The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1875-11-11


given UP, folded my arms, and said
goodbye to the dear old watching face
safe on shore; but a look at that al
ways cheered me, and fought on again
and again, till at last the sea seemed to
go down, and, in utter WEAKNESS, I
turned on my back to, float restfully
with the tide bearing me shoreward, till
| touched the sands, crept up them, and
fell down worn out, to sleep in the sun
-Safei7f .ses2 tf@1 tEt: ls,i-seysSs iss4aF
That's a curious way of putting it, YOU
may say, but it seems natural to me to
mix it up with the things of sea-going
lfe,. and the manner in which I've seen
so many fight hard for their lives. It
was just like striving in the midst of a
storm to me, and when at last did fall
into deep sleep felt surprised like to
find myself lying in my own bed, with
Polly watching by me; and when I
stretched out my hand, and took hers,
she let loose that which she had kept
hidden from me before, and, falling on
her knees by my bedside, she sobbed
for very joy. - -,
GAS much beef-tea and brandy as
you can get him to take" the doctor
says; ithat,afternoon; and it wasn't long
before got from slops to solids, and
then was sent, as / told you, into the
country to get strong, while the doctor
got no end OF praise for the cure he
made. "
Inever said word, though, even to
Polly, for he did his best; but I don't
think any medicine could have cured
me then. sa 5ss3 - esss7 :
/ WAS saying little while back that
| pulled my wife regularly out of the
hands Of death, and of course that was
when we were both quite young, though
for the matter of that, don't feel much
different and can't well see the change.
That was in one of the Cape steamers
when first took to stoking. They
were little ramshackle sort of boats in
those days, and how it was that more
weren't lost puzzles me. It was more
due to the weather than the make or
finding of the ships, I can tell you, that
they used to find their way safe to port ];
and yet the passengers poor things,
knowing no better, used to take passage,
ay, and make . voyage,too, from which
they never got back. L, npss .s.;i ss5
Well, I was working on board q
steamer as they used to call the Equa-
tor, and heavy laden ard with about
twenty passengers on board, we started
down Channel with all wen till we got
right down off the west coast of Africa,
when there came one of the heaviest
storms was ever in. Even for . well
found steamer, such as they can build
to-day, it would have been a hard fight,
but with our poor shaky wooden tub, it
was a hopeless case from the first.
Our skipper made a brave fight Of It,
though, and tried hard to make for one
of the ports; but, bless you, what can a
man do whens after ten days. knocking
about, the Goals run out, and the fires
that have been kept going with wood
and oil, and every thing that can be
thrust into the furnaces, are drowned !;
when the paddle wheels are only in the
way, every bit of sail set is blown clean
out of the bolt-ropes, and at last the
ship begins to drift fast for a lee shore?
That was our case, and every hour
the sea seemed to get higher and the
wind more fierce, while l heard from
more than one man how fast the water
was gaining below.
NV mate and I didn't want any tell
ing, though. We'd been driven up out
of the stoke-hole like a'pair of drowned
rats, and came ON deck to find the bull
warks ripped away, and the sea every
now and then 1eaping aboard, and
washing the lumber about in, all direc-
tions. 9. =
The skipper was behaving very well,
and he kept us all at the pumps, turn
and turnin spells, but we might as well
have tried to pumpthe SCI ry, ndwhen,
with the water gaining fast, we told him
what we thought, he owned it was no
nse, and we gave up.
!, We'd all been at It, crew and passen-
gers, about forty of us altogether, in
Guiding the women-five of them they
were, and they were all on deck, lashed
in sheltered place, close to the poop.
And very pitiful it was to see them fight
ing hard at first and clinging TO the side,
but only to grow weaker, alf-drowned
as they were; and saw swo sink down
at last, and hang dropping like from
their lashings, dead, for nota soul could
do them turn. 3 -
I-was holding son by the shrouda
when the mate got tothe skipper's side,
and I saw in his blank white face whist
he was telling him. OF course we could
not hear his words IN such 8 storm, but
we didn't want to, fer his lips said plain
enough;
y Is She's sinking
Next moment, there was rush made
for the boats, and two of the passengers
cut loose couple of the women; place
was made for them before the first boat
xuae foa f,,11 sha waa ynwnrpd down