Ellsworth American., 1869-06-24

Of the whale. With a sound that re.
sembled huge below, and vet not
that, nor the blowing Off steam ofa boil
er. but something between the two. the
whale suddenly rolled fiiriously, beat
ing the waves with its broad tail, until
they were lashed into . sea Of foam.
Back, back !" shouted the stecrsmeu,
and every man bent to the oars on the
instant. Too late. Too late for one
boat, at least. For, with single blow.
the whale dashed it into atoms, leaving
every one ofits crew struggling in the
water. Two men sank like lead-nev-
er to rise again. until land and sea shall
give up their dead. One floated, stun
ned, for q moment, and then he too
went down. Amidst = wild scene of
wild shouts, and throwing floats. and
rowing to and fro, the rest were lifted
out and saved, just as the whale slowly
turned on its side, until its white and
slippery belly glittercd in the sun.
''Hark what is that A gun from the
ship" shouted Jacob, as he suddenly
turned to look at her. The dull boom
had reverberated heavily along the wa
ter, and in the excitement. few noticed
it. We were at least five miles away
from her.
Something's wrong, said l.
Must be-" said he. We'd best pull
back at once"
After hasty word or two with the
crews Of the other two boats, ours, that
10. the ore in which were Jacob and
myself, began to row back as quickly as
We could leaving the others with the
whale. Three men were lost, but why
abandon the prize? As I have said. We
were five miles away. We rowed with
a will. be sure, turning to look at the
Polly, rs she lay motionless in the dis
tance. And what did we presently see
a heavy cloud OF smoke rise from her
decks, rise thicker and thicker with
every moment, until it hid masts and
rigging from our sight. and lav all
around her like . curtain. black AS
night.
The other crews had seen il too, and
with yell were making the water
foam. as they piled the stout ashen
oars, until they bent like willow wands
For our lives We straincd-for ours?
Nav, for those on board the Polly. God
that with all our efforts it must he SO
long before we could reach her,
Not word spoke any ofus. The hor-
ror upon US was too great. The slip.
satuy,t<,d - che ,w.a 18th <,,I ,o,., -.
knew we'll, burn like gunpowder, al
most.
at the holm watched her. All, how
watched her Ere mile was passed,
saw the red flames mingle with the
smoke, darting up now and then. like
fiery pil.ars.-Speechless, with my
heart standing still, saw the fiery
tongues running along spa. and s roud
and stay. I saw red CLEANS shoot ont
from her ports, and futter upwards. l
saw the flames grow fiercer aud fierrer,
until. with a rattle like musketry, they
wrapped hull and all alon. in one en-
brace Of fire, from stem to stern. and
then. God help Us all , n dull roar told
that the magazine was reached Flying
through smoke and flame, far and wide.
and high into the air, went burning
fragments and in an instant after. she
reeled once or twice, and went down
Nothing was let but a cloud Of steam
and smoke, where but short time be-
fore. the Polly rode secure And of
those aboard of her, not one WAS left.
Like men distrAught. we rowed round
and round where she had been. gazing
for any poor soul that might rise in one
last. despairing struggle. In vain, in
vain
And we were all silent for long
time, some with clasped hands. and
some with heads bowed in speechless
horror. Only by slow degrees did We
realize all that had happened. with its
consequences. II was only as one and.
another found voice, did We remember
our own desolation. Desolation. did |
say: There 10 no word strong enough
to meet the case. Three boats with
thirty men in them, drifting in the
arctic seas, without provisions, scarce
ly any water, almost without hope.
Not sail in sight, nor perhaps ever to
greet our anxious eyes. We must con-
suit what had best be done, certainly
that, but TO what end? The nearest
land was two hundred miles away. We
had no compass nor chart. Surely
some Of us thought that the fate of our
mates in the burning ship was scarcely
less awful than our own.
Well, Jacob was the most practical
mamie spoke first. Few words were
needed as TO the lost ship. Reverently,
and with many tears, he Offered up
prayer for the lost ones. in which all
joined, though some were strangers to
such utterance until now. Then he
called for opinions upon the first ques-
tion-were the boats TO keep together!
Some judged one wav, some another
swell, you have had your say here's
mine," he continued. II am for sepa-
rating. We may fall in with some ves-
sci, il together but the chances are
greater il each crew takes its own
course and if q sail does heave in
sight, and it is saved, the other two
may be looked for, perhaps"
Ineed not describe the argument,
but Jacobs advice was taken: 80 first
pulling back to the still visible whale,
and cutting - much flesh as we each
could stow aboard, we parted company,
and soon three specks upon the water
were all that was left OF the Polly and
men that the glittering stars shone
down upon.
OF course, amidst all this horror
there was one, the thought Of whom
was agony to Jacob and me. With
the first knowledge Of his desperate
strait. we had looked at each other