The Plattsmouth journal. (Plattsmouth, Nebraska) 1901-current, August 02, 1909, Image 3

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    V
The Last Voyage
of T5he
Donna Isabel
By Randall Parrish
Author of Bob Hampton ot Placer.
Illustrations by'Deaborn Melvi !
That same Intense cold of the Ant
arctic smote us the moment the creak
ing hinges yielded, and we stood peer
lng down through the aperture. We
waited Impatiently for the first frigid
breath to escape, huddled about the
etove in the cabin, and recalling va
rious sea tales of treasure seeking,
which only Berved to whet our appe
tite for the coming adventure. Now
and then I lifted my eyes, meeting
Doris' questioning glance, and assured
that I understood her mood;
At last, but well wrapped In our
mufflers and bearing a candle aloft
to cast its flickering yellow light
through the pitchy darkness, we ven
tured below, scrambling down the
short ladder. Cole held the glim, his
black face shining, -the whites ot his
eyes conspicuous as he stared eagerly
about. We found innumerable boxes
and barrels, crates, bottles and wicker
flasks, some open, the packing straw
trewn about, others tightly nailed,
piled everywhere, evidence that the
galleon had been amply provisioned
for a long voyage, and that her crew
Lad never perished of starvation. It
had been the cold, the loneliness, the
awful agony of their hopeless condi
tion that had left the Donna Isabel a
charnel ship. We handled this collec
tion rapidly, contenting ourselves with
merely testing the weight of each
package, quickly convinced that none
was heavy enough to conceal precious
metal. This Job must have occupied
more than an hour, handicapped as
we were by the poor light, and several
times I glanced through the open trap
overhead to observe the face3 of the
women framed there as they watched
us silently. Once Dade stared down,
bringing word the sky was thickening
They Came Howling About Me Like
60 Many Wolves, Ejger to See.
in the west, and lingering to obsem
our operations until I bad to order him
back upon deck.
A solid, nail-studded, oaken door ap
peared In the forward bulkhead, and
mi soon as we Tiad succeeded In han
dling every article stored within the
lazarette, I had a passage cleared to
it, the men working with feverish Im
patience. When finally reached, the
door was locked and seemingly as sol
id as the bulkhead itself, nor did a
search of the after state rooms reveal
any keys. No doubt they were in Sal
vatore's pocket, many a league astern,
Hut Kelly and McKnlght brought down
the cleaver and an Iron bar, and pro
ceeded to burst It open, the rest of
us crowding about, too cold and ex
cited to keep still, but very confident
the treasure awaited us within. My
own heart beat fiercely with anticipa
tion, and I heard De Nova swearing
m French, quite unable to control him
self. It seemed to me that door would
never yield; but at last Johnson man
aged to get a purchase low down, and
with Cole heaving at his side, they
fairly tore the wood asunder. Through
the considerable opening thus made
there burst a torrent of Icy water Into
our very faces, extinguishing the light,
and sending us stumbling backward to
the ladder, up which we swarmed al
most In panic. Anything unexpected In
that ghost ship made cowards of ut
all, and we fought our way forth Into
the daylight In a suddenness of ter
ror almost ludicrous, swearing and
clawing at each other like mailmen.
It required another hour for the
deluge of water to drain away through
the deck, after which we ventured be
low again, the relighted candle re
vealing slush leo everywhere, with a
considerable trickle still gurgling
through the hole In the door. How
tver, wo had an opening to work at,
and soon succeeded In tearing most of
tti obstruction away piecemeal, only
to bo confront! .1 by a solid barrier of
glittering Ice ttilly Ave feet thick, leav
ing a space at the top of the door bare
ly sunn-lent fur a man's body to pass
through. Ie Nova, cursing as If he
had gone crazy, hoisted me to the top
of It, where I clung prceai lously, hold
ing the sputtering candle aloft, and
1 PmFh
erring about ove? the gleaming sur
face aid through into the black sha
dows. Good Lord, but it was cold, re
pellent, frightful! The beams sup
porting the deck, huge, black timbers
were within easy reach of my hand,
and forward the spectral glow of day
light streamed in through the rift in
the deck-planks above. But from one
bulging side to the other extended
this solid mass of ice, the congealed
draining of a century of waves that
had dashed their salt spray down the
opening ripped by the wrecked main
mast. No wonder the old hulk hung
sodden with all that load below!
