Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1879-08-01

Nan, the Newsboy, is among the latest of
the odd characters which spring into fame
from time to time out of the varied life Of the
great city of New York. A year ago he form
ed a little band, consisting of himself and two
Others to patrol the East river docks at night
and rescue persons from drowning.
Some charitable persons heard Of the boys,
gave them floating station TO live in, boats,
neat little blue uniforms, and n small weekly
salary to devote their whole time TO the work.
Mans real name is William j. O'Neil. lie
is q thorough street Arab in his manners, and
uses the dialect common among ragged news
boys and boot-blacks.
The regulations by which the association
should be governed, according to his idea, are
few and simple. As jotted down with other
matters in his rough log-book they are
/. Members shall do whatever the president
orders them.
?. No one shall be n member who drinks or
gets drunk
3. Any members not down in Dover dock.
and miss one night except in sickness, shall
be fined fifty cents by order of the president.
4. No cursing allowed
Spelling is not Mans strong point, and
have taken the liberty to arrange this accord
ing to the usual custom. Nor does he keep
records in a scientific manner. Case four. in
his list Of rescued, sets down only "A jew
boy" Case five is "A red.headed boy who
fell in the water, but could not find his name"
The first meeting Of the association took
place one pleasant day in June 1878
I'VE was a-sittin' on Dover dock, " Nan says
'tcllin' stories We got talkin' how n body
was took out most every day, and some said
two hundred was took out in year We'd
heerd about ife-savin' ON the jersey coast,
too. So l says Say we makes a 'socation
Of it, boys, for to 90 along the docks pickin'
'em up reglar.' All right" they says, and
they nOmeruatCs me for prCstrdont We
thought We might as well be dom that as
loafn' on corners
Might as well be brave and humane fellows,
that is, as idle and dangerous loungers Yes,
indeed they might, and this modest way of
putting it is infinitely to Mans credit.
The three have nothing distinctive in their
appearance, excepting their plain uniform
Nan has rosy complexion and n serious man
ncr. He has sold papers almost ever since he
can remember. Edward Kelly is paler and
slighter, and has quite decided air of dig
nifty. Gilbert Long is sun-browntd, and has
merry twinkle in his eye. He looks as if
likely to be the most recklessly persistent of
the lot in any dangerous straits. The three
boys were all born III Cherry street. Long
las been tin smiths apprentice, and Kelly a
leather-cutter.
They have with them also five unpaid vol
unteers who serve at night The force is di-
vided into three patrols.
Cherry street and its vicinity abound in
teuements, sailor boarding houses and drink
ing saloons The upper part of South street
is a kind OF breathing place for this sdualid
quarter. 1t is much favored by idle urchins
especially, who find hundred ways to amuse
themselves among the boxes and bales.
breeze blows from the water across the edge
Of the dusty, coffee colorcd piers, and gives
breath of fresh air.
The fish.dock and the old dirt" dock in
Peck Slip on summer evenings are white with
the figures of bathers. Often, too when the
law was more stringent against it than now,
they found means to swim in the day-time
They wreste and tumble over one another.
remain in the water for hours swim across
the swift stream to Brooklyn and back, and
dive TO the muddy bottom for coins thrown
to them by spectators.
This was the training-school of our life
savers. Accidents were very frequent here,
and the boys made many rescues without
thinking much Of them.
Their house is a little box of place, paint
ed bright blue, moored under the shade of the
great Brooklyn bridge, and close TO both the
Fulton and Roosevelt street ferries The
front door of the establishment. as it might
be called, is through a hole in a dilapidated
fence then down ladder and perhaps across
a canal boat or two to where it lies wedged in
in the crowded basin. They have a wboat,
and life-savng boat of the catamaran pat
tern.
Insid', the station has three hunks, some
lockers to hold miscellaneous articles, and a
small case Of books contributed by the Sea
mans Friend Society. These are largely ac-
counts of ouung- aud ingenuity in danger,
likely to bc appreciated 10y boys in their cir
cumstances. When they uLbend after duty
is over, Nan plays the banjo and what he
calls the cordcen, and there is quite a social
time.
Nan had saved eight persons, Long six, and
Kelly four, before the association was formed,
and Nan had received a silver medal from the
United States Life Saving Association.
. His most gallant case was the saving of
three young men overturned from a row-boat
by collision with the Harlem steamer off
Eleventh street. He was selling his papers on
the dock at the time. When his notice was
attracted to the accident he at once threw
the papers down and plunged in. He was
taken out himself in drowning condition.
when you drowns," he says, speaking
feelingly from experience, mot a thing you
ever did but it comes up in your head. Then,
may be, after that, you hear kin of noise
like music in your ears
Longs best case was the saving of a son of
Police Sergeant Webbs in Dover dock, and
Kelly's of boy at Bay Ridge, who drew him
down twice in the effort. August So NicllO-
las