Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1870-01-06
ALL B.r DROWNED.

81
THE man or woman who has escaped
that peculiar form Of death which, during
summer, often awaits the too venture
some at our watering-places, will appre.
ciate the following vivid description of
the manner in which similar peril was
experienced during Sunday mornings
bath:
Sunday morning by the sea. The early
church bells going A close sea-mist
hanging heavily over the sands, and a
bafiled sun trying to make light of it, and
falling. My window wide open, though
sere October is growing old, and one long
melancholy ripple of smooth sea wailing
slowly along the shore. | have had a
good breakfast, fine romp with my chill
dren, and my wife is dressing for church.
Everything with me is very calm and very
happy but only an hour ago l was in
mortal peril of my life, and instead of be-
ing in this pleasant room, with the voices
of my little children outside breaking on
my ear, and with the wash Of the wave
on the beach below my window setting a
bass to their sweet treble, might have
been at this moment floating white and stiff
on the still sea, with the thick mist hang
ing around me, and this worlds loves and
cares over with me forever.
One hour ago, only an hour, went out,
as usual, to battle. The sands ran up to
my very windows, and the high tides some
times touch the little wall that stands in
front, so that can often walk from my own
hall door into the water at few yards
distance. But this morning the tide was
dead out, and heavy sea.fog was lying all
over the sands SO that | could not see
where the water and the land joined /
had not gone twenty yards until, lookir Z
back, saw my house looming thrbue h
the fog, quite altered in appearance, and,
though much larger, still much more dis
distant than usual. In a few more steps |
lost it altogether. | soon came to the
waters edge, took off my overall, and laid
it on flat stone; the only stone could
see, for there are no rocks.
The sea was dead calm, and I had to
wade long way out before l got deep
enough for plunge, after which / began to
swim. The water was not too cold, there
was not even languid heave on its sur
face and struck out, enjoying the free
motion until | began to feel tired. i am
bad swimmer, and had never knowingly
gone out of my depth. Dropping my
feet, found myself up to the neck, and |
then suddenly perceived that / was closely
encircled by dense mist, and was ut
terly at loss to know which way the
shore lay. The tide, | knew, was rising
fast. could not trust myself to swim,
lest should be swimming out to sea, in
stead of towards the land. made a step
or two in one direction, then in another,
but always seemed to be getting deeper.
Then, like sudden blow, came upon me
the full sense of my situation. Here was,
opposite my own door, where my wife
and little children were waiting for me,
within perhaps two hundred yards of dry
land, dangerously deep in the water, and
helplessly unable to find my way out.
The peril was imminent | must have
been, now think, on the top of low
bank of sand, and, though shallow water
and safety must have been within twenty
yards Of me, | could not, to save my life
/ tell which way to turn. 1t flashed upon
my mind that | should be drowned
drowned quietly and surely, within gun
shot of my home; and that the flowing
tide, there being no current and no wind
would float my dead BODY up, and leave
it on the sand before my door. The dan
ger was terrible: yet there was no hurry
The tide was rising fast, but | could no,
be drowned for at least ten minutes, and
| had that time before me to do what
could with 1t would never do to die like
this, without an effort to save my life, but
it was utterly impossible to say in what
direction that effort should be made The
fog seemed to settle down closer and
closer around me, and the water was ris
ing steadily, but very slowly, the surface
OF the sea beng like oil. tlalaH
Something had to be done, and quickly
| stood quite still, and looked to see il
there were any ripple of current agains
my neck that would show the inflow o
the tide. There was none. | held up my
wet arm to feel for wind. There was
not breath. strained my ears to heal
any notes.-the barking of dog, voices
on the land, the growing of cocks, any
thing that would answer the to me, ire
mendous question:; Where is the shore. ?
Not sound. The stiffness was awful
and horrible. To shout for help was thu
last resort; but | would not spend my
strength in that until had tried every
thing else; and | knew besides, that being
a Sunday morning, and the sands deserted
there would be neither boat nor boatmer
on the shore remembered, too, that voice.
in a fog almost always seem to change
their direction, and that they misead those
who come in search. Steadily and with
out noise the tide rose up, until the watel
reached my chin. | was perfectly col
lected, and endeavored to recall all | hat
read of similar emergencies tried bach
in my memory to find, if | could, some
chance for life that some one else in dead
ly peril had risked and won. Holding my
breath, and laying my ear close to tht
water, strained every nerve of hearing
in vain; but where the one sense on which
| was depending failed me, another came
to my rescue. Between the dense mis-
and the water there seemed to be about
/ inch IF H., J. ;co l,