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E.





THE STORY OF
A STRANGE CAREER


THE STORY OF
A STRANGE CAREER
BEING
THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A CONVICT
AN AUTHENTIC DOCUMENT
EDITED BY
STANLEY WATERLOO
POINTED
RUSTUS
: ;'.:,
:,, bini
,
NEW YORK
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY
1902


1.08
KD 5671
HARVARD
UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
MAR 5 1941
COPYRIGHT, 1902
By D. APPLETON AND COMPANY
:: Dußlişłęd August, 1902


INTRODUCTION
The story that follows this introduction is
literally true. There died lately, in a Western
State prison, a man of the class known as ha-
bitual criminals. He was, at the time of his
death, serving out a sentence for burglary. For
thirty years he had been under the weight of
prison discipline, save for short periods of free-
dom between the end of one term and the be-
ginning of another.
Because of this man's exceptional qualities,
as contrasted with those of the multitude of
criminals, he was induced, semi-officially, in a
friendly way, to write the story of his life. He
accepted the proposition made to him, though,
consistent with his quality, not quite fulfilling
his pledge, omitting, as he did, certain hard
details of the later part of his criminal career.
This was but natural, and, perhaps, it is the


Introduction
simple but startling revelation which is here
given.
It was not hopelessness, nor recklessness,
nor penitence, which made this man write down
unflinchingly what he remembered of the story
of his life. A cheerful reminiscent vein runs
throughout all he tells. His sense of humour
is ever present. Nowhere appears a hint of
the tragedy of his experience. Of that he was
not conscious. He was as free from remorse
and self-upbraiding as a wild animal or a tree.
The story, one would imagine, should appeal
to those who think. From the beginning can be
seen, in the character of the runaway sailor and
one-time officer of the navy, traits which indi.
cate his absolute failure, eventually, as a man.
He drifts. He is irresponsible. He escapes
from one dilemma only to get into another.
He is thriftless, and takes no thought for the
morrow. He has no regard for the truth, nor
any for the rights of property. He lies and
steals simply because lying and stealing are the
obvious things for him to do. He does not
think of doing anything else. The manner in
vii


'The Story of a Strange Career
which the story is told is characteristic, and
should open the eyes of sentimentalists as to
the real attitude of habitual criminals. Never,
from first to last, is there an expression of gen-
uine shame or the least contrition. There are,
it is true, occasional sentences in which the man
calls himself a fool, and betrays a glimmering
of appreciation of the general want of sense
and wisdom in his course, but there is no ring
of sincere repentance nor of sorrow over a
wasted life. This extraordinary character is
simply of the opinion that he has not been
clever enough. He never suspects that he has
not been good enough to live a normal life
among normal people. The truth is, he had
no clear ideas of right and wrong.
Released from prison, and glad to be free,
he always declared that now he was deter-
mined to “keep out of trouble.” With him
“ trouble” meant “prison,” and nothing else.
Inevitably, surely, certainly, he was drawn into
ways of crime. As water seeks its level, so he
gravitated towards“ trouble.” To plan and ex-
ecute an enterprise of robbery was the form
viii


Introduction
of activity most natural to him. He was hin.
dered by no scruples, schooled by no experience,
tormented by no necessity. When arrested,
and not before, he considered that he was “in
trouble.” He fretted over his punishment, but
not over his offence.
And yet this was a human being, one not
without good traits. He was not, physically,
a coward; on the contrary, he was simply and
naturally fearless. He was kind of heart, gen.
tle to children, and tender to animals. Under
discipline, he was patient and obedient, a model
prisoner, the wardens say. What he could not
do was to stand alone and be a man in the
world.
Looking outward, this man was a shrewd
and appreciative observer. His descriptions of
natural scenes are vivid. There are few better
stories of the life of a prisoner of war than his,
and his characterizations of men and events are
singularly apt. His eyes looked on the seamy
side of life, and saw with clearness when fixed
on any one or anything but himself. The con-
ditions under which common sailors live have
. ix


The Story of a Strange Career
0
lore
rarely been more vividly described. One can
only wonder, while reading his plain story,
told without heat or passion, how any man
could follow such a life as he describes.
The work is without precedent in character.
It is fascinating as a life story and as a study
of human nature. It is a contribution to un.
conscious literature.
STANLEY WATERLOO.


CONTENTS
PAGE
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1
16
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46
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. 126
. 142
·
CHAPTER
I.—MY FIRST VOYAGE . . . . . .
II.-WHALING IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC . . .
III.-A SAILOR ASHORE . . . .
IV.--I TAKE TO THE SEA AGAIN . . . .
V.-ON THE BRIG GRENFALLS . .
VI.—THE “FLYING DUTCHMAN” . .
VII.-IN HER MAJESTY'S SERVICE
VIII.—THE CAT-o'-NINE-TAILS . . .
IX.—THE ESCAPE . . . . .
X.—THE SPORT OF THE WAVES . .
XI.-A GLIMPSE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN
. .
XII.-IN AMERICAN WATERS . . . .
XIII.—MY THIRD VOYAGE . . . . . .
XIV.-PRETTY JENNIE BELL .
XV.-GOOD-BYE TO ENGLAND . . . . .
XVI.-WHAT MONEY CAN DO . . . . .
XVII.—The New YORK DRAFT RIOTS . . . .
XVIII.-ACTING ENSIGN IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY
XIX.-AFTER BLOCKADE-RUNNERS .
. .
XX.-A PRISONER OF WAR . . . . . .
XXI.-IN THE PRISON . . . . . .
XXII.—PRISON LIFE AND PRISON FARE . . .
XXIII.-DISAPPOINTMENT AND MORE WAITING . .
· ·
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. 153
. 164
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. 198
. 207
. 215
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2226
239
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. 252
. 264
. 274
. 288
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The Story of a Strange Career
CHAPTER
PAGE
•
XXIV.-A CRACKER BEAUTY . . .
XXV.-LIBBY PRISON . . . .
XXVI.-A FREE MAN AGAIN . . .
XXVII.—FORT FISHER . . . . .
XXVIII.—THE ISLAND OF Haiti . . .
XXIX.-I LEAVE THE SEA AND GO WEST .
....
.
.
.
.
.
.
. 297
. 311
. 323
. 336
. 348
. 357
xii


THE STORY
OF A STRANGE CAREER
CHAPTER I
MY FIRST VOYAGE
On my mother's side I am of an old New
York family. My great-grandfather served as
colonel in the war of 1812. My father was
born in Dublin, being a younger son of an Irish
gentleman. He was educated to be a druggist,
his father paying a large bonus to have him
apprenticed to a celebrated firm in that busi-
ness. His elder brother was ordained as a
clergyman in the Church of England, and is
now a high dignitary in the Church, if living.
At the age of twenty, my father came to New
York and started in business. My mother,
then about fourteen or fifteen years old, became
acquainted with him, and they were shortly
afterward married, the match being a runaway


The Story of a Strange Career
one. I was born when mother was but sixteen
years old. My parents lived comfortably; they
sent me to boarding-schools at North Cornwall,
Conn., Ballston Spa, N. Y., and the Military
School at Danbury, Conn., and finally to one
of the New York colleges. At that time I was
very desirous to be a sailor, and have been sorry
for it ever since. My parents objected, but
afterwards consented. My father had many cus-
tomers among the ship-owners and sea captains.
At that time New York ship-owners had sev-
eral vessels in the China trade, and sought to
get well-taught American boys to educate them
in seamanship and navigation, the idea being
to make them officers of their ships as soon as
they became competent. Seven boys were
selected, I being one of them.
Father furnished me with a complete outfit
for sea, and a set of navigation instruments and
books. One thing I thought lacking — that
was a pipe and tobacco. The sea-chest was
sent to father's store. My younger brother,
Charlie, was anxious to know what sailors wore
at sea, so he examined the contents of the chest,


My First Voyage
and found a paper of cheap tobacco and a two-
cent pipe.
Charles—“Oh, father, George smokes !”
Father—“Why, George, do you use to-
bacco ?”
George—“No, father, I never have done so
yet; but I always hear that sailors smoke at
sea.”
Father—“Well, George, throw that stuff
away and come with me."
He then took me to a cigar- store, and
bought me twelve half-pound papers of fine
Turkish tobacco, some pipes, and a box con-
taining one hundred fine cigars. What was
the result? I never used a pipeful of that to-
bacco, nor a cigar, and not until years after-
ward, when I was forty-eight years old and in
Joliet Prison, did I acquire the tobacco habit,
first by chewing it and then by smoking pipes
made out of tool handles on holidays—our
only opportunity in that “hell-hole.”
My father's friends had a full-rigged ship
ready for sea at that time; there were the cap-
tain, first, second, and third mates, and a crew


The Story of a Strange Career
den
of about sixteen men of all nationalities. We
seven boys were shipped on board as appren.
tices, at the rate of four dollars a month. The
voyage was to be to Batavia, Island of Java,
for a part cargo of coffee ; from there to Shang.
hai, China, for the balance of the cargo, the
new crop of tea, which would be ready for us
by the time of our arrival.
The ship—we'll call her the Prospero—was
to go out in ballast, as they had no cargo to
send out. Three passengers were to go with
usa man, his sister, and her child. The sister
was the wife of a pilot and opium smuggler in
the Chinese waters. Ten kegs, containing five
thousand Mexican dollars each, were also sent
on board to be delivered to the branch firm in
China. The fifty thousand dollars were placed
in the male passengers' state-room, under his
bertb.
The ship was moved out from the dock,
and anchored in the East River. Next morn.
ing, early, a large tugboat came alongside the
ship. On board the tugboat was a large party,
invited by the firm to have a pleasure trip


My First Voyage
while towing the ship out to sea. My father
and mother were with the party, many of their
friends, the captain's wife, and our passengers'
friends among the number. It was a merry
party. We weighed anchor. They gave us
three cheers, and, wishing us a happy voyage,
turned back for New York. We had com-
menced our voyage to the Indian Ocean.
No one had any idea how abruptly that
voyage was to end, nor of the misery that
was to follow. In less than two months this
despatch was sent all over the country:
“CHARLESTON, S. C., August, 1856.
“The ship Prospero has arrived here, its
captain having been murdered at sea. The
first mate and two boys are under arrest by the
United States officers, accused of having com.
mitted the murder." *
Now comes the story of the mysterious
murder. It has never been solved to this day,
* Our passengers took passage from Charleston in another ship
for China. They never reached their destination. The vessel
caught fire at sea and all aboard perished. Not a soul was ever
heard from


The Story of a Strange Career
although many years have passed since it oc-
curred.
The ship had been headed to the south-east,
so as to get into the trade-winds near the coast
of Africa. When near the Cape Verde Is-
lands the captain was found dead in his bed,
having been killed by being struck in the head
with a ship’s axe, having his throat cut, and
being stabbed in the heart several times with a
double-edged knife. The cabin steward went
into the captain's state-room at eight o'clock to
wake him for breakfast, and at once notified
the first mate of the murder. The mate first
went to the state-room, and then came on deck
and ordered all the crew into the state-room.
This is what we saw: the captain dead in bed,
the only clothing on him being an undershirt,
while the blood had stained all the bedding,
had spurted up on the partitions around the
berth for three or four feet, and also on the
floor. Beside the body lay a small axe and a
white handkerchief stained with blood, marked
in one corner with the letter “L” embroidered
in red silk, which letter had been partly picked


My First Voyage
out with a pen or knife, but was still discern-
ible. The mate then informed us that he was
acting captain of the ship. In our presence he
wound up the two chronometers, which are
always kept in the captain's room, for on them
are dependent the daily calculations of the cor-
rect longitude.
We were finally ordered upon deck. The
crew conversed together, and agreed among
themselves that the ship should return to New
York. The mate insisted upon continuing the
voyage, and also asked the crew if they would
allow him to place any one under arrest whom
he believed to be the murderer. They assent-
ed, and he ordered Henry Leroy to be put in
irons.
The boy Leroy's hands were put behind
his back, and he was handcuffed, then rusty
iron chains were fastened to them and around
his ankles. He was placed in the second mate's
cabin on deck and the door was locked.
He was kept there until we reached
Charleston. The weather was extremely warm.
When taken out, he was completely covered


The Story of a Strange Career
with iron rust, which had stuck to his body
with the perspiration, and he was not allowed
to wash himself.
Shortly after Leroy was put in irons, he
called for the second mate, and had a long
conversation with him. The result was that
I was handcuffed, hands behind my back, was
taken on the quarter-deck, made to sit down
with my back to a stanchion, and lashed to
it by the passing of a rope several times
around my body and once around my neck.
I remained in that position for forty-eight
hours, and was then put into the first mate's
cabin with my hands fastened behind my
back.
The mate still insisted on continuing the
voyage, the crew upon returning. Then he
proposed going back to Fayal, Western Islands,
and leaving Leroy and me there, to be sent to
New York by the American Consul, for trial.
The crew would not agree to that. Nothing
would satisfy them but to return home. So
the ship was put about and headed for New
York. We never got there, but fetched up at


My First Voyage
Bulls Bay, about forty miles north of Charles-
ton, S. C.
The ship was anchored close to shore and
the sails furled. Shortly afterward a steamer
was sighted coming down the coast. Signals
of distress were hoisted, and the steamer head-
ed for us. The mate had one of our boats
lowered, and, with a boat's crew of four men,
went aboard the steamer. He wished to go to
Charleston himself for a tugboat, also to tele-
graph to New York, but the men with him
would not let him go, so he sent an order to
Charleston for a tug, and a letter to the cap-
tain of the revenue cutter, explaining the
situation.
The knife was never found; no blood stains
could be found on any clothing or person
aboard the ship. The axe had always hung in
brackets over the captain's bed, that being the
only trace that was left. The man who did
the deed must have been covered with blood.
No noise had been heard, although a number of
persons were sleeping close by, and one half of
the crew were awake and on duty continually.


The Story of a Strange Career
The corpse was placed in a water-cask, which
was filled with brine and salt from the beef
barrels. After the inquest, it was shipped to
New York for burial. Next will be related
the evidence against Leroy and myself.
Henry Leroy was born in Poughkeepsie,
N. Y., his parents being quite wealthy. The
elder brother was lieutenant commander in the
U. S. Navy during the War of the Rebellion.
Henry was the “black sheep” of the family,
and was sent to sea in order to tame him down.
The captain was instructed to be severe with
him. He was very flighty, had a wild look in
his eyes, and was very quarrelsome. In less
than three weeks he had had four fights with
the boys, the last one with me. There being no
cargo on board, the boys had quarters fixed up
for them between decks. Henry was in one
watch and I in the other.
One night, at twelve o'clock, Henry came
below and I was to go on watch. It was then
we had the fight. There being only a thin
partition between our place and the cabin,
the noise woke the captain. The next morn-
10


My First Voyage
ing the captain tied Henry to a dry-goods box
and gave him a severe flogging with a rope's
end. Henry afterward told some of the crew
that he would be revenged for that flogging;
that was the evidence against him.
Now for myself: All the boys would tell
Henry all kinds of nonsense and he would
believe it. I at one time proposed to him
that we should kill everybody on board the
ship; that we two should sail the ship to the
coast of Africa, take the fifty thousand dollars
in silver (weighing over four thousand pounds)
and go home with it. Much to my surprise, he
was willing to do so. Two or three times after.
wards I amused myself with that yarn. That
story, with some additions of his own, was the
evidence against me. Some of his schoolmates
afterwards stated under oath that it was impos-
sible for him to tell the truth. A tugboat was
sent to Charleston, and the ship was towed to
that port. The United States Marshal came
on board, and Henry and I were taken up to
the city in the revenue cutter and put in the
police station until the inquest was held. In a
11


The Story of a Strange Career
couple of days after our arrival the inquest was
held on board the ship. Leroy and I were
present. The captain's body was laid on deck
and we were made to stand near it and look at
the terrible sight while some of the jurors felt
of our pulses, to see if we were unusually ex.
cited. Leroy testified that I had confessed to
the murder at twelve o'clock the night it oc-
curred, and that I had told him of it when the
watches were changed. At my trial it was
proved that I had not spoken to him from the
evening before the murder until we were on the
revenue cutter.
The coroner's jury ordered that we three be
held for trial. So the mate was handcuffed and
the three of us were taken to the Charleston jail,
where we remained for about six months. As
soon as the news reached New York, my father
and Leroy's brother got letters of introduction
to the most prominent men in Charleston and
started for that city. In the meantime we had
our examination before the United States Court
Commissioner and were held over to the Fed.
eral grand jury without bail. The ship's crew
12


The Story of a Strange Career
My trial came first. It lasted nearly a month
and created much excitement North and South.
Leroy's testimony was all there was against me.
In the cross-examination he was badly rattled,
and told so many lies that everybody got dis-
gusted with him. He was proved to be a liar
by some of his old schoolmates. The jury
acquitted me without leaving their seats.
They all shook hands with me, and I was con-
gratulated by everybody. I was put under
bonds as a witness.
The first mate's trial then took place. Cir-
cumstances looked bad for him. His cruelty to
Leroy and myself made a bad impression on the
jury. When I showed how I had been tied
with ropes for two days, with my hands fas-
tened behind my back for seventeen nights and
days in the roasting hot weather, it actually
made some of the jury grit their teeth. The
jury retired, and were out quite a number of
hours. Finally, they brought in a verdict of
“Not guilty,” but for a long time they stood
ten for guilty and two for acquittal. After
that, he never could get a mate's position on
14


My First Voyage
any ship in the United States, so he went to
Australia and, when last heard from, was cap.
tain of an English ship.
The Prospero, on one of her voyages, was
dismasted by a typhoon in the China Sea,
was towed into one of the treaty ports in China
and used as a coal hulk.
I went back to New York with father and
mother, was gladly received by all my friends,
and remained there until I took a notion in my
thick head to go on a whaling voyage to the
Pacific Ocean.
15


CHAPTER II
WHALING IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC
I was in the habit of walking around the
docks of the East and North Rivers in New
York and looking at the shipping. Fronting
the river were a number of shipping offices for
sailors, and some of them had a placard offering
eighty dollars advance for men for the whaling
service. So, one day, I went into one of the
offices and stated my desires. I was very cor-
dially received. That evening, with several
others, I was sent to New Bedford, Mass. On
our arrival there we were assigned to a sailors'
boarding house. In about two weeks after.
ward I was shipped on board the Courier, for
a three years' cruise in the South Pacific Ocean,
for the capture of sperm whales. I was to get
one barrel of oil for myself out of every one
hundred and ninety that we should capture.
16


Whaling in the South Pacific
Sperm oil was worth about two dollars a
gallon. No petroleum had been discovered at
that time.
I was furnished with a seaman's outfit, which,
with my board bill and expenses, amounted ex.
actly to eighty dollars; that was the advance.
I signed an agreement that the captain should
pay that amount out of the first money due me.
Captain Coffin, four mates, and four boat-steerers
were the officers of the ship, with twenty-eight
men before the mast, a cooper, blacksmith, car.
penter, cook, and steward—forty-two men on
the vessel, and the captain's wife and little boy.
The night before we sailed I wrote to my
father and mother and let them know what I
had done. I thought at the time that I knew
more than they did. Well, the older. I grow,
the more I realize what a fool I have been all
my life, and never a greater one than I am now
at the age of sixty-two.
One morning early we weighed anchor, and
were soon out of sight of land; then the voy.
age began in earnest. Much to my surprise,
we had to take turns perched up aloft for two
17


The Story of a Strange Career
hours at a time on the top-gallant cross-trees,
looking out for whales. Why, I never thought
there was a whale within five thousand miles
of New Bedford at that time, but I was mis-
taken. They are sometimes captured in sight
of the harbour. The boat-steerers were kept
busy fixing up their harpoons and lances, getting
the boats ready, coiling the lines in the tubs
etc. In the meantime the mates were watching
the crew very closely to see which men were
the most active.
After we were at sea about ten days all
hands were called aft to the mizzen-mast. Then
the mates, each in turn, picked out one man
for his own boat's crew. Being light and
active, I was made stroke-oarsman of the first
mate's boat, and a lively job it proved to be,
too. Soon we got in the warm latitudes and
calm days, and then the boats would be low-
ered in order to give the crews exercise and
practice in rowing. It was hard work, but we
soon became expert oarsmen.
One day we sighted the Cape Verde Is-
lands, and sailed among them for a few days.
18


Whaling in the South Pacific
Boats were sent ashore; rotten tobacco-outfit
quality-was traded to the natives for fruit;
then I got in my work, so far as the fruit
went. The ship then steered for the Island of
Martinbas-Trinidado, 21° south latitude, for the
purpose of ascertaining whether our chronome-
ters were still correct, by comparing our obser-
vations with the longitude of the island, as that
is known to a certainty.
Trinity Rock, as it is called also, is unin-
habited, quite barren, and only a few miles in
circumference. That is the place where we had
our first adventure. The first mate's boat was
to take the crew, with the captain, his wife and
child, also three old muskets and ammunition,
and land them in a seaman-like manner on the
island. The boat's party with the old army
muskets were to kill a number of mythical
goats on land.
We pulled close to the shore, just outside
of the heavy surf, trying to find a safe place to
land. Finally we came to an opening in the
reef. Inside, the water looked smooth and in-
viting, and there was also a nice sandy beach.
3
19


The Story of a Strange Career
To the left of the reef was the wreck of a
French ship, the bowsprit pointing straight up
into the air. While looking at the wreck, we
saw a large green turtle just ahead of the boat.
Then visions of turtle soup with our goat's
meat dawned upon us. It chanced, though,
that in trying to capture that turtle we made
a great mistake, for just at that time a very
heavy surf came over the reef and capsized our
boat. Things were badly mixed for a time.
Boat, oars, men, and the captain's wife and
child were going in every direction. Finally
things quieted down a little, and we landed
on the beach. We got the boat and what oars
we could, and then took a rest on the burning
hot sand. The weather being very warm, the
boats crew all wore leather slippers and no
stockings. We had to run up and down on
the sand with our bare feet, as the aforesaid
slippers were lost when the boat went over. I
picked hard little short thorns out of my feet
for days afterward. They came from dried-
up vines that grew in the sand.
The beach was honeycombed with large
20


Whaling in the South Pacific
holes, and each hole contained a big yellow
land-crab. Every step we took, snap would
go a big pair of claws for our feet. We had
also lost our straw hats, so we had the full
benefit of the sun on our bare heads. A num-
ber of wild land birds of a good, healthy size
would swoop down upon us. It was anything
but a pleasure at that time, and the muskets
being lost also, the captain and mate changed
their minds about the goat business.
The cause of our disaster was made clear to
us in a short time. The surf for about ten
minutes would run low, and then would be fol-
lowed by three tremendous rollers in succes-
sion. It was the latter that wrecked us on a
barren island. We soon got tired of life on
shore. The question was how to get away.
In the meantime, while we were on the goat
expedition, the second mate's boat had left the
ship on a fishing excursion. They anchored the
boat near shore, outside the surf, and were
hauling the fish in at a lively rate. We needed
their assistance. As the mate still had his
shoes on his feet, he went quite a distance
21


The Story of a. Strange Career
down the beach and made signals for the boat
to follow him back. When they got opposite
to us we explained the situation. By watching
for a good chance, they pulled in quickly and
threw us the end of a harpoon-line, and got
outside of the reef. We fastened the line to
the bow of our boat, and when a low surf
came in launched it, were towed out by the
other boat, and arrived on board the ship very
much disgusted with the whole business.
The old Courier's yards were braced around
and we were off for Cape Horn, 56° south lati-
tude. One day, it being quite calm, the look-
outs at the mast-head noticed a lot of sea-gulls
flying around in a circle, and under them some-
thing floating in the water. We thought it
might be a dead whale, so the mate's boat
was lowered. We found it to be an old
cask, which must have been in the water for
years, as it was thickly covered with barna-
cles.
We towed the cask to the ship and hoisted,
it on board. As it came out of the sea we no-
ticed that the staves were completely honey.
22


Whaling in the South Pacific
ver
combed by the sea-worms. The water was
spurting out as if it were a sprinkling-pot.
We had just got it over the ship's rail when
it burst, and the contents fell on the deck.
It proved to be palm-oil, probably from some
vessel in the African trade that had been
wrecked. It had, no doubt, drifted many thou-
sands of miles. We saved two barrels of oil
out of our catch.
The weather soon began to get much cooler,
and storms were frequent; then we began
to see the albatross and Cape Horn pigeons.
The latter is about the size of a domestic
pigeon, but has webbed feet and a hooked bill,
and is the only wild bird having variegated
plumage, no two being marked alike. We caught
quite a number of the albatross, some meas-
uring seventeen feet from tip to tip of wing.
We caught them with large fishhooks baited
with a big piece of salt pork. The bait would
float on the surface of the water. We had them
walking all over the decks, as they cannot fly
unless they run on water to give them a good
start. The large webbed feet make excel.
23


The Story of a Strange Career
lent money pouches when dried and properly
dressed.
In the month of January, midsummer in
the southern hemisphere, we sighted Staten
Land, the extreme southern point of South
America, and ordinarily designated as Cape
Horn. For the first time we then saw the Pa-
cific Ocean, “so near and yet so far," for just
at this time we were struck by a heavy north-
west gale. A close-reefed main top-sail and
storm stay-sail was all we could carry with the
ship headed as close to the wind as possible, so
as to ride over the mountain-like waves. The
helm was lashed hard down, as there was no
steerage way.
There we were, drifting to the south for
about three weeks before the gale broke, and
we were able to make sail on the ship. It was
daylight for twenty-two hours, and the other
two hours of the twenty-four could not be
called dark. Such days would be delightful
for farmers in this part of the world. Soon
after the storm we got fair winds, and were on
our cruising grounds off the southern coast of
our
ern C
24


Whaling in the South Pacific
w
Chile and northern part of Patagonia (the new
boundary gives the whole coast to Chile now).
The ship's crew was then divided into four
watches, with a boat-steerer in charge and only
one watch on duty at a time, so we had plenty
of leisure. Every night, all sail but two would
be close reefed, top-sails would be furled, then
the ship would be headed offshore until mid-
night, and would then go about and stand in-
shore, until daylight, when all sail would be
set again. At certain seasons whales come
down the coast going south, and we were keep-
ing a bright lookout for them.
Each whaleboat's outfit consists of three
harpoons, two lances, one cutting-in spade, one
tub with three hundred fathoms of five-eighths”.
inch whale-line, one extra tub with one hundred
fathoms, one tight keg containing boat compass,
lantern, steel and flint, and some sea biscuit.
The latter articles are used only in case the
boat is lost from the ship, which frequently
happens.
There is a number of different species among
the whales. They are all mammals, bringing
mam
25


The Story of a Strange Career
forth and suckling their calves. On attacking
a cow and calf together, it is the custom to kill
the latter first, as the cow will never desert her
calf. The sulphur-bottom whale is the largest,
but it is never harpooned, as it is too dangerous,
and will always run all the line out of the tubs
before it stops sounding. The sperm whale
furnishes the most valuable oil. The sperm
whale throws its flukes, or tail, up and down
when attacked, so it is possible for a boat to
approach one head, or fluke, on. The right
whale furnishes the common oil, and in larger
quantities; sometimes one fish will yield two
hundred and fifty barrels of oil, as well as many
pounds of whalebone, now very scarce and
valuable. It hangs in large thin sheets from
the jaws, wide at the top, and tapering to a
narrow point with hair-like fringe on the edges.
The right whale can be attacked only “head
on,” as they throw their flukes from side to
side. They are captured in the cold northern
seas, the sperm in southern waters. One hun-
dred barrels is a large yield from one fish of
the latter species.
26


Whaling in the South Pacific
We saw several whales, kut could not get
near them. Finally, one big fellow was sight-
ed, and all boats were lowered, the first mate's
being in the water first. Having a good fair
wind, we set the boat's sail. In a short time
we were close to the whale. Being stroke-
oarsman, it was my duty to keep the sheet of
the sail in my hand, having one turn around a
cleat. The boat-steerer stands up with a har.
poon ready. Soon we were right on top of the
fish, the sheet was “let go,” a harpoon was
thrown just as we were going over the whale's
back, and then the fun began. The line leads
from the tub to a post in the stern of the boat
-two turns around it—and thence through a
cleat in the boat's bows. The tub was along.
side me. I was kept busy throwing water on
the line, so that the friction would not set fire
to the post, or “loggerhead.” The mate was
holding that rope in his hand all the time, just
keeping all the strain on it possible without
sinking the boat. If he had let a kink get into
that line, as it came from the tub, the boat and
crew would have gone under water in quick
27


The Story of a Strange Career
order. If he had let the line slip off the “log-
gerhead” it would probably have killed every
man in the boat. The noise and sawing of that
rope, with the smoke and steam from the “log-
gerhead," I can remember to this day. The
whale stopped sounding at last. We were
watching which way the line would point as
the whale was coming up, and discovering that
the line was directly under us, we got away
from that spot in a very lively manner, as that
was a sure sign that his whaleship intended to
have a fight with the boat. They frequently
play that trick, and the crew have to jump into
the water, provided they have a chance to do so.
In a few minutes our friend came to the sur-
face, spouted water, and then started off “dead
to windward "_they invariably do so—at a
terrific speed. The boat-steerer and mate now
changed places, and all the men except myself
reversed positions, so as to face the boat's bow.
They hauled in the line, and I coiled it care-
fully back in the tub. When alongside of the
whale, the mate threw a lance as often as pos-
sible, aiming at a point just behind the fin, at
28


Whaling in the South Pacific
what is called the “life.” It is a mass of very
large veins just under the backbone, that is
used by the whale as a reservoir for the extra
blood which it requires while under water.
When that is once cut, a whale spouts blood
instead of water. Down he went again. We
had to keep up that sort of work for about
two hours, until finally the blood was thrown
from the spout, and we were completely covered
with it. In a little while our capture began
to swim in a circle and on one side with one
fin out of water, and soon he was dead.
Sharks made their appearance in the water
so close to the boat that we could strike them
with our oars, and hundreds of large sea-birds
were wildly flying around us, all attracted by
the blood. In the meantime the other boats
had been rowing hard to overtake us if possible
and assist, or pick us up, in case of accident.
As we were dead to windward, and several
miles from the ship, all the boats had to fasten
on and tow the whale back, and a big contract
it was.
On the ship everything had been made ready
29


The Story of a Strange Career
for “ cutting-in.” The fish was fastened along.
side by heavy iron chains and, with heavy
tackles from the main masthead and loading to
the windlass, the blubber was slowly hoisted on
deck. The captain and the mate did the cut-
ting with long-handled blubber spades. They
kept cutting one continuous strip two feet wide,
and at every eight feet would cut a hole and
hook in the next tackle; and so they kept on
hoisting and lowering until the blubber was all
on board. It was a process similar to peeling
an orange. The strain from the windlass kept
the whale's body revolving in the water as the
blubber was cut. The head was cut off and
hoisted on deck entire. The chains being re-
moved, the carcass, weighing many tons, sank to
the bottom, the sharks voraciously following it.
Then a fire was built under the try-pots, with
wood. As the oil was boiled from the blubber
it would be put in a cooling-pot and thence into
casks, the scraps being used for fuel. That
work lasted for about a week, everybody work.
ing hard. It was nothing but oil all over the
ship-clothing, food, and water—all had a lib-
30


Whaling in the South Pacific
eral allowance. Eighty barrels was the total of
that catch. A few weeks later we sighted a
school of young whales. Several other ships
being close at the time, it was boats, whales,
sharks, and everything mixed up.
Our boatswain got knocked overboard while
we were fast to a whale; another boat picked
him up. We got only two whales out of the
lot, fifteen barrels of oil out of one and twenty
out of the other. Some of the other ships got
five and six. About that time the season on
that coast ended. The captain concluded to
make for port and get fresh provisions and
water, and then make a trip north of the
equator. The water in our casks was getting
rather stale; it tasted and smelled like a strong
decoction of dead rats. San Carlos, Chiloe Is-
land, was the port we anchored in. I took a
look at the shore and made up my mind that if
I ever got my feet on dry land they would stay
there.


