Page images
PDF
EPUB

of the negro, Campbell, the midfhipman, who had devoured his liver raw, died raving mad. This the crew imputed to his impatient voracity; and as their hunger was now kept under, and they had ftill fome food in ftore, they were more under the government of reafon, and more impreffed by the appre'henfion of danger, yet nearer than that of perifhing for want of food: Dreading, therefore, the confequence of eating Campbell's body, they, with whatever reluctance,

threw it overboard.

On the next day, the 17th of January, as they were preparing their dinner, by frying or boiling fome of the body, they faid of the captain, "D-n him, though he would not confent to our having any mcat, let us give him fome;" and immediately one of them came into the cabin, and offered him a fleak.

This offer he rejected with refentment and menaces, which certainly it did not deferve; for they offered him nothing, but what they thought neceffity juftified the acceptance of, as the only condition of life: if he had rejected the offer with grief and abhorrence, the paffion would have fuited the occafion. The food, he fays, he held in horror, but he honeftly confefles, that fick nefs had then taken away his defire to eat, and that therefore there was not much merit in his abftinence.

As the negro's carcafe was huf banded with fevere economy, it lafted the crew, now confifting of fix perfons, from the 13th to the 26th of January; when they were again reduced to total abftinence, except their wine; this they en dured till the 29th, and then the mate came again to the captain, at

the head of the people, and told him that the negro's body having been totally confumed fome days, and no fhip having appeared, it was now become neceflary that they should caft lots a fecond time. It was better to die feparately, they faid, than all at once, as fome might poffibly furvive by the expedient they propofed, till a fhip might take them up. The captain endeavoured again to reafon them out of their purpose, but without fuccefs; and therefore, confidering that if they managed the lot without him, as they had done before, he might not have fair play, he confented to manage it himself; he therefore called them all into his cabin, where he was in bed, and having with great difficulty railed himself up, he caufed the lots to be drawn in the fame manner that the lottery tickets are drawn at Guildhall.

The lot fell upon one David Flat a foremaft-man. The flock of the decifion was fo great, that the whole company remained motionlefs and filent for a confiderable time, and probably would have done fo much longer, if the victim himself, who appeared perfectly refigned, had not expressed himself to this effect: "My dear friends, mefsmates, and fellow fufferers, all I have to beg of you, is to dispatch me as foon as you did the negro, and to put me to as little torture as poffible." Then turning to one Doud, the Man who hot the negro; It is my defire," fays he, "that you fhould foot me." Doud readily, yet reluctantly confented. The victim then begged a short time to prepare himself for death, to which his companions most willingly agreed. Flat was greatly refpected by the whole fhip's com

[ocr errors]

pany,

[blocks in formation]

Yet ftill, as the dreadful moment approached, their compunction increated, and friendship and humanity at length became ftrorger than hunger and death. They deter mined that Flat should live, at least, till eleven o'clock the next morning, hoping, as they faid, that the divine goodnefs would in the mean time open fome other fource of relief; at the fame time they begged the captain to read prayers, a talk, which, with the utmost effort of his collected ftrength, he was juft able to perform.

As foon as prayers were over, he lay down ready to faint, and the company went immediately to their unfortunate friend Flat. The captain could hear them talk to him with great earneftnefs and affection, expreffing their hopes that God would interpofe for his prefervation, and affuring him, that though they never yet could catch, or even fee a fill, yet they would put out all their hooks again to try if any relief could be procured.

Poor Flat, however, could derive little comfort from the concern they expreffed, and it is not improbable that their expreffions of friendship and affection increased the agitation of his mind: fuch, however, it was as he could not fuftain; for before midnight he grew almoft totally

deaf, and by four o'clock in the morning was raving mad.

His mellmates who difcovered the alteration, debated whether it would not be an act of humanity to dif patch him immediately, but the first refolution of fparing him till eleven prevailed.

