A collection of three accounts of Peril, Adventure and Captivity in the 18th and 19th century: "The Sufferings of the Picard Family after the Shipwreck of the Medusa in the Year 1816" Tells the story of survivors of the the French naval frigate M duse, which ran aground off the coast of today's Mauritania on July 5, 1816. At least 147 people were set adrift on a hurriedly constructed raft; all but 15 died in the 13 days before their rescue, and those...