Sinking of the Sloop First Consul.
About the first of September, 1842, two of my friends in New-York
purchased a Sloop called the First Consul, about twenty-five tons
burden, and gave me the charge of her with orders to employ her in any
trade I thought proper to earn a living in. I remained in the city some
weeks seeking employment for my vessel, but after many applications for
freights, without success, I found myself disappointed in my
calculations in obtaining business for her in the city. As a last
resort, I determined to proceed up the Hudson River as far as Rondout,
where I expected to procure some small freights of coal to deliver at
the neighboring villages on the river.
On the fifteenth of October I left New-York for Rondout, where I
obtained a freight of about thirty tons of coal to be delivered at
Poughkeepsie. We loaded and left for our port of destination, where we
discharged our cargo and agreed to return and take in another for the
same company. Finding the sloop proved leaky I proceeded home to
Catskill, where I procured a caulker and gave her some repairs, when we
returned to Rondout and took on board another cargo of coal. Supposing
the vessel to be perfectly tight in her upper works after the
overhauling she had received, we loaded her deep, in order to take a
full canal boat's cargo on board. After we had proceeded some distance
on our passage we discovered that the vessel leaked badly. We had light
baffling winds during the night, and tried the pump hourly. Finding we
could keep her free without very heavy fatigue, we apprehended no
serious danger, and soon arrived at the same wharf in Poughkeepsie where
we had landed our last cargo, and hauled into a small slip which I
considered a very safe harbor. I had one man on board with me, whom I
told we would get some breakfast, when we would go below and take a
short nap, as we had been on deck all night; after which would find the
owner of the coal and obtain leave to discharge the deck load that day,
although it was Sunday. We then retired into the cabin and laid down to
sleep, it being about eight o'clock in the morning. After laying about
two hours I was aroused by a loud cry, "Come out, come out, you are
sinking." I sprang upon my feet, determined to save my trunk and
clothing, which I was prevented from doing by a column of water rushing
in at the cabin door. I forced myself upon deck, which at this time was
some feet under water, when I found my legs entangled with old rigging
and lumber. While trying to extricate them, the shore being steep the
vessel settled down, which parted the hawser that held her fast to the
wharf, when she slid off into the channel and sunk in thirty feet water,
with all my clothing, &c. and I was compelled to swim on shore, which I
reached in a shivering condition, but was soon furnished with dry
clothing, and treated in the kindest manner by a gentleman living near
by.
Two or three days after I hired two vessels, procured spars, chains, and
necessary apparatus, together with a number of men, and made an attempt
to raise the First Consul. After several days' hard labor and fatigue we
succeeded in raising her, so as to float her on the flats, when we
bailed the water out and discharged the coal from her hold, the bulk of
the deck load having been washed overboard. I found most of my clothing,
books, papers, &c. in the cabin in a very dirty condition. My troubles
did not end here: before I could receive any assistance from my friends,
the sloop was attached for the expenses of getting her up, and sold for
less than the amount of the bills, when I returned home penniless, my
mind fixed on the distich--
Since all things to destruction tend,
My voyage of life will shortly end.
FINIS.
Transcriber's Notes.
There are many spelling irregularities and inconsistencies in this book.
The ones most obviously printing errors have been corrected as noted
below. Others were left as printed in the text. These include: "ancles"
and "ankles;" "alledging;" "armadilla;" "attrocities" and "atrocities;"
"Baratara" is probably "Barataria;" "bed quilt" and bed-quilt;" "Bigman
Bank" and "Bigman's Bank;" possibly "Boro Toro" and "Boco Toro" are the
same place; "Bogata" for "Bogota;" "Britanic;" "callipach" for
"carapace;" "cassader" and "cassauder" for "cassava;" "chissels;"
(Emperor) "Christoff" and "Christophe," presumably the same person;
"Lieutenant Coakley" and "Lieutenant Cookley;" "cocoa nuts" and
"cocoa-nuts;" "cowhides" and "cow-hides;" "errant" for "errand;"
"equiped;" "facinating;" "favourite" and "favorite;" "fopish;"
"gratulations;" "Grenada" and "Greneda;" "guana" is possibly "iguana;"
(Captain) "Humphreys" and "Humphrey", probably the same person;
"journies;" "Leforet" and "Laforet;" "Lynn Haven" and "Lynhaven;"
"mattrass" for "mattress;" "Mr. Mores" and "Mr. Morse", on page 134;
"Musquitto," "Musquito," "Mosquitto" and "Mosquito" (the tribe and
coast); "musquitto," "mosquito" and "mosquitto" (the insect); "out-fit"
and "outfit;" "out-sailed" and "outsailed;" "polution;" "Ponekertrain"
for "Ponchartrain;" "Port au Prince" and "Port-au-Prince;" "practice(s)"
and "practise(d);" "sailer" and "sailor" for a ship (not a seaman, which
is always "sailor"); "shantees;" "St. Andrews" and "St. Andreas;"
"sun-set" and "sunset;" "Captain Teft" and "Captain Tefts;" "temporary"
and "tempory;" "threshhold;" "too," as in "laying too," "hove too,"
etc.; "visiters;" "water-mellons;" "wilkes" for "whelks."
Left "Captain's Mitchell and Lafitte" on page 4, although "Captains"
would have been more grammatical.
Changed period to comma on page 7: "Corn Island,"; and on page 8:
"Royalists of Port-au-Prince,".
Changed "Schoouer to "Schooner" on page 8: "English Schooner."
Changed "Croswel" to "Croswell" on page 10: "Thomas O'Hara Croswell."
Added comma after "Stonington" on page 14: "Stonington, Connecticut."
Left "the commodores word" on page 22, although "commodore's" would have
been more grammatical.
Changed "Ramalies" to "Ramillies" in the caption to the figure for page
26.
Changed "patatoes" to "potatoes" on page 31: "potatoes to be worth."
Changed period to comma on page 37, after "blockading Savannah at the
time."
Changed "sailidg ing" to "sailing" on page 37: "After sailing."
Changed "blocakding" to "blockading" on page 39: "an old blockading
decree."
Changed "fustick" to "fustic" on page 40: "fustic, sarsaparilla, &c."
Changed "he" to "the" on page 50: "made the threat."
Added closing double quote on page 53 after: "and every thing you want."
Changed "ran" to "run" on page 68: "who had run away."
Changed "day-light" to "daylight" on page 69: "until daylight."
Changed "Coloured" to "Colored" in the caption to the figure on page 88.
Left "a weavers spool" as is on page 98, even though "weaver's" would
have been more grammatical.
Changed "licence" to "license" on page 126: "received the license."
Changed "lea" to "lee" on page 127: "lee of an island."
Changed "feathes" to "feathers" on page 130: "ornamented with feathers."
Changed "traveling" to "travelling" on page 131: "we were travelling."
Left "manatee's" on page 148, even though "manatees" would have been
more grammatical.
Changed "birth" to "berth" on page 166: "a damned good berth."
Page 187 refers to "Cape Francios" in the Dominican Republic. Although
this is probably "Cape Francois", it was left as is.
Removed extra single quote before "in addition" on page 200.
Left "your's very truly" on page 204, even though "yours" would have
been more grammatical.
Changed "anothor" to "another" on page 209: "followed by another."
Changed "throwu" to "thrown" on page 215: "thrown overboard."
Changed "earnesly" to "earnestly" on page 220: "He earnestly entreated."