About eight in the morning, as the captain was ruminating in his cabin on the fate of this unhappy wretch who had but three hours to

live, two of his people came haftily down with uncommon ardour in their looks, and feizing both his hands, fixed their eyes upon him without faying a fyllable. The captain, who recollected that they had thrown Campbell's body overboard, notwithstanding their ne ceffities, for fear of catching his madness, now apprehending that fearing to eat Flat for the fame reafon, they were come to facrifice him in his stead; he therefore difengaged himself by a fudden effort, and fnatching up a piftol, flood upon his defence. The poor men guefling his mistake, made thift to tell him, that their behaviour was merely the effect of surprise and joy, that they had discovered a fail, and that the fight had fo overcome them, they were unable to fpeak.

They faid, that the fail appeared to be a large veffel, that it was to the leeward, and flood for them in as fair a direction as could be withed. The rest of the crew came down immediately afterwards, and confirmed the report of a fail, but faid that the feemed to bear away from them upon a contrary course.

The account of a veffel being in fight of fignals, on whatever courte the fteered, ftruck the captain with fuch exceflive and tumul

Lucu,

tuous joy, that he was very near expiring under it. As foon as he could fpeak, he directed his people to make every poffible fignal of diftrefs; the fhip itfelf indeed was a fignal of the moft ftriking kind, but he was apprehenfive the people at a diftance might conclude there was nothing alive on board, and so stand away without coming near it.

His orders were obeyed with the utmost alacrity; and as he lay in his cabin, he had the inexpreffible happinefs of hearing them jumping upon deck, and crying out, "She nighs us! fhe nighs us! he is ftanding this way!"

6.

The approach of the fhip being more and more manifeft every moment, their hope naturally increafed; but in the midft of this joy, they remembered their unfortunate fhipmate Fiat, and regretted that he could not be made fenfible of his approaching deliverance. Their paffions, however, were ftill characteristic, and they propofed a can of joy to be taken immediately. This the captain with great prudence ftrenuoufly oppofed, and at Jength, though with fome difficulty, convinced them that their deliverance in a great measure depended upon the regularity of that moinent's behaviour.

ed at two miles diftance; they did not, however, fuffer long by this accident, for in a few minutes they faw the boat put out from the fhip's flern, and row towards them full manned, and with vigorous difpatch. As they had been twice before confident of deliverance, and difappointed, and as they ftill confidered themselves tottering on the verge of eternity, the conflict be tween their hopes and fears, during the approach of the boat, may easily be conceived by a reader of imagination.

At length, however, the came along fide; but the appearance of the crew was fo ghafily, that the men refled upon their oars, and with looks of inconceivable aftonifhment, asked what they were.

Being at length fatisfied, they came on board, and begged the people to ule the utmoft expedition in quitting their wreck, left they fhould be overtaken by a gale of wind, that would prevent their getting back to their fhip.

The captain being unable to ftir, they lifted him out of his cabin, and let him down into the boat by ropes, and his people followed him, with poor Flat ftill raving; and they were juft putting off, when one of them obferved that the mate All but the mate therefore gave was wanting; he was immediately up the can, which would have made called to, and the can of joy had just them all very drunk before the left him power to crawl to the gunveffel could come up with them,nel with a look of idiot astonishment, and he disappeared to take the can of joy by himfelf.

After continuing to obferve the progrefs of the vellel for fome hours, with all the tumult and agitation of mind that fuch a fufpenfe could not fail to produce, they had the mortification to find the gale totally die away, fo that the vellel was becalm

having, to all appearance, forgot every thing that had happened.

Having with fome difficulty got the poor drunken creature on board, they rowed away, and, in about an hour, reached the ship.

She was the Sufannah of London, in the Virginia trade, commanded by Captain Thomas Evers, and was returning

returning from Virginia to London.

The captain received them with the greatest tenderness and humanity; promifed to lie by the wreck till the next morning, that he might, if poffible, have fome of Captain Harrifon's cloaths; the wind howevery blowing very hard before night, he was obliged to quit her; and the probably with her cargo went to the bottom before morning.

The Sufannah proceeded on her voyage; and though he was herfelf in a shattered condition, and fo fhort of provifions, as to be obliged to reduce her people to fhort allow ance, fhe reached the Land's End about the fecond of March; from the Land's End the proceeded to the Downs, and Captain Harrison, a day or two afterwards, proceeded to London by land.

