Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 139, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 June 1912 — Ship’s Cat'Refuses to Sail [ARTICLE]

Ship’s Cat'Refuses to Sail

Reuben, a Monster Yellow Tom, Deserts Vestel and Crew Is Superstitious. Bangor.—Something new in sea superstition is just now engaging the attention of the Grand Banks fishermen who sail from Bucksport and Bangor. The facts are plain as day, but whether they mean good luck or bad no one has as yet been able to' decide. ' 1 . The sum and substance of it all is that Reuben, the monster whlte-and-yellow tomcat of the Bangor Grand Banker Lizzie Griffin has deserted—mutinied, in fact. He was born of a seafaring mother on board the schooner four years ago, and has sailed op her every season since, including herring trips to Newfoundland. spring, after a visit at the warehouse of the vessel's owners in Bangor, he manifested a strong aversion to the sea and declined to go to Bucksport to join the .vessel. Captain Anderson had ne idea of losing Ms pet and mascot, and so Reuben was put into a covered market basket and taken to Bucksport a prisoner. . " Once on board the vessel, however, he glared savagely about alow and aloft, and then made a flying leap to the pier. Again and jgain was Reuben brought back on board, fifteen times in all, but every time be managed to escape and get back to the pier. Finally they put Mm in a box and fastened the cover securely, as they thought Then the schooner’s stern lines were cast off and she swung out into the stream, but the

bow hawser was still out, and before it could be cast off Reuben managed in some mysterious way to get out of his prison box and in an Instant was over the bows, treading the hawser like a tight rope performer and reaching the pier safely. So they had to let him go, and now he is back in Bangor, at the Jones fish house, where he spends the nights in chasing wharf rats and gossiping with the dissipated Toms and Tabs of Broad street. ' Now, when rats desert a vessel, the crew all want to quit, for that is a feign of bad luck. To bring a black cat on board Is also bad luck. The question is, "What sort of luck follows desertion and mutiny by a white and yellow cat—a regular sailor cat that can go aloft as quickly ps any man?”