The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1872-12-19

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Harriet Martiucau II does uot appear
60 be on record, Ia which year Of bl.
life II was, that be So ucaEiy persisted by
drowning, and underwent the remarkable
experience Of the intellectual condition
under such a crisis, which be siterward
recorded Ia letter, at the request Of nr.
I Wollastou, lie described himself as "a
I youuRstor, at Portsmouth, n one OF the
Kings ships" He was not himself i'm.
. pressed as Others were, by the remark-
able character OF bis sensations; but, he
saw the Importance OF every such record,
and made it accordingly, Interesting IN
itself, the story is extremely valuable, a.
coming from one 50 sugularly truthful In
recording experience, so skilled in detail
ing il. One Of his most striking accom-
plishmcuts, was, his power of saving
what be meant. The letter Is published
in Sir John Barrow Autobiography. Ii
relates that be capsized very small boat,
by stepping on the guuwaelin an endcav-
or TO iasten her alongside the ship, 20 one
Of the scutlle-rings; that, unable to swim,
he could not reach either the boat or the
floating oars that, he had drilled to some
distance astern before he was observed,
that, two of his comrades jumped over
board to his assistance, aud a third fol-
lowed in boat; that, ia his violent
shooting, he had swallowed a great deal
Of water; aud, that before aid reached
him, he bad sunk below the surface, aud
given mp all hope of life. The narrative
proceeds: $50 far these facts were par
TALLY remembered after my recovery, or
supplied by those who had latterH wit
messed the scene; for during an interval
of such agitation, drowning person Is
too much absorbed in catching ut every
passing straw, or too much absorbed by
alternate hope and despair, 10 mark the
succession OF events very accurately. Not
so, however, with the facts that immedi-
ately ensued my mind had then under
gone the sudden revolution which ap-
peared TO you so remarkable, and all the
circumstances of which, are now, as vivid .
ly fresh in my memory, as if they had
occurred but yesterday. From the mo- /.
ment that all exertion had ceascd-which /
| imagine was the immediate consequence
of complete suflocation--a calm feeling ol
the most perfect tranquility superseded |
the previous tumultuous senseations-it |
might be called apathy, certainly not re-
for drowning no longer appeal
ed to be an evil; no longer thought of
being rescued, nor was | in any bodily !
pain. On the contrary my senseions
were now of rather a peasurablc cast,
of that duh but coutenled |
sort of feeling which preccdes the sleep
produced by fatigue. Though the senses
were thus deadened, not 50 the mind
its activity seemed to be invgorated, in
ratio which deGes all description, for
thought rose above thought, with a rapid
itY OF succession that is not only indcs-
but, probably uncomfortable by
any one who has not himself been in a
similar situation. The course Of those
thoughts, can even now, in great
measure, retrace; the event which Rad |
just taken place, the awkwardness that
had produced it, the hustle it must have
occasioned (for had observed two per-
sons jump from the chains), the effect 1t
would have on most afiectonate father,
the manner in which he would disclose IL
to the rest of the family, and thousand
other circumstances minutcly associated
with home, were the first series Of re1ec-
lions that occurred. They took then a
wider range: our last cruise, former
voyage and shipwreck, my school the
progress had made there and the time
had misspent, and even all my boyish
pursuits and adventures. Thus travelling
backward, every past incident Of my life
seemed 10 glance across my recollection,
IN retrograde succession; not however, in
mere outline, as here stated, but the pic.
.urc filled up with every minute aud col.
lateral feature. la short, the whole peri
Dd Of existence seemed to be placed be-
fore me in kind of panoramic review,
aud each act Of it seemed to be accom-
panied by a consciousness of right or
wrong, or by some reflection on It's cause
Or its consequences; indeed many lriA-
ing events which had been long forgotten
hen crowded into my imagination, aud
with the character OF recent familiarity.
May no. all this be some indication of
.he almost infinite power Of memory with
which we may awaken in another world,
and thus be compelled to contemplate our
past liyesl Or might il not in some de.
gree warrant the inference, that death Il
lnly change Or modification Of our ex-
steBce, in which there il no real pause
Jr interruptions But, however that may
be, one circumstance was highly remark
able, that the iugnmorablc ideas which
flashed into my mind were all retrospec-
live, yet | had been religiously brought
up; my hopes aad fears Of the next world
bad lost nothing Of their early strength,
aud at any other period, intense inter-
est aud awful anxiety would have been
excited by the mere probability that /
was floating on the threshold Of eternity; 4
vet, At that iae1plieable moment, when
bad a full conviction that had already
crossed thai threshold, not single
thought wandered into the future, was
wrapt entirely 10 the past The length
Jf time tbat was occupied by this deluge
1f ideas, o. rather the shortness Of time