Evening Star Newspaper, February 9, 1895, Page 13

~ six of us present; myself, the ~ He cleared a space on the glass, THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1895-TWENTY PAGES. 13 ae v iN RAVES mst r at cee ceY THe ATLANTIC. We never knew real name. ery one called him Capt. Goorge; and Capt. George he remamed from the first day he entered Lan: I parted from him in Piymouth svund, out four years later. His ival at andport was ann vimced in the Northern mana mnday Steam yacht Wan. rrived from Stockton, with ma- damaged. Owner, Capt. Whet was he like? Well, if you had put the qcestion to the gentry of the place soms would have answered it with a shrug of the shoulders, as much as to say they couldn't well make him out; others would have told you he seemed a haughty, re- served, stand-off sovt of man. If you had asked any of the young ladies, you would very likely hear that he was “charming,” but that they believed him to be a pirate chief in disguise, or some nonsense of that kind. Among us divers he was looked upon as a bold, gallant sailor, who loved the sea and everything connected with it, a man we all admired and looked up to. He frequently put into Landport after that—at odd times, summer and winter— but came round regularly every June. He never made friends in the place, and few acquaintances. People still held pretty much the same opinien concerning him. On different occasions as he passed along by the sea wall, I have seen more than one lovely head turned to take a sly look at his tall figure, and heard the whisper: “There's that strange man, Capt. George; isn’t he handsome?” Toward the end of August I was engaged with two other divers to remove cargo “There's That Strange Man!” from the steamer Magellan, which had run on an outlying reef about twenty miles down the coast. The surveyor of the Land- port Salvage Association, Capt. Lorton, was in charge of the wreck, and had or- ders to make a push to get her cleared out while the weather held fine. We put up at a neighboring village, a place called St. Nevin, a pretty little spot hidden away at the top of a small land-locked bay. On the third morning it was blowing rather fresh. While I was waiting in the Uttle parlor of the Mariner’s Rest—the only thing in the shape of a hotel of which St. Nevin could boast—Capt. Lorton came in. He went up to the barometer on the 1, tapped it, and sald: ‘Glass falling; this breeze will freshen @uring the day, and most likely run up to a gale before night. If it does, there won't be much of the Magellan left by morning, Lawrenceson. At any rate it would be too risky to venture out with the wind rising in this way.” About I ‘clock I noticed a considerable stir among the fishermen on the beach. Looking seaward, I saw a large steam yacht entering the bay. I recognized her at once. It was the Wanderer. Capt. George came on shore during the afternoon, and looked in to the Mariner's Rest. It seemed he had heard of the wreck, and was anxious to visit the scene of the disaster. ee “It’s blowing hard outside,” he said, “and very thick, too. I saw the fishing boats in for Widmouth Sor money. ¢ @ sign of dirty weather at sea. fn for stiff sou'wester, I fancy, and I shouldn't be surprised if, it brought down the rain before evening.” ‘He was right. As the wind Increased a thick mist crept up from the sea, and pres- ently a sudden coe oon ¢ (erin Ge she ‘indow. re rain against the wi a cates divers, Moxly and Williams; Capt. Lorton, Cape George and Capt. Linklater, a retired master mariner, who lived in St. Nevin. We had a cozy fire in the room, for the weather was unusually cold, and sat round it spinning yarns. The heat inside, end the cold without, had dulled the glass of the window, so that it almost looked as if it had been muffed. We could hear the crash of the billows on the beach nelow, followed by a deep rumble, like distant thunder, as the backward rush of the water iore the loose shingle from the beach. “It's well you won't be at sea tonight, Capt. George,” I remarked, in a pause of the conversation. “Ym half sorry to miss it,” he returned, getting up and approaching the window. and stood lcoking out over the bay. “There's noth- Ing I like better than driving full speed through a gale,” he went on, “provided I have a good sea boat under me, and no of a dangerous coast lying under my y, there’s worse danger at sea than Xorms,” put in Capt. Linklater. “I'm inclined to agree with you there,” said Capt. Lorton. When I had command of a North Atlantic boat I'd rather have faced a three-day gale than be walled up for ten hours in a fog. A gale of wind is a straightforward, honest kind of thing; you can see at a glance how matters gtand, and know where the danger lies. But heaven defend me from a fog. I al- ways felt like a child out in a strange place on a dark night, groping my way along and never knowing at what moment I might bump up against some obstruccion!” “There's worse dangers than fogs,” re- turned the old captain, blinking his eyes at the fire, and smoking very hard. exclaimed the surveyor. “Why, you have them plainly marked on your ebart, and know exactly where to expect them.” “Ay, but when they are not marked on your ‘chart, and you come across them Where you don’t expect them,” the other replied. in a rather mysterious manner. I noticed that Capt. George had turned from the window, and was listening at- tentively to the conversation. “I should like to know where such a tock ists?” said Capt. Lorton, in a way that showed plainly he had very little falth in anything of the kind. Well, I'll tell you,” returned the old skipper, knocking the ashes out of his pipe, and laying it on the mantel-shelf. “It ex- {sts in the broad Atlantic—out