St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1884-02-21

] IolSottcu ~ Idhc IL WITH nllu dJ tHe
start.
$50 I hurried along, slipping and
| tumhling about like fun.
''He hOllered again to me to hurry
mp, and seemed to be struggling with
something, a seal | supposed. And
sure enough, when got up to him, he
was lying atop of "A seal the like OF
which | hever saw; he had shot it, but
unfortunately not in fatal place, and
| suppose the animal had turned on
him, maddened with pain and there
they were rolling and tossing about,
and he was stabbing and stabhing as
hard as he could. | got to them just
in time, for the creature had pinned
him by the left arm, and had broken
it. A second more and the huge seal
was dead, for had blown its head halt
off
"The skipper lay dead as | thought,
but happily had only tainted his
! thick coats had saved him from a good
deal but he was terribly crushed and
his arm was hanging useless by his
side.
"When he came to himself he told
me to get his flask, which did, and
poured some rum down his throat, and
down my own, too, for that matter, for
though ! was not of a nature to be
easily frightened, yet | was rather
scared, can tell you, to see a big,
strong chap like our skipper lying
there as helpless as baby.
"NOw, mates, | must go about bit.
| would have We know that before we
left the schooner we had, among other
things, big bottle of rum put into the
boat, and the skipper, having IL flask
in his pocket, had left this with me,
for the kindness he was made of
wouldn't let him think bit more of
himself than he did of others.
$50 when | was pulling the boat
about, got pulling the bottle about as
well, and Pm sorry to say it, sir and
mates, but its Il fact that | nearly
emptied it before | left the boat, aud
suppose it Overcame me all at once !;
for after | had helped the captain as
best | could, and got him to sit up and
lean against small ridge, | felt my
head going round and round, the ice
seemed to be slipping away from me,
there was two shippers, or three, in
stead of one, and to make an end of it,
| was fair and square three sheets in
the wind. The poor skipper seemed
to know something was wrong with
me, and | was not too bad to feel
ashamed of myself. So | managed to
pull myself togethera little bit, though
l became very sleepy. And after
while the poor chap said, Bill, we
must get aboard for the fog is coming
on
"And just then we heard the ships
bell going like mad to warn us. So |
helped him to his feet as well as |
could, for though was strong young
chap, he was a very heavy man, and
we managed. though it took us a long
time, to get to where we imagined the
boat to be; but no boat was there. A
powder flask, which | had dropped in
my haste, told us we were at the right
place, but the dingy was gone. Whether
| had moOred it or not | couldn't say-
that vile rum had so muddled me.
"The skipper groaned and fell down
in dead faint; the fog had crept oveI
| the sea that lay between us and the
Mary Jane, and we were lost men, and
all through my drunken folly.
81 was daZed for a time, but some
| thing told me that sleep meant death
so | reused myself, and managed to
bring the captain round again and
then | hailed and hailed for dear life
but my schooner ahoy,' Mary Jane
ahoy,' was only lost in the dense mass
of fog, and all hope seemed gone.
'"The skipper, crippled as he was
could do nothing, and but for his great
bodily strength, and his heart of oak
] f,,, l,.,.
English hearts after all-he would have
died there and then.
"The cold was dreadful, and the fog
got thicker and thicker. Some of you
know what a fog is on the banks o.
! Newf7nland, mates, and can easily be
lieve we were in a pretty pickle. Goo
help us said the skipper; 'for, Bill,
calculate (ye see he always did calcu-
late, mates) we shant see the Mary
Jane again tonight, for | believe the
ice is drifting away from her; how
ever, we amt a-going to cave in JUS
yet, though | am hove to, Bill.
"And then | gave way, mates, anC
cried out that it was all my fault, ant
that had killed him through drinking
of the rum, which made me so onsen
sible that | forgot to make the boa
fast.
"But he told me to stow all that, 70
though | had done wrong, | was sorry
for it, and we'd battle the watch vet
please God.
"Well, we moved about bit, hin
leaning on me, and | made him drinl
the rum that remained in his flask, "a
| told him | had had enough to last III,
lifetime, and that if ever we go
aboard again, I'd never taste anothe
drop as long as ! lived.
"And after bit he said, Bill, i
can't be more than three O'Clock,
calculate so we had better make tn,
most of the light, and get a hold o
that troublesome seal, and get the ski
off of him, for it amt many steps t,
where we left him. So | helped hin
along, and as we could see a little bet
ter nOw-fOr the fog had either lifted
bit, or we ha got used TO tive man
aged to get TO the very spot where til
creature was, stiff as bit of the ic
on which he lay. Well, the captain
could not help, and it was long jOb
and bard one too; but got the ski
off at last, and We put it round us an,
felt bit warmer; but the skipper Ia
. got weaker and weaker, for he was i
great pain, and all | could do for hin
. was to roll him up in the skin, so as t
/ keep him as warm as possible. Afte
; IA time he fell asleep, or tainted again
: | don't know which. And | lost a
power too, and sank down beside hin
And then seemed to go back doze
2 years and more, and | was kneeling a
, my mothers knee, and repeating til
f little prayers she had taught me-for
: seemed to know them all again in
, minute-and then the sleep seemed t
be stealing over me; and was so bt
t numbed with cold that | suppose 10;
[ | con nscinnsness