Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-11-09
THE TOILERS OF TIE SEA.
Thrilling Story OF wreck-An
AbandOEed Brigantine-Tho Hero
of the Rescue.

AMEAAAlAS RtOry OF WPeGE-An
AbandOEed Brigantine-The Hero
OF the Rescue.
New York Herald Nov. 81
A reporter of the Herald yester-
day succeeded in finding Captain
Larkin, the rescued commander of
the Maggie from Portsmouth, Eng
land, since reported abandoned at
sea-, ard received from him the
following account of the disaster
which overlook the good brigan-
tine:
THE CAPTAINS STORY.
"The brigantine l commanded"
said the captain, "was, | thought,
staunch ship. She was built at
Portsmouth, England, just oppo-
site to the Isle of Wight, and was a
model for a medium-sized vessel.
| do not know what trade she was
originally intended for, but she was
laid up about fifteen months and
offered for sale, and it is possible,
yet | do not know that the okum
had rotted out of the seams during
this idle time and thus left the sea
chance to get the better of us.
There is no doubt that a ship, like
man, is the worse for not being
actively employed. Well, we started
in ballast for Charlottetown, Prince
Edward Island, and after being out
few days we encountered a terrific
gale. / have been a seagoing man
for many years, but the way it blew
off the coast of Ireland, and even
when we got rid of the shore, was
something appalling. We could
not send a man aloft, and the decks
were washed with such a furious
sweep that it was as much as a
mans life was worth to venture out
Of hatchways. l have been off the
coast of Labrador, where the cold
nor'westers sweep across the waters,
and also in the Mediterranean when
the gales blew from the sou'east and
wrinkled the face of the sea, making
it what the sailors call 'chop,' but
l have never seen such nasty
weather as the Maggie experienced
during our voyage. When we were
about eight days out, in the middle
of the dog watch, when from sheer
fatigue l had fallen asleep, l was
startled by one of the sailors, whom
| knew as Charley calling, Cap.
tain! captainl we've sprung leakp
| sprang on deck, sustaining myself
by ropes, and found that the alarm
was not false. The sea was sweep
ing over everything; the scuppers
were choked and the water was fill
ing the cabins and galleys; one of
the skylights was broken, and there
was a perfect deluge Of water pour
ing in the opening. l gave my Or
ders and soon the crew, six men,
were working gallantly at the
pumps. But the water seemed to
gain on us. All that night, the
next day, and the next, those faith
full fellows toiled-I think as much
to save the ship as to save their
lives. Sometimes one Of them would
give way from sheer fatigue, and
then a companion would go and get
him a biscuit stepped in brandy,
and by this means revive him so
that he could go to work again.
Remember, while those brave fell
lows We're working at the pumps
the storm was raging, the sea was
pouring in at every open place and
there was no abatement of the
wind. never realized before what
a little raft ship was until found
myself out in the raging sea on the
brigantine Maggie. But it was no
use; the water was gaining on us,
and as each day dawned and each
night closed in upon us we found
we were filing, and it was only a
question of time how long we could
float. We hoisted signals of dis
tress about the time, according to
oar dead reckoning, we were off tho
Banks of Newfoundland, but we
saw nothing but the dead waste of
sea-the cloudy, misty expanse of
water on which we were rolling like
a log.
A SHIP IN SIGHT.
"But when we were in latitude