The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1917-01-01
The Demon
OF the Strait
An Experience In Round
ing the Horn
By F. A. mitchell


Gle Of water that extends around the
globe south Of the equator. each of
which has from time immemorial been
a terror to mariners. The Cape of
Good Hope divides the Atlantic and
Pacific oceans at one point and Cape
Horn divides them at another. 1t Is a
question which of these capes Is the
more difficult to round by sailors. Good
Hope was In early times called the
cape of storms. The Portuguese. who
were then great seamen, tried for six
ty-nine years to round 1t without sue
cess. 1t was first rounded by Vasco
da Cana in 1897.
NV own experience is with Cape
Horn, and l can only say that If Good
Hope is any worse l am quite willing
to let 1t alone. There is an additional
danger to mariners rounding the Horn
In this: The passage is usually made
through the strait of Magellan, tue
shores of which are inhabited by the
TERRA del Fuegans, who are the low
est race of men on the face Of the
earth. So barbarous are they that they
do not worship any divinity. OF course
they know nothing Of morals, and muir
der for booty is with them matter Of
no moment whatever.
In 1S9- / sailed from Montevideo
with a cargo OF miscellaneous articles
for Valparaiso. The ship, the Wasp,
was little hundred ton schooner, and
my crew consisted Of but one man be-
sides myself. | aimed to pass through
the strait In the month of October.
which in the southern corresponds to
April In the northern hemisphere. II
there was any of the ethereal mildness
of spring in that region hoped to
get 1t.
We entered the narrow waters after
rounding Cape vergin. We had no
sooner turned the Wasp from south to
west than we were received by the
demon Of the strait, storm of sleet
and snow, that drove us back into the
Atlantic, and we were n week getting
again to the point from which we had
been driven.
AS we entered the strait a second
time we began to experience the many
expedients the demon uses to keep mar
liners from trespassing on his domain.
The first were two tide races, which
met, but did not mingle. Instead they
fought each other, and the Wasp was
caught between them. We had taken
In one reef and in trying to lower a
staysail my crew was washed over.
board. 1t would have been useless to
try to go about and pick him up In
such boiling waters. l threw line
to him, but he failed to grasp 1t.
suppose 1t was the ugliness Of con
tention that led me to keep on without
turning back, though l would be nc
better of for the time being by return
Ing than going forward. was tempt
ed to the former course, but as soor
as l got past the tide races I struck
calm water, and, with a favorable
breeze and boiling sea behind me, Il
looked easier to go forward than back
ward. The demon was Turing me on.
l had sailed no great distance wher
the wind began to blow a gale-il
seemed to me from all directions al
once. found anchorage at the foo,
or a mountain, where there was q
dead calm. But l had not got hall
rested when down came gust Of wind
called in that region williwan.
/ have pfvan fhoco On u,y,ooo 80 --ln.
l experienced all along my voyage
through the strait to show what en-
,countered from winds and waters. Ms
chief danger In making the passage
was the savages. They inhabited
both the north and south shores, and
was obliged to look out for them Oh
all occasions. had brought severa
rifles along, and, having met a man In
Montevideo who had had experienc,
In the strait, he advised me to provide
myself with stock Of lacks to scat
ter on deck at night, In case l and my
crew should both be asleep at the sam,
time, to warn me II we were boarde,
by sayages. After losing my only maj
overheard these defensive weapon,
seemed to me to be doubly valuable.
The first sight had OF the Fuegan
was one morning when l was sailin,
IN smooth water In a narrow passag
between the northern mainland and al
island. saw a canoe padded by saw
ages heading to cut me OF. In dr.
weather kept rife on deck and now
laying my hand on It, brought 1t to m
shoulder and fired shot across tn
bows of the canoe. The Fuegans stoI
ped padding and approached no neal
er the line on which l was sailing.
hoped to be able to get through tn
strait without killing any one. for th
spirit Of cupidity was enough for m
to contend with without exciting r,
yenge. was much relieved, therefor
when / saw that had scared Off en-,
mics who, In order to appropriate wins
/ possessed. would not have hesitate
to murder me If they could.
One evening when laid up In cali
water was taken Ill. took the DIT
caution before getting into my hun