Newspaper Page Text
-
NORTH GEORGIA TIMES P I
Wm. C. Editor.
Below the Sea.
Beep in the bay the old ohorch lies,
Beyond the storm-wind’s power,
The waves that whelmed it overplay
In ripples round the tower.
And if you look down through the tide—
Many and many a time—
You may catoh the glimmer of the itones,
<Or hear the sweet bells chime!
Uovtbey that dwell deep in the sea,
Below the wind and rain,
The Mermen and the Mermaidens,
Hare built it up again !
They have made fast the ruined walla
With their immortal.hinds,
And strewn the aisle with red sea-flowers,
And with the wot sea sands.
And when a drilling boat conies hack
Rock shattered to the shore,
With never captain at the helm,
Nor sailor at the oar,
Then down below the stormy foam
The tweet old bells ring free,
They call upon the manners
That come no more from sea.
—May Kendall, in Magazine of Jlrt.
‘‘A Secret of the Sea.”
The following story was told me a
short time ago by a friend, who had it
only at second hand from an eye-wit¬
ness of the whole affair. My friend
began thus:
“The strange thing 1 am going to
tell you is true; I know it because I
have it from a friend, or, rather a re¬
lation, of one of the officers on board
the ship.
“Some years ago, before the exist¬
ence of the Suez Canel, a large East
Indiaman was making her way easily,
with light Summer winds, along
through the Indian Ocean to Calcutta.
The Cape had been passed several days
before; and now, with charming
weather, officers and passengers, to say
nothing of the crew, were looking for¬
ward to the end of what had been a
pleasant, though quite uneventful,
voyage,
“They had had nothing more serious
than a ‘half-gale o’ wind,’ had met only
three or four ships, homeward bound;
and in spite of a score or more agreea¬
ble passengers, in spite of the last sen¬
sation novels, of musical entertain¬
ments, of flirtations by moonlight on
deck, and even in spite of unlimited
gossip, the days had grown very mo¬
notonous,and the weeks unaccountably
long; even light-hearted middies h;.d
begun to chafe and fret over the long
confinement on shipboard, and the
young ladies to sigh for an excitement.
“I take it for granted that you know
that the service of the East India
Company’s ships was like the Naval in
its organization; there were captain,
lieutenants, midshipmen and petty of¬
ficers; the ships were mounted with
heavy guns, and were well armed, and
manned with men trained for fighting.
The voyage was long, and in time of
war the Indiamen were regarded as
very desirable booty. The ships were
large, strongly built and very commo¬
dious, and often luxuriously fitted up.
“The day had been hot, and the light
wind had died almost entirely away;
the great ship rose and fell on the
waves, and her sails hung loosely from
the tall masts that slowly swayed back
and forth with monotonous, cracking
sound one knows so well who has been
much at sea. It was “sundown,’ and
the short twilight of the tropics was
fast deepening into night; everybody
had come upon deck to enjoy such
whiffs of air as might be stirring, the
passengers and officers on the quarter¬
deck, while the crew were hanging
over the side or lazily lounging on the
neat coils of rope about the deck.
“Suddenly a faint, very faint sound
—so faint, one knew not what it was
whence it came—or scarcely if there
bad been a sound at all. People asked
each other about it; some had heard it
and others had not; and after som6
discussion it was decided there really
was nothing at all. And just as they
reached that conclusion the sound
came again, and a little clearer, more
positive than before, so that every one
heard something. ‘It was the moan of
the breeze through the rigging!’ ‘No,
it was the bell for’ard !’ It was fifty
most ordinary sounds in the world,
and quite a matter of course that it
should have been heard; and then—
again it came—as if it dropped from
the air, and were the sob of some sad
hearted spirit floating by. And then
the thing was talked over and
over, and everybody had a theory, and
nobody was satisfied with any of them.
