The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-10-22

oil, and everything that can be thrus
into the furnace, are drowned; when tn,
paddle-wheels are only in the way, every
| bit of sail set is blown clean out of thu
bOlt-ropes, and at last the ship begins t.
drift fast fora lee shore?
That was our case, and every hour the
sea seemed to get higher and the vino
more fierce, while heard from more thar
one man how fast the water was gaining
below
My mate and 1 didn't want any tell
ing, though. We'd been driven up out
of the stoke-hole like pair of drowned
rats, and came on deck to find the bull
warks ripped away, and the sea every now
and then leaping aboard, and washing the
lumber about in all directions.
The skipper was behaving very well,
and he kept us all at the pumps, turn
and turn in spells, but we might as well
have tried to pump the sea dry, and
when, with the water gaining fast, we
told hi 4 what we thought, he owned
that it was no use, and we gave up.
We'd all been at it, crew and passen-
gers, about forty of us altogether includ-
ing the wOmen-five of them they were,
and they were all on deck, dashed in a
sheltered place, close to the poop. And
very pitiful it was to see them fighting
hard at fist and clinging to the side, but
only to grow weaker, half-drowned as
they were and saw two sink down at
last, and hang drooping-like from their
lashings, dead, for not soul could do
them a turn.
was holding on by the shrouds when
the mate got to the shippers side, and l
saw in his blank white face what he was
telling him. Of course we couldn't hear
his words in such storm, but we did not
want to. for his lips said plain enough:
q She's sinking p
Next moment there was rush made
for the boats, and two of the passengers
cut loose a couple of the women; place
was made for them before the first boat
was too full, she was lowered down, cast
off, and a big wave carried her clear of
the steamer. ! saw her for moment on
the top of the ridge, and then she
plunged down the other side out of our
that of everything else for
how long she lived, who can say? She
was never picked up or heard from again.
Giving a bit of a cheer, our chaps
turned to the next, and were getting in
when there came wave like a noun
tain, ripped her from the davits, and
when | shook the water from my eyes,
there she was hanging by one end stove
in, and the men who had tried to launch
her gone-skipper and mate as well.
There were only seven of us now, and
7 could see besides the three women
dashed to the side, and only one of them
was alive and for bit no one moved,
everybody being stunned-like with hor-
ror but there came lull, and feeling
that the steamer was sinking under our
feet, / shouted out to the boys to come
on, and we ran to the last boat, climbed
in, and were casting off, when [ hap
pened to catch sight of the women
dashed under the bulwarks there.
Hold hard ~ | roars, for l saw one
of them wave her hand.
Come on, you fool shouts my mate,
she's going down !"
pray / may never be put to it again
like that, with all a mans selfish desire
for life fighting against him. For a mo-
ment | shut my eyes, and then began to
lower ;sbut | was obliged to open them
again, and as do 50, l saw wild scared
face, with long wet hair clinging around
it, and pair of little white hands were
stretched out to me as if for help.
"Hold hard, y l shouts.
No, no, roared out two or three.
= there isn't a moment and as the boat
was being lowered from the davits I
made a jump, caught the bulwarks with
my hands, and climbed on board, just as
the boat kissed the water, was unlocked
and fiOated away.
Then as 1 crept, hand-over-hand, to
the girls side, whipped out my knife,
and was cutting her loose, while her
weak arms chung to me, | felt a horrible
feeling of despair come over me, for the
boat was leaving us ; and | knew what a
coward | was at heart, as | had to fight
myself 50 as not to leave the girl to her
fate and leap overheard to swim for my
life. I got the better of it, though
went down on my knees, so as not to see
the boat, and got the poor trembling,
clinging creature loose.
Now, my lass" | says, quick-and l
raised her up" hold on by the side
while l make fast a rope around you"
And then | stood up to hail the boat
the boat as warn't there, for in these
brief moments she must have capsized,
and we were alone on the sinking steam
er, which now lay in the trough of the
sea.
As soon as | got over the horror of the
feeling, a sort of stony feeling came over
me but when [ saw that pale appealing
face at my side, looking to me for help,
that brought the manhood back, and in
saying encouraging things to her, | did
myself good.
NV first idsa was to make something
that would float us, but | gave that up
directly, for I could feel that l was help
less +; and getting the poor girl more into
shelter, took bit of tobacco in a sort
of stolid way, and sat down with a cork
Hfe-buoy over my arms, one which |
had cut loose from where it had hung
forgotten behind the wheel.
But | never used it, for the storm
went down fast, and the steamer fioated
still, water-logged, for three days, when
we were picked up by passing vessel,
halfstarved, but hoping. And during
that time my companion had told me
that she was the attendant Of one of the
lady passengers on board and at last,
when we parted at the Cape, she kissed
my hand, and called me her hero, who
had saved her ife-poor grimy me, you
know
We warn't long, though, before we
must again, for somehow we'd settled
that we'd write; and in twelvemonths
after Mary was back in England, and
my wife. That's why l said l took he1
like out of the hands of death, though in
selfish sort of a way, being far, you
know. from perfect. But what [ say
speaking as Edward Brown, stoker, il
this: Make a good fight of it, no matter
hon, bIool- +biDUS NAV look and leave