I crawled forward as far as the sil
very butt of the mainmast whence I
could look up through the splintered
deck to the narrow strip of sky over
head. There was a bulkhead forward,
but the ice extended solidly to the
wood. I could hear the ceaseless swell
of the sea pounding against the sides,
the groaning of timbers, the flapping
of the Jib's canvas, and realized more
than ever before the sickening, sodden
roll of the laden hull. The level sur
face of the ice told plainly enough its
story ot formation- when all that wa
ter came through, the vessel had been
upon an even keel, Imbedded firmly,
no doubt, in the ice-pack. I crept back
as cautiously as I had advanced, the
rolling of the wreck rendering the slip
pery surface dangerous to travel over.
The men watched me anxiously as I
slid down Into the lazarette.
' What did you find,' sir?"
"Nothing except Ice, solid ice clear
to the forward bulkhead. It looks as
though we had reached the end ol
our treasure-hunt, my lads."
There was a sullen growl of profan
ity, McKnlght viciously slashing at
the icefront with his cleaver. Twice
he struck, with no other object except
the venting of his ungovernable anger,
his forehead beaded, the great muscles
of his arms standing out like whip
cords. A considerable chunk scaled
off, falling thumping to the deck, and
causing him to spring backward to
escape Injury. As if maddened by
this, he drove in the blade of the ax
again It clanged against metal! We
all heard it; we all witnessed the re
bound. "Hy God, mates, there's one of 'em,
anyhow!" roared a voice, hoarse from
exploding excitement. Hut I was al
ready upon my knees, feeling Mindly
into the ice cavity.
They came howling about me like
so many wolves, eager to see with
their ow eyes, but I crowded them
back, snatching the candle from De
Nova's fingers and throwing the flick
ering light down level with the deck.
"It's a brass-bound chest, men," I
cried, straightening up and facing
them. "But it is going to require
some hard digging to get it out. About
all I can see is the handle of it."
I never comprehended before how
the passion and lust for gold can ex
press itself upon men's faces. Tense,
motionless, breathing heavily, their
features drawn, their eyes gleaming
feverishly 1 the yellow flame, they
tared at me and then at that ice-front,
demented and speechless. No one
thought of where we were castaways,
our lives the sport of winds and waves,
a sodden wreck under us, our nearest
port a thousand miles away across a
stormy sea; all we realized at that
moment was that there, Just before us,
under that mantle of ice, lay burled
three million peso. God! the collar
of my Jacket seemed choking me; I
breathed as If a man's Angers clutched
my throat, and I saw McKnlght's
burly form shaking as if he had an
ague fit. Three million pesos! The
hot blood rushed to my head, a lava
Btream, and De Nova's face, wsUte as
chalk behind his little black mus
taches, seemed dancing before me
ghostlike. Damn him! tho fellow
made me think of Salvatore, the man
who, just above, frozen and dead, had
guarded this treasure for 126 years.
I cast the suggestion aside with a
curse and a laugh, grasping Kelly by
the Bhoulder to steady myself to re
allze these were real men, this task
before us real work. It was like com
ing forth from under an anaesthetic,
leaving me weak as a child, yet with
brain and faculties aroused to action.
Johnson thrust forward the cleaver.
"Let me get In there, air; I'm the
man for a cuttln' Job."
I stepped aside, and the broad blade
fell slashing against the front of the
Ice.
"Only two of you men can work
here at once," I put In hastily. "Hold
on, Johnson, until we get this ship
shape. An axman, with a helper to
haul back the Ice out of the way, Is
all we need. Any more would only
be In tho way; besides, some of us
ought to be on deck. It Is going to re
quire hours, maybo days, to get that
rliest out, and tneun while we must suit
vessel njiii ke. .; rVm il'le u
Tlio thing to do Is td arrange rMay,
unci keep at It steady. Johnson, you
and Kelly go to work first. The rest
of us will climb up Into the cabin, and
figure It out."
