Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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CHAPTER VI. DISENCHANTMENT AND DESPAIR. While the Bird of Paradise-such was tl alluring carne cf our gallant brig-was b ing loaded with a cargo of cashmere shawl cocoanuts, drug?, glass beads and otb articles of merchandise likely to suit tl cultured Mohammedan taste, I \\ ?is so clos ly engaged with my own concerns and tl urgent hospitality of Sir Thomas' frier; that I paid but scant heed to the men wit whom I was to sail. I had a vague notic of a picturesque medley of dusky chiklre of the sun who would be likely in tl course of the voyage to discourse of mar marvelous things and discover trairs ? once new and interesting. But at sea an within thc narrow confines of a two masti one is impelled to take an active individu: interest in his companions, and so it cani that as soon as the towers and spires ( Bombay had sunk out of sight on on weather beam I was eagerly and curiousl studying my surroundings and the charai ters of officers and crew. Never have I bet:i more swiftly or cou nletelv disenchanted. Perhans it was bl cause 1 was young and tooiisii ana lgn< rant that I had so gayly cherished illusior perhaps it was the fine name of the bri that had given me exalted and gorgeou ideas, but I had anticipated a holiday sui on sunlit seas in a sort of Cleopatra barg with companions, fitly representing, if no the pomp and magnificence, nt least th poetry and romance of the orient. My put ishment for indulging such fantastic revel ies was speedy and condign. The Bird c Paradise bore as much resemblance to th tip of my imagination asa hedgehog bear io a leopard. In plain truth, she was an il smelling, leaky old coal bunker, with i crew of the most desperate looking villian that ever swung from a yardarm. Wha their past had been it required little shrewd ness to guess. A glance mad" it clear that what eve pleasure, whait &r romance there could b in sailing with the dregs of Asiatic pirat crews of men, who for reasons to be com prehended by the simplest had found it ex pedient to lay aside for a little their natura vocation of cutting throats, such pleasur and romance were minc. Naturally I wa amazed to find such men on Mr. Matheson' ship, but the explanation came later, had forgotten that the Scotch are fruga and did not know how Asia pours her SCUD upon the sea. My security, such as it was, lay in th fact that among themselves there was no thc least evidence of good wi!L They wer su??"n, suspicious and incommunicative and in all their lives had probably neve known what it is to smile out of pure god nature or innocent hilarity, for their Tea tures were fixed in a perpetual scowl wi iel nothing could soften. Toward each other ~ as toward their officers, they had t bc sulky defiant demeanor of caged beasts of prey and no doubt they had a sense of imprison nient. Ofl duty or cu, they indulged in ni freedom pr jollity of intercourse. No ste ries were told; no songs were sung. Th< spirit was that of a chain sang working a the point of the bayonet or the muzzle o the rifle. Misfortune, failure in hazardous and bloody enterprises, h?d brought tl together, and as yet they were not able t( fraternize. The officers matched the crew'. Thougl Captain Holden was au Englishman a:ic Mr. Malcolm, the mate, Scotch, there wai nothing gracious or prepossessing in ei.tbei of them. The captain waa short aud broad, square rigged, with a tremendous breadtl of beam, as a sailor would say, and hit squat, burly frame had in it the musculai strength and energy of the tiger. His face, hairy as a skye terriers, showed no feature in particular save the huge nose, which, ow ing to a long course of grog, had assumed the appearance of a purple knob, and bulg ing eyebrows that hung over small, deep set eyes as a cline overhangs a cavern. En visage was truculent, and his temper and . voice were in harmony. His most caress ing tones were the growl of the thunder; his anger v.-.is the fury of a fiend. His nat ural qualities, too, had been weil culti vated. The broadside cf oaths he pou:ed upon his men when anything went amiss was aa achievement in profanity to be re membered with a creepy shudder for n life time, and the gleam o? his eyi (and the way In which he fingered his pistols under ?he stress of passion : bowed that he was not of those who value human life. As might be expected, his career had been eventful, his experiences startling and va ried. Ile boasted-and I om sure truthful ly-that he could show more sword cuts and bullet scars than any other man of his size then living. "A man with a greater estent of hide might beac me," ho would sometimes say, "but to thc square inch show me him who equals me. By Jupiter, if I was to preach on that kind of tattooing, a week would be too short for my sermonl" And you immediately assented. The mate could not be described as bein:; of a milder natural disposition, but only as being less fearfully developed. His name for cruelty was less eminent than his chief's, but he was training excellently and gave high promise of brutality. Mean while he swore, took his grog and practiced assiduously on the crew. The first day out he knocked a sailor down with a marlin spike uneler the very eyes of the captain, who was too indifferent ev^n to curse ap provingly. A little later he sent another head foremost into the hold without so much as casting a downward glance to see whether the man were dead or alive, and Hot a day passed tbat he did not distinguish himself by some deed uf cruelty or violence. Such, in bri'if, were my shipmates, and it will be easily understood hov.