CHAPTER III
À SAILOR ASHORE
The water casks were hoisted up from the
hold, lowered overboard and towed ashore, to
be filled with fresh water. In about a week's:
time we finished that job, then all hands were
to have twenty-four hours' liberty on shore-
eight men at a time. My name was one of the
first to be called. We received two dollars
cash for spending money. Taking my chum
aside, I quietly bid him good-bye, and then got
into the boat. Everything was strange to me
on shore--the customs, language, and sights. I
got acquainted with a young American from
another ship, by the name of Amos, and learned
that he also was desirous to quit the oil busi-
ness. During the day we kept with the other
sailors, visiting the dance-houses. When even-
ing came we both struck out for the woods.
32


A Sailor Ashore
The natives were very kind to us, knowing
that we were runaway sailors. They would in-
vite us to sleep in their houses during the nights,
when they would teach us to talk Spanish. It
must have been very amusing to them, as they
were continually laughing and saying “Bueno”
(good). In the daytime we would go down to
the beach to see whether our ships had left
harbour yet. In about three weeks' time we
had the pleasure of seeing both vessels standing
out to sea. It was the last time that I saw the
Courier on that coast. Her old ribs now lie in
the sands at the mouth of Charleston Harbour,
South Carolina. During the war the Govern-
ment purchased a number of condemned whalers
and fitted them up for sea, when they were
loaded with stone and taken to Charleston Har-
bour, dismantled, and sunk in the channels, in
order to blockade the harbour more effectually.
The whole world made a fuss about it. That
blockading experiment was a dismal failure, as
it was only a short time until the waters of the
Ashley and Cooper rivers, combined with the
ocean currents, washed out much deeper and
33


The Story of a Strange Career
better channels. I saw the ship just before she
was sunk and bade the old Courier a last fare-
well.
A few days after our ships had left San
Carlos we walked into town, interviewed the
captain of the port, and asked for our dis-
charge, saying that our ships had gone to sea
and abandoned us in a foreign port. Well,
we got our papers all right. We needed
them at that time, as nobody could go from
one town to another without having documents
to show who they were—not even the natives.
The country is under strict military govern-
ment, the army having control of everything.
My friend and I finally came to the conclu-
sion that we were in a bad fix, being in a for.
eign country, not able to speak the language,
and having no money. There was no work to
be obtained. After a while we made up our
minds to work our passage to Valparaiso on
some merchant vessel. We remained around
the landing-dock for several days. Every cap-
tain we spoke to replied to us kindly, but they
had no places for us. In the meantime we had
34


A Sailor Ashore
taken trips to the beach, digging clams to eat.
The people in the town were not so liberal
to us as were the natives who lived at a dis-
tance.
While loafing around the dock one day we
got into conversation with an American, a run-
away whaler. He told us that he was a car.
penter, had been living several years in the
country, and was married to a young Chilean
woman. He wanted Amos to go to another of
the islands and work with him. My friend
would not go without me, so Tom, the carpen-
ter, proposed that I should also go, as there
was a blacksmith by the name of Bill who
would be glad to have me as a helper. Now
was the formation of a fine quartette of Yan-
kees begun! Amos was a graduate of a Down
East reform school, very handy with tools, a
fine-looking young fellow, but he could not
read nor write, and he never could learn the
Spanish language ; reference to a terribly ugly
temper and vicious disposition completes his
description. Our new friend took us to his
house, gave us an introduction to his wife, a
e
35


The Story of a Strange Career
very pretty young woman about sixteen years
old. (They marry as young as eleven and
twelve years of age.)
Manuela was not educated and was exceed-
ingly lazy, with las ideas as to morality and
virtue. Tom informed us that the next morn-
ing we would start for the Island of Calabucco,
as he had house rent free there and a contract
to lengthen a boat for a priest. During the
night Amos got out of bed, went to another
house, and stole the only double-barrelled shot-
gun in that town. Tom hid it in a mattress.
After breakfast, we carried what household
goods there were down to the dock. A tool.
chest, a couple of pots, some dishes, a few
clothes, and the bedding completed the outfit.
Everything was put on board a sloop, and
then we started for our new home. During
the trip Señora Manuela was watching my
friend Amos; the result was that Tom told
me that I should live with him, and Amos
would have to go to Bill's house. On our
arrival we soon had our house in order. Op.
posite to our place was the residence of the
36


A Sailor Ashore
priest. I saw a number of dirty children-
about eight-running about the place, also a
woman. As I got better acquainted I had
every reason to believe that poverty, piety,
and celibacy were omitted from the Father's
creed.
After a rest of several days, we went to
his reverence's yard and had a look at the boat.
It was an old yawl from some ship, very short
and broad. We were to make it three feet
longer by piecing it in the centre. The boss
asked me for my advice. I knew a lot about
boats then. Oh, yes; a very easy job-if we
only knew how! We waited a few days longer
before going to work. Money was very scarce
in that town, so they used a small cedar-board
for currency. The size was about six feet long,
six inches wide, and half an inch thick. The
value of each was about six cents. The stores
were small, and, for that reason, the cedar-
boards were piled up in the back yards until
some merchant would buy them at the mar.
ket price—seven dollars a hundred—and ship
them to Valparaiso. There were no lights
37


The Story of a Strange Career
in the streets at night-time, and the night
watchman would call out the hours and half.
hours and the state of the weather during the
whole night, so that one could always know
exactly his whereabouts. My friend Amos,
with his past experience, took advantage of
that fact, and induced me to go into the lum-
ber business with him. Night after night we
were busy climbing over fences and carrying
off cedar-boards. About thirty-five each was
considered a fair load for a trip. In the day.
time we took them to different places and
made our purchases.
One day we at Tom's house got excited.
The double-barrelled shotgun was gone. We
watched our chance and stole it back from the
house presided over by Bill and Amos; how-
ever, they stole it back again in course of time,
and kept it. Tom's ranch did not suit me, so
I went to work for a native shoemaker. Amos
quit Bill and went to Tom. I quit the shoe-
maker and went with Bill. About that time
Tom concluded it would be easier to make a
new boat out and out. The padre was of the
38


The Story of a Strange Career
Aguardiente was the only refreshment served;
and towards midnight all were drunk, Tom es-
pecially so. A thin partition separated the
bedroom from the main apartment. Our host,
in staggering around, fell against the door, and
tumbled on to his own bed, only to find it al-
ready occupied. Then there was a row; the
guest jumped out of the window, with the
other occupant a close second.
My new employer, the blacksmith, was a
fine-looking man of six feet two inches in
height, and built in proportion. He had a fair
complexion and light hair hanging in ringlets
down his shoulders. He was from Baltimore,
Md. Swearing, drinking aguardiente, and talk
—that was all he was good for. His wife was
a widow seventeen years of age when he mar-
ried her. They had three little boys, the
most vicious little wretches that I ever came
in contact with. As for their home, it was
squalid and filthy. No floor, and the fire was
in the centre of the only room. On each side
was a board resting on stone: that was the only
place we had to sit down. A most cheerful
40


A Sailor Ashore
family circle we made. The children were con-
tinually raising Cain, and Bill swearing at them
in Spanish. As yet none of the bosses had
ever said anything about wages. However, I
never had any work to do, so that equalized
affairs.
One day Bill—or Guillermo, as he was
called—was wanted at a saw-mill on the main-
land. A freshet had made a wreck of the mill
and dam. None of the natives was willing to
work, so Bill induced Amos and me to go with
him. At last I was working for fifty cents a
day. After a while we got the dam repaired,
and then fixed up the mill. It then dawned
upon Don Fernando's mind that he had no one
to run the aforesaid mill. So he made a con-
tract with us to do the sawing at two cents a
board, we to "find” ourselves in food and
cooking utensils. Bill sent for his family;
Amos and I occupied a small room in the
mill for a living apartment, where we were to
keep bachelors' hall. Our stock of provisions
was furnished on credit from the employer's
store. Wheat flour was worth eight cents a
41


The Story of a Strange Career
pound, but wheat was worth only fifty cents
a bushel. This seeming profit was used up
in sending the wheat to Valparaiso for grinding
and then having it shipped back as flour, as
no railroads were there then.
The mill was a most primitive affair; the
amount of labour was astounding, the results of
our toil much more so; a hundred boards was
our largest day's work, and I will guarantee
that not any two of them were of equal thick-
ness at the end. Some days we would have no
logs to saw; other days there would be no
water in the dam. Bill had one cent as fore-
man, Amos and I each half a cent a board.
Our average was about twenty cents a day
each.
We found ourselves gradually getting into
debt for provisions and clothing. After talk-
ing over our financial affairs one evening, we
came to the conclusion that our prospects
looked gloomy. About bedtime Amos put on
his hat and coat and invited me to do the same.
He was always sullen, so I never asked him
any questions. When we were outside the
42


A Sailor Ashore
room he informed me that in future he would
live a — sight cheaper and better than he
had been doing in the past. All I could say
was, “ Amen, brother!” My friend proved to
be a good forager; before morning we had a
nicely dressed sheep hanging up in our room,
also a big supply of potatoes under the bed.
That was the only time in my life that I was
guilty of sheep-stealing. We lived high on
roast mutton and potatoes ; but, alas ! we were
found out. They blamed Amos for the whole
business ; but, on attempting to arrest him, they
made a mistake, as he pulled out a big knife,
and coolly walked away from that part of the
country. Afterward he stole a horse; that
was the last we heard about him in Chile.
Every one called me “Bueno muchacho"
(good boy), while Amos was designated “Muy
picaro” (great rascal). Don Fernando An-
drade was over sixty years of age; he had a
fine-looking wife and quite a number of chil-
dren—the oldest one twenty-six years, and the
youngest six months old. He took quite an
interest in me, as I was always very quiet,
43


The Story of a Strange Career
polite, and strictly temperate. Finally, he had
me live with his own family, and treated me
as if I were one of his own song. They
used to laugh and make fun of me because I
washed my hands and face twice a day. In
that part of the country they never wash them.
selves at all: “Se maltrata el cuero" (it ill-
treats the skin) was their reason, I presume;
laziness also. About that time I wrote to my
father and mother in New York. The postage
then on a foreign letter was fifty cents, with
only one mail a month on that coast. In about
four months I received an answer from San
Francisco, Cal. My father had failed in busi-
ness in New York, indorsing notes, and a panic
ruined him. He was doing well in California,
and wanted me to come there. Don Fernando
had a contract for a large number of rail-
road-ties for Peru. The natives would cut and
pile them on the beach ready for loading. A
schooner was sent up from Don Carlos for a
cargo of them. The captain was an English-
man, and we became quite friendly. He offered
to take me to San Carlos whenever I wished to
44


A Sailor Ashore
er
go. By the time the schooner was loaded I
got homesick, and, all at once, I made up my
mind to go home, so I bid Don Fernando good-
bye. He was sorry to have me leave, but
would not coax me to remain away from my
parents.
45


CHAPTER IV
I TAKE TO THE SEA AGAIN
At San Carlos was a large ship receiving
the ties as they were brought from the differ-
ent islands. The captain shipped me as an
ordinary seaman at ten dollars a month. The
vessel was the Androkolis, of Copenhagen, Den-
mark. Our destination was Callao, Peru. I
never reached San Francisco, although I sailed
eighteen hundred miles towards that city. San
Carlos was 42° and Callao 12° south latitude.
The crew of the Androkolis was composed
of Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, two Holland.
ers, and one Englishman, every one of them
speaking a different language from mine, ex-
cept the man from Liverpool, Jimmy Kincaid
by name. Now Jimmy and I became chums.
He was very short and broad, and possessed
unusually large hands and feet. He was about
46


I Take to the Sea Again
twenty years old. We little knew what hard-
ships were in store for us when we became
friends. If he is alive to-day, he remembers,
beyond all doubt, the night we saw the Flying
Dutchman while rounding Cape Horn on an-
other vessel.* We both saw that vessel—of
course it was only an illusion—but we were
both badly scared for a few minutes, as certain
death appeared imminent. I will explain it in
time. There are a few thousand miles of sea
to be sailed over before we come to the story
of that night.
We had a very pleasant voyage. Sailing
north towards the equator, the weather was
gradually getting warmer. In about four
weeks' time we sighted the Island of San Lo-
renzo, an immense, high rock which formed the
western side of Callao Harbour. The ship's
sails were taken in and furled, all but the top-
sails. · At last we came to anchor. Where our
ship lay in the bay was directly over the old
* Like the Wandering Jew on land, there is a ship at sea sail-
ing on and on until doomsday, manned by a crew of very old
Dutchmen, who are expiating some sin.
47


The Story of a Strange Career
city. A number of years ago, during one night,
an earthquake submerged Callao and raised up
San Lorenzo from beneath the waters. Five
miles inland is the city of Lima, the capital of
Peru and the burial-place of Pizarro, the con-
queror of that country. The only railroad on
that coast at that time was the five-mile track
connecting the two cities. Jimmy and I rowed
the captain ashore in the ship's boat. Sitting
on the steps when we arrived there was my old
friend Amos. We were much surprised to meet
again. He told me all about himself since
leaving the saw-mill in Chile so abruptly. He
invited me to visit him at the hospital, although
there was nothing in his appearance to indicate
that he was an invalid.
Lighters came to the ship, and the unload-
ing of our cargo commenced. Jimmy and I
were promoted to be cook and steward of the
vessel, I being the latter. One Sunday we had
an afternoon holiday on shore. The captain
let us have only one dollar each out of the
wages due to us. The first place we visited
was the hospital, in quest of Amos. It was a
wa
48


I Take to the Sea Again
terribly hot day. On a large grassy plain front-
ing the building were a number of healthy-
looking men playing a very lively game of ball.
You can imagine our surprise when Amos in-
formed us that they were the patients belong.
ing to the hospital. The explanation was
simple enough. Every man aboard of an
American ship has to pay twenty-five cents a
month to support the marine hospitals. A ship
cannot get clearance papers until it is paid. That
entitles the sailors to admission to any marine
hospital in the United States when they are
taken sick. If in a foreign port, the American
consul is obliged to pay for their keeping at
whatever hospital may be found in that place.
The consul for Callao was a kind-hearted old
man by the name of Mills. Any American
sailor who would go to him and say, “I am
sick, Consul,” would get an order for admission
at once. A number of seamen imposed on him.
It was an object for them to get their board
and clothing free while they were waiting only
for seamen's wages to rise as high as possible ;
then they would ship for some long voyage.


The Story of a Strange Career
The hospital authorities were easily enough
satisfied, as they were well paid, and the pa-
tients were able to attend to their own ailments.
After our return to the ship, Jimmy was
continually coaxing me to remain in Peru with
him, and live among the natives for a while.
I was anxious to get to San Francisco, but no
ships in harbour were bound in that direction,
although a number arrived from there, loading
with guano and going around Cape Horn. At
last I promised to go with Jimmy. He had
eighty dollars due him, and I twelve, but the
captain would not discharge us and pay us off.
Then we got mad and determined to go any-
way. We got our clothes packed up in bags,
ready for any chance we could get to leave the
ship. With the ship’s telescope we took a good
look at the shores of the bay. At one place
the beach looked as if it would be a good land-
ing-place for us; it appeared like the edge of a
mill-pond. Our chance soon came. The boat had
not been hoisted up out of the water, as was
customary, but had been left overnight fastened
to the ship's side. Each sailor in turn had to
50


I Take to the Sea Again
stand “anchor watch” during the night for
one hour. He would then wake up his relief
and go to bed. There was a Dutchman whose
turn would be at three o'clock in the morning.
I told him when he was called to awaken me,
then he could go to sleep again, as Jimmy and
I had to make fresh bread for breakfast, and
we would do the anchor watching. Sure
enough, “Dutchy” woke me up; then I called
Jimmy, and in a short time we had our clothes
in the boat, also a good double-barrelled shot-
gun, a pair of pistols, a silver watch, and a
couple of dozen of clean shirts belonging to the
captain. We wished to have something for
the money that was due us.
Away we went for the landing place that
we had selected. It was dark, and quite diffi-
cult to see the beach; it appeared to us as
though we were close to a wall, several feet
high, of rocks. The noise of the surf also made
us careful about landing. At last we discov-
ered that it was low tide, and the wall was
only the wet cobble-stones left uncovered at
low water. We pulled hard, so as to run
51


The Story of a Strange Career
through the surf, and we went up the beach on
a heavy roller. Jimmy stood in the bow of
the boat, ready to jump and hold the rope, or
"painter," as it is called, as the surf receded.
He was a little slow in jumping, consequently
the boat went back with the surf in a hurry,
Jimmy's feet went from under him, and he
landed head first on the rocks. The next roller
brought the boat in again; this time we suc-
ceeded, and got everything on land. The boat
was pushed out in the surf, and was found
the next day floating bottom up. We heard
afterward that it was reported we had both
been drowned.
About nine o'clock I went to the hospital
and told Amos what we had done. He agreed
to introduce us to a friend of his, who would
take care of us for a few days. That afternoon
he brought a man with him to our camping-
place. In the evening everything was taken to
a house in the city. It very soon dawned upon
us that we had got into the worst sailor
“robbers' roost” that was in the town. Our
clothing and possessions were all locked up in a
52


I Take to the Sea Again
room. We were made to understand that to
remain in the house would be the best thing
we could do. From what I afterward saw in
that place I had reason to believe they meant
what they said. The Vigilance Committee in
San Francisco had driven all the tough charac-
ters out of the city. Quite a number of the
worst ones went to Callao and started sailor
boarding houses and saloons. They formed a
“ring” for mutual benefit. The English con-
sul and a number of the Peruvian port officers
were in with them. A fine crowd of robbers
they were. They kept the sailors' wages high,
beyond doubt, but only for the reason that
they would have more for themselves when
they cheated the seamen out of two months'
advance pay. It is always customary to give
that much on long voyages, or “deep sea trips,"
as they call them. After a few days' sojourn
in our quiet boarding-house, we concluded that
any change would be for the better. The
landlord informed us that a small English brig
was going up the coast, and that he could ship
us both as ordinary seamen. In the English
53


The Story of a Strange Career
merchant marine a man cannot be shipped
unless he has a discharge from another vessel;
in the American service no papers are needed.
We obtained discharges belonging to other
sailors, who had no use for them. The land-
lord took us to the English consul's office. My
name was to be Michael Murray. The clerk
read the law, as is customary; one rule espe-
cially—that any man assuming another name
would forfeit all wages. We had given bogus
papers. When I went to sign the articles I
was rather embarrassed, as I had forgotten my
new name, so they had to tell me what it was.
We were taken to our new ship, which was
anchored out in the bay.
I was not greatly pleased when I found
what was in store for me. The wages were
twenty-five dollars a month. The landlord had
received fifty dollars-two months' pay-in
advance. He was to deduct my board bill
and give me the balance of the money, but I
never got a cent of it. I had been “shang.
haied,” as the sailors call it. Instead of going
up the coast, as I was told we were to do, I
We
nch was
54


·
I Take to the Sea Again
found we were bound for Cork, Ireland, a voy.
age of eighty-five hundred and twenty miles.
The vessel itself was a “holy terror,” very
heavily rigged, while everything on board was
old and played out, the rusty blocks, with
heavy running gear, making it very hard work
for us, especially as we had a crew of only six
men, where twelve seamen, at least, should have
been a crew for that old tub. The cargo was
guano in bulk, as a scow would be loaded with
dirt. Our sleeping quarters were in the fore-
castle, situated in the bow of the vessel.
Everything was covered with guano. As we
had to live below, it was our first object to
clean up the place. Buckets of water were
passed down the scuttle, and the place was
cleaned up as well as we could do it; but it
was of no use; the smell of ammonia made us
sick. Some would vomit, others bled at the
nose, and a thick black phlegm would form in
our throats. The weather being warm, we
slept on the deck, as we could not endure it in
the forecastle below.
Guano is the droppings from sea-birds, which
55


The Story of a Strange Career
have been accumulating for thousands of years.
The Chincha Islands, belonging to Peru, have
an inexhaustible supply. No rain ever falls in
that country, consequently nothing is washed
away. The depth of the guano is from four
to eight feet. When a ship is to be loaded
with guano, it has to go to Callao first for a
permit, then to the Chincha Islands. The cargo
is put in by Chinese coolies, and then the vessel
returns to Callao for a clearance, also to pay a
certain amount per ton.
56


CHAPTER V
ON THE BRIG GRENFALLS
THE brig Grenfalls, of Sunderland, was our
packet. Just before getting up anchor we asked
the captain if he intended to get more men for
the voyage. He curtly said “No.” Then we
came very near having a mutiny. Finally we
agreed to get up the anchor, especially as the
captain threatened to make a signal to the
British man-of-war for assistance, so we had to
go anyway. I remember seeing the United
States frigate Merrimac in the harbour and wish.
ing myself aboard her. The next time I saw
that vessel it had been transformed into an iron-
clad by the rebels, and had destroyed the Con-
gress and the Cumberland. The first week at
sea we had very pleasant weather. After that
it became gradually colder and stormy. No
more sleeping on deck. The forecastle was the
only place for us then.
mo
57


The Story of a Strange Career
Two quarts of water a day was our allow-
ance, one pint each for breakfast, dinner, and
supper; the remaining pint was for drinking
during the following hours of the twenty-four.
The hardtack that we had to eat was covered
with green mould and full of large white meal
worms. The salt pork was red with rust and
filled with white spots. Probably the hogs
were killed on account of measles and pickled
for sailors' use at sea. The salt beef, or horse-
meat, as it was called, was rather tough eating;
besides, everything we ate or drank was highly
flavoured with guano.
Off the coast of Patagonia we encountered a
heavy northwest gale of wind; then our mis-
ery began in earnest. In harbour the deck
was only sixteen inches above water; in rough
weather the seas were continually washing over
the decks. It was necessary to make gill-guys
by fastening ropes diagonally across the deck
from forward to aft. In going from one place
to another we could take hold of the guy nearest
to us, then get over and reach for the next be-
fore letting go of the first one. That was the
58


On the Brig Grenfalls
2.mil
only way to keep from being washed overboard
or thrown against the ship's rail.
One night we heard water swashing under
the forecastle deck. We told the mate about
it. There was a bulkhead dividing the fore-
castle from the main hold; on the other side
was a short half-deck. We cut a hole in it and
lowered a lantern. A lot of water could be
plainly seen. The vessel rolling would mix the
guano with it. By working all of the men we
got it out. All the crew supposed it to be the
same water that we used in cleaning out our
quarters, but we said nothing about it to the
mate. We used plenty of it and let it run into
the hold. The next night we heard the same
swashing again; then we knew there was a leak
somewhere. From that time the muddy water
had to be taken out in buckets and thrown on
the deck twice a day. The seas would wash it
overboard. The leak was found at last. A
long iron bolt in the foremast rigging chains
had become rusty and worked loose. The bolt
went through one of the knees which supported
the deck beams. Being below the loading line,
59


The Story of a Strange Career
the water would come in and drop on the
guano. It could not drain through and get to
the pumps.
All our clothing got very rotten ; shoes and
boots became very hard; any cuts or bruises
on our bodies would not heal up; the palms of
our hands were full of black holes the size of
a pin-head; the skin became very thick, and
would crack open at each finger-joint; our hair
fell out, so that we became prematurely bald.
The windlass also, every time the brig rolled,
would slide a few inches from side to side, and
would make the deck-seams open enough to
allow the water to drop through on our beds.
For three months our beds and clothing were
dripping wet. When I went to bed I would
get to sleep at once, and it was hard to
wake me up. Going from a wet, steaming hot
bed to stand watch on deck in that cold weather
was no joke. Each watch changes every four
hours. Jimmy and myself were in the mate's
watch: two hours each at the wheel and two
on the lookout. The officers were the worst
cowards that I ever came in contact with at
60


On the Brig Grenfalls
sea. At one time the captain did not come on
deck for two weeks. There being no sun visible
in that storm, no observations could be taken,
so we had to sail by “ dead reckoning.” The
mate would sneak into the cabin during most
of the watch, and leave Jimmy and myself to
take the chances of being washed overboard.
When it was my lookout I would go to the
cook’s galley, and let the brig do her own
watching. My chum did the same as I. Two
hours at wheel-steering would knock a prize.
fighter out. There was a very short iron tiller
in the rudder-post. The wheel-chains were
iron and slack; consequently, every time the
rudder would jerk, the helmsman would be
raised up a couple of feet, and then landed
back again almost quick enough to snap his
head off. I was thrown clear over the wheel
several times. I tried the experiment of let-
ting go a few times when the wheel commenced
to gripe; then I did come to grief; it would
whirl around one way and then back again.
In trying to stop it, the spokes would hit me
a good rap on the knuckles. One eighth of
61


The Story of a Strange Career
a point off the course is considered bad steer-
ing, but our old packet would “yaw" off five
whole points each way in spite of us. It
seemed as if the stern were trying to get
ahead of the bow. Whenever I see a mule
turning his head back to look at his driver,
it always reminds me of the old brig Gren.
falls. Besides the leak, a new danger con-
fronted us.
As we neared Cape Horn the seas became
much higher and the storm increased. The
sun would rise at nearly ten o'clock in the
morning, and go down at two in the afternoon.
The clouds were very heavy, and seemingly
close to the water. Heavy snow-storms were
common. The wind, however, was in our
favour. Sometimes there would be a lull in
the gale; then more sail would have to be set
to keep us ahead of the immense high waves,
else one might come over our stern and sink
us. On the other hand was the danger of
going too fast; in that case the vessel would
run under and, loaded as it was, must go down
like a piece of iron. Another trouble was
62


On the Brig Grenfalls
that we had to heave-to frequently, and that
was very dangerous. Now going before the
wind and then swinging around head to
wind, as near as possible, compelled us to get
into the trough of the sea. If we had been
struck by one of those huge waves broadside
on, the voyage would have terminated just
then.
The gale that brought us to Cape Horn fol.
lowed the Pacific coast to Staten Island, and
then up the Atlantic Ocean. One day, as we
were sailing too slowly, a great wave almost
broke over our stern. The main top-gallant-
sail was set in a hurry. A few hours after-
ward the wind increased, and the light sail
had to be taken in. Before Jimmy and I
could get aloft to furl it, there was nothing
left. The wind had blown it away in small
pieces. That night we were compelled to
heave to again. No matter which way the
tub's head was pointed, we were going in the
right direction, even if it were stern first,
drifting before the wind. Our cook and stew.
ard was a wild, red-headed fellow-Darwin's
63


The Story of a Strange Career
missing link. My chum accused him of cheat-
ing us out of our pint of drinking water. They
were quarrelling all day about it. That night
Reddy came to the forecastle scuttle while I
was getting some hard-tack ready for eating-
that is, hunting for meal worms. Reddy com.
menced the row again. He was just going to
paralyze Jimmy! I had not said a word yet,
but my chum was not going to be hurt if I
could help it. At last the man became quite
brave. He told Jimmy he'd lick him and his
chum together. The chum was myself. So
we invited him to come below. He lost no
time in doing so. Before he got half-way down
we jumped for him. What a good thrashing
he got for his trouble! When we got through
pounding him, he was dragged to the opening
in the bulkhead. Our intention was to throw
him down the hole into the water and the
guano. We pushed too hard, so that he went
a-flying over the right place, very luckily, as
he would have been smothered in the guano-
water. Reddy stayed in bed for two days. He
told the captain that the whole crew had tried
W
64


On the Brig Grenfalls
to kill him. When he got out of bed his face
was blue, green, and yellow; this, with the
eyes nicely blacked and his red hair, made a
fine combination of colours. Neither one of
us had been struck once, and there was no
more trouble about water.
One night, just after being relieved from
watch, all hands were called to shorten sail.
On deck I had to go again. There we were
kept for thirty-two hours, tending to the sails
and bailing out water and guano. A few nights
afterward I was at the wheel. The mate
sneaked into the cabin ; Jimmy was in the gal.
ley. There I was, tired out, my clothes drip-
ping wet with sea water and the wheel nearly
jerking my arms off. Suddenly the brig yawed
off and was struck by a heavy sea. I could
feel the vessel quivering under my feet; with
one hand I could not move the wheel either
way. I thought we were sinking and that
my day had come. The water on deck was
above my knees. Suddenly the wheel began
its old tricks again, very much to my relief.
The port bulwarks from the main to the
65


The Story of a Strange Career
fore-rigging had been carried away even to
the deck. Spare spars had to be fastened
there by ropes until we got into port. The
second mate said it was my fault on account of
bad steering
One day all hands were busy bailing water
and guano out of the hold. I was at the wheel
again, trying my best to steer straight. It was
of no use; the old tub yawed around and was
struck by a heavy sea. A large quantity of
water went down the scuttle and made more
mud, all of which had to be bailed out. How
everybody did swear and growl! But I derived
some consolation on account of the second mate
being nearly killed. The water had knocked
him off his feet and dashed him against the bul.
warks. When he came aft, rubbing his arms
and legs, I had to grin. That was the only
time I ever felt really happy on that packet.
Shortly afterwards he took the wheel and sent
me to help the bucket brigade. Very soon the
brig yawed again. I knew what would happen
when I saw a heavy wave coming, so got down
the scuttle and shut it very quickly. After the
66


On the Brig Grenfalls
commotion was all over I got on deck. Very
much to my joy, the starboard bulwarks had
been carried away. My friend the second mate
had nothing to say about bad steering after
that.
67


CHAPTER VI
THE FLYING DUTCHMAN
,
That night we were compelled to heave
to, for the waves were almost sinking us. At
two o'clock in the morning my chum was to re-
lieve me at the wheel. He was rather slow
about doing it, too, as it was very comfortable
for him in the galley. I was about played out
holding the helm hard down, there being no
steerage-way, as we were drifting to the leeward.
Our object was to keep the vessel head on to
the seas as nearly as possible, so as to ride over
them as they came along. So much guano had
been taken from the forehold that it caused the
brig to settle by the stern and raise the forward
- part up, consequently every time the bow dipped
into a wave the water which came over would
rush aft on the deck, strike the taffrail, and give
the man at the wheel a good shower-bath. That
68


The Flying Dutchman
happened every few minutes. Between drench-
ings we had the cold wind for a variety. The
ship’s clock was in the cabin skylight, visible
to the helmsman, whose duty it was to strike the
bell one stroke for every half hour. At four
bells he was to be relieved; at eight bells the
watches would change; thus it would be four
hours on deck and four hours below until we
arrived in port. Now I had been watching the
clock very anxiously for two hours, my whole
body stiff and numb with the cold and wet.
Nearly a half hour after the right time, my
friend Jimmy very reluctantly made his appear.
ance. I waited until he had hold of the wheel
and then I chided him in very impolite language.
When I had said everything that I could think
of to hurt his feelings I stopped. In the mean-
time I was holding on to a rope and sharing the
shower-baths with him. It helped to loosen my
jaws, at any rate, even if it did no other good.
The cook's galley is a small house built on
deck, in size about four by six feet, with a
sliding door on each side, the one to windward
being always kept shut except in very fine
69


The Story of a Strange Career
weather. Now I was hustling along as fast
as my stiff joints would allow me to get into
the galley. There, at least, I would be sheltered
from the cold winds. I had got inside and was
turning to close the door, when I saw a sight
which simply paralyzed me. A large full-
rigged ship with squared yards, all sails set,
even to the royals and studding - sails rigged
out on both sides, was coming straight for us,
and distant only a few hundred yards. Our
brig, being hove to, was helpless to get out of
the way. Certain destruction seemed inevita-
ble, with no possible hope of escaping a speedy
death. I yelled out at the top of my voice, “A
ship on the lee beam !” Jimmy, at the wheel,
got a glimpse of the ship, and let out a yelp
that brought the mate on deck. The mate,
who had been loafing in the cabin and shirking
his duty, also did some tall yelping when he
saw our danger. There was no chance to get
on our knees to pray then. The decks were
too wet and slippery, besides, we had to use our
hands to keep from being washed overboard.
As we could not do the proper thing in ortho-
70


The Flying Dutchman
dox style, we did some tall cursing, as being
the next best thing under the circumstances.
Swearing is a sailor's balm for many ills.
We were terribly excited; only a few sec-
onds and all would be over with us. Our brig
was drifting north at the rate of three miles an
hour. The strange vessel was heading south in
that gale and with all sails set; she should have
been racing through the water at a twenty-
knots rate. You can imagine our surprise when
we observed that the other vessel was rapidly
going backward and disappearing in a hazy
mist. Suddenly there was a break in the
clouds, and we had a glimpse of the full moon
for a few minutes, for the first time in several
weeks, although the nights were nearly twenty
hours in length. Soon we were in darkness
again. That was our first experience with the
ship Flying Dutchman. The whole affair had
happened so suddenly and unexpectedly that
we had no time to think. The idea of a
ship carrying all sail in that gale was ridic-
ulous, but to sail dead against the wind was
still more so. We were very much disgusted
71


The Story of a Strange Career
Ours
with ourselves for being so badly fooled, but,
at the same time, we were a greatly scared lot
of sailors. The explanation was simple enough.
The clouds were black and heavy, flying low
down near the water. A rift in them allowed
the moon to shine dimly between the edges
and cause the illusion. A few nights after-
ward we were running before the wind. All
hands were close-reefing the main top-sail. Off
the port bow we saw what appeared to be a
ship on fire. Our course was altered to that
direction, and it proved to be the old Dutch-
man again. At last the gale from the south
broke up. We had got into the “pamperos ” —
westerly winds from Buenos Ayres. The days
were increasing in length, and the weather be-
came much warmer. The wind being on our
beam, we could steer straight, compared with
what we had been doing before the wind. Be-
sides, the heavy rolling and lurching had dimin-
ished greatly. The effect of heavy cargo, so
much below the water-line, was greatly counter-
acted by the wind striking us sideways. Going
before the wind, the old brig rolled terribly at
WE
72


The Flying Dutchman
times—so much so that we often expected the
masts to be snapped off, on account of the sud-
den jerking from side to side. The forecastle
was always wet and muddy, and, while eating,
we would sit on a chest, holding our pans in
our laps, a cup in one hand, and conveying the
food to our mouths with the other, with both
heels firmly braced on the deck. Time and
again an extra lurch would send us a-sliding to
the other side, bang against a chest or bunk,
the food flying in every direction. Back and
forth we would go a dozen times before we
could stop. The sulphur and brimstone
would hang in festoons from the deck beams
by the time we had stopped cursing the old
brig.
On the first clear day, instead of going to
bed in my morning watch below, eight to
twelve in the morning, I went aloft to the fore-
top, and remained there the four hours enjoying
the luxury of an airy wind-bath. It was the
first time in nearly three months that my cloth-
ing was dry, and not so very dry then, either.
The mates had been throwing out hints about
73


The Story of a Strange Career
urs
going into port for repairs. We had passed all
the Pacific harbours, and were doing the same
with the Atlantic harbours, when, very much
to our joy, we sighted the Sugar Loaf, a very
high conical rock, it being the southern point
of land at the entrance to the harbour of Rio
de Janeiro-River of January—Brazil, South
America. So, much to our joy, we were
bound for port. My chum and I were of one
mind—that was, to quit the guano business
P. D. Q.
The entrance to the harbour was very nar-
row and well fortified. There were steep rocks
on each side. We were hailed from one of the
forts and asked the brig's name, destination,
and last port. Our sails were gradually taken
in. At last we rounded to and dropped anchor.
Rio is admitted by all sailors to be the finest
harbour in the world, and I will guarantee that
our old tub of a brig was the most dilapidated
and dirtiest specimen of the shipbuilder's handi-
craft that ever anchored in it. It is a generally
well-founded belief among sailors that rats will
desert a sinking ship. We often remarked that
III
74


