Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1859-12-30
WOLBGANG,
or,
TBE WRBGCKER'S BEACON,
CHAPTER

bhfohh IhE YALE
The good ship Pathfinder, Of New York, and
bound to Copenhagen, had entered the North
Sea, having left tho Straits of Dover two days
behind
The commander of ship was a young man
not over eight and-twenty. and his name was
Maurice Lester. lie stood by the tafirail, gazing
on upon the horizon TO the eastward, ever and
anon raising his hand above bis head to feel If
there was any wind stirring, and as often cast
ing his eye aloft to see how the canvas hung -
AS be stood thus his mate approached, AID
spoke to him:
what dye think of this, Oapt'nl"
~ think we're in for a storm, sir" the mas
ter replied. "And tell you what it is, Griffin"
he aided, after sweeping the horizon again with
his eye, "when it comes It will be an earnest
one None of your broad Ocean puffs, with
nothing but water to hatch wind from, but
we'll have it right fresh from some of those
places where they know how to make things
blow"
"1hcn you think we'll have hard onel"
SAID Griffin.
"Aye,' answered the captain, with almost a
shudder, Il feel it in my bones"
In the meantime, Captain Lester had been
watching the sea and sky as before, and he fan
cied that the signs of the storm were growing
more and more palpable every moment. The
sun was going down in a til ok bank, giving to
the whole western horizon dull puTplish red,
bloody hue, with here and there spots Of a
darker tlnge, like openings, through the fiery
cloud, looking upon a fearful blackness behind.
"Do you sec how strangely it looks off lherel'
said the captain, raising his finger toward the
point where the sun was setting
AYE" returned Griffin, u have been watch
ing those dark places
And others noticed the same thing, and spoke
of it, too.
Seven o'clock came and went. Eight o'clock
cam1 and the first watch was set.
Don't 90 below" said the captain, as the
men of the last dog.watch left their stations.
"This calm can't last a great while. You had
better batten down the matches now, while
there is nothing else to do; for am sure there
will be need of having them close before the
coming of another day."
The men had no thought Of going below for
they could see and feel; and they were not
wholly ignorant of what was coming; so they
went at work and secured the matches with
| thick tarpaulins: and when this was done those
who had no particular station collected about
the wheel Another hour passed away-and
another Ten o'clock came, and still not q
breath. The ship lay upon the water like a
dead thing, with the ropes, and blocks, and
sale, ratlling and tapping as she was swayed
to and fro by the lazy swells of the sea.
"What does it meant" cried Griffin, as the
boy struck five bells
"Hark!" said the captain, almost instantly
II guess you'll soon zee. Did you feel that
! Ha!-and that"
1t was puff Of wind, and light flying oi
spray; or, perhaps it was spit of rain. At all
events, the puff was felt; and the drops Of water
| fell upon other cheeks than Maurice Testers;
and others than his heard the dull moaning
which came over the dark waters. So other
cara heard the roar which followed, and other
bodies quIvered beneath the shock of the storm.
giant when he came in bis might.
Aye-lhe storm had come. 1t camo with
wind and rain, and with an angry heayipR Of the
] sea. 1t came with darknese like Erebus, and
with the voice of thunder. The gale continued
to increase in fury as the long night pass ed
away. When the morning came the scene was
one of awful grandeur. The wind was w.
ling with terrific fury and the broad sea was
lashed into huge mountains, that foamed, and
tumbled, and leaped along over the bosom of
the deep, seeming every moment ready to
whelm aud engulf the frail bark that strug glel
within the demon grasp.
When Captain Lester had observed the signs
of the morning, he feared that the storm would
continue through the day. and so he told his
men The sky wore hue Of horror, and rain
/
ing sea. At noon it was still worse.
AT length night shut in again, and not a sign
yet of the passing away Of the storm! The
frightful bowling OF the tempest seemed rather
to have increased than ablted. The men gatt-
cred upon the quarterback, cnging for sup
port to the racks and rails-for the liio.lines
swayed so much that they were afraid of them
gathered as near to the light of the binnace
lamp as they could as though even from such
feeble beams they might fad some comfort
But not all were there. No-not ALL Four
stout true hearted men had been swept away
by tho storm. Near a score were left; but how
many shall see the light OF another day?
At nine o'clock Captain Lester went below.
he took down chart OF the North Sea, and
having spread it upon the table, he sat down to
examine it. He was thus engaged when Mr..
Griffin came down; but he did not look up until
he had finished the calculation.
"How is it," the mate asked, as he saw his
commander lay down the dividers.
81 have been making reckoning, and find
that we have but little more seasroom left
The course we have made since we wore has
been, as near as / can calculate, north. west by
west, so that we must have been driving to wsrds
the coast of northumberland. think we have
| plenty Of room to stand on until midnight; but
we cannot stand on much longer. If the gale
does not abate by that time | know not what
we shall do"
The captain started up from his chair, and
would problbly have walked across the cabin,
but at that moment heavy sea caught the ship,
and gave her pitch forward, which cause him
to catch his seat as quickly as possible. As
soon as the flood had gone from the deck, and
the vessel had struggled up from the shock, he
looked into his companions face, and said, in a
voice made tremulous by deeper emotion than
he had before manifested:
"Griffin, l have something upon my mind
more than you know; and am anxious TO com
municate il, too. l must tell il now, for have
a strange foreboding Of eOmingi Something
is 10 happen that will bear great calamity 10
some Of us. l am not croaking-I am only
reading what the Unseen has written in nv
soul. However, you shall hear my story. You
have heard that my parents were both lost at
seal"
ayes" said the mate
"And perhaps you knew that they we've lost
in this seal"
~ have heard SO, sir
"Aye--so it was. was boy then They
were on their way to Copenhagen, as we should
be now. My father commanded the ship-she
was callod the "Clara Jones" She was name1
for MY mother and she was a stauneh, noble
craft. was at school then, in Troy; and when
| knew that my parents were dead wss well
nigh mad with grief iancied then, in my
first hours Of orphanage, ti.at my heart would
break and think such would have been the
case if they had kept me at school, But some
Of those who cared fer me came 10 see me, and
It was finally arranged that should 90 10 sea.
And prosPered-prospered so we'll that, when
! was twenty years old, they gave me command
of ship
|