“Meantime it grew darker, and the
great stars of the Southern World
started out, making the night lumi
nous with their wonderful glory. A
silence fell upon the busy tongues, and
SPRING PLACE. GEORGIA. THURSDAY JANUARY 21, 1886.
all eyes were gazing upwards, when
suddenly through the hush broke the
tone of a bell. Full, clear, musical it
rang out, then died slowly, seeming to
go further and further away, until the
last faint sound came from a long dis¬
tance off; then again silence, and peo¬
ple looked strangely at each other, and
almost as if they were fearful of break¬
ing that stillness by speaking the
words that hung on every lip. At
last Captain Stanley hailed the mast¬
head.
•• 'No, sir, nothing in sight. It’s a
little misty up to windward.’
“ ‘Keep a sharp lookout—d’ye hear?’
<1 « Ay, ay, sir !’
“A slight puff of wind blew past the
ship—just enough to bear the distinct
tone of the mysterious bell, and also to
tell from which direction it came; it
was deeper, dearer, fuller than before.
The mystery deepened, but Captain
Stanly said, quietly; ‘That mist un
doutedly holds the solution of the af¬
fair; it is some ship’s bell, as we shall
see as soon as it lifts a little.’ But
hour after hour went on, and still the
midst hung low on the water, and
still the mournful sound of that bell
was borne to the ears that listened all
hrough the night on board the Dare.
Few left the deck, and all night long
that sad, weird tolling kept them com¬
pany—now seemingly closer to them,
and again so faint and far away. It
was uncanny, and to the sensitive ones
sounded like the strokes of doom.
“Just before the early dawn, while
it was yet only a clear starlight, the
mist lifted, and at once came the cry
from the masthead: Something to
windward.’
« 'What is she like?’
«( « Well, it’s a queer sort of a craft
altogether.’
*< i Mr. Crabbs, will you go up and
see what you make cf her?’ said Cap¬
tain Stanley; and Mr. Crabbs, a light
footed young middie, sprang up the
rigging, and in a few moments re¬
turned, saying:
“ ‘She, or it, is a very queer-looking
thing, sir; it is pretty dark yet, but, as
well as I can see, it looks like a big
flatboat with a sort of house on it—it
floats low in the water. And that bell
sir—keeps on tolling sir,’ said little
Crabbs, hesitatingly.’
" ‘Yes—yes—we can all hear the
bell plainly enough, Mr. Crabbs!’ and
turning to the first lieutenant, Cap¬
tain Stanley went on; ‘Mr. Fraser, see
a boat lowered away at oncer send Mr.
Crabbs in command of her, to board
this stranger and find out what this
means.’
“ ‘A few minutes later one of the
ship's boats, manned with a crew of
six men, and little Crabb3 in the stern,
was pulling towards the flatboat, which
had become visible, from the ship’s
deck. There was no steady wind, but
a slight puff or two had been made
the most of to draw a little closer to
the strange thing, and the Dare now
lay almost or quite becalmed about
two miles distant from it; the house or
cabin—the top of it at least—could be
seen, and a sort of crossbeam arrange¬
ment on which hung the bell whose
solemn voice was heard as the boat
rose and tell with the waves; but no
living soul was visible. Every glass
was directed upon the little boat as it
came up alongside. Mr. Crabbs was
seen to climb up the side and instant¬
ly disappear, while in the same mo¬
ment the boat pushed off and made
for the ship, pulling in a disordered,
hesitating manner, stopping for a few
minutes’ discussion seemingly, then
their way with a long, regular stroke.
“Arrived at the ship’s side, they
came on board in a dazed sort of a way
with white scared laces; and upon
Captain Stanley’s stern demand for an
explanation, they managed to tell their
story.
"They saw no human being, they
heard sound of human voice on that
haunted thing; but as Mr. Crabbs
stepped upon the top of the high bul¬
wark, a large black figure reached up
and seized him with its long arras and
dragged him down; and there was a
sound of rattling of chains and shrieks
and yells of fendish laughter; and the
thing was loaded with devils, and the
Foul Fiend himself had got poor Mr.