- quickly and completely my tlreams of a holiday voyage vanished. It enhanced the discomforts of thc situa tion that I fancied myself regarded by tho captain and mate as an interloper-a spy whose proper place was with the sharks outside. But on that point I was unwit tingly flattering myself. Neither of them troubled his head in thc least about me, nor ever came near me except it were by chanco and in the way of duty. To be sure, the captain usually rolled some hoarse greeting when we met in the morning, but he never delayed his ship foi?convcrsation and never once evinced a de; ure to know how I was enjoying m yself. Only at meal times did we come into close contact, and then I was glad to get back to tho deck and the disinfecting air of heaven. Nor was the mate mitch more sociable. One evening, indeed, he spoke to mo of Scotland, but as his talk was of nothing but tavern debaucheries, their accompani ments ard results, I did not encourage him. He left me with a feeling of profound con tempt, never again making any attempt to draw me into conversation. V\ hen we met, his looks declared as plainly as look:, could that I was a priggish, puritanical landsman, who was no fit company for a jolly, blas phemous sailor like himself. Mr. Watson, the supercargo, was the: only soul on board who took the smallest inter est in me or with whom I cared to speak. He understood my position, and I think had compassion for nie. ? i any rate, lie tolerated my amateurish views of seafar ing men nnd things and sought oppor tunity to discover topics wc could discuss with mutual pleasure. He was fonel of talking of Edinburgh, which he knew well, having attended thehigh school there. We compared notes on our reading, arni he was certainly not the worse read mao of the two. "This roving, free and easy life, Mr. Kil gour," he said one day, "has a tendency, ns Burns says, to 'harden a' wi th in the feelings,' but I try t'> keep n fresh, sweet corner in my ."Juc:ions for the thoughts and fancies of choice souls. Aft er all,a good book is better than their riot ous games at ninepins with virtue and character, and to read about a pretty girl is better than to go about carousing with an ngly and debauched one. As Sancho Panza says about sjeep, God bless the man who invented books." Books, howeve r, were the subjects of our bytalk only. Oftenest. our conversation Copyright, 1893, by John Alexander Steuart.! ?"rr.-; stoat i~aaia, Ara??a and our compita ions. "Just look at them, Mr. Kilgour," he enid once. "Aren't they a pretty set? Haven't they the look of having been born, bred, trained, educated, for the special pur- j Dose of wallowing in crime? Without ocu lar evidence cou ld yon imagine mat so muefc rascality could be condensed within ii few skins? They are the very essence ?f vil lains, sir, or rather the dregs, with notan honest or honorable instinct among them. I verily believe old Nick would beushamed of them, for he, if reports be true, is an artist and a gentleman, but they-they are mere butchers. If justice were anymore than a thing of courts and fine talk, there isn't a man of them that shouldn't long ago have adorned a gibbet." "And how in the name of wonder do they come to be on Mr. Matheson's ship?" 1 asked. Mr. Watson screwed his face know I ingly and winked. "Ab, ha! there you are," he laughed. "How comes the purse to rule the con scieace? Mr. Matheson was born ayont thc Tweed and knows the val ?ie of bawbees. Tbcste rinsings of creation are got cheap be cause they're flying from the scaffold." "Flying from the scaffold! How do you know?" "From experience and the modicum of wit heaven gave me. siespectability's a thing we don't care to pay for on Hast In dia traders. And chat reminds me, are you armed, Mr. Kilgour?" "As nature armed me," I rejoined. "1 did not think it was necessary to come on board Mr. Matheson's ship armed." "Necessity's just as you take it," he said significantly. "In this golden clime ii might not be necessary to wear clothes, but you do it all the same. A pistol's not heavy, and sometimes it's very handy. I always carry one, and this little thing be sides," and turning up the edge of his waistcoat he revealed the handle of a dag ger. "That's to prog them who might take a thought of progglng me," he exclaimed. "I have found it useful at close quarters more than once. Conic this way, Mr. Kil go,ir." He led me to his cabin, which was office and bedroom in one. When we were inside he carefully closed and fastened the ?cor, then getting upon his knees he unlocked a heavy iron box, which notwithstanding its immense weight was fixed to the door with iron rivets. "This is for tbe ship's papers," he ex plained, looking up with a smile of intel ligeifcc, "but you can put more than hats in a bandbox. Hire, take your choice of those," and he lifted an armful of pistols. I drew back a step with a quick sensa j tioa of chilliness. The startlingdiscovcries ! were crowding too closely upon each other : for my nerves. ! "Oh, you'd better have one," ho said in his matter of fact way. "It's nasty to bc caught unprepared. I date say you know something about firearms." "I know more about fowling pieces than pistols," I answered, taking one with a trembling hand. "Well, well, you'll soon get used to it. . Nothing trains a man with the pistol like ; knowing he may be turned into a target at less than a moment's notice." "And do you really mean to say there's danger?" "That's just as you look at it. If the risk of being killed without prayers is danger, then we are not in the safest place on earth. That's a good one. Mr. Kilgour: take it with you." I stowed the weapon away while he rum* maged in the box. ""Here, will you have one of these?" he asked a moment later, holding up a sheaf of daggers. But they were too suggest ive and I declined the offer. "Well, well, so be it," he remarked, put ting back daggers and pistols into their place. "Since you won't have a dagger, 1 suppose it's no use offering you a sword. No, I thought so. Well, now for the cope ?toueof the counsel," he continued, stand ing er*""'., and looking me straight in tbe eves. "Don't let any one get too familiar, j Thc moment you smell trouble, draw and blaze away. If you don't kill, you will bc respected; if you do kill, it's but justice anyway. If you deliberate you're lost. And now, lest they should suspect a plot, let's go out," snying which he opened thu door and we went on deck. For The rest of that day I was hot, nerv ous, depressed and ill at e.