The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1869-05-29
Ida Lewis.

| At the close of a stormy March day of
this year two soldiers were crossing from
Newport to Fort Adams in sail-boat man.
aged by an inexperienced lad. When they
were partly across blast suddenly struck
the craft; the boy was COMPOUNDED, the boat
capsized, and for half an hour, clinging to
the keel, the hapless men and boy struggled
with the waves. Then the hold of the boy
relaxed, and he sank; but boat had put
off from the Lime Rock Lighthouse, about
half a mile away, and before the men were
exhausted it had reached them, and they
were saved. The persons who saved them
were Ida Lewis and her brother Hosea,
children of the keeper of the light.
Ten years ago in the same harbor four
young fellows were upset in boat, and
the same girl fastened in her skiff to rescue
them. A little later three drunken soldiers
stove hole in their boat not far from the
| light. Two swan ashore, the third was
saved by Ida Lewis when nearly exhausted.
Two years ago some men were driving a
sheep upon the wharf at Newport. The
animal plunged into the water, and three
men running along the shore in pursuit at
length found a skiff and put out into the
harbor. A heavy sou 'wester was blowing,
and the skiff was swamped. Once more Ida
Lewis pushed off for them, and bringing
them safe to shore, returned and landed
the sheep. In the next winter scape-
grace stole a sail-boat from the wharf and
made off. But the gale drove it upon the
little Lime Rock, mile from the light;
and the thief chung to the mast from mid
night until morning, when Ida Lewis saw
him, and rowing to his relief, found him,
as she said, "shaking and God-blessing
me, and praying to be set on Shore
This is girl in her twenty-eighth year,
slender, blue-eyed, with light-brown hair,
frank and hearty, and likely to be more
famous next summer than the Newport
belle.
But the heroic story of which these are
the incidents suggests some very improving
reflections upon the sphere of woman. No
one can read the report in the newspapers,
no one certainly read the brief tele-
graphic notice upon the following morning.
without thrill of admiration and sympa-
thy. But are we to understand that such
emotion was natural and proper? Are we
to believe that it is feminine ~ for young
women to row boats in storms? Is it
womanly" to tug and strain through
tempest, and then pull half-drowned men
into skiff?
Now, speaking soberly, no man will be
such an-let us say donkey, as to insist
that it was unfeminine in Ida Lewis so pull
off in her boat to save men from drowning.
1t was no more unfeminine than to sing a
babe to sleep. And if this be so, then it
was perfectly womanly to learn the use of
oars-to acquire the means of doing so
great a service to her fellow-creatures, a
service which touches the heart and the i'm
agination, and, as in the instance of Grace
Darling, will become poetic tradition.
When we have come as far as this there
is certainly no need of asking whether such
actions fall within the sphere of woman, or
whether they are competent to row boats
Ida Lewis has shown that she can row to
some purpose, can row indeed to such pur-
pose that every generous heart applauds.-
This seems to settle the whole vexatious
question about women. Indeed there is
really no more question about women than
about men. And unless the whole debate
upon the subject of the rights of women,
which has shaken society now for many
years, and often to such tremendous results,
is folly, that upon the rights of women can
hardly be smiled away.-EAsY CHAIR, in
Harpsr's Magazine.