Putnam patriot. [volume] (Putnam, Conn.) 1872-1962, 1912-12-20

only the captains boat reached The
shore. The mates was caught nv a
huge breaker, dashed against the reef
ana sunk. Captain Nat. his second
mate and five Of his men were all that
was left Of the Sea Mists eompany
And on that island they remained for
nearly two weeks. Provisions they
had brought ashore with them. Wa
Ter they found by digging. Nat hid
me gold at night, burying it on the
beach below high-water mark.
Then, having made sure of his To-
cation by consulting the chart, he de-
termined to attempt a voyage 10 the
second island, where he knew the
English colony to be. Provisions were
getting short, and to remain longer
where they We're was to risk starva-
ton and all its horrors. So in the
longboat which wasAprovided with A
sail, they started. Charts and papers
and the gold the skipper took with
them. None Of the crew knew of the
existence OF the money; it was a Sc
eret which the captain kept to him.
self.
A hundred miles they sailed in the
longboat and, at last, the second isl
and was sighted. They landed and
found, to their CONSERVATION and sur
prise, that it, too, was uninhabited.
The former residents had grown tired
OF their isolation and. trading YES
sci having touched there. had seized
the opportunity to depart for Tahiti.
Their houses were empty, their cat
tie, sheep, goats, and fowl roamed
Wild in the woods, and the fruit was
rotting on the trees. In its way the
little island was an Eyeless Eden.
flowing with milk and honey; but to
Captain Nat, a conscientious skipper
with responsibilities to his owners. #
was prison from which he deter.
mined to escape. Then, as If to make
escape impossible, q sudden gale came
up and the longboat was smashed by
the surf
Il guess that settles it," ruefully
observed the second mate, another
Cape Colder, from Hyannis. "CaI1ate
We'll stay here Tor a spell now, hey,
Cap'n."
For a spell, yes" replied Nat.
We'll stay here until We get another
craft to set sail in, and no longer"
Another craft? Another one?
Where in time you goin' to get herr"
Build her" said Captain Nat cheer
fully. Then, pointing to the row of
empty houses and the little deserted
church, he added, There's timber and
nails-yes, and cloth, such as tbs. If
I can't build a boat out of them I'll
agree to eat the whole settlement"
He did not have to eat 1t. for the
boat was built. 1t took them six
months to build her, and she was a
curious-looking vessel when done, but.
as the skipper said, "She may not be
A clipper. but she'll sail anywhere, If
Won give her time enough" He had
been the guiding spirit of the whole
enterprise, planning 1t. laying the keel.
burning buildings to obtain nails and
iron, hewing trees for the largest
beams, showing them how to spin
ropes from eocoanut fiber, improvising
sails from the longboat's canvas
pieced out with blankets and odd bits
of cloth from the abandoned houses.
Even a strip of carpet from the church
floor went into the making of those
sails.
At last she was done. but Nat was
not satisfied.
II never commanded a ship where
I couldn't hist Yankee colors, ne
said. "and, by the eYerlastin'i won't
now. We've got to have flag"
So. from an old pair of blue over
all. white cotton shirt, and the red
bangings on the church pulpit. he made
a flag and hoisted it to the truck oil
his queer command. They proVisioned
her, gave her a liberal supply OF
fresh water, and. one morning, she
passed through the opening Of the Ia
COON out TO the deep blue OF the "a
cific. And, hidden in her captain
sfateroom under the head of his bunk,
was the ten thousand dollars gold
For Nat had sworn to himself, by the
everlasting and other oaths, to oe-
liver that money 10 his New forA
owners safe and, necessary expenses
deducted of course, untouched.
For seven weeks the crazy monde
script stopped across the ocean. Falf
winds helped her and, at last, she
entered the harbor of Nukahiva, over
tvalye telndred miles away. And there
-4Hammond's luck" the sailors can
cd twas United States manor
war lying at anchor, the hrst AneIi-
can vessel to touch at that llltie
Freneh settlement fer i've years Inc
boat they built was abandonee anu
the survivors of the Sea Mist were
taIen on board the man-of-war ana
carried to Tahiti.
From Tahiti Captain Nat took pas
20 ON a French bark Tor Honolulu
Here after a months wait, ne louhu
a 49, TO leave for New fork
~ an American ship. the stars ana
S sfripes. And finally. after being away
s 4, home for two years, he walked
,nto the Office of his New York own
ers, deposited their gold on = tapie'
$, :, cbeerfully observed, We'll. mere
| am" .ha yarn
Immediately. All that it heard ana All
that hat it knew was contained in Cap,
t toln WIN be home THURSDAY d :. That tSat
y ~ss all. but it was enough. for IN th so
dispatch SsT tel was explosive sufficient , =. 70
o eip. - atoms the doctors plans ana
K Rioh the great scheme which which was was
h :, ling happiness to John Eliery and
Dr., parker heard IT, .n while nsr Dn nls