The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1857-07-09
n The Gunner's Shot. asS' u
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AorHRILLrNG STORY orrFAoT. III q

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Our noble ship lay at anchor in the bay of |
Tangier; fortified towG nsthe extreme north |
west ofeAfsica. The day had been mild with !
gsntsshres1e sweepingto the enorthwardana /
westward, but, towards the close Of thegter- !
noon .sse7seabreezes died away, and one Of
those siifTys even-like, atmospheric breathing I
eamefrom the great sun-burnt Sahara. Hslfsf
IN hour befere sandown. the captain gave the
oreer TO the bossswaiTto'call the hands to 90
~ swimming, and less than five e'nisnutes the
forms OF om tafs were seen.leaping from The
gangway, theports, the rottings, the brewsprit,
and some Of fthesmore ventaresome took their
ieapfromiths arms ef the lower yard. One
Of the sstaddshg SAIL had been lowered into
the water, with tts corner suspended from the
main yard arm and the swinging boom, and
into ms the swimmers maze their way.
Among those who seemed TO be enjoying
the sport most heartily, were two of the boys,
Tin Wallace and Fred Fairbanks, the .atter
OF whom was the son OF the old gunner, and
in laughing mood, they started out from the
seudding SAID ona race. There was a loud
ringing shout OF Joy on their lips as they put
of, and they started through the water like
fishes. The surface of the sea was as smooth
as glass; thoughaitssbosom rose in long and
heavy swells that set in from the Atlantic.--l
The vessel was moored with long sweep
from both cables, and the buoy on the s'ar-i
board quarter, where it rose and fell with
the sweiis like a drunken man. iasbsysefts
Towards the buoy the lads made their way
FREQ FAIRBANKS taxing fne lead. but when they
were within twenty or thirty fathoms Of the
buoy, lin shot tahead and promised to winth
race. The old gunner watched the progress of
has son with vast deal of pride, and when he
saw him dropbehind he lcaped upon the poop
and was the point OF urging him on by a
shout, when a acrysreached aim that made him
start as If heshad been struck BY cannon
ball.ssli #s&!s sat al sssa aa9n si--sas &c
"a shark sharkPscame from'the captain
OF the fofecastie, and at hesound of the terri
bic words the men whowerei the water leap
ed and plunged towards the the ships ag9a
Right abeanl, at the distance Of three or four
les'riengtbsa shark was seen in the water,
where the back ofsthe monster was ": siblss---4
Hls course was for the boys. - For a monent
the gunner stood ike one hereft OF sense, but
on the next, he shoutedsat thestop of his voice
for the boys totarn. but the little fellowsheard
him not. Stoutiy the two swimmers strove
Tor theasoal, all unconscious of the fearful
death-splrit that hovered SO near them-s Their
merry laugh still rang out over the waters, and
atlensth they both touched the buoy tegeth-
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a hiawhatdrcps of agony started frem the
brow Of our old gunner. A boat had put off,
but Fairbanks knewfit could not reach then
in season, and every moment he expected to
see the monster sink from sight, and then he
knew that all hope would be gone. aa sgaf
1iAtthat moinent cry reached the ship that
wentithroagh every heart Ikea strea N OF fire
---thesbsys had discovered their enemy THE
cry started old Fairbanks to his senses and
quicker than thought he sprang to the quarter
deck. The guns were all loaded and shotted
fore and aft, and none new their temper better
than he. With asteady hand, made strong
bya saddenhope, the old gannerseized prim-
ing wire and picked the cartridge Of onssof the
quarter guns---thenh he took from his pocket
PERCUSSION wafer, and set II in its place and set
back the hammer of the patent lock. sWitha
steady strengththe old man swayed the breach
Of his heavy gun to its beariLg, and then, seiz-'
ing the string lock, helstood back and watch
ed for the next swell that would bring the shark
IN range. he had aimed the piece some dis
tance OF his mark, but yet single moment
would settle his hopes and Fears. = ssig
Every breath was hushed, and every heart
in nthatsoid ship beatpainfuiIy. The boat was
vet some distance from the boys, whilst the
horrible sea monster was fearfully near. Sid
denly the air was awakened by the roar Of a
heavy gun, and as the old man knew his shot
was gone. he sank back on the combing OF the
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