Cañon City record., 1910-07-28
Ghost Ship
By GRACE ETHEL WEEKS
Copyright. lgio. by American Press
Association.

In 1885, the American ship Seminole
making trip around the world. turned
the Cape Of Good Hope and pointed
nor;hwestward on the Atlantic ocean.
The Seminole had left New York four
years before, trading along the South
American coast, Japan and other coun-
tries without hearing much. IL any.
news from her sailing port. She was
slow going brigantine and from
whose bottom the barnacles had not
been scraped since a month before her
departure on her long voyage.
One summer evening she was lying
becaimed OF the west coast of Africa
The captain was playing cards with
the first and second mate TO kill time
when the lookout cried:
'.Wessel afire on port bow
Now. a ship in a storm at sea may
not interest the crew of another ship.
especially as the latter is breasting the
same storm. but a burning craft Is
q very different matter. The game
ceased. and all hands from captain to
cabin boy strained their eyes In the
direction indicated by the lookout All
tAtg NVtAa rNt was n AAAIt va
smoke.
There's wind there" remarked the
captain after making an examination
with glass. THAT smokes drifting
TO Ieeward'
"Itll help burn her. said the second
mate. but it's an nj wind that blows
nobody any good. Wen get 1t after
awhile
Presently dark speck marking the
hull appeared. but there was no flame.
nor could any sails be distinguished
The vessel seemed TO be coming to-
ward the Seminole in a southeriy di-
reciiOn. but the smoke instead OF NOV
ing with her was drifting in her wake.
THAT beats anything | ever see.'' re-
marked one OF fhe crew. is been a
sailor twenty years. and ! never see
burnin' ship movin- without sails and
the smoke blowin' behind her without
any wind"
"wot knocks me out" said another.
is there bein' no fame"
They've got the matches battened
down TO keep the FIRE below decks"
said third ''Nothin' but smoke can
git out"
The ship. moving without sails. came
steadily ON TIL 10 the crew OF the
Seminole she appeared larger. but was
growing faint In the diminishing twl-
light As she drew near she was
pointed directly toward them a terror
spread through not only the Seminoies
crew. but the officers. Here was
burning ship coming TO run them
down
Great guns" cried the captain.
Am l dreamin'I Say. you Martini
addressing her nrst mate do You see
a smokin' vessel comm while were In
the doldrumsr'
That do. SIR" replied the first
mate. and ! don't understand her
Shes ghost shipr' exclaimed
sailor with blanched cheeks.
Been burned at sea and haunts the
place where she. went up In smoke
added another.
1T must "a been all smoke and no
name.- cried a third.
There is light ON her bowr' said
the second mate. Some 'un must a
KEEP his head pretty cool to put that
out with the ship adre."
How does she manage to keep so
straight a course without any wind to
steer byI"
These and many other comments on
the wonder continued to be made
white the hull OF the coming ship was
growing larger aud less distinct in the
growing darkness.
Swing out the bostsI' cried the cap
tain.
The crew ran TO the boats but were
mad with terror that they tumbIed
over one another lowering one end.
while the ropes holding the other to
the davits were left unfastened ~
nally the boats were all swung out and
some OF them In the water when there
was a nssh OF light on the coming
ship. Every man stood stock still.
thinking that the magazine or some
other combustibie had exploded and
that when the sound had time to cross
the distance between them and the
doomed ship they would hear roar.
followed by the shrieks of those who
had been blown skyward.
stand by TO save lite-' cried the
captain.
But the seconds passed. and there
was no sound either OF an explosion or
Of shrieking people.
BY this time both officers aud crew
OF the Seminole were so bewildered
that they maTnified every appearance
on or about what they believed to be
n ghost ship. But one cause OF terror
was allayed. The smoking hulk's prov
was turned so that II she kept her
course she would not run them down.
Indeed. by the time she came latitudi-
nally on the same -plane with them and |