The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1860-08-09

q musk-t was fired Is a signal for the boat 70 re-
turn And shirmata=. Won NAV conceive nv
di=Hay. you may imagine the horror which fr1z.
my blood. when che conviction was fyTr-! upon
me that the boat bad abandoned the search, and
was returning 20 the ship,
WIKI --r.Iniaz ey-halls I still gazsd IL the di-
r=cc.Ju " tas noble vessel On Whose decks l lately
tryd. and threw nv hands toward her IN nv
agony, madly en;rearing in bOar~e whispers for
that -UccOr, which / knew | could not receive.
Through Jo- shadows Of night. | could see the
dark mas IL the distance, gradually GROWN:
more iH1istinct until il disappeared entirely from
my view.
There ! vs. il the midst Of the wide ocean
aJ-;iHZ On The wave dreadful solitude. with
certain de4tL staring ne IN the face Ny brain
seemed - w-lrl round, ny head was gIGdy and
| va= sick ~ heart when | realized my terrible
condition. After q time. | recovered my senses
- u certain extent. ana actually began q suecu-
late on my fac. l eudeavorsd 70 calculate how
long | should hold Jlt, hanging on % Jhat hJIr
in the water whether the SEA would ri-- and the
waves dash over ne and soon terminate my suffer
Iu-s Or whether overcome BIZ fatigue and sleep :
should relax M grip and SINK quietly beneath tie
waves.
Indeed. while INDUCING in these speculations
| felt Z strange kind u curiosity, an earnest de-
sire - know what would become Of me-nOt
merely the manner Of nv death, but what would
be nv destination after death I, Should | be pun
lshsd Gr-4diUlly and et-rnally for the many sins
! had committed on earth. or would the Lord, IN
his infinite mercy, taking into view the few op-
pJrtunltIes ! had had vi improving NY mind and
morals, and the many temptations that had beset
me on every side, forgive my sins and take Inc 70
his bosom? And | assure you, =hipmates, at that
hour, which | considered my dying hour. | sin
cerely repented Of all my iniquities.
Then again q CLEAN Of hope would fit across
NV mind. | was not - badly off Is might have
BEEN | had something u cling TO, which if the
weather should continue moderate. would aid Inc
u dpat perhaps for = long time on the water, and
nv heart t.robbet with u pleasurable sensation
as the idea flashed across nv mind that if l could
hold On until the next morning, it was possible
some vessel might be crossing that spot and pick
me up, But when | reflected that vessels were
seldom fallen IN with in that part of the ocean,
and that If one passed within = quarter of a mile,
1t was a thousand 10 one against nv being discOy-
cred, having no signal 70 display, | AGAIN aban-
dOned all hope, and could hardly help regretting
that my miseries were prolonged.
Then again fortitude would come 10 my aid,
and / determined, desperate as my condition
seemed U be, % struggle for life as long as |
could move q muscle-tJ stave of 70 the most dis
tant period possible the hour Of death for. Oh,
~shipmates, lite Is sweet Though we sometimes
meet with rough weather, head winds. squalls,
typhODns ana pamperos on the vOyage-yet we
also meet with prosperous gales, Jalmy breezes
and unrulhsd seas. Yes, there are many joys and
comforts a. well IS troubles in this world. and rs
70 the tutuTe-whO knows what will be its char
acter? not q poor ignorant sailor like myself.
And then | thought of my home, Of my child
hood, Of schOplbOy days when | rambleG through
the woods and pastures, gay and happy in the
present, and boxing forward 10 joys in the future.
/ thought OF ny parents, Of my kind and loving
mother, NY brothers and sisters. none of whom |
had seen .UT several years-and they never seemed
- dear and near 70 me a. at that moment, when
| was about u land on the dark shores Of another
world. But It l. impossible - recount what
passed through my mind on that terrible night.
n Wrrh~ -. a.n-H EA~ . r-H-t - uuLrHa 800 LAA .
My nerves were strung 10 their utmost tension.
My head beat violently, and my brain throbbed
with excitement. If | should live for ages |
should never forget II. How rapidly ] thought,
How clear and vivid were my recOllections : Ny
whole life, with Its many Incidents. and every
whose welfare | had felt any interest, passed in
review before me.
Hours passed away. The wind vas light. and
the SEA comparatively smooth. The stars shOne
out with their accustomed Drilliancy. The waves
no longer broke over me- as II impatient 10 engult
me, and as / partly rested my body upon the
buOyant hatchway, which rose and fell upon
ocean swell, and upon the sides of which l re-
tanned q firm grasp with my fingers, l actually
fell into 4 dUze, and incredible as it may seem,
was for a while unconscious Of the horrors Of my
situation.
When 1 awoke the s;reaks O.! early dawn were
making their appearance in the east, and l eager
ly watched the approach OF day to scan he hori-
ION round. Having been 50 wonderfully presery-
Cd for many hours, 1 was again led 70 indulge in
faint but hardly acknowledged hopes that [ might
Be re=cued from the waves by some passing vessel.
As daylight became clearer, | could see to u
considerable distance in every direction, but no
object met my view except the SKY above and the
dark water beneath and around me. The last
spark Of hope seemed extinguished and | made mp
my mind ~ die like I man
But as the sun rose above the horizon, an oh
IN the west caught ny eye which reflected
the rays vi the sun end shUne like Il white spCCk
afur of. | knew az once that it was a shin. and
my heart thrObbed again with expectation and
hope. / kept my eyes steadily fixed upon that
object, anxious 70 know whether it was approach
iUE Or r~=cedIng. and | soon became convinced
that 1t was coming toward me.
Tie vessel came nearer. | could soon count
her sails and see between her uasts. and became
aware that the ship was on u wind steering to the
and that If she kept on her present
course, would pass me at least Il couple OF miles
70 the nOrthwurd. Nevertheless, j watched the
course Of that vessel with intense interest. Every
every motion, was closely noticed,
and ] f-rvently prayed that some circumstance
would occur - change her course and bring her
hail But when an hour passed, and she
steering IN the same direction, my
hopes were again destroyed. At that moment
wind hauled u the nOTthward and headed the
ship Of a couple Of points, and 10 my great JOY
was put about on the other tack. heading al
most directly toward ne.
y the ship approached the wind became un-
steady. and sometimes / was on her weather bow
and sometimes ON her lee how, and sometimes she
headed directly for me-. No one can imagine nv.
lLyuizing ~susT-u>s a. l watched that vessel. As
came near, a flaw struck her and headed her
ID = couple Of points. enough L. carry her past
the reach of ms voice. knowing this
the only chance. / quilted the hltcLway,
had thus far sustained me in the water.
and swan of in a direction TO intercept the
passing vessel. Fortunately for ne the wind was
now light. and the ship was a dull sailer. and l
soon reached i position directly in her haw~e,
which I was confident would enable me to com
nunicate with her.
- son as / thought NV voice could be heard
By the men upon uer deck, | began to hail - Ship
lioy, Ship ahoy, Ship a-hoyi
I hailed several times. and was nearly along
,ide % Iceward. before could attract tile atten-