The Republican journal., 1916-01-27
The Sailing of the Suliote.
The Bark Left Belfast Jan. 80, 1S49, for
San Francisco. Death of One of the Sur
viving Passengers in California.
SAILING OF THE SULlOTE.
BY DR.. W. H. WINSLOW.

y
warm houses and hurried singly and il.
groups, like ants of crushed hlllock, by
devious lanes and streets, down to the
sloping shore, " here the beautiful bark
Suliote lay at the head Of Lewis wharf.
Skaters were scoring letters and
spread-eagles on the ice of the cove be-
yond Puddle Dock in front of Pete Gil
sons cottage. The piles of the bridge
across the harbor were incased in a sill
yery glitter of ice A few small vessels
floated in the centers of ice cakes, sail
less and silent. A light mist hung over
Goose Rivers classic mouth, and Penob-
scot Bay was heckled into white-caps by
a fresh nor west breeze, from Passa-
gassawaukeag to the portals of the sea
between Dyce's Head and Turtle Head.
The sere hillsides, lanes, streets and
wharf were thronged by home folks,
school children and parents, joyous or
grave, according to their interest in or
relationship to the brave and courageous
Argonauts, denizens of Belfast and vlcln-
ity. who dared to brave the perlls OF the
sea in a long voyage around Cap Horn
and 10 the Pacific Ocean to the Golden
Gate and San Francisco. They were
lured by golden dreams to that almost
unknown country, sparsely inhabited by
Indians. Mexicans, freebooters and pl-
rates, and, hoping to wash gold from the
shining sands of the rivers, gained I'M
mortality as the forty miners The
fine clipper bark Suliote lay with her
port side against the wharf, her flags
Swapping and her sails loosened and flap
ping in the breeze, and strained at the
hawsers which held her forward and
aft, as if eager to start upon her DAN
gerous mission. Her deck was covered
with men, women and children, and by
the crew of home lads, and the passen-
gers, who were saying farewell to dear
ones, relatives and acquaintance.
A group of young men with lnstru-
ments reclined upon the cabin house
top, Bangor Glee Club, and sang and
played sweet music. which called forth
applause, bandinage and cheers at
times, and caused smiles to chase away
tears and sad partings to be less dis
tressing.
l had come down from Congress street
with my uncle, Martin Wirslow, proud
to carry his carpet-bag, for which he
gave me a silver ninepence that l long
treasured, and he led me into the midst
of the musicians, who greeted me as the
youngest passenger. | would have gone
as a stoWaway if | had cared. l was
only nine years old then. But my uncle
was a passenger, although Mr.. Dins-
more in his interesting article failed to
mention him. l wish | could remember
the numerous songs the club gave at the
unique concert, but recall only part of
one:
sit rained all night the day left,
The weather it dry;
The sun was go not like to froze to death,
Susannah don't you cry.
Oh! Susannah, don't you cry for me,
For Pm going to California
With my wash-Dowl on my knee"
Too soon the visitors were hustled on
shore. My uncle kissed me goodbye and
helped me down the gangpIank among
the last, and | never saw him again. He
made and lost two fortunes, lost an arm
in firing a cannon, and died few years
ago a q. S. Pensioner and Veteran of
San Francisco
The bow haWser was cast off, the jib
drawn to WindWard, the pretty craft
swung around, the sails were sheeted
home rapidly, and the stern hawser was
pulled on board as the bellying sails fill
ed, and grave-faced Capt. Josiah Simp-
son lifted his hat repeatedly to the
storms of cheers that burst from the
vessels deck and were answered time
and again by the excited crowd that
crowded the wharves and shore; and
when the Argonaut's faces were dim
ming by distance we still heard the jolly
club singing:
"Ohi Susannah, don't you cry for me,
For In going to California
With my wash bowl on my knee"
The wind, or emotion; caused tears to
chase away laughter, and only the friv-
olous made merriment that seemed i'll
timed to persons who had parted from
loved ones, some, alas! forever. | re-
NAMED upon the wharf and watched that
beautiful sea nymph sail out of the har-
bor. past the monument and behind Tur-
tie Head and thought how delightful it
is to 90 TO sea. The tragedy OF it was
to come with our first news from the
distant voyagers.
Death of one of CALIFORNIA; Pioneers,
He Lived in California Sixty-Sev Years
and Took a Prominent Part in Early
Events
To THE EDITOR OF The JOURNAL: In
closed you will find clipping from the
Siskiyou News, published in Yreka, Cal
iforuia, that may be of interest to some
of your readers. The writer we'll re-
members the day when the Suliote sailed
for this, then far aw ~ land. AS boy |
watched from hill in old Prospect as
she sailed down the bay. 1t was very
H.