The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1869-05-21
THE HEROINE OF LAKE ERIE.
BY JOHN G. wHIrrrsR.

0At tuC AOASuuCS VI OnC OtOnC u8NC 5RCe
cial interest tor US. About that time
the schooner Conductor, owned by John
Mcleod, of the Provincial Parliament
a resident of Amhertsburg, at the mouth
of the Detroit river, entered the lake
from that river, bound for Port Dali
bousie, at the mouth of the Welland
Canal. She was heavily loaded with
grain. Her crew consisted of Captain
Hackett, Highlander by birth, and q
skillful and experienced navigator, and
six sailors. AT nightfall. shortly after
leaving the head ofthe lake, one of those
terrific storms, with which the late au-
tumnal navigat0rs of that sSea of the
Woods" are all too familiar, overlook
them. The weather was intensely cold
for the season; the air was filed with
snow and sleet; the chilled water made
ice rapidly, encumbering the schooner
land loading down her decks and rig
ging. As the gale increased; the tops OF
the waves were shorn off by the fierce
blasts, clOuding the whole atmosphere
with frozen spray, or what the sailors
call ''spoon-drift," rendering it impossi-
bic to see any object few rods distant.
Driving helplessly before the wind, yet
in the direction of its place of destina-
ton, the schooner sped through the
darkness. At last, near midnight, rum
ming closer than her crew supposed to
the Canadian shore, she struck on the
outer bar off Long Point Island, beat
heavily across it, and sunk in the deep
er water between it and the inner bar.
The hull was entirely submerged, the
waves rolling in heavily. and dashing
over the rigging, to which the crew be-
! took themselves. Lashed there, numb
with cold, drenched by the pitiIess
waves, and scourged by the showers of
sleet driven before the wind, they waited
for morning. The slow, dreadful hours
wore away, and at length the dubious
and doubtful gray of a morning of
tempest succeeded to the utter darkness
of night.
Abigail Becker CHANGED at that time
to be in her hut with none but her
young children. Her husband was alb
sent on the Canada shore, and she was
left the sole adult occupant of the island,
save the light-keeper at its lower end,
| some fifteen miles off. Looking out at
daylight ON the beach in front of her
door, she saw the shattered boat of the
Conductor, east up by the waves. Her
experience of storm and disaster on that
dangerous coast needed nothing more
to convince her that somewhere in her
neiglIborhood human life had been, or
still was i'll peril. She followed the
southwesterly bend of the island for a
little distance, and, peering through the
gloom of the stormy morning. discern
ed the spars of the sunken schooner.
with what seemed to be human forms
clingfng to the rigging. The heart of
the strong woman sunk within her as
she gaZed upon those helpless fellow
creatures, so near, yet so unapprOach-
able. She had no boat, and none could
have lived on that wild water. After a
moments reflection she went back to
her dwelling, put the smaller children
in charge of the eldest, took with her an
iron kettle, tin teapot, and matches, and
returned TO the beach, at the nearest
point to the vessel; and, gathering up
the logs and driit-wood. always album
aant on the coast. kindied great fire,
aud, constantly walking back and forth
between it and the water, strove to in
innate 10 the sufferers that they were at
least not beyond human sympathy. AS
the wrecked sailors looked shoreward,
and saw, through the thick haze of snow
and sleet, the red light of the fire, and
the tall figure of the woman passing TO
and fro before it, a faint hope took the
place of the utter despair, which had
prompted to let go their hold and drop
into the seething waters, that OPEN
ed and closed about them like the jaws
of death. But the day wore on, bring
ing no abatement of the storm that tore
through the frail spars, and clutched
at and tossed them as it passed, and
drenched them with ice-coid spray-a
pitiless, unrelenting horror of sight,
sound and touch AT last the deepen
ing gloom told them that night was ap-
preaching, and ght under such circum-
stances was death.
All day long Abigail Becker had fed
her fire. and sought to induce the sail
ors by signals-for even her strong voice
could not reach them-to throw them
selves into tie surf, and trust to Provi-
dence and her for succor. In auticipa-
ton of this she had her kettle boiling
| over the drift wood, and her tea ready
| made for restoring warmth and lite TO
| the haif-froZen survivors. But either
they did not understand her, or the
chance of rescue seemed too small to
| induce them to abandon the temporary
safety of the wreck. They chung to it
with the desperate instinct of life
| brought face TO face with death. Just
at nightfall there was a slight break i'll
the west; red light glared across the
| thick air, as if for one instant the eye of
the storm looked out upon the ruin it
had wrought, and closed again under
| lids of clouds. Taking advantage of
this the solitary watcher ashore made
one more effort. She waded out into
/. LIE W dtCI, ChCil ulOP HiNHS as ~
struck the beach, became a particle of
ice, and stretching out and drawing in
her arms, invited, by her gestures, the
sailors to throw themselves into the
waves. and strive TO reach her. Cap
tain Hackett understood her. He called
to his mate in the rigging of the other
mast: at is our last chance. l will
try! Ii live follow me; If l drown,
stay where you are!" With great eff
fort he got off his stiff1y frozen overcoat,
paused for one moment in silent COM
mendation of his soul to God, and,
throwing himself into the waves, struck
| out for the shore. Abigail Becker,
breast deep in the surf, awaited him.
He was almost within her reach when
the uudertow swept him back. BY a
mighty exertion she caught hold OF
him, bore him in her strong arms out OF
the water, and, laying him down by the
fire. warmed his chilled blood with CO.
pious draughts of hot tea. The mate,
who had watched the rescue, now fol-
lowed, and the captain, partially restor-
ed, insisted on aiding him. AS the for
mer neared the shore, the recOiiing
water baffied him, Captain Hacketi
caught hold of him. but the undertoW
swept them both away. locked in each
others arms. The brave woman plung-
ed after, them, and, with the strength o.
a giantess, bore them. clinging TO each
other. to the shore. and up TO the FIRE
The FIVE sailors followed in succession
and were all rescued in the same way
A few days after, Captain Hackett ano
his crew were taken of Long Point by 6
passing vessel, and Abigail Becker re
sumed her simple daily duties withou
dreaming that she had done anything
extraordinary enough to win for her th'
warld;s nofice In her struggle every
day for food and warmth for her chill
ldren. she had no leisure for the indul
gence of self-eongTatulation. Like thu
- 3 sr-s,,s,sI.a che had nnlv sSdntas