Poignant

I gather this isn't by Watterson, but
wow ....

Another Reason to Hate Ducks

WATCH OUT. THESE INDIVIDUALS ARE RUTHLESS!!!!!

Police say that the gang usually is comprised
of four members, one adult and three younger ones.

While the three younger ones, all appearing
sweet and innocent, divert their 'mark' (or
intended target) with a show of friendliness,
the fourth -- the eldest -- sneaks in from
behind the person's back to expertly rifle
through his or her pocket or purse for any
valuables.

Be on the alert!!

Scroll down to see a photo from a recent
attack.

How to Know Your Kid's in the Right School

You gotta love this.





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I Really Meme This

Angie tagged me for a book meme with the
following rules:

1. Pick up the book nearest you with at least 123 pages.
2. Turn to page 123.
3. Count the first five sentences.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five other bloggers.

The book is The Best of Cordwainer Smith edited by
J. J. Pierce. Looks like we're both
reading sci-fi.


Elaine approached it before she met D'joan.
Elaine was not the only case, but she was a
rare and genuine one. Her life, thrust back
from all attempts at growth, had turned back
on itself and her mind had spiraled inward to
the only safety she could really know, psychosis.
Madness is always better than X, and X to each
patient is individual, personal, secret and over-
whelmingly important. Elaine had gone normally
mad; her imprinted and destined career was the
wrong one.

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Uncle Charlie's Account of the Wreck

This was written by Great-Uncle Charles
Bowie, Dec. 5, 1945. "To Bettie Jean
and Donnie Gillum" This starts on
page 95 of "Out of These Roots." The
story Uncle Charlie writes is about his
father.

------------------begin here------------

Long, long ago, really a hundred years,
there lived a young boy, just about Bettie's
age, in a town away up north called Picton
[sic, Pictou], in Nova Scotia. Picton is
just a small town, or was when this boy
lived there. It is on a bay where the
water from the ocean comes right up to
the main street of the town.

The father, whose name was Charles, was
a coal miner, as that was his trade.
Coal miners, in those days, received
very small wages, so the family - like
the rest of the neighbors - were very
poor. At the time our story begins,
the family had lived in Picton for
twelve years and the young boy about
who we are writing had four brothers
and sisters. There was one sister
older than he was, and two sisters
and a baby brother who were younger.

In those days there were no public schools
like there are in our country today.
The only way children could learn to
read and write was for their parents to
teach them. Or, sometimes, a man would
find a room and open a school, and then
those parents who wanted their children
to learn to read and write would pay
the teacher, and he would teach them to
read. As this boy's parents were poor,
they could not afford to send them to
school very much, and he only attended
school for about six months in all his
life.

When boys were seven or eight years old,
they were set to work to earn money, or
their board and keep, so his arents sent
him to a farmer who lived near Picton,
to do chores and help with the work.
He learned how to milk cows, hunt eggs,
drive the cattle to pasture, and do
other things around the farm. When he
was not busy helping with the farm work,
he would play around with other boys who
lived in the town - much the same as boys
do now-a-days. In the summer the boys
would go swimming in the bay, which was
connected with the ocean, and this little
boy became a very good swimmer.

When he was about twelve years old, his
father, Charles, decided to leave Picton
and go to Pennsylvania and try to find
work where he could to earn more money.
Then he would send for the rest of the
family and they would start a new home
in Plymouth, Pennsylvania. So the father
bade the family "goodbye" and sailed away.

He found work at Plymouth and it was not
long before he had earned enough so that
he could send it to the family and tell
them all to come on to Plymouth. Several
other families decided to go with them
to Plymouth. Several other families
decided to go with them to Plymouth, so
they packed up all their things, bundled
up the children, engaged a small sailing
ship, and all went aboard and sailed off
for the United States.

The boat was small and crowded and the
passengers had to take their own provisions.
Also, the ocean was rough, so they did
not have a very pleasant trip, but our
"story boy" did not mind this. He went
all around the ship and visited and
became acquainted with all the passengers
and sailors. Among the sailrs was a
big strong man who took a liking to this
boy and became quite friendly with him.

