The native American., 1838-12-08
A THRILLING INCIDENT.
From the Buffalo Commercial advertiser.

rum We DuUutO COnmefCfQt .1dueltSeT
Among the perous scenes of the heavy gale,
which caused such widespread disaster to our lake
shipping, a fortnight since, one has come to our
knowledge equalling in interest,t the most highly
wrought tale of felton, In that fearful night the
steamboat Constitution, Captain Appleby, was
out amidst the terrors of the gale. BY the glimpses
caught at intervals, when the ftful storm for
moment broke away, the anxious and watchful
commander was made aware of the critical situa-
ton of his boat, which was rapidly drifting in
under the hurricane power Of the gale, which
blew almost directly across the lake--towards a,
dangerous reef, from which escape would have
been impossible. He went directly to the engi-s
neer, and ordered on s'more steam" The reply
Of the engineer was, that there was already as
much on as the boilers would safely bear Again
did the Captain seek the deck to see if his labor
ing boat was making headway, and again return
ed to the engne-room. He explained to the en-
gneer rtheirhazardous situation, and told him that
all hope was lost, if no more headway could be
gained, but left the engineer to act his discretion
in the crisis. A moment of reflection, and his
decision was made. Life or death hung on the
issue. Certain destruction awaited the boat and
her devoted crew in few brief minutes, if she
did not gain upon the driving storm. This might
be averted If the boilers, already crowded to a
fearful pressure, could yet bear heavier strain,
and that he determined to try True, the awful
horrors OF an explosion were vivdly before him
the manged limbs, the scorched and Ifeless bo-
dies, the death-shreks and the groans of the hap
less victims, were before his eyes and on his ear.
The alternative was a fearful one, yet it must be
resorted to. He coolly directed the heads of two
barrels of oil to be broken in, and the furnaces
were rapidly fed with wood dipped in the highly
infammable liquid, while two men with ladies'
dashed the oil into the flames. The intense heat
which these combustibles created generated steam
with the rapidity of lightning and soon the resist
less vapor forced up the safety valve, and issued
forth with tremendous violence; its sharp -hissing
heard above the wild uproar Of the waters and the
storm. With a'desperate and determined courage,
which equalled the most daring heroism that the
page of history has ever recorded, the engineer
sat dorm upon the leuer Of the safety valvc, to
confne and raise the steam to the necessary pow
er required to propel the boat against the drifting
waves! In this awful situation he calmly re-
mained, until the prodigious efforts of the engine
had forced the Constitution sufficiently Off shore
to be beyond the threatened danger.
This intrepid act was not rash and vainglori-
GUS attempt to gain the applause of multitude
by fool-hardy exposure of life in some racing
excursion; it was not the deed of drunken and
reckless man, wickedly needless of the safety of
those whose lives were perilled, but it was the
selfpossessed and determined courage of one
whose frmness is worthy of all admiration. We
give it as it was told to us, Of those frequent
scenes Of real life whose actual realities are, in
deed, ''stranger than fiction" n.