Crabbs, and they got away as fast as
they could.
“And sad and terrible enough It all
was, and that horrible bell went on
tolling an awful knell for poor, bright
hearted little Crabbs. There were
sobs and tears, and pale cheeks, and
mourning for the lad; and after a lit¬
tle the captain said, with a hard voice,
and a set, stern look on his pleasant
face:
«< < Mr. Fraser, send that boat back
with a fresh crew; or, rather take com
mand yourself, sir—take the best men
and plenty of arms.’
“And in a few moments the little
boat went back, carrying men who
had rather fight a man-of-war twice
their size than face a foe that was un¬
known, and doubtless belonged to the
unseen world; but they went, and res
olutely, for everybody loved little
Crabbs. ;
“How earnestly and anxiously they
were watched from the decks of the ;
Dare one can well imagine. Mr.
Fraser and the boatswain, well armed
and revolver in hand, climbed cautious
ly up the sides of the flatboat, and
were seen to raise their heads slowly
above the bulwark. And this is what
they saw: a magnificent Bengal tiger
of the finest breed just finishing his
revolting meal t They fired together,
and the great creature fell over and
died without a struggle.
“Then the boat’s crew were ordered
to come up, and they carefully climbed
on board, and with a pistol in each
hand, began an exploration of the cab¬
in; there was no door to it, and as they
entered the wide doorway, there right
before them they saw t wo skeletons—
of a man and a woman, chained, one
against each side ol‘ the room. Be¬
tween them, in the midst, was a brok¬
en chain, one end still riveted to the
floor—the other hung to the neck of
the slain tiger!
“Fronting the doorway, on the wall
was written in Arabic: ‘Such is my
vengeance upon those who rouse my
jealousy.’ The ghastly tale was told.
"Silent from horror, they gathered
together all that was left of the gay
middie, and covering them with a
boat-cloak, the Dare's men rowed back
and told their story.
“Lieutenant Fraser told it all to the
person who told it to me, and strange
and horrible as it is—well, you know,
nothing is too str ange,’ or too horrible
‘to be true’; and my story is true.”
The Jolly Japanese,
"All life is a joke to the Japanese,”
said Lieut Wyckoff of the hydrograph¬
ic bureau, who lived in Japan for five
years. “During all that time I never
saw any one angry. I hardly believe
they could lose their tempers if they
should try. They can kill or be killed
with the most perfect savoir faire.
The trades-people will cheat you out
of your eyes if you let them, and a
good many would rather lie than tell
the truth. But there is really no mal¬
ice in it all. If you find them out
they will simply laugh in your face, as
if to say they thought they were clev
er in trying to take you in, but that
you were still more clever in catching
them. I was personally aeqainted
with the Cabinet, who really constitute
the ruling power. They carried on
the Government as if it were a big
piece of fun. The Mikado is the only
one who is expected to look at life grave
ly, and he makes up in his existence for
the levity of all his subjects. He is sa
completely secluded that he may be
said to live in a tomb. Altogether,
Japan is a delightful place to live in,
and American and English naval
officers who go there always hate to
leave, Aside from the charms of
country and climate, I put its people
for hospitality, warmth, and cheerful
ness against any nation on earth.”—■
Omaha Herald.
She Paid Extra.
A widow, whose age might have
been forty, went into business on
Grand River avenue a few weeks ago
and the first move was to get a sign
painted. The services of a sign
painter were secured, and when he
finished his work he put on bis “im¬
print” by placing his initials ‘AY. A.
II.” down on the left hand corner of
the sign. AVhen the widow came to
criticise the work she queried :
“What does ‘AV. A. H.’ stand for?”
“Why, ‘A Van ted, A Husband,”’ re¬
plied the painter.
“Oh, yes—I see,” she mused. “It
was very thoughtful in you, and here
is a dollar extra .”—Detroit Free Press.
The Student’s Recommendation.
