The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1871-01-26


spray, which half suffocated while it
deprived US of all management Of our
+ frail craft. But the van of the tenn
a pest being past, we renewed our ex-
9 ertiOns, the crew rowing while
made feeble effort to bail, using my
sOu'wester for that purpose.
. Three minutes passed-three ages of
agonizing suspense, during which we
made several attempts TO raise a cheer
which might reach the ear of our
messmate, but in vain; We could
: scarce hear each other, and I was fast
becoming convinced Of the impOssi-
bility of effecting his rescue, when the
when the after Oarsman held water
with his oar, sheering the boat broad
side on and half filling her.
, "UnrOw and toss that oar, Ben" l
shouted, throwing myself to wind
ward on the after thwart.
II can't, sir. Something foul Of ii, "
he shouted in reply, with his lips to
my ear.
At that moment a faint bubbling
cry reached me as the boat fell off,
when, uttering joyous shOut.I grasp
ed the loom of Ben's entangled oar,
6 and aided by him soon succeeded in
hauling within reach of my hand the
tinsensible form of poor Howard. Ben
5 and 1 were in the act of hauling him
on board, when the bOw-Oarsman
shouted:
"See the ship, sir. She'll run US
! down"
Obeying the impulse created by his
exclamation, ] raised my eyes, and
] gIancing hurriedly around beheid the
ship less than thirty yards distant,
and on her beam ends, while the par
tial CLEAN of the signal lantern dis
, closed also the astounding fact that
we were driving past her at a fearful
speed.
Persevering in the rescue of our
messmate, when it was accomplished,
> we had lost sight of thevessel, and, af-
ter futile attempt to impel the boat
against the terrific gale, were obliged
to desist and scud before it.
"We may bid farewell to the old
boat. we never can reach her in this
gale. Don't you think so, sir ?" de-
manded Ben as he tossed his oar out
of the rowlock and laid it inbOard.
"I fear not, - was the brief response,
adding after brief pause: eve may
reach Liverpool though, if this gale
don't hold for an age"
'It'll go down fore mOrnin', sure"
said the old tar. az on'y wish Use as
, certain bout the old ships l am bout
this yer blow. She's in bad fix when
we druv past, don't you think so, Mr..
c. 81
ayes. I fear her cruise and that of
our gallant messmates is ended by
this time, "said l, sadly; to which my
comrades responded by more than one
long drawn sigh.
But a truce to the description of our
emotions. Sffice it to say they were
such as l do not desire to experience
a second time, and proved so perma-
nent that we struggled against them
in vain. During the succeeding hour
we kept but two oars shipped, and
those only TO aid in keeping our buoy
ant craft before the wind. But at the
close of that period the increasing
swell obliged me to come to at all haz-
ards, when all our oars and strength
were necessary to keep the boat in
safe position. Lying to we shipped
but little water, so that slight eXer-
ton was required to keep the boat
free; but we soon began to suffer thirst
Ia thirst that was rendered intOlera-
BILE by the knowledge that we were
void of the means Of assuaging it.
Another hour dragged slowly by,
during which our torture increased,
when Old Ben leaped from the after
thwart, exclaiming:
"AIy eyes = What a precious set o.
ninnies we are. Here we be a dym'
for water and any quantity fallin'
round u.s." and hastily dOfiing his
oiled suit, he resumed his seat, when
his companions, myself excepted,
FASTENED TO follow his example, eX-
ulting in the prospect of relief which
the driving rain presented.
The clothing of the thirsty crew
speedily became saturated, when, dOf-
finG their jackets, they wrung the
moisture from them, using their SOU
westers as receptacles for the briny
liquid which they gulped down greed |
lily, only to eXaggerate their torture. |
Even while beseeching them to re-
frain I could scarcely control my own |
cravings, but fortunately the made 1
quacy of the supply at their command |
proved my safety, and 1 was Obliged to /
suffer on willingly however, as [ wit |
messed the increasing torture they en- |
dured. At length old Ben, assured of |
the futility of his efforts, ,desisted from /.
further attempts to assuage his thirst, |
and dOnning his oil jacket and joined /
me in entreating his messmates TO de- /
sist. Urged by our joint entreaties |
they at length did so, and resuming ]
their oars, which had been suffered to |
hold water frequently during the last /
hour, rendered me efficient aid in the /
management of our frail craft
The gale broke soon after midnight, |
and subsiding rapidly exposed US 10 a
new species of danger; the strong cur |
rents peculiar to the channel causing |
the sea to break with fearful violence |
around and over US, threatening us
momentarily with destruction. How /
oft during the remainder of that mo- /
mentOus night, has the approach of /
a mountain billOw caused me to in |
hale long breath, and, as its tower
ing crest fell into seething ruin around /
our tiny craft, close my eyes upon the /
scene which was too sublimely awful |
for mortal gaze.
A hundred times ere then had 1 en-
cOuntesed the "stOrm kingn upon the |
watery waste, and laughed his power /
to scOTn, wondering in what phase of |
his wild career across the waters was /
to be found that overwhelming sub /
Unity which poets have made their /
darling theme. I discovered it then. I
On all former occasions had witness
ed the rise, progress and decrease of /
gales from the deck of some staunch I
sea-bOat, against the sides of which /
the fury of the waves was spent in .
vain; but now the veil of perfect safe
ty was removed from my eyes, and 1 /
was obliged to own the existence of /
that same sublimity at which I had .
scoffed as the creation of prolific 1
brains.
The first rosy tint of dawn was now
visible to us through a narrow, jagged
rent in the vapory pail which draped
! the sky. We hailed it with shout of
! joy as the harbinger of better fortune,
and with hopeful gaze, ,riveted on that
narrow strip of sky, waited the advent
of the glorious god of day with as
much impatience as might be dis
played by men condemned, who
/ awaited beneath the scaffold the aTri-
val of courier bearing9 eprieve or
pardon.
With the suns advance came
/ brighter skies, his beams drinking up
/ the vapOrs, until he attained an alti-
/ tude of some thirty degrees, when a
change of wind lifted the pail, and
rolling it away to S. w. in vast piles,
/ disclosed to us a scene supremely
| grand-a wil6ly-heaving ocean, spark
! ling like silver in the morning sun
/ light, and on its unquiet bosom with
/ in full view, at least a score of half
1 dismantled craft, with some and but
a few, unmarried by the late cOnvUl-
siOns of the elements
"Hurrah! hurrah hurrah ~ Thrice
joyous was the cheer, and thrice re-
! peated as we made the pleasing dis
covery of their presence.
'The old Marion, as live n'shOut
ed old Ben, after a brief scrutiny of
ship partly dismantled, about a mile
( to windward. ''There away. Don't
/ ye see her, sir? Fore and maintOp-
masts gone an her ensign at the gait,
union down. They've Jared hard, like
! ourselves, sir"
"YOu must be mist0ken, Ben. That
cannot be the Marion although she
I bears a strange resemblance TO her"
! L l.