They went along with me up the
lad'ler as though they were prisoners.
(To be Continued)
nine jlsu iLMys
of the busiest July we have ever had will be money saving days for you if you will visit this
store. The time to strike is when the iron is hot it's hot right now in here. Better come
now. Next week may be too late. Here are some of the snaps left at the present writing:
A few very few men's hose 5c
A limited number of the fine brown hose 8c
A good assortment fancy hose from our 25 and
35c lines that we are closing at 19c
A few boy's shirts in sizes six to ten 23c
A few boy's waists in sizes four to eight 16c
About two dozen boy's Black Cat hose in the
25, 35 and 40c grade, sizes five to eight, at. . 16c
A few rompers left in sizes three to six 39c
Only about ten wash suits left, size three to six. .49c
A limited number of those line men's night
gowns, sizes only 14, 15 and few 16, at. . . .54c
About 18 shirt left of the soft collarattached, in
the 75c and SI. 00 grade, sizes 15 and 15 Ja . ,54c
Look in our west window for what's left of the
big seller in soft shirts for men at 39c
Three dozen of those 4-in-hand wash ties left 12c
You can't make money faster than by buying these standard goods at these clearance
prices. Bring this ad with you and you will find everything just as advertised. Remember
these prices are for cash.
(0o
VENERABLE FRIEND
LAID TO FINAL REST
Citizens Pay Last Tribute to the
Late Conrad Heisel
The funeral of the late Conrad
Heisel was held yesterday from his
late residence in the Second ward,
on Washington avenue. This sad
occasion was marked with the at
tendance of a great number of the
old friends and townsmen of the de
ceased, all of whom were anxious to
make their deep sorrow at the loss
of so fine a man and citizen known.
Mr. Heisel had lived for so many
years in this community that almost
every man, woman and child knew
him and loved him. To all of these
he was much as one of their own
families, and they will all miss his
familiar face upon the streets and
about his mills. Mr. Heisel was one
of the men who numbered his
friends in this city by the hundred.
In all the long years which he had
lived here he had given to his busi
ness the strictest of attention and by
his untiring fidelity to it ho bad
made It one of the best of the city's
Industries. In so doing he hnd had
occasion to meet with every busi
ness man In the commulty and with
every one of them he had had busi
ness dealings. It is something to
be able to look back over a career
of fifty-two years in a community,
all them marked with dally busi
ness matters, and to say that every
one whom he has met was a friend
and gave their highest esteem and
praise to he who has passed. Yet,
that Is the record of the late Mr.
Heisel. He left behind him none but
friends and neighbors who respected
him for his untarnished Integrity
and his upright business methods.
The services yesterday were con
ducted by Rev. Bruechert of Omaha,
who delivered a very fine Rermon,
touching upon the many splendid
attributes of the aged pioneer. The
sermon was delivered in German,
the native tongue of the deceased,
and the many German citizens who
attended the services pronounced
his eulogy of the deceased as a most
magnificent one. II. reviewed the
simple, upright and moral life which
deceased had lend during tho long
years he had lived, the high Chris
tian qualities ho had displayed
throughout his long career In this
community and the many excellent
trnlts whli h had hara terl.e. his
whole life, pronouncing them the
true attributes of a Just and noble
man. To the many nge pioneer
friends who heard these words they
brought tear lars of regret at
the final parting of so good a citi
zen. A quartette composed of Mrs.
J. W. Gamble, Miss Estello Ilalrd,
Eo Wescott's Sons
"Where Quality Counts.'
Mr. George Farley and Mn B. A.
McElwaln, members of the Presby
terian choir, sang a number of selec
tions which the deceased had so
well loved to hear in his lifetime,
concluding with the beautiful hymn,
"Nearer, My God, to Thee," a song
which had been one of his favorites.
