The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-02-06

from the deck. The blue pilot flag Is run up
and the steamer replies by altering her course
and steering straight for the pilot boat. She APP
prodches to within mile or two, and the ex.
perienced eyes Of the men make her out to ue
All Prince to New York
BOARDGNG a STEAMER.
Mr.. Jewell disappears below the deck and re-
turns drs,sed IN his nntly pil2t costume cost lie
high-top rubber boots. The steamer Is now
WITHIN nalf mile, aud her great iron nulk, puff
Ing and blow ing, comes suddenly to "A halt. Two
sailors who have stood for some moments on
the deck Of the pilot boat, with the light yawi
poised on the rail. receive the order 70 let 90.
With a splash she strikes the water and Is tossed
up aud down by the heavy seas like cookie.
ono mun nulds tue painter, while two sailors
sprng to their seai~ and grasp the oars. Mr..
Jewell losses his boots and valisc into the bot
tom OF tue boat, and springs In himself. Let
co., shouts the Captain; the painter II tossed
in, the pilot boat shoots aheed. aud the little
yawl Is lett ttling with the waves. liobhiug
up and down now lost to sight. and now uuliitrd
on the crest of biilow, 1t IL pulled vigorously
toward the Etni's IRON sides. IL reaches the
steamer, the ladder dcsccnds, and In moment
the pilot Is OH the vessels deck. The yawl pulls
back n short distance, ana the htua steams
away to the north. Then the yawl waits for the
plot boat 10 wear around aud pick IL up. As
the Lady Washington approaches the men lie
upon their oars, and when favorable opportu-
nifty Is offered they shoot quickly to the vessels
side. The alnter IL thrown to the deck aud Ia
caught by n strong hand. The tackle Is lowered
to the middle Of the yawl and Is Instantly fast
ened to "A rope that stretches from rail to rail.
The oarsmcn jump nimhly to the deck and the
little boat Is lifted hodily into the air and IL
before.
Meanwhile the A.tna passes swiftly to the
north. and soon she Il but dim speck on the
horizon. The breeze swels to gale. and the
waves rise and fall IN short, sinuous folds. like
the wrinkleu skin of some nieasureles Ieviatban.
Capt. Gillespie walks the deck In his slippers aud
fur cap. Suddenly he stops. and pointing to
solitary sea gull that had been lowering in the
wake Of the vessel and that now rested and
noated on the waves, There" he said, " that
Is pretty sure harbiugcr Of bad weather; YOU
always see the gulls acting that way just before
astorm. and have seen them In the most terri
BILE tcmpests floating about the ship, riding
securely In the hollow OF the sea that rose
mountain high, and threatened to wrench the
ship ap IT."
rhe little birds called mother Cary's chickens
are also wheeling over the surface Of the sea,
and nlling the air with their shrli screams.
The Chickens" said Capt. jackson, " are
usually precede the breaking Of a Storm"
STORMY NIGHT.
In the cabin everything IA very unsteady. The
wind roars around the boat ana waves break
the whole length OF the deck. The Captain Is
right In his prediction OF foul weather. for IN e
barometer Is fast falling. In the evening the
little ves sci creaks IN every Joint and pitches so
heavily that It is almost impossible to walk the
decks. The men lie fiat upon their backs
the easiest position) upon the locker and smoke
and talk Outside the SKY Is iiled with angry
clouds, and 4; Is necessary To PUT the vessel I'M
der close reeied sails. Tho seething waters are
altght with phosphorescent sptrkles. 1t Is I'm
possible to see more than n few yards into the
murky wall that shuts III the boat, ana a close
watch Is Kept at the bow for approaching yes-
sells.
sunday Jan. 23-The log to-day contains the
following: At daybre tx. wind south. thick and
rainy. At sunrise, male vessel dtmly In fog to
the southeast, II miles from Sandy Hook. saw
steamer hearing southwest at 1870 L. NJ; also
another steamer bound for Boston.
"eundiy Il always quiet day. said one OF
the pilots. IA we all sat around the stove In the
evening, Otherwise its the same any other
day To us. The New York pilots have b rder
aud more perilous work than any other pilots IN
the world, aud they receive smaller remuneri-
lion Tor their services: They cruise al. over the
sea for a distance of bW miles from land, and
are a great convenience to bewdered capt lins
who have lost their reckonines In log o. storm,
and are driving on they know not where. Many
people think thAt pilot boat Is but little bet
ter than skin, and that all its iptsin has To do
Is TO ~ his craft 10 Sandy Hook bar, DE taken
on board an incoming vessel. collect his money,
and then 20 O.ck To his station and wait for
anoth,r prize: The peri.s and hardships that we
undergo IA winter IN boarding vessels IN storms,
FREQ emily at night, YOU can see for yourself.
