The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1883-08-16
CROSSING THE CHANNEL,
a Story of the Sen told by Cronnt

~ slccp-md, dreaming that I'm
ashore, 1 find myself suddenly on the
l0or beneath pile Of dozen or moro
who've tumblCd and pitched together:
and quite embarrassing It's, for we arc
unacquaintcd and quite Mt sea, and the
introduction, we all agree, without per-
mission, sans ccremonie, is sign of
clustering weather.
' n wave goes over the clumsy Junk.
n dame is deposited in my bunk, and
down at the door II terrific monk is try-
ing to cling to II lively trunk and uttering
supplications three pious nuns from
their pcrchcs fall and land against the
opposite wall, and spcctrcs sprawl along
the hall i'll utterly changed relations
the man who was sleeping is I'D instcnd
and tho man who was ND is now abcd,
thus Nature, rs bards have always said
Is 1rll OF her com! cnsations.
"A woman shricks, as I leap to the
deck: The ship is sinking We're
rushing to wreck The life prescrvcrs
have vanished ! The ruddcrs broke and
We're going down! Oh, save me, John,
| know L shall drown, my voyage of lif,
Is finished ! L creep where the life pro
servers are stored. A great sea, sliywart
sailing, comes down on the deck from
the gulf of clouds. A dutchman cling
to the larboard shrouds, and lifts hi
voice i'll wniling: 'Ach Gott in Him
mel he makes his moan, were ish [,
rest Of tc float bags gone? l finded hu
forty or twenty. In such M awfulIN
Shtorm like dat Gust then great way,
knocks him fiat. drcnchcs him, carries
away his hat, 'dcrc ought to be moro rs
aplcnty.'
"' See here = says I, whats this you
say the life prcscrvcrs you've taken
away?' collar him. what you done
with 'em, hcy?' My meaning he dimly
catches, and leads me drwn with NUT.
tered VOWS Il ladder as ST. ep rs the law
allows, to the stalls where sailors the
cattle house, and there eight strcakcd
and specklcd COWS are tied up snugly be-
tween the bows just under the forward
hatches. And eve v COW is a sailing
craft for each is covered above and
ahaft, over and under and fore and att
with life prcservcrs enough for raft
l'Shed to her hull securely, around the
horns and under the tail, between the
legs, and set like sail across the back
20 weather II gale, scaworthy are they
surely; and fed with II hnvorous cscu-
lent, i'll the crowded hold of the steamer
r"nt, they chew the cud of sweet con-
tent scrcnrl Y and dcmurcly.
"a buXom maiden is weeping nigh n
.;rat little cow with Il tranquil eye 4; she
hngs lis head with a loud good bye,
and says she knows it will have to die ;
compared with her high and stormy cry,
her fathers plaintivc groan and sigh are
merely n summer zephyr; it sounds
above the breakers roar expressing the
wish that the COWS were ashore, or the
t'mptcst less OF the float bags morc-of
III" latter, alas there are only four on
the neck of her pcttcd hcifcr!
The passengers gather, one by one
to ascertain the cause of the fun, and.
getting a glimpse of what has been done
dispcrse the gloom with iHushtcr; but
close to the hrifrr the girl abidcs, till,
seeing her grief, Old Neptune hides his
head, and the moon the storm divides,
and ont of the dark the vessel gldes,
md the wave is smooth thereafter"