The Flying Dutchman
a rat had not been seen on the Grenfalls during
the voyage. I must say the rodents made a very
close calculation, if that was the reason for at
some time quitting their cosy quarters. My
first act in port was to tie a rope around my
wet blankets and lower them into the water.
By swashing them up and down for awhile, I got
considerable of the mud removed. Hanging in
the hot sun, they became dry by evening. So
I enjoyed a good night's sleep on deck. It
was quite a contrast from what I had been
doing for weeks past-namely, getting into
a soaking wet bed with all my clothes on,
dripping with water, and the sea dropping
on me in small instalments through the leaky
decks.
Our worthy captain was an entirely differ-
ent man from what he was at sea in the
Cape Horn regions. Warm weather, with no
danger to be feared, made quite an improve.
ment in his personal appearance. He was also
more self-important and domineering. The two
mates and he were small men, about five feet
two inches in height. The way in which they
75


The Story of a Strange Career
murdered the Queen's English was something
simply terrible. “Mike, ’ow's 'er 'ead ?” was
the question often asked at the wheel when
they wished to know the point of the com.
pass I was steering, so as to enter it in the
log-book. The disabled condition of the brig
had been reported to the English consul. He
appointed three ship captains to “survey” our
vessel, and report whether it was seaworthy or
not. They came on board and examined every-
thing. We, the sailors, took our knives and
showed them how rotten the remaining bul-
warks were, how the decks leaked ; in fact, we
did all we could to get the old tub condemned.
It was estimated that one hundred tons of
guano had been dumped overboard ; however,
nothing was said about the quantity of water
that went with it. The captains looked very
wise, but said nothing. Finally, they got
into their boats and returned to shore. My
shipmates and myself were in great hope
that the vessel would be condemned as unsea-
worthy. That meant our release and three
months' extra pay on account of being dis-
76


The Flying Dutchman
charged in a foreign port. Greatly to our dis-
gust, the report was briefly: “The brig Gren-
falls, with necessary repairs, is fit to continue
the voyage.”
In a few days we hoisted anchor and sailed
up to a small island close to the city. After
considerable trouble we got the old tub fas-
tened to a small dock. Then we were allowed
time to dispose of a mighty poor dinner. All
the remaining guano was to be taken out and
placed on the dock, a job which we did not
like. Jim and myself, while eating, had a quiet
talk on the chances of getting our discharge
from the vessel. We both decided to declare
war. No more guano work for us! We were
eating our last dinner on that boat, but we did
not know it then. The war took place in
earnest, and most unexpectedly. Two expla-
nations are necessary before I proceed with the
narrative. There was an able seaman in the
other watch, more intelligent than the average
English sailor. His vessel had been wrecked
on the Pacific coast, and he had shipped with
us in order to return to England and sail in his
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The Story of a Strange Career
former employer's service again. From him I
learned some facts in regard to English marine
law. English sailors always carry large jack-
knives, a shackle at the butt end, to which is
fastened a lanyard, the latter going around the
neck. The knife, when not in use, is stuck in
the waistband of the trousers. With Ameri-
can sailors, a long knife, carried in a sheath
and strapped around the waist, is the fashion.
It is a very necessary and useful article on
shipboard, used in cutting food—there are no
forks-scraping masts, repairing rigging, and
so forth. It is always ready for instant use in
case of danger or accident. After dinner we had
plenty of work to do. Towards evening extra
lines from the bow and stern were run ashore
and fastened to large rocks. Old canvas was cut
in narrow strips and wound around the ropes
in every place where they were liable to chafe
on the sharp stones on the beach. We were
still at that work at nine o'clock, with no sign
of supper yet. I made up my mind to quit
work, and had just got on deck when I heard
the first mate and Jimmy talking rather loudly
78


The Flying Dutchman
by the cabin door. Too much work and noth-
ing to eat was the cause of the row. My chum
was mad all over. Suddenly the mate caught
him by each wrist and gave his arms a quick,
downward jerk. It was an old trick, and very
painful to a person whose arms were hanging
down loosely. In an instant Jimmy had his
knife open and made a lunge for the mate.
The lanyard prevented the free action of the
knife, but the blade had scratched the skin on
the mate's throat and made a long cut in the
neck of his tight-fitting, heavy knit under.
shirt. The mate began to run and yell “Mur-
der!” Around the deck he sprinted, with
my chum after him. Every few steps Jimmy
would make a dig at him with the knife, only
to receive himself a jerk in the back of the
neck from the lanyard. There was an old box
on the main hatch. Without being noticed by
any of us, our old enemy—the red-headed cook
-was standing on it, with an iron bolt in his
hand. The mate took in the situation, though,
and, on the last lap, he crossed the deck at the
main hatch. As Jimmy came along, the cook


The Story of a Strange Career
hit him a whack on the head with the piece of
iron that laid my poor friend on the deck hors
de combat. The cook had no time to gloat over
his victory. He was howling out, “Wurrah,
wurrah !” and made remarkably quick time
for the cabin, landing below without his feet
touching the stairs. A sailor was after him
with a sheath-knife minus the lanyard attach.
ment. Our disabled shipmate was carried for.
ward and laid on deck. Having no fine Turkish
sponges or decorated wash-bowls, we could not
dress his head according to modern style. We
did the best we could, however, which was to
lower a bucket over the vessel's side and fill it
with dirty sea water. His head received several
good bathings. The treatment was liberal and
heroic, the contents of a full bucket being
dumped on him at a time. It helped to re-
vive him and to wash off the blood, simultane-
ously.
At last success rewarded our efforts. The
patient sat up. When he had got the salt
water out of his mouth, he wanted to know
“what in — we were trying to do with him?"
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The Flying Dutchman
It being nearly ten o'clock, all hands concluded
to have supper. The cook was afraid to come
on deck, so we went to the galley and took all
the food in sight. It was carried into the fore-
castle. The chandelier—a tin cup full of grease
with a rag for a wick—was trimmed and lighted.
Our frugal repast was interrupted by the cap-
tain's sticking his head down the scuttle and
inquiring if Jimmy wanted a bandage and
salve for his head. Jimmy very curtly told him
to “Go to .” The captain was desirous that
the crew should desert and forfeit the money
due to them, for he could get other men for
one third of the amount we were getting. Nine
dollars a month for ordinary, and eleven dol.
lars a month for able seamen was the rate in
Rio; while our pay from Callao was twenty-five
dollars and thirty-five dollars per month. My
chum and I had about forty dollars due to
each of us, and I intended to get it if possible.
The rest of the men wanted to remain on the
vessel on account of the big wages, and the
hardest part of the voyage being over. Imme-
diately after breakfast the next morning Jimmy
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The Story of a Strange Career
and I went aft and called for the captain. We
requested permission to see the English consul,
but received an evasive answer. It was to be a
game of bluff beyond all doubt, so my recently
acquired knowledge of marine law was to be
tested. I stated plainly to the captain that sea-
men were allowed by law to see the consul “if
they had any complaints to make.” We de-
manded to be at once taken to the consul's
office, as we were not satisfied with our food
and treatment, and wished for an investigation.
We said that he would have trouble if he refused
to comply with the law. Very reluctantly, he
told us to get into the ship’s boat, and we rowed
over to the city. On landing, he gave directions
to the consul's office, where, on arriving, we
found that the captain had taken a short cut
and got there ahead of us. Consequently the
consul gave us a very cool reception and asked
us what we wanted of him. He got a brief
synopsis of the trip around the Cape to com-
mence with, then a description of the food, next
of the short allowance of water; and last, we
charged the captain with ignoring the law in
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The Flying Dutchman
regard to giving each man the legal allowance
of lime-juice a day.*
The captain had considerable to say, him.
self. At last the consul refused to discharge
us. We were informed that we should have
better food for the future. The captain smiled
with satisfaction, for a short time only. All
was not over yet. My last card was to be
played and it won. “Well, Consul, this man
and I do not propose to go back to the cap-
tain's old tub. We volunteer for Her Majesty's
service!”
The consul laughed, and informed the
captain that he would be expected at the
office at two o'clock in the afternoon with our
discharges and the money which was due us.
What clothing we had was badly rotted by
the effect of salt water and guano; therefore
we had no reason to return to the Grenfalls
for our old rags. Out of the office we went
in high glee. The first sailor I met on the
* Years ago canned vegetables and fruit were unknown at sea ;
for that reason lime-juice was served to the men daily, as a
preventive of scurvy. English vessels were nicknamed “lime-
juicers” on that account.


The Story of a Strange Career
street gave us directions to a sailors' boarding-
house. Portuguese Joe was the landlord's
title. No time was lost in making his ac-
quaintance. The mere fact that we were two
sailors to be paid off that day was sufficient
recommendation,
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CHAPTER VII
IN HER MAJESTY'S SERVICE
No money in advance, nor baggage as se-
curity for our board, was required. Nothing
in the house was too good for us; we could
have anything we wanted, and, oh, how glad
the other boarders were to see us! I almost
felt at that time as if I had met about
twenty long-lost brothers. All that affection
cost Jimmy and me several rounds of drink
for the “house.” That afternoon we went to
the consulate and received our discharges and
pay. The money was in Brazilian currency,
and, together, our money amounted to a hun-
dred and fifty-five thousand reis-twenty reis
equal to a cent of United States money. Book-
keeping in that country requires the use of a
large number of figures.
Our first venture was to get new suits of
85


· The Story of a Strange Career
clothes and enjoy the luxury of a much-needed
fresh-water bath, when “Richard was himself
again.” What a change in our mode of living !
Fruit of all kinds to be had for almost nothing;
comfortable beds to sleep in ; fresh food and
vegetables to eat. The only thing I objected
to was that we had too many newly found
friends. I was strictly temperate at that time.
Jimmy made me his banker, with the condition
that I should give him money only in small
amounts.
Brazil is a very large country, and at that
time was the only empire in South America.
Dom Pedro III was emperor. His palace was
close to the city of Rio. I saw him several
times, as he frequently rode through the city
in his carriage, always escorted by his body.
guard of thirty cavalrymen. He was a very
fine-looking young man with fair complexion.
No doubt he was the most progressive ruler
Brazil ever had. Now he is dead and Brazil is
a Republic. Rio de Janeiro is the capital, and
a most beautiful city it is. Viewing it from the
bay in the night-time, it resembles the dress-
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In Her Majesty's Service
circle in an immensely large theatre, the street-
lights forming the rows of seats. The lan-
guage is Portuguese, much similar to Spanish.
I had very little difficulty in making myself
understood when conversing with the natives.
There was not a sewer in the city. Large tubs
about three feet high, eighteen inches in di.
ameter, were used in the houses for all refuse
and waste material, and, when filled, they
were carried on the heads of slaves at night-
time and emptied into the bay. A large
building at the water's edge was the public
dumping ground. The slaves were nearly all
genuine Africans, naked to the waist, the
breast and face tattooed in different designs, by
scarring the skin with a knife.
When one of those fellows came down the
street on a dog-trot, singing “Hoo! hoo! hoo !
hoo!” I would get out of his way quickly. It
was a wonder to me how they could balance
those 'heavy tubs on their heads and keep
swinging their arms at the same time.
The native liquor is cas hass, distilled from
sugar-cane. Take equal parts of pure alcohol
87


The Story of a Strange Career
and water, put in a very liberal quantity of
creosote, and you will have a good sample of
cashass—flavour, smell, and strength will be
the same as the genuine article. One evening,
on returning to the boarding-house, there was
quite an excitement in the dining-room. My
friend Jimmy was laid out on the table, with
three men holding him down; he was in
spasms and frothing at the mouth. My im.
pression was that he had been poisoned.
After a while he quieted down and went to
sleep. The next morning he confidentially re-
marked to me that he had no more use for any
of “that — cashass.” My reason for describ-
ing the liquor is to give an idea of its strength.
Once, when I was on an English man-of-war,
it was probably the cause of a friend's being
drowned and of getting me into a serious scrape.
I would frequently take a stroll down to
the military dock where the boat from the
man-of-war landed. It was interesting to ob-
serve the peculiarities of the different nation-
alities. The Americans were the most intelli-
gent, very neat in appearance, their clothing of
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In Her Majesty's Service
fine material and well made, dark blue flannel
shirts embroidered with black silk, a white silk
star on each corner of the wide collars, a silk
ribbon with the name of the ship in gilt letters
on the sailor hats. When their boats landed
the officers would get out, then the boat's crew,
with the exception of one man, going where
they pleased, returning after a time, and pull-
ing off to their ship. Next were the English-
men. Their clothes fitted awkwardly. In ap-
pearance they were not so bright and cheerful.
No going ashore for them! A midshipman
was always in charge of the boat, every man
being required to remain in his seat. The
Italians, Spanish, French, and Brazilians were
a dirty, barefooted lot, probably not one in ten
being able to read or write. The English
always had difficulty in getting men for the
navy. Low wages, flogging with the cat-o'.
nine-tails, and no chance for promotion, were
the chief reasons. A law was passed allowing
any seaman in the British merchant service to
volunteer in any part of the world for Her
Majesty's service. That was the reason why I
89


The Story of a Strange Career
11
got my discharge from the Grenfalls. I re-
mained at Portuguese Joe's for two weeks, my
money being spent in sight-seeing. Then I
went on board Her Majesty's frigate Mada-
gascar and shipped for five years as an ordi-
nary seaman. My pay was one pound sixteen
shillings—about nine dollars—a month.
I had to retain the name of Mike Murray
on account of the discharge from the last ship.
Cloth was furnished to me-flannel and other
articles—for clothing, everything being charged
to me excepting hammock and bag. With the
assistance of the other sailors, I soon had cloth-
ing made and became a full-fledged man-of-
war’s-man. The Madagascar was a very large
frigate with two tiers of guns, and had been
stationed at Rio for a number of years with.
out leaving the harbour. The admiral of the
South Atlantic station made her the flag-ship
of the fleet. Only about one third of the full
complement of men was on board, and, conse-
quently, we had no drilling at the big guns or
making and furling sails. But we had “holy-
stoning” decks enough to make up for it. At
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In Her Majesty's Service
four o'clock every morning we were routed
out of hammocks to wash decks. Sand and a
little water would be sprinkled on the deck,
each man would have a piece of flat sandstone,
and then, on our knees, we would do some
mighty hard scouring, hence the name of
"holystoning.” Afterwards, with the use of
plenty of water, the sand and dirt would be
washed off. Then, with swabs, the deck
would be dried and afterwards swept with
brooms. By that time it would be seven
o'clock, and then we had breakfast.
Jimmy came on board and shipped a few
days after myself. We both belonged to the
same mess. He had a picnic, as I gave him my
share of grog to drink. Each mess was com-
posed of fourteen men, each man in turn being
cook of the mess for one day. His work was
to set the table, draw rations, and bring the
food from the galley. At twelve-thirty he
would take a bucket and get the grog. The
grog was one half gill of Jamaica rum and three
half gills of water, mixed, making one half pint.
Each mess had a measure holding a little less
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The Story of a Strange Career
than that quantity. The cook would give each
man his allowance, and the difference in the meas-
ures after fourteen men had been served would
be considerable; that would be the cook's per.
quisite. Orders had been given to refit the
Madagascar with entirely new rigging. The
Brazilian Government had given permission to
use one of their ship-houses to work in. Every
day a gang of us were taken ashore to fit up
the standing rigging. We were at that work
for two months. The experience and knowl-
edge I acquired in that brief time made me a
good sailor. The English Government had the
lease of a small island in the harbour on which
were erected a number of buildings containing
supplies for the navy. As we returned to the
ship at night, our boat would stop there and
bring off the paymaster. One evening we had
to wait for him. As was the English custom,
the boat was rowed a few hundred yards from
the dock, then “Peak oars !” was the order,
each man holding his oar straight up, the
handle resting on the bottom of the boat, the
blade in the air. It was the second cutter with
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In Her Majesty's Service
fourteen oars, two men on each seat, quite a
fine sight, but very tedious for the men. We
had a sudden change from the sublime to the
ridiculous that time. Two of the crew had got
into an argument. One of them, getting ex-
cited, emphasized his remarks by lifting his oar
and bringing it down on the bottom of the boat.
That ended the debate abruptly. The boat,
being old and rotten, could not stand such
treatment. The force of the blow knocked a
big hole in the bottom. In a few seconds all
hands were in the water, men and oars badly
mixed up. Those of us who could swim struck
out for dry land, the remainder saving them-
selves by clinging to the wreck.
We had very little work to do after the old
frigate was newly rigged. I would look out of
the gun.ports and watch the shipping in the
harbour. One day the United States brig
Perry came in from a cruise on the African
coast and anchored close to us. She was a
beautiful vessel. All the crew appeared to be
happy and contented. They were a fine, active
lot of men. I should have liked to exchange
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The Story of a Strange Career
places with any of them. Finally they went
on another cruise in quest of slavers. The next
time I saw the Perry was in Boston during the
war, and I was then one of her officers, in a
position I little dreamed of holding when I
watched her leaving the harbour of Rio de
Janeiro.
I soon became discontented and homesick
on the old frigate. My messmates, knowing
me to be a “ blawsted Yankee,” as they called
me, made me ill-natured. I usually returned
what they gave. After several fights they let
me alone, but I was punished by being put on
the black-list for fighting. That meant being
kept at work all day long cleaning brass-work,
etc. At dinner hour I would be on the quarter-
deck with my bowl of grog, an extra half pint
of water being introduced, and I then re-
ceived a spoon with holes in it with which to
sup the grog. With my cap under my arm,
I would be ordered to drink Her Majesty's
health. It was a tedious job sipping that in
fernal stuff out of the bowl with the spoon. It
would run out as fast as I dipped it up. Some.
94


In Her Majesty's Service
times there would be ten or twelve men under.
going the same punishment. In the evening I
would have to stand one hour on the quarter-
deck, toeing one of the seams. Poor Jimmy
got into a scrape, so I had him drinking Her
Majesty's health with me. This was also the
case with a half-breed American Indian from
Massachusetts, and a greenhorn from England,
and a very troublesome quartette we proved
to be. That night all four of us deserted.
The first lieutenant had his gig condemned
and got a new one to replace it. While we
were doing the seam-toeing act he came on
deck and ordered us to get into the new gig
and pull around the ship, so that he could see
how it set in the water. A conversation be-
tween us while rowing made it plain that all
were anxious to run away. We went on the
gun deck and had a quiet talk. Everything
was arranged for going ashore. The boat could
not be hoisted up, as there were no spare davits
for it. That just suited us.
At bedtime we got into our hammocks with
our clothes on, and about three o'clock we got
W
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The Story of a Strange Career
our bags containing all our clothing and took
them on the gun deck. Matt, the half-breed,
got into the boat from the gun ports and hauled
it around to the bow port. The bags were then
handed down. Jimmy had gone back for some-
thing and we were waiting for him. At last
he came and handed me a pocket-book. All of
us got into the boat, and away we went. No
one had seen us leaving. There were three
decks in that frigate, the spar, the gun, and the
lower or berth deck. The crew swung their
hammocks on the latter. What few officers
and men there were on duty at night would be
on the spar deck, so there was no one on the
gun deck to bother us, and all below were
asleep. Had there been a full crew, arrange-
ments would have been different and our plan
frustrated. When we got into the city, Matt
and the greenhorn went ashore. Jimmy and
I concluded to take a trip up the bay. By
seven o'clock we were quite a distance from
the city. The boat was run ashore and our
bags were taken out. The dry land was good
enough for us. Something to eat was next in
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In Her Majesty's Service
order. The pocket-book was then examined
and found to contain eighty thousand reis,
Brazilian money-forty dollars. Then Jimmy
explained how he got it. A new man slept
next to my worthy chum, and every night he
would place his pocket-book between the mat-
tress and the canvas hammock, and lie on the
whole affair himself, feeling secure against all
loss. Just where the pocket-book lay there was
a lump bulging out in the canvas, so Jim cut a
slit in the right place and the booty was his.
A short distance from the landing place were
a number of slaughter-houses, and the butchers
were very much surprised to see two man-of-
war's-men with their baggage in their neighbour-
hood. One of their number could speak Span-
ish, so a friendly conversation took place which
ended in their purchasing our clothes—bags
and all. We received a fair price, both parties
being satisfied with the bargain. After eating
a good breakfast in one of their houses, we bade
our new acquaintances good-bye. With plenty
of money in our pockets, and on shore, every-
thing seemed quite pleasant. Our plans were
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The Story of a Strange Career
soon agreed upon—to take a walking tour to the
south, have a view of the country, get to the
seaport of St. Catharines, and ship on some ves-
sel for the United States. It was necessary to
make a détour of the city to get on our right
road. After awhile we met a market-woman
with fruit and bought enough for our dinner.
Sitting under a tree, we enjoyed our picnic very
much. All our money was then counted; there
proved to be one hundred and seventy thousand
reis altogether. A fourteen-thousand-reis bill
I put inside the lining of my hat, the balance in
my pocket. During the rest, Jim proposed
going into the city to make some purchases for
our journey. We went—and that was a grand
mistake. When we passed the Hamburg House,
kept by a Dutchman, we were reminded that we
were thirsty, so we went in and sat down at a
table and ordered a bottle of English ale. Just
then I noticed a young fellow go out of the door.
After awhile I asked about the ale—why they
did not bring it? They replied that they had
to send out for it. Shortly afterwards the Eng.
lish consul's “ runner” cảme in with two vigi.
m
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In Her Majesty's Service
lantes and, pointing to us, said, “Esas dos ”-
“ Those two." That settled it! We had been
“given away” for the reward, three pounds
sterling—about fifteen dollars each—being the
amount for apprehension of deserters from Her
Majesty's service, and off to the calaboose we
were marched. About twelve hours' liberty on
shore was all we had enjoyed. We were taken
into the office and searched, and the money was
taken out of my pocket and carefully counted.
They gave me a receipt for it. Very greatly to
their disgust, no big bank roll was found on my
chum. I never saw a cent of that money again.
Our loss was somebody's gain that time, sure
enough. We were put into a cell with about
fifteen other prisoners, among them two sailors,
deserters, from the English sloop-of-war Siren.
From them we found out the rules of our new
quarters. No food was furnished to prisoners
-either to buy it, or have friends bring it, was
the custom. As they had been locked up for
two days without food, they had a yearning for
something to eat. I called the turnkey and
made him understand in Spanish that I wanted
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The Story of a Strange Career
coffee and rolls for four. In Portuguese he
made me understand that money would have to
be furnished first. I showed the receipt for
money in the office, but that would not do, so I
took the fourteen-thousand-reis bill out of my
cap and handed it to him. He gave a queer, as-
tonished look and then a sickly smile, but we
got the coffee and rolls, however. That little
luncheon cost me just two thousand reis. I
considered myself lucky to get the change back.
They got nearly all of it, though, the next day.
Finally, we four deserters were taken outside
the city limits and, much to our surprise, landed
in the penitentiary. Not having committed any
crime against the country, or having had a trial,
we found ourselves convicts “ doing time" for
nothing.
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CHAPTER VIII
THE CAT-O'-NINE-TAILS
was
No red tape was wasted upon us. The
formalities were few. Being taken into a small
building, we took off all our clothing, which
was tied in bundles with our names on them;
then, after we had each received a pair of blue
overalls and a blue shirt, the change was com.
plete. Barefooted and bareheaded, we were
marched to the cell houses and locked up.
Food was scarce the first day. We had nothing
to eat, as no rations had been issued for us.
The second day only one meal was provided, a
small one at that. The third day, however, we
would get all the law allowed. My appetite
was getting quite keen about this time. When
the prospect of getting something to eat looked
promising, they found out that a slight mistake
had been made in our case.
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The Story of a Strange Career
The English consul had leased a small
building on the premises as a lock-up for Brit-
ish sailors who got into trouble or refused to do
duty on their respective ships. When the ves-
sels were ready for sea, the sailors would be put
on board and all the expenses deducted from
their wages. So we were dressed up again and
marched over to the consul's pen. The same
trouble about the food occurred there. If they
had made just one more mistake we certainly
should have starved to death. In a few days
we were marched to the consulate and then re-
turned to the Madagascar. Our experience on
shore had been a novelty but not entirely a
pleasant one. A warm reception was given us
on the frigate—twenty-eight days each of soli-
tary confinement on bread and water, twenty-
one days on the black-list and lying in irons from
sunset until sunrise. The value of the lost boat
and all expenses, including the reward, was to
be deducted from our wages, and, besides, we
would have to pay for a new outfit of clothing.
At nine dollars a month, it would be some
time before our accounts would be squared up.
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The Cat-o'-Nine-Tails
Jim and I swore point-blank that we knew
nothing about the boat, and they never got it
back. Somebody was ahead a new boat, any.
how. I never paid my share of the loss, either.
Matt, the half-breed, was caught in a coffee-
saloon before ten o'clock of the same morning
and at once taken back to the ship. On our
arrival he was doing "solitary.” The green-
horn was the only one of the party to get away.
Aft, on the lower or third deck, was the mid-
shipmen's and clerks' mess-room, on one side of
the deck. Abaft that was a bulkhead or par-
tition which left a space to the stern that was
used as a store-room for the admiral's and cap-
tain's supplies. In there was also a room used
as the “solitary.” Forward of the partition was
where the prisoners were kept in irons. Iron
bars ten feet in length, a knot on one end, a
padlock on the other, and a big lot of shackles
completed the outfit. The men would sit on
deck in a row, each one placing a shackle on
each ankle. The first man would run the end
of the bar through the eyes of his shackle and
then the next would do the same, the padlock
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The Story of a Strange Career
was fastened, and we would be secure for the
night. The bar lay underneath, resting on
deck. Walking or standing was impossible.
The midshipmen and clerks swung their ham-
mocks above us. Once in a while we would
rap on the partition and, through the crack,
would inquire about Matt's health and comfort,
“ If the hardtack and water agreed with him,
and how would he like a nice beefsteak ?” As
Matt was in the "solitary,” Jim and I had
to wait for our turn. So we were doing the
black-list and iron punishment together. About
the time my black-list was half over I got into
more trouble.
The captain lived on shore, near the Sugar
Loaf. His boat had left the ship and some
article which he wanted had been forgotten.
Such a dereliction was simply terrible. The
captain of a man-of-war in those days was a
trifle more despotic than the Czar of Russia. A
cutter with fourteen oars was “called away” in
a hurry to rectify the mistake, but a man was
short for the crew. The lieutenant gave orders
for some one to get into the boat. Just then I
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The Cat-o'-Nine-Tails
was working by the companion-way—the lad-
der on ship's side. Much to my surprise, I was
told to be more active in obeying orders and to
get into the cutter. I did so. My being a
prisoner at the time seemed not to have been
taken into consideration. It was quite a dis-
tance to shore down the bay. The man next
me on the thwart gave me a nudge and said,
“Mike, my mon, show 'em your 'eels on shore.”
The others near me also had something to say,
much to my annoyance, as I did not want any
one to suspect what my intentions were. We
landed soon after the captain's boat did. There
being no midshipman in the cutter, we all
stepped on shore. One of the men spoke to
the coxswain in a low tone, and I was ordered
back into the cutter. I refused and stated that
I was going to a saloon for a drink. I walked
away rather quickly. Looking back, I saw that
all the men excepting one were running after
me. Then I ran as fast as possible towards a
steep rocky hill. I was gaining on them rap-
idly. Some perpendicular rocks prevented my
going farther in that direction. Then I turned
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The Story of a Strange Career
around, intending to run down the hill and
break through the crowd for another race. Just
as I got near them, I stumbled, falling on my
face and rolling over into a hole full of muddy
water. I was badly hurt and my nose was
bleeding freely. They took me to the cutter
and pulled off to the frigate.
On our arrival all had to go on deck and
stand in a line toeing a seam, to be searched for
smuggled liquor by the ship's corporal, the lieu.
tenant looking on. Then the coxswain re-
ported me for attempting to run away. The
lieutenant saw that I was covered with mud
and blood. He asked me if the report was
true. I answered “Yes," and told him that
the whole boat's crew were a dirty lot of curs
for bringing me back after inducing me to run.
The lieutenant looked at them all slowly, and
then at me. With a contemptuous sneer, he said,
“ Thank you, men,” and sent them forward, at
the same time ordering me to be put in irons.
The ship’s corporal led me away below, at the
same time growling about the trouble he was
having on my account. About half an hour
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The Cat-o'-Nine-Tails
afterward my old friend, the corporal, made his
appearance. He released me from irons and
escorted me on deck. The lieutenant asked me
if I was badly hurt, and all particulars in re-
gard to my running away. Much to my sur-
prise, he told me to resume my work, that he
was to blame in a measure himself, as he had
no right to allow a prisoner to leave the ship.
My first business was to see the coxswain
and some of the boat's crew and give them a
good plain cursing. In a few days afterward,
Matt's time in the “solitary” expired and I was
locked up in his place. One half pound of hard-
tack per day and one quart of water was my
allowance. Nothing very interesting occurred
during the time, excepting once when the cap-
tain's steward came into the store-room one day
for some wine. He spoke to me through the
small iron-barred window which was in the par-
tition on the store-room side. He told me to
get my tin cup and hold it up to the bars.
With a piece of paper he made a funnel and
filled my cup full of good sherry wine. Crackers
and raisins were also given me, so I had a high old
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The Story of a Strange Career
time all to myself that day. The twenty-eight
days expired and all my punishment was over.
Jimmy relieved me, and when he went into the
door it was the last time we ever saw each
other. After all the hard times and many
scrapes we had got into together, we parted
without a chance to shake hands. I never
heard of him afterward. Twice while in Liver-
pool, England, I went to his address, 17 Lower
Frederick Street, but no one knew anything
about him.
Matt, the half-breed, and I got to be
friendly and both of us were determined to
get away from the frigate. Our only chance
was to swim ashore, we not being trusted in
any of the boats. It was necessary to wait
for a night when there would be no moon and
a flood-tide running in from the sea. In the
meantime, to avert suspicion, I started making
my new clothing. The blue cloth for my best
trousers at Government prices was one pound
sterling. That I had smuggled from the ship
and on shore, to be sold. I was to receive half
of what it would sell for. In a few days I
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The Cat-oʻ-Nine-Tails
received five milreis and a long skin of
cashass. The cashass is put in skins such as are
used for bologna sausage. In that form it can
easily be secreted about a sailor's clothing and
smuggled on board. The cashass I gave to
Matt for safe-keeping, as we should need a
good drink before taking our long swim. The
five milreis in silver I put in a small bag
hanging round my neck. Every night we
would sneak up to the gun deck. The pros-
pects not being favourable, we would post-
pone our trip. One night while I was awake,
the ship's corporal came to my hammock
with a lantern in his hands. He took a look
at me and then went away. I knew then
that our plan to go was known. After that I
remained in my hammock and let Matt do
the prospecting. Finally, one morning, we con-
cluded to make the attempt that night. Dur-
ing the day I had my bag from the rack to do
some sewing, and Matt came to me with a blue
flannel shirt and asked me to put it in my bag
for a while, which, unfortunately, I did. That
night the corporal came to my hammock twice
SO
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The Story of a Strange Career
before midnight; then I dozed off to sleep and
was awakened by some one feeling my face.
It was Matt. He was quite drunk and insisted
upon my taking a drink from the skin. He
said he was then going to the gun deck to get
a rope ready for getting into the water and
would return for me when all was ready. That
was the last I saw of him. I waited for a
while. The effects of the strong liquor put me
into a sound sleep. The next thing I knew
was that the crew were holystoning the gun
deck. The noise of the stones right over my
head had awakened me. I put on my clothes
and tried to sneak in among them unobserved,
but the attempt was a failure. The boatswain
saw me. “Hello, Mike, where did you come
from? I thought you had gone ashore with
Matt," was the salute I received,
It seems that when all hands were called,
we were missed at once. Matt's hammock, be-
ing the nearest, was examined. He being gone,
it was concluded that I was with him. I tried
to play innocent, but it was of no use. After
breakfast I was ordered before the first lieu-
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The Cat-o'-Nine-Tails
tenant and reported for not turning out to
scrub decks, and then for aiding and abetting
desertion. My bag was brought from the rack
and examined. The blue cloth was missing.
A stolen shirt, with the owner's name under the
collar, was found. Matt stole that shirt. It was
the one he had asked me to keep for him. Con
duct detrimental to discipline in Her Majesty's
service was another charge. The lieutenant then
laid down the law to me in splendid style, and
ended thus: “Now, Michael Murray, you have
made considerable trouble on this frigate, and
I shall see that you get ‘four dozen. Then
you can desert—that is, if you get the chance.
Corporal, put him in irons.” When the cor-
poral put the padlock on the bar, he said:
“Mike, my lad, you're in for it now !"
About five days afterward I was taken on
the quarter-deck again. The lieutenant wanted
to know who brought the cashass on board to
Matt and myself. I replied that I knew noth-
ing about it and that I had never seen Matt
with the liquor in his possession. Then I was
told that Matt's body had been found floating
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The Story of a Strange Career
ome
in the bay. He had on all his clothes excepting
cap and shoes. Inside of his shirt was found
the skin containing a small quantity of cashass.
He must have been quite drunk or he would
not have tried to swim such a distance with his
clothes on; or it may be that he fell overboard
and that that was the reason he did not come
back for me as he promised.
"Four dozen” on an English man-of-war
means flogging with the cat-o'-nine-tails. The
"cat” is a hardwood handle eighteen inches long,
to one end of which are attached nine pieces of
hard lines, about one eighth of an inch in di-
ameter and eighteen inches long. At the end
of each tail is a hard knot. When punishment
is to be inflicted the “tails” are soaked in strong
brine. That makes them bard and heavy. A
wooden grating from a hatchway is placed on
end, resting against the bulwarks. All hands
are called to witness punishment. Everybody
must be present, from the captain to the pow.
der boys. The prisoner is stripped naked to
the waist, his feet are lashed to the bottom of
the grating, and his arms are stretched out full
W
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The Cat-o'-Nine-Tails
length and fastened. The face and breast are
then close to the grating, with no chance remain-
ing of moving the body. The ship's surgeon
watches to see that the prisoner does not die
while being punished. The boatswain's mate
is on the left side. He swings the “cat” over
his head with the right hand, at the same time
drawing the tails through his left hand. At
every stroke nine stripes are cut on the pris-
oner's back, the knots at the same time making
little holes in the skin, about two seconds
elapsing between each stroke. After two dozen
strokes have been given, the boatswain's mate
steps to the other side of the prisoner and gives
the remaining two dozen, the skin being cut by
that means into diamond-shaped pieces. By
the time the punishment is over the man will
be covered with blood and greatly exhausted.
I had been keeping very quiet for the last
few days in order to avert suspicion. I had
been examining the old shackles, and found two
that would release me from the bar at any
time. One was quite large. By taking off my
shoe I could squeeze my foot from the bar.
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The Story of a Strange Career
The other shackle must have been an odd one,
as it had extra large eyes, and would slip
nicely over the knob at the end of the bar. I
laid them on the deck to have them handy, then
I sent for the corporal to take me to the water-
closet. When I returned I picked up the
shackles that I wanted and placed them over
my ankles. When he had gone I put all the
other shackles away out of reach so there could
be no mixing up. My mind rested easy then.
I was having a chance to go before the flogging,
instead of after, as the lieutenant proposed. At
last, the day for my punishment was set. The
captain had come on board the frigate and my
conduct was reported. I was brought before
him and the charges read to me. Orders were
given to have me flogged with the “Thieves'”
cat-o'-nine-tails at eight o'clock the next morn-
ing. “Four dozen lashes on the bare back."
The “Thieves' cat” meant two knots in the tail
instead of one. I was to receive extra punish-
ment for a crime I never committed, but the
finding of the shirt in my bag had been suf-
ficient.
114


