The Russellville Democrat., 1877-05-24
THE THREE HUSBANDS.
AN OLD SAILORS STORY.

This here what I'm goln to spln be- gun aboard of the ship Carolus Mag nus, Captain Jackson, bound from Liv- erpool to New York, in the year 184S, or thereabouts; Ican't be partic'lar to a year or so, and it don't much matter anyway.
 Faint no use telling you of the fust of the voyage, and maxim thunderin' long yarn out of nothin', and so we'll iist chig in to about seven bells of an awful bad night, our watch bein' mp tryin' for to furl a double-reefed top sail, the other watch bein' at the mig zen at the same time, the weather showin' awful, and that change was jist at hand, we doin' to git her wore round head to the suth'ard and east ard as quick as the Lord would let us afore it came in from the no'th'ard and west'ard and caught us aback.
 It were the same old story, carrying on to the last mint with the southerly wind, and then having hard work for to git the canvass in. I've said afore, and I'll say it again, that double reefed topsail are n ugly thing for to turl in gale of wind. There's so much slack leech that's apt to blow up above the yard, and if the rope ever drops on mans head. 'tis so heavy that it is apt to knock him senseless While we was up aloft the change come the wind flew in to the nor'west, blowing awful ,and with heavy big.drop rain. The yard had been braced in aback with the port braces, and when the shift come it filled the sail list as we was mitterin' of it, and blowed it out of our hands like so much paper. Bellyin' away up above the yard, it come down once with shot, and Bill Johnson and Harry Williams, what was at the port yard arm, was knocked of, and went blowing away to leeward. The rest of us managed for to hold oH, and leaving the topsail slatting, we laid down for to brace the yards about, and having got that done we hauled home the sheets and set the tore.tep- sail again, doubled-reefed, there being no more danger once the wind got
 hited.
 What made it worse in Bills case were that he got spliced jist afore leavin' Liverpool, his wife bein' a steerage passenger. Of course, she took on dreadful when Bill come home missin' the next mornin', and it fell mostly to Jack Adams and Joe Carroll for to comfort her, they havin' been shipmates along of Bill in the last ship. Bein' in different watches, they was able betwixt lem to giv' her constant comfort, and I must say they done their duty. I've known them men to chop wood by the hour or do other chores for the cook, so as to curry favor with him and get manavelins from the cabin to give to this poor creetur, and they never let a watch go by without goin' down for to see how she were gittin' on, and whether she needed anythin'. From carin' for her III thio Way, ootu OI tu SUb lO DC uedu sweet onto her, and both of 'em got to be knowledgable about the others feelin's.
 We was about in the latitude of fiji. teen when Bill went overboard, and there were long winters passage ahead of us, and so by the time we got nigh hand to New York the widder had kinder got over her loss, and couldn't but be very thankful to these here shipmates of Bill as had took sich care of her.
 We'll, sir, time come when we were of Nantucket shoals, and to be in, with good luck, in a couple of days, and when it were and there that Jack and Joe began to wonder as to which of 'em should splice the widder after ar irwin, both of 'em seein' no other way out of the matter, and she bein' 10 be took care of. It weren't altogether matter of duty neither. come from doin' for her, as they had both got to be un, common sweet onto her. As l said afore, there were short way of it,