Professor to medical student: “We
will suppose another case. By the
blunder of a prescription clerk a man
has taken twenty grains of cyanide of
potassium. What would you recom¬
mend ?”
“I would recommend that the ob
sequies be conducted in strict accord
ance with his bank account and stand¬
ing in society, sir ,”—Chicago Ledger
STORY OF TWO.CORPORALS
-
‘An Ex-Confederate’s Remin
iseence of the War.
W hy the Hatred of One Man for Another
? Turned ^
Being, as I am, a man of no educa
tion—never have been given a fair
show in my younger days—the reader
is asked to excuse my plain language
and bad grammar,
You must know that I belonged to
the Fifteenth Alabama infantry, and
that we went to the front pretty early
In the war. AVe thus had our pick of
cjorporal good men. In my company the third
was a powerful big chap
named Sam Chapin, who had been
overseer on a plantation near Hunts
ville. He was not only big and pow
erf ul but his habits hail made a selfish,
overbearing and cruel man of him.
He hadn’t been in the company a week
before half the men were down on
him for his meanness,
Big Sam also had his dislikes, but
there was one man he hated in partic¬
ular. I shouldn’t have said man, for
he was only a boy 17 years old—slim,
pale-faced and as timid in look as a
girl. Sam took a hatred of this boy
on sight, and ho let no occasion pass
to nag him and render his hard lot
still harder. Jimmie, as the boy was
called, had no complaint to make. He
was of a forgiving disposition, and no
matter what he felt or thought, wo
never heard him condemning anybody
bj| have word killed of mouth. Big Sam Some had of us would
we been in
Jimmie’s place, but such a tiling as
striking back seemed never to have
occurred to the boy. Well, one day
when a part of our regiment was cut
off from the brigade by a flank move¬
ment of the Union troops, and our
situation was desperate, our captain
Steps out and says:
“Boys, I want to send word to
Colonel-. AVhere’s the man who’ll
tale it?”
Ae w*as looking right at Big Sam all
the time, but that individual turned
two shades whiter, and hid himself in
the rear ranks, muttering that nobody
but a fool would try-to push past 3000
Yankee muskets with the message.
The first thing we knew Jimmie had
mounted a horse from which some of¬
ficer had been shot and was riding
away. How he ever ran that gaunt¬
let with his life was more than I could
tell, but he did get through, and down
came enough of our forces to help us
out of the box.
This was new cause for Big Sam to
hate Jimmie. The boy had not only
exhibited greater courage in the face
of danger, and right before us all, but
he was promoted to second corporal,
This was a promotion right over the
head of Big Sam, and he felt it to the
ends of his fingers. He couldn’t nag
the boy any more, and I have no doubt
he swore a solemn oath to kill him at
the first opportunity. Indeed, he
hinted as much, and became so ugly
and abusive to all that some of us
wanted to kill him.
AVell, in about six weeks we had
another tussle with the Yanks. We
got into it hot and heavy, and as we
were driving them for the moment 1
f oun d myself alongside of Big Sam.
We were disputing for a rise of ground,
and f ar j n a dvance of us, carrying the
flag which the color-bearer had dropp¬
ed as a bullet had hit him, was Corpo¬
ral Jimmie. I was feeling proud to
see him there, when, as heaven is my
judge, 1 saw Big Sam raise his musket,
take deliberate aim at the boy, and
next moment Corporal Jimmie went
down.
It was a burlyburly time, with grape
and lead cutting all around us, and 1
let the incident pass for a time, de¬
termined, though, that Big Sam should
pay the forfeit after the battle.
We kept on and on, but as we rose
the hill we were checked. In five
minutes more we were being driven,
and that was how it came about that
Corporal Jimmie, with his left arm
broken by Big Sam’s bullet, found
himself lying beside the ex-overseer,
who had a Yankee bullet in his leg.
There were plenty of others wounded,
and some dead ones, too, but our two
men lay almost side by side. Big Sam
was groaning, cursing and whining
like the coward he was, when a can¬
teen was held within reach and a voice
said:
“Take it, comrade—a drink will
ease your pain.”