-use, yet with a certain feeling of consequence. Firearms give courage as the saddle confers author ity. The touch of my pistol hilt thrilled me, and many a time did I surreptitiously slip in my hand just to gaiu assurance by grasping it. I kept, as you may think, a keen eye on thc crew, for though there was not a whit more danger now than there had been from the beginning I detected treachery and a murderous intent in every act and look of the men. I expected bloodshed and tried to convince myself I was prepared for it. But indeed it was to matter little to me whether I were armed or not. The feeling of heat and depression grew upou me hour by Lour. At first I naturally referred it to my conversation with Mr. Watson. But in this 1 was mistaken. I went to bed deadly Bick, to toss in feverish paroxysms through the long night, and next morning I was so giddy that on attempting to rise I stag gered and sank to the floor. When I gath ered myself together, tho room was whirl ing like a huge spinning wheel, carrying me with it in its gyrations. Steadying my self a little, I managed to crawl back to my berth jon hands and knees, my eyes well nigh sightless and my brows throbbing as if there were steam machinery inside. My skin burned with a prickly heat, and my throat and tongue were parched, sore and swollen. "I am in for it," I groaned. "God in heaven, and in such a hole as this!" And presently when Mr. Watson looked in to seo why I was not getting up my worst fears were confirmed. 'Tm devilish sorry to see this," he said after examining me and hearing my symp toms. "You've got the fever that Porto j gu ese chap died of. You brought it on board with you. It was raging in some ! quarters of the city. I'm devilish sorry. we're so ill oil for medicine or indeed for I anything that a sick body needs. But we'll do our best. I'll make you comfortable, and then I'll send the captain to see you." In the course of half an hour or so the ! captain came in, looked tit me for a mo ! ment as he would at a sick beast, asked some j perfunctory questions and left me. A lit j tie later the mate, too, came in, and his j kindness was, if possible, more cruel than I the captain's callousness. "There's no saying how this may go, you know, Mr. Kilgour," he said, after lying in I his throat by saying he was sorry for ma "l evers on board ship arc bad at ;my time. They're doubly bad on East India traders. There's little room, evil smells, no rc ; source-and the devil for a physician. If you i have any message you would like delivered to your friends or anything to return to Scotland, I am at your servise." A man may be dying, but ;t hurts him to be brutally told so. For the first, time in my existence I appreciated the boon of life, I of the simple privilege of continuing tobe and o? the sovereign balm of sympathy. 1 shook with fright, and great beads broke out on my brow. Vet neither sickness nor fear could keep off anger. To die with forti tude, to renounce hopes, schemes, am bi tions, to lay down life in its rosy morning hours, when the world is full of promise of miss-to do this at a moment's notice nnd with resignation is possible, but it is not in human natur:: to be grateful for cruelty. The disease had not yet wholly mastered my spirit. There was one fierce spark left, and so, risimr on my elbow and speaking in a voice that trembled and quivered, I or dercd the man oil. "Go," I said. "Bet me never look on your face again. And when you cometo! die pray you have a better comforter." He went without a sign of compassion ot mtritlnn. indeed n r.tvAvk .V. ' ana i, calling bacK'W?En .1 reeling ol Ucl forsaken by God and man, lost heart, a a scalding torrent soaked tbe coarse bli kets. And in that, moment of dire punii ment, as if present evils were not cnou; there smote upon my conscience the Mg ninglike stroke of an accusing memo The thwarted plans of my fat her, the 1 heeded sorrow of my mother, were as :irro of fire in my soul. Fate had indeed [1 mitted me to please myself, bet she \\ now exacting payment, and thc paymc was my life. I had u feeling, I say, of being forsake but in thc graciousness of Providence I h a friend even now. Not long after the in; left me Mr. Watson returned, gave 1 some medicine, spoke cheerfully to mc, te ing me to keep up my heart, for that mai a man had had fever on shipboard ai lived long years afterward to tell the ta But I could see that out of his humani he was dissembling his real thoughts, ai so I determined if possible to get at then "You have seen cases of this sort beforu I said. "Is it serious? Be plain and ti me if you think I have a chance to pt through." He seemed unwilling to answer thc que tion, which of course was tm incentive mn to press him. "If you don't answer," I said, "I'll kne lt's because you're afraid to tell me tl worst." "You know the old proverb, Mr. K gour," he returned slowly, "that whi there's life there's hope." "Just so," I said, "and that in cases Iii mine doesn't mean much, or rather