CHAPTER IX
THE ESCAPE
WHEN the corporal took me below again I
asked him to let me get some clean clothes
from my bag. I selected a pair of white duck
trousers and a white shirt. I wanted the light-
est suit that I could get. The corporal probably
thought that I intended dressing neatly for the
whipping in the morning. I was very partic-
ular in putting the shackles on my ankles, the
one with the large eyes going on the left leg,
so as to be at the knob end of the bar. The
big one went on the right leg. I could not
prevent myself from grinning while he was so
carefully locking the end of the bar. He gave
the lock an extra pull, to satisfy himself that it
was fast, and walked off. My hammock, in-
stead of being lashed up sideways, as custom-
ary, was merely rolled loosely and left on deck,
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The Story of a Strange Career
so that I could spread it out for sleeping at
night-time. I made a sort of lounge with it
and took life easy, for the time being. At nine
in the evening, the midshipmen and clerks got
into their hammocks, leaving their clothes on
top of their sea-chests. I spread out my bed
and lay down. My position had to be straight
out, on my back, as the iron bar had to be
taken into consideration. Soon all but myself
were asleep. Time passed very slowly. I
knew the corporal would have a look at me
about midnight and that then I should be ready
for my trip. I could tell the time by hearing
the ship’s bell striking every half hour. About
one in the morning, I was getting very uneasy
in my mind, as I knew it was about time for
the tide to change and run out to sea-a very
serious matter for me. At last my friend made
his appearance. Everything was secure and
satisfactory, so he went away. Then I com-
menced operations. First, I got out of the
shackles, and taking off all my clothing, tied it
in a neat, flat bundle. My money and knife I
left hanging to my neck. Next I gathered up
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The Escape
some clothing belonging to the midshipmen and
laid it on my bed. Two pairs of shoes went
next. One pair was stuck in the shackles, the
other pair was stuck, heels downward, into the
first pair. Then two caps were stuck together
for a head. The whole, being covered over
with my blanket, made a very good dummy. I
was highly pleased with my midnight work.
The toes, sticking straight up, gave a very
artistic effect to the job. Taking my hammock
lashing and bundle, I went to the midshipmen's
messroom.
With a stool to stand on, I took a view of
the harbour from the small port-hole-about
twenty inches square. These holes are open
in harbour only for ventilation and light on the
lower deck. At sea they must be kept closed
and lashed securely. As I expected, the tide
was ebbing out to sea. The ship had swung
around “head on ” to the city. I had no choice
but to go, however. Fastening my clothes to
the end of the lashing, I lowered them about
eight feet, not intending to get them wet. Se-
curing the lashing to an eyebolt, inward, I got
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The Story of a Strange Career
out of the port-hole and let myself down into
the water. The clothes had been dropped too
low and got wet. That made them too heavy
to fasten on the top of my head as I had in-
tended. I released the bundle from the lashing,
keeping it in my left hand, and then I drifted
past the frigate's stern with the tide. In a few
minutes I commenced swimming at an angle
from the frigate, and then headed for the city.
After a long swim I began to get tired and was
breathing hard from exertion. The bundle
worried me, and the now swift tide became too
much to contend with. I had got only a short
distance past the frigate, and was convinced that
I could not reach the city. Then I turned
back, repassed the frigate, and headed for the
southern shore. The tide, at the same time,
carried me towards the entrance of the harbour.
I was in hopes of getting to land before I
should be carried past the Sugar Loaf. As a
last recourse I could let the clothing go, and
that I would not do until it became a necessity.
As I was swimming at an angle with the tide,
not so much exertion was needed. Much to
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The Escape
my relief I saw the dim outline of a vessel to
my left. I then swam with the tide, and in a
few minutes I was holding on the anchor-chain.
I had a good rest and, at the same time, thought
what was best for me to do. I could easily
get on board at the bow, but if it were an
English vessel my name would be “Dennis,"
sure enough. I proposed to take no more
chances than necessary that night. Finally I
let go of the chain and drifted to the stern.
There I found the vessel's boat in the water.
I got the bundle into the boat and climbed in
myself.
The first thing I did was to read the vessel's
name. I was then satisfied that she was a
Brazilian coaster. I wrung the water from my
clothes and was soon dressed up. There were
no oars in the boat; if there had been I would
have cut the painter and sculled with a single
oar for the western shore. When I felt strong
enough, I climbed up the painter to the taffrail
and got on deck. No one was to be seen, so I
commenced an investigation. She was a brig.
On each side of the quarter-deck was a cubby-
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The Escape
nen
somewhere, even if I had no oars. So I waited
for developments. In a few minutes five men
came out of the forecastle. They came aft in
single file, the cook at the head with a lighted
candle in his hand, the mate bringing up the
rear. Then, in spite of myself, I had to laugh.
It was the only time in my life at sea that I
ever saw a candle on ship's deck. There are
two articles which an old-time salt-water sailor
has the most supreme contempt for-namely, a
lantern and an umbrella. When they got close
to me they were a surprised lot of men. By
way of introduction, I said, “Yo soy un saltador
Inglés ”_“I am an English deserter.” They'
all commenced to laugh at the mate. We soon
became quite friendly, all hands considering the
whole affair as a good joke. Opening the cabin
skylight, they told me to get in and have a good
sleep. The vessel was loaded with mahogany
timber. The cabin bulkheads had been taken
out and the lumber loaded through the stern
ports, completely filling the brig from stem to
stern. The extra sails were put in the skylight
on top of the cargo. That was my bed, and a
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The Story of a Strange Career
even
were
good sleep I had, even if my clothes were
wet.
About seven o'clock they woke me and gave
me a breakfast. I exchanged all my neat
clothes with them, I getting a ragged blue
jumper and overalls and a ship hat with the
rim all frayed out. My shoes, stockings, and
knife I retained for my own use. The boat had
been hauled alongside and loaded with firewood
to be taken ashore. When ready I got into it,
and, taking an oar, helped row for shore. The
mate gave me a friendly parting and wished me
success. I thanked him, and said : “Cuidado
por los brujos!"_“Look out for ghosts!” When
close to shore I asked to be landed on the beach,
as it would not do for me to go near the Govern-
ment dock. They pulled close to a ledge of rocks
and I jumped out and thanked them for their
kindness. Away I went for the railroad track.
Having heard that English contractors were
building a new branch, it was my intention to
offer them my valuable services. I started
down the track quite lively and independent.
The sun became very warm and my feet sore.
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The Escape
Then I got tired of continually looking at the
telegraph.poles, each one being numbered, like
houses in a city. What the reason for that
was I never found out. Every station I came
to I was ordered off the track, but the expla-
nation that I was to work on the road was
satisfactory. To my inquiries as to how far
the new road was situated, the answer was
always the same, “A few leagues farther.”
My five milreis now came into requisition.
Some time in the afternoon I went into a gen-
eral store and purchased a glass of wine, some
crackers and cheese. After my feast was over,
I continued my journey. Soon I had come
among the coffee plantations. They looked
like large cherry orchards with the trees full of
ripe fruit. Two coffee grains flat side together,
surrounded by a spongy fibre, then a tough,
smooth skin, the whole about the size of a large
cherry_that is the coffee bean while on the tree.
I do not know how many miles I walked
on the Terro Carril de Dom Pedro III, but I
was well tired out, and my head dizzy, from
looking at the numbers on the telegraph-poles.
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The Story of a Strange Career
The same information—“A few leagues farther
on ”—was becoming monotonous. Four milreis
had been expended for food. With but one
milreis left I was getting discouraged. Sud-
denly I changed my mind, and turned back for
Rio de Janeiro. At the first station I was
ordered off the track. Then I had to walk on
the wagon road. One evening, about dusk, I
arrived at the city, tired, hungry, and footsore.
Two “dumps ”_large copper coins worth forty
reis each—was the last of my money. I invest-
ed one dump for a piece of cocoanut, the other
for bread. That was the last food I ever ate
on Brazilian soil. I had often heard sailors
joking about “Mahogany Hotel-on-the-Beach,”
and there I went for a night's lodging. A
large pile of mahogany timber hewed square
for shipping, some pieces being several feet
shorter than others, would make a space large
enough for a man to sleep in. No doubt but
that it was a very valuable edifice, but, at the
same time, very uncomfortable. My apartment
was about eight feet in length and only twenty
inches in height and width. Early in the
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The Escape
morning I was out of bed, with no money nor
breakfast, hardly knowing what to do. There
was only one thing to be done, that was to get
on some vessel and get away from the city.
While walking around the docks, I met the
“runner” from Portuguese Joe's boarding-
house. He was an American. I tried to avoid
him, but it was useless. He had seen and
recognised me.
“Halloa, how long have you been ashore ?”
he asked.
“Oh, quite a long time," I replied.
“See here, Murray, I know all about your
deserting. Come down to the house and stay
until we can get you away.”
No, I would not take any chances in a
boarding-house.
“You want to ship, don't you? Come with
me and I will put you on a vessel right off.”
“How much in advance ?"
“ Eighteen dollars,” he answered.
Then I told him how I was fixed, and also
that he could ship me and keep all the advance
money for his trouble.
125


CHAPTER X
THE SPORT OF THE WAVES
WE at once went to the vessel. The cap-
tain, after asking a few questions, took us into
the cabin, and I signed the articles for a voyage
to Richmond, Va., as an able seaman, at fifteen
dollars a month. I was then given an ad-
vance note for eighteen dollars, which I handed
to the runner. I felt perfectly safe then, know-
ing that the note was not payable until just
forty-eight hours after the vessel left port.
That fact would prevent him from giving me
up for the reward from the frigate. My new
vessel was a swift-sailing American clipper
bark—the name I have forgotten. The slaves
were bringing large bags of coffee on their
backs and dropping them on deck. In a couple
of days the cargo was completed. There being
a fair wind, the topsails were hoisted and sheet-
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The Sport of the Waves
ed home alongside the dock. The lines to the
dock were cast off, and our voyage to the Uni-
ted States began. I was aloft, loosing the main
royal, as we passed close by the old Madagas-
car. I took off my old straw hat and waved it
at the men on deck as they watched the
Yankee clipper go past. I was perfectly safe
then. Within an hour we had passed the
Sugar Loaf. That was the last time in my life
that I was to see the beautiful harbour of Rio
de Janeiro.
What a contrast between the bark and the
brig Grenfalls! It was child's play to steer
now. A slight movement of the wheel would
keep the vessel on the course. We had dry
quarters on deck, fine weather, and plenty of
good food and water. The only thing unusual
that occurred was the large number of flying-
fish that dropped on deck during the night-time.
As many as fifty would be found in the morn-
ing. They are about the size of fresh-water
herring. While flying they appear like streaks
of bright silver. The flight is only for a short
distance, however. As soon as their wings be-
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The Story of a Strange Career
come dry they drop at once. The dolphins are
their greatest enemy. In the equatorial regions,
or “doldrums," as it is called, we had the usual
experience—the sea as smooth as glass, no air
stirring except in “ cat's-paws” and coming from
different directions. As soon as the little rip-
ples would be seen on the water, the back yards
would have to be braced in the proper direction
to take advantage of what little wind was com-
ing. Day after day it was the same. At last
we got a steady wind and were soon on the
American coast. Being in north latitude, the
days were rapidly becoming shorter and the
weather very cold and stormy. I suffered very
much from the want of warm clothing. A
shirt and pair of drawers had been given me
by a shipmate. Those and the suits I had
changed for with the Brazilians were all that I
then possessed. The latter part of December
we arrived at Richmond. I was paid off, seven
dollars and fifty cents being the amount due
me. A cheap suit of clothes was bought with
that money, and I was again in a strange city
“ dead broke.” I had one consolation, how.
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The Sport of the Waves
ever, in knowing that I had quit being proxy
for Mike Murray.
The large schooner Onrust was in the canal
at Richmond loaded with cement for Fort
Taylor at Key West and the fort on the Dry
Tortugas Island. My late shipmates and my-
self shipped on her by the month, she being a
coasting vessel. It was a novel experience for
us all to be on a schooner. Everything was so
different from a square-rigged ship. The cap-
tain was also the owner. Economy was his
motto. Instead of eating in the forecastle, we
had our meals in the cabin, the captain acting
as host. None of the crew felt as comfortable
as if feeding in sailor style and all etiquette
dispensed with. In the forecastle was a small
box stove, and that was a nuisance. The watch
below would make a wood fire and go to sleep.
It would only be a short time before the fire
would be out and then we would wake up
shivering with the cold atmosphere. As yet
I did not enjoy the luxury of a bed or blankets.
My finances, since leaving the frigate, had been
at a low point. Besides the trouble below, we
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The Story of a Strange Career
felt the cold more severely when on deck. All
hands agreed on one point—that the stove was
a nuisance. That was my only experience with
a fire in the forecastle during my life on the
sea. No matter how cold the weather, clothing
wet or dry, a sailor never catches cold on the
ocean if he will keep away from a stove. We
sailed, instead of being towed, down the James
River. When near Fortress Monroe, the main
boom snapped short off near the jaws. Then
there was trouble. We put into Norfolk for a
new boom. Everything being ready, we hoisted
sail for a new start. And such a job to get the
main and foresails up on that brute of a
schooner! But our experience was yet to come.
In a few days we were rounding Cape Hatteras
and a heavy gale came up. Then was the time
the schooner showed what she could do. The
main-sail had to be lowered for reefing. The
hour was about midnight, and a dark, stormy
winter night it was. The captain was steering,
as all the men were needed for reefing, the
cook included.
The first thing e Onrust did was to fall
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The Sport of the Waves
off into the trough of the sea, and in the Gulf
Stream, where we were at the time, the waves
were mighty lively. Then over the rails came
the water and swashed around the decks, knee
deep. The cook had a nice lot of firewood
neatly piled up handy for use. That was trav-
elling around in all directions, the objective
point being the sailors' shins. Suddenly the
main boom got loose and swung from one
quarter to the other. It was “ thump, thump,”
and sparks of fire the size of a baseball were
flying over our worthy captain's head. The
sheet blocks worked on heavy iron travellers,
and every roll of the schooner swung the heavy
boom with terrific force. All we could do was
to look on and wait for the captain to get his
craft head on to the sea. Bang went the boom.
It had snapped short off near the jaws. Now
both ends were loose, and affairs were becom-
ing unpleasant for us “square-rigged ” sailors.
The heavy cargo of cement was much below
the water-line, and there being no yards or
heavy rigging aloft to counterbalance it, made
the schooner roll extra quick and lively. The
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The Story of a Strange Career
boom was very long and about fourteen inches
in diameter. How it did rattle over the top of
the cabin! At last, with the use of ropes, we
managed to secure it. The main-sail, in the
meantime, had been having its share of the fun,
much to our discomfort. A storm-sail was
brought from below and set. As that needed
no boom or gaff, we had but little trouble to
get the schooner under control again. Next in
order was to save the main-sail. About fifty
knots that fastened the sail had to be untied,
and they being wet, made the knots hard to
loosen. The boom was lying diagonally, partly
on the cabin and over the port quarter. There
was a narrow passageway between the cabin
and the bulwarks. I was in the passageway at
work, with my head between the top edge of
the cabin and the boom. In trying to unfasten
a foot stop I poked my head a little too far.
When the next roll came the boom moved just
, enough to give my head a most unmerciful
squeeze. I saw more stars to the square inch
than could be seen with the Lick telescope !
The pain actually lifted me off my feet from
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The Story of a Strange Career
third completed at that time. Little fishing
smacks kept the place supplied with fish and
green turtles. That was the first time that I
saw the red snapper. It is a beautiful large
fish, and excellent eating. Several wrecking
schooners were in the harbour. The crews
seemed to have a fine time. Their pay was a
certain share of what was taken from the nu-
merous wrecks. Piracy and wrecking meant al-
most the same thing in those days. One of the
wreckers and myself wished to exchange places,
but my captain would not consent. The
schooners were about fifty or sixty tons bur-
then, with fourteen to twenty men for a crew.
Our vessel was about five hundred men for a
ton and only four men for a crew. Our main
boom was larger than any mast in their whole
fleet. To hoist sail for them was only child's
play. With us it was a big job.
On leaving Tortugas we sailed for Mobile,
Ala. On our arrival in port I severed connec-
tions with the Onrust, at the same time making
a vow that if ever I shipped on a fore-and-after
again, it would be a smaller craft. I went
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The Sport of the Waves
to a sailor boarding house, and remained on
shore for three weeks. Then I shipped on the
C. C. Duncan for Liverpool, England. Eighteen
dollars per month was the pay, and thirty-six
dollars in advance. It was a fine, large Amer.
ican ship, a thousand tons burthen. The own.
ers were the banking firm of Duncan, Sherman
& Co., No. 17 Wall Street, New York City.
The crew was composed of Swedes and Nor-
wegians, excepting three young Americans and
myself. I was the only sailor shipped in Mo-
bile, the rest having been on board for a num-
ber of months. To show the difference in
cargoes, I will describe the loading of this ship
with cotton. In the first place, a hundred tons
of stone ballast had to be placed in the bottom.
The bales of cotton at the warehouse were put
under powerful steam presses and reduced to
one half the original size. The old bands were
tightened with levers, and two extra bands
added. Then the bale was sent to the ship
and stowed as closely as possible; then jack-
screws were used, and a space made for an
extra bale to be jammed in, and, tier by tier,
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The Story of a Strange Career
the cotton was screwed in by men who made
that work a specialty. Their pay was from
three to five dollars a day, with board included.
The cargo was a solid, compact mass. The
bales averaged about five hundred pounds
each, and yet, with that heavy weight, the
ship would not stand full sail in a moderate
breeze. About two weeks after leaving Mo-
bile we had a severe gale. While close reefing
the main top-sail, one of the seamen was pulled
over forward of the yard by the sail, and in-
stantly killed as he struck the deck.
On that trip we saw a vessel, about two
miles to windward of us, struck by a heavy
squall. Its light sails were quickly furled, and
the top-sails lowered. All preparations were
made on our ship to do the same. We waited
quite a while, but no squall came. Not a rope
had to be let go. The wind must have shot
high up in the clouds and passed over us.
About six weeks after leaving Mobile we ar-
rived off Holyhead. There a large tug-boat
took us in tow, and we were soon going up the
Mersey River, and at anchor, waiting for high
136


· The Sport of the Waves
tide in order to go into dock. While coming
up the river we were boarded by the custom-
house officers. All hands were ordered to
bring out their tobacco. Then the search of
the ship began in earnest. With long, sharp-
pointed steel wires they prodded into every-
thing and every place where tobacco could be
hidden. It was understood that what could be
found would be confiscated. Much to their
disgust, none was found. What the officers
had in the cabin was put into a state-room,
and the door fastened with the custom-house
seal.
This was my first trip to England. I'd had
a good description of Liverpool from sailors,
and yet I was surprised at what was to be seen.
Each dock is an immense large basin, built of
solid stone masonry, with large store-houses
surrounding it, the whole being inside of a high
wall, a large gate opening into the city. Police-
men and custom house officers patrol it day and
night. Nothing can pass without examination.
The tide from the sea rises from twenty to
twenty-eight feet in twenty-four hours. At
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The Story of a Strange Career
high tide the gates, like a lock in a canal, are
opened. The ships are then allowed to enter
or go out. Within a half hour the tide com-
mences to lower, then the gates are closed until
the next high water. Everything was made
ready on the ship for going into dock. A tug.
boat had us near the gate waiting for our
chance. Once inside, we had no trouble secur-
ing the ship alongside the dock. Our big
anchors had to be taken on deck, that being
one of the dock regulations. By evening every-
thing was in first-class shape and very little
work left to be done by us in port. After
supper we all started to see the city sights by
night. I was the only stranger, the others hav-
ing been there before. The three Americans
and myself had a very pleasant time and re-
turned on board the vessel about twelve o'clock.
Before we had undressed for bed we heard a
heavy splash in the water from the forward
part of the vessel, then some one from another
vessel sung out, “Man overboard !” We ran to
the top-gallant forecastle and could plainly see
the bubbles rising in the water, but the man
138


. The Sport of the Waves :
never came to the surface. Grappling-hooks
were sent for and the body was soon recovered.
One of the crew, a Norwegian, had gone to
sleep on a coil of rope on the forecastle and
rolled overboard. The next morning, through
superstition, the crew all left the ship. We
four Americans, of all the crew, alone remained.
The stevedore and his gang came on board to
discharge the cargo. I was anxious to see the
first bale of cotton taken out. I had seen how
tightly it had been jammed in at Mobile. With
tackle and hooks and plenty of hard work, it
was slowly pulled out. It took over a week to
discharge the entire cargo. I had bought a
straw mattress in Mobile, and, as it was not very
comfortable, I emptied the tick and filled it
with cotton. That same day a young fellow
came on board and asked me if I had a cotton
mattress that I would sell him. I told him I
had one, but needed it to sleep on. Finally a
bargain was made—he wanted the cotton only
to sell. I was to receive a half-crown-sixty
cents—and get the tick back. I went to the
dock gate with him and told the custom-house
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The Story of a Strange Career
officer that I was sending my bed to a boarding-
house. The next day the bed was sold again,
and I continued the operation as long as there
was any loose cotton lying about the vessel.
A half-crown in England was considered quite
a big pile of money. For two crowns a coat,
pantaloons, and vest could be purchased in those
days. Our ship was chartered by the French
Government to take a cargo of coal from Car-
diff, Wales, and deliver it at Algiers, Africa.
A few English navvies were hired to assist
working the ship. Then a powerful tug-boat
took us out of the dock and towed us around
to Cardiff. After getting in the dock, the nav-
vies were sent back on the tug. There was
only one dock, very wide and long, without
any walls around it. It was the private prop-
erty of the Marquis of Bute, a kid about five
years old then. He owned nearly the whole
city-it was “Bute" road, “Bute” dock, “Bute”
Castle, and “Bute” everything else. We had
to wait a number of days for our turn to go
under the chutes. At last we commenced load-
ing. The lower hold was about two thirds
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The Sport of the Waves
filled, the balance of the load going on “be.
tween decks,” so as to leave part of the weight
above the water-line. A full complement of
men was shipped and we were off for the Med-
iterranean Sea.
141


CHAPTER XI
A GLIMPSE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN
were
SAILING south, we arrived at the Straits of
Gibraltar. The wind was dead ahead. A strong
current was running in from the Atlantic
Ocean and we managed to beat in past the
Rock after tacking ship many times. All hands
were well tired out from bracing around the
yards so often. On one tack we would be
headed for Spain, on the other it would be for
Morocco. During the night the wind died
away. At daylight we found our ship was
rapidly drifting on to the rocky coast of Mo-
rocco. There was not a bit of air stirring and
the sea was as smooth as glass. Captain Otis
was very much discouraged, as the loss of so
fine a vessel meant ruined prospects for the
future. He was quite a young man for such a
responsible position. The Moors on the shore
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A Glimpse of the Mediterranean
had seen our danger and spread the news to
one another. Soon quite a number of small
boats were seen at the place where the ship
would probably strike. It made all hands feel
a little nervous to see the reception which was
awaiting us. It was well known by sailors
what a set of cutthroats the people were in that
locality. The officers and crew held a consul-
tation as to what should be done. My sug-
gestion was acted upon, and that was, to take
all our boats and tow the ship, if possible, or
at least to check her from drifting, in hopes
that a breeze might spring up. Strangely
enough, I was the only man on the ship who
had ever seen the experiment tried. The oc-
casion took place when I was in the bushes at
San Carlos watching my old ship, the Courier,
leaving the harbour. The wind having died
away, they lowered the boats and towed the
ship a considerable distance. But then the
Courier was only half our size and had more
and better boats than we had. Our boats were
quickly lowered and fastened in a row to a
rope from the ship’s bows. By hard pulling
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The Story of a Strange Career
we slowly turned the vessel head to the cur-
rent. The drifting was checked, and that was
about all we could do. Within half an hour
a breeze sprang up and away started the ship,
swinging the boats around and towing them
stern first. We had a lively time in preventing
them from capsizing when the towing business
was reversed.
In a few days we sighted what appeared to
be an immense hill of chalk, perfectly white
from the water's edge to the summit. That
was Algiers. Before night we were inside the
breakwater and at anchor. That was the most
interesting port I ever saw. A large number
of French troops were stationed in the city.
The Italian war was then in progress. Such
a contrast in people and dress was probably
never seen before. Only the Algerian and
Moorish women seemed to be without gaiety.
They were all dressed alike, a light gauzy dress
and a long veil of the same material covering
the head and face, leaving only the eyes un-
covered. The rich wore shoes; the poor went
barefooted. The young had smooth skins on
144


A Glimpse of the Mediterranean
their wrists; the old were wrinkled. That was
the only way we could tell the difference be-
tween them. As to their beauty, we had no
means of judging. Other women were dressed
in silk tights and gaily coloured velvet jackets,
the front being completely covered with jewels.
In fact, every conceivable sort of costume was
to be seen. The streets were always crowded;
nobody seemed to be at home. The French
soldiers were in their element, all wearing their
side-arms. One regiment of Turcos looked
fierce enough to annihilate a whole army. At
nine in the evening, an entire drum corps would
double through the town beating tattoo. Then
the soldiers would disappear for the night.
Wine was only eight cents a quart bottle, so
their dissipation did not cost them much, espe-
cially as they did not get drunk. But how they
could talk and get excited! An Englishman
with such an opportunity would drink more
and talk less. Most of our crew had a fond-
ness for eau de vie_"water of life”-a cheap
brandy that cost us only fifteen cents a quart.
Café royale was also a favourite beverage
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The Story of a Strange Career
with them-a cup of strong black coffee with
brandy, the latter being bought separate in a
bottle. The coffee could be doctored to any
degree of strength. At first, my shipmates
would take one portion of brandy, a swallow
of café royale, and in would go another, and so
it continued until each bottle was emptied.
When ready to pay the waiter, he would count
the marks on the bottle at so much a mark.
There was no chance to dispute the bill, and
no opportunity for the waiter to defraud the
boss. I was continually eating grapes—great
large bunches weighing two or three pounds
each; they were white and seedless, and only
two cents a bunch. Algiers was once the
great stronghold of the Algerian pirates. They
and the Moors laid a heavy tribute on vessels
of all nations that came within their clutches.
The United States sent a fleet of men-o'-war
into their ports, destroyed their vessels, and
liberated a number of American seamen they
held in captivity. The city is built on the side
of a very high and steep hill; the streets run-
ning parallel with the harbour are level, but
146


A Glimpse of the Mediterranean
cross streets leading up are one continuous flight
of steps. You can go into a house on one
street and descend from one basement to another
and find yourself on the top floor of a house on
another street. That cannot be done in any
other city. Some of the old streets are only
six feet wide, the doors in the houses being
very heavy and studded thickly with large iron
bolts. The windows are high from the ground
and only twenty inches square, with heavy iron
bars, the whole place resembling a strong
prison. The new part of the city is quite
modern in construction. The French intro-
duced new ideas when they captured the
country.
The French Government took the coal from
our vessel as they needed it. They were pay-
ing. one hundred dollars a day for the time
the ship was detained in the harbour. One
day I was sitting on the edge of the fore-
hatch, cleaning a brace - block, when sud-
denly my work ceased, and I was laid up
for a week. A man was aloft, tightening
the truss bolts on the foretop-sail yard. He
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The Story of a Strange Career
had a small iron bar which he was using at,
the work. Contrary to all rules, he neglect-
ed to fasten it with a lanyard. He had diffi-
culty in turning the bolt with his hands, so he
reversed the operation by holding to the rig.
ging with both hands and pushing the iron bar
with his feet. It was a success, so far as he
was concerned. The bolt went around, the
bar slipped out, and, whirling through the air,
fetched me a whack on the side of the head.
The mate gave him a good cursing for his care-
lessness. I was picked up, my head dressed,
and was nicely tucked away in my little bed.
In about ten weeks' time the coal was all dis-
charged, the ship cleaned up, and one hundred
tons of stone ballast taken on board. We left
Algiers, and commenced our voyage for New
Orleans. We had pleasant weather while in
the Mediterranean Sea. A couple of days after
leaving port, a large Swedish sailor and myself
were taken sick-headache and fever-then
pustules commenced to appear on our faces and
hands. We all knew what that meant. It was
smallpox. At first the captain intended to
148


A Glimpse of the Mediterranean
put us in the lower hold, but, as our vaccina-
tion marks showed very plainly, he waited for
further developments. The fresh sea air and
plain style of living were in our favour; vario-
loid was all the disease amounted to. The rest
of the crew were a badly scared lot of men for
a few days.
We sighted the Rock of Gibraltar, and
were soon in the Straits, with a fair wind driv-
ing us strong against the current. About three
miles more and we should be on the Atlantic
Ocean. Suddenly the wind shifted dead ahead.
All we could do then was to go back and lie
behind the Rock. All sails were furled except
the top-sails, and the ship hove to by backing
the main yards. We made several more unsuc-
cessful attempts. The current and wind were
too much for us. We had a fine view of the
Rock of Gibraltar. The western side sloped
very steeply to the bay. The eastern part was
perpendicular and inaccessible. A narrow,
sandy strip of land connected it with Spain.
England, having possession of that fortification,
was there, like a big bulldog taking charge of
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The Story of a Strange Career
the entrance to a house against the occupant's
will. For over a hundred years the Spanish
have been humiliated by their British guests.
The Rock commands the entrance to the Medi-
terranean, and is considered impregnable. Im-
provements are being continually made. The
galleries are tunnelled through solid rock. The
magazines, bomb-proofs, and casemates cannot
be penetrated by an enemy's shot. The upper
guns can fire a plunging shot on a ship's deck,
but a ship cannot elevate its guns enough to
return the fire. The English can fire rifle bul.
lets into Spain. With the heavy guns they
can drop shot and shell into Morocco and into
the Spanish forts, and, at the same time, throw
tons of shot the whole length of the Straits.
As there are at present, in 1897, just that num-
ber of guns in position, an enemy's fleet would
receive a very warm reception. An extra gun
is mounted every year. By looking on the
front cover of an almanac, anybody can find
out just how many. cannon are mounted on
the Rock of Gibraltar. About the tenth day
we got a fair wind that took us through the
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A Glimpse of the Mediterranean
Straits and into the Atlantic Ocean. The ship
was then headed southwest for the Gulf of
Mexico. In six weeks' time we sighted the
lighthouse, and then the low sandy beach at
the mouths of the Mississippi River. A tug-
boat took us over the bar, and we let go
the anchor. When a tow of six vessels was
obtained, a large tug towed us up the river,
each ship being fastened to the other with
large hawsers, stem and stern. It was a power-
ful boat to tow so many ships against the
strong current of the Mississippi. One man
was at the wheel to keep the ship straight after
the tug, and all the rest of the crew were hard
at work unbending the sails and lowering them
on deck. The third night, about ten o'clock,
we arrived at New Orleans. The ship was
secured to the levee, and the voyage on the
C. C. Duncan was ended.
A number of boarding house runners came
on board. Each one, of course, was working
for the “best house." It was two o'clock in
the morning when our work was finished.
Then all the crew went ashore to enjoy a sleep
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The Story of a Strange Career
UN
on dry land. Captain Otis tried to induce us
four Americans to remain on the ship for an-
other voyage. I gave him my reasons for leav-
ing, as it was my intention to return to my
home from which I had been absent so long. I
received eighty-five dollars pay that was due
me, and went by steamboat to Mobile, Ala.
152