in midocean jomewhere between the Azores and the ecast of Nova Scotia.” ‘A pretty wide range, Capt. Lorton. “Yes, but a dangerous one. Linklater stood up, turned his back to the fire, and seemed striving to recall some haif-forgotten facts. Every eye was fixed pen his ‘weather-beaten face; we saw ke that,” remarked a strange story to tell. It 1s a well-known fact," he began, “that every year three or four vessels sometimes more— nd their fate isappear in the Atlan- te, has always remained &@ mystery. As far back as 1834 the Presi- ent sailed frem Liverpool, in charge of the most skillful navigator of the day, Capt. Roberts, the man who commanded the Sirius, the first steamer that crossed the At °. She foundered in mid-ocean ll hands. In 1816 the Savannah, an an sailing ship, left New Orleans istol. She was sighted off the Ba- mas, but from that day to this nothing fore was heard of her. In 18% the South- + @rn Cross disappeared in the same manner. w years later an emigrant steamer— the Nomad, I think—went down with 800 @ouls, and the cause of the disaster was | me I | than eighteen vessels disappeared in same mysterious way. Coming down to a later date, we have the Crusader—the old Crusader, I mean—the Clevtic, the White Slave, the Ontario, an American liner and a host of others. In 18% we hav bark Silvio, which sailed from Holy in January of that year and was su poken in the North Atlantic a British steamer, and the the man Empire, a splendid iron ship, which Was passed on the ilth of June by a home- rd-bound vessel, and reported ‘all well.” perhaps the strangest case of all was at of the German ship, the Maria Rick- about which there has been so much talk lately in the shipping world. “I remember hearing of her,” said Capt. rton. “She was a five-masted bark, I think, and said to be the largest sailing ship affoat Well, this magnificent vessel, fully man- ned and in charge of experienced officers, sailed from Satgon for Bremen on the ith of July, 1892. It was only her second voy- age, mind you. She was sighted in the Atlantic about 300 miles west of the Azores, and. the total disappearance of such a ship, in comparatively fine weather, is one of the most remarkable of these ocean mysteries. From all those vessels, »ot cne ul escaped to tell of the disaster, und, a in one or two instances, not ev at or life buoy belonging to them picked up. How did they disappear? You will say they foundered in a gale; possibly | some of them might have done so, put 10t all. How do you account for the fact that dezens of other vessels crossed the Atlan- tic in safety at the very same time, often without encountering unusually bad weather?” “It seems strange, certainly,” remarked Moxly. “It just comes to this," continued the skipper, in a rather excited way, for he was now thoroughly warmed inte the sub- ject. “It just comes to this: An unknown danger lay in the path of those vessels— or some of them, at any rate—they came upon it suddenly, perhaps in the dead of night, when they were least prepared, and the result was an appalling disaster.” “But I don’t see how all this proves the existence of a mid-Atlantic rock,” said Capt. Lorton. “Wait a minute; I’m coming to that preS- ently,” replied Linklater. “In '76 I was bound from Pensacola, in Florida, to Fal- mouth, with a cargo of grain. My vessel— the bark St. Kilda of Sutherland—after- ward wrecked, you may remember, off Cape Haticras—was what you might call a clipper, though a good, safe boat in a heavy sea. Her qualities were well tested on that voyage, at any rate; we came in for one of the stiffest gales I ever encoun- tered in the Atlantic. After trying to hold her on her course for some hours, I had to give it up as a bad job and let her drive. We ran away before the wind for the best part of two days in a nor’westerly direc- tion. “When the gale slackened a bit, I got the vessel round, and commenced to beat back to our former course. It was still blowing fresh enough, the sea running high, and the clouds showing signs of more wind, so we had to be sparing with our canvas. One night, just as I was about to go below and turn in, the man in the bows suddenly sung out: “ “Breakers ahead!” “My first impression was that the fellow had got hold of a rum cask, and had been imbibing pretty freely. I took no notice of the warning, but as I stood there, the man turned and shouted in more startling tones: bs reakers ahead, sir “Now, if he had said: ‘The sea-serpent ahead’ or ‘a mermaid ahead,’ I mightn’t have been so surprised, but ‘breakers ahead’—in midocean, mind you—fairly took my breath away. I rushed forward. As I stood in the bows, peering out over the tossing waters, I could distinctly hear the roar of breakers somewhere in front. “The moon was showing out through the broken clouds, and just then I caught sight of a dark spot straight ahead, round which the water swirled and tossed. I had barely time to holloa out: ‘Hard a-port!’ to the helmsman, in order to clear it. With- out y mistake it was a rock. I could see its black top appear for a second or two, and then it was covered in a cloud of foam. Sometimes a big wave swept right over it, but generally they smashed with a roar that I can tell you would have struck terror to your heart.”” A dead silence followed this extraordi- nary story. It had been told in such a way as to convince us that there was some- thing in it. Even Capt. Lorton appeared to ponder over the facts. After a long pause Moxly said: “I remember once hearing an old skipper from Dundee tell pretty much the same story.” It was plain to be seen that Linklater’s strange yarn had made a deep impression upon every man present. After that last remark no one spoke. Perhaps if it had been told under different circumstances it might not have taken such a hold upon us; but somehow the pounding of the billows on the beach, the rumble of shingle and . N “I Think That It Will Convince Him.” the furious gusts of wind that sent the rain dashing against the window seemed to deepen the effect. “What do you think of all this, Capt. CoS I said, at length, turning toward im. “I think Capt. Linklater is right,” he an- swered. “You believe in this “mysterious rock, then?” “TI have seen it.” “Well, if that Scotch skipper could be found, three of us could bear witness to the fact, at any rate,’ remarked Linklater. “It may be as you say, of course,” said Capt. Lorton, doubtfully, “but how Is it, if such a rock really exists, it has remained so long unknown?” “I have my own theory as to that,” re- plied Capt. George. alicees you mind giving us the benefit of it? “My belief is this: that rock appears and disappears at intervals.” “Impossible!” “Why so? How can you or I tell what goes on in the bed of the ocean? It is a sealed book to us. We are told there are hills and valleys there, just the same as on land. How do we know what forces are at work in these submarine tracts? In South America and other parts an earthquake will change the whole face of a district in half an hour. If such an alteration can take place on land, who dare venture to say it cannot occur at the bottom of the “I should be slow to believe it,” said the surveyor. “Look at the Pacific,” continued Capt. George, who appeared strangely interested in this question. “There you will find that not only a rock, but a whole island, will come to the surface in a single week. If you go to look for it a month later, most likely it will have vanished. What is to prevent a thing of this kind happening nearer home? Why, only the other day the hull of a brig which had been burnt at sea fifty years ago was thrown up off the Faroe Islands and towed into Galveston harbor. How do you account for that?’ The question led to a pretty lively dis- cussion, and it was 8 o'clock before the party broke up. By that time the rain had ceased, and the wind was dying down. Capt. George asked for a lantern to signal the Wanderer to send a boat on shore. “Come on board with me, Lawrenceson,” he said, as he was leaving. “I want to have a chat with you about this matter we have just been discussing.’ When we reached the wet, slippery deck of the yacht he led the way into the saloon, turned up the lamps and pointed te a chair rear the table. I sat down. He folded his arms, and walked backward and forward with gloomy look. snug cabin tPis, said, glancing around. ather too large for my taste,” he re- plied, “but one requires a roomy boat when is home fs on the sea. It is strange, Lawrenceson, what disappointment will do for a man; it drives scme to drink, some to a monastery and some to an asylum. It has driven me to the sea.” I didn’t exactly now what to say, for I had ne seen him in one of these dark moods before, and thought it best to re- main silent. “Well,” he said presently, brightening up a bit, “I didn’t bring you off here to listen to my growling. About this rock, you Capt. George,” I 7 baa known. Between 1860 and [S70 no |} es. heard what Linklater had to say, though, rerhaps, you may think he was mistaken. He was not. I can give you pretty fair evidence cf its existence.” He went to a sort of writing table at the head of the saloon, unlocked one of the drawers and took out a piece of torn, dis- colored paper. “Read this,” he said, laying it on the table before me. “You can take it on shere if you like and show it to your sur- veyor. I think it will convince him.” The writing was blotched and blurred, as if the paper had been under water a con- siderable time. Nevertheless, I had little difficulty in making it out. I have that scrap of paper still; I keep it with a few other curious relics of the sea. Here it is: “Nevada struck unknown rock in_mid- ocean. God have mercy upon us. We are all lost. H. B. WEST, a Us Sa “A strange message,” said Capt. George, “and it came into my hands in a very singular way. Some years ago I was cruis- ing off the west coast of Ireland. One morning we put out a trawl, and in making a haul we captured an enormous codfish. When the cook op<ned it he found in the maw a silver match box, a plain gold ring and a nall case of cedar wood. That case, which bere the initials ‘H. B. W. contained this scrap of paper. Though thi water had soaked into it, I fancy it must have 1 floating when the greedy fish got hold of it. I infer this from the fact that there was an inch or so of striug hanging from the case, as if it had been criginally attached to a bottle, a piece of ‘K, or something of that kind.” ‘The Nevada,” I said, repeating the name. “I fancy I remember hearing of that vessel. Very likely,” he replied. “She was an Atientic boat, running between Boston and London. If I'm not mistaken, she was lost in '78—another of thcse ocean mysteries, you see, fur her fate is sull a matter of mere conjecture in the shipping world.” “I suppose you endeavored to trace the friends and relatives of this Mr. West, for it looks like a man’s handwriting? ‘Not 1. What good would it have done? His friends or retatives, if he had any, had long ago given him up for lost. Why should J open an old wound?” “But, at any rate, you communicated with the owners of the vessel?” “I did nothing of the kind. I should only have brought their representative down upon me; probably he would have followed me from port to port, and I had no fancy to be pestered in that way. Very possibly a newspaper man would have been set on my track, and I couldn't have given him the slip so easily. If he failed to tind me in port he would have started off in chase of the Wanderer, and tried to interview me on the high seas, as one of them did, you remember, in the case of Capt. Morrell of the Missouri. “So you kept this information entirely to yourself? “I made use of it. I went and searched for that rock; and I found it.”” “Where does it lie?” “You shall see for yourself; that is, if you agree to a proposition I have to make. When I discovered the position of the roc 1 determined, some day or other, to make a careful survey of the spot on my own ac- count by sending down a diver to examine its formation. The conversation this after- sieon has revived my--well, whim, fad, or whatever you like to call it. I am ready to set out on the expedition whenever I can find a diver bold enough—" I'm your man, Capt. George!’ I ex- claimed. “Gocd; I couldn't ask for better. I think you will find it as profitable employment as staying at home and taking your chance of wrecks. This is not exactly the best time of year for the enterprise, but no matter! It will tak» a week or so to get the Wanderer properly fitted out and ship sufficient stores. Can you be ready within ten deys?” I teld him I had no other work in view once we had finished with the Magellan, and, after that day's sterm, I fully expect- ed she would give us little further trouble. *1 will drop into Landport at the end of next week,” he said. ‘Meantime, keep this project to yourself; I don't want it talked about, or to have any fuss made in the newspapers.” He accompanied me on deck, the boat was hauled up alongside and I returned to the shore. When I awoke next morning and looked out over the bay the Wanderer was gcne. On the 27th of September we commenced our remarkable voyage. I felt somewhat depressed, I don’t know why, at leaving home on that occasion. There was somie- thing attractive in the idea of solving this great Atlantic mystery, which, if it really existed, must have caused untold disaste Still, I was not altogether carried away by Capt. George's views, and entertained con- siderable doubt as to our success. We steered west-sou’-west for several days. We sighted some of the big Atlantic liners in the distance. One evening a huge Cunarder passed within a mile or so of u: lights all agiow, her funnels belching ou columns of smoke that trailed away far behind. “Making a rush with the mails,” Capt. George remarked as we watched her. Next day it was blowing rather fresh and we hai a choppy sea. It struck me as strange that, up to the present, Capt. Geerge had made no direct reference to the object of our voyage. That morning, how- ever, after breakfast, he said to me: “We must take our bearings at noon, Lawrenceson, may overshoot the mark.” We did so, and when we had picked out our position on the chart, the course was altered to gou’-sou’-west. ‘This brought v more out of the track of Atlantic steame though we still sighted a number of sailing ships. I noticed that Capt. George kept a clese eye on the chart during the 1.ext few days. One morning, when he had made the usual daily reckoning, he came down into the saloon with a paper in-his hand, upon which was marked the latitude and longi- or we tude. “Get your diving gear ready, Law- renceson,” he said. ‘You'll want it be- fore long.” “Is the rock In sight?” No, nor likely to be. Probably it is sub- merged, as I believe is generally the though at what depth is another ques All the same, we are not far from it.” That evening the engines were slowed dcwn. Capt. George stood on the bridge, and for upward of on hour he took éntire charge of the vessel, altering the course from time to time. Then he gave the sig- nal to stop. : The men in the bows were ready with the anchor, and presently I heard it splash into the water. We were provided with a special deep-sea cable, but I was rather surprised to find the depth was not so great as I had fancied. Capt. George descended from the bridge and joined me. “Tomorrow morning we will get the long- beat out, if the weather holds fine,” he said. “You will have to proceed more to the south before you make your first de- scent.”” I confess I did not sleep much that night. My mind was too full of the mystery of this ocean rock. Was the story true? Did the terrible spot really He within reach of us? If so, what an appalling sight would meet my view when I stood beneath it, and gazed around at the havoc it had wrought: I felt I might be on the verge of some startling discovery. I lay awake until long after midnight. tion. “Making a Rush With the Mails,” Capt. George Remarked. Then I determined to get up and go on deck. As I passed Capt. George's cabin I could tell by his heavy breathing that he was sleeping soundly. I moved on and stepped out into the cool night air. How well 1 can recall the scene from the Wanderer’s deck at that silent hour! The moon was on the wane; she was wading slowly through a mi of dark clouds, emerging occasionally to flood the ocean with her silver light. Not a sound was to be heard, save the melancholy moan of the sea or the splash of the water against the yacht's side. In the morning I felt more like myself; perhaps I was too busy with my prepa: ticns to think much of anything else. Following Capt. George's directions, we rowed away to the south, and when we got about half a mile from the yacat I went down. On reaching the bottom I stood for a The next morning I set out again. I minute or two looking around me. Which direction should I take?! I struck out to the right and made a wide circle, but there was nothing unusual to be seen. The bed was hard, rising and dipping here and there, with loose rock lying! about, and hardly any weeds. I paused again. I tried to remember in what direction the yacht lay, and moved, as I thought, away from her. I walked on and gn, pntil it was time to ascend, and on getting to the sur- face I found I had wandered east of the vessel. “Try further south this afternoon, said Capt. George, when I made my report. “By the way, what did those loose rocks look like?” “Most of them were rough and ragged,” I replied. “In some places they were thrown together in heaps, and in others only two or three were to be seen.” “Ah, I thought so! Don’t despair, Law- renceson, you're not far from the mark.”” At 3 o'clock I made @ second descent, a good deal further to the south. Soon after I touched the bottom I found something that aroused my interest. It was an iron stanchion, evidently torn from a_ vessel which must have foundered close at hand. I went on, and then stood still. What was it made me pause? I scarcely knew at first, but I had a sort of instinct- ive feeling that I was near some unseen danger. 1 moved on very cautiously, and halted a second time. With a_ strange sense of awe stealing over me, I became aware of a singular circumstance for which I could not account. There was a slight but peculiar tremor in the water around me, much like the vibration of the air after a distant peal of thunder, Once or twice, too, I fancied I felt a faint heaving in the ground under my feet. It was some little time before I could bring myself to proceed. I walked first ahead, then to the left, then to the right, and back again toward the point from which I had started. I made no further discovery. Sometimes the tremulous mo- tion in the water seemed to grow more dis- tinct; frequently it died away until it was hardly perceptible. I was puzzled. I thought it better to go up, and see whether Capt. George could give any explanation of this singular occurrence. “You were within reach of the rock,” he said when he had heard what I had to tell. “The next time you go down try and as- certain from what point that tremor pro- ceeds. Follow in this direction; it will lead to your goal.”” as now thoroughly bent upon pushing on with the search, no matter what risks might He in the way. 1 had placed a buoy over the spot where I had descended the previous day, and told the men to Keep rowing slowly to the south while IT was under water, for that was the direction I was de- termined to take. 1 still noticed that strange tremor I have described, but I soon grew accustomed to it, and walked boldly ahead. As I pro- ceeded the disturbance increased; the ground seemed to sway under me; it was as if waves of motion were passing be- neath my feet. Once or twice I felt half inclined to turn back; I was just a little bit—well, I remembered I hada wife and family depending upon me, and it looked like tempting Providence to proceed furth- er. But I set my teeth hard and pressed on. Presently, the ground began to shelve downward. The commetion around me was now so great that at times T had some difficulty in keeping my feet. I was near- ing the awful spot, then! I grew reckless. I cast aside every fear. If I succeeded in locating this rock, what an inestimable service I would render to mankind. "As I descer ded into a kind ef hollow, T became aware of something like a dark wall rising before me. At first T thought it was the rock; but, no; {t was long, low and regular in outline. I a »proached it; inside my then I gave a sort of gasp ¢ helmet. Good heavens! It was a ship! A big steamer, tod What a sight she presented as she lay there on her s rising and felling with the undulating mo- tion of the ground! Her masts and fun- nels were gone, her deck: n up, and her tered in, almost down to the fore- round her, the y littered ckage, cargo of every de of her gailant cre was her name? I roped my wa stern, held up my and re tario, Liverpool.” Scarcely had I left her, ana moved with w and the bone ther along the hollow, than other hull appeared in sight. A suiting ship this time! After that, almest every st brought me in view of a sunke "They lay scattered around in all and in_all po: me m others just beginning to break up, they been afloat few which showed within last year or two. battered bows of each told the same terrible stor, Ships of ev size—and of al nation, I suppose—were huddl: of death. this awful vall remains of an old three-d side lay the skeleton of a smail vessel, not much bigger than a schocner. I turned away; I had seen enough! 2 ‘At the opposite side from which T had appreached I noticed there was an upward I Held Up My Lamp and Read. tendency in the ground. I determined to proceed in that direction. After walking for a few minutes the ascent grew steeper. I made slow progress, atid was nearly hurled back into the hollow more than once. I went down, and tore an iron bar from one of the vessels. Armed with this T renewed the attempt, and found it afford- ed me great assistance in the climb. ‘Steadying myself with the bar, and tak- ing advantage of every piece of projecting rock which might aid my ascent, I crept up the steep slope. On I went, panting, and half stifled, not daring to pause lest 1 should be swept away by the strong cur- rent which seemed to beat down upon me from above. At last I reached a sort of narrow platform, and stccd there, with my bar thrust into a crevice. 1 looked up. ‘Above me rose a great, towering, irregular mass of solid rock! 1 scarcely remember how I got back to the boat, for I was feeling terribly ex- hansted, and my head was dizzy. When T reached the deck of the yacht, it was only to drop into the nearest scat. I must have looked scared and white, for Capt. George hurried ‘to my side. “Whatever is the matter, Lawrenceson?” he said. “You look as if you had just es- caped from the jaws of some sea monster.”" “T have escaped from the jaws of death itself!” I replied. “You found the rock?” “I did.” He turned hastily and gave an order to one of his men, who darted away toward the saloon. Presently the man came run- ning up with a glass and a bottle of brandy. “Here, swallow, off this,” said Capt. George, handing me a pretty stiff dram. “[ can well imagine the sight was enough to give any man a bit of a shock.” ‘After dinner he made me go through the whole story of my adventure that morn- ing. He listened attentively, ‘never inter- rupting me once. “Just as I thought,” he said, when I had finished. He rose from his seat and walked up and down in silence, as if pondering deep- ly over what he had just heard. “Bo you know, Lawrenceson,” he said, suddenly halting before me, “I would like to go down and have a look at the place myself.” : “Don't do it, Capt. George,” I replied, hastily. “Why not? It is not often a man gets a chance of witnessing a sight like that. The risk, if there is any, does not Geter me; I shall ask for the loan of your diving dress this afternoon and make the attempt.” I knew he was not the sort of man to be lightly turned from his purpose, so 1 had to give in. I told him he would have little difficulty in finding the spot, as the boat- men had stationed a buoy over it. I did not accompagy him, for I was feeling a bit out of sorts, and lay down on a couch in the saloon. I was soon fast asleep. ‘An hour or two later I wes aroused by a step on the cabin stairs. I looked uv and saw Capt. George entering the saloon. He went straight into his own cabin, without even glancing in my direction. When he had changed the diving dress for his ordinary yachting suit, he came out into the saloon and sat down. “Well, Capt. George, what did you think of it?” I asked. “It might well be called ‘The Graveyard of the Ocean,’ ” he replied, solemnly. There was silence for a minute or two, then he said: “That three-decker must be the old Re- doubtable, I fancy. She left Bermuda in the autumn of '63, and has long been re- turned as ‘missing’ at the admiralty.” fter another pause I ventured to say: “Now that we have fcund the rock, what's to be done next?” “Blow it up,” he answered, gravely. I locked at him in amazement. “I have brought out a quantity of tonite for this very purpose,” he went on. “It is a rather powerful explosive, four times the strength of ordinary blasting powder, and equal to No. 1 dynamite. As the rock appears to be fissured, it will save us the trouble of boring. The cartridges must be incased in water-proof packing or India rubber bags. When you have laid the charges, we can retire to a distance, and explode them by means of an electric cable and battery. If we even succeed in split- ting the rock, it would answer our pur- pese.”” I entered heartily into the scheme, for my whole thoughts were bent upon getting rid of the danger. Though I might have to encounter some risk in placing the charges, it was a small matter compared to the ad- vantages that would follow if we were suc- cessful. For several days I was busily en- gaged in inserting the powerful cartridges, and, as I had some experience of this kind of work, I laid the charges so as to give the explosion the greatest effect possible. At last the work was completed, the cable laid and all in readiness for the final moment. It was a bright, sunny afternoon, I remember, not much like the general run of October days. I looked around the wide expanse of ocean. Not a sail was in sight. The Wanderer had weighed anchor that morning, and it had full steam up, ready to depart fcr home. Capt. George stood on deck with the battery befote him. He was about to attach the ends of the cable. “Now,” he said, when it was done, “pre- pare to see the last of this mysterious rock!”” I kept my eyes on the spot where the buoy still marked the pasition of the rock. Suddenly a column of water rose into the air, and we heard a dull report as of dis- tant thunder. But we were little prepared for the full result. Almost instantly with the first report—so quickly, in fact, as to appear part of it—came the roar of a mighty detonation that shook the yacht from stem to stern. A vast body of water was flung to a height of several hundred feet and carried with it huge masses of rock, some of which fell thirty or forty yards away. It was a grand, but appalling, I Tarned Away, I Had Seen Enough. sight! Never before had I witnessed such a mighty upheaval. The foundations of the sea seemed to have been torn up. The commotion on the surrounding sur- face was so great that the Wanderer was Mfted on an immense ridge of water and carried away at such tremendous speed we had to hold on to the wocd work to keep elves from being dashed across_ the When all was 1 again Capt. se turned to me and said: e didn’t count on the pent-up forces which lay beneath that rock. The ex plosion of the tonite must have given them ed the work more com- could haye done. I eve e is little lett either of the rock it. the vessels that around g continued, gazing back to the Spot, from which the Wanderer w gliding away under full s » little to mankind, and, as kind has owed little to me. F forth, however, those who traver in future will, wit knowing it, debtors to me for their safety.” —2ee-— THE FATAL COLONIAL CHAIR, Its Effect Spoiled by an Unlucky New Year Bill. From the Chicago Tribune. It was New Year day and the fair Miss Snobberly entertaining a caller. The caller was a shining light in the inner cir- cle of society and a potential aspirant for her hand. “Oh, Mr. Oldfam,” she cried, taking him to the end of the room, “see this darling old colonial chair which arrived yesterday from papa’s ancestral home in Vermont. Did you ever see anything sweeter in your life?” Why, really, Miss Snobberly, It Is a de- lightful bit of furniture, and no doubt full of the most delightful associations.” “Yes, indeed; it belonged to ah—the founder of papa’s family in this country and has cradied—no, I don't mean that— it has been used by all the succeeding generations.” “How very interesting.” “Yes; isn't it? To think of my great- great-grandfather being sung to sleep to the music of some old Puritan psalm in that very chai Z “It is, indeed, a valuable helrioom.” “Yes; and look;” her voice took in a fresh note of triumph as she pointed to the back, “look, where deeply carven and black with age, aro the letters F. L. 8. my great- grandfather's initials. Thin! . Oldfam, when those letters were carven Americans still prayed publicly for the king and the royal family, the battle of Bunker Hill was yet undreamed of and— Maria,” said the voice, “I've Just been looking over these New Year bills, and here’s one I don’t understand: “To one ex- act reproduction of colonial cha'r, $19.’ That's all right, of course; I suppose it's that old junk shop affair in the front par- lor—though why you wanted to buy a thing that looks old when I can afford brand new ones I don’t understand. But it’s this item that puzzles me: ‘To carving three letters on the back and producing the ap- pearance of age, $9.’ Now, I—” But Mr, Oldfam heard no more; he had caught his breath sufficiently to tell Miss Snobberly that he had a lot more calls to make and must bid her good afternoon. ——_—__+e-+ From Life. Rider: I am going to stick to you this time, and don’t you forget it. Horse: Oh, you're way off. € TO FIGHT AGAINST VICE. It: Takes Strong Nerves and Clear Brain These Days. The Rev. I. P. Quimby of the Broad- way Church, Boston, Says it is His Duty Celery People Well. to Recommend Paine’s Compound-- REV. I. Clergymen today need big hearts and sound nerves to accomplish all the good they intend. It isn’t me the fact of preaching once a week that makes the Ife of the minister of today so wearing on nerves aud brain. Their every-day labor is a round of exacting duties that tax heavily their nervous strength. The modern minister must keep up bis en- thusiasm, his hopefulness And his genuine love of his work. He must feel strongly, think deeply and have confidence in bis labor and in himself. But all this taxes heart and brain to their ut- termost. It calls for a tremendous outlay of ner- yous energy seven days in the week and 305 year. Many clergymen break down utterly under the nervous strain. Rev. LP. Quimy, the well-known Boston preacher, has been saved from nervous prostration. In a publication of his Sunday school he has recently published the following open letter: BOSTON, Nov. 20, 1894. Never in my {fe have I commended any pro- prietary medicine, but I would be derelict in duty if I failed to let the public know what a great beon to bur y I believe Paine’s celery com- peund to be. With a family of seven, I have not paid a dollar for a doctor ten years, and I owe it to the fact that I al keep Paine’s celery compound on hand, and when any of us are “out of sorts,” administer it. Both wife and I, in our arduous church work, are often, by anxiety and overwork, reduced to P. QUIMBY. the verge of nervous prostration, and as often, by the use of Paine’s celery compound, restored to our wonted energy of mind and vigor of body. Our sons, who are young pharmacists, tell us they sell more of Paine's celery compound than any two proprietary medicines, not excepting the sarsaparillas. Yours for Paine’s celery compound, REV. L P. QUIMBY, Pastor of Broadway Church, Boston, Mass, When the nervous strength has become from any cause impoverished, Paine’s celery compound suc- ceeds as nothing else has ever done. From a state of depression, exhaustion and life- lessness the nerves grow strong, active, and per- fectly nourished by means of Faine’s celery com- Trund, the great modern nerve and blood remedy that makes people well. And with the strength- cing and regulating of the nerves the disorders that depend on the faulty nutrition of these tis- sues disappear. Such are rheumatism, neuralgia, heart weakness, headaches, low spirits, lack of strength, and that general poor health that fs so iinpossible to define. ’ Sound nerves, healthy blood and an all round, vigorous constitution of the body is the invariable effect of taking Paine’s celery compound. This great modern restorative corrects deranzement of the nervous system, and averts prostration when protracted strain has reduced {t to an exhausted, poorly fed, devitalized condition. Try it. FOR CHURCH FUNDS. An Ingenious Method to Pay Off a Building Debt. From the New York Herald. The newest scheme for getting church funds is that recently adopted by the members of the Embury Memorial Metho- dist Eptscopal Church of Brooklyn, of which the Rey. Wellesly W. Bowdish 1s pastor. The plan has been in operation cnly a few weeks, but the results thus far have been satisfactory, and the members of-the church are enthusiastic over the financial prospects. ‘S$ ‘The plan consists in giving to every person who pays $2 toward the church building fund a book containing coupons representing $100 worth of discounts and a list of firms, in almost every kind of busi- ness, which will honor the coupons as cash, The terms of the discount are very simple, although they seem a trifle in- volved at first. The great attraction of the plan is that every purchaser of a two- dollar book is able to save $100 by the time he has used all the coupons. The church managers reason that almost any- body will give § for a chance to make $100. ery book is neatly Dound. Included in it is a list of firms in Brooklyn and this city who will give from 5 to 20 per cent Giscount on goods purchased for cash by any one presenting the book and detaching coupons equivalent to the amount of the discount. Dealers and Discounts. These coupons are arranged in sheets of thirty-three each. They look like postage stamps, but they are only about one-third the size of stamps. The one-cent coupons are printed in blue, the threes in light brown, the fives in green and the tens in very dark brown. There are 528 coupons of each value, and altogether they repre- sent $100.32. The list of dealers in merchandise begins with those in artificial limbs, goes on through baby carriages, bicycles, boots and shoes, carpets, dry goods, drugs, furs, gloves, groceries, and so cn, alphabetically, io wood carpets. There are dentists, too, who agree to give the discount. Opposite the name of each firm is printed the amount of discount that will be given to the holder of the Look. For example, the artificial limb dealer gives crly 5 per cent off, while the baby carriage dealer gives 10. One manufac- turer of corsets offers 6 per cent discount, whil: a long iist of dentists offer 10 per cent discount. One firm of dry goods dealers gives a reduction of 6 per cent to book holders. Brooklyn photographers offer 10 per cent discount. Their orethren in this city beat this by giving all the way from 10 to 50 per cent. One New Ycrk firm dealing in smokers’ articles announces 10 per cent dis- count on tobecco, on gars, and con- cludes peremptorily, “No discount on cigarettes.” Even Tombstones. Mausoleums may be had in this city at 5 per cent discount, statuary and monu- ments at 5 per cent off. Laundering will be done subject to 10 per cent discount at eight places. One gas fixture firm and one book publisher offer 25 per cent off. Elec- tric and Turkish baths are to be had at a 20 per cent discount. In the “notices and instructions” printed e thes? paragraphs: ureau of Merchants” in this book was made by request of worthy people in- terested in all humanity, with no selfish motives, and eve! rm represented is war- ranted not to take ze of the people. Not cne store requested the favor of rep- resentation herein. You can make mcney—throvgh this book —by spending moncy. One dollar of each $2 received for the books is sent to the New York company that owns the scheme. More than 1,500 bocks have been distrib- uted among members of the pury Me- morial Church and their friends. Some of the women intend te give to the church the ems others will give the first $10— save FREE LIBRARY PATRONS. Boys and Girls From the Slums De- light in Reading. From the Philadelphia Times. The free library of Philadelphia came into existence ten months ago under the will of the late George S. Pepper, who left $220,000 for the purpose, out of the interest of which the present alterations in Egyp- tian Hall are being made at a cost of $5,000. The city gave $25,000 for the sup- port of the library during the year 1894. ‘The amount was expended for running ex- penses and the salaries of employes. Seven thousand people are regular mem- bers of the library, and 3,600 books are taken out every week. As no one particu- lar class of people resorts to the Phila- delphia library it may virtually be said to represent every state of society in the city, from those who go there to read because they have nothing else to do, to men and women who could easily afford membership in older libraries. As an educator the brary would fall short of its purpose if it excluded persons whose outward ap- pearance was not exactly agreeable from an aesthetic standpoint, but who are really seeking profitable reading. It is hard to believe that boys and girls from twelve to fifteen years of age and reared up in the very breath of the slums that existed there some years ago could take a delight in reading Pope's transla- tion of the “Iliad” or in poring over Shakespeare's plays by the hour. Yet, relatively speaking, Rittenhouse Square does not produce a more precocious or in- teresting set of youngsters than are to be found at the reading tables of the cozy library, whose windows look out on the little park which is the pride of St. Mary’s street in summer time. Every afternoon fifty children fresh from school troop into the library to return their books and get new ones. The crowd is composed of little Italian boys and girls, some of them with faces not too clean and hands to correspond; bright-faced colored lads, and smart Hebrew children—all in an orderly line, waiting to get some book that a playmate has “recommended.” They are quick to learn the meaning of any new word or phrase and make immediate ap- plication of it in talking with one another. so. FRESH AIR IN WINTER. Its Value Demonstrated by an Ex- periment on Babtes. An interesting test, which proved that fresh air in winter was beneficial to even young and delicate children, ts reported in the Journal of Household Economies. It was tried recently in a babies’ hospital in Boston. All the sickly babies that were suffering from chronic indigestion and lack of nu- trition, and who would not improve in spite of good food, perfectly ventilated rooms and careful bathing, were wrapped as for the street, put in their ambulators ard taken to the top ward of the hospital, where ali the windows were wide open. They were kept in this room from two to four hours daily, and soon showed a mark- ed improvement. Their checks became rosy, they gained in weight and appetite, and would often fall asleep and remain so during the entire time they were in zhe air. Very delicate children had bags of hot water placed at their feet. It is recorded in the account of this experiment that not one child took cold as a result of it.