Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1876-10-19
NO. 24s.
Misfellanepns.
THE HERO OF TIE ARETHUSA.
BY ETHEL C. GALE

again oe saie 10 have wives and children
by their sides in India. that my father sent
for me to join him in Calcutta. The Are
thusa. upon which / took passage, was a
fine new sailing vessel. fitted up with great
care for her first voyage round the Cape.
There were comparatively few male pas
sengers, but the ships ample accommoda-
tions were crowded by wives, mothers and
daughters, embracing their first opportu-
nifty to join those of their dear ones who
had survived the horrors of the mutiny.
OF those on board probably not one had
escaped the loss of some friend near and
dear.
With all its freight of sorrow stricken
passengers the social atmosphere of the
Arethusa, though not bright, was far from
sombre. Each sufferer unselfshly sought
to make life less burden to the others,
and the result was, if not happiness yet at
least as much of cheerful rest as often falls
to the lot of mortals.
OF course we had our bit of romance,
though there was small chances for such q
thing where most of the ladies were wives
of recently made widows, and all of the
gentlemen were either accompanied by
ther wives, or crippled, or too much given
over to the morose humors which beset the
age of an English East Indian, to have pa
tience with such follies. So our innocent
trii1e of romance was only violent attach
ment between handsome little fellow of
ten, the youngest of the merchant-service
middies-of whom there were on board
about dozen of all ages up to nineteen
and the pretty seven-yearold daughter of
our most distinguished passenger, GEN
eral, and X. c. b. AS a general thing,
any passenger-ship going to Calcutta can
number from twenty to forty children, but
Joe and Nellie were the only ones on the
Arethusa, and they became the pets of US
all.
After more than three months of almost
good weather we were over
taken by one of the deadly calms which
fall upon the Indian Ocean.
The great ship lay motionless upon the
water, which was as dull and seemingly
invisible through the thick atmosphere. but
the whole heavens seemed glaring, bur-
nished vault ofcopper. There was no dis
horizon line; the copper and
the brass seemed to be fused together by
the intense heat, and formed around us q
great hollow ball in the lowest depth OF
which we were immovably fixed. As far
as our eyes could reach there was no sign
Of life. five looked downward, the dense
dull, brazen surface gave back only re-
Election of heat. FIVE looked up, the bur-
nished copper scared our eyeballs with its
fiery glow. The sailors forgot 10 swear,
the incorrigible jokers were silenced, the
chronic complainers for once were mute,
and even the flutter of fans ceased from
sheer exhaustion.
Little Joe and Nellie sat on the stairs at
the foot of the companion-way as mute
as all the rest. Suddenly Nellie exclain-
ed:
My feet are hot!'
"Of course they re hot" said her faith
err; "What isn't hot should like to
knowr p
"But, papa, IFS fire-hot. feel!''
The general did not stir. but Joe put
down his hand and touched the iron
square, like a furnace register, which was
in the floor, and which may some
times have served as a ventilator to the
hold below.
at is hot" he exclaimed, so excitedly
that the Generals attention was aroused.
and he too felt OF the iron, and immedi-
ately grasping screw driver which Law
conveniently near--the children having
been using it in their play of the early
hurriedly removing the
screw which prevented the register from
Looking through it at the same
moment that he did. saw what appeared
to be a ball of flame resting on barrel
directly under the register. Quickly clos
ing this the General said to me in an un-
dertone, Say nothing, Miss Gordon, let
no one turn it," and he sprang up the
stairs TO call attention of one Of the Off
GERS.
Such, however was the Ian, ou that no
one noticed the little episode, and INV
watch was uninterrupted. ST. ndng thus
over the register, already so ca ed that
it burned through the soles of my slippers
and breathing an atmosphere ( 8 ,orohing
heat, my heart grew cold as l looked upon
the unconscious faces of the passengers
scattered about the cabin in every attitude
OF langour and depression. for | remem.
bercd the nature of the cargo. In Liver
pool we had been told that the Arethusa
was laden only with cannon and balls, go
ing out to the troops. But three days be-
fore this, | had overheard the captain
sharply chiding the third officer for allow.
ing lighted candle to be carried into a
''hold full of brandy and gunpowder."
Now | was standing directly over a ball
Of fire placed certainly in the hold with
the gunpowder. and perhaps on one of
the very barrels which contained it. Prob
ably did not keep my station more than
a minute. but, to measure time by senss-
tions, it was long hours before my heart
grew warm enough to beat again; and
then looked about the cabin in a sort of
stupid amaze to see the same people in
the same positions they had filled so long
ago, and wondered in dazed way wheth-
er death had not come and chained us all
in our places. instead of scattering our dis
membered bodies far and wide over the
brazen sea, as an explosion should have
done.
Miss Gordon"-it was little Nelly pull
ing at my dress-"Miss Gordon, please
come up stairs with me to look for Joe.,'
Thus brought back to consciousness. and
finding that no one was likely to disturb
the register, we ascended the companion
way. Nelly to look for Joe and TO see If
anyone had gone into the hold.
We were just in time to see Joe's tiny
figure flashing up from the hold, graspiDg