The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1912-03-26

a OHHEA
SIDE OF THE CANVAS.
the other lady passengers and told her
that she was taking her daughter
abroad to break up a love affair be-
tween her and young man at home.
The cOnfidant told some one else, and
1t finally got around to me.
ut didn't appear that the girl was
much panied at the separation from
her lover. AT any rate, she didn't look
50, but seemed very well satisfied with
the attentions of young fellow whose
acquaintance she made on the voyage
They played SWITCHBOARD and the 9TH
er deck games together and before
we were half across had got very
chummy. / confess, Notwithstanding
the girl had left a lover behind. she
would make match or at least start
one during the trip. I've seen so many
matches made on the ocean that when
/ see man and woman fitting about
together on a ship, no matter what
their antecedents. expect love af-
fair.
well. as I was saying, these two
were together all the way over most
Of the time. the girls mother sitting
on deck where she could usually keep
them In sight One day she left them
alone together there. | was on the
bridge and saw her go down the com
panionway. Some ten minutes later
saw her daughter part with the
young man who was attentive to her
and go below also
'That was the last seen of the girl Oh
that ship.
"a bird flying from the top Of the
mast could not more completely vanish
than the girl am telling you about
Half an aour later the mother came
up and looked about for her chick. She
went from stem to stern on the upper
deck, then down to the next one. Later
saw her talking excitedly to the
man the girl had been with. and he
seemed as excited as she. They called
up to me and asked me If | had seen
anything OF the young lady. to which
/ replied that had seen her leave the
young man and go below. The fel.
low seemed relieved at my statement
telling me that the young lady could
not be found and it was feared some
thing might have happened to her. He
was glad that | had seen the parting
between them and could bear witness
to the fact. The mother left him ana
hurried below
When / came Off watch found the
ship III a state of excitement. Every
one had a theory as to what had be-
come of the girl. The sea was rough
and the prevailing opinion was that
during a lurch she had been thrown
overheard Every part Of the ship was
searched. What mean by that is not
that all the statereoms were looked
into. There was no need to do that.
for they were all occupied, and no one
In them could have any motive for con
cealing the girl To satisfy the moth
er the captain took her all over the
ship, permitting her to look wherever
she pleased.
IF 1t hadn't been for my testimony
that had seen her part with the young
man she was with when her mother
left her he would have been held to be
turned over to the authorities on land
ing. He not only proved the parting by
me, but that when the girl left him he
had gone to the smoking room and was
talking with a man there for some
time. Then he went down into the sa-
loon for luncheon, where he was served
by the waiter who usually attended
him. Indeed he was able to prove that
he had not been in the girls company
after l had seen her leave him.
Within twenty-four hours after her
every one aboard except
her mother had arrived at the opinion
that she had fallen overheard. Wheth-
er 1t was because a mother is more
hopeful than others concerning her
offspring, the lady did not share In this
theory. True, she was very much wor-
ried, but either she could not or would
not believe that her daughter had been
lost. But when asked for another ex-
PLANTATION of the vanishment she could
give none.
'"There was no end of persons who
had heard splashes. A number remem-
bered wave of unusual dimensions
striking the ship about the time the
girl went below. Several persons
claimed to have heard shrieks, and one
woman's portfolio was darkened for a
fraction Of second, as though a body
was falling before it. So far as I was
concerned. placed no faith In any of
these bits of testimony The girl had
simply made one of those mysterious
disappearance that when they occur
on the land concentrate the attention of
the community In which they occur
and are seldom explained unless the
body of the missing person is found.
When such cases occur at sea they are
attributed either to the person falling
overheard, walking overheard while
asleep or suicide by drowning, the mat
tee acquiring Fhsn no ono D near to