Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1873-10-30
MOO

and take a tug next day at noon, an
we dropped down to the bar at tn
mouth Of the river and took on tn
balance Of our cargo, We bad. all DIR,
lumber this time, and it was all pile,
1 up five or six feet high on deck. w
had hardly finished loading when gal
splang up, and how it did blow! w,
sent our big anchor down, but the
Happy Day strained and pounded 81
heavily that we at length slipped The
cable and got her back into the river
and we did not show spar outside fol
nearly thirty hours Having pre-
sentiment, perhaps, Of what was in store
for-the schoouer;,and her crew, Cap
tain Valentine endsay oredi to persuade
his daughter to go to Bay City ane
back to Detroit, where she could come
aborad as the vessel passed down. She
only laughed at him. 7
"Why, father, that's all I came for?'
she replied, shaking her saucy head al
him. 81 want to see the big white caps
jump again, and to feel the schooner
tossing and struggling in the arms Of
the STORM"
We got outside at last, and we had
an ugly run until we picked up tug a
! few miles off Port Huron. There was
head wind, with. lacking and beating,
and spray jumping halfway to the
topsail yard. Jennie was on deck the
most ofevery day. The men Of the
fo'castle looked upon her as "a reg1ar
built angel as one of them expressed
it, and as for me, why, she'd got to
windward Of me the very first night,
and was now driving me on to the
rocky shore of s'over ears in love" every
hour. She pulled at the halyards of
the big yard with the men, sung ooh
ho!" as they pulled, and a dozen times
day she would sly back, take the
wheel from the man on duty, and
would hold the Happy Day SO near the
compass point for half an hour that the
men felt ashamed to see the schooner
'yawning' as the wheel was passed
over to their care.
We had better time after the tug
took us, and our trip down through the
big rivers was pleasant enough. The
man at the wheel had only to steer with
the tug, and the rest of us had nothing
to do. As we got down to Detroit it
was about two o'clock in the afternoon
: and the old man called me into the
cabin The sky had a leaden cast, and
even sailors child could have told that
an ugly storm was breeding
"Matey," commenced the old man, as
/ took seat and drew up to the table,
eye must take good care of Jennie.
If We don't make her a good husband,
I'll come back and haunt ye if there is
such thing in the book!'
"What do you meant" | replied look
ing sharply into his face to see if he
had not taken glass too much. 81.
Il amt drunk-it isn't that" he re-
piled, ''but something's going to happen.
The Happy Day IS going to be wrecked
and you and the girl will be the only
ones saved! Don't dispute it, because
I've dreamed it three times over, and
I've made all preparations. Yell find
some valuable papers in my locker, and
l hope that the girl, who seems well
pleased with we, will consent to sail on
the same tack with we foreverl'
laughed at him until saw that he
felt offended, and | reasoned with him
until l saw that arguments were thrown
away. Then I went up the campanion
way feeling that the old man was getting
childish, and that season more would
use him up.
The sun had just dipped as the tug
cast us off a mile or two from the
mouth of the river. There was only
one other vessel, and we both stood off
to the northwest on the same tack. -
There was chilly wind and a vexed
sea-, and when the shadows finally
settled and we set our signal-lights,
there was moaning and groaning
which told better than barometer that
the old Happy Day would have a rough
night of it. The strange schooner was
soon out of sight in the darkness, and
then we were alone. t5-+
1t was the captains watch from eight
to twelve, bit none of us turned in
The 70 castle men talked in whispers,
and seemed to feel that some calamity
was at hand. Jennie was in the cabin,
and Captain Valentine paced the deck
and hadn't word for any of u.s. An
hour after dark the gale breezed up so
that ordered the topsail taken in.
The sea was coming up FAST and before
another hour we wentin stays took the
other tack, and then double reefcd fore
and main sails and lowered the ibis =
The captain did not give single order,
but left everything to me. An hour