CHAPTER XII
IN AMERICAN WATERS
On my arrival in Mobile, I went to work
on a barge and received forty-five dollars a
month. We would be towed down the bay
with a load of cotton and back to the city with
general freight. Ships drawing over twelve
feet of water could not go up the river, conse-
quently they had to receive and discharge in
the lower bay, thirty-five miles from the city. I
was on the barge for two months and then
shipped on the schooner Pennsylvania, at thirty-
five dollars a month. For a few weeks we
brought salt to the city from the ships in the
bay. Then my wages were reduced to eighteen
dollars a month, as we were to take a cargo
of pine lumber to Havana, Cuba. The schooner
was towed up the Alabama River to a new
sawmill.
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The Story of a Strange Career
During the daytime we would load timber
and at night all hands would go 'possum-hunt-
ing. A few pine-knots for torches and a couple
of dogs were all that was required for the sport.
As soon as a 'possum was caught he would be
as dead as a door-nail, to all appearances. They
were put in a bag as fast as captured. On re-
turning to the schooner, we dumped them all
into an empty barrel. In the morning they
would be as lively as crickets. When the bar-
rel was hit hard with a stick, the whole lot
would pretend to die a most tragic death.
When the schooner was loaded, we sailed
for Havana. On our arrival in that port, the
lumber was discharged. The captain, as a
speculation, bought a car of oranges and ba-
nanas. The fruit was perfectly green when
brought on board. We immediately set sail
for Mobile. Much to the captain's disgust, the
trip was a long one of calms and head winds
and great trouble. The weather was intensely
warm. The oranges ripened very quickly and
then rapidly decayed. The fruit venture proved
very unprofitable. On our arrival in Mobile,
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In American Waters
only the bananas were fit for sale. We had a
nice job to clean the rotten oranges from the
hold. I never see a mouldy orange but that
my memory goes back to that remarkable trip.
We were towed up to the sawmill for an-
other load of lumber. 'Possum-hunting occurred
at nights as before. One of the sailors and
myself wanted a pet to take to sea with us. So
we went on shore on an expedition by our.
selves. We at last found a big “razor-back”
sow with a litter of pigs. Each of us decided
that two little pigs were just the thing needed
on the schooner. Then the fun commenced.
“Scotty" and myself learned the fact that the
pigs could do some good sprinting when there
was occasion for it, and just then was one of
the occasions. For a half hour we tried all
sorts of tactics. It was of no use. What the
little pigs didn't know the old sow did. At
last we came to a big saw-log close to a fence.
I was to stand at the end of the log while
“Scotty" was to drive the pig family between.
Everything worked nicely. I did not interfere
with the sow. Making a grab, I got one pig
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In American Waters
ashore and visit the different places in the city.
We all invested money in the Royal Lottery,
but drew no prizes. The tickets were sold on
the streets by venders, who received a commis-
sion on their sales. A person who could not
understand Spanish would suppose that they
were selling newspapers. The tickets were in
large sheets, sixteen dollars for a whole and
proportionately, down to a sixteenth.
A large American ship arrived in harbour
from China with a load of coolies for the Cuban
plantations. The captain was sick, so he made
arrangements with Captain Turner to take his
vessel, the Messenger, to New York. Our
mate was to take the schooner to Boston, with
a cargo of sugar and molasses. We took our
cargo on board, boxes of sugar in the hold and
hogsheads of molasses for a deck load. I was
now going home in earnest. I purchased a lot
of guava jelly and tropical preserves, besides a
nuniber of presents for my relatives. I wrote
to my mother, in New York, telling her of my
intentions, giving her the name of the schooner
and its port of destination. The fourth day of
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The Story of a Strange Career
July, 1860, early in the morning, we sailed out
past Morro Castle. Our voyage to Boston had
begun. I felt happy with the prospect of
soon being back home. We had a very easy
time on the schooner, there being nothing to do
except to take our turns at steering. On a full-
rigged ship it would have been different, as it
is invariably the practice to keep the crew con-
tinually at work most of the time, most usu-
ally aloft, repairing the rigging. We had
passed the most dangerous part of our trip,
through the Florida Keys; the wind was “wing
and wing"—that is, the foresail was out on one
side and the main-sail on the other. A good
strong breeze was driving us north at a rapid
rate. That night it was my turn at the wheel
from ten to twelve o'clock. It being cloudy,
no stars were visible. For that reason it was
more difficult to steer straight. By selecting a
bright star ahead when the vessel is on the
right course, it is easier to see which way the
wheel is to be turned. Steering by compass
alone, the vessel either “goes off” or “comes
up” considerably before the compass shows it.
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In American Waters
The main boom was out to starboard the full
length of the sheet. A pennant-heavy rope-
from the end of the boom was hooked to a
tackle and fastened forward in order to prevent
the boom from swinging back. I had been at
the wheel about an hour, and was watching the
compass carefully. Suddenly the light in the
binnacle went out. Then I had neither stars
nor compass to steer by. As we were going
dead before the wind, I tried to keep the old
schooner straight, but it was useless. In a few
minutes she yawed to starboard, and the main-
sail was taken aback. All the strain of that
big sail was then on the boom pennant and
tackle leading forward. Before anything could
be done to relieve us from our dilemma there
was a sharp snap forward. The belaying-pin
which held the tackle had broken, the boom
flew over to the other side, and the sheet taut-
ened out like a bow-string. It took hardly a
second for the sail to jibe over.
I was lying on deck badly stunned, the
wheel-post broken short off, and the wheel
broken into small pieces. The old Pennsyl.
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In American Waters
our pet pig. He had grown to quite a respect-
able size. It was much to our regret to
slaughter our companion, but it had to be
done. As it was, we had nothing left to eat
on our arrival in Boston. The first thing after
the anchor dropped was to row the cook ashore
and get some grub for supper. Captain Turner
was on hand to meet us, having arrived several
days previously. His first inquiries were about
the pig. He intended to take it to his home.
His wife had made a nice place for it in the
back yard as a domicile. We went to a
dock the next day for unloading cargo. A
custom-house officer came on board to see that
everything was according to the manifest. He
was very sociable to all hands. About dinner.
lled me to one side, quietly inform-
ing me that he was going to dinner and would
not return for an hour or so, and that, if the
boys had anything to take ashore, they had
better do it while he was absent. I told the
crew what he had said. As we all had a
quantity of cigars, we each chipped in a hand-
ful as a present. The balance and my supply
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The Story of a Strange Career
of guava jelly was taken to a boarding house.
When the officer returned from his dinner, I
told him to look on my bed. He took the
hint-and the cigars too. I had to wait some
time in Boston before I could get my pay
which was due me, and I had not written home
about my arrival, not knowing how soon I
might start for New York. About the third
day, while standing on the schooner deck, I
noticed a neatly dressed lady coming down the
dock. As it was an unusual place for a woman,
my curiosity was aroused. She seemed to be
looking for some vessel, so I stepped ashore
and walked towards her, thinking I might be
of some service to her. She was looking for
her son. I was the son. It was a great sur-
prise to me to see my mother so unexpectedly.
“Now, George, you won't get away this
time; you are going straight home with me!”
I was greeted.
The way she knew the Pennsylvania had
arrived was by reading the New York Herald.
That paper gave the daily arrival of ships in
all the large ports of the United States. I
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In American Waters
told her my reasons for not writing and why I
was detained in Boston; then she was satisfied.
I inquired about my relations at home. They
were all well and very anxious to see me. I
then asked about my father in San Francisco.
She at once began to cry. Then, for the first
time, I noticed that she was dressed in mourn-
ing. Father had been dead just three months.
I went to a hotel with mother and remained
with her until evening; then she returned to
New York. In a short time I received my
money. The next train was taking me to New
York and back to my friends from whom I had
been separated for such a long time. How
glad they were to see me, and what a happy
time we all had! They never got tired of
listening to the stories of my sailor life. I re-
mained at home for about six weeks. As I
did not wish to remain idle any longer, I con-
cluded to return to Mobile, where I was well
acquainted, and there work at discharging car-
goes from vessels. I was satisfied that I could
easily earn from two dollars and a half to three
dollars a day at that work during the winter.
12
163


CHAPTER XIII
MY THIRD VOYAGE
ABOUT October 1, 1860, I intended to take
passage on the ship Robert Ely, for Mobile, but
changed my mind, for the reason that the ship
had a crew of negroes instead of white men.
The P. T. Bartram was almost ready to sail; the
crew were all shipped, so I paid ten dollars for
steerage passage, and was to furnish my own
food. So many sailors wanted to go South that
it was difficult for me to ship as a sailor, the
boarding house keepers having the preference
with the shipping offices for their boarders.
The P. T. Bartram was a bark of about six
hundred tons burthen. The cargo was general
merchandise—a little of everything. The
North at that time furnished the Southern
States with everything excepting raw cotton.
We had a fine passage to the Gulf of Mex-
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The Story of a Strange Career
the vessel's quarter-deck, no other place being
safe from the heavy seas. The storm kept in-
creasing in violence, until finally the strain
from the top-sails bent the main-yard up
and it snapped in two. All hands started
aloft to save the sails. I happened to be first,
and went out to the weather side, as is custom-
ary. When about half-way out the foot of
the sail, it flopped over the top-yard, struck me
in the breast, and knocked me off the yard.
What a queer sensation I had while falling!
So many thoughts rushed through my brain in
an instant, especially whether I would strike
on deck or go overboard ! The vessel was
heavily careened over to leeward from the force
of the wind, and luckily I struck in the lower
rigging, my arms going between the ratlins,
where I hung on for life, the pressure of the
wind helping me considerably. My mishap
was enough for the other men—not one would
venture on the yard. They just clung to the
rigging, and let the top-sail blow away in small
pieces.
. With the top-sail gone, the bark fell off into
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The Story of a Strange Career
no air hissing as usual seemed rather strange.
The upper box was taken out, and then an iron
hook lowered down for the lower box. When
that was hauled up, the mystery was explained.
About a pint of nicely water-soaked beans was
holding the clapper down. By using the
sounding rod, we found about fourteen inches
of water below. The pump was rigged again
and started, and in a few more minutes it was
the same old trouble--more beans ! The pro-
cess of drawing the boxes was gone over again.
The same result followed—more beans ! A
barrel of that edible fruit had broken open in
the cargo, and every individual bean had found
its way to the pump-well. The comments
were loud and deep, and the man who invented
beans was damned in all styles in several differ-
ent languages.
Well, there was nothing else to do but pump
the beans out on the instalment plan. Just as
soon as a certain quantity got on top of the
valve or clapper, it acted effectually as an auto-
matic shut-off for the water. The hurricane
had been blowing for three days and our worst
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My Third Voyage
danger—the terror of all sailors—was close at
hand. We were drifting towards the Florida
reefs. A few hours more and the ship, with
all hands, would be a thing of the past. There
was no possibility of escape unless the gale
abated or the wind shifted to another direc-
tion. Birds by the hundreds were flying for
our vessel. They were land birds of all kinds
and sizes, probably blown to sea from Cuba.
Striking the rigging or any part of the vessel,
they would be instantly killed. Every nook
and corner on the deck was filled with their
dead bodies. The wind blew them around
like so much dust. One was found in the
compass-box, under the compass. Its pres-
ence was made known by the smell of a de-
caying body after the storm was over. The
anchor-chain boxes had a fine assortment sand-
wiched in between the big iron links. Those
we could not get out and, consequently, the
odour was anything but pleasant in that lo-
cality. The sea had changed in colour from
green to a milky white. This showed that we
were getting into shoal water. The agitation
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The Story of a Strange Career
of the waves was bringing up fine white coral,
which formed the bottom of the ocean in the
locality of the reef.
Towards sundown the hurricane had passed
us, the wind gradually veering around to the
north, which made a fair wind for us to Mobile.
All sail was set, the damage repaired as much
as possible, the cook made a lot of good strong
coffee, and then all hands took turns in taking
a much-needed sleep.
A remarkable sight on that trip I have for-
gotten to mention: one pleasant evening the
sun was exactly even on the west horizon and
a bright full moon on the eastern. It lasted
only a few minutes, but it was a beautiful
sight. All the time I have passed on the
ocean, I never saw the phenomenon but that
once.
The next afternoon after the storm we
sighted a vessel dead ahead. On getting closer
we saw a signal of distress flying. The ship
had lost all her masts close to deck, was almost
on her beam ends, and rolling like a log in the
water. What did our gallant captain do but
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My Third Voyage
sail past without giving any assistance! The
signal indicated that the crew wanted to aban-
don the wreck. All hands talked rather plainly
to the captain regarding his inhumanity. His
excuse was that his own vessel was too badly dis-
abled to assist others. In a few days we were
off Mobile harbour and took the pilot on board.
From him we got a description of the storm at
Mobile. The Robert Ely, the ship in which I
had intended taking passage at first, had ar.
rived at the beginning of the storm, and an-
chored outside of the harbour. The wind
broke her from her anchorage and wrecked her
on the low, sandy island at the entrance of the
bay. Three of the crew were washed over the
island into the bay on the top-gallant forecastle
and rescued. The remainder were drowned.
The island had been under water. When
we arrived it was completely covered with the
cargo and fragments of the wreck. Pianos,
boxes and barrels, all kinds of dry goods, were
to be seen mixed up with the spars, rigging,
and timbers of the Robert Ely. We sailed in
through the channel and up the bay. As we
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The Story of a Strange Career
drew only twelve feet of water we could go up
the city to a wharf. A tug-boat took us in
tow, and, striking a mud-bank, the good bark
P. T. Bartram stuck there. Some of the cargo
had to be taken out in lighters to enable us to
get up the Spanish River. Much to our sur-
prise, the dismasted wreck that we saw at sea
was towed in and got up to Mobile city ahead
of us.
.
I went ashore on board of a steamboat and,
in a few hours, was back at Campbell's board.
ing-house, giving a description of a storm in
the Gulf of Mexico. After I had finished my
story, I was taken to the back yard and saw
two bales of cotton which they had captured
floating in the streets in front of the boarding-
house. One third of the city had been under
water, the upper part of a wharf had been
washed away, and a flat-bottomed steamer had
replaced it by standing squarely on top of the
spiles. Schooners and fishing-smacks were
swept into the swamp and left there-over a
mile from the river. A great amount of dam-
age had been done all along the Gulf coast.
W
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My Third Voyage
The season was rather early for work among
the shipping, consequently I was idle. Sailors
were needed for a ship ready for Liverpool,
but no one wanted to leave Mobile. The
wages, eighteen dollars a month, remained
the same, and advance pay of fifty dollars was
offered and increased to one hundred, so I con-
cluded to accept it. The trip to England
would take about five weeks, and, by immedi.
ately returning, I should still have a long win-
ter for work. The giving of nearly six months'
advance pay was to evade the marine law in
regard to discharging sailors in a foreign port.
If sailors deserted on a vessel's arriving, the
owners were not responsible. My name was
signed on the articles for the full voyage.
Campbell, the boarding house keeper, got the
one hundred dollars and handed my share to
me. I sent part of it to New York and re-
tained twenty dollars for myself. Bidding
my acquaintances good-bye and promising to
be back in ten weeks, I went by steamboat
down the bay and reported for duty on the
full-rigged ship Annie Size. Campbell's re-
, 173


The Story of a Strange Career
sponsibility for the advance money then ceased.
That was exactly thirty-seven years ago, and I
have never seen Campbell nor Mobile since.
The Annie Size was a ship of one thousand
tons burthen, loaded with cotton for the Liver-
pool market. The difficulty in getting a crew
detained us several days. Two other men and
I had made up our minds to make a short
cut in the voyage. The plan was to steal
the ship's boat; get ashore and foot it back to
Mobile. As we had our advance money, there
was no particular desire on our part to see
Liverpool. The next morning, while the mates
were eating breakfast, two of us got into the
boat. The third man weakened and squarely
“flunked.” With only us two to steer as we
had planned, our little scheme had to fail.
The second mate had come from the cabin and
had seen us going away. He called the mate,
and that gentleman hailed another ship to send
a boat to him. In the meantime we were
doing our best to reach shore. The other boat,
with a full crew, caught up with us within a
few yards of the shore. We were taken back
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My Third Voyage
to the ship and handcuffed until the day of
sailing.
Finally, the full crew was on board, and
made a class of sailors that the mate had no
use for. Americans, Irish, Irish-Americans—
men of that class usually stick together; on
the other hand, a mixed crew of all nation-
alities does the reverse.
The anchor was weighed, our trip for Liver.
pool was begun, and our destination would
not be reached too soon for any of us. The
first day at sea war was declared. Our mate
was the notorious bully, Billy Shackleford.
At one o'clock he came to the forecastle door
and in a gruff voice ordered watch on deck.
“And he'd be — if there would be any
afternoon watch below on his ship!” He was
curtly told to “Go to -
“Do you fellows know who Billy Shackle-
ford is?”
“Yes, we know all about you, and any
monkey business on your part, overboard you
go!"
Billy was perfectly docile for the rest of
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The Story of a Strange Career
that trip. That was the toughest crew I ever
sailed with—-nearly all old acquaintances in Mo-
bile. The amount of money in our possession
was over a thousand dollars, in gold coin.
Usually, sailors on a ship leaving port are all
dead broke. An Irishman, for security, had
bound a rag around his ankle containing sixty
dollars. One morning his rag was missing. He
bewailed his loss at a terrible rate. Somebody
had quietly shaved his original style of money-
belt with a razor while he was taking his sleep
on deck during a night-watch. I was the next
victim ; twenty dollars in gold was taken from
my sea chest. The chest had been opened
with a key. I said very little about my loss, as
I had a strong suspicion that a certain man had
taken it. He had shown me how safe his
money was. It was rolled up in a rag in his
trousers' pocket with a string tied around the
outside of the pocket, so that the money could
not be reached unless the string was untied,
and that could not be done without remov.
ing his trousers, as he explained to me. His
custom was to get into bed all-a-stand—that is,
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My Third Voyage
without undressing. The first stormy night we
had plenty of work to do, reefing the top-sails,
and all of us were tired and sleepy when our
watch went below. All were soon asleep but
myself, for my hour of revenge had arrived.
With a sharp penknife, I cut a slit in the
trousers of my dishonest friend, the end of the
pocket containing the gold slipped out, then I
cut off the whole business. The money was all
I wanted, and the string, rag, and remnants of
the pocket I left as a souvenir.
Ten five-dollar and one two-and-a-half gold
pieces was the total amount. I“ planted” the
money in a secure place and went to bed, and
when my misguided friend awoke there was
more anguish in the camp. He had my sym-
pathy and consolation over the fact that we
should both land in Liverpool dead broke, and
this made our friendship more binding.
Instead of making a trip in five weeks, as
we expected, we were over two months in get-
ting to port. For a wonder, no one was killed
during the voyage. The ship was towed up
the Mersey River, and we arrived at Liverpool
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My Third Voyage
was not a custom in England, and an official
addressed me thus: “Will you ’ave your lug.
gage booked?” My name and destination were
duly inscribed. “Sixpence, please.” I got on
the train thinking it would be smooth sailing
for “me luggage ” and myself, but such was not
the case. I was told to change cars at a certain
station, which I did, and, at the time, I noticed
that “me luggage” was on the platform at the
station. Getting on my train, another link of
my journey was being made, and, about nine
o'clock that night, I found myself at a town
called Open Gates, quite a distance on the
wrong road. They informed me that I should
have changed trains some distance back. “Why
in — didn't you tell me to ?” was my reply.
A free ride back and a new start was made in
the right direction, and, finally, I brought up at
a town called Newport. There the “line of
rails,". as they are called, ended. Twelve miles
from Cardiff only, and “me luggage” and I had
to take another road, and “me luggage” could
not be found and no one knew anything about
it. Now, what puzzles me to this day is what
179
...
13


The Story of a Strange Career
the “ booking” meant. And I have never been
able to find out, although it is the English cus-
tom. I went to a cook-shop and remained in
Newport a couple of days, and in the meantime
there were many inquiries about the “ Young
Hamerican's luggage.” It was finally located,
and when I changed cars the first time I learned
that it was my duty to have it placed in the
luggage car. While I was on my way to Open
Gates, the chest was left on the platform, where
I had last seen it. In the course of time a con-
tinuation of the journey was made, and at last
Cardiff was reached. Hunting up an old ac-
quaintance, he took me to a nice, quiet board-
ing-place.
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The Story of a Strange Career
The next morning my very sociable hostess
had a friendly chat with me. For old acquaint-
ance sake I must take her to the public-house
next door and buy the gin. That place was
quite respectable, but, like all public-houses in
England, women would patronize it with as
much freedom as men. I was simply paralyzed
by an introduction I got to a very pretty
young woman, by the proprietor's wife. “This
is an old lover of mine, and he has come back
to board with me." I was too polite to deny
it, but it was an infernal lie, all the same.
I could not find a ship just then ready for
Mobile. Having nothing to do, I would fre-
quently sit in the back-room of the public-house.
Everything was so cosy there! A bright fire
in the grate made the room quite cheerful.
The proprietor and his wife were a fine-look-
ing and well-educated couple, always pleasant
and sociable. Acquaintances were continually
dropping in for a visit, and a pleasant, merry
time it was for all. One of their friends was a
young woman, about twenty years old, with
large brown eyes, always good-natured and
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Pretty Jennie Bell
pleasant. She was known as Pretty Jennie
Bell, and was, beyond all question, the belle of
the neighbourhood. She was married, but had
left her husband on account of his brutality.
Nothing could be said against her character.
It was then Christmas-time. I was sitting in
a chair watching the fire and thinking of home.
Every one in the room was laughing and look-
ing at me. I raised up my head, and saw a
branch of mistletoe held over my head. Turn-
ing around, I saw that “Pretty Jennie Bell”
was the person who held it in her hand. She
started to run, but I very quickly caught her,
and got the kiss to which I was entitled. All
the rest in the house must have a mug of beer
for the kiss that I had won. Such a happy
time we had that evening! Jennie and I had
fallen in love with each other.
I had met an old shipmate in Cardiff, who
was the first mate of an American bark. He
recommended me to the captain, and I ob.
tained the position of second mate. I felt quite
proud then. It was arranged between Jennie
and me that I should make a voyage, and
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The Story of a Strange Career
in the meantime she would obtain a divorce ;
we would then get married and go to New
York. Our voyage was for Matanzas, Cuba,
with a cargo of coal. A couple of nights be-
fore we were to go, it was my turn to remain
on the vessel. The captain and mate were on
shore. As I sat in the cabin reading a book
for pastime, I heard my name called. Jennie
had come down to the dock alone to see me.
I went ashore, and asked her if she was not
afraid to come to such a dangerous place on a
dark night. In an instant her arms were
around my neck. “George, don't leave me,”
was all she said. That settled the business!
I helped her on board the vessel, and took her
into the cabin. We sat there talking to each
other until after midnight. The mate then
returned. I told him to get another second
mate, as I had changed my mind about going
to sea. He laughed, and bade me good-bye.
Jennie and I were both very happy then.
The future was not thought about. In a
couple of weeks it became very apparent that
I must earn a living for my pretty wife. The
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Pretty Jennie Bell
fact of having no trade and being without
influence to obtain suitable employment natu-
rally made me discouraged. The English navy
was giving four pounds sterling as a bounty
for seamen. I shipped as an able seaman, on
condition that I should be put on a man-of-war
belonging to Portsmouth Harbour. My cloth-
ing and sea chest I sold. The proceeds and
the bounty I gave to Jennie. I was assigned
to the line-of-battle ship St. Vincent, one hun-
dred and twenty guns. My term of service
was for five years. Several other men and
myself were taken across the Bristol Channel,
thence by rail to Portsmouth. The St. Vincent
was a very large ship, having five decks, three
tiers of broadside guns, and a crew of twelve
hundred men. I received some clothing and a
hammock and found myself a full-fledged Eng.
lish man-of-war's-man for the second time in
my life.
My attention was called to the bulletin
offering inducements for volunteers to the Gun-
nery Schoolship Excellent. Men of good edu-
cation, first-class seamen and physically perfect,
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The Story of a Strange Career
were
were eligible. A man named McMinn and I
made applications for the required examina-
tion. Both of us were taken on board the
Excellent and most thoroughly examined.
Everything being satisfactory, we were trans-
ferred and made “seamen gunners” and “sub-
marine divers” in Her Majesty's service. The
term of service was altered to twenty-one years.
Extra pay was allowed for the grade of gun-
ners. Two-pence—four cents—extra was al-
lowed a day as submarine diver and one
shilling an hour while diving, and one penny
a day for each good-conduct stripe, three be-
ing the limit. A service pension was to be
granted for seventeen years' service, at eight
pence a day, that being additional to our regu-
lar pay. The Excellent was an old frigate
anchored close to the navy yard. She had no
masts or rigging, the crew having nothing
more to do with the seamanship. We were
divided into four divisions, each division chang.
ing exercises daily. From nine in the morning
until three in the afternoon we were constantly
drilling. Breech- and muzzle-loading guns,
186


Pretty Jennie Bell
broadside guns, howitzers and muskets and
rifles and pikes and cutlasses, all came in rota-
tion, and target practice daily with big guns
and small arms. Then, by turns, we would
put on the submarine armour and practise at
diving in thirty feet of water. On Saturdays
and Sundays we had a rest. Five days' drilling
in a week was sufficient. When a man-of-war
was ready for sea an order would be sent to
the Excellent for the same number of seamen
gunners as the ship had guns. Then we would
rank as Captains of the Guns and receive pay as
petty officers. For instance, a frigate of forty
guns was ready for sea; forty men from the
Excellent would be sent on board. As soon
as the frigate returned from a cruise the forty
men would be sent back to continue their
practice in gunnery. At three of the after-
noon, every day, three divisions were at liberty
to go on shore and remain until half-past seven
the next morning.
I at once rented a nicely furnished room
for light housekeeping for one half crown a
week. Then I sent for Jennie. On her arrival,
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The Story of a Strange Career
everything was made pleasant and comfortable.
I would be at home three nights out of every
four. Saturdays I would be at liberty at eleven
o'clock in the morning until Monday morning.
My wife would draw one half my pay every
month, one quarter pay was given to me in
cash monthly, and the other quarter I could
draw in clothing and other necessaries. I
needed all my pay, and it required sharp prac-
tice to get it. I could get one pound of tobacco
monthly. That cost one shilling, government
price. I sold it immediately for two shillings.
I drew flannel, and sold it at a profit. I kept
my account about square with the paymaster.
As I drank no grog, tea and sugar were given
me in lieu of it. McMinn and I were very
friendly. He was a temperance man and gave
me his allowance of tea and sugar. At the
end of each month I had quite a quantity
due me. My half-pay was allotted to Mrs.
Jennie Thompson, Portsmouth. Then we were
in a quandary. It was necessary for a wife to
show a marriage certificate before she could
get the money. Now that was a document
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Pretty Jennie Bell
that Jennie did not possess. That little ob-
stacle did not bother us very long. We went
to the Register's office and were married in
orthodox style. Jennie did not worry much
over the fact of committing bigamy. She got
the certificate and half-pay, too. We lived
together very happily. I never knew her to
be ill-natured or say a cross word. I always
had a cordial welcome, and a pleasant smile
awaited me. What money I earned was spent
to advantage. I neither drank liquor nor used
tobacco. My nights were always passed at
home with Jennie, and happy hours they
were, too!
One night, while my division was on duty
aboard the ship, we had quite a diversion from
the ordinary routine. A big fire was seen on
shore. All boats were “called away” and our
division landed at the navy yard, each man
carrying a ship's fire-bucket. A lieutenant had
charge of the "fire brigade” of about one hun-
dred and fifty sailors. Nothing pleases a sailor
more than having something to do on land.
Going to a fire was an unusual treat. Steam
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The Story of a Strange Career
fire-engines were not invented at that time.
For a New York city man that fire was a com-
ical sight. On our arrival at the scene, we
found a regiment of soldiers drawn up in double
line around the burning buildings. Behind them
were about all the prostitutes in the city-and
they were numerous in proportion to the popu-
lation. The soldiers opened ranks for us to pass
inside the lines, the women encouraging the
sailors by singing out, “Go it, Excellents! Be
lively, my lads !” The troops had their mus-
kets and, in their bright scarlet uniforms, made
a grand display. Only one old-fashioned fire-
engine, worked by hand, was to be seen. The
old box was so leaky that the water was spurt-
ing in all directions except the proper one.
Our gallant lieutenant, with his drawn sword
pointed to the burning building, was ordering
us to put out the fire. The whole block was a
row of small two-story brick buildings. As one
house would burn down, the next would catch
fire. The fire-buckets were of leather, with a
rope thirty feet in length attached to each one,
for the purpose of hoisting water over the ship's
190


Pretty Jennie Bell
side and lowering it down the hatches in case
of fire. On shore the circumstances were dif-
ferent. The rope was a great impediment.
But something must be done to show what
sailors could do at a fire.
A dam of mud was made in the street
gutter, the leaks in the fire-engine furnishing
abundance of water. All hands were formed
in line and each man, dipping up a bucketful
of water, would run to the burning structure,
the lieutenant with his sword would point out
the particular second-story window into which
he wanted the contents of the bucket thrown,
and so it would go. That plan was a dismal
failure. It would require men about twenty
feet in height for that style of fire-fighting.
The agents of the insurance company asked us
to tear down a building about six houses to the
leeward of the fire. By that means the fire
could be checked from spreading. The fun
then began in earnest. A stick of timber
was used as a battering-ram for the outside ;
inside the building the sailors were like a
swarm of bees. One enterprising man was
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The Story of a Strange Career
boosted up into the attic; he did not remain
there long, however, for, making a misstep, he
went through the second-story ceiling, his body
and a quantity of plastering landing on his
shipmates below. That building was a com-
plete wreck in a very short time. While the
wrecking was in progress, some of the sailors
had got on the roof of a building next to the
fire. Then the hose was pulled up, and during
that process the sailors close by got a good
ducking occasionally. Somehow, the sailors
could not control the nozzle properly—at least
they said so. In a short time the fire was put
out, and there were four buildings not damaged
between the ruins and the wreck. How that
insurance agent did growl and rave!
All hands picked up their buckets and were
marched to the navy yard, and on our way a
saloon-keeper was called out of bed and the
lieutenant treated each man to a pint of beer.
About daylight we were on board the ship
again. The sailor who so gallantly held the
nozzle and squelched the fire was in luck. The
insurance company made him a present of ten
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Pretty Jennie Bell
shillings, and also wrote a letter to the captain
of the Excellent, praising the conduct of the
aforesaid sailor. As he had ruined a fine pair
of trousers which cost him twenty shillings
to replace, his reward was considered quite
small. The men in the house-wrecking busi-
ness were inclined to be envious; they were
not even thanked for their hard work.
By hard study and strict attention to duty,
I soon became a good gunner. The cutlass
exercise I was very fond of. Every evening,
when I remained on board, I would get some
good man to use the single sticks with me for
amusement, and, consequently, I became quite
a good swordsman. In April we received
news in regard to the Rebellion in the United
States. Jennie and I had a long conversation
on the subject, and both concluded that it
would be much better for me to be in the Unit-
ed States navy, where promotion was possible.
The pay was also much better. Besides, I was
not an Englishman, and it was my duty to
fight for my country. It was arranged that
Jennie should go home to her parents, and re-
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The Story of a Strange Career
main there until I could send for her from
New York. I was to desert from the Ex-
cellent.
Now, deserting from that vessel was a se-
rious affair, as neither labour nor expense was
spared in capturing a deserter. The penalty
was not less than one year in prison. It was
very seldom that a gunner ran away, and nearly
every one who did so was caught. I got a
canvas bag, such as sailors use, instead of a
chest. Taking it home, I filled it with any old
dresses or rags that Jennie could get. I
brought two No. 3 grape-shot from the ship,
and put them in with the other trash. My
object was to have my baggage to take with
me. I told McMinn of my intentions. He
had his discharge from the English merchant
service, which he gave to me, as it might be
very useful. My sailor clothes I sold, except
the suit I had on. Jennie told our landlady
that she was going home on a visit. Every-
thing being ready, we bade each other an affec-
tionate good-bye, and she went away. The
next day I got a pass from the captain for per-
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Pretty Jennie Bell
mission to travel for twenty-four hours unmo-
lested. I got my man-of-war's suit changed,
and, taking my baggage, and getting on the
cars, I was in London in a few hours.
Securing my bag, I at once went to the
Sailors' Home on the East India Road, regis-
tering my name as John McMinn, also showing
the discharge from the merchant service. I
stated that I had been home several months on
a visit. The Home was a very large building
built by the Government for the protection
of sailors from the numerous boarding-house
sharks. The charges were just enough to cover
all expenses, and each man had a small room
to himself, besides the use of the library and
the bathing-room. There was also a large
sitting-room, and a shipping office was on the
lower floor. Men could be shipped there or
paid off ; in fact, everything was done to pro-
tect sailors from being defrauded. Early the
next morning I went to London dock. In a
short time I found an English brig ready for
sea. Showing my discharge to the captain, he
told me that I was just the kind of man he
14
195


The Story of a Strange Career
wanted, and gave me an order to be shipped.
I went to the Home and signed the Articles
for a voyage to St. Kitts, West Indies.
An advance note for two pounds ten was
given me, and the next day, at ten o'clock, the
brig was to sail, that being the time of high
tide, and the dock gates open. That also was
the time that I would be proclaimed a deserter
from Her Majesty's service, it now being
twenty-four hours after my pass had expired.
I had no intention of going to St. Kitts, and
about nine o'clock I settled my bill, and, pick-
ing up my bag, was going out of the door,
when I met one of the owners of the brig.
“Ah, my lad, I came to ship another man
in your place. We thought you had backed
out.”
“Oh, no!" I replied. “I am just on my
way to the docks."
“Then hurry, lad, you have no time to
lose.”
Well, that brig went to sea with my name
on the Articles. That was what I wanted.
But I was not one of the crew. I went to a
196


Pretty Jennie Bell
shipping office, threw my bag into a corner,
and told them that I wanted to ship on a ves-
sel. I was sent to an American ship to see
the mate, and from him I got an order to be
shipped. The voyage was around Cape Horn
to Callao, Peru, from there to Australia, and
thence to the United States. That trip would
be around the world and would take a year to
complete.
197


CHAPTER XV
GOOD-BYE TO ENGLAND
MRS. MASSEY was in charge of the shipping
office, and, showing her the order and saying
that I would ship, I walked out, and straight-
way back to the dock I went. I found the
vessel that I really wanted. It was the packet-
ship Rhine, bound for New York with emi-
grants. From the mate I got an order to be
shipped from a certain office. I went to Massey's
for my bag, and, as I picked it up and started
for the door, Mrs. Massey asked me if I had
backed out, and I curtly told her that I had.
Then she showed her good breeding. Such
language I never heard a woman use before.
" --- who enticed you from this office ?
---!” Two young men happened to be
standing in front of the door. " — are these
the men ?” she asked. “Yes," I answered, and
what a tongue-lashing those two fellows got !
198


