Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1869-10-21
ON AN ICEBERG.

| WAS once summoned home from my
travels on the Continent by very impor-
tant news. There was no time to lose in
getting back, so | went as fast as could to
Havre, and took the fist ship that sailed
for New York 1t was in the month of
June, which | considered the most pleas
ant time in the year to cross the Atlantic );
and though | found after leaving that my
ship was an old and rather leaky concern,
yet did not feel any very great anxiety.
We went on for several days. and as we
were favored with fine breeze, perfectly
fair, we made very rapid progress, and
soon came within the region of the banks
Of Newfoundland.
But here a stop was put upon our
progress. On the second day after we
arrived on this spot the wind died away
altogether.
For an entire day we lay becalmed
with the ship tossing lazily over the huge
ocean surges. All hands grew impatient.
Our captain, who had been in high glee
at our quick progr"-~ and had expected
by this time to be SAILING in New York
Harbor, now lost his patience, and spent
the greater part of his time in cursing al
ternately the wind, the waves, the sky,
the sun, the ship, and his own eyes.
This did not help the matter at all, how
ever. In fact, worse things than mere
calm were in store for u.s. During the
night fog came on, and when we arose
in the morning it had closed in all around
us with density that | had never
imagined before and have never since
seen equaled.
Here was a pretty situation. A dead
calm, a smooth sea, and not a breath of
wind blamed myself thousand times
for not going on to Liverpool and taking
an ocean steamer.
However, there was no resource but pa
tience. Patient we had to be, whether we
liked it or not.
In the middle Of the following day,
however, we felt slight breath of air.
1t was the first breath of the glorious
wind which now again was blowing IA
vorably as before. Through the day it
increased, blowing stronger every hour,
until, when went to bed, | retired with
the pleasing thought that every hour car
ried me ten miles nearer to my home.
| slept soundly.
But suddenly, at about three o'clock in
the morning, as far as | can recollect, |
was awaked by sudden crash which
sounded like thunder in my halfaroused
senses, and seemed to shake the ship to
pieces.
In a moment | was out of my berth and
up on the deck,
Great Heaven! what a spectacle there
met my gaze
All around was the blackness of dark
ness. The wind was bowling tiercey
through the rigging. The sailors were run.
ming wildly to and fro The captain was
standing like a man paralyzed, and shout
ing, while he wrung his hands, "We're
lost we're lost
| spoke not word to any one, but
quickly and nimbly, as cat, leaped
down from the quarter deck on to the poop
deck and rushed forward 1t was 50 in
tensely dark and thick that | could see but
little with distinctness. Yet a strange
feeling of intense cold made itself evident
even then to my senses.
| leaped from the forecastle.
Then sight of horror burst upon my
view.
High before me, Extending out of sight,
was a vast precipice-appearing in the
darkness to be of undesirable proper
tons. And at this the ship was crashing
and pounding At each strokeof the ship
huge masses came laundering down, and
falling with deafening noise into the ocean.
What was it? Was it the rocky coast
Of Newfoundland or was il lonely rock
in the middle ocean?
1t was neither, | soon knew all.
1t was vast icebergl
The ice itself was not colder than the
chill that rushed through every nerve as
this appalling thought burst upon my
mind Then in one moment an utter
sense of ruin, of hopeless desolation, took
away my faculties.
But now there was no time to lose, nor
was there time even to mourn. For the
ship, acted upon by the long rolling waves
of the Atlantic, was driving with fearful
violence full against the enormous mass.
| heard the crashing ice--I heard the shat
tering of her timbers-I heard the rush of
the water as 1t poured into her.
The ship seemed alive, struggling like
some drowning wretch to avert her fate.
The groaning OF her parting timbers
sounded like human voice-the voice OF
one in agony.
A mighty wave of gigantic size now lift.
ed the quiyering mass high into the air.
Retreating backward it bore It's load away
from the iceberg for some considerable dis.
lance, but only to hurl it back with more
tremendous force. Returning with re-
doubled power it flung the ship hcadlong
against the enormous mass. |, who was
standing on the prov, was thrown as
though / had been straw, off from the