The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1914-05-22
A SAILORS
YARN
BY RMLAND BELL

castle when one of them. Jim Burns.
told the following yarn:
Mates, I've e marvels IN salt
water, but the biggest marvel | ever
see was on land. I'd been left IN a
hospital at Marseilles. and when | got
well shipped in the %brigantine North.
ern Light. bound for New Orleans.
But | wasn't fated to git to that port.
for we was driven ashore by a SOU.
easter and every soul lost except my.
self. Bein' washed overheard. ! hung
on to a chicken coop that f1oated by
me, was carried into the breakers and
throwed on q sandy beach. Between
seas l managed to crawl up beyond
'em, and somehow as soon as | saw
they couldn't git me ag'in my strength
went out o me all of a student. and |
didn't know nothin'. The last | re-
membered was a lot O corpses Of INV
mates rOllin' around in the breakers.
and they seemed to be lookin' at me
enviOus.
There was a big change from this to
what | saw when | got back to myself
Us III a Sub ~ 81 pan OIuc eyes
was a-Iookin' down into mine. She
had just poured some grog down my
throat from a bottle and was watchin'
to see if it would bring me out"
Bully" said Tom Nye. II wouldn't
give a piece o bareback for a yarn
without "a gal in it."
There bein' nothin' the matter witt,
N continued fhn c,,ooycp sSoooo.A
exhaustion, l rose on my legs and.
havin' got my bearin's. axed the gal
where | was. She said l was on the
coast o. South Carolina. not far from
Savannah. She p'inted to a house back
on the shore and said she lived there.
| could come up there if l liked and
git some rest and somepin to eat.
1T was il queer lookin' house and
seemed to have been built a long time
before, when there was Indians in the
neighborhood. cos there was loopholes
in it. 1t had been kind O. elegant
concluded to go up there with the gar
if only to git rid Of the rollin' corpses
| found what they call a poor white
family %Occupyin' the premises-the
gals mother. n or two white chill
dren and a few niggers. They give
me some grub. and by this time it was
CROWN dark. and, havin' been two
days and nights at the pumps. l told
EN- Id like to turn in. The mother
and daughter did a lot O. %whisperin'
together. and then the daughter went
of. come back with a key and told me
she'd show me to my room. AS soon
as she opened the door a shut-up smell
come out that almost made me sick.
The furniture was the old fashion
eldest ] ever see. 1t was fine stuff. |
kin tell you. but the curtains and the
canopy to the big bed was all fallen
to pieces. There was a fireplace big
enough to roast an OK in and arm
chairs that for comfort beat a ham,
mock all to pieces. But | was too
sleepy to take much notice.
well. now. mebbe them covers
wasn't musty. If | hadn't been ready
to drop off l wouldn't "a stayed under
EN- no time. AS it was. l was asleep
almost before l struck the bed.
I'm the middle Of the night | was
dreamin' OF my mates roIlin' around
in the breakers and woke up with a
start. What dye suppose l saw? A
man comm in at the door. He held a
candle to light the way. and it shined
right on to his face. and it was the
ugliest mug l c ever see in any country.
Why. a Malay pirate was a holy Joe
to it. Wo'st Of all. the Teller clutched
a knife as long as your arm.
He wasn't lookin' at the bed at
fust. His face was a-workin' as if he
vas powerful mad. But he come right
or and purity soon held up his candle
so the light shined right on to my face.
At the same moment | jumped. But
I hadn't landed on the floor before the
light went out. and it was as dark as
the black hole o Calcutta. l expected
to git that. knife in my ribs. but /
didn't. Then 1 listened to hear the
Teller move. hOpin' he'd 60 out. The
room was as still as a burryin' ground
II had no way o. strikin' a light. for
when | went to bed | hadn't thort
about wakin' up in the night. / won
dered If l hadn't been %sufferin' from
nightmare. Anyway | got back into
bed. my heart %a-thumpin' and the
sweat standin' out on me. | lay
awake till day came and | could see
all over the room. There was no signs
Of any one except me havin' been in it
durin' the night. So l turned over and
went to sleep.
II walked about noon and went
downstairs.
where's that piratical chap that
come into my room last nighty l asked.
"'Law sahes!' said the gal. palm.
Did you see himy
"'Reckon l did. Who is he?
"'He's a ghost. When this we're
country was first settled a slave dealer +
built this house and brought a young
wife here to live in II. One time when
he come home from Africa student be /
found another man here. he killed
both the man and the wOman in that
room. We've never been able to use
"a n 49, --4A - "a l--A 80 =