The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1914-01-08
REV. J. SUMNER STONE WRITES
TO lNTEILIGENcER OF
HIS TRAVELS.
Narrow Escapes at Sea-Pro.
eress OF West South America
The Call II Sends
to America.
THEY THAT GO DOWN TO THE
SEA IN SHIPS.
By ]. Sumner Stone

hNNHfG 0NOnCs
G write. your song OF the sea as the
The men who trust her the least are the
sailors who know her the best
She a Sleeping Beauty, the -
you can tell what she will do"
! love the sea. or Titanic and Vol.
turno horrors | know nothing. Nep-
tune has been gentle with me even IN
ship wreck and disaster. Nv first
experience OF the treachery of the sea
was after a night OF singular calm
and beauty. Rocked in the cradle of
the deep the waves singing as a
lullaby. Peace, perfect peace, the fut-
ure all unknown. Jesus we know and
He is on the throne" | fell asleep TO
be rudely awakened by our ship
wrecking her self on a reef Of one OF
the Sandwich Islands. The shock
was so violent when we struck, that
a collar box was dislodged from a
rack over my head TO fall on my face
as ! quietly slumbered. Rubbing my
eyes. ! saw thrO the portfolio a tire.
mendous rock, so near IL seemed that
] could toss a biscuit onto IL. Taking
for granted that we were docking al
Honolulu. where We were scheduled
10 be that morning. tho IL was the wee
sma hours OF four a. m. ! leasurely
climbed out OF my bunk. shaved and
dressed to go ashore. As ] passed
through the saloon I encountered tho
Chief Steward n made a reque
Tor better accommodations for the re-
mainder OF the voyage 10 Japan. lie
referred me TO the Purser with a queer
smile. Proceeding TO the deck. I dis
covered that like poor old Robinson
Cruso. ! was a ship wrecked mariner.
stranded on a coral reef or the coast
OF Oahu. The crag towering over our
decks was the one yer which an old
king OF these islands had driven an
army OF rebels TO death. In black
darkness u ship had CROPPED its way
Uhro n needles-eye passage in the
outer reef. where the water was deep
and the full force Of the ocean broke.
IN utter Ignorance Of peril. miles out
OF our course. we had threaded a chan
mel with death to the right OF us.
death 10 the left Of us. and a gale
laundering and vOlleying behind US.
We had entered the Jaws Of death.
passed thrO imminent peril In the
darkness and gently wrecked our ship
In quiet waters. where on q coral bed
che lay in perfect safety. in a land
locked harhur. for two months. cost
ing the company n million dollars and
The passengers not the loss Of n shoe
string Not very tragic. You say. 10
might have been tragic enough. The
sea was not our only foe that night
OF peril. found officers standing
With drawn revolvcrs watching n half
thousand Chinese coolies herdcd in
the forward deck Had a. panic come.
and We we're ON tho verge OF one. the
white passengers. w were told. could
only have been saved by shooting me
coolies Nq soon as We struck. The
native hromcu and the coolies had
taken possession ~ tho boats. from
which they we're only elected By
threatened gun play
Tho D. sra ram high out side. We
wore alI landed iu safety af the foot
of tho cigsntic cIin about eighteen
miles from Honolulu
Ny second experience occurred acmo
n.chf years later m the coast o.
South America near tho latitude ~
Robinson rrueo's island and that
other i.Iot made famous hy Charles
Reeds rrn1f novel 'Foul Play The
rIeht before wc had sailed out ~
'1iIao. Tho part OF Lima. tho capital
of Peru Tho Sunset that evening
H1a radiant. hathine rocky islands
distant Nudc.. cuc0mprrs.ur Pacific
I'm Nrocalvrflc srlardor Lima. Peru.
I.zarro. h%fahualua tho Inca. with 400