Then the wages t0at we make are sometimes
not moro than enough to support our families.
so great is the competition among the pilot
boss and so iignt IL commerce at present.
Three winters ago boarded large merch.nt-
man from Turkey, Just southeast 81 Barnegat.
AN ENGLIsuMAN's EXPERIENCE.
1t WIS mild. soft day with fair wind, and
the Captain, who was fearless Englishmau,
mad all sails set and was bowling along freely
al noticed peculiar appearance OF the sky
after took the helm, aud apprehendet
tempest ! ordered all sails to be shortened,
ana while the men were executing the order, tue
Englishu n. not understanding the approach Il
our winter storms. came swearing upon decks
and said ned like to know wnat Tie bloody lei
low We taking ull tdc canvas uN hi~ ship Tor. ~
lie wanted 10 get 10 NeN Yoak dtdnT h-f
tod hlM that No must shorten sail as there
Wa coming heavy Nlow from the northea--.
In forty minutes atter Sc nnu reefed the N the
storm came, ma 100 les, tuau tWu hours twelve
Of the men Were ! I'd W Ia the fO'ca-i le with
frozen hands and feet. II WIS one OF the most
term le storms that ever -,w-thick snow aud
sleel ana ttlnie,tuoun gales. -Four Times Ne
sighted the headlands, and were driven back
into the ocean. For fourteen days We we're
driven ttis way and that all along the coast. We
had no IRE, and only biscuits and coffee 10. food.
We went Through Two SNOW storms ana two
nor'westers, and were blown once To Cape Nav,
and once a. tir ga a. Block Isl md. We very
nearly made coast survey oi the whole United
Statc-. The captain II the snip was bad y FROST
bitten, Hnd one day he came 10 me with nose
like cucumber. n was so swell ed. and said 10
him. suppose We had not taken IN sail on the
da, on wuich came aboard, what would have
been the result and he answered petulantly,
Result Whv, We would have all been blown
into the sea, and that would have been the end
Of Us, aud We wouldn't be drifting round In this
manner and freeing TO death. VIII ye LOOK AT
thatf he salt, pointing to his sweed nose.
That's pretty looking nose, amt ~ On the
fifteenth dav from the time | boarded the suip
sue reached her wharf m New YORK.
VESSELS WEIGHED down. BY ICE.
"lna. + only one Of a thousand incidents
that occur 20 pilots ~ our winter eNpe"e"'e'
Vessels are frequently rendered unmanageape
by ice forming upOn them their bows are borne
ueue tn the water, and their rudders are llted
drift wherever the winds carry them. ! remcm-
Der the Norwer ian bark Uland, that beaded
seventy q ge mlies southeast OF Sandy Hook.
She took northwest gale, aud 1t blew DO nari
that We could carry scarcely any sail No all. By
daylight the third day she was unmanageal le.
She went down four feet by the head, and the
rudder came out Of tue water and was alb
sOlutely useless. On the fourth morning
the CAPTAIN called his men into tho
cabin, ana all Joined In prayer and
sung psalms No ono expected to outlve the
storm. All that day she struggled on, aud tho
succeeding night. Ihe next diy there came a
sudden change the weather became soft and
mild. We knocked the Ice from her bow aud
deck, she C me up out of the sea, and We brought
her over ndy Hook bar and into New York m
the midst Of a thick snow storm. That Is nothing
unusual continued the plot, land III bet
there isn't a man here that can't tell ypu OF hhlf
dozen such experiences Every winter the
pilots are carried oil IN TINS manner. When tho
rigging about the bpwspnt OF "A snip = theirs
forty or tty tons o. Ice II Is no Hight matter, for
the wei ht Is Ii bic to take the bow,prt clean
OF or carr, the vessel To the bottom"
Another pilot told how he was carried from
ndy Hook clear TO Greenwich light IA a snow
and Ice storm. and then was compelled TO square
away for Newport 70 make a huTbOr. At tnut
port he ran the vessel into the ice, and all made
their way over the frozen field to the city.
at Is not an unusual occurrence for
pilots TO be OF In this way for from
fourteen TO seventeen DAYS. Then, too, In
taking boats out of New York, II Is often the
case that a storm Will prevent the pilot from
getting on at the station at Sandy Hook, and In