At last the voyage was nearly ended, the
boat was entering the harbor, on a foggy
morning, to make a landing. The Captain
of the ship should have waited for a tug
to tow them into port, but he refused to
do this and continued to sail on. Soon
the vessel struck a hidden rock and began
to sink.

Then there was a wild scramble between
the crew and the passengers to lower the
small boats and leave the sinking ship.
There was not enough small boats to carry
all of them, so the crew deserted the
women and children, and left them to sink
with the ship.

Just before the ship went down, that big
strong man who had taken a liking to our
small boy, saw him on the deck and asked
him if he could swim, and as he had learned
back in Picton, he said he could, so this
man picked him up and threw him overboard!
Now you may think this was a very cruel
thing to do, but he did this because when
a ship sinks, all the people on board are
usually carried down with the boat. He
told the boy to swim as far as he could.
The boy swam away in the cold water and
did not see the ship sink, as there was
too much fog.

Well, there he was out on the water all
alone and he did not know where he was.
Did he give up? No. He just kept on
swimming like a brave little boy. After
he had been in the water a little while
he saw a bow boat passing close to him,
so he began to call to them for help.
He called as loud as he could. Now this
was one of the ship's boats, with the
Captain and some of the crew and a few
of the passengers; it was so crowded
that the Captain refused to take on any
more and ordered the crew to row on and
leave the boy in the water. But that
big strong man was one of the persons in
the boat and he stood up and said to the
Captain, "You stop the boat and pick up
that boy or I will throw you out." The
Captain was a coward and afraid he would
be thrown out, so he ordered the crew to
pick up the boy and take him aboard, and
so he was taken out of the water.

Again the boat started on, but had not
gone far until they saw a small baby
floating on the water. Again the Captain
refused to stop and pick it up. Ghen our
small boy began to cry, "That is my little
baby sister. Stop and get her!" Again the
big man said to the Captain, "Stop for the
baby, or out you go!" So the baby was saved.

The boat again started for the shore, but
soon another person was seen in the water,
hanging to some floating wreckage. Our
little boy saw it was his mother, so he
began crying out, "Oh, save my mother!
Save my mother!" But the Captain refused
to stop and take on any more people, as
the boat was almost ready to sink. Once
again that big man told the Captain, "Pick
up that lady, or out you go!" And the
Captain ordered the boat to stop and the
little boy's mother was saved.

The boat was now so heavily loaded that
everyone had to sit still to keep it from
rocking and filling with water, but they
all managed to reach shore, and all who
were in the boat were saved.

When the little boy's mother took the
baby in her arms, she saw it was not her
baby, sad to say. All the rest of the
family who were on that ship were lost
- one little brother and three sisters.
[The newspapers say there were six
children lost. - ofs]

The people on shore were very kind to
those who were saved. They took good
care of them and saw that they were all
sent on to their destination. So this
little boy and his mother arrived at
Plymouth, Pennsylvania, and the father,
Charles met them. What a sad meeting
that was - only one left of the five
children!

The mother did not live long, the
shock of being in the cold water so
long, and the loss of the children was
to much for her and she soon passed away.

After that the father, Charles, could
not settle down and stay in one place,
so he went west to Illinois and soon he
passed away and was buried at La Salle,
Illinois.

So there was left of that family only
that one little boy. What became of
him? That's another story, but he grew
up, married a beautiful girl and raised
a large family.

Bettie Jean and Donnie, don't you think
he was a brave boy? Now, who was this
boy and what was his name? His name
was Robert Bowie and he is your Great-
Grandfather - that is, the Father of
your Grandpa, Walter B. Bowie.

And this is a true story.

My Family and the Wreck

The following is from a family history
entitled Out of These Roots. It is the
history of my dad's mom's family.

The section is titled "History of
the Bowie Family as written by Annie
Bowie and/or Alice Maude Bowie and/
or Lillian Bowie sometime between the
mid-thirties & 1956" The page is #6.

