Sunbury American and Shamokin journal. [volume] (Sunbury, Northumberland Co., Pa.) 1840-1848, 1842-10-15


for death only beneath the eye and amid the
breath of heaven. Thousands have endured
that appalling kind of suifocaton. would die
only as many better man had died before me-
| could meet such death. said SOL
thought so-felt so, | mean, for a minutc-or
more ten minutes it may have been-or but an
instant of time. know not--nor does it mat
ter il | could compute it. There Uds time
then when | was resigned to my fate. but good
God was | resigned to it in tie shape in which
next it came to appal Stranger, felt that
water grow hot about my limbs, though it was
not yet mid-leg deep. felt, and, in the same
moment, heard the roar of the furnace that was
TO turn it into steam before it could grow deep
enough to drown one
You shudder-it pds hidcous. But did
shrink and shrvel, and crumble down upon
that iron floor, and lose my senses in that hor-
rid agony of fear No Though my brain
swan and the life-blood that curdled at my
heart seemed about to stagnate there for ever,
still kne,o ! was too hoarse-too hopeless
! from previous efforts, to cry out more. But
slruck-teebly at first, and then strongly. fran
tically with my clcnched fists against the sides
of the boiler. There was people moving near
who must hear my blows! Could not hear
the grating Of chains, the shufiling of feet, the
very rustic of a rope, hear them all within
few inches of me did, but the gurgling wa
ter that was growing hotter and hotter around
my eXtremItics, made more noise within the
steaming chaldron than did my ircnzied blows
against the sides.
/ 'Latterly had hardly changed my position,
but now the growing heat of the water made
/ pash to and fro lifting myself wholly out OF ii
was impossible, but could not remain quiet.
stumbled upon something, it was mallet !
a chance tool the smith had left there by acci-
dent With what wild oy did seize t-with
what eager confidence did | now deal my
| first blows with it against the walls of my pris-
on! Bnt scarce had intermitted them for a
moment when heard the clang of the iron
door as the fireman flung it wide open to feed
the flames that were to torture me. Nv knock
ing was unheard, though could hear him toss
the sticks into the furnace beneath me, and
! drive to the door when his internal oven was
fully crammcd.
! Had yet hope had, but it rose in my
mind side by side with the fear that might now
become the agent of preparing myself more
| frighttul death-Ycs when thought of that
! furnace with its fresh ted flames curling be-
| neaththe iron upon which stood, more fright
/ tul death even than that OF being boiled a.
/ live! lladA discovered that malet short
time sconer-b but no matter, would by its AID
resort TO the only experiment now left.
At was thls-l remembered having marlinc-
spike in my pocket, and in less time than have
taken IN limiting at the consequences of thus IL
sing 1t, had made an impression upon the
boiler, and soon succeeded in driving it through.
The water gushed through the aperture
would they see it! No, the jet could only
play against the wooden partition which must
hide the stream from view--it must trickle
down upon the decks before the leakage would
he discovered. Should drive another hole 10
make the leakage greater Why, the water
within seemed already 10 be sensibly diminish
ed-so hot had become that which remained
should more escape, would not hear II bubble
and hiss upon the fiery plates OF iron that were
already scorching the soles of my feet 4!
'Ah ! there is movement voices hear
them calling for crow-bar-the bulkhead
cracks as they pry of the Panking. They have
seen the leak-they are trying 10 get at it -
Good God why do they not dampen the fire!-
Why do they call for the-the-the
Stranger, look al that finger it can never
regain It's natural size-but it has already done
all the service that man could expect from Sc
humble a member-Sir, that hole pOuti haze
been plugged up on the instant, unless / had
Jammed myfnger through.
4 heard the cry of horror ms they saw it with
out-the shout to drown the fre--the stroke o
the cold water pump. They say, too, that
was conscious when they took me out-but-I
i remember nothing more until they brought
a julep TO my bedside afterwards, AND that ju
iep -
Cooling was It y
STRANGER .!n
Ben turned away his head and wcpt-lIe
could no say more.
"Nou seem to he full of the milk of human
kindness" as the monkey said when he suck
ed the cucoanut