means a great deal." "I will not mislead you, Mr. Kilgour he rejoined, shifting about uneasily on li feet. "I think you have a bad attack, ai this is a foul hole, and we are withot proper remedies. But then you are your und have a good constitution, and that, 1 any doctor will tell you, is worth gallot of drugs." "Thauk you," I said. "I wanted yoi candid opinion." And now, when 1 thought there was 11 chance of life, I grew calmer. Indeed m fear almost vaivshed, for, as the wind tempered to the shorn lamb, there is han ly an evil but brings its anodyne with it. Mr. Watson left me abruptly, but pre emly he came back carrying a book in h hand. It happened to bo Sunday evenim and I fancied he was going to employ Iii leisure in reading a story to me. But was a Bible, not a story book, that tb good soul held in his hand. "I have been a good many years awa from Scotland, Mr. Kilgour," he said, ratl er sheepishly sidling up to my bed, "but haven't quite forgutten the training of III youth nor the customs of my native land,an I am going to do now what, I think, you mother would be well pleased with." Au sitting down on the edgeof my berth he lu gan to read. H is voice was not very stead) and he coughed a good deal more tba seemed at all necessary. As for mc, I listened in a dreamy, hal conscious state, feeling no fear, only dillil pitying the reader whose emotion was s keen. When he had finished reading, h bent over me, stroking back my hair, "it' got the golden glint of boyhood in it yet,1 he murmured, and then lower and vir huskily, "Would you Mice mc to pray!''' It was a trouble to speak, so 1 held on my hand, caught his and pressed it by wa; of answer, lie returned the pressure, tool ing down upon my hand and caressing i for a moment, then holding it softly bu firmly between his rough palms lie wen on his knees. When he rose, something a the porthole seemed suddenly lo attract iii attention. He stared hard for a minute 0 so, then cast a shamefaced, sidelong glano at rue. "Damme if I've played thc parson fo: years before," he laughed, furtively draw ing the bael; of his hand across his eyes then, as if fearing an answer, he hurriet away. It might be thr.t same evening, or ii might be some days or even a week later for I have but a dim and confused mentor] of that period, that he came to me with f terrified face, saying the ship was in im minent peril. JI is speech was notimmcdi ately intelligible, for I seemed to be rccov ering from a stupor, but at length I caught the word "waterspout," and even to mj dull sense it sounded ominous. Hardly had the word passed his lips when the brit shook to her center as a cauuon was fired on deck. "That's to try to break it," he said. "Good God," he cried in the same breath, but in a tone that was startlingly different, "it's upon us! Mate, this means hell and destruction." Instantaneously there was a great crash, as if a sudden blow had rent our timbers, and thc brig flew up at the bows like a fisherman's punt when a heavy weight is swung on behind. I had my sconce dented in the bunk, and Mr. Watson swept the floor with his back ll^ea kind of inconti nent besom. When in the rebound the stern went up in turn, I fell back to my place breathless and helpless, and the super cargo, scrambling to his feet with the cat like agility of a sailor, made desperately for the companionway. Then for an instant the vessel seemed to lie still, but the next she was reeling and dancing like an eggshell in a boiling cal dron. Now she would rear from the bows, now from the stern, then tumble on her beam cuds, careening till mast and keel must have been level, then rebound, then spring, shaking herself like a thing de mented with pain, and all the while she cried and groaned in every timber with a terrorizing, humanlike sense of the pangs j of dissolution. I cluugto my bunk with all my feeble might, unable to discern any thing clearly, yet conscious in spite of dark ness and terror of the swish of water rush ing through the open door. After awhile Mr. Watson came back. His face was very white and his manner ex cited. I looked at him beseechingly fur news, for in the tumult I could not hope to make myself heard. He did not keep nie j long in suspense. "Smashed by thc stern!" he shouted at the pitch of his voice, bending over me as he held on by the side of my berth. "The spout hit us, carrying with it masts and rigging, and now we're reeling in the grip of a tornado. The fury of the pit's let loose on r.s. Wind and lire and water, all contending against us. And, worse than that, we're waterlogged and the infernal crew threateningto take to the boats.?Cap tain's keeping them at it with the pistol. Keep you still; I'll come back again." I could say nothing, I could do nothing, only lie and listen to thc raging of pande monium and speculate what would come of itali. Presently Mr. Watson returned, his face whiter l hail ever. "The brig's done for," he shouted. "Thc first blow killed her. Ifs terrific. 1 have been through simoon and tornado and never saw nuyl hing like this. They're go ing to batten down, though heaven knows why. I must run. But don't you be fright ened; I'll not. desert you." Ile bolted up thc companionway, and the hatches closed with a bang. I passed an eternity hearkening in the darkness, which tho lightningmnde lurid, cxpec!