be pirated, more adven-
lures to be had"
Pirates of ALI Nations
Robbins reef in those days was
happy hunting ground for the seal
pirates-and some found 1t a happy
hunting ground In the Indian sense.
The Alaska commercial company had
patrol boat the Leon, cruising about
the islands to guard 1t from the plum
derers of the seas. But the wealth OF
furs tempted the pirates to brave the
patrol boats. Buell. continues his story
of the piracy to which he was boyish
party:
We knew that there were many
seals at Robbins reef. and for that point
We sailed. We had not reached the
reef before we saw a schooner coming
down on us at full sail. flying the Rus
sian flag. We were in great terror for
while, but later discovered that she
was pirate like ourselves. who had
borrowed the flag of Russia as the devil
would borrow the livery of saint.
Then other pirate boats came down
to the reef until we had a congress of
all the nations of pirates there. Sew
enty-four men landed. See them
Japanese, Americans. Swedes. English,
Portuguese, Spaniards, Italians, Malays.
negroes, South Americans and South At
ricans-all there for the seal, all ugly
men, with long, shining knives and
oaths and curses, that had buffeted
every wind and insulted every sun.
: Dirty and dark, grimy and greasy, sui
len and cruel. cunning and rapacious,
these loiterers under all evil stars as
sembled on this bleak arctic sea to
yNrlr hnir Had 70 nil aV
steal and kill. We were all in the
same boat-the pirates bark. There
was no false sentiment or false pa
triotism to draw queer social distinc-
tions there at the arctic circle. We
were all in the same boat and we made
common cause in our union piracy.
Seventy of us landed from the
several schooners and surrounded the
Island inside the reef THEN, at a Sig
nal, we started the work of slaughter.
With clubs and knives we put the seals
to death. The seals fought the mas
sacre. One bull, | remember. caught
the seat of my trousers in his ugly
teeth, but i killed him The island was
crimson with the blood of the seals as
they lay dying, but soft with their
furs as we skinned them. So thorough
was thes work of the men that when
the seals were counted, with angry
wrangling and bitter dispute and many
titled to 800 pelts."
That was the year of the good catch.
The sealers with whom Buell., the boy,
was sailing might well have sung with
Reuben Paine in Kfpling's ballad:
Yea, gFkin for skin, and all that he hath a man
will give for his life.
But I've six thousand skins below, and Yeddo
port to see.
And there's never a law of God or man runs
north of ffty-threei
Erap, tho o1auobtar npD Of Robbins
reef the sealers separated to go their
way over the seas. The AnaStaS1a
Cashman on which Buell. was a sailor,
made for the Japanese coast.
From out the grand but desolate
north we sailed to Japan. and thought
that the coast there was fairyland.
So to Japan they went, and there
probably the men told their tales of
murder and theft and pirates and
slaughtered seals and dead Russians,
where the Three Sealers of Kipling
told their rhyme:s
Away by the lands of the Japanese when the
paper lanters glow and the crews of all the
shipping drink In the house of Blood Street joe
That was the life Buell. led in the
formative period of his development.
He STAYED on the sea after that, but his
voyages were more of peace than of
bloodshed, and his last shipping papers
were on a Puget sound boat-placid,
quiet, respectable.
On the sea, in the midst Of bullets
and knives and clubs and evil men and
days, Buell. escaped injury. But on
land, in peaceful vocation, he has
been most unfortunate.
With bones broken, with miserable
health, he had met the buffets of fate,
but in the words of another British
poet Henley, he could say:
/ am the master Of my fate
/ am the captain of my soul.
But the verses he has written have
not been the verses of seal piracy nor
particularly of daring. But then, Buell.
has had SO many vocations that one
special job can not have made Its pro-
foundest impression, for Buell., as his
chart of life shows, has been sailor.
seal pirate, theosophist, car repairer,
composer, millhand. artist, watchman.
poet.
OF his verse he is probably happiest
over his "Portola Dragon" song, which
was accepted by the Portola Dragons
as their own afr, and would have been
used by them during the Porto1a fete
had there been time for it's prepara-
tion. The dragons intended to keep
that song, and had the body taken part
in the Admission day celebration 1t
would have been used by them. When
the famous horsemen of Queen ver-
gilia's encourage revive the memories
Buells song will be sung and his music
will be sounded.
The words to the Song Of Portolas
Drag goons" follow
SONG OF PORToLA's DRAGONS
1t is many long years since our coasts sandy
dunes
Felt the tread of old Spains warriors bold
And the eyes of Portola's intrepid dragons
Saw the gate to Empire of Gold.
There was JOY in his heart Don Gaspar's
firm hand
The flag of his nation unfurled,
While he gave a saints name to bay calm
and grand
San Francisco proud port of the world.
We will do honor to Don Gaspar's noble traits
This stalwart modern troop his name commemo
rates.
Long live the memory of Ell Captains long ride
Our Argonaut sires. each with wanderlust heart
Like the don, then fierce privation brayed
Till they crown here their empress, the vests
splendid mart.
Where the Spaniard's bright banner first
waved.
Then anon were we tried in adversity's fire
And were proved the descendants of men,
With ernpress reerowned and IN gala attire
We welcome Portola again.
Chorus
We win do honor to Don Gaspar true and strong,
His name and deeds shall live in history and song
xf.1 oxf~ xr~ft,