“While Clark and his two companions again made search for food and water we prepared and launched the boat, tying it to a stake awaiting their return.
“Five men who had lost out in the drawing, arming themselves with heavy clubs from the wreckage, rushed out, climbed into the boat and shoved out to deep water. There they rested, saying: ‘Ten more may swim out to us, one at a time, and we will let them aboard.’ So again those of us on the beach drew lots, disregarding the claims of the badly crippled and the three absent men. As each lucky man drew a place he swam out and was hauled aboard. After the boat was loaded, as there was ample room for another man, we agreed to wait off shore until the three hunters returned and take one of them in with us.
“In a little while they came running towards the beach pursued by a troop of Arabs, camel-back and carrying long muskets and great curved knives.
“The man, Clark, seeing the boat some distance from the shore, loaded and pulling away, turned towards the Arabs and held up his hands in surrender. One of them, dismounting, bound his hands behind his back. The others rode forward to the water’s edge and fired a volley at us. Two of the five men who had captured our [pg 271] boat were killed, the others were unhurt. Then we pulled out beyond musket range.
“The Arabs killed the crippled men; then they drank the water from the cask and divided the flour and other stores, including the clothing of the dead sailors; but as they considered the pork unfit food for a true believer, made signs to the prisoners to divide it up and carry it for their food; and each made a small bundle wrapping it in scraps of sail cloth. They also made signs for them to drink from the cask and after they had finished one of the camels drank the remainder. Then driving their prisoners before them they disappeared among the sand hills.
“When we were satisfied they were no longer in the vicinity, we came ashore for a short while, then setting up the sail, sailed northward along the coast.
“Our boat seemed to be leaking, and the water in the bottom soon became discolored by the blood of the two sailors the Arabs had killed and by the dirt from our shoes. When several asked for a drink, our lieutenant, the only officer who survived and who had assumed command, examining the cask, discovered that it had been perforated by a bullet and that more than two-thirds of the water had leaked out and run into the boat.
“Telling us what had happened, he forbade anyone to drink from the cask, saying: ‘We have at least a hundred mile voyage before us. One drink a day for each man is all you can have. If you are thirsty drink the water in the bottom of the boat, it is fresh.’ He set the example by doing so; and more than half of us within the hour drank our fill of the dirty, blood-discolored water; and we nine who drank were the only ones who lived to reach the coast of Spain.
[pg 272] “The man, Clark, I am satisfied, is alive, but held as prisoner or slave by some Barbary pirate or desert chief.”
This finished the sailor’s narrative. Mr. Campbell and the Captain were both satisfied that he had told them the truth and realized that it was useless to pursue the investigation or unaided attempt the rescue of David Clark. The only hope lay in his escape if near the coast; if in the interior, which was very probable, only Captain Eaton, the United States minister, dealing directly with the Barbary powers could effect his rescue. There was nothing for John to do but return to New Orleans and this he did on the return trip of the vessel.