Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1912-05-30

or the HumayCon was also
4, coal and. when the vessel
reached Cape Horn. the Bates hoo
doo-as sailors always called lt-got
IN It's work again and the ship went NJ
IN flames. Mrs Bates and the others
on the ship were compelled to take to
the small boats.
The Liverpool ship Symmetry. bound
20 Acapulco, rescued them. II was
learned that the Symmetry was laden
with coal. as the other two shins had
been. and Mrs Bates and the sailors
gathered on deck and offered I'd pray
er that the Bates hoodoo" would pass
them by this time.
During the first three hours that
Mrs. Bates was aboard nothing han
pened But the crew Of the Symmetry
were so positive liz their superstition
n a fire would surely break out II
she remained on the vessel that Mrs.
Bates and her husband were persuad-
ed TO transfer themselves 10 the Fan
chon. that passed the Symmetry on
It's course TO san Francisco. The Fan
cnon' Mrs. Bates learned to her hor.
ror. was also laden with coal.
On Christmas night. several LAYS
later. when the Fanchon was twelve
hundred miles from land. the usual
hoodoo-hre came about as sure as fate
ltalf OF the crew was quickly ordered
to go below and fight the flames and
Mrs. Bates. DOMINIC sailors clothes.
gave the men her assistance. remain
ing below on watch for two days aft
er the fire had been extinguished. Five
days later the Fanchon struck the
rocks Of the Galapagos islands and
Mrs. Bates vas one OF those who was
hurled overheard By the shock Of col
lision. Three hours after she reached
the shore-her life having been saved
by the merest chance-the flames
burst out on the Fanchon once more
n one hour later the vessel was a
black ruin
After living for weeks as Crusoes on
the island. the shipwrecked colony was
rescued by a passing bark. Mrs. Bates
was then transferred to the steamship
Republic, carrying four hundred pas.
sengers. Five days out. the old hoo
doc again asserted itself. Another
fierce fight with fire was in order, but
this time with little damage.
In short, fire followed Mrs. Bates
as a shadow. not only for years on sea,
but on land as we'll Shortly after her
arrival in San Francisco that city suf-
Tered one its greatest CONGREGATIONS.
Six months later the hotel in which
Mrs. Bates was stopping in MarysyilIe
was destroyed By fire and Mrs. Bates
narrowly escaped death. The records
even show that in 1890, in Plymouth.
Mass, the house in which she was liy-
ing burned and Mrs. Bates was nearly
killed.
Mrs. Bates. "the fire woman OF the
sea- is regarded by American sailors
as the most extraordinary escaper
from death that they have ever en-.
eountered.
Four Strange Tales Of the Sea.
The sailors and records reveal hun.
dreds Of similar unknown sea tales Of
fact that vie with the fiction book.
} shelves.
For instance. there is the story OF a
pitched battle hat occurred in 1s5s
aboard one of the convict sailing ships
bound for England to Australia. a bat.
tie that lasted two whole days.
There is the story OF the captain
Of the bark L. a. Van Romondt. bound
for Cuba from Nova Scotia. The can.
tain had Just married a young girl in
Nova Scotia Inc thought the voyage
to China would be his honeymoon trip
Before that honeymoon trip was ended
tveuty-six days later. wrecks and
transfers had placed the bride success
sively on vessels carrying the Dutch
Cuban. Norwegian. American, Mexican
and Italian flags.
Then there is the story of the strand
ing OF the U. s $. Wateree. Captaiu
l. G. Billings. Z. s ", on August 3
1858. by a Gillian earthquake: OF the
! frightful battle with the huge gun.
that broke loose in the storm ure
ceding the stranding and crashed bach
and forth across the Decks: of tbs
subsequent fight on the art Of the
officers to bring the parieky crew e
discipline; and of the finsl carrying oil
the ship by the earthquake two miles
inland and the depositing If the vesse
At the base Of a coast range of ths
Andes.
As the sailors say. "AI truth may
not be stranger than fiction, but vol
can bet your marlin spike sea truth
isl"
What would you say2