Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1872-06-04
Il Burning Ship.

On, that sight can / ever forget it ?
Inc lire was sputtering from every crew
ice of the black hull. her great mainmas,
was gone, the mizen lay with several
great white sails surging about in the
wafer, and she was dragging it along
with her. The ioremast only stood, and
its rigging and sails had not yet caught:
A dead silence had succeeded now to the
commo,ion in the vessel: men were
standing stock-slil, perhaps waiting Tor
their orders, and my uncle's were the
only eyes that were not strained To FOL
low the leaping and dazzling spires.
Every moment we approached. Now
the first wait OF smoke came in our iaces.
now we could hear II cracking and rend.
in9 the creak and shivcr, and the pecu-
liar roaring noise made by mastering
fire.
"A full rugged ship" heard Brand
whisper TO his wife. eleven hundred
tons ut The least"
''Mrrcilu heaven !" she whispered in
reply. IL hope she won't hlow up. ANY.
how. ] thank the Lord we've got Master
in command himself"
never saw anything like the horrible
beauty OF that red light. 1t added ten
iold TO the terror OF the scene To see her
coming on so majesiically. dragging with
her broken spars, and great yads and
splawling sails. She looked like some
splendll live creature in distress, and
rocked now great deal in The water, for
every moment the wind seemed TO Use,
bfingin. up long swell with it.
The moon won't down, and in few
minutes the majestic ship supplied all the
light TO the dark sky and water. | saw
the two little boats nearing her, knew
that my brother was in the foremost, and
shook with fear, and cried TO God To take
care OF him; but while and all gazed
in awful silence on the sailing ship, the
flames bursting through the deck in a
new place, climbed up the tore rigging,
and in one single leap, as il they had
been living things, they were licking the
sails off the ropes. and. shooting higher
than her topsails. they spread themselves
out like quiveriDg.ians. ! saw every sail
that WAS left in an instant balhed in
flames u second burst came raging up
from below, bIackening and shriveling
everything before it; then SAW the well
sering fire run down again, and still the
wreck. plunging her bows in the water,
came rocking on and on.
How near does our old man mean to
eo?" whispered Mrs. Brand and almost
at that instant | observed that he had
given some order to the man mt he helm.
and | could distinctly hear murmur Of
satisfaction; then almost directly n cry
oi horror rose-wc were very near her,
and while the water Missed with strange
Iistinctness,A ,ADd steamed in her wake,
her blazing foremast fell over the side,
punging with tremendous crash into
the sea, sending up dangerous showers
of sparks and burning bits OF saicloth,
and covering our decks with falling TIM
beg.
The black water took in and quenched
all that blazing tophamper, and sill the
awful Kissing was audible, Till suddenly,
as we seemed to be shee,ing OF from
her, there was thunderous rol! that
sounded like he breaking Of her mighty
heart, and still glorious in beauty she
plunged head foremost, and went down
blazing into the de, olate sea
In one instant that raging glow and all
the fierce illumination Of he fire was
gone darkness had settled on the face of
the deep. | saw a few lighted spars
floating about, that WIS all and | smet
the fire and felt the hot smoke rushing
past my face as the only evidence that
this was not dream.-Of the SkelRigS,
oy Jean Ingelow.