Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-01-03
Gaylord Archer's Voyage
a School Composition
Dear Juniors:

Dear Juniors:
AS have not seen many school COM
positions in the Junior page, l thought
I would write the one l wrote at school,
1t is an imaginary story and called 1T
my first sea voyage. This Is the way
it is written;
I don't know exactly how old I was
when I took my first sea voyage but
l must have been seven or eight years
old.
My father and mother lived in New
York.
My father received commission as
stenographer for an insurance COM
pany at Cape Town.
We went on board the Atlanta Aug
ust 7 and started on our journey.
One Of the sailors seemed to take q
great liking to me, so he took me to his
cabin in the forward part Of the YES
sell Here, from a window, he showed
me the waves rushing along the side OF
the big vessel. They were caused by
the vessel going through the water:
The sailor was called upon deck and
for a time sat watching the waves
and thought what fun it would be to
be in boat and ride right on the
crest Of each wave. While 1 was think
ing I thought would go and see if 1
couldn't find something to serve as a
little boat.
I went into the room adjoining and
continued hunting for something to
serve my purpose. finally found a
cask containing some ship biscuits
about the size, shape and thickness Of
a small plate. AS soon as found them
I said to myself This is just what
want" and took an arm load Of them
and threw them out Of the window. I
watched them glide along the side Of
the vessel and out on the water, where
they looked, to me. like a large navy
ready for war;
the window until had almost exhaust
ed my supply.
Meanwhile the crew were very much
amazed at the biscuits. Some of the
men thought the ship was persued by
circular fishes which they said they
had seen before. Some of the sailors
suspended their work to see the fish"
as they called them, and even Sen Yen,
the Chinese cook, stopped his work to
see them.
The first mate happened to lean over
the railing and instantly he saw me
and caught on to the whole thing. He
rushed down the companionway and
into the room and caught me in his
hands and gave me two or three slaps.
He was very angry and threatened to
give me whipping but the other men
interferred and the sailor cooled off,
and he and I always got along all
right.
My voyage was a very pleasant one.
I would sometimes go on deck and
stand and watch the sky and ocean for
hours. The curious clouds, the white
capped waves moving across the sky
and water had a strange fascination for
me. Sometimes would see a solitary
petral searching the ocean for his food
Sometimes I would see bit Of sea
weed or a broken part of a ship, which
I in my imagination, thought might
have come off of Columbus ship when
he discovered the new world.
I used to have fine time running
around in the vessel and the sailors
never cared for me going around, so I
had a fine time. One day found a
rusty sword and gun which had not
been in use for long time. told the
cook one day when I had taken him
into my confidence, that they belonged
to Robinson Crusoe and I figured up
In my mind about how many saYages
he had killed with them.
I had very good time on the vessel
and at the end Of eight days when the
vessel steamed around the Cape Of
Good Hope and into Cape Town, I was
very sorry to leave. I had been on board
the vessel long time but I never got
sea sick and I have never went on a
voyage afterwards which was so in
teresting for it appealed to me in such
a way that it seemed like a grand and
glorious picnic.
Gaylord Archer, age IS,
Troy, Iowa.