*:ig every moment, to feel the suction and hear the gurgle of death as the ship went down. But wo were dying hard. By and by I began to think the fury of thc tempest was abating and that the' movements of the brig were si cad ?er. Then I wondered why they were keeping me closed down there liku a rat in its hole. Another eternity passed ere lhere was any evidence that 1 was remembered. At last the hatches were thrown open, and 1 looked with joyful and frantic eagerness for Mr Watson. To my horror, he did not come Sicker with fear than disease,! got to my elbow to listen. In a momentary lull of the blast I heard thc rat tit- of ropes on the ship's side, and tin li a Splash, ?is if some flat bottomed object bad siruek the water. . A terrible fear, a terrible suspicion, struck into my vitals, and weak us I was 1 rose, and groping my way through the darkness to a porthole thrust my face against the glass. There were boats alongside, and the officers and crew, who looked Ilka demons in thc livid light, were struggling and light ing to get into them. With thc frenzy of death, twisting and tugging and tearing, I ?tried to open the port, but. tile screws were still'and my fingers nerveless, ami I failed. Then, my face ugaiust Lhe glass, 1 shrieked BS only a lost niau can. Tin: next instant the glass was in shivers, and 1 was implor ing those without not to abandon mc. Hut the tempest drowned my voice. No one bearii-at least no one heeded nie. One by one in the hellish conflagration of sea and sky the boats rowed away, leaving me alone on the sinking brig. ? CHAPTER YU. r^j "AL0XE, ALONE, ALL, ALLALONE; ALONE ON A WIDE, WIDE SEA." i By tlie glare of streaming fires.I could watch thc boats driving deliriously before thu wind, which still blew with hurricane force. To any eye hut t hat sharpened by thc terror of despair the hying, leaping specks would not have been distinguisha ble from momentary rifrs in the careering billows, forinthat terrific scene nothing was distinct, nothing individual. There was no ocean and no sky, but high and low a whirling chaos of foam and .spray, with gleams of ghastly green in t he breaking mountains and of hellish lividness iu the swirling chasms and shattering crests. Thc din WOS as lije crack of doom. Sea and thunder crashed together as if the uni verse were splitting and rending, the wicked treble of the tempest breaking in at times like thc spiteful screams of congregated demons exulting in the work of destruc tion. Thc waves, in certain aspects blood red and dripping a crimson froth, reared and curled like monstrous snakes os they rushed, trampling, upon thc helpless and Staggering brig. They seemed alive and mad with a passion to destroy. Leaping upon their victim liku the furies broken loose, they would pound her .os with steam hammers, then catch her and throw her aloft as if to sec her go to pieces in the fall; then, disappointed at her toughness, hurl her headlong into a boiling guli,,-rad as she floundered heavily fling themselves afresh upon her in a frenzied effort to put her forever out of sight. Then there would be a swift recoil and s momentary pause, but only because the in furiated waters were gathering for alicker and deadlier attack. Rallying in piled up, seething masses, on they would come again in wreathed and yeasty avalanches, burying her deep and crushing and tearing her tim bers till she groaned and cried like a thing in thu last agony. How she lived was a marvel. A right good sailor shu must have been in spite cf her ugly looks and evil name, a tighter sailer than many a craft with a prouder head and a better reputa tion. Smothered and pelted and tossed, only the tenseness of grip which tho fear of death gives to nerve and muscle could have he'.d nie in my place. As often as I had vent I shrieked in competition with thc storm-shrieked till my voice failed me and my cry sank lo the hoarse, gasping rattle that tere chest and throat as raw as If barbed cylinders revolved inside. . My situation was the more cruel that I bad strength enough to feel and none to act. Had I been myself, 1 should have been on deck in an instant and headlong into thc surging wilderness in pursuit of the deserters. My fate would bare been soon" decided, for the swimmer did not exist who could that night have escaped the devouring maw of the sea. lint there would have been an instant's diversion in battling and a speedy end to suffering. AH it was, even the solace of making an effort was denied mi', so I stood there with my head crushed into the porthole and the jagged edges of thc broken glass liku saws in my flesh, battered, buffeted, choked by the pitching ship and the breaching seas, yet frantically straining to hold on and to hail the quickly ranishing boats. Every filier In my bod j" shook with a mort.i! wenknessand te;:- ir. My lingers were getting crump* tl anti pal! iud: my breath was gone to a K? I?, y i ever as my strength wa;.eil the desire to shout for succor be came the moro desperate. Have you ever seen a spent animal ?anting with open mouth for a little aid in its extremity? Even so i punted then with distended but voiceless lips, i would have gj?gunmil lion worlds, had I owned them, for the ru turn of my voice just for an instant to make one last appeal for help that would rise above, t lie voice of l he storm. Hut my weakness doomed me to silence. In n sudden darkness the shock of a tre mendous broadside hurled me back with a bellyful of salt water. J scrambled up spattering, to be hit and knocked down again. Thesecond time 1 rose with greater difficulty, and clutching dizzily at the port hole looked over thc weltering flamu lit waste. There were no boats. Either the sea had swallowed them, or they were hid den iu the scudding mist of spray. In either case they were lost to nie. A sudden sickness seized me, my head got strangely light, thc din fell toa faroff murmur, and slipping my feeble hold I sank splashing into the water on the lloor. A periodjof. unconsciousness must have followed, for-I remember no more until, half crawling, half swimming and in utter darkness, 1 somehow got