VOL. V. New Series. No. 50.
“W-what! is it you?” exclaimed the
overseer as he rose up on his elbow
and gazed at Jimmie.
••Yes; both of ns are down, but you
are hit the worst. Can I help you ?”
“You help me?”
“Of course.”
It paralyzed Big Sam to meet with
such words from the man he had tried
to kill. After a time lie groaned out ;
“Say, Jimmie, you orter shoot me
through the head.”
“What for?”
“Cause, I’m the man that fired that
bullet into you.”
"Well, I don’t want revenge. I’m
now able to crawl away, but I won’t
leave you.”
The Yanks were massing artillery
to play on the rise of ground and what
does Corporal Jimmie do but get up in
the face of all the sharp-shooters and
wounded and faint as he was, half
drag, half carry Big Sam into a shel¬
tered ravine. More’n that, he binds up
his wound, and makes him pretty com¬
fortable, and there we found ’em along
towards night, when a grand charge
finally gave us the ground.
You remember, I had seen Big Sam
draw a bead on the boy, but when I
went to make a stir over it Corporal
Jimmie said: “Please don’t! He has
been punished enough. I think he
will be a changed man.”
And so he was. They took to each
other like twin ducks, and were the
fasted, firmest friends you ever saw.
Big Sam dropped all mean ways, and
within a year was orderly sergeant of
the company, while Corporal Jimmie
was a lieutenant.
Great Salt Lake.
Clreat Salt Lake is in fact not a ; ;
branch of the Sea at all, but a mere
shrunken remnant of a very large
fresh water lake system, like that of
the still existing St. Lawence chain.
Once upon a time American geologists
say a huge sheet of water, for which
they have even invented a definite
name. Lake Bonneville, occupied a
far larger valley among the outliers of
the Rocky Mountains, measuring 300
miles in one direction by 180 miles in
the other. Beside this primitive Su¬
perior lay a great second sheet—an
early Huron—(Lake Lahontan the
geologists call it) almost as big and
of equally fresh water. By and by—
the precise dates are necessarily indefi¬
nite—some change in the rainfall, un¬
registered by any contemporary, made
the waters of the big lakes shrink and
evaporate. Lake Lahontan shrank
away like Alice in AVonderlaud, till
there was absolutely nothing left of it;
Lake Bonneville shrank till it attained
the diminished size of the existing
Great Salt Lake. Terrace after ter¬
race, running in long parallel lines on
the sides of the AVahsatch Mountains
around, mark the various levels at
which it rested for a while on its grad¬
ual downward course. It Is still fall
ing indeed, and the plain around is be¬
ing gradually uncovered, forming the
white, salt-encrusted shore with which
all visitors to the Mormon city are so
familiar. But why should the water
have become briny? AVhy should the
evaporation of an old Superior pro¬
duce at last a Great Salt Lake? Well,
there is a small quantity of salt In
solution even in the freshest of lakes
and ponds, brought down to them by
the streams or rivers, and, as the water
of the hypothetical Lake Bonneville
slowly evaporated, the salt and other
mineral constituents remained behind.
Thus the solution grew constantly
more and more concentrated till at the
present day it is extremely saline.
Prof. Geikie (to whose work the pres¬
ent paper is much indebted) found
that be floated on the water in spite of
himself; and the under sides of the
steps at the bathing places are ail en
en crusted with short stalactites of
salt, produced from the drip of the
bathers as they leave the water. The
mineral constituents, however, differ
considerably in their proportions from
those found in true salt lakes of marine
origin, and the point at which salt is
thrown down is still far from having
been reached. Great Salt Lake must
simmer in the sun for many centuries
yet before the point arrives at which
(as cooks say) it begins to settle.—
Comhill.