My great-grand father was Robert Bowie.

-----------begin here--------------------

"Charles Bowie, our paternal grandfather,
married Margaret McCray in Scotland, then
later with his wife and little family as well
as his mother, Christina Winton Bowie, went
to Nova Scotia and settled near or in Picton
[sic, Pictou]. Several children were born to
the family in Picton, until seven children
graced the family board.

Robert Bowie, our father, spent part of his
time in a farmer's home, helping with the
chores that a boy could do. This family
was named Frasier and consisted of several
unmarried brothers and sisters and all
evidently were kind to him.

The town offered little in the way of
educational advantages. School ws in
session only a short time during the
winter months.

Thinking to better himself in the States,
our grandfather, Charles Bowie, left Nova
Scotia in company with several other miners
and came to Pennsylvania where he found
employment in his field of labor. When
he had accumulated money enough, he sent
word to his family to join him and make
a new home in this country. As there
were several families leaving Nova Scotia
on the same errand, the entire company
took passage on the Brig Sutledge. There
were 57 passengers on the ship as well
as the crew. They left Picton, N.S. some
time in June or perhaps late in May 1846.

Of the disaster and shipwreck that befell
that little group consisting mainly of
women and children, a full account is
given in a booklet written by Rev. David
Love, who as a boy was on the boat with
his mother, sister and young brother,
so I will not write more about it.
Suffice it to say that our grandfather,
Charles Bowie, who was waiting for his
family at Newport, Rhode Island, only
his wife, Margaret McCray Bowie and one
son, Robert, were left to him. Five
young children were lost at sea and
the mother and son were saved only
because a boat picked them up, when
they were almost exhausted, after
swimming for some time in the sea that
had claimed the lives of so many women
and children.

The survivors of the shipwreck were
cared for by the good people at Newport.
Each broken family received food and
clothing with shelter until they could
adjust themselves to changed conditions.
The two great lodges - the Odd Fellows
and the Masons - were interested in the
care of these people and ave to each man,
who had made the ill-fated voyage, $30.00
and to each woman $35.00.

Later, a monument was erected to the
memory of these people lost at sea, in
an old church yard or cemetery in Newport.
There it stands until this day, moss-
covered and weatherbeaten tho' it may be."

--------------------end here-------------

Robert Bowie was 12 years old in 1846. I
think he was the eldest child.

I would pay good money for a copy of the
booklet by Rev. David Love.

The Olivers were the only family that did
not have any losses. Family legend is that
George Oliver had a rifle and commandeered
seats for all of his family.

The newspaper article cited previously shows
that the churches in Newport did a large amount
of the collecting for the survivors as well
as lodges.

The monument mentioned is the one we found during
our whirlwind trip back in '97. It is easily
located in the giant cemetery in Newport.
America's Cup Street dead ends at Farewell
Street. Continue on into the cemetery for
about 50-70 feet. Another 50-70 feet to
the left is the monument. A picture of the
monument is on an earlier post.

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More on the Wreck

This is from the NEWPORT DAILY NEWS
dated Monday, June 29, 1846.

From Saturday's Second Edition

SHOCKING - WRECK OF THE BRIG SUTLEJ, OF
PICTOU, N. S., - THIRTY LIVES LOST. -

The schooner Dusky Sally, Capt. Wilder, of
Hinham, arrived at Stevens' Wharf this morning
at about 9 1 2 [sic] o'clock, bringing the sad
intelligence of the loss of the brig Sutlej,
Capt. Graham, together with THIRTY LIVES.

The brig was from Pictou, bound to Fall
River, and had on board about seventy
souls. The passengers were partly
Scotch, and were families in comfortable
circumstances bound from their homes
to the State of Maryland, where they
were going to work in some of the mining
establishments.

The brig struck on the "Sow and Pigs,"
a cluster of rocks about 30 miles
from this place, between Gay Head and
Cuddyhunk, at 1-4 past 3 o'clock, this
morning.

The schooner which brought the unfortunate
people in, was in sight at the time and
repaired forthwith to their assistance.
She went down immediately after striking
and had the schooner been a little nearer,
all might have been saved.

