The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1876-09-21
A NARROW ESCAPE.

of the old Sailors Head, as an appren-
tice-boy on board the brig Albatross, of
London, Captain John Collier, as thor
ough a seaman as ever passed the More
Light. lie had instructions to proceed
from Leith to Rio Janeiro with a mixed
cargo. Having shipped his crew, OBJ
tanned the usual clearance from her
Majesty's customs, and his bill Of health
from the Brazilian ~vice-consul, we drop
ped down the Frith.of- Forth with a fair
wind, and put to sea; but we were bare
ly clear of the river when the breeze
became light, or what we sailors call a
soldiers wind"
"Wha sort Of wind is that, Mr..
Sharp" asked n of the auditory /;
"for, being a soldier, I should like to
know"
"Why, sir, it al that it is blow
ing so that the craft might lie with her
head any way"
This was not a very lucid explanation,
but the company were forced to be ION
tent Herewith.
"After a time the breeze freshcned,
and we ran along the coast of England
to reach the Channel; but ere long it
increased to a gale, and we had to beat
hard to winlward to keep of the rocks
near Marlborough Castle. That night
we were involved in a regular hurri.
cane, and every thing was taken of the
brig but the topsails, and they were
closely reefed, with the yards well down
on the cap. Something had gone wrong
with the steering-compass; thus we
were nearer the coast than we thought.
All around US was pitchy blackness, ut
ter obscurity and gloom. Not q star
was visible in the zenith, and, shipping
sea after sea in succession as the waves
broke over her, the Albatross labored
sorely, being heavily laden.
"Suddenly there was u shout from
the forecastlc-a shout that was heard
above cven the believing of the wind
and the hiss of the sharp salt spray.
"'Breakers on the lee bowl
"'lIard up with the helm!' cried
Captain Collier, through his trumpet,
Keep her off n little-steady!'
"IIe came rushing forward. l in.
stinctively followed him, and saw, to
my terror, amid the darkness around
us, the blacker outline of the land loom
ing high and vast, and all along its base
a long, white line of foam-thc break
srs!
awe were c~lose.in shore, but where,
we knew not exactly; for by this time
VIC should have seen the lights of loves
toft, but not the f~aintest CLEAN was Wis
ible; and ere the Albatross could be put
about, or even thrown for a moment in
the wind, she went on the rocks, her
masts went crash by the board, and, be-
fore we had time to think of it, she was
totally wrecked.
"As the masts had fallen on the land
side, not II moment was to be lost in
using them rs bridges whereby to reach
the shore, which was so close that one
might have tossed a biscuit on it; and
while we could hear the tearing and
rending of the ships timbers as the
wild sea, now penetrating into the hold
like a demon of destruction, burst her
asunder, we made our way along the
wreckage of the masts, yards and top
hamper. Six men persisted amid. the
surf, but Captain Collier, eight Others
and myself-though II mere boy
reached the rocks just as day was break
ing.
"The coast where we landed was n
perpendicular cliff about seventy feet in
height; and then our most terrible dis
aster was yet to come. The cliff rose
from a base Of sand and clay, which is
continually washed by the sea during
high tides; thus many cavities are
formed, of considerable depth, from
which the soil has been sucked out by
the back-wash of the waves; and into
one of them we scrambled for shelter
from the bitter cold and fierce inclem-
ency of the weather, and, penetrating
for about twenty yards from the shore,
we all sat huddled close together for
warmth.
"For some time there was no APP
pearance of the tempest abating, and
we could see, as dawn frightened, the
stormy scud flying past, and white foam
dancing where the brig had gone utter.
ly to pieces, and where the boxes,
bales and barrels that had been her
cargo were tossed wildly about among
the iotsam and jetsam of the sea.
"Poor Captain Collier, who had q
wife and several children at Greenwich,
having lost nearly his all in the brig,
was overwhelmed by his misfortune,
| and sat moodily with his head between
his hands, staring seward, as the day
, drew on. Suddenly n half stifed cry
{ escaped us all. There was q dull
t crashing sound, and all were involved
, In utter darkness. The sea, the day
{ light, the sound of the waves were al
9 gone, as if a curtain had fallen between
us and them. And such, indeed, wa.
: the case. A mass of rock from above
$ that had long been impending, ha,
t slipped suddenly down and inclosed u
a all in a dreadful trap-in one common
Y grave.
4 "We could touch, but not see eacl
other. For Il time we could breathe
but respiration 500 became difficult
@ Words are too weak to describe tn
horror of such a situation as ours. Bet
ter would it have been that we had a
Y persisted with the ship.
:" "The prayers and lamentations of IN
n companions Don became weak; sob,
g signs, groans and gasping succeeded
q. a., Hnn,.sn, cot &, anl aanL ,~o.lol !.