Thrilling Narratives of Mutiny, Murder and Piracy: A weird series of tales of shipwreck and disaster, from the earliest part of the century to the present time, with accounts of providential escapes and heart-rending fatalities.Anonymous
History
Thrilling Narratives of Mutiny, Murder and Piracy: A weird series of tales of shipwreck and disaster, from the earliest part of the century to the present time, with accounts of providential escapes and heart-rending fatalities.
Anonymous
Mutiny; Pirates; Seafaring life; Shipwrecks
At six o'clock on the morning of the 5th, a great part of the military
were embarked upon the raft, which was already covered with a large
sheet of foam. The soldiers were expressly prohibited from taking
their arms. A young officer of infantry, whose brain seemed to be
powerfully affected, put his horse beside the barricadoes of the
frigate, and then, armed with two pistols, threatened to fire upon any
one who refused to go upon the raft. Forty men had scarcely descended
when it sunk to the depth of about two feet. To facilitate the
embarking of a greater number, they were obliged to throw over several
barrels of provisions which had been placed upon it the day before. In
this manner did this furious officer get about one hundred and fifty
heaped upon that floating tomb; but he did not think of adding one
more to the number by descending himself, as he ought to have done,
but went peaceably away, and placed himself in one of the best boats.
There should have been sixty sailors upon the raft, and there were but
about ten. A list had been made out on the 4th, assigning each his
proper place: but this wise precaution being disregarded, every one
pursued the plan he deemed the best for his own preservation. The
precipitation with which they forced one hundred and fifty unfortunate
beings upon the raft was such, that they forgot to give them one
morsel of biscuit. However, they threw towards them twenty-five pounds
in a sack, while they were not far from the frigate; but it fell into
the sea, and was with difficulty recovered.
During this disaster, the governor of Senegal, who was busied in the
care of his own dear self, effeminately descended in an arm-chair into
the barge, where were already various large chests, all kinds of
provisions, his dearest friends, his daughters and his wife.
Afterwards the captain's boat received twenty-seven persons, among
whom were twenty-five sailors, good rowers. The shallop, commanded by
M. Espiau, ensign of the ship, took forty-five passengers, and put
off. The boat, called the Senegal, took twenty-five; the pinnace
thirty-three; and the yawl, the smallest of all the boats, took only
ten.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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