Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1882-07-26

In A WHALES MoUTu.-Fayal is the
rendezvous of the wha)ers from the neigh
boring whaling grounds. and Captain
c. and his wife are much looked up to
by the rest He is II sun-burnt fellow,
sober, silent aud retiring, like all the rest,
in the usual shore clothes of the sailor,
blue broadcoth suit and white waistcoa.
His wife is a fine specimen of a smart yam
kee woman In her shiny alpaca gown
and stiff lace rullle at her throat, sic is as
trig as her own brig. Her husband seems
very proud of her, but is himself Of gentler
mien. Each defers pleasantly TO the other,
and neither is self asserting. When Mrs
C was pressed by L tourist TO relate
the story of how she saved her husband 5
life with hot plates, she hesitated, but Iinal-
lv began the recital in subdued voice,
with an admirable reserve and dignity
and n solemn sense of the awful peril
through which her husband had passel.
They had captured whale and cot it
alongside to cut up. The ,itws were un-
usually large, and the captain himself
was occupied in getting the upper one,
which contains the whalebone OF COM
mercc, out from the head. AS is usual an
immcnce iron hook was inserted in the
lower jaw, attached TO chains and blocks
in the rigging by which it was lifted.
Within the cavity OF the mouth thus form
ed, on u platform rugged over the ships
side, directly above the upper Jaw, the
captain stood hard ut work, carefully cut
ting out tho thin plates of whalcbono from
tho upper Jaw. His wife came up from
below, looked over the side at her hus-
bands position, and exclaimed, ooh
' iliam, how dangerous that loobS'' at
that instant the hook gave way, the hor-
riblo Jaw fell, crushing the staging to
spliuters, shutting the captain within the
awful cavern Of the mouth, and buryins
him under water. The cruel teeth pcne-
trated the flesh of his back, goring him
terribly; but the waves buoyed UP tse
great Jaw, and the captain, with the most
acknowledgements of mind, feeling him
self loosed, pushed his feet against tho
ships side, and 80 kicked himself clear OF
the whales mouth He was picked up
for dead and lifted on deck. lle made
signs that he was dying, and that he did
not wish to pc carried pelow. But"
said his wife, Il want a-goin' to give
him up SO; | told the men to carry him
below | stripped off his wet clothes. His
face was gashed and bleeding ;he couldn't
breathe; he gasped now and then; he was
cold as death. told the steward to heat
all the plates there were on the ship and l
covered him with hot plates till began
to feel him growing warm. Then pour,
ed brandy into him. Lor five days and
nights, and man from forward watch
ed and nursed him. wrapped him in
poultices as big as sheet, and changed
them every twenty minutes to take the
soreness out Of him; and so he lived"
Then after moments pause, entirely
ignoring her own part in tho matter the
captains wife added earnestly: but he
couldn't have lived if he'd been q drink
ing man, He'd always been strictly tenn
perate; so, when he needed the brandy 1t
brought him right up" 1t was the best
temperance lecture ever heard.
ii dunno about the brandy" said the
captain quietly. 81 guess brandy couldn't
have done much for me without my wife
but, anyhow, l haint never meddled
much with whales jaw sence. From
ia San1mer IN The Azores"