The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1869-09-16

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night was drawing on Alone, with no
earthly hope of escape remaining! Far,
far to leeward, just visible occasionally
over the distant waves, | saw one vessel.
but except this, the horizon, as far as |
could see, was without speck.
burst into tears. The tension of nv
nerves had been unnatural, they now gave
way; and as ! saw nothing before me but
long. lingering, cruel death, l wept like
child. Thoughts of my distant home,
my aged parents, my sisters, chased them
selves through my brain. My whole past
life rushed in review befure my mind.
again l was boy in my happy boyhoods
home. But, alas | was never to see
that home again. Then my train of
thoughts changed, and l wondered who
would get my vacancy; if the admiral
would give either of the mates in my own
ship, or if a stranger would get it; and if
20, if he would purchase my uniform
These and hundred such thoughts,
chased each other rapidly through my
brain.
The night began TO close III. Darker
and darker fell the shades of evening, but
now the wind and sea began sensibly to
decrease. was cold, weary, and half
stupefied. My senses began to desert me
and felt. gradually stealing over me, an
inclination TO thrust my frail support from
me, in order that the end might come
sooner than it otherwise would. Present y
ly the moon rose in an unclouded sky,
and shaking off the morbid thoughts
which oppressed me, / again anxionsly
scanned the horizon. But all was black
mot a sail broke the line of my vision,
| still l clung to the hope of being picked
up. | could recall to my mind numbers
of instances of people in as bad plight,
and yet mercifully preserved. Hour after
hour passed, and had almost given up
looking round for sails, when suddenly
fancied l saw light. Long and anxious
| ly did gaze in the direction in which /
fancied l saw it, and presently clearly
distinguished the red and green lights of a
fast approaching steamer. My heart flew
to my mouth. But no pen can tell, no
words express what my feelings were, and
had not tears came to my relief believe
| would have gone mad.
|
could plainly hear the thump, thump of
her paddles. She was steering direct for
me, and my only fear was that l should
not be able to make myself heard by those
on board her.
Presently she was but n short hundred
yards from me, and exerted all my pow
er and hailed her. Again and again but
still no answer but on she came, SEEM
ingly as if bent on my destruction. Ex-
citement now overpowcred me. Confused
| noises rang in my ears-my eyes lost their
sight, and then followed utter forgetful-
ness-ihe stupor of the dead, or rather,
that trance between life and death, when
the body is exhausted but the vital spark
not fed-that one dread pause between
this world and the next.
My next recollection is one of excessive
pain On coming to myself before a
rousing fire, kind but strange hands were
busy in chatting my limbs. Some one held
glass of something TO my lips, and then
l sank while all things seemed to whirl
| around me- In this state renamed some
hours.
On recovering my senses, found my
| self in birth on board the French Mer-
chant steamer Eugene, bound for Genoa.
They told me that they did not see me
until l was close under her bows, and that
on picking me up they thought was dead,
but by chafing my limbs and employing
stringent restoratives recovered me.
Nothing could exceed the kindness of
the captain of the steamer, and when l
parted with him two days after in Genoa,
it was with sincere regret.
/ must not neglect to say that when
rejoined my ship at Malta, somc three
weeks after my involuntary leaving her,
1 was welcomed with the greatest joy by
the captain, officers and men /; the only
person, perhaps, who had reason to feel
aggrieved being an unfortunate mate, who
had been promoted by my supposed death.
Years have passed since then, and l
have oft times had to rehearse nay escape,
yet i always shudder to recall those terri
BILE hours when l was ''oVerboard."