Good-Bye to England
In the meantime I walked off. I found the
right office and shipped for New York. I re-
ceived an advance note of two pounds ten. A
young man in the office offered to take me to a
small boarding-house, and arriving there, I was
introduced to the landlord. He was an old
sailor, a native of Chile, and the fact of my
having lived there made us friends at once. I
made a bargain for two days' lodging, a straw
mattress, sheath knife, tin pot, pan, and spoon.
Besides, he was to have five shillings extra for
cashing my advance note. The difference he
paid me in cash. Then I went to the post-
office and bought an order for every cent I had,
made payable to Jennie Bell, and, remaining in
the house until the sailing, I wrote a letter to
Jennie, merely stating that I would be in New
York four weeks from that time. The money.
order was inclosed and the letter mailed just
before the ship left the dock. We sailed down
the Thames River into the Channel, and at sun-
down the white chalk cliffs of Dover were far
astern. That was the last time I ever saw the
coast of England.
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Good-Bye to England
teller then said to me—“ See that hotel on the
beach? One year from now you will be stay-
ing there as a guest, and paying twenty-five
dollars a week for your accommodation. You
will be the best-dressed young man in the
house and wearing diamond jewelry, with the
waiters eager to wait upon you, as you are very
liberal in giving tips. And Matilda, the pro-
prietor's daughter, will be your betrothed
wife”-I should have laughed at the idea ; but
it all happened so in reality.
As we sailed through the Narrows it be-
came my turn to steer the ship; the captain and
pilot standing close to me conversing, I heard
the pilot say that the docks were crowded
with ships, and that the Rhine would have to
remain anchored in the bay a week before
docking. The captain replied that it would
give them a good opportunity to have all the
rigging tarred. Now, hearing that conver-
sation nearly cost me my life. Tarring a ship’s
rigging is about the hardest work and the
dirtiest job imaginable, and, besides, the hands
and finger-nails are dyed a dark brown colour
0
201


The Story of a Strange Career
which remains for weeks. None of that work
for me just then! As the anchor dropped, my
duty at the wheel was ended. The boarding-
house keepers came alongside and were soon
on deck looking for victims. A hard-looking
case asked me if I had ever been in New York
before.
“No, this is my first trip across the ocean.”
“Well, come to my house. I have a nice
place.”
“All right,” I answered, “I will go, on con-
dition that you get my clothes and take me
from the ship right off.”
He told his runner to take his row-boat
under the port bow. Going to the forecastle,
I pointed out my bag. I was to go in the
boat; then he was to throw me my valuable
wardrobe. The passengers were at the rail,
looking at Castle Garden. Crowding in be-
tween, I found there was a rope hanging over
the ship's side, and, in an instant, I was on the
rail, grabbing hold of the rope. I intended
going down "hand over band” with my feet
on the vessel's side, but the rope was not fast-
202


Good-Bye to England
ened as I supposed, consequently I fell about
twenty feet, striking the water back first and
just barely missing the row-boat. The runner
helped me in, then down came the bag, and
we were off for dry land. My career on the
ocean as a sailor before the mast had terminated
most unexpectedly to me, and that proved to
be my last voyage.
On landing, we walked to the worst local-
ity in New York city. On the way I was
told that a brig bound for the West Indies
needed a crew, and would I ship on her?
“ Certainly,” I replied. Now the intention was
to “shanghai” me (that is, steal my advance
money), my landlord supposing that I was a
greenhorn. Finally, we entered a dirty old
house on Cherry Street, the worst street in the
city at that time. I was invited to take a
drink, which I refused. The sleeping apart-
ment was shown to me—a filthy room with
bunks around the sides, made out of rough
boards. The brig was to sail the next day.
“Well, I must have a new pair of shoes.”
“ All right, come with me.”
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The Story of a Strange Career
He took me to a store and I selected a pair,
which were charged to the landlord.
“Now I want a hair-cut and a shave.”
Into a barber-shop we went, and that was
also charged up. Going back to the house, I
had my supper, and it was a holy terror for
"shore food.” I loafed around the place until
after dark, then I started for home, being
ashamed to have the neighbours see me in day-
light in my ragged and still wet clothing. As
for the sailors' boarding house, it was only a
case of “wolf eat wolf.” They had simply
caught the wrong man for a sucker.
I rang the door bell and a strange servant
girl asked me whom I wished to see. Without
answering, I walked in and opened the sitting-
room door. My return was a complete sur-
prise. One of my cousins, a young lady, cast
pitiful glances at my clothing, as much as to
say, “Poor fellow, he must have had a hard
time!” Fortunately, on leaving home the last
time, I had left my best suit of clothes behind.
It was only a short time before I had a good
bath and was dressed like a civilized being.
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The Story of a Strange Career
being rated as such by shipping as an ordinary
seaman. I was invited to come again in a few
weeks, as more men would be required, and
they preferred young Americans like myself in
the navy. In a few days I had made up my
mind to go into the army. The companies and
regiments throughout the Northern States that
were being organized had to be disbanded for
lack of arms and clothing, and also for the rea-
son that the Government had no expectation of
needing their services, so my patriotism was
squelched for the time being. A number of
my young friends had enlisted for three
months, under the first call for seventy-five
thousand men. They nearly all got back, and
stayed home for the remainder of the war, hav-
ing had all the glory they wanted.
206


CHAPTER XVI
WHAT MONEY CAN DO
I WROTE to Jennie, telling her that arrange-
ments had been made for her to live with my
mother for awhile, telling her also to let me
know when she would be ready to leave Eng.
land, as the money would then be sent to pay
her expenses. In a month's time I received a
very formal letter from her sister stating that,
through mediation of relatives, Jennie and her
first husband had become reconciled, and were
again living together. I showed the letter to
my mother and explained everything. She
was pleased at the termination of the affair,
but, somehow, she took no stock in my wife's
morality. I had about concluded that my
valuable services would not be needed in the
war, so I went to Duncan & Sherman's banking
house in Wall Street, intending to ship in one
207


What Money Can Do
Royal, in South Carolina. Some of the Con-
federates from there never stopped until they
reached Canada. Then came Hatteras Inlet
and Roanoke Island, N. C. The Government
secured all the steamers available for the use of
the navy, even taking the old Staten Island
ferry-boats. Gold became very scarce and at a
premium. Legal-tender notes were then issued,
and Government bonds sold at a discount.
For small change, postage-stamps were used.
All the silver coin was being hoarded up and
withdrawn from circulation. A revenue tax
was placed on everything. On whisky it was
two dollars a gallon. Even the poor people
had to pay for the revenue-stamps on the pawn-
tickets when they pledged articles. Before
the war ended, good tea was two dollars and a
half a pound; coffee, from forty cents to a dol-
lar; sugar, twenty-two cents; a common round
of beefsteak, twenty-five; turkey, thirty-five
cents a pound, and eggs sixty cents a dozen.
There was plenty of work, with high wages.
I still kept my situation and was gradually
working my way up. My associates were very
209


The Story of a Strange Career
different from those I came in contact with
while a sailor. Knowing as much as I did
about the Havana Lottery, I had great faith in it.
By very little persuasion, I got six young men to
go in with me to co-operate in the purchase of
tickets, each one paying a certain sum weekly.
Every month tickets would be bought for the
full amount. The bankers, Taylor & Company,
in Wall Street, were the agents. . For several
months it was the same thing—no prizes. In
the month of April, 1862, there was rejoicing
in the club. We had drawn a fifty thousand-
dollar prize! Taylor & Company cashed it
for us at a small discount. The seven sharers
received the money--a little over seven thou-
sand dollars each. Then we all went to the
devil. No use working with all that wealth,
so we left our situations.
At first a silver watch costing thirty-five
dollars was good enough for me, then I changed
it for a gold one worth one hundred and forty.
A diamond ring came next, for one hundred
and twenty-five dollars. And of course I must
have a diamond breastpin, one hundred and
210


What Money Can Do
twenty-five more. I got to be very particular
about the style of my clothing. A bottle of
wine with my suppers was just the thing. How
I did lie back and contrast the present with
the past while on board a ship!
Not feeling very well, I concluded to spend
a few weeks at a summer resort. My friends
recommended me to Teller's Pavilion, at the
Highlands, Navesink, N. J. My expenses
there were quite heavy: twenty-five dollars
a week for a nice room, one bottle of wine
for dinner, two dollars and a half extra. To
be well waited on called for liberal tips to
the waiters. As my money had come easy it
went easy. I made a lot of friends, and usu-
ally paid all the bills for boating parties and
other amusements. I became acquainted with
Miss Tillie Teller, and with us it was a case of
“love at first sight.” Finally, we became en-
gaged. I presented her with a fine diamond
engagement ring. The season ended and I re-
turned to New York.
Having spent a large share of my money, I
concluded to start in some business with the
15
211


The Story of a Strange Career
ren
remainder, make a good living and marry Tillie.
A saloon on Broadway seemed a good invest-
ment. Well, as a saloon proprietor I was a dis-
mal failure. It was nothing but woe and mis-
ery. Every one robbed me right and left. I
got into debt, lost all my respectable friends,
broke my engagement with Tillie, and married
another girl ; and that wife put the finishing
touch on the whole business. Annie was her
name. She was very pretty, with blue eyes,
light hair, and petite figure. How innocent
and childish in her ways! She could make me
believe almost anything. I had more rows on
her account than a prize-fighter could conveni-
ently attend to. If we went on the street-cars,
to the theatre, or into a restaurant, there would
be trouble with some one in short order. It
made no difference where we lived, it would be
the same old program; the first two days all
would be lovely, until she got acquainted with
the neighbours, and then war would be declared.
And I, like a fool, believed her to be in the
right. As regards her education, it was much
below the average standard. What she lacked
212


What Money Can Do
in that respect, however, was counterbalanced
by her ingenuity in inventing lies. It took a
long time for me to discover her talent in
that line. Her fictions were not overdone;
they were simply just good enough to be-
lieve.
Becoming disgusted with the saloon busi-
ness, I concluded to sell out at any price. I
was in debt, head over heels, and what little
money was taken in was stolen by the bar-
keeper. I was offered four hundred and fifty
dollars for the place and accepted it. It cost
me twelve hundred. I made a great mistake
in not insisting upon having my little angel of
a wife included in the sale, but it required a
few more years' time for me to become fully
acquainted with all her virtues. She certainly
was a terror. As a diversion she would have a
fit of hysterics. I was not well posted on that
female peculiarity. At first, I was badly scared
and did some lively petting and nursing.
Finally, the thing became rather monotonous, so
that when she felt like thumping her head
against the door or bed-post, I would go to sleep
213


The Story of a Strange Career
and let her amuse herself to her heart's content.
She recovered much quicker, as I found out by
experience. Taking a dose of laudanum was
also a favourite trick, but, unfortunately, she
never took an effectual one.
214


CHAPTER XVII
THE NEW YORK DRAFT RIOTS
I HAD sold all of my jewelry. The proceeds
of the sale of the saloon were nearly all paid
out for my debts. My financial affairs were in
a low condition, with a loving wife to care for.
What made my affairs worse was the prospect
of soon becoming a father. At that time there
was considerable war excitement in New York.
The rebels had broken loose and had invaded
Pennsylvania. All the New York State militia
were then sent to the front. My mind was fully
made up to enter the navy as soon as our child
was born and my wife well. The grade of en-
sign had been created in the navy. Getting
good recommendations from Duncan, Sherman
& Company and from Captain Otis, I made ap-
plication to the Secretary of the Navy_Gideon
Welles—and received permission to be ex-
amined for the position of ensign.
215


The Story of a Strange Career
The draft riots in the city had begun
(July, 1863) and all business was at a stand-
still. The three hundred dollars' clause was the
cause of the trouble. A man in moderate cir.
cumstances could pay that amount and be ex-
empt from military service, but a poor man
would be compelled to go. The State militia
being away, the city was defenceless. Besides,
there were thirty thousand known criminals
among the population, and a great number of
rebel sympathizers. The drawing of names for
the draft took place at Forty-second Street and
Second Avenue. Early in the morning a large
mob gathered and very quickly drove the
officers from the building and gutted the place
most thoroughly. The police from that pre-
cinct came running up Second Avenue, and
used their clubs very freely. When they got
close to the mob, affairs were different. The
rioters disarmed the police and gave them a
most unmerciful beating, several being killed
outright. One had sought refuge in a house,
where he was found hidden under a mattress
and thrown out of a second-story window.
216


The New York Draft Riots
Everything in the building was destroyed and
the place set on fire. The same result happened
at every house where a policeman had been
assisted or sheltered. Next the Invalid Corps,
composed of disabled soldiers, made a charge
on the crowd.
They were disarmed and driven back, and
in a short time news of the riot spread over the
city and pandemonium reigned for the time be-
ing. All places of business were closed and
not a policeman dared to leave the station-
houses. A number of good citizens took pos-
session of the armories and arsenals and guarded
them from capture by the rioters. Buildings in
different parts of the city were set on fire, and
the firemen would be on hand with their en.
gines, but would not be allowed to throw a
single stream of water. The Coloured Orphan
Asylum was pillaged and burnt to the ground.
The Old Firemen's was an organization that
gave its services without pay, but its members
were exempt from military duty. Their en-
gines were worked by hand, the companies
having from seventy-five to one hundred and
217


The Story of a Strange Career
twenty-five members each, and were always
present at the fires, but were powerless to do
anything. The mob had sense enough not to
attempt to injure any of the engines, as that
would have precipitated a fight with the fire
laddies, and they had the reputation of being
fighters from the word “Go."
Down town, the rioters made an attack on
the New York Tribune building, but old Horace
Greeley was prepared for war. The doors and
windows were barricaded with bales of paper
and behind that were all the employees, all heav-
ily armed. The mob took in the situation and
went after something that was easier, such as
chasing negroes into the East and North rivers
and watching them drown. At Twenty-first
Street they caught several and hanged them to
lamp-posts; then straw mattresses were placed
under them and set on fire. United States ma-
rines were sent from the Brooklyn Navy Yard
to guard the United States Treasury building
on Wall Street, as well as the banks in that
neighbourhood. Towards evening the rioters
became drunk and more reckless ; nothing could
218


The New York Draft Riots
be done to check them, and all the respectable
citizens anticipated a night of terror. Fortu-
nately, about eight o'clock a heavy rain com-
menced to fall, and that caused the drunken
brutes to disappear. The rain also extinguished
the fire in the many ruins in different localities.
The next day the weather was quite pleasant,
and the rioters, early in the morning, recom-
menced their work of destruction; houses would
be pillaged and then set on fire. The lower
class of people, especially the women and chil.
dren from the tenement-houses, could be seen
carrying off everything that was portable. The
thieves were very busy stealing all the valu-
ables when a house was first raided, and they
were usually the first to make a demonstra-
tion at any building, the mob being always
ready to follow, on general principles. The
police remained in the station-houses, not one
of them daring to come outside, as it would
have been certain death to do so.
Gun and hardware stores were broken into
and looted of all arms and ammunitions, and,
by that means, a large number of the most des-
219


The Story of a Strange Career
-
:
-
perate rioters became armed. A mob composed
of about five thousand men started for the Fifth
Avenue Hotel, situated on Madison Square,
considered at that time the finest and most
aristocratic hotel in the United States. As
they came close to the building, yelling loudly,
“Burn the Fifth Avenue ! Loot the Fifth Ave-
nue!” all anticipating an exciting time as well
as plenty of rich plunder, the whole thing was
suddenly changed. The occupants of the hotel
had been watching the advance of the mob
-not knowing their intention and as the
rioters entered the Square, howling and hoot-
ing, every window in the building was occu-
pied by the guests, who loudly cheered and
waved handkerchiefs to show that they were
in full sympathy with the mob. That ended
the affair, as the rioters were not disposed to
injure any of their openly avowed Copperhead
friends. The cheers were returned, and no
other demonstration was made. The Fifth
Avenue was a regular resort for secessionists
and rebel sympathizers during the war. In
any other country such a place would have
---
-
220


The New York Draft Riots
been closed up and all of the occupants put in
prison.
Towards night a few of the militia arrived
in the city, and the rioters killed a few of them
by firing from the windows and house-tops in
the tenement districts. The morning of the
third day more troops arrived, and the mob
scattered in all directions upon the approach
of the soldiers, only to mass together again
in another locality. In the morning a regi-
ment of infantry marched down Second Avenue
and the colonel stopped on some private busi-
ness on Twenty-seventh Street, when two riot-
ers sneaked up behind and knocked him sense-
less with a club. Then the crowd quickly
gathered, a rope was procured, and the colonel
was strung up to a lamp-post. In the mean-
time the regiment was marching along in com-
plete ignorance of their colonel's fate. The
body was soon cut down and dragged through
the streets, receiving all kinds of ill-treatment.
Rioters' wives hurled paving-stones at the
prostrate body, and what was most strange
was the fact of his retaining life until late in
221


The Story of a Strange Career
an
the afternoon. He was a very powerful man
and must have had wonderful vitality. Near
Tenth Street was a large building used as a
manufactory of muskets and revolvers. The
rioters had broken in and were helping them.
selves to everything portable, and, in fact, they
were so busy that they did not know that
Colonel Lynch's regiment was at hand, and
when they did realize that fact it was too late,
for, as they came rushing out, they were shot
down without mercy. A number of them
jumped out of the windows only to be killed
or maimed for life as they struck the side-
walk. Quite a large number was killed by
soldiers, and those who escaped spread to
the different parts of the city and circulated
the story that the soldiers would shoot to
kill.
That night the riot was nearly ended, for
more troops had arrived and the police were
again on duty. The next morning the bakers,
butchers, and grocers resumed business. Those
people who had not a good supply of provi-
sions on hand had a hard time while the riot
222


The New York Draft Riots
lasted, as not a single article could be pur.
chased. For three days not a street-car or
vehicle of any description could be seen on the
streets, nor was a coloured person, male or
female, visible during the period; probably the
only time in the history of New York that
such conditions prevailed, for a New York
negro, as a usual thing, is not very bashful
about making his presence apparent to all who
come in contact with him. The Southern sym-
pathizers were actually the ones who brought
on that riot, for they were always up to some
mischief, and a few months afterwards assisted
Dr. Blackburn to distribute clothing infected
with small-pox to the poorer classes in the city,
but the plot failed.
Next came the attempt to burn the whole
city by starting fires simultaneously in differ-
ent localities. Each of the firebugs carried a
black satchel containing self-igniting chemicals,
which were to be dropped on the stairways of
the large buildings. Barnum's Museum was
set on fire, and several other places also, with
but little damage resulting, and, about that
223


The Story of a Strange Career
time, any one caught with a black satchel
would suddenly come to grief.
My wife having recovered from her confine-
ment, and the riot being ended, I went to the
Brooklyn Navy Yard, and underwent a med.
ical examination. Next, I was thoroughly ex-
amined in navigation and then in seamanship.
Having passed in all, I was ordered to return
again in a few days and, in the meantime, to
provide myself with the regulation uniform.
My money was all spent by that time, so I
borrowed enough with which to buy my new
outfit. In due time, I received my appoint-
ment as an acting ensign in the navy. The
pay was thirteen hundred dollars a year.
There were three classes of officers in the
navy: first, the regulars; second, the volun-
teers, composed of officers who had resigned
previously to the war; and third, the acting
officers who volunteered from the merchant
service. The rank and pay was the same in
all classes. I was at once ordered to the St.
Lawrence, for instruction in gunnery. Quite a
number of ensigns and masters' mates was on
224


The Story of a Strange Career
In.
brig Perry. On my arrival, the captain in-
dorsed my orders as having reported. Next, I
went to the navy agent, and received two hun-
dred dollars as advance pay and my mileage
expenses from New York—twenty-one dollars
and ten cents. All naval officers are allowed
ten cents a mile when ordered to the different
naval stations. The next day I reported as
ready for duty. Being next in rank to the
captain, made me executive officer. The Perry
was the vessel I admired so much when in Rio
de Janeiro. Now the circumstances were alto-
gether different. It was a most undesirable
vessel to be attached to in war times. There
would be no chance of active service or prize
money. The Perry's day had passed with the
advent of fast steamers for blockade-running.
In the early part of the war she captured the
rebel privateer Dixie after a short engagement,
and that was the end of her victories. And
not one cent of prize money was ever credited
to her account.
The Perry was a man-of-war of the fourth
rate, carrying ten broadside guns and one how-
228


The Story of a Strange Career
III.
when a sailor gets to growling he can do it to
perfection, and the result was that the com-
mandant sent a number of the growlers to the
receiving ship, very much to their joy. They
were all good seamen. In their place we re-
ceived some very useless negroes to fill our
complement of men. The officers complained
of being sick, and everything else they could
think of, so an extra ensign was sent on board
to assist us. As that gentleman was my junior
by a few days, he had to be the navigator and
I became a watch officer. We were to pass
many a day of misery together in Southern
prisons.
Very much to the commandant's relief and
our own disgust, the anchor was weighed, and
we set sail for Charleston, S. C. All went
nicely until we got near Cape Hatteras, when,
during a storm, some of the fore-rigging carried
away. We all examined the parted stays, and
pronounced them rotten, and the officers had
quite a consultation as to what should be done
under the circumstances. Finally, the captain
said that if the six ensigns would go aloft
230


Acting Ensign in United States Navy
and examine the rigging, and then make an
individual report that the vessel was unsea-
worthy, he would put back for New York.
We gave our report in very quickly, and the
brig was headed for Sandy Hook, N. Y. On
our arrival at the navy yard, when the reasons
for our coming into port were made known,
there was a big rumpus, sure enough. The pre-
sumption on our captain's part was simply enor.
mous ! Had not the commandant of the Boston
navy yard reported the Perry as ready for
sea ? All the officers on the vessel got on their
dignity, and we pointed to the rotten rigging
to corroborate our opinions. The Navy Depart-
ment ordered a court of inquiry, and all the
ensigns were called before the court and in-
dividually questioned in regard to seamanship,
their experience on the ocean, and their reasons
for stating the rigging to be unfit for sea. It
happened, for a wonder, that we six ensigns
were all experienced seamen, and much above
the average. The questions were promptly an-
swered, and rather plainly, too. The court
was composed of regular officers, and some-
231


The Story of a Strange Career
an
thing must be done to exonerate the comman-
dant at Boston. Volunteer officers were con-
sidered as interlopers, and tolerated only as a
necessity. The result was that Acting-Master
William D. Urann was deemed unfit to com-
mand a vessel, and was detached from the brig
Perry and ordered to report for duty to the
commandant of the Mississippi flotilla. He
was there but a few weeks when his merits as
an experienced officer were recognised, and he
was promoted to acting lieutenant, ranking
with a captain in the army.
I may as well explain the grades of rank
now: A captain in the navy has rank with a
colonel in the army; commander, with a lieu-
tenant-colonel; lieutenant-commander, with a
enant, with captain; master, with
first lieutenant; ensign, with second lieutenant.
The fact of our captain being relieved did
not prevent orders being issued to have the
brig repaired, and the riggers from the yard
came on board and made things lively for a
while.
In about a month's time we were ready,
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Acting Ensign in United States Navy
up and back, so as to bring the vessel's head to
the southward, but it was of no use; the brig
would not swing around in the breakers but
only drift astern towards the beach. The anchor
was again let go, then a rope was put into the
hawse-hole, the other end outside the port and
fastened on the quarter-deck. The cable was
unshackled at the fifteen fathoms shackle, the
rope fastened to it, and the chain let run out of
the hawse-hole. As the brig drifted astern the
rope fastened on the quarter gradually tautened
until the strain on the anchor checked us, al-
lowing the vessel to swing around until her
top-sails filled. A buoy was then attached to
the rope and the latter let go. Away we went,
leaving the anchor behind, and then came the
hard work in earnest-beating off a lee shore
in a heavy gale of wind. When the gale was
over we found our brig to the south-east of
Charleston and a considerable distance from
our station, so back we went as fast as the
vessel would sail. While passing the en.
trance to Charleston Bay we espied a small
schooner stranded on the shoals. Here was
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The Story of a Strange Career
a chance to display our valour and zeal for the
service.
Arrants and I were in charge of the sec-
ond cutter, with the boat's crew heavily armed.
When we got on the shoals we found the “sus-
picious” craft to be a small schooner of about
fifteen tons. The sails were neatly furled
and the cabin entrance carefully boarded up.
There were neither cargo nor provisions on
board, and on the stern, in freshly painted
letters, was the name Old Abe, which we
thought was strange for a rebel craft. There
was not a house nor living being in sight in any
direction, so we set fire to the mysterious craft
and returned to the brig.
238


CHAPTER XIX
AFTER BLOCKADE-RUNNERS
On arrival at Murrell Inlet, we sought the
wooden buoy, and got it on board ; the line was
put through the hawse-pipe, and we all tugged
at it until we got hold of the chain, when that
was put around the windlass and the anchor
hove up. Having had enough of that locality,
we anchored farther out to sea in deeper
water. In a couple of weeks, our nearest
neighbour, the gun-boat at Georgetown Bay,
brought us our mail and some fresh beef. They
had a tale of woe to unfold. It seems they
had captured a small schooner and made use
of it as a pleasure yacht. One night it had
broken adrift and stranded on some sand shoals.
They had intended, some pleasant day, to fasten
a rope to it and have the gun-boat pull it off,
but they sorrowfully stated that the “—
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The Story of a Strange Career
rebs had burned it up.” We hadn't a word to
say. It was the Old Abe.
The enemy was in the habit of making
night attacks on our vessels whenever they had
the opportunity. It would have been an easy
matter for them to send small boats and men
from Charleston overland and make things
quite lively for us. To prevent any surprise
party coming on board, we put up the “board-
ing nettings” and kept men on guard in differ-
ent parts of the brig. George Brinsmaid, one of
the coloured men on board, was useless for going
aloft, or anything else, for that matter, so he
had extra guard duty to perform. He was
given a loaded rifle and stationed at the port
gangway. It made no difference how often the
officer of the deck would go to him, that fellow
was sure to be found asleep. I had bucketful
after bucketful of water thrown on him dur.
ing my watch, but it had no perceptible effect
in keeping him awake, for he was constitution.
ally sleepy. The fact that he was so useless
formed circumstances which resulted in his
death.
240 .


After Blockade-Runners
I had become quite tired of doing nothing
but fishing, so I asked the captain if I could
take the “dingey,” the smallest boat on a man-
of-war, and with two men go into the Inlet
on an exploring expedition. He was desirous
to have me go and find out if any vessels were
in there, and, selecting two volunteers from
the crew, we were ready to leave the brig
about daylight. The boat was landed close
to the southern point at the entrance to
the Inlet. I walked cautiously around the
nearest house without finding any footprints
in the soft, white sand. That convinced me
that no one was in the house. Getting into
the boat, I had the men row slowly into the
Inlet, the high, dry, soft marsh grass concealing
us from view of any one who might be in that
locality. At the southern end of the Inlet we
saw a schooner, which probably had run the
blockade, and, as it was not prudent just then,
we proceeded no farther in that direction; the
northern branch was also explored, but nothing
was to be found there. We had been absent
from the brig nearly four hours; the captain
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The Story of a Strange Career
had become uneasy on our account and had
taken the first cutter with an armed crew to
look for us. We met him at the entrance to
the Inlet. When told of what we had seen,
he concluded to go ashore himself on the
northern point. There we managed to shoot
a couple of razor-back hogs that had been feed.
ing on the beach. We raised such a rumpus
that the rebel cavalry were making prepa-
rations to give us a warm reception. Their
camp was in the woods about a mile from the
beach. We could see them saddling their
horses and acting in an excited manner. We
found out afterward that the rebels had only
sixteen men in camp at that time. Having had
all the fun and exercise we wanted on shore,
and out of respect to the rebels, we got into
the boats and returned to the brig.
A few nights afterward, we discovered a
boat nearing the vessel. Hailing it, we were
informed that some refugees wished to come
on board. Consent being given, they came
alongside, and, after asking a few questions,
we allowed them to come on board. There
242


After Blockade-Runners
undignified style for officers. If the enemy
had come right up to us they could have cap-
tured us without firing a shot, as we should
have been perfectly helpless. Instead of doing
so, they dismounted at the edge of the sand
dunes and fired quite an assortment of lead at
us from rifles, double-barrelled shotguns, and
old-fashioned muskets carrying large bullets
with three buckshot additional. They made
us fellows feel nervous with their careless
shooting. While the Southerners were shoot-
ing, we had to turn the boat completely around
and head out to sea. The man with the bow
oar tried to push the bow around by putting
the blade of the oar on the hard sandy bottom
and shoving it, and was so energetic that the
oar snapped in two. At last we got around,
and for a few minutes some good sprinting was
done.
The coxswain in the stern then had the
best chance of being struck by the bullets, and
doubled himself in a way that would have
aroused the envy of a contortionist. The men
at the oars laid as low as possible for them to
247


After Blockade-Runners
the skin was only peeled off, he concluded to
live a little while longer. It was a miracle
that every one of us was not killed or seriously
wounded. We were in a compact space and
the enemy had nothing in the way of a coun-
ter-fire to prevent taking deliberate aim.
We got back to the brig, and handed up
our prize pigs for Christmas gifts, then told
of our adventure with the rebels. The boat
was hoisted up and inspected. It had twenty.
two buckshot marks, and was pierced through
and through by six bullets. My face was badly
spotted by the splinters from the oar. We
were all congratulated upon our narrow escape.
Captain Gregory vowed vengeance on the
Southerners for their conduct, and, that night,
plans were arranged for the next day to “ carry
the war into Africa.” Then we went to bed,
excepting those on duty.
Next morning at eight o'clock we tried
again and sailed as close to the beach as pos-
sible and anchored. An officer was stationed
aloft with a pair of marine glasses, that he
might see over the sand dunes and have a good
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The Story of a Strange Career
view of the rebel schooner. For three hours
we tried to put a shell into the blockade-runner
with our guns, but could not do so on account
of the sand dunes interfering with our range.
At twelve o'clock Captain Gregory decided to
land a boat's crew; and that was his mistake
No. 3. We all well knew there would be re-
sistance offered to our landing, under the cir.
cumstances, but I received orders to set fire to
the schooner, and therefore had nothing to say.
Sixteen of the best men were selected and
armed with rifles, and to each was also given a
navy revolver, or else a boarding-pistol, carry-
ing an ounce bullet. Arrants was ordered
to assist me. The paymaster, a new officer
from Boston, volunteered his services, for he
thought he would have a picnic, and, besides,
his admiring friends had presented him with
an expensive sword and revolver, and these
weapons he intended taking back home with
him all covered with rebel gore. We three
officers carried a whole arsenal—sword, rifle,
and revolver. As we expected to meet not
more than twenty Confederates, we felt confi-
250


After Blockade-Runners
dent of victory, especially as we were better
armed and could load our guns more rapidly,
having improved cartridges. The enemy had
to tear the paper on theirs with their teeth,
while ours could be used without that process,
as they were encased in combustible paper.
251


CHAPTER XX
A PRISONER OF WAR
We took the first cutter for a landing party,
and the second cutter was manned with an
armed crew of six men to take care of our boat
while we were on shore. A small keg, filled
with tarred rope yarns and a bottle of turpen-
tine, was given to me with which to set the
schooner on fire. I told Captain Gregory to
send George Brinsmaid along with us to carry
the keg, as he was of no use on the brig, and
might be of some use on dry land. Every-
body thought it would be a good joke, so Mr.
Brinsmaid was ordered into the boat, and pro-
moted to the office of bearer of combustibles.
My instructions were plain enough: “To land
and set fire to the schooner and house, and do
all the damage possible.”* In case we were
* It was denied afterward that any such order had been given.
252


A Prisoner of War
а
attacked, we were to get behind the sand dunes
and defend ourselves, while the guns on the
brig would shell the rebels.
All being ready, we started for the shore.
Before landing, I had a long rope attached to
the bow of our boat and fastened to the
stern of the second cutter. When we got
on shore, the second cutter towed our boat just
clear of the surf, ready for us to get into in a
hurry, with the bow headed towards the sea.
George Brinsmaid had the keg to carry, and
was placed in the centre of the party. Then
we started for the sand dunes, intending to
carry desolation and dismay into the Southern
Confederacy.
When we got to the sand dunes, indications
pointed strongly to the fact that we had got
into a bad scrape. The sand was covered with
a large number of horse tracks, as if a whole
regiment of horses had been tramping around.
I had not much time to take in the situation,
as the enemy made a charge between us and
the boats. They came in double file; the left
file came for us, the right going for the boats.
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The Story of a Strange Career
I looked at the brig, expecting to see the guns
shelling the rebs on the open, but, much to
my surprise, the captain had allowed the brig
to swing around stern to shore, and not a gun
could be brought to bear on the enemy.
I told the men to get behind the dunes and
fire only at the enemy nearest to them. We
were scattered a few feet apart so as not to
be in a compact body. The first man came
into view just in front of me. He was riding
to the top of the dune. Knowing that the
rifle would carry high at such a short distance,
I aimed low at his breast. The bullet struck
him square in the forehead and the horse gave
a jump and threw him off, the body rolling
down the steep dune to our feet. That checked
the enemy for a few seconds, as they saw that
it would be safer to attack us dismounted.
For about five minutes that was a warm place.
Buckshot, bullets, and sand were flying in all
directions. The party attacking the boat were
unsuccessful, so they circled around and got in
our rear. Then we were completely surround-
ed and had to surrender. Two of the Con-
254 .


