The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1882-03-17

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hand breadth, nor to fluttera single pen
nant." Then, in trembling hand, but
still the same, was added: ga dreadful
thing has happened. When had writ
ten that beginning of my letter, Dor
othy, I looked again southwark; the
sea was as waveless as before, and the
Fair Island sparkIed in the sun, but be-
twixtus and it | saw no trace of the great
three-decker. / thought my brain had
gone wrong, and rang the bel for Ag-
nes but when she too could see moth
ing of the ship, terrible apprehen; ion
took hold of me /; and when the alarm
guns from the fort began to thunder, I
knew she had gone down. I hear near
1000 men were aboard of her,"
This was the famous "wreck of the
Royal George" immortalized by the
verse of Cowper. She was ship of 100
guns, carrying brass 24-pounders on her
main deck, brass 80 Founders on her
middle deck and iron 30 Founders on
her lower deck. Her lanterns were SO
large that the men used to enter them
to clean them. She had six months
provisions on board, and many tons Of
shot. The blue flag of "brave Kemp
enfelt'' was flying at her mizzen, and in
two days she was to leave Spithead to
Join the fleet in the Mediterranean.
So sudden and unexpected a catastro-
phe was never before heard of in nauti-
crl annals but the cause of it is COM
mon enough. It arose from the obsti-
macy and fool-hardines of the Lieutenant
of the watch. These caused the death of
some 800 human beings. 1t is not nee
essary to mention his name indeed, the
sailor from whose personal narrative /
compile the story, and who had prob
ably just joined the ship, did not know
his name, though Of course it could be
discovered easily enough. He was, if
remember right" he says, "the third
Lieutenant, good-sized man between
thirty and forty" Fortunately for him.
self. perhaps, he was drowned with the
rest.
The accident arose through the heel
;2G over of the ship. It was necest airy
to lay her on her side to get at the water
cock, situated in that part of the hold
called the well, in order to replace it by
q new one. The operation was begun at
s o'clock in the morning. The ship at
that time was "full of Jews, women and
people selling all sorts of things as
was usual on the eve of long voyage.
The last lighter, with rum on board, had
Just come alongside, and was dashed to
the larboard side of the vessel, and the
men were piped to clear her, and stow
the rum in the hold. Though the water
was almost level with the portfolios
through which the larboard guns were
run out, no danger seemed at first to
have been apprehended. The sea dashed
in with every wave, and disturbed the
mice IN the lower deck, and the men
nnq Ebe Msg Eth hT Was hem
game going on" are the words of the
narrator.
BY 8 O'Clock the weight Of the rum
barrels and of the sea water brought the
larboard portfolios still lower, and the
carpenter applied to the Third Lieuten-
ant to give orders to fright ship, as She
could not bear it" But the Lieutenant
gave him very short answer. The
Captain-Capt. Waghorn-was on board,
and also the Admiral but Admirals and
Captains are not consulted in such mat
tiers. The lives of those at sea, as of
those on land, are mainly in the hands
of subordinates. In a very short time
the carpenter repeated his warming, and
the Lieutenant answered, "Sir, if you
can manage the ship better than 1 can,
you had better take command" In a
minute or two afterward, it is true, this
fool-hardy officer ordered the drummer
to be called to beat to right ship, but it
was then too late. There was no time
to beat his drum, or even time to get it.
"Let us try" said our sailor to the
Lieutenant Of his gun, "to bouse our
gun without waiting for the drum, as it
will help to right the ship" They
pushed the gun, but it ran back on
them, and they could not start it.
"Then I cried, Ned, the ship is sink
ing, jump out at the port-hole!' He
did so. but I. believe was drowned, for I
never saw him again. l followed him.
I saw the portfolios as full of heads as
they could cram, all trying to get out. :"
What picture! Imagine all those
poorfellows struggling to escape through
a space not large enough for one tenth
of them, up an incline as steep as the
peaked roof of house. and with q hun
CRY sea rushing In behind them Above
all, think Of the poor women Our sail
or, holding on to the best-bower anchor.
which hung above the port, seizes hold
of one and drags her out, but at that
moment the draught of air from between
decks, caused by the sinking Of the ship.
blows him off his feet. Then the huge
mass goes down, and draws him down
with it. He tries to swim, but cannot,
"though / plunged as hard as I could
with both hands and feet; but when the
ship touched bottom, the water boiled
up good deal, and [ felt that could
swim, and began to raise" SO. even if
vessel with a bundled guns goes down
and takes one with her, there is some
use, you see, In having learned to swim,
When he comes to the surface he hears
what q sound at such moment -
the cannons ashore firing their signals
of distress, but he can see nothing. His
face is covered with tar. a barrel of
tar having been STAYED in as the shin
went down, and its contents spread over
the water. He strikes it awav from his
eyes as well as he can, and looks about
him.
The fore, main and mizzen tops of the
huge ship were all above water. and he
climbs up into comparative safety. In
the shroul of the mizzentop he finds
the AdmiraPs baker, and sees the woman
he has just pulled out of the port-hols
rolling by. He seizes her once more.
and hangs her head over one of the rat
lines of the mizzen- sirouds, like clothes
to dry, which is the best he can do fer
her; but surf comes and knocks her
backward, and "away she went. rolling
over and over" Strangely enough, the
poor creature is saved, after all, by the
boat of frigate lying at Spithead.
whose Captain has just put off to the
rescue. 8 / must look to those who are
in more danger than you, nay lad he
sings out to our sailor, as he goes by.
"Ay, ay, sir" is the reply; II am
safely moored enough. "