Red Lodge daily news combined with Carbon County news., 1934-01-31

poem made the legend of "The Captains Well,
iahillar TO all Americans, 1t Is a legend that had
d very substantial basis of fact.
20 TO Amesbury, Mass. and see for vourself
Inc Captains Well" there as 1t has been ra-
stored by former State Senator and Mrs. James
H.. walker of Amesbury and presented to the
IoWn improvement society. You can drink from
its pure waters, and as you do so you will be-
reminded not only Of the hero of Whittier's hal
lad but OF all the adventurous New England son.
men who once carried the American flag to all
corners OF the globe. For the restored "Cap-
talns Weir Is a memorial to them.
The hero of the ballad was Valentine Baglev
a hatlve or Amesbury, who, at the age of eight
cen, went down to the sea In ships late In the
eighteenth century and the story of his adven-
lures can be found In an old book, published In
Salem In 1794-"The Journal of the Travels and
Sufterings OF Daniel Saunders, a Mariner on
Board the Ship Commerce of Boston, SAM John
son, Commander, Which was Cast Awav Near
cape Morebet, on the Coast of Arabia, july 10.
1902" -
Bagley was a carpenters mate on the Com
merce when that ship sailed from the Isle Of
france on January 27, 1902, bound for Madras.
lhere she exchanged her Boston master. John
Leach, for a Rhode Islander, Samuel Johnson
ana on April % set sail for Bombay. However.
the new captain, being unacquainted with the
coast, steered too far to the west and the shin
off Cape Morebet July 10.
the crew, "thirty-four souls In number. twenty
whites, thirteen Lascar sailors and one African
Diack, took to the boats and for three DAYS made
tneir way along the shore. Then they were driven
ashore by a storm which drowned three of them
starting up the coast, the II white men for
lureo with thirst, hunted everywhere for wafer
separated, they wandered about in
small parties and one by one they laid their
companions under bushes and left them
there to die.
On and on they plodded across the burning
sands and Bagley, thinking no doubt of the damn
'og-swept town of his nativity, forced his parcbed
.hroat TO utter the promise to his God that If
ne got back to that town he would die q
we'll where all who passed might drink.
AL last the castaways fell In with a party of
AraD traders, travelling on camels toward Muscat
Who took them along. On August IL. sr of
ne seventeen arrived at Muscat where most
I them took ship for home. But Valentine RAG
ey evidently was In no such hurry. Stlll seeking
he shipped on an Arabian vessel and
onowed the sea for three more years before
DING back to Massachusetts.
Two years later Bagley kept his VOW bv die.
ing the well and for years from Its cool depths
uboled the precious water which he had craved
, mucn on the hot sands Of Arabia. But after
~ death the well fell into d~isrepair and its
aters were drained away by excavations for n
eep pipe line In 1912. But the restoration four
ago OF the well and the erection OF tba
emorial designed by Leonard Craske, an Eng.
81 sculptor living In Boston, has guaranteed
of the story of Valentine Baglev
real character In a ballad OF a famous Amor
an poet.
by Western Newspaper Unlon.