A Prisoner of War
federates were killed and several wounded, and
besides, they lost three horses. On our side
two were killed, and nearly every one of us
wounded. After we had surrendered, James
Pinkham was lying face down on the ground,
a bullet having passed through both of his
hips, and, because he could not get up when
ordered to do so, a rebel lieutenant shot him
in the back with his revolver. A young Irish-
man by the name of Tobin, belonging to our
party, had reloaded his rifle and was standing
close to Pinkham. The rebel lieutenant said,
“ You — Yankee, come here and give up
your arms !” Tobin advanced with both hands
stretched out, the rifle in his left and a board-
ing-pistol in his right. When he got within
about fifteen feet of the lieutenant, he blazed
away at him with the pistol, dropped it and
ran across the salt marsh to the woods, about
half a mile distant. He missed the lieutenant,
but killed his horse. A cavalryman started
after Tobin and, when near to him, called him
to halt. Tobin turned around and pointed his
rifle at the man. The latter's gun being empty,
ran
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The Story of a Strange Career
he halted, and off went the Irishman again for
the woods. Another man started in pursuit
with a loaded rifle, and, when close enough, he
shot Tobin in the leg, and the poor fellow
afterwards died in Andersonville Prison.
The Southerners who did not come until
the fight was all over, did all the blustering
and had the most to say. They did certainly
call us anything but gentlemen, and also were
very indignant because Brinsmaid had been
taken prisoner. “You Yankee - - get
in line there with your nigger brother!” was
the first order we got. We were taken to the
edge of the woods and everything was confis-
cated, whether of value or not. The enemy
wrangled considerably among themselves, with
the result that George Brinsmaid was taken to
a tree about fifty yards from us, a horse's
halter put around his neck, and he was hanged
on one of the limbs; then two charges of buck-
shot were fired into his breast. The poor fel.
low never spoke a word after leaving the brig.
In the fight his left hand had been shot off by
buckshot, but not a groan was heard from him.
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The Story of a Strange Career
piece of lead has been my constant companion
for just thirty-four years the 5th of December.
I can always tell when wet weather is coming,
by feeling a dull pain in my right arm. During
the general conversation, I found out the cause
of so many men being ready to receive us on
shore. It seems that the first shell we had
fired from the brig went very high over the
schooner and landed in the camp in the woods.
They were enjoying an after-breakfast smoke
when it fell in their midst. It was laughable
to hear them twitting each other about vacating
their quarters. We could not make them be-
lieve that it was a chance shot. They insisted
that one of the refugees on our vessel had
pointed out their camp to us. They also be-
lieved that they had killed all the men but one
in the boat the day before. Arrants and my-
self told them that we were the two officers on
shore, but they would have it that we were
both killed. The continual report of our broad-
side guns had been heard for quite a distance
north and south of Murrell Inlet. All the
rebel pickets thought that a blockade-runner
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A Prisoner of War
had been run ashore by the Yankees, so all
hastened to the scene of action, especially as
there might be a prospect of looting the vessel
if ashore. When they arrived and found out
the true state of affairs they concluded to re-
main, in the hope that we would send men
ashore to burn the schooner. There were pres-
ent two companies of cavalry—one each from
the Fifth and Twenty-first Georgia Regiments
and under command of Captains Bowers and
Harrison. There was where Captain Gregory
made a blunder in sending us ashore after can-
nonading the schooner. Instead of a few men
to contend with, we had a force of one hundred
and twenty to give us a warm reception, which
they did in most orthodox style.
If still living, one of those misguided men
is telling his grandchildren how he captured
my sword, for which I had paid twenty-five
good dollars. The rifle and the revolver be-
longed to the Government.
At four o'clock that afternoon we started
for Charleston, S. C. Those who were too
badly wounded to walk were put in an old
we
18
259


The Story of a Strange Career
wagon. Our boat's coxswain had been hit in
the head with a number of buckshot. He must
have had a tough skull, as the shot cut furrows
in his scalp and removed some of his hair. The
blood flowed very freely. He was compelled
to walk the whole distance. We had a guard
of ten men, under command of the lieutenant
that Tobin had tried to kill. Well, that fellow
made things as unpleasant as possible for us, in
order to have revenge for the killing of his
horse. The road was composed of white, dry
sand, and at every step we took we would sink
to our ankles. The cavalry horses were fast
walkers, and we had to keep up with them.
We came to a stream of cold water, and we were
forced to wade through it. There was a foot-
bridge for pedestrians on one side of the road,
but we were not allowed to go over it. The
cavalrymen got on their knees on the saddles,
and their horses, plunging through the water,
splashed it over our heads; consequently, we
got a good drenching. Walking was more diffi.
cult for us weighted with water; besides, it
was night-time, and in the month of December
260


A Prisoner of War
-rather late in the season for a cold-water
bath.
At nine o'clock in the evening we arrived
at our destination, Georgetown Bay, having
walked, or rather been driven, twenty-five
miles in five hours' time. It was all we could
do to keep up with the horses. A squad was
in our rear with orders to run us down if we
lagged behind. We were placed in an old log
house, the floor being covered to the depth of
two inches with sheep-manure. The wounded
were laid in the filth, without anything being
done towards making them comfortable. Two
pailfuls of small, raw sweet potatoes were
given us for our supper. That night, Decem-
ber 5, 1863, will never be erased from my
memory; tired and sore in every limb, my feet
badly swollen, the wounded arm hurting, wet
and hungry, I lay down in the manure and
tried to sleep, but could not; the cold and
the wet clothes kept me chilled through and
through. The poor fellows who were wounded
were continually moaning, but we were power-
less to alleviate their misery.
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The Story of a Strange Career
We had plenty of reason for growling about
the quality of our potato supper, but the fol-
lowing morning's breakfast was omitted alto-
gether. About nine o'clock we were divided
into squads and taken across the bay in sail-
boats. Those who were badly wounded were
taken to the hospital; the rest of us were
placed in the Georgetown jail, and a dirty
room about twelve feet square was kindly
placed at our disposal. At three in the after-
noon we had breakfast, dinner, and supper com-
bined. The menu consisted only of one dish-
a pan of cold boiled rice. With a piece of
stick it was cut into equal shares, and each
man took his portion in his hand and devoured
it at his leisure. We remained there, five
days. The only event of interest which oc-
curred there was my being taken out to Gen-
eral Tropier's headquarters. He asked a few
questions about the gunboat which was block-
ading the entrance to Georgetown Bay. My
answers were rather evasive. Then I did some
talking about the treatment we had received
after being taken prisoners. He said that in
262


A Prisoner of War
future we would not be abused while under
his control.
About four o'clock of the fifth day we
were taken from the jail, and, with a cavalry
guard, we were started for Charleston, S. C.
It was a triangular journey. Straight down
the coast Charleston was distant sixty miles,
but the Yankees had the water routes, and
consequently we had to walk forty-three miles
west to King's Tree, the nearest railroad sta-
tion. Thence, by railroad, we were taken sixty-
five miles southeast to Charleston. Lieutenant
Burroughs was in charge of the party. He
allowed us to walk at an ordinary gait, and
was very kind and civil to us.
263


CHAPTER XXI
IN THE PRISON
At nine o'clock we arrived at the Black
River Ferry, where a halt was made for the
night. We were then taken into the ferry-
man's house. Lieutenant Burroughs ordered
supper for four. Arrants, the paymaster, and
myself were invited by him to supper. It was
the only time I had a civilized meal while in
the Confederacy. We all slept on the hard
floor, a fire in the room keeping us warm. At
daylight we crossed the river on a primitive
ferry. A rope was fastened to each bank of
the river, and an old-flat boat was held in place
by it, and pulled back and forth by hand
power. At noon we halted for a rest and
to cook the dinner-some more boiled rice.
Late at night we arrived at King's Tree.
The next day, in the afternoon, we got to
264


In the Prison
Charleston, and were at once given in charge
of the provost-marshal. After the taking of
our names and rank the party was separated.
The sailors were escorted to the jail by a
guard, and a young lieutenant very politely
informed us that we would go with him by a
different route, so as not to attract the atten-
tion of the citizens. He took us through the
burnt district.
What a wonderful change there was since
I had last been in that city! All business was
suspended. A large area was in ruins from
the fire, grass was growing in the streets, and
there was desolation everywhere. We could
plainly hear the guns firing from our batteries
on Norris Island. On arriving at the jail, the
lieutenant shook hands with us and bade us
good-bye. We were taken to the top floor and
had an entire corridor to ourselves. There
being about sixteen large cells, twelve feet
square, we had plenty of room—in fact, each of
us could have had an entire suite to himself
had he desired it.
Everything looked very familiar to me, as
M
265


· The Story of a Strange Career
it was the same place in which I was confined
before my trial in 1856. The newspapers, giv.
ing an account of our capture, stated that I
was supposed to be the same George Thomp-
son who had been tried in the United States
District Court for murder a few years previ.
ously. On account of the notice in the news-
papers in regard to my being a prisoner of war
and confined in the jail, a number of citizens
visited me, but, having no permit from the
commandant, they had their trouble for noth-
ing. Major John Ryan, chief of subsistence on
General Beauregard's staff, and an old friend of
my father, was the only person allowed to see
me. Our interview was quite sociable at first,
then we gradually became belligerent, while
conversing about the war and its issues. He
had questioned me about my rank and the
amount of pay I received in the Federal navy.
Then the proposition was made that I join the
rebel navy with the rank of lieutenant. When
I refused, he became exceedingly wrathy. Fi-
nally he cooled down a little, and said that Gen-
eral Beauregard would send for me very soon,
266


In the Prison
as he wished to have an interview with me. I
replied that it would only be waste of time for
him to do so. Now, from the questions that
had been asked me, I knew exactly what the
rebs wanted to know. They had sent out a
torpedo boat to sink the Ironsides, but it was a
failure. An ensign was killed by a rifle-bullet
from the torpedo boat, but no damage was
done to the ship when the torpedo exploded.
Admiral Dahlgren had ordered a raft of tim-
ber to be placed all around the Ironsides in
order to prevent any more torpedo boats getting
near enough to do any damage. The rebs
could see with telescopes from Sumter that
the Yankee sailors were hard at work around
the ship, but could not find out what was being
done. The Charleston papers stated that the
Ironsides was in a sinking condition, and could
only be kept above water by the use of heavy
timbers. That same torpedo boat afterward
destroyed the Housatonic, but the boat and
crew were never seen afterward. In all proba-
bility they blew themselves up at the same
time.
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The Story of a Strange Career
General Beauregard retained all officers cap-
tured by his troops in case he should need
them as hostages. Consequently, Columbia,
S. C., was to be our place of abode, instead of
Libby Prison at Richmond, where the officers
were generally confined. While in the Charles-
ton jail we heard from our friends quite fre-
quently. Gilmore's guns would send shells
into the city. They sounded like a heavy
wagon-wheel going over a rough pavement.
Next would be a heavy thud, and, in a few
seconds more, a terrible explosion. At first,
percussion shells were used, but quite a large
percentage of them would turn in their flight
through the air, and as they would not strike
fuse first, no explosion would take place. A
lot of men were always watching for such
shells to strike. With shovels and pickaxes
they would dig them out of the ground. The
rebel ordnance department paid one hundred
dollars in Confederate currency for every unex.
ploded shell delivered. The next move was
for the Yankees to change from percussion to
time fuses. The first shell did not explode on
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The Story of a Strange Career
all. I may state now that it was the only time
that we had a blanket during our entire im-
prisonment. In all of that part of the building
there was no furniture of any description. We
had to utilize the floor for all purposes. Our
food consisted of cold boiled rice, and was
brought to us twice a day in a tin pan. Table
etiquette was dispensed with for the time
being, and our fingers had to be used for dis-
posing of the food. The evening of the seventh
day some of the provost guard took us to the
railroad depot en route for Columbia. While
waiting for the train to start, a couple of
women got into conversation with us. They
bade us “Good luck” and handed us each a
quart bottle of corn whisky. The provost
guard drank the most of it. At any rate, it
helped to pass away the night in a cheerful
manner. In the morning we arrived at the
Richland County jail, Columbia, S. C. That
was to be our resting-place for several months.
The following is the substance of the official
report of our capture, etc., made to the Secre-
tary of the Navy by Admiral Dahlgren:
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The Story of a Strange Career
the amount of damage done. The Secretary
of the Navy then issued the following general
order, which was read at general muster on
each vessel in the squadron :
“GENERAL ORDERS, No. –
“For flagrant disobedience of orders from
his commanding officer and being responsible
for a number of men having been captured by
the rebels, Acting Ensign William B. Arrants
is dismissed from the United States Navy.
While the Department does not wish to dis-
courage acts of gallantry or enterprise, strict
obedience of orders must be insisted on.
“GIDEON WELLES,
“ Secretary of the Navy."
DEON
The whole blame had been put upon Ar-
rants. Upon my arrival in Washington, I re-
ported to the Secretary of the Navy in person,
giving him a full report of the whole affair in
writing. He asked me a number of questions
in regard to Captain Gregory. As the naval
records showed that my commission antedated
that of Arrants by about three months, it
272


In the Prison
proved conclusively that Captain Gregory had
misrepresented when he stated that the expe-
dition had been commanded by Arrants. A
great injustice had been done. An order was
at once issued restoring Acting Ensign William
B. Arrants to the naval service from the date
of dismissal.
Captain Gregory, in order to screen himself,
had put all the blame on Arrants, supposing
him to be dead. When he found out we were
about to be exchanged he concluded that it
was about time for him to resign from the
service. By that means he escaped from seri-
ous consequences which would have resulted
from his conduct. The punishment meted out
by court-martial was generally severe during
the time of the Rebellion.
273


CHAPTER XXII
PRISON LIFE AND PRISON FARE
VEN 2
ELEVEN naval officers gave us a most cordial
reception when the captain in charge of the
prison introduced us as fresh fish. All were
eager to learn the latest news of the war, and
especially about the prospects of exchanging
prisoners of war in the near future. Now it
happened that we were well posted on the
“exchange” question-namely, that the author-
ities at Washington had notified the rebels that
the cartel was ended, and no more exchanges
would be made. Our men, when received,
were disabled from duty on account of sickness
caused by lack of proper food and clothing, as
well as inhuman treatment. On the other
hand, the rebels were returned in better health
and more comfortably clothed than at the time
of capture. The advantage to the rebel army,
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The Story of a Strange Career
confined in one room on the first floor. The
size of the apartment was sixteen by twenty
feet. When we lay on the floor at night there
was but little vacant space. Sixteen army offi-
cers were confined in a room on the other side
of the main hall. One half-hour in the morn-
ing and in the afternoon was allowed us to go
into the yard, in order to wash and attend to
our toilet, and only four were permitted to go
at one time. For that reason we had to be in
a hurry, so as to give all an opportunity. When
the half-hour had expired, we were counted and
the door locked. The army officers were then
let out for the same length of time. We re-
ceived our rations every ten days, in an un.
cooked condition. Unbolted corn-meal was the
staple food. Two ounces of old, mouldy bacon
was allowed each person for the ten days, that
being the only animal food we received. Some-
times a small quantity of rice was also allowed.
In the yard was a small brick building used as
a kitchen, where the cooking was done. Oppo,
site, and extending the whole length of the
yard, was an old wooden barracks in which
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The Story of a Strange Career
the jail and a one-story cottage. One of our
windows was exactly opposite their bedroom
window, but both too high from the ground
for the rebel sentry on guard in the passage way
to see into either of them. Our neighbour's
name was Crane. The family were strong
Unionists, and we carried on a daily conversa-
tion by slate-writing. All the latest news was
given to us, as well as any information which
we desired.
Mr. Crane was a young man about thirty
years of age, and he had a special permit
from the rebel government exempting him
from military service, on account of being a
wagon-maker and needed by the citizens in
Columbia to do their work. A girl about
eighteen years old finally came to reside with
the family. We immediately christened her
“ Union Mary," and kept that girl busy re-
ceiving and throwing kisses at us. She
seemed to have nothing else to do but to
watch our window. As we had plenty of
leisure time, some one of the party was con-
tinually making distant love to her. At last
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The Story of a Strange Career
for twenty-four hours. We became well ac-
quainted with all, and were quite sociable.
Three of the privates let us know that they
were Union sympathizers. Many a favour
they did for us, by assisting us to communicate
with Union people in the city. In the month
of March, 1864, all hopes of being exchanged
before the ending of the war were given up.
Every one of us was in favour of making an at-
tempt to escape from prison, if possible. Lieu-
tenant Preston and myself were to do the en-
gineering part; the others agreed to work under
our instructions. Preston was a regular officer,
and myself being a volunteer removed any
cause for believing that any favouritism would
be shown during the progress of building a
tunnel. After eight in the evening the guards
never opened our door. Then we commenced
operations.
A large brick fire-place was situated be-
tween the two windows. The bricks on one
end were taken up and a hole was made that
allowed us to get under the floor. Preston and
myself worked nearly all night. First, we
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The Story of a Strange Career
box, cleats were hastily nailed to the floor tim-
bers, pieces of board laid across, and the bricks
replaced. Ashes were then filled into the
cracks. It was a first-class job when finished,
and we could defy detection. One of us went
into the kitchen in the yard and stole our own
poker from the cook. It was a piece of flat
iron, and the only instrument procurable for
excavating purposes. The officers were divided
into working parties, two in each squad, each
to work two hours at a time. Preston would
direct and assist in the work, from eight until
twelve midnight, and I from twelve to four in
the morning.
It was necessary to be careful about the
construction of the tunnel, as it was to be run
under a sentry's feet. If there should happen
to be a cave-in and a reb drop down among the
toilers, it would be rather embarrassing. Crane's
house was built in the Southern style for all
wooden buildings, resting on supports about
two feet in height. Our objective point was
about the centre of his habitation. We could
crawl to the other side, and by getting over a
run
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Prison Life and Prison Fare
board fence would practically become “prison-
ers-at-large.”
The ground was favourable for our work,
being composed of stiff red clay. All felt
happy and cheerful as the work progressed,
and the monotony of being so closely confined
was somewhat relieved. On the corner of the
square in which the jail was located was the
city hall. We could hear the hours and half
hours as they were struck, quite plainly, so we
had no trouble about the time of quitting work.
It was necessary for us to have a point to start
our measurements from, and after much discus-
sion, we selected a window-sill in our room
directly over the tunnel-shaft. It was a strange
place to locate it, but from that point every
part of the work was measured to an inch. By
fastening a wad of wet paper to a thread we
ascertained the exact distance between Crane's
house and the inside of the jail wall. One of
us held the thread on the window-sill while the
other kept throwing the wad until it struck the
clapboard. When the sentry walked past our
window he gave us the opportunity, and, by
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The Story of a Strange Career
lowering the wad to the ground, we got the
height of the passage-way which the sentry pa-
troled. The shaft was sunk nine feet, and was
considerably lower than the foundation of the
building. Then the tunnel was started, being
two feet wide and three feet in height, the top
being arched. For a distance of fourteen feet
it was perfectly level, then it was started on an
angle towards the surface of the ground.
About that time we had to stop operations
for a few days. Orders had been sent by Gen-
eral Beauregard to put Lieutenant-Commander
E. P. Williams and Ensign Benjamin Porter in
irons, and hold them as hostages for a rebel na-
val lieutenant, who was sentenced to be hanged
by the Federal Government for piracy on Lake
Erie. Williams was selected as the highest in
rank, Porter for the reason that he had the
most influential friends. The two officers were
shackled together, hands and legs, and were
doomed to be inseparable companions for the
time being, with a chance of being hanged. Not
knowing but that the officers or guards might
enter our room during the night to look at the
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Prison Life and Prison Fare
and with a little salt added, by mixing it with
water it would be ready for eating. Matches
were put into bottles to prevent them from
getting wet. In fact, all preparations were
made for our journey that we could think of.
It occasionally happens that people make
fools of themselves in assisting others. Well,
that is just what we did; some of us thought
it would not be right to leave the army officers
behind. A vote was taken and all were in
favour of giving the army officers a chance to
go with us. They were notified and one week's
time given them in which to get ready. They
were instructed to be cautious, and that we
would make an opening in their fire-place also
as soon as Porter and Williams were released.
The latter were to have the first chance for
their liberty.
287


CHAPTER XXIII
DISAPPOINTMENT AND MORE WAITING
ABOUT the second day afterward circum-
stances indicated that our intention to escape
was known to the officers of the guard. They
would come into our room, ostensibly for a
friendly visit, but we noticed that they were
examining the windows and floor while chatting
with us. Within a foot of the building was a
six-foot board fence, and that was taken away,
giving the sentry on duty a full view of our
side of the walls. Then we knew, for certain,
that something was wrong. On Saturday
morning permission was obtained to have the
room floor scrubbed. Everything was piled on
the table and a general housecleaning took
place. All of us then went into the yard until
the floor got dry. As we anticipated, the offi.
cer on duty went into the room during our
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The Story of a Strange Career
three o'clock in the morning he changed his
mind and ordered us to be escorted into the
room occupied by Williams and Porter. All
the little portable articles we possessed, which
might tempt the cupidity of the rebs, were
hastily gathered up and our change of quarters
soon effected. There was no more sleep for us.
So much excitement in one night was too much
for our delicate systems.
In the morning Captain Sennes concluded
to confine the navy and army officers on the
second floor. That part of the building was
the “bull pen” for the conscripts. Every part
of South Carolina was thoroughly searched
for shirkers from military duty. The “poor
whites,” as they were called, would be taken
from their families, manacled two together, and
brought to the jail. When a squad of fifty
was obtained, they would be sent to the front
and distributed among different regiments. As
a class they were very ignorant, but few of
them knowing what the war was about.
“What do you 'uns want to come down
here and whip we ’uns for?” was their only
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Disappointment and More Waiting
argument. But at the same time they would
fight—there was no mistaking that fact.
Our new quarters were very uncomfortable
in many respects: there were dirt and filth
everywhere. An old box-stove in a small room
was our fire-place. The conscripts had no fire-
wood, so they had used the doors and frames
for fuel, then the window-sashes and casings
were utilized, and next was the lath from the
partitions. That floor had plenty of ventila-
tion. No difference which way the wind would
come from, we got the full benefit of it. The
rooms were divided between us, the army
taking one side of the building, the naval
officers the other, the hall-way being used as a
promenade by all the tenants. No attempt was
made to keep us separate as in the past, for
the reason that the doors and partitions were
lacking. The view of the city in our locality
was very good. When we got tired of looking
from one side of the building we could cross
over and take a view in the opposite direction.
The newspapers had blood-curdling articles in
regard to our attempt at escaping. We were
20
291


The Story of a Strange Career
alluded to as “Yankee hirelings,” and other pet
names were bestowed upon us. Even poor
Mrs. Crane got a roasting because her house
happened to be over the exit of the tunnel.
Quite a number of visitors came to the jail to
view our work, but finally the whole affair
became stale and forgotten. Then it occurred
to Captain Sennes that it would be quite proper
to plug the hole up. He was very anxious to
know who engineered the work, but, very natu-
rally, every one was bashful about claiming
that honour. At last he unbosomed himself:
“Gentlemen, as you constructed the tunnel,
probably you can inform me how to fill it up.”
Now that question was a poser to all of us. A
great many suggestions were made, but all
proved unsatisfactory. Finally, the captain
had the shaft filled up with brickbats and
broken bottles. In the passage-way between
the two buildings they dug down to the tunnel
and put in a load of clay. With every rain-
storm the clay would settle and leave a big
hole. From observation and much debating
on the subject, it was conceded that the proper
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The Story of a Strange Career
from the ground indicated the place from which
the prisoners would emerge. Orders were given
to let a number of the Yankees come out, then.
to fire into the crowd and kill as many as pos-
sible. Fortunately, the first man to come out
- Peter Keefe—happened to see one of the
rebs. He gave the alarm to his companions.
Being still on his hands and knees, he thought
his best chance would be in making a bold run
for liberty. As he jumped up a reb fired, the
bullet shattering Keefe's left knee. The leg
had to be amputated. The next day all the
privates were removed from the yard and con-
fined with us. That made affairs still worse,
there being hardly space enough for us to lie
down at night. Two escaped prisoners from
Andersonville were added to our numbers.
They arrived late at night, and, as it was dark,
we could not see what they looked like. The
lieutenant of the guard asked us to find a place
for them to lie down. Brayton slept on the
table. Calling the men, he said they could find
room enough underneath.
After daylight we gathered around our new
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Disappointment and More Waiting
companions. They were still handcuffed to-
gether. It was a pitiful sight to look at them,
dirty and ragged, with their ankles swollen up
by scurvy. The face of one of them was badly
swollen, and covered with pustules. The sur-
geon was at once sent for. He pronounced it
to be small-pox. The sick man was sent to the
pest-house; his companion was isolated in the
barracks. The first one finally recovered, but
his companion caught the infection and died.
In a few days Brayton showed symptoms of
small-pox, was removed to the pest-house, and
also died. William Brayton was a sail-maker
in the United States navy; his rank was that of
warrant officer, a distinct grade from the line
or staff officers. He was wounded and taken
prisoner during the midnight surprise attack
on Fort Sumter by the navy. A bullet had
shattered his right forearm, and also went
through the fleshy part of his right leg. Fortu-
nately Captain Sennes realized the danger of hav.
ing the officers and privates confined together.
Besides, it was not a customary thing on
either side, and, consequently, the privates were
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The Story of a Strange Career
returned to the barracks in the yard, much to
our satisfaction. They had the freedom of the
yard nearly all day, which made them satisfied
with the change.
I commenced to feel sick and discouraged,
and had an inclination to lie on the floor con-
tinually. The surgeon examined me and gave
me some quinine pills, saying that I probably
had malarial fever. For several mornings he
visited me, and was very particular about look-
ing at my tongue. Finally a peculiar white
mark showed on the tip end. There was no
mistaking that mark. I had typhoid fever.
Orders were given to send for the ambulance,
and have me taken to the hospital. A large
church on the outskirts of the town was to be
my future abode. It was called the Second
North Carolina Hospital. Why it received that
name I could never find out. Opposite to it was
the beautiful mansion and grounds belonging
to General Wade Hampton, the pride of South
Carolina. That misguided hero went through
the war all right, only to lose a leg afterward,
most unromantically, by a kick from a mule.
296


CHAPTER XXIV
A CRACKER BEAUTY
A PAROLE was made out for me to sign, but
it was very difficult for me to sign my name.
I managed to keep on my feet for a few hours,
and the change and novelty seemed to give me
strength. Early in the evening I undressed
and got into bed, and there I remained for six
weeks. Surgeon Thompson told me I had the
"slow" typhoid fever, that I would have to be
very patient, and not to worry. Most of the
time I was in a stupor, but had a dim conscious-
ness of what was passing around me. One of
the privates from the yard had the fever. He
arrived a few days after myself. Milk punch
was given to him; within a week he died. My
treatment was different. The medicine tasted
like turpentine and camphor. But no milk
punch was given me at any time. At last the
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A Cracker Beauty
ence. The younger one was about twenty
years of age. She wore low calfskin shoes and
white stockings which needed a good washing.
Many of my remarks referred to their soiled
condition. While manipulating the broom she
displayed wonderful talent for going to sleep.
About every tenth movement she would stand
still, resting on the broom-handle, and take a
short nap. Then would follow another few
strokes and more nap, the same routine con-
tinuing until the job was finished.
The hospital steward was also of the
“Cracker" type, and a most devout Methodist.
Somehow we were not bosom friends. He was
very much afraid I would say something to
shock the "sweeping beauty.” Finally I got
tired of his infernal canting and tersely told
him to go to the devil, advising him at the same
time to marry the girl with the dirty stockings,
as I was very certain he was the right man for
the husband. Events were quiet for a couple
of days. Hostilities soon broke out. The
doctor had ordered a soft-boiled egg to be
given me. Beauty brought it to me in a glass
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A Cracker Beauty
part of the Rebellion, he, like many other sail.
ors, was forced into the rebel army. In one
of the battles he had been wounded by a piece
of shell. As he was now convalescent, he was
at leisure to go where he pleased. He spoke
about the large quantities of blackberries that
were to be found in the woods. I asked him
to bring me some the next time he gathered
any. While taking a morning nap a plate of
nice, large blackberries had been left on the
table at my bedside. When I awoke I was
perfectly delighted at the sight. I had been
craving for fruit for some days past. They
seemed too nice to eat. Temptation was strong,
however, and I picked up a single berry and
put it in my mouth. My intention was to eat
the whole plateful—one at a time. The sur-
geon just then passed near me.
“Well, surgeon, this is a great treat,” I said
to him. He seemed quite nervous when he saw
the berries.
“How many have you eaten ?”
“This is the first one,” I replied.
“Well, that is lucky for you. Had you
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The Story of a Strange Career
eaten twelve of them, you would have been a
dead man inside of twenty-four hours." He
asked who gave them to me. Well, that I
knew nothing about, as I was asleep and sup-
posed that Beauty had left them for me. He
took away the plate and went after Beauty.
My German sailor friend was not found out,
but the chasm between Dirty Stockings and
myself was greatly widened.
I soon became convalescent. A reb with a
loaded musket escorted me back to my old
quarters in the jail. My fellow-prisoners gave
me a cordial reception. It was at one time
thought by them that I would remain perma-
nently in the South. All monotony in our
prison life was now over. Exciting news was
heard every day. Sherman's army was march-
ing through Georgia. The rebs were drawing
our troops away from their base of supplies.
All the “invading hirelings" were to be killed,
gobbled up, and other dire calamities were to
befall them. Wheeler's cavalry went howling
through Columbia on their way to annihilate
Sherman's “bummers.” The citizens cheered,
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A Cracker Beauty
and the ladies waved their handkerchiefs and
threw kisses at them. Those fellows were go-
ing to raise — sure enough. We had a good
view of the whole proceeding from our window.
A few cat-calls were given by us to help along
the excitement. Not many weeks afterward
that same cavalry went through Columbia
again, but their noses were pointed in the oppo-
site direction, with Sherman's cavalry not many
miles in the rear. Those gallant defenders of
the South looted all the stores on Main Street,
and carried all they could conveniently get
away with. No ladies threw kisses at them
that time.
The Yankee officers confined in Libby
Prison were removed to Charleston and placed
under the fire of the Federal guns in hopes
that the shelling of the city would be stopped.
Through some means, the locality in which the
prisoners were confined was made known to
the Union troops, consequently none were
killed. Several changes of localities were
made, always with the same result. Finally
the rebel provost-marshal and several of his
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A Cracker Beauty
tunnelling, or from the yard; on their part, our
door was to be left open, with liberty to go
into the yard when necessary, and also one
hour in the morning and afternoon for recrea-
tion.
Williams and Porter had been released
from irons. The six officers highest in rank
among the new arrivals were assigned to the
rooms which they had vacated, and granted the
same privileges as we. On Main Street was
the printing establishment of Ball & Keating.
The building extended across the rear of our
yard. We were greatly surprised to see a
number of young ladies taking a good view of
the prisoners from a second-story window. The
rebs had gotten scared, and had moved the
Bureau of Printing and Engraving from Rich-
mond to Columbia. Ball & Keating's estab-
lishment was selected for the printing of the
Confederate currency. The money was not
worth stealing. An ordinary burglar could
have taken away a cart-load of the notes. At
night the money was left loose in the different
rooms, the same as a lot of hand-bills in a com-
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A Cracker Beauty
na
two naval officers should be paroled and sent
to Washington to see if an exchange of naval
prisoners, regardless of rank or numbers, could
be effected. Lieutenant-Commanders Williams
and Prendergast were given the mission. Both
were given paroles for thirty days. If our Gov-
ernment consented to the proposition, they were
to remain North; if not, they were to return
to Richmond within a specified time. All the
necessary documents were given to them, and
they were started for Richmond the next day
and taken to our lines on a flag-of-truce boat.
Inside the thirty days we were notified that
the exchange would be made. Great was the
joy among our party at the prospect of soon
returning home. It was soon known in Colum-
bia that we were to be exchanged. Then I
became mixed up in a mysterious affair which
I have never been able to solve. Captain Sen-
nes came to our room with a woman.
“Mr. Thompson, this lady has an order
from the commandant to see you."
He then went out. The lady introduced
herself as Mrs. Hall, of Washington, D.C. She
21
307


The Story of a Strange Career
e
had been South during the war; her husband
was in Washington, and she had not been able
to hear from him, and “would I be kind
enough to deliver a letter to him?”
“Certainly.” I was willing to help her in
any way possible. We conversed a short time
on ordinary topics.
“Do you know Colonel Dent?”
“No, I have never heard of such a person.”
“Why, he is General Grant's brother-in-law,
and is confined in this jail.”
“Well, that is news to me. No one ever
knew of his being here."
“It is a fact. He is confined on the top
floor with the criminals, and I see him very
often. He gave me a number of letters which
he wishes taken to General Grant. Will you
take them ?”
“Yes, provided you answer a few questions.
How did you know my name ?”
“Through a lady who knew you while you
were in the hospital.”
“Why do you select me to carry letters for
a man about whom I know nothing ?”
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A Cracker Beauty
“Because you were recommended to me."
“ Very well, I will take them, provided I
am allowed to know their contents. It seems
strange to me that Colonel Dent should be con.
fined in this jail as a criminal and not one of
us Yankee prisoners know anything about it.”
She assured me that he was Grant's brother-
in-law, and had been arrested for some transac-
tion about a plantation near New Orleans. There
were several letters in the package, a petition
to the Governor of Wisconsin, and a long letter
written in short-hand. “He was a good Demo-
crat, a loyal citizen.-See that my land in Wis-
consin is not sold for non-payment of taxes,”
are some of the extracts. The others related
to family affairs. The short-hand notes I could
not read. What the petition was for I have
forgotten. Mrs. Hall then presented me with a
finely embroidered silk tobacco-pouch. Thank-
ing me for my kindness, she bade me good-bye.
When, afterward, I thought the affair over, I
came to the conclusion that the letters were
only a subterfuge to draw my suspicions from
the short-hand notes. Not a word had been
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The Story of a Strange Career
The first part of our journey was made in
passenger coaches. In North Carolina we were
changed to box-cars. When we got to Vir-
ginia travelling became worse; the train had to
move very slowly. The Yankee cavalry had
destroyed all the roads as much as possible.
At one place, for a distance of thirty miles,
not a house or a fence - rail could be seen.
Twisted railroad iron was quite abundant.
The only wood visible was the stumps of tele-
graph-poles in the ground. We were eight
days in getting to Richmond, and well tired
out with the trip. We were taken to the
provost-marshal's office and thence to Libby
Prison. Our squad was the last to arrive.
About seventy-five officers and five hundred
sailors and marines comprised all the Yankee
naval prisoners. The sailors were confined at
the extreme end of the building, a brick wall
separating us. We had plenty of room for
exercise in that big warehouse. The army offi-
cers had not taken all their companions with
them when they went to Charleston, as we
soon found out to our dismay. Every crack
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The Story of a Strange Career
IO
of his to be always on the wrong side of
the fence.
Master's Mate William Kitching, being de-
sirous of having conversation with one of the
boat's crew, had removed a couple of bricks
from the partitions which separated the officers
from the sailors. He told some of the men to
pass the word for all of his men to come to
the aperture. Much to his surprise he was in-
formed that all the men belonging to his boat
had died at Andersonville. Not one of the
thirteen sailors were living. The other officers
went to the hole and called for their men also.
Only a very few answered to their names. Out
of the sixteen sailors captured with me only
three answered. About seventy-five per cent
of the sailors had died in the different prisons.
What puzzled us all was the fact of there
being so many prisoners that none of us could
identify. The men must have had consultation
among themselves, as during the afternoon the
situation of affairs was fully explained to us.
Information had been received at the different
prisons that the sailors were to be exchanged.
314