Pomenade is a new Southern drink
for which rare virtues are claimed in
the way of tastefulness and refreshing
quality, Jtconsists of the juice of half
a sour pomegranate, diluted with
water and sweetened.
• Yearing for the End.
Breathe soft and low, O whispering wind,
Above tlio tangled grasses deep,
Whore those who loved me long ugo
Forgot the world and foil asieep.
No towering shaft, or sculptured urn.
Or mausoleum's empty pride,
Tells to the curious passer-bv
Their virtues or the time they died
I count the old, familiar names,
O'ergrown with moss and lichen gray, „
Where tangled brier and creeping vine
Across the crumbling tablets stray.
The summer sky is softly blue;
The birds still sing the sweet, old strain;
But something from the summer tuno
Is gone, that will not come again.
So many voieos hnve been hushed,
So mnny songs hnve ceased for aye, 4
So many hands I used to touch
Are lolded over hearts of clay.
The noisy world reoedes from mo:
I cease to hear its praise or blame
The mossy niarblos echo bock
No hollow sound of empty fame.
I only know' that calm and still
They sleep beyond life’s woe and wrd,
Beyond the fleet of sailing elonds,
Beyond the shadow of the vale
I only foel that, tired and wom,
1 halt upon the highway bare,
And gaze with yearning eyes beyond
Ou fields that, shine supremely lai.
— Philadelphia Record.
HUMOROUS.
A man isn’t necessarily related to a
hen because he lays bricks.
An astonishing sign at a tobacco¬
nist’s in Paris: “No Smoking.”
The school ina’am who married a
tanner had evidently a glimmering of
the fitness of things.
Notwithstanding the depression in
business circles, the business of the
thief seems to be picking up.
Scarlet stationery has been intro
duced, but will not bo popular. AVho
wants a letter red before it is writ¬
ten ?
AVhat is the worst thing about rich
es?” asked the Sunday school superin
tendent. And the new boy said, “Not
having any.”
“The way to sleep,” says a scientist,
“is to think of nothing.” But this is
a mistake. The way to sleep Is to
think it is time to get up.
A contest between two dentists as
to which of the two could take out
most teeth in a given time resulted, as
was expected, in a draw.
After all, it is the condition of trade
that regulates the fashions. Nearly
all kinds of garments are worn longer
in dull times than in prosperous
times.
A young man who was jilted by his
girl, and subsequently married her,
says she treated him like a bottle of
patent medicine He was “shaken”
before taken.
It is Baid by an agricultural paper
that “coal-ashes are very distasteful
to cut worms.” Then the coal-ashes
should be saved for worms that are
not cut. Every farmer should be kind
to the worms.
Naturalists say that the feet of the
common working honey bee “exhibit
the combination of a basket, a brush
and a pair of pincers.” This may be
true, but we never knew before that a
basket, a brush and a pair of pincers
were so warm to the touch.
Lady, in registry office—I am afraid
that little girl won’t do for a nurse;
she is too small. I should hesitate to
trust her with the baby. Clerk—Her
size, madam, we look upon as her
greatest recommendation. You should
remember that when she drops a baby
it doesn’t have very far to falL
8am Jones, the Revivalist.
Sam Jones was born in Alabama
about the year 1847. In his youth
his parents moved to Georgia, where
he was brought up. He comes of a
family of Methodist preachers, but in
his youth was wild and dissipated. He
studied law, and had just entered upon
the practice of his profession when
his father died. The old gentleman,
who was a most sincere. God-fearing
man, on his death-bed urged his son
to repentance, and the young man
dates his conversion from that hour,
Having forsaken his dissipated habits
and his wild companions, ho also de¬
cided to give up the profession of the
law and enter the ministry. He was
first licensed to preach by the Atlanta
conference in 1872, and since that
time he has preached with great suc¬
cess and conducted revivals in nearly
every city in the South and Southwest.
Shortly after entering upon his career
as an evangelist Mr. Jones married
Miss Laura MfElwain of Eminence
Ky,— Chicago* Inter-Ocean.