back to my berth. Then, with my mind settled in the con viction of a doom that was not to be averted, no words ccild tell the awful sense of deso lation that fell upon me. I thought it would really have been an act of humanity on thc part of my late companions to have thrown mu intothe sea or drawn a sharp blade across my throat. Either would bave ended my tortures quick ly, whereas I had now to be looking into the face of a death advancing upon me by inches. To bc tortured thus is to die many times. But the brig could uot long hold out, and wh.cn she should go down all would be instantly over. I closed my burning eyes, feeling that no light would ever more fall on them till that light ree that shall not fade away. Ere the morrow morning I should be "deeper than did ever plummet sound," coffined in the black hulk of the engulfed brig, and no mortal should ever look on my grave among the green and slimy things that strew thc Indian oeean. There was a pang in the thought that no one could mark the place where I slept. But that pang, tr i, must pass in the great lull, the lasting quiet that was at hand. I lay very still, for there was no longer any motive t o move. The tempest was evi dently much abated, though the waves were still leaping madly against thc ship's sides, and sometimes making clean breaches over her. I wondered why she held so long afloat. But doubt less she was Eoing stead ily, if slowly, down. She would sink gradu ally for awhile, 1 lien in the crucial moment, when the Hood should have gained a proper hold, she would descend headlong with a dizzy gurgle ami swirl as if sucked hythe lips of the macis',rom. I could anticipate thc motion and myowu sensations in the embrace of death. There would nea mo mentary, involuntary effort to hold back, a gasping for breath, a brief pain as of one choking, a sudden giddim ss fading swiftly into unconsciousness, and then absolute w -,vV-/.>:}h .* t*i - 'M v' ?fr" Frantlcnlly ftrttinhig to hold mi and to hail thc quickly vanlsldntj boats. peace. 1 wished that t he ordeal were n.m so long delayed. I wished that the h ti HT ea ne might blow anew, and that the billows would rise and overwhelm us nt nm?, an faithless is man in extremity. But no fresh hurricane came, only nft?r. n great -.viole there wan a loud sudden splash by my beith side, followed hy n sharp cry that made mu start in a!erm, though why I Bhould lie alarmed who had nothing worse to fear nor better tn hope than of death, is n question I cannot an swer. Start, howevi r, I did with a fright ened look Into ti blackness of darkness about me to soc wh:?l uncanny thing (his might lie Mint was dist ur! ii ny my parting hour, leonid of course sac nothing, but presently 1 und. :>:? od from thc splashing and squealing thai tho rats wrre prowling around and were greatly di-gnstediit find inglhe cai in Hoer under water. As for mc, I was glad cf t i i ir company. "If the (?.......Hires could only speak to me," 1 said .<: myself, "if we could only exchange sympathies and converse togeth er on our fate, there would be some satis faction even vet." [CONTINUED.] DO YOU EXPECT W* TO BECOME A MOTHER? " MOTHERS' FRIEND" HMS CHILD BIRTH EASY. Assists Nature, Lessens Dancer, and Shortens Labor. !? My wife suffered more in ten minutei with, lier other children than she did al together with her last, after having used four hottles of MOTHER'S FEIEND,' says a customer. HENDERSON DALE, Druggist, Carrai, I1L Sent by express on receipt of rrice, $1.50 per bot He. Book " Io Mothers "mailed free. BRADFIELD REGULATOR CO., FOR SALE BY A'.L DRUGCiCTB. ATLANTA, QA COMPOUND. A recent dscovory by an oU physician. Successfully vse4 monthly by thousands of Ld dies. Is thu on;? perfectly sa* and rcllablo medicino discof crod. Beware of unprlnclplei druggists who offer Inferi? , ^ledlcincs In place of this. Ask for COOK'S Corro? ROOT CoMrouso, take no substitute, or incloso 81 ont C couta In postage In letter, and we will send, scaled by return matu Full scaled particulars lnploli envelope, io ladles only, " stamps. Address Pond Lily Company. No. S I Liner Block, Detroit, aitch. ?$F Sold in Edgefield by G. I Penn &. Son and druggists every wliert Prof. E. TV. .Smith. Prln. Commercial Collegi of Ky. University, Lexington, Ky., was award?) MEDAL AND DIPLOMA BY THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION, For System of/Book-keeping and Genera BaH?ncM Kel H ca ti on, etc Cost to complet Business Course about ??JO. Including tuition,book and board. Phonography, Type WrltlDg an Telegraphy taucht. For circulars, address, W. K. SMITH. President, Lexington, Ky CAUTION.-If s dealer offer? TV. E Douglas .->hoee at a reduced prto.', or eayi he lina them without same clamped 01 bottom, put him down as a f ni nd. $5$ ?9? rt w*? fon mis *L-7B 3 BU? BEST IN _ THE WORLD. V7. IN DOUGLAS Shoes are stylish, easy fi( tin:r, and irive better saliaCicUon Rillte prices ad vertiscd than any other make. Try one pair am he convinced. Thc ?tamping of \\ . L. Douglas r.-.ir.c and price on the bottom, which r/uarantec their value, saves thousands of dollar? annual! to those who wear them. Dealers who push th sale of YV. L. Douglas Shoes gain customer! which he!?)-. to increase the rales on their full lin of ir'io.l :. Tlury can afford to cell al a less nrolil ana wc believe YOU can save mnnrv hr buringa your footwear of the dealer advertised below. Catalogue free upon application. Address, TV. JJ. DOUGLAS? Brockton, Hats. Sold b cr. -MIS C O -B s KDGEF1ELD, S. C. ^?