Libby Prison
They originated a plan to help all the soldiers
possible. Sailors gave their most intimate
friends the names of their deceased shipmates,
the names of the ships, where and when cap-
tured, the names of the officers, and, in fact,
all information that would be useful. The
scheme had been successful, so far. They were
told to continue the deception, and the officers
would assist them in doing so. We had been
in Libby three weeks and nothing definite was
known, and we might go back South for all
we knew.
About nine in the evening the stairs lead-
ing to the second floor were lowered.* One
officer was called by name and taken into the
office, and when he returned another was called,
and so on, until all of us had been interviewed
by the notorious Major Turner. The name of
our ship, where and when captured, how many
men we had, and a lot of other questions were
asked. That racket continued until about three
o'clock in the morning. Each of us had asked
* The stairs were hung on heavy hinges, and every night they
would be hoisted up by a pulley, similar to a trap-door.
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The Story of a Strange Career
flag of truce was stuck in his boot-leg. His
salutation was:
“Boys, the ambulance will be here in a
few minutes with the Confederates. You can
either ride or walk, but get over to our boat
as soon as you can, as the exchange may yet
fall through."
As soon as the rebel prisoners came in
sight we started off. Walking was good
enough for us. What a contrast between the
two parties! The rebel officers were all dressed
in new Confederate uniforms-probably fur-
nished by rebel sympathizers in the North—and
the sailors all had good clothing, and were
healthy in appearance. They also seemed
happy about going home, even if they were
bidding good-bye to coffee and tea. The least
said about our party the better. We were
only sorry that we had not time to catch a few
pecks of vermin for the others to take back to
the Confederate States of America.
On the rebel boat there was a brass band,
and, as a parting compliment, they regaled us
with the old familiar tune, “Then you'll re-
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Libby Prison
member me." There was a large bend in the
river below Aiken's Landing, and our boat was
quite a distance around the bend. We walked
about a mile and a half across the strip of land,
many of the disabled sailors following us in
ambulances. On the dock were a large number
of trunks, with a sentry guarding them. We
were told that it was the baggage belonging to
the rebel officers. Quite a number of our party
made a rush for the trunks, with the intention
of dumping them into the river. The guard
said, “Go ahead, boys, I won't stop you,” but
Major Mumford advised them not to do it, as it
might cause serious trouble. Then all went on
board our boat, the Martha Washington. Sev.
eral barrels of steaming hot coffee were ready.
“Boys, help yourselves. Crackers and
cheese in the boxes!”
In a short time the Sanitary Commission
boat came alongside. Clothing was furnished
to all, and anything that could be done for the
men was done cheerfully. Nothing was too
good for the ex-prisoners. Surgeons were busy
attending to the sick.
319


Libby Prison
“Well, I have a packet of letters from him
to General Grant. How can I deliver them
to him ?”
“Give them to me. Grant is now at City
Point. The boat will stop there, and I will
see that he gets them,” he replied.
I then handed him the package. He never
asked me a single question in regard to Colonel
Dent, and he did not give me a chance to ask
him any questions. That ended the affair as
far as I was concerned.
We stopped at City Point for half an hour
on our way to Fortress Monroe. During the
trip I had conversations with many of the
sailors. They had suffered terribly during
their imprisonment. Insufficient food and ex-
posure had caused much sickness. Some of
them had slept on the bare ground for months
without any shelter. Nearly all had the scurvy.
That any of them had lives to be exchanged
was a miracle. The soldiers were very exultant
at the success of their ruse in getting through
the lines, and well they might be, for to-day
there are seventeen thousand graves of their
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The Story of a Strange Career
fellow - prisoners at Andersonville. Quite a
number of sick men were also on the boat,
having been sent from different hospitals in
the South. The rebs thought that was the
easiest way to get rid of them. We stopped
at Fortress Monroe for a short time, and then
proceeded to Annapolis, Md., and early next
morning we were landed at the Naval Academy
wharf. Sixteen men had died on that short
trip from Aiken's Landing.
The sailors were cared for by the proper
officials, and the officers were given transporta-
tion to Washington. Then I was a free man,
after having been a prisoner of war for three
hundred and eleven days.
322


CHAPTER XXVI
A FREE MAN AGAIN
I TOOK the first train for Washington, arriv-
ing there late at night. Going to the Metro-
politan Hotel, I registered myself as from
Columbia, S. C. The clerk looked at me for a
moment, and asked if I had any baggage.
“Neither baggage nor money," I replied.
He commenced laughing, and told a bell-
boy to show me up to a room. I remained in
Washington two days. My written report was
made out; then I reported in person to Gideon
Welles, the Secretary of the Navy. He was a
fine old gentleman, and expressed his joy at
the exchange being made. I have already nar-
rated the particulars regarding Captain Gregory
and bis reports. I was instructed to go home,
report my arrival, give my address, and await
orders. My next visit was to the Fourth Audi-
323


A Free Man Again
as
Before leaving Boston on the brig Perry, I
had made an allotment of fifty dollars per
month to her, which she received from a naval
agent on the first of each month. Well, that
frugal little wife, to use a slang expression, was
“dead broke," and in arrears for her board bill.
I was happy to be back with her, so I had no
fault to find. Theatres and pleasure trips were
in order and my past miseries forgotten. In
due time I received all my back pay. My
clothing had been sent home from the Perry,
and a sword and a few other articles were all I
had to purchase for my new outfit.
Orders were received for me to report to
Commander John C. Hall, for duty on board
the United States steamer Nereus, at the
Brooklyn Navy Yard. The Nereus was a large
screw steamer, with splendid accommodations
for sailors and officers. The captain and execu-
tive were regulars, the other officers were
volunteers. The acting master was a navigat-
ing officer. Four ensigns were watch officers.
Our quarters consisted of a large ward-room,
with state-rooms on each side. The latter were
325


The Story of a Strange Career
furnished with single berths, and sets of draw-
ers underneath, a combination dressing-case and
desk, and a stationary wash-stand. Coloured or.
dinary seamen were detailed as ward-room boys,
one for each officer. Their duties were to take
care of the state-rooms and wait on the table,
for which service they received nine dollars per
month extra, paid by the officers. The steward
and cook were paid as petty officers by the
Government. One hundred dollars were paid
by each of the officers as initiation fee and mess
fund on joining the vessel, and afterward a pro
rata of the expense was charged to each. There
was quite a contrast between the Nereus and
the Perry. The ward-room officers consisted of
one lieutenant, one master, four ensigns, pay.
master, surgeon, and chief engineer. The mas-
ter's mate and second and third engineers each
had separate mess-rooms in the steerage.
Seven of the officers were ex-prisoners of
war. A few months afterward Captain Howell
stated that we were the wildest lot be ever
commanded; it only took a short time for him
to form his opinion, however. The vessel was
326


The Story of a Strange Career
were securely fastened by the stern. I shall
never forget that December night. It was my
watch on deck from twelve to four in the morn-
ing. The thermometer was twenty-one degrees
below zero, and I thought I would freeze to
death. The men on deck I sent below out of
the cold wind, but I had no place for shelter,
as the deck was clear fore and aft.
The next day a submarine diver examined
the propeller blade. The chain was jammed in
between the stern-post and the centre of the
screw. A floating derrick was fastened to our
stern, the buoy and anchor were hoisted on it,
and our vessel was thus taken into the dry dock.
It was quite a job to free the chain. That little
mishap detained us one week. We made an.
other start and got to Fortress Monroe. Taking
a monitor in tow, we went to Fort Fisher.
Nearly all the expedition had arrived, and
the bombardment was begun. That expedi-
tion was probably the worst “fizzle” of the
whole war. There were over sixty ships in
the fleet, each carrying from four to forty-four
guns, besides several monitors carrying fifteen-
328


A Free Man Again
inch guns. The total number of guns was
about six hundred. The rebels considered
Fort Fisher as being impregnable, and it was,
beyond all doubt, a strong fort. It was built on
a narrow strip of land between Cape Fear River
and the ocean. There was an embankment
over a mile in length, twenty-five feet thick
and twenty feet high. About two thirds of it
faced the sea; the other third ran across the
strip of land as protection from land attack.
Still stronger than these were the traverses,
which prevented an enfilading fire. These
were hills about forty feet in height, and broad
and long in proportion, about twenty of them
along the sea face of the fort. Inside of them
were the bomb-proofs, large enough to shelter
the whole garrison. In front of the works was
a strong palisade. Between each of the trav-
erses was mounted one or two large guns,
none less than one-hundred-and-fifty pounders,
all of the guns of English manufacture. One,
in particular, was an enormous Armstrong
gun, mounted on a rosewood carriage—a pres-
ent from Sir William Armstrong, of England.
329


The Story of a Strange Career
Fort Castle and Fort Anderson also protected
the Cape Fear River. The channel was filled
with sunken torpedoes. Torpedoes were also
buried in the sand in front of Fort Fisher.
An immense mound, one hundred feet in
height, was erected on the beach and a large
gun mounted on the summit.
Now for a description of the whole affair
in a plain and truthful manner. I have read
many descriptions of the capture of Fort
Fisher, and have seen pictures portraying it,
but all were exaggerations. An old steamer,
the Louisiana, was fitted up in imitation of a
blockade-runner, and two hundred and fifteen
tons of gunpowder were loaded in the hold.
Fuses were connected with an exploding clock.
work and the powder. It was supposed that
such a quantity of powder exploding so near
the fort would do great damage, besides kill-
ing all of the garrison. The idea was sug.
gested by Ben Butler. General Grant had
given Butler orders to send General Weitzel
with five thousand troops for the capture of
the fort, and afterward to capture Wilmington,
330


A Free Man Again
so that Sherman could receive supplies for his
army. Butler ignored the orders, and took per-
sonal command of the troops, leaving Weitzel
at City Point. The squadron was at Fort
Fisher on time. Butler with his troops had
not arrived. Then began the trouble. Ad-
miral Porter gave orders to explode the pow.
der-boat, and all arrangements were quickly
made. The squadron was to steam ten miles
out at sea. All safety valves were to be
opened, lest the concussion might cause the
boilers to explode. Under cover of darkness
the powder-boat was towed by the steamer
Wilderness close to the fort. The clockwork
was set, also a fire was laid in case the clock-
work failed. The crew were taken off by the
Wilderness. The clock arrangement proved a
failure, but the fire, in time, caused an explo-
sion. Not a particle of damage was done to
the fort. We afterward learned that most of
the Confederates were asleep, and some of them
never heard the explosion. The next day But-
ler arrived with his transports. He was terri-
bly angry about the powder-boat affair. In the
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The Story of a Strange Career
meantime the fleet, by divisions, had formed a
line of battle. The ironclads were close to the
shore. Their fire was to be direct. The other
ships were to fire at angles with the fort so as
to make an enfilading fire as much as possible.
The bombardment from so many guns was ter-
rific. The Confederates were soon driven into
the bomb-proofs. During the day nearly all
their guns were dismounted. The next day
was Christmas, 1864. Early in the morning
the landing of the troops began. Every boat
in the fleet was brought into requisition. A
clear strip of land extended from the fort to
the woods, about a mile in length. A spot
near the centre of the clear space was selected
as the best place for the troops to land. A
heavy surf was running on the beach. Every
time a boat-load was landed it was necessary
for the crew to wade out into the surf with
the boat, and, at the proper time, jump in and
pull through the first breaker. If not quick
enough, the boat would be keeled over and
over, high up on the beach. Everything was
progressing finely; no one doubted but that
332


A Free Man Again
the fort would be captured before night. All
the white troops were on shore. We were
busily engaged in landing Butler's pet coloured
troops. What was our astonishment on re-
ceiving orders to re-embark the troops and
bring off the negroes first, and then Ben But-
ler's transports started immediately for Wash-
ington, with that gallant hero on board ! A
heavy gale of wind set in from the northeast
and continued to increase in fury as the night
approached; consequently the surf was getting
worse and it was very difficult for the boats to
get clear of the beach. Those“ niggers ” would
rush for every boat and overload it, with the
result that it would be swamped. If ever
“ niggers” got a cursing, they certainly got it
that night. About midnight my boat was
swamped three times in succession. I was
thoroughly disgusted. The crew and I were
well tired out. We had had nothing to eat
since morning, our clothing was soaking wet
from constantly being in the surf, and the cold
wind was chilling our bodies. The boat was
lifted up sideways and the water dumped out.
Us
333


A Free Man Again
to the frigate Wabash. They took our boat
in tow and rowed us to the Nereus. I was the
only officer on our vessel who got back with
his boat not damaged. The others were all
badly disabled, and were left on the beach.
About seven hundred of the soldiers were left
on shore, and there they had to remain for
three days. All night long the division to
which the Nereus belonged fired shells into
the woods to prevent Confederate troops from
Wilmington making any attempt to capture
our men. When the gale abated they were
embarked. The first attack on Fort Fisher had
ended in a grand fizzle, simply because Butler
and Porter were at loggerheads. The army
transports went back to City Point. The men-
of-war weighed anchor and started for Beau-
fort, S. C. The few guns that still remained
mounted at Fort Fisher fired a parting salute,
in derision at our departure.
Ou
335


CHAPTER XXVII
FORT FISHER
On our arrival at Beaufort all was bustle
and activity. Ammunition and coal were taken
on board, the small boats repaired, and every.
thing was made ready for another expedition.
Porter was continually sending despatches to
Washington. Butler was there in person. Be-
tween them there was a lively war of words.
The new expedition sailed for Fort Fisher.
During our absence the enemy had repaired
the fort, and the garrison had been increased
from six hundred to a thousand men. General
Terry arrived with his transports, having on
board five thousand white troops. The fort
was bombarded, and the garrison driven into
the bomb-proofs. Several of our hundred-
pounder rifled guns exploded, doing consider.
able damage, and that class of guns was not
336


The Story of a Strange Career
consequently we could see every shell as it
passed over us. They all went about five feet
above the gun and exploded in the rear. Why
they did not attempt to dismount it I cannot
imagine. They certainly must have seen the
enemy loading it.
A projectile from a rifled gun in the fleet
got to tumbling "end over end” in the air.
It landed within six feet of me. The sand
flew in every direction, nearly blinding some
of the men. For a few seconds we all felt
nervous. If it was a percussion fuse shell the
danger was past; if a time fuse, it would ex-
plode, and the only means of safety was to lie
fiat on the ground. To attempt to run away
would be very dangerous. For a few seconds
we all remained quiet. No hissing sound could
be heard, and then the missile was examined,
and proved to be a solid shot; but we were, for
awhile, badly scared.
The soldiers could be seen beginning the
attack at the rear of the fort. Then came Ad-
miral Porter's terrible blunder. The signal was
given for the fleet to “cease firing,” then for
340


The Story of a Strange Career
whipped as the sailors were, they deserved
great credit for one thing: not a wounded ship-
mate was deserted; all were carried off. The
dead were all dragged up above high-water
mark, so that the tide would not carry their
bodies out to sea. Had we marched up to our
proper position, under cover of fire from the
fleet, and the attack then been made, results
would have been different, but being killed
outright, through lack of good judgment, would
discourage almost anybody! The plan of the
attack was good. With the sailors assaulting
the front and the soldiers the rear, the enemy
would have been between two fires. Colonel
Pennypacker, with his regiment, was inside the
fort, the other regiments on the outside of the
traverses ; they were gradually driving the
enemy back. Signals were made to the fleet
where to throw their shells so as to avoid hit-
ting our own troops. The sailors were reor-
ganized, and manned the trenches across the
open ground, to prevent re-enforcements to the
Confederates coming from Wilmington. By
that arrangement, a regiment armed with seven-
342


Fort Fisher
shot repeating rifles was relieved and added to
the assaulting party at the fort.
Night came on and the fight still continued.
Signals by light were made to the fleet how
to direct their fire. At one o'clock in the
morning the battle was ended by the enemy
surrendering. The last prop was knocked
from under the Confederacy; their great source
of supplies was cut off. Blockade-running was
ended. General Sherman would have a new
base of supplies. Richmond would soon bave
to be evacuated. The day the fort was cap-
tured, Ben Butler was in Washington, demon-
strating to the authorities, theoretically, why
Fort Fisher was impregnable. Captain Breeze
and Lieutenants Cushing, Preston, and Porter,
from the flagship Malvern, had command of
the sailors. Preston and Porter were fellow-
prisoners of mine at Columbia. Both were
killed early in the attack, Preston by a shell
from the fleet, and Porter by a bullet..
Cushing, with all his bravery, was not the last
officer of the retreat down the beach-not by
long odds. It is now a matter of history that
343


The Story of a Strange Career
Captain Breese with two hundred sailors actu.
ally got inside the fort and remained there
until nightfall. That is all bosh. The fact is,
they were behind the sand-dunes when the
panic occurred—it being much safer to remain
there than to be running the gauntlet down to
the sea. After dark they retreated in good
order. If they had really got into the fort,
I will guarantee that they would not have re-
mained there very long. The sailor who got
closest to the traverses was an ensign from the
gunboat Sassacus, and he was killed. Ensign
Dayton, my fellow-officer, had not been seen by
me since we landed. When I next saw him it
was on board the Nereus. He said he had
been with Captain Breese. He received some
very plain talk from me for not helping to look
after our own men. There was enough to be
attended to—the wounded to be sent to the
vessel, the dead to be identified and buried,
and, the most difficult job, to corral the live
ones and get them off to the Nereus. They
were scattered all over our newly acquired
territory. It was not every day they could get
344


The Story of a Strange Career
first it was supposed that a torpedo connected
by wires with Fort Anderson had caused the
disaster, but it was afterward decided that it
had been an accident. The Confederate pris-
oners were then furnished with shovels, and
forced to dig up a number of torpedoes that
had been buried on the outside of the fortifica-
tion.
No wonder our troops bad hard work to
capture that place, for, by the peculiar construc.
tion of the interior defences, it was easy to
repel the attacking forces. Towards evening I
succeeded in getting the survivors of our de-
tachment on board the Nereus, and was very
particular about having our quota 'of small-
arms sent with them-carbines, revolvers, and
cutlasses, fifty-two of each. No questions were
asked about their being the same ones we took
ashore with us. The gunner's report was “ All
arms returned,” and nothing more was neces-
sary. The fact that Dayton brought his extra
equipments unknown to me was not com-
mented on.
My report, accounting for all the men, was
346


The Island of Haiti
then strolled through the town. Whisky was
not allowed on board a man-of-war, and it was
quite natural for us to want a drink on our
arrival in a foreign country. Stopping at the
only hotel, we ordered a “brandy smash,” and
it nearly paralyzed the whole crowd. The
atmosphere was quite warm, and so was the
brandy and water. There was no ice in the
whole town, and of all the mixed drinks I
ever had that was the worst. We had re-
ceived some gold money from the paymaster,
and a five-dollar piece was given in payment for
the aforesaid drinks. Well, the change that
was returned almost finished what the “smash”
had not quite done, for about sixty-four one-
dollar bills were counted out, each printed on
bright yellow paper, about five by seven inches
in size. “Une Gourde ”—meaning “one dollar”
-was printed in large and small letters all
over the face of the note, and then, in French,
something about its redemption at a certain
period.
The landlord was a Frenchman and had
learned to speak English while on board an
349


The Story of a Strange Career
American whaling vessel. He gave us consid-
erable information about the town, and also
advised us to have our gold exchanged for his
Haitien currency, so we each got five dollars'
worth from him. The “gourdes” were at a
discount of ninety-three per cent, making each
one worth seven cents in gold. Such a roll of
bills as we received! The bundles had to be
put in our coat-tail pockets, no other place being
large enough to hold them. The only amuse-
ment in town that would take place that night
was a masquerade ball. Each of our drinks
came to one “gourde,” rather cheap for
brandy. We bade our host adieu until even-
ing and returned to the Nereus. Lieutenant
Mullen, the surgeon, paymaster, three ensigns,
and three engineers made up a party to “take
in” the masquerade.
Special permit was required to be absent
after sundown, as we were under war regu-
lations. No time was lost in getting to the
hotel. The landlord piloted us to the ball.
room. Two “gourdes” were charged each for
admission. A large store with a brick floor
350


The Story of a Strange Career
of us seemed satisfied, for we were partners in
every waltz.
About two in the morning we had to leave
our coloured partners, for the boat was to be at
the landing for us at that hour. In the streets
there were no lamps. A light, drizzling rain
made the darkness more intense. Our most
direct route was by a street facing the beach.
A number of warehouses had large quantities
of logwood piled in front, and the pieces were
very crooked and lying in all positions. The
doctor and I were walking together. His vision
was concentrated on the logwood, and finally
he expressed himself:
“Say, Thompson, did you ever see so many
anchors piled up in a street before ?”
Of course Cape Haitien had a military dock
for the men-of-war boats to land at. On the
shore end was a small guard-house, and as we
passed it I noticed a light through the open
doorway. Looking inside, I saw several Hai-
tien soldiers sleeping soundly. In one corner
of the shanty was a most primitive lampa
glass tumbler partly filled with water, and a
352


The Island of Haiti
had massacred all the whites and gained their in.
dependence, France and Spain never being able
to reconquer them. The negroes became quite
indolent. Very little clothing is needed in that
warm climate, and fruit, growing with little
cultivation, provides them with food. Revolu-
tions are of frequent occurrence. On the 1st,
11th, and 21st of each month two of our ships
would sail from Cape Haitien to meet the Cali-
fornia mail steamers, one going north to Turks
Island, the other south to Navassa Island. Our
first trip was to the latter place. The island
was about three miles in circumference and al-
most inaccessible. It was the breeding-place
of sea-birds. A company belonging to Balti-
more, Md., had possession, and were shipping
the guano to different parts of Europe. We
arrived some hours before the mail steamer
was due.
A kedge anchor was fastened to a heavy
rope and dropped overboard, fish - lines were
brought into service, and the sport began.
The only question with us was, What kind of
fish will the next be? Such a variety I never
One
nours
ner
24
355


The Story of a Strange Career
saw in my life in any part of the world—all
different sorts, sizes, and shapes were landed on
deck. The steamer came in sight and our
anchor was pulled up. When the steamer
came close by, a boat was sent to her with mail
from our fleet, two cakes of ice were presented
to us, and the vessel started for the passage.
Before the mail steamer, being much the faster
boat, was out of sight, it being of no use to
convoy a vessel we could not see, we did the
next best thing—returned to Cape Haitien.
The steamer at Turks Island adopted the same
tactics, with the exception of receiving the mail
instead of sending it.
The Neptune, Galatea, Proteus, and Nereus
certainly had an easy time on convoy duty.
356
.


CHAPTER XXIX
I LEAVE THE SEA AND GO WEST
ABOUT the 1st of April I sent in my resig.
nation. I had become tired of sailor life, the
war was nearly ended, and the fact that I was
married made me desirous to make a living on
dry land. It was a foolish whim of mine to
throw away such a good opportunity, especially
after having advanced so far in my chosen pro-
fession. A fresh supply of naval stores was
needed on the Nereus, and for that reason we
were ordered to Key West, then to return to
Cape Haitien. We went first to Navassa and
met the mail steamer, and the letter containing
my resignation went in that mail pouch. We
then steered for Cape Mayzi, at the eastern
end of Cuba, and, going around the cape, we
sailed west along the coast. Morro Castle was
sighted, and we entered the harbour of Havana..
357


I Leave the Sea and Go West
were only a few hours at sea, and then our
anchor was dropped in Key West harbour.
That place had changed wonderfully since my
last visit. From an indolent little fishing village
and the home of the “wreckers” it had become
a lively little town. The army and navy were
well represented, and there was hustle and
hurry everywhere. Wine and beer were the
only liquors allowed on the island, and the
beer cost fifty cents a bottle, so there must
have been quite a profit for somebody. Our
stores had been placed on board, then the
coal was received, and when the bunkers were
nearly filled it was discovered that some of the
lower deck beams were getting out of place.
An order was given to have the Nereus exam-
ined, and a report was given of her condition.
The news of the surrender of Lee was received,
and quite a celebration of the event took place.
Next came the news of the assassination of
President Lincoln.
The Nereus was condemned as “unfit for
service,” and orders were given for us to return
to New York. About the 10th of May the
359


The Story of a Strange Career
I was finally, at my own request, transferred
to the harbour patrol boat. There were nine
of us, divided into three crews, twelve hours
on duty and twenty-four hours off. River
pirates and deserters were our special game.
The war was ended, and that stopped deser-
tion. The purchased gunboats were sold at
auction, and then there was nothing left for the
river pirates to plunder. Alas! our services
were no longer needed, and we were all dis-
charged. Next I got a situation in the navy
yard machine-shops, for I was ambitious to be-
come a first-class machinist. Busy times were
over, and men returning from the war over-
stocked the labour market. A great reduction
was ordered in all the navy yard machine-shops,
and, of course I, being a late arrival, had to be
discharged with the first lot. Gradually what
money I had saved up was used for necessary
living expenses. Rent and provisions were
still at war prices, consequently I soon found
myself dead broke, and with no prospects of
obtaining employment.
I came to the conclusion that there was no
C
362


I Leave the Sea and Go West
hope of obtaining employment in New York.
Selling part of my furniture, I raised a few dol-
lars; then taking Horace Greeley's advice-
“Go West, young man, go West !”—I left New
York, and have been away just thirty-two years
-1898.
The manuscript breaks off abruptly at the
time when Thompson moved West. Almost
from that change began his criminal career. It
is known that he served two terms in the peni.
tentiary at Joliet, Ill., the last one being for a
period of twelve years. Both sentences were
for burglary. In his manuscript he refers to
an experience in the prison at Jefferson City,
Mo., and it is also known that he died in prison
in another State.
In the last writing of Thompson, he solemn-
ly affirmed his belief in a “just and merciful
God.” To that divine justice and mercy let
us, having learned our own lesson from his
life, leave him, judging not, lest we be judged.
THE END


BY CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY.
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"Mr. Brady has made a stirring tale out of the material before him, one
of those brilliant and forceful descriptions of the glories of the old wooden-
walled navy, which stir the blood like a trumpet call."--Brooklyn Eagle.
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK.


By EDGAR STANTON MACLAY, A. M.
A History of the United States Navy. (1775
to 1902.)—New and revised edition.
In three volumes, the new volume containing an Account of the Navy
since the Civil War, with a history of the Spanish-American War
revised to the date of this edition, and an Account of naval operations
in the Philippines, etc. Technical Revision of the first two volumes
by Lieutenant Roy C. SMITH, U. S. N. Illustrated. 8vo. Cloth,
$3.00 net per volume ; postage, 26 cents per volume additional.
In the new edition of Vol. III, which is now ready for publication, the author brings
his History of the Navy down to the present time. In the prefaces of the volumes of
this history the author has expressed and emphasized his desire for suggestions, new
information, and corrections which might be utilized in perfecting his work. He has,
therefore, carefully studied the evidence brought out at the recent Schley Court of
Inquiry, and while the findings of that Court were for the most part in accordance with
the results of his own historical investigations, he has modified certain portions of his
narrative. Whatever opinions may be held regarding any phases of our recent naval
history, the fact remains that the industry, care, and thoroughness, which were unani-
mously praised by newspaper reviewers and experts in the case of the first two volumes,
have been sedulously applied to the preparation of this new edition of the third volume.
A History of American Privateers.
Uniform with “A History of the United States Navy." One volume.
Illustrated. 8vo. Cloth, $3.00 net; postage, 24 cents additional.
After several years of research the distinguished historian of American sea power
presents the first comprehensive account of one of the most picturesque and absorbing
phases of our maritime warfare. The importance of the theme is indicated by the fact
that the value of prizes and cargoes taken by privateers in the Revolution was three
times that of the prizes and cargoes taken by naval vessels, while in the War of 1812
we had 517 privateers and only 23 vessels in our navy. Mr. Maclay's romantic tale is
accompanied by reproductions of contemporary pictures, portraits, and documents, and
also by illustrations by Mr. George Gibbs.
The Private Journal of William Maclay,
United States Senator from Pennsylvania, 1789-1791. With Portrait
from Original Miniature. Edited by EDGAR STANTON MACLAY, A. M.
Large 8vo. Cloth, $2.25.
During his two years in the Senate William Maclay kept a journal of his own in
which he minutely recorded the transactions of each day. This record throws a flood
of light on the doings of our first legislators.
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK.


MR. STOCKTON'S LAST NOVEL.
Kate Bonnet.
The Romance of a Pirate's Daughter. By
FRANK R. STOCKTON. Illustrated by A. I.
Keller and H. S. Potter. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
"A capital story." — London Times.
“A rattling good story.”—New York Sun.
“A sweet and charming story.”—Brooklyn Eagle.
“ A delightfully cheerful book.”—New York Tribune.
“Most ludicrous story of the year.”—New York Journal.
“Just the book to make a dull day bright."— Baltimore Sun.
"One of Stockton's most delicious creations."— Boston Budget.
“A live, wide-awake, bold, hesitate-at-nothing story."-Boston Herald.
“A bright and entertaining tale full of exciting incident.”—London
Athenium.
“A characteristic blending of interesting realism and absurdity.”—
New York Life.
"Full of love, incident, adventure, and true Stocktonian humor."
Nashville, Tenn., American.
“Even with the charming heroine in tears, the reader remains
cheerful.”—New York Outlook.
“Nothing so fresh, picturesque, and amusing has been presented for
a long time.”—New York Press.
“A story of adventure written in Mr. Stockton's characteristic
vein."- New York Commercial Advertiser.
“The funniest part of the story is the serene gravity with which the
author chronicles events."- San Francisco Argonaut.
“ The appearance of a new book by Frank Stockton stirs one to an
agreeable ficker of anticipation."—New York Literary Digest.
“It is charming, and no one but Mr. Stockton could have written
it.”-JULIAN HAWTHORNE, in the Minneapolis Tribune.
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK.


A PICTURESQUE BOOK OF THE SEA.
A Sailor's Log.
Recollections of Forty Years of Naval Life. By Rear-
Admiral RoBLEY D. Evans, U.S. N. Illustrated.
Large 12mo. Cloth, $2.00.
“It is essentially a book for men, young and old ; and the
man who does not enjoy it is lacking in healthy red blood.”-
Chicago Bookseller.
. “A profoundly interesting book. There is not a line of bra-
vado in its chapters, nor a carping criticism. It is a book which
will increase the esteem and high honor which the American feels
and willingly awards our naval heroes.”—Chicage Inter-Ocean.
“It would be difficult to find an autobiography possessing
more interest than this narrative of forty years of active naval serv-
ice. It equals the most fascinating novel for interest ; it contains
a great deal of material that has a distinct historical value. ...
Altogether it is a most delightful book.”_Brooklyn Eagle.
“ His is a picturesque personality, and he stands the supreme
test by being as popular with his officers and men as he is with
the public generally. His life has been one of action and adven-
ture since he was a boy, and the record of it which he has pre-
pared in his book "A Sailor's Log' has not a dull line in it from
cover to cover. It is all action, action, and again action from the
first page to the last, and makes one want to go and do things'
himself. Any boy between titteen and nineteen who reads this
book and does not want to go to sea must be a sluggish youth.
... The book is really an interesting record of an interesting
man.”—New York Press.
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK.


THE STORY OF THE WEST SERIES.
The Story of the Soldier.
By General G. A. Forsyth, U. S. A. (retired). Illustrated by
R. F. Zogbaum. A new volume in the Story of the West Series,
edited by Ripley Hitchcock. 2mo. Cloth, $1.50.
In the great task of opening the empire west of the Missouri
the American regular soldier has played a part large and heroic,
but unknown. The purpose of this book is to picture the Amer-
ican soldier in the life of exploration, reconnoissances, establishing
posts, guarding wagon trains, repressing outbreaks, or battling
with hostile Indians, which has been so large a part of the army's
active work for a hundred years.
No romance can be more suggestive of heroic deeds than this
volume, which appears most opportunely at a time when the
Regular Army is facing so many and so serious duties in both
hemispheres. No one is better entitled to write it than the brave
officer who with his little handful of men held the sandspit in the
Arickaree for days against Roman Nose and his thousands of
warriors, and finally won their lives by sheer dogged pluck and
heroism. Mr. Zogbaum's illustrations are a most valuable gal-
Sery of pictures of Western army life.
“To General Forsyth belongs the credit of having gathered together for
the first time the story of the heroic work, invaluable to the progress of our
civilization, which regular soldiers performed in silence and obscurity." — Boston
Herald.
“General Forsyth's identity with the army extends over a notable period
in its history, and he is among the few officers who remain who are able to
write of their personal knowledge of the thrilling experiences of our soldiers on
the plains."'-Washington Army and Navy Register.
"The soldierly qualities of the author appear on every page of the volume
in a precision of statement, a generosity of praise, and an urbanity of temper.
The narrative is commended to the interest and attention of every student of
our national life and development."- Philadelphia Ledger.
“There is not a dull page in the book."-Buffalo Commercial.
“The story presents a fresh and thrilling chapter of American history."-
Cleveland World.
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK.