A REMINISCENCE OF THE SEA.

Otago Witness, Issue 3278, 10 January 1917, Page 57

A REMINISCENCE OF THE SEA.

By Geo. M. Hassing.

It was in the year 1853 when I joined the good old frigate-huilt ship Delhi, r i Boston, U.S., bound for Panama with a load of ice. Captain Thos. Knapp wax well known in American mercantile shipping circles as a competent, careful skipper of a most genial disposition. The first, second, and third mates were capable men. and the crow, consisting mostly of Scandinavians, were all excellent seamen The cargo of ice. obtained from Fresh Pond, near Boston, was sawn into blocks 3ft long by 2ft broad and 2ft deep, and stowed in the ship's hold in the following manner: —A bed of sawdust about 4ft deep was first spread over the whole length of the ship's bottom. Upon this double layers of coarse blankets were stretched, and on this the ice was stacked as closely as bricks in building a house. Sawdust and blankets were continued up the sides of the vessel right up to the floor of the tween deck, which was stowed with merchandise of various kinds.

Alter rounding Cape Cod a fine passagewas made down the North Atlantic. The usual calm and doldrums at the Equator enabled the crew to paint the ship and set up the rigging before we picked up the S.E. trades, which carried us well towards Cape Horn. We then encountered a succession of S.W. gales, which blew with terrific violence for fully six weeks. We drifted south under close-reefed topsails till wc sighted Elephant Island, where, the S'hackleton party were recently marooned. Well do I remember, even at this distant period, those dismal, dark, stormy nights when we were all on the look-out, peering through the darkness for floating icebergs. The loneliness of drifting in that far southern latitude became oppressive in the extreme, and got on one's nerves, producing an indescribable depression of spirits. During lulls in the storm, the weird, hoarse croak of the penguins somewhat relieved the sickening monotony. However, after battling away for six weeks, a favourable S.E. breeze sprang up. when reefs were shook out, and a fair wind, carried us round Capo Horn and well up the coast of Chile. Here light but favourable southerly breezes sent us up towards tho equatorial region. Though our good ship was as tight as a bottle, yet we occasionally manned the pumps to relieve her of the water produced by the melting of the ice cargo. Running short of fresh water, wo replenished our casks with this, and after boiling and filtering it used it

for cooking and drinking purposes. This, no doubt, as well as the want of fresh provisions for upwards of six months, brought about that dreaded disease scurvy. Five of the crew were already laid up suffering from scurvy, and others were more or less affected, so we all longed lor a good, fair wind to take us to our destination.

This came at last, and we entered the lovely Panama Bay, sailed by the beauti ful tropical island of Taboga, and anchored within a mile of the old Spanish town of Panama. We signalled for the hospital boat, which came alongside, and took away our five patients, whom I did not expect to meet again, as they were reduced to the appearance of Egyptian mummies, and had to be hoisted over the ship's side in blankets to be taken ashore.

The cargo, which had all to be boated ashore, was discharged by Spanish steve dores. The ice turned out surprisingly well, and, though a lot had melted, we landed 600 tons, which sold at an enormous price, ice retailing at that period at a shilling a pound in the city.

Panama was then typical of most Spanish-American cities, and perhaps the most unhealthy town in the world. The Eurojiean population, chiefly hotel, saloon, and gambling housekeepers, resembled walking ghosts. Six thousand Chinamen perished in building the railway across the Isthmus. This work was in full progress during that period. Passengers for California, landing at Colon or Aspinwall, on the Atlantic side, had to travel across the Isthmus on mules, which also carried their luggage, etc. To see a cavalcade of loaded mules come over to Panama was a sight never to be foi'gotlen. As the San Fran cisco steamers could get no nearer than within half a mile of the landing-place, and it happened to be ebb tide when the cavalcade arrived, the passengers—men, women, and children—had to be carried on the shoulders oi big naked darkies, who floundered through the sticky, evil-smell-ing mud to reach the steamers' boats It was indeed a wonderful performance Panama was a wicked, lawless place, teem ing with desperadoes of the worst type Gambling for big money was carried on day and night by lucky returning diggers from California, while indiscriminate shooting and wanton bloodshed was of everyday occurrence. Though quite a youth, I was offered 120dol a month to go out and superintend a gang of China men on the railway construction. This J declined with thanks.

Strange to say, the five men I had given up as lost quite recovered in about three weeks' time, and joined the ship again asactive as ever. We then hove up the anchor and sailed for that lovely island, Taboga, in Panama Bay, where we bal lasted. Here, near the landing-place, I visited one of the finest orange groves in the world, growing in absolutely pure sand, and the fruit was most delicious. To give my readers an idea of the law le.ssness carried on, I may mention that there were several American vessels anchored at Taboga, and it appears that one of the seamen on board the ship Anglo-American (Captain Bully Mayo), had deserted. Thereupon several of the skippers armed themselves"one evening and went ashore to hunt up the deserter. They found him in a shanty, and called upon him to surrender, but he made a dive for the street, where they fairly riddled him with bullets, and left his body lying thereNext day I happened to be on shore, an 1 saw the body still lying in the stseet, the face covered with flies and ants. I informed a Mr Dwyer, a good Welsh Samaritan, of the affair, and' he had the bodv buried decentlv.

.naviug completed ballasting, we, in company with several other vessels, set sail for Calao and the Chincha Islands, on the coast of Peru, to load guano for Balti more. We arrived safely at Calao, an old Spanish town, and ' the seaport of Lima, the capital of Pern. The harbour is sheltered nicely by the island of St. Lorenzo, which rose suddenly out of the Pacific in the great earthquake of 1826. when a strip of the coastline 12 miles long and three miles wide broke from the mainland and disappeared in the ocean. The island, which is some three miles long by two miles wide, is with an altitude of 500 ft or 600 ft, said to have derived itname from Lorenzo, a fisherman, who was out in his boat at the time of the earthquake, and was carried up, boat and all, by the island rising beneath him. Calao. which prior to that subsidence and unheaval, was 12 miles from Lima, is now but nine miles distant. Several of the church spires of the old submerged town could be seen projecting out of the mud in the harbour at low water. After visiting Lima and its cathedral with its wonderful gold and silver ornaments, we sailed for Chincha Islands, some 90 miles south of Calao. Here we found anchored fully 2GO vessels of all nationalities, all loading Peruvian guano. There are three islands —the north, middle, and south island. Tlie deposit of guano was simply marvellous. Take the middle island as typical of the lot; it would be some six miles in circumference, with a rock base rising continuous some 60i't out of the sea. The guano, rising from the. edge all around the island to a perfect cone in the centre, readies a height of 120 ft from the base. These islands were leased for a mere trifle by the Peruvian Government to a Liverpool firm. Gibbs and Bright, who cleared an immense fortune out of the transaction. From the top of the rocky base shoots conveyed the guano to the ships direct, or into boats or lighters; and Chinamen, who had been kidnapped and landed on the islands, worked the u'uano and the shoots. A lawless event occurred during my stay. It happened en Good Friday, which is a strict Catholic holiday in Spanish America, On that day a ship called Hie John Camming, of Savannah, Captain Adams, was moored close to the Delhi. Of a sudden she hoisted tho Stars and Stripes, Union down as a signal of distress. The various American ships immediately lowered their boats, each under the command of the captain, and made for the John dimming. My dear old

skipper, Captain Knapp, ordered me into the dinghy to row him aboard. All the skippers were armed, some with sling shots,: Bully Mayo amongst the lot yelling for all he was worth. When we arrived on board, it appeared that the crew of native Peruvians who had been brought down from Calao to load the vessel, as her European crew had deserted owing to bad treatment, had refused to work on Good Friday; but the captain insisted that they should work, and that he would make them. Thereupon the serang, or lwatswain. of the Peruvians, who was an Irishman, but could speak Spanish fluently, ordered his gang to seize one of the ship's boats and they would all go ashore and interview the Governor, whose name was Kossuth, a brother of the Hungarian patriot. They all got into the boat and left the ship, when the skipper rushed into his cabin, bringing out a loaded blunderbus, which he aimed at the boatswain and lodged a heavy charge of buckshot in his body. The arrival of the skippers brought the boat, containing the crew and the unfortunate man back to the John Gumming. I was seated on the main hatch, and the poor Irishman, a fine-look-ing young man, staggered down beside me. I put my arm round his neck to support him when he suddenly leaned over on my chest and expired. I felt so sorry to think that such a crime should go unpunished. However, that was not so in this case ; for when returning to Calao to clear his ship and engage a crew-, Captain Adams was' seized by the authorities, tried, and sentenced to 20 years in the chain gang, and those who know what that means in Peru would no doubt saythat a death sentence would have been more merciful.

We loaded up and had a splendid run home, rounding Cape Henry in the middle of summer. Sailing up the lovely Chesapeake Bay we arrived safely at Fell's Point wharf, Baltimore. Here, my good skipper and I departed overland for Boston by way of Philadelphia and New York. Thus ended a voyage full of interest and mixed reminiscences.