His aged and venerable friend, Con
rad Schlater, who had known him
for more than fifty years and who
loved him as a brother, also sang
the beautiful solo, "Face to Face,"
he having been requested by the
family of deceased to do so. Mr.
Schlater was very much affected at
the sad parting and his aged voice
quivered with emotion as he sang
the words of this melody. Despite
his age Mr. Schlater sang remark
ably well and the tones of his voice
are as silvery as of old.
At the conclusion of tho services,
the funeral cortege wended its way
to Oak Hill cemetery, where the
casket was deposited in the grave.
The last services at the grave were
performed by the pall bearers,
Messrs. John, Martin and Frank But
tery, II. M. Soennlchsen, W. J.
Whlto and Jacob Tiltmh, all of
whom had been lifelong friends of
deceased.
In connection with the late Mr.
Heisel, the Journal has been kindly
shown a copy ot the riattsmouth
Jeffersonlan, published in this city,
on May 8, 1858. bearing the adver-)
tlsement of Heisel & Kroth, who ad
vertised that they were prepared to
operate a flour mill, opening on
Sept. 10, 1837. This paper, which
Is the oldest printed In this city
now In existence, Is owned by Mrs.
M. K. Buttery of this city, and Is a
valued relic of frontier and pioneer
days. The advertisement reads uni
que to modern eyes and describes
the fitting up of the saw mill and
Its conversion Into a grist mill. Tho
paper is volume 1, No. 41, and It
contains the earliest and most au
thentic record of Mr. Helscl's em
barking In business here.
Cunt limed (lie Cute.
The case of 11. M, Soennlchsen vs.
the C. 11. & l). Railroad compnny,
Involving the value of goods, wares
and merchandise destroyed last
March In the fire which burned the
freight depot of that company, was
to have been heard today before
Justice Anhcr, but was continued
for thirty days on application of the
defendant. The company dues not
see how It can try said (use without
certain evidence which H expects to
I procure, and hence the delay.
Sizes 38, 42 and 44 shirts and 32, 36. 40 and 42
drawers left of a big line cf men's Summer
underwear, that we are closing at .25c
A new line of long nanow silk 4-in-hand, for the
narrow collars that we selling at 29c
A few, very few men's straw hats that were 75c
M.OOand $1.50. closing at 25 and 48c
The boy's knee pant wool suits at$1.39,S1.99,$2.49
to clean up our entire stock are the best bargain ever
offered in PJattsmouth. Look in our corner window.
We are especially strong in sizes 13, 14, 15 and 16.
The men's pants at Si. 45, $1.99 and $2.48 have
literally melted away. A few snaps left. They may
be your size. Better come and see.
The prices we lave made on rren's suits, $7,;0,
9.90 and $11.90, are cleaning us up fast on Summer
suits. We have added one moreline at $13.90, which
takes in all remnants of our finest lines.
The Home of Satisfaction.
With the Sick.
The condition of Mrs. Lydla New
land Is reported this morning as be
ing very grave. She passed a very
bad night, falling to get any rest to
speak of, and having several sinking
spells in which her life was de
spaired of. This morning very little
Improvement was noticeable and her
children have all been summoned to
her bedside. Despite the desperate
nature of her illness hope Is still en
tertained by her friends that she
may rally and recover. '
No word has been received for
several days from Mrs. A. Hawrick
at the hoHpltal In Chicago, III., and
her condition Is getting along all
right and expects to have definite
information today. Her many friends
trust his faith Is not misplaced and
that she will Boon be able to return
to her home a well woman.
Mrs. Dr. W. B. Elster this morn
ing received a telephone message
announcing that her Bister, Mrs.
Alice Towle of South Omaha, had
been taken violently 111 once more
and that she had been taken to a
hospital for another operation. This
Is sad news to Mr. Towlo's myriad of
friends In the city, all of whom had
hoped that her favorable condition
would continue, and that no further
trouble would he experienced. They
surely hopo that her present trouble
passes away and she soon recovers.
