The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1873-06-17

taken with him his wife and Cathleen.
But what must they not suffer from their
uncertainty with regard to CathalP 4
could hardly contain myself. 1t seemed,
for that moment, as If could swim thou
sand miles.
"We must get out of this ship" said.
"The first land she makes must be our
land" For / spoke under that transient
excitement which makes all things easy.
Now my readers cannot see the old Brit
ish sixty-four as l saw her, with her old
fashioned bends, and bulwarks, and chan
nels, with her huge clumsy windlass, and
her heavy creaking yards. There were the
marines, the blue jackets, aud the laced
officers. There was the scrubbing of
stanchions there was the polishing of can
non; and even at this distance of time, l
seem to take in the peculiar odor of her
tarry decks. So, day by day, we rose and
fell easily in the slight undulations, now
beoalmed and heading all around, the COM
pass, now bracing sharp up on the very
light trade wind; and all the while subject
to curses, or witnessing acts of cruelty.
One impressed American land we had
many on board) was sayagely whipped for
an indignant glance at the third lieuten-
ant, who had kicked him. Another was
knocked, fiat to the deck and beaten with a
ropes, end, because when ordered to put
a matthew walker knot in lanyard, he
asked the bostswain how it must be done.
The American was from some merchant
man, where he had been a "green hand. !"
Off the British island of Antigua, we
chased a French brig, which proved to be
privateer. At first we had all the wind
there was, and bore right down upon her
while she, lay helpless She finally took
the breeze and began to make of, with the
great sixty -four close at her heels. We
saw the French sailors aloft throwing wa
ter ON the sails then they pitched their
guns overheard to tighten the ship; then
their ammunition, barrels of provision,
cables aud anchors; and at last their boats.
We could perceive that the privateer sat
lighter after this and what was still more
favorable to her, the wind now died out
with us, and she carried the breeze away
with her.
CLAP" at intervals went the sails, with
the Yarmouth 5 lazy roll. Now she headed
south, and now north, At sunset Cathal
and myself stood looking out over the sea-
Antigua was sixImiles off. How tempting
looked the green land But mott was a
long way to swim--six miles t,,s
A mile from us, as we judged, in q line
parallel with that of the shore, we saw ont
| of the boats which the Frenchman had cut
adrift, and at some distance beyond it the
other. The nearer boat had been stove
but the further boat seemed to float lightly
as IL the French in their confusion hat
neglected to render her useless. Oars, o
course, neither of them was likely to con
tain, but might not the thwarts and sheath
ing be pried up and used for paddles whore
with to reach shore. ,ti ,f,,i
Whenever the ship was in harbor or nea
land the marines kept constant guard il
every part of her chow the blue jacket
hated those marines y, but six miles iron
the coast this vigilance would be much re
laxed. We looked at each other, then a
the boats, and then at each other again.
There were some thirty Americans o.
board, but we confided our plan to only tel
of them, so that we were twelve in all
The wind had generally sprung up in tn
latter part Of the night and should it do s
ON this occasion, the ship would be wild
off from us ere our escape became known
,l The hour fixed upon was midnight, at tn
! changing Of the watch. And we blesse
ourselves that the old man had not though
1 fit to cumber his decks with the French
t mans cast-off boat, or all our hopes woul
S have been stranded high and dry.
eight bells - We breathed quick
d was midnight at last. In the hustle {
v turning outp and " turning i'm we migl
f not be observed. Letting ourselves dow
y from the gundeck ports, which in that su
y try atmosphere we're always open, "
n struck out from the ship, twelve men, an
u all good swimmers.
The darkness was not such but th'
10 there was great danger of being seen |
10 the "lookouts'' as we swan from IL
N ships side, and felt relieved when the gre
h man-of-war became indistinct. We h;
of calculated that the drift of the boats mu
d correspond with that of the ship, and tn
l. hence the same relative positions would
L. maintained. A star was our compass; y
the propabilitv of missing so small an q