The mate, James Doud, who fhot the negro, and one Warner, a feaman, died during the paffage; Lemuel Anley, Samuel Wentworth, and David Flat, who was to have been shot for food, arrived alive; Flat continued mad during the voyage, and whether he afterwards recovered, we are not told. When Captain Harrifon came on fhore, he made the proper atteftation of the facts related in this narrative upon oath, in order to fecure his infurers. And the whole is fo authenticated, that it would be folly to doubt of its truth, ́

A circumftantial and authentic account of the memorable cafe of Richard Parfons, as tranfmitted in a letter from William Dallaway, Efq. High Sheriff of GloucesterJhire, to his friend in London.

Richard Parfons and three N the 20th of February laft,

more met at a private house in Chalford, in order to play at cards, about fix o'clock in the evening. They played at loo till about eleven or twelve that night, when they changed their game for whift: after a few deals, a difpute arofe about the ftate of the game. Parfons afferted with oaths, that they were fix, which the others denied: upon which he wifhed, that he might never enter the kingdom of heaven, and that his flesh might rot upon his bones, if they were not fix in game.' Thefe wifhes were several times repeated, both then and afterwards. Upon this the candle was put out by one James Young, a ftander-by, who fays, he was fhocked with the oaths and expreffions he heard; and that he put out the candle with a design to put an end to the game.

Prefently, upon this, they adjourned to another house, and there began a fresh game, when Parfons and his partner had great fuccefs. Then they played at loo again till four in the morning. During this fecond playing, Parfons complained to one Rolles, his partner, of a bad pain in his leg, which from that time increased.-There was an appearance of a fwelling, and afterwards the colour changed to that of a mortified state. On the following Sunday he rode to Minchin Hampton, to get the advice of Mr.

Pegler,

Pegler, the furgeon in that town, this was a mistake; for, from the

who attended him from the Thurfday after February 27. Notwithftanding all the applications that were made, the mortification increafed, and fhewed itself in different parts of the body. On Monday, March 3, at the request of fome of his female relations, the clergyman at Bifley attended him, and administered the facrament, without any knowledge of what had happened before, and which he continued a ftranger to till he faw the account in the Gloucester Journa!. Parfons appeared to be extremely ignorant of religion, having been accuftomed to fwear, to drink, (though he was not in liquor when he uttered the above execrable with) to game, and to profane the Sabbath, though he was only in his 19th year; after he had received the facrament, he appeared to have fome fenfe of the ordinance; for he faid, "Now I muft never fin again; he hoped God would forgive him, having been wicked not above fix years, and that whatever fhould happen, he would not play at cards again."

After this he was in great agony, chiefly defirous, fpoke of his companions by name, and feemed as if his imagination was engaged at cards. He ftarted, had distracted Jooks and geftures, and in a dread ful fit of thaking and trembling, died on Tuefday morning, the 4th of March lat; and was buried the next day at the path church of Bridley. His eyes were open when he died, and could not be clofed by the common methods; fo that they remained open when he was put in the cothin: from this circumftance arole a report, that he wished his eyes might never cloje; but

most credible witneffes, I am fully convinced no fuch with was uttered; and the fact is, that he did close his eyes after he was taken with the mortification, and either dosed or flept several times.

When the body came to be laid out, it appeared all over difcoloured or spotted; and it might, in the most literal fenfe, be faid, that his fiefh rotted on his bones before he died.

Mr. Dallaway, having defired Mr. Pegler, the furgeon, to fend him his thoughts of Parlons's cafe, received from him the following account:

"SIR,

"You defire me to acquaint you, in writing, with what I know relating to the melancholy cafe of the late Richard Parfons; a request I readily comply with, hoping that his fad catastrophe will ferve to admonith all those who profane the facred name of God.

February 27 laft, I visited Richard Parfons, who I found had an inflamed leg, ftretching from the foot almost to the knee, tending to a gangrene. The tenfenefs and rednefs of the ikin was almoft gone off, and became of a duskish and livid colour, and felt very lax and flabby. Symptoms being fo dangerous, fome incifions were made down to the quick, fome fpirituous fomentations made ufe of, and the whole limb dreiled up with fuch applications as are moft approved in fuch defperate circunftances, joined with proper internal medicines. The next day he seemed much the fame; but on March 1, he was worle, the incifions difcharging a fharp fœtid ichor, (which is

gene

« PreviousContinue »