\/ EATSJRADE MARKs. COPYRIGHTS. CAI? I OBTAIN A PATENT ? Fora prompt answer and nn honest opinion, write to M USS ifc CO.. who have had nearly fifty years' esperict.ee in the patent business. Communica tions strictly confidential. A Handbook of In. lormntion concerning Patenta and bow to ob tnin them sent free. Also a catalogue of meehan ical and scientific hooks sent free. Patents taken through Munn & Co. receive special notice in the Scientific American, and tuns are brought widely befen: tho public with out cost to the inventor. This splendid paper, issued weekly, elegantly illustrated, bas by far the largest circulation ot any scientific work In tho world. SJ a year. Samnlc copies sent free. Building Edition, monthly, Si.cO a year. Singlo copies, Qa cents. Every number contains beau tiful plates, in colors, and photographs of new houses, with plans, enabling builders to show tbe latest designs and secure contracts. Address MUXN 6i CO.. NEW YORK, 36'1 BUOADWAY. SPke Journal of Society, (ts PAGES.) ctmnxuD?X KEW YOBS. Is unlversr-llr 'recognised cs the mos?; campled weekly Journallii thu world. Its r* saunte: lr ;s " columna ara lslrr.'taMe. fl socictv ne?f, tsp .-dally i-f I liv doings of the iWii Now York, Boan II, PnilMli-luhln, Uhlcaito, and o over fte world, b not t-uuiil|.-d by ar.y iicwupa^fl its Financial Dtparrniei't hi authority with a bankers nn-.l brocen, I tn .. Literary sb>r."~now on current literature-lu bv rue c level "est of tl viewers. Its "Afield and Afloat" mattes it Vt most lntop'stlng paper for all lovers <<t spurt ynchllng, football, rowing, ti-noting, Hthlng to Its "On thc Turf excel? all other racing notco, ls burlelques, poem? and Juki's a.e tlic ck i rrest, li stories are ty the in-st will?-?'?-anning tticm Ant Hi Klves, F. Mt.rlon (.'r.v.vfont. Julian Ha>vtl.<?rne,Edttt Fawcett, ailbert Parker, il.'trj J Ifewkiw ("Luit Falconer"), Barry 1* i lu. rani Bourg-1, Budy ll Kipling, Ambrose Bierce, rte? i-rc. nuil are. evil. | a trifle risque-, y el alway* eli rer, bright ima prall] without coarseness ur any loins M offend the SKI refined and morn! woman, m t-.ndltlon to all iib there ls each week a sup; l-nu nt. port ni lt, in colgf. of aomo man eminent In 1:1s walk of lifo. Tales From Town Topic? Quarterly, first day o' larch, June. Si-ptembe December; 2."it*> pa gin: Wino, it-mtHlns in eec number, In addition lo Kliort sl-irl-s, poems, bu lesQues, etc., from llieolJ Lilies of Tow? TOPICS, complete, original prjntQ r-t-n j of I3U lo ISO page?. No one who enjoya tho bli li; al <-!>.ss or nerton, aa would boaucoaranf wl?b ?I! tliul pertains to goo society, cnn afford to bc w I- liout TOWN TOPICS evel wcok. Then-ls co hindi Inti-nnting reading In : and In the " Talcs," that :-. club t.uhscrlptlon to bot will supply any family with nlinntlaut n adlngof tl most entertaining chanel sr Di] tbe year. RATliSi Town" Topics per aar. :n>. Si.00. A (rial subsct?l tlon for three months, fi i .OO. and a frpeclmen cop of " Tales " Free. Tali- From Tow;: Topic?, per number, 50 cent Per nulluni, $2.00. Both Clubbed, per r-r.nrm, ?.".00, and nny tw previous Numbera "I a?e?" you muy specify Vusi . csrscml IO cents for sampio copy Tows Tonca N.B.-Have you read AM?LIE RIVES* latei and best novel, Tanis, The Sang-Digger' 12mo, cloth, gl't, uric;:?. frou? and foot, $1.50 pos paid. * Remit by cheek. P tl rc mc; order, postal note ( registered letter io TOWS TttPICS, SI West 2.'id ttftrect. .New York. FREE TO AU.:! OUT KOW IUustralod j WHIJ _ Cataloguo of PLANTS, | KosE:5,'Biiix.it VINES, ? ^ ^.^A-^P^SUlU'nS.OKSAMKNTAI. j rff-t'' \; U8 TJIF.FJ, SMALL I-'I-.I'ITP. j i. i l J i i Ap-J '' v /Iv-'> TREES, SMALL Fnurr* fi ?S?v-^rSSs. GSATB VINES. SEEM ( W^^^^V^ will bo maiJe? f V 04$ FiiEEtoflUapplicants li!0 pages. Moat com ^/ plete Plaut Catalogue i published. Satisfaction Guaranteed. 20 BOSK j HOUSES, -I? GI:F.EN?IOCSES; ?O acres I?OBSEIUES. ? [I Address \ NANZ & NEUNER, LouisniXK, KT. 1 2? Wlinl a wonderful thing is u live aced? ?? Immature, old or dead lt ma}* tonk tlie saute. 03 1 luw to know ? Old gardeners tay thal Q |j Tills !s the proorof lire. VT'.wr. grown we give fj 1 your ?Ucee?? Q _ our word von will l-e rtatii>l? X H our?. HUUPKK'f* 1 ^ for i.S04? into leU! ANNUAL r nil :.!>r.ut Ihr. JU M p lie nows|iapcra eil! il f.:i nu ke+il Ott alfi-?K i oura X Srcds ."..ii ( bi Ccadlnfi Ai yz frat far tito asking If you ptain Reeds. 8 W. A Tl Ec DUR FEE <S CO., Philadelphie &^oocK?osfi^3see3?O??ccLi I: I 1 t t S i p t 1 E i f 9 i [ 1 e s 1 r When you ' want neat, I clean, and s stylish, \ Job Work done call ' at the Advertiser Job Office. Satisfaction always guaranteed . Give ., us a . trial I order. :i r, u m > IO a. m to lu ur IO i IS k li * I r, ? . d 5 I ti ie p y a o C. lt ? t tr f [ '??? Exchange a good thing for something of less value. Don't Give up oue insurance policy and take another. Always remember that an old policy is of far greater intrinsic value than a new one. Don't Let the premium on your policy lapse even for a day. You can't foresee the events of to-morrow. It may not be possible for you to get another policy if the present one is dropped. y Don't Consider any other form of insurance until you have thoroughly investi gated the plans and policies of the EQUITABLE LIFE. You will per ceive their advantages at once. W. J. RODDEY, Manager, For tlie Carolinas. Rock Hill, 5. C. GEO B, LAKE RE^L ESTATE - AND - INSURANTS A6T, x Office over Bank of Enfield. For Inventions PRESS CLAD Equal with the interest of tl? ernment is that of INVENTORS, < ble inventions because of the inco torneys employed to obtain their r exercised in employing competen patents, for the value of a patent d' the care and skill of the attorney. With the view of protecting ii attorneys, and of seeing that invei patents, TUE PRESS CLAIMS expert in patent practice, and is th Obtain Patents, Conduct Interfere Prosecute Rejected Casi and Copyrights, Rende and