Little change has taken place- In
the condition of Frank Svobodu. He
Is very low and suffers considerably
on account of the heat. Owing to
his long confinement to the bed, he
Is very weak and to rally Is a very
difficult matter. It Is hoped .that
he shows signs of Improvement soon
and that he may eventually re
cover. From Mr. and Mrs. G. W. Osborne
there Is little change to be record
ed In their condition. It Is be
lieved they will rally soon and re
gain their usual good health. As is
tho case with others, the continued
hot weather works against them and
a change to cooler weather would
ho much appreciated by them.
Their friends, however, expect and
bllevo they will soon experience a
turn for the better and recover.
Henry Stendyke, mention of whose
attack of Bunstroko was made in
yesterday's Journal, Is getting along
very nicely and Is able to be out and
about, but he Is taking good care of
himself and avoiding the sun's rays
as much as posslbln. It Is believed
he will get along all right In the fu
ture. Very little change Is manifested
In the condition of Mrs. Lillian K.
Hasso at the hospital In Oniahn. Sho
Is In r.Mher bad shape, but there Is
a liability of n turn for the better
at any time. Tills Is what her
friends hope for anyway.
Ferdinand llennlngs, one of Eight
Mile Grove's fine citizens, Js spend
ing the day In tho city looking after
business matters and meeting his
friend
A
I
Hie Lute Waveily A. Bmnlmit.
Mention was made yesterday ot
the death of Waverly A. Barnhart,
for many years a resident of this
city, and well and favorably known,
here. The funeral of Mr. Barnhart
takes place this afternoon at 2
o'clock from his late residence, the
services being conducted by Rev,
Luther Moore of the Christian
churclu
Mr. Barnhart was born on Feb
ruary 10, 1867, In Washington,
county, Ohio, near the city of Mari
etta, and at the time ot his death,
was aged 42 years 5 months and 19
days. He came to Nebraska at an .
early ago and with his parents set
tled In this city. Here he received
his education, having attended thg
public schools In this city for a num
ber of years. In 1904 ho was united
In marriage to Miss Allle Fry, a
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas T.
Fry. Of this union one son, William
B. Barnhart, was the Issue. To
gether with the widow he survives
his father. In addition Mr. Barn
hart Is survived by his father ani
mother, Mr. and Mrs. William A.
Barnhart; four sisters, Mrs. E. E.
Monroe of Pacific Junction, la.; Mrs.
Clara E. Morris, Hyattsvllle, Wyo.;
Mrs. J. T. Dellart of Benkleman.
Neb., and Miss Lucy A. Barnhart ot
this city, and three brothers, Earl E.
and Samuel E. Barnhart of Hyatts
vllle, Wyo., and Martin A. Barnhart
of Baker, Wash.
Tho sympathy of mnny friends
goes out to the sorrowing parents,
brothers and sisters, and the family
of deceased. A patient, gentle man
Mr. Barnhart met death with resig
nation and with true Christian
spirit.
Hail Is Given.
John C. Clarence, last Thursday
afternoon, gave ball as required by
the supreme court, In the sum ot
J 15,000 pending his appeal to that
court. The bond, which Is signed
by his father, John Clarence, and
Simon Gruber, was approved by the
clerk of the court and Clarence was
given his liberty by Sheriff Qulnton,
In whose custody ho had been Blnce
the motion to a new trial was over
ruled. He was well pleased to get
out Into tho open air once more, and
departed for his home near Union
with alacrity. The case will not be
up for henrlng In the supreme court
for several months, at least.
Louis Martin, who Is farming tho
Schllchtmeler place, four miles
north of Nehawka, drove In thin
morning to look after some business
matters In tho city. Mr. Martin
states that the rainfall In Murray
and towards Nehawka was much
heavier than In this city and vlcln
I'y, and it seemed to get heavier the
farther south It was. A mile and a
half north of Murray the fall com
menced to lighten up and in this city
It was noticeably lighter than at
that point. Mr. Martin formerly re
sided In this city and Is well known
here.