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Cannibals |
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JL Member Ascendant
since 2004-04-01
Posts 6128Texas, USA |
Cannibals 18 June 1845 I was aboard the Amity, a brig, 149-ton, a crew of nine, and one passenger. I was that passenger. Captain Marr set sail for Port Albert through the Bass Strait. During our journey, we encountered several squalls, but when the ship entered the Strait we were hit by an enormous gale. The rain was so heavy at times I could not see my hands directly in front of my face. We were at the mercy of the raging sea and a tremendous storm. The ship was no longer under the control of either the crew or Captain Marr. Suddenly, the ship heaved up at the bow, and I heard the ship breaking apart. We had run aground. It was either a sand bar or shoal; I wasn’t sure. Within about half an hour, the entire crew and I were in the water struggling to stay afloat by clinging to any floating debris we could find. The daylight was quickly gone, and the storm raged into the night. I was frightened, and I thought this is where my life would end...shipwrecked and lost at sea. By morning, the storm had all but passed. I was now clinging to a piece of the ship’s hull. I was exhausted but very happy to have made it through the night. I could hear one of the crewmen shouting, “Are you alright?” I raised my left arm and waved as best I could to signal him that I was just fine. He then yelled back “Look, the shore... The shore!” As quickly as I could, I paddled my way around to see what he was pointing toward. It was indeed the shore, an island. All I could shout was “Yes ::: Yes!” As I paddled my way in toward the shore, I could only imagine where we had ended our journey. By about midday, the entire crew except for Captain Marr was on the beach and out of harm’s way. The crewmen began to make plans on how to find our way back to civilization and off of this uninhabited island. The First Mate and one other crewman had been on the Amity when it was used for surveying this part of the world, so I felt reassured that they not only knew where we were but knew exactly how to get us back to our own normal lives. That afternoon the weather was back to its norm of hot and humid. The crewmen split into two groups, one to search for shelter material and one group to bring in food. I decided to head along the shoreline with aspirations of finding some inkling of life on this God-forsaken island. I remembered what I had learned about this region before embarking on this wild adventure, which, by the way, my entire family was against, all except my sweet wife, Catherine. There are about 320 islands in this part of the Pacific Ocean scattered over at least 2000 miles. Hope waned as that thought ran through my mind. The shoreline seemed endless, and I must have walked for four or five hours never seeing a person, animal, or even a single sail on the horizon. The sun was becoming extremely hot, so I headed for the jungle’s edge and continued along in the shade in same direction. After an additional hour of walking in the jungle I decided to sit for a moment and rest. I must have been more tired than I thought; I sat down leaned, against a large palm tree and drifted into a dream of my love, Catherine. “Hey ::: Hey! Stop! Put me down!” I was startled awake! I must have fallen asleep. Rubbing my eyes, I looked in the direction of the screaming. It was late night and very dark except for the large fire on the beach. I could see several silhouettes jumping around the bonfire with what seemed to be spears and knives in their hands. I moved closer to get a better look. I was correct. It was natives of some sort; however, my education of the region did not include tribes or natives indigenous to these islands. As I moved closer, I could see four of the crewmen. Their hands and feet were bound with some sort of cord or rope. They were sitting leaned against poles that were tied together as a makeshift lean-to or shelter of some sort. There were about twenty natives. I wanted to do something to help the crewmen but I felt helplessly out-numbered. Then I saw the most horrific site! One of the crewmen, I think it was Clarke, was tied to a pole which was being used as a skewer over the enormous fire. The natives were in the process of taking him down. They carried the pole, with Clark firmly attached, over to where the four others were tied-up. They positioned him upright against the makeshift lean-to. Then acting as if they were at a banquet, the natives began cutting off large hunks of Clark’s flesh and were eating it! I had to turn away. I crossed my arms and clutched my stomach. I fell to my knees and hid behind the thick foliage of the jungle. I had to get back to the others before they too would fall victim to these savages. At first, I made my way carefully through the thick jungle avoiding being heard or seen. Then, when I was sure it was clear, I made my way down to the shoreline where I could make faster time in getting back to the others. I was running but losing the strength to continue. As I ran, I thought about those poor men and their fate. How could this happen? I fell to my knees “Oh God how could this be possible?” The words were blurted out of my mouth along with tears and saliva. I began to sob uncontrollably. Then I heard voices. They were coming from the direction of where the crew and I had made landfall. I forced myself to my feet and ran in that direction. There, ahead of me about 100 meters, I could see, however faintly, four distinct figures running toward me. I yelled out “Hello! I’m here. I’m over here!” I again fell to my knees from total exhaustion. I had my hands over my face sobbing. When I sensed that the men were just in front of me I removed my hands from my face, and looked up to give details of what had had happened to their crew mates. I gasped as I opened my eyes. To my horror... Cannibals! To be continued… [This message has been edited by JL (08-13-2004 11:33 AM).] |
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Bonnie j Senior Member
since 2003-06-27
Posts 1588Ohio |
Jamieeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.......... Don't stop there. Oh! How could you do that you stinker.More, more. Hugs BonBon  |
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