Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1850-08-24
SHIP ON FIR E.
CRUISING IN THE LAST WAR.

"Ay, ay, cir | answered, touching my
hat and leaping into the stern sheets, |
continued, "push off there, lorward=and
now give way with will, boys-@pdll''
There is something noble in the charat-
has frankness, generosity, daring
courage which excites our admiration, and
wins his way to the heart TO their hon
Or | can say that thisis peculiar to no one
nation more than to another. A sailor il
in most respects n citizen of the world
no matter what land has given him birth,
his sympathy is At once aroused by the call
for help He makes no distinction be-
tween friend and foe. ID To irnpIore his aid
is to command his services. Nor did this
trtith fail on the present occasion. Moth
ing could rival the ardor Of our men
They bent to their oars with the thews Of
giants, curling the water i'll foam beneath
our bows, and sending the boats along az
if they had been only pleasure skitts.
But swift as was our progress, that of
the destroying element was still more so.
The fire had spread with snch fiightfnl
rapidity as to wrap the wholtsfore part Of
the ship in flames, aud threaten to con-
sumo her before we could arrive. Since
it had found vent it had ragged with re-
doubled fury, until now the shronds, the
foretnast, the boWsprit, the yards every
thing was sheeted with fire, which, whir-
ling round and round ascended spirally to
the masthead, shooting it. forky tongues
ont on every hand. and streaming like a
meteor away mp into the calm blue sky.
Meanwhile the flames had broken out
from the after-liatch, and catching at once
to the ratlins, leaped from rope to rope,
ran wildly up the rigging, spread almost
instantly to the huge lower sails, Kissing,
flashing, and roaring as they went, until
at length the whole ship seemed a mass
of fire, and nothing was left untouched but
the narrow quarterback on which the
now despairing crew had gathered in
crowds, some eagerly endeavoring to lower
the only boat that had escaped the flames,
some frHntlcaIly crying out for mercy, some
cursng aud blasphening awfully i'll their
agony, and some stretching out their hands
iinploringly for help.
"Glve way, my men, give way---Will
you see them miserably burnt to death be-
fore your eyes - | shouted, rising in the
boat and waving my cap to the. sufferers,
forgetting in the excitement Of Tx, moment
the inInlnency OF our own daneS'r in case
Of nn explosion. The poor wfetches on
the quarter of the burning ship answered
back with hysteric shout. Our gallant
tars started like 1nettled hounds at the cry,
and with few vigorous strokes we dash
ed mp to the quarter,
Keep her off, there" I shouted, seeing
that we should be swauped by the eager
ness Of the sufferers to escape, "keep her
oH-jnmp overheard and well pick you
up | continued, as we fell off from her
quarter agnin; aud III less than three min
utes the deck was bare, and our boats full
Of the rescued crew.
"Mr. Danforth," at this moment shout
ed Taffail, from the othe Doat ahead,
"tllere's lady and her father they say
here, still on board-for heavens sake let
lis try and save them
For one moment as / remembered my
orders, and the extremity Of our danger,
paused but when | reflected that by de-
parting, we should abandon two human
beings to n borrid death, hesitated no
longer Hastily learning from the mate
of the vessel that they were their only
passengers, and having taken refuge in
the hold during the late conflict, had since
been forgotten; and not feeling warranted
i'll ordering any one on so dangerous a
service, / gave the boat in charge to
Irvine, who had luckily smuggled himself
on board, sternly babe one or two Of my
crew who attempted to follow, to keep
their stations, mounted her side by rope
that hung over the quarter, rapidly ira
versed the deck, in the midst of tremen-
dous heat, and dnrted down the conpan-
lon-way, leaving the flames roaring not
five feet from its et1trace.
The cabin was large one, and fitted
up with extraordinary taste. The decora- |
tions were even luxurious, and such as
bad at that time rarely seen in merchant
men. The state-rooms were Of mahogany, |
lnlad with a still darker wood, which ] |
with the greatest elegance. Curtains, ap-
parenty of damask, hung around, and the
show Of silver and cut glass by the COM
was even brilliant. The ca
bin was, however, still as death. A lady's |
glove lay on an ottoman, and beside it was
an opeY book; but no other traces Of a
humaf being was discernibIe around. |
Where could the owner Of that small, de-
Iicate French glove be? Was she already
a victim to the frightful element! Had
the mate deceived himself in supposing |
she had been removed from the hold
Was there no hope, if she still lived, Of
her i'll time to save her from a
horrid death
All these questions flashed rapidly across
my mind, and my heart sickened as l
owned / could not answer. The danger,
grew more and more immi-
nent. Twas standing, as it were, above
mine that had been sprung; for should the
flames reach the magazine, inevitable
must ensue. Nor could that
catastrophe be much longer postponed |
The devouring element had already gain
I'd possession of all around, and even now |
be eating its way to the magazine.
Besides if paused a moment logger the
fire would reach the companion-way, and
all hopes OF escape from the cabin be cut
off, Had it been only my own life that
was endangered, would not have hesisa-
ted in perlling it to the utmost, but when
I remembered that dozen gallant fellows
Of my crew as well as score Of others
from the rescued sufferers would be involv-l
ed in my own fate, could not doubt az toI
nv duty. These reflections, however, had