It is a most melancholy catastrophe,
and has cast a gloom over our citizens,
which it is impossible to describe.

Below, we give a list of those who have
been saved, and also of those who are
lost, which we obtained from one of the
passengers' two of the names we have been
unable to obtain in full.

Saved. - Margaret Bowie, Robert Bowie, George
Oliver, Mary Oliver, Robert Oliver, George
Oliver, Jennet Oliver, Isabela Oliver,
Hugh Oliver, John Oliver, John Howat,
James Howat, Michael Howat, Thomas Fatkin,
John Fatkin, Jane Love, David Love,
Robert McMillen, Margaret McMillen, Hugh
Denoon, Margaret Frasier, _____ Archibald,
_________Munroe, William Loraine, William
Wier, Arcibald [sic] Smith, Ellen Smith - 28 [sic]

Lost. - Margaret Bowie, Christie Bowie,
Mary Bowie, Alexander Bowie, James Bowie,
Jennie Bowie, (all children of the lady
who was saved;) Elizabeth Howat, Agnes
Howat, Margaret Fatkin, Peter Fatkin,
Margaret Fatkin, (daughter,) Jane Love,
(mother,) Alexander Love, Jesse Love,
Margaret McMillen (mother,) Elizabeth
McMillen, Ann McMillen, Hugh McMillen,
William McMillen, Jennett McMillen,
Robert McMillen, Margaret Denoon,
Marrion Denoon, Mary Denoon, Daniel
McLean, William Frazier, Sarah Frazier,
Ann Catharine Frazier, Effy Wier,
Joanna Gream - 30

Another vessel came up, very soon after
the disaster, and she remained to pick
up such bodies as the schooner Dusky Sally
did not get, - and also to save such
property as they could; she will probably
arrive here in the course of the day.
It was with great difficulty that the
wreck could be reached, as the schooner
could not approach very near to the rocks,
and it was dangerous for the boats to get
too close in, as there was danger of their
being swamped.

The wharf, where the vessel arrived, was
densly [sic] crowded with people, and every
assistance was rendered these unfortunate
emigrants; those who were alive, were in a
very feeble condition, and many of them
could hardly walk, from the effects of
exhaustion, having been in the water so
long. They were all taken to various
homes near by, where dry clothes were
furnished them, and food supplied. An
Inquest was held on the dead, and all
the necessary arrangements will be made
for their burial. We have no time to
say anything further. It is a most heart-
rending calamity, and the unfortunate
sufferers will receive every kindness
and attention from our citizens. This
is another fearful warning of the
dreadful uncertainty of time.

--------------

Those that escaped with their lives from
the wreck of the Brig Sutledge, have
lost everything they had, and in order
to provide them with clothing, &c., it
is proposed to take up a collection in
all the churches tomorrow.


A collection will be taken up in all
the churches, to-morrow afternoon, for
these emigrants; and any one desiring
to give anything to them, who not intend
going to church, will please send it to
Benjamin B. Howland, Esq., Town Clerk.
- and it will immediately be delivered
to them. - Certainly our charities will
be liberal on this mournful occasion.

------------------end here---------------

The article includes two spellings of the ship's
name. From what I can tell, Sutledge is the
correct. Though, I found accounts that called
it the Sutley or Sutledj.

Brrrr

This was taken Thursday. The snow was so
heavy that classes were actually cancelled
at New St. Andrews for the first time in
their 14 year history. Craig didn't get the
message and dutifully slogged his mile
and a half to campus. Somehow, he ended
up shoveling snow. Notice the Florida
boy's toughness - he's not wearing gloves.



He also got interviewed and photographed
by two local papers. Here's the photo
and caption from one.




Geoff Crimmins/Daily News

New Saint Andrews College freshman Craig Linn
shovels snow outside the school’s building in
Moscow this morning. Linn, originally from
Florida, said he has never seen this much snow
before.

Special ht to Daniel F. for the video and
Dale C. for the photo.

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