Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1879-02-06

orders, and am disappointed; but as I
have punished the sailor I must also
punish you;" and producing a pair of
scissors, the captain deliberately cut off
all her hair, remarking that he might
not be so lenient second time.
As for Helen, nature less innocent
must have been blunted by such treat
ment; but she only shed a few tears,
and made much lighter of the matter
than my friend Hawke who trembled
with indignation when he heard of the
occurrence. Black, on the contrary,
laughed like hyena at the fate of the
canvass shoes, and to our amazement,
put the white silk handkerchief around
his neck, which he said the English
miss had given him.
Of Hawkes. history. I know nothing;
but there was something about the I'M
known seaman which showed that he
had come down greatly in social status;
in fact he admitted that he was in the
forcastle through his own folly. He
was very reserved; but there was a cool
self-possession and pride about him
which made the other seamen keep
aloof from him and the officers dislike
him. Sharp words ensued between
these two men about the ownership of
the handkerchief, which would have
ended in blows, but the weather being
stormy, we were piped away to reef the
topsails. The reef tackles of the main
topsail were hauled taut, and some of
us were upon the yard picking up the
points when Black came up on the
W. he o1o1 CraftIrc- 4hn
rope. seized Hawkes. points, and gave
him a shove which nearly sent US both
off the yard, and caused us to let go the
sail; and the others were compelled to
do likewise. In an instant the sail bel
lied out; and Black, who was still hold
ing on, was dragged over the yard, but
no human power could save him, for
what with the wind and rain, We were
almost blinded. Suddenly he gave a
loud shrek, and as he did so he fell feet
foremost, and with a tremendous crash
went half through a life-bOat which was
lying on the skids. He had been caught
in his own trap, and when extricated by
the carpenter was found to be dead.
The foreigners left the yard and COM
menced screeching and screaming and
crossing themselves, and even the mate
could not get them aloft again that
night. The captain seemed more sur
prised at seeing one of his own hand
kerchiefs around the neck Of the corpse
than concerned at the mans untimely
end; but after recovering the article,
fortunately made no further inquiries
about it.
After a voyage of ninety days we
reached Calcutta, where, after seeing
his agents, the first thing that Captain
Sproul did WAS to take Helen on shore.
Then, driving to the adiutant-generaPs
Office, he made inquiries for her father,
and was told that Captain Muir had
sent in his papers three years previous
ly.
An advertisement elected the infor-
nation that Captain Muir, a widower at
the time when he was hopelessly in
solvent, had married an East Indian
lady, and from getting in debt with the
banks, and struggling to get out of it,
had fallen into worse difficulties, result
ing in his death at the Debtors jail, Cal
cutta; and his widow, much impover-
ished, declined to increase her respon.
sibilities by receiving step-children.
1t was when Helen thus found herself
without home and friendless, that Cap
tain Sproul came to her aid. He had
lately become gentle, and was less alb
rupt in his manner of speaking to her;
and from treating her as child had, al
though he hardly knew it, commenced
to love her as woman. But it was the
mendacious statement of the disrated
steward in the police court that precip-
itated matters, and caused the captain
to thus address his ward:
Like myself, Helen, you have served
and are now entitled to command; and
if you will return on board La Belle Hell
enc with such a title as none can ques-
ton, | will make you my wife"
Extremes will meet. In spite of his
severity, Helen greatly respected the
captain. His stern sense of justice, man
ly ways, and the terse vigor which char
acterized his utterances, made him seem
to her a man to look UP to; besides, she
nov regarded him as her protector and
the ship as her home, and she accepted
him.
A few days after this speech, Captain
Sproul came on board in great good hu-
NOR, for he had been married that morn
ing, and had left his wife at the house of
friend, prior to going on 81 short honey
moon. Before leaving, however, he had
to give his final instructions to Mr..
Cobb.
Some days previous to the wedding
my comrade Hawke had applied for and
obtained his discharge, the captain re-
marking that he did not care to have
broken down gentlemen on board his
vessel, and advising Hawke to try to
find some more congenial employment
on shore. But on this, the captains
wedding morning terrible event oc-
CURED, which nearly cost him the lives
of his wife, his ship, and all on board,
including his own. The barometer had
fallen, and when the captain came on
board it was blowing quite fresh. We
had just sent down our light yards when
the breeze increased to a strong gale,
and at noon, just as the great tidal wave
was due, the wind shifted to a hurricane,
bringing with it the "bore" or storm
wave from the sea. Then commenced
to blow such a cyclone as for destruc-
ton has hardly been equalled within a
century. In that cyclone twenty thous-
and people persisted, and one hundred
and thirteen villages were swept away;
and out of fleet of three hundred
of the finest ships and steamers in the
world, only one escaped without dam
age.
When the great wave came rolling
up, La Belle Helene, directly she was
struck, was dragged from her moorings,
while the force of the wind was so ter
rife that we could not stand upright
Two vessels locked together had drifted
against US, smashing our boats to