Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1871-09-21
I From AppletOn's Journal
lost at Sea.
Man overheard =

an OYerDOdru
Silence, men! SilenceH shouted the
officer of the deck, as a tumultuous
throng came rushing wildly aft to the
ouarter,deck Hard down the helm,
duartermaster Let go the life buoy
Let fy the stun'-sail tacks, and clew up
the lower sum sail Quick to the braces,
men. and stand by to shorten sail there
for'ard! Clear away the life-boat,' and a
perfect volley of orders came from the
| lips of Lieutenant Ringbolt in rapid sue
cession and in stentorian tones, while the
| frigatq. which but moment before had
been bowling of twelve knots, with a
cracking breeze on the starboard quarter,
came rapidly and gracefully TO the wind,
and lay there quiescent. the huge fore
topsail to the mast, to desden her head
way.
Now, my lads said the lieutenant,
"bear hand, and lower away on those
falls together = and soon the cntter was
in the water and pulling vigorously in
the direction where the man had fallen.
MY Col! who is it?' How did he
fall?' Did you see him ? were the ques-
tions eagerly passed from lip to lip among
the excited groups crowding the fr;gate's
spar-deck.
| Of all the contingencies incident to q
| life on the broad ocean, the one calculated
to produce the most startling effect upon
ships company is the sudden alarm OF
"A man overheard 7
Even in the best disciplined ship, aud
with the finest crew, it produces, for g
moment, the widest excitement, nay,
even panic Men rush here and there
half bewilderej, their noblest impulses
reused into sudden action, and forgetful
of every other consideration but that OF
saving their unfortunate ship-mate, they
are ready on the instant to venture their
lives, if need be, provided only they can
extend a helping hand to their perisbiug
fellow-man.
It is at such times that the hightst
qualities Of the deck officer are brought
out clearly before the eyes of all, for it re-
uuires the utmost nerve, energy, skill,
and presence of mind, on the part of him
who controls, to iufuence and direct this
| torrent of feeling into the right channel
80 as to rescue promptly, it may be, the
unfortunate sufferer. Wee to the man
who may be incapable of the task and,
alas, for the miserable victim of bis in
competency!
The M was q magnificent steam
frigate Of forty guns, manned with q
picked crew of seven hundred men, and
sent abroad, at the close of the Crimean
War, to display to the maritime powers
of the world the rising power of the great
republic.
We had visited Europe and were on
our return home by the way of the West
Indies, and at the time my story opens,
the huge ship, under cloud of canvas.
was running down the northeast trades,
and about seven hundred miles from the
Cape Verde Islands, then the nearest
land.
Poor Bill Seavy Ia smarter seaman
and better man never trod orecastle.
He,belonged to race of sailors even then
fast passing away, snd was one of those
men who, emulating st. Paul. seem never
weary of we'll, doing. No matter at
geney arose, be it his watch on deck or
below, Bill was always to be found in
his 'all-hsnds' stntiou, working away in
his quiet, cheerful manner, with the best
of men. He was prodigious favorite
with every one on board, from the captain
to the loblolly-boy, and it was no wonder
then that our anxiety and alarm were
great when we learned that Bill was the
missing man. He had gone into the lee
fore-chains to perform some trifling mat
ter of duty, when the fspping-in of the
fore sheet on weather roll caught him
and hurled him into the sea. The alarm
was instantly given, and it so happened
that our old doctor, who was aft on the
lee side of the poop-deck at the time,
with great presence of mind seized a
grating near at hand, and threw it to
Bill as the ship sped rapidly by, which,
old Lancet declared, the poor fellow
caught, and, with grateful glance re-
warded him for.
As quick as it were possible for human
power to accomplish it-for Lieutesant
Ringbolt was good seaman-the frigate
was bove-to, and the life boat sent in
search of the man; but the wind was
strong and the sea rough, while the shades
of evening were rapidly settling down
over the wild waste of waters, reducing
to a minimum poor Bills chances of
safety unless the hand of the great Creator
guided the boat to his vicinity.
It was therefore news not wholly I'm.
expected by us, when, in an hour or SOL