Validity of Pa! Defend Infring If you have an invention on ] COMPANY a sketch or pbotograp scriptioii of *the important featun as to the best course to purs unless the invention is of a compli ing on your rights, or if yon tire ch submit the matter to us for a reliai matter. The Press Clc (il 8 F Street, North west P. 0. Ecx 463. ' JOHNi'W Cul this out and ; IK Y017 WANT I2TI ADDRESS A LETTER THE PRESS CU JOHN WEDDERBUR: F?. O. Box 46, WA? Honorable discharged soldiers or over, in the late war, areentitlec for ordinary manual labor, whethe or not, and regardless of their peen Widows of such soldiers and S? whether soldier's death was due to upon their own labor for support, own labor are entitled if the ?oldiei Children are entitled (if under there- was no widow, or she has sine Parents are entitled if soldier h soldier died in service, o* from effe pendent upon their own labor for whether soldier served or uiod in lt Soldiers of (belate war, pensio higher rates under other laws, with* Thousands'of soldiers drawing the old law, are entitled to higher r account of disabilities for which whether due to service or not. Soldiers and sailors disabled ii navy since the war are also entitled or not. Survivors, and their widows, of and Seminole or Florida Indian Wi der a recent act. Mexican War soldiers and thei years of age or disabled or depende Old claims completed and settl has been granted under later laws c Rejected claims reopened and improper or illegal. Certificates of service and disc sailois of the late war who have lost Send for laws and information less successful. Address, THE PRESS CLJ JOIW WEDDER! P. O. Box 4G3. WM. SCH1 arlie Je Corner! [Broadband Augusta, _^>SPECiAL?STS? (.Recular Graduates.) Aro t!ip letd'na natl moat successful ?peclaUstt and ?JU give you Lelp. Young and t=Li* die aw'ed men. Rcmarkal.le re salta have follow ed oar treatment. Many yeavm ot varied ami aaec PIS fal experlebc? In the use of cur* tlvc m?thode that ?we aloneownanJ control for all dis orders of mao who have weak, undo HEftveloped 0r dla ??5g.cased organs, ot who are auJTerlnjt J'rom errora ul EESSWltb and esce?i [.mpt friends and coa S?v??*? . p.m?ona. loada u to (rn:trr,ii?oc to aii pr.tlt.rtt?. If tl:ey can possibly bc reotored, oar owa c:;c!u?l vo treatment will afford a cure. WOUEX! Don't yon want to get caret! of that weatkiisvM with a treatment that yon ern Ufo at home without ln?trumcnt"? Our wonderful trea> ment has eared others. Why nat you? Try lt. CAT .VT? RIX, nnrl diseased of tho Skin, Blood, Heart, Liver and Kidneys. SYPHiXIS-The mott mnld. safe and cffectlYe remedy.- A complete Caro Guaranteed. S Tv rV DISEASES of an kinda cored where many others have failed. TUTSATTUAIJ DISCHARGES promptl? cnrc?lnafcw days. Quick, auro aud safe. Tail neiudes Gleet and Gonorhoa. TRUTH AND FACTS. We have cured cases of Chrot. i Diseases thl jive f ailed to get cured at the liai. U of other specie sta and medical Institutes. -. wruFyrerw thatthore la bow .or You. C >asuit no other, na you may waste valuablt time. Ohtalu our treatment at once. Beware of free and Clicap treatments. We gin the best and most acleutltlc treatment at mod?rao prices-as low na ran bc done for tafe and aklllfir treatment. FREE consultation at the o nice-: by mall. Thorough exomlnatlon and careful dla? nels. Ahorne treatment can he given la am *Jorlty ?)f cases. Send for Symptom Blank No. 1 for Mer; So. 2 for Women ; No. 3 for Skin Ol6caae8. All com ipondencc answered promptly. Business strictly con tldentlnl. Entire treatment sent free from obacrvo. tlon. Refer to our patients, banks and business men. Address or call on OR. HATHAWAY & CO., ft i-a Soutb Broad S*?-eet, ATLANTA.OA Norris & Cantelou. ATTORNEYS AT LAW. EDGEPIELD, S. C. Will practice in all the Courts of the btate. TS, Procured by the M. COMPANY, )?e having claims against the Gov nho often lose the benefit ef vnlua mpotency or inattention of che at latents. Too much care cannot be t and reliable solicitors to procure epeud s greatly, if not entirely, upon ?ventors from worthless or careless iitions are well protected by valid COMPANY has retained counsel lerefore prepared to^, 'iiCv.s, Make Special Examinations, p, Register Trade-Marks T Opinions as to Scope tenis, Prosecute and ement Suits, etcj hand, send THE PRESS CLAIMS h thereof, together with a brief de &, and you will at once be advised ue. Models are not necessary cafed nature. If others are inf?Dg?_w-_-o. arged with infringement by others, >le OPINION before acting on the A?ms Company, , WASHINGTON, D. C. EDDEREURN, Man g All'v end il with your inquiry. OR POSTAL CARD TO JMS COMPANY, N, Mnging Attorney, ?iiiiVoaroiV, JD. c and sailors whoserved nineiy days, 1, if now partially or wholly diabled r disability was caused by service mia ry circumstances. ii loi F are entitled (if not remarried) service or not, if now dependent Widows not dependent upon their r's death was due to service. sixteen in almost all cases where e died or remarried, -ft neither widow nor child.nrovided ctsof service, and they are now de suppoit. It makes no difference tte war or in mgulararmy or nav}'. ned under one law, may apply for cut losing any rights, from #2 to $10 per month under ates under new law, not only on now pensioned, hut also others, i time of duty in regular army or I, whether discharged for disability ' the Black Hawk Creek, Cherokee, ars of 1832 to 1S42 are entitled un r widows also entitled, if sixty-two nt. ement obtained whether pension ir not. settlement secured, if rejection barge obtained for soldiers and : their original papers. . No charge for advice. No fee un MMS CO., il'liX, Jinnagin ff Attorney. WASHINGTON, 1). C WEIGERT weller, McIntosh [Streets. Oa.