The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1884-03-28

now catching glimpses of the burning
ship, to which even yet few human be
ings were clinging, and now of the beach
Could | ever reach it Was it worth
while to struggle any longer0 Every
movement caused intense pain in my
chest and lungs. 1t seemed so easy tc
die now.
81 ceased all efforts and raised my eyes
for last look at the sky. was struck
by peculiar golden haze of the atmos.
pherc, and the air seemed filled with
human forms lowering over the drown
ing. The air was filled with them, and
close beside me recognized my father,
brother and other friends who had died
many years before. They called me by
name. They pressed closely around me,
telling me to struggle on and they would
aid me-that my work was not done
hat | could not be spared yet.
GA little strength came back to me.
I remembered that l must be more than
half way to the shore. The water could
not be over five feet deep. let myself
down, and felt the sand under me.
Aided by my spirit friends whose hands
and presence were as real to me rs any
human touch, | crept on my hands and
knees on the sand for some distance.
rising often TO breathe. Becoming too
weak for this. with my heavy head CON
stantly falling backward, l sank to the
bottom, and drew my body with my arms
near and nearer to the shore, rising to
the surface as often as necessary. A man
was lying on the beach, one of the few
who ever reached it. When he saw me
feebly struggling he crept down to the
waters edge, and reaching out his hands,
tried to aid me. / slowly crept up a
little way ont of the water, but he was
so weak that, falling backward, I would
lose my hold and sink again.
" At last was lying on the Try sand.
How good it seemed to lie there, if only
l need never move again. Ny companion
spoke roughly yet kindly to me- telling
me that it was sure death to remain
there. [ refused to move, but, being
much stronger, he compelled me to get
up, and half supporting me in his arms.
dragged me unwillingly along. A far
mer met US and almost carried me across
the fields to a low two-roomed log cabin.
In the smaller room, containing two
beds, / was at last permitted to lie down
The long black neck of bottle was in
serted between my lips, and I drank until
1t was gently removed. The draught
warmed me.
81 alternated between consciousness
and Inconsistencies, but remember much
that passed about me. A large man
with tall hat black satin vest, and
heavy gold chain came in and laid down
upon the other bed He certainly had
not been in the water, and wondered if
he had been saved in boat. A man in
the next room was exclaiming mourn
fully
:" Mine Colt. Mine Colt! Mine
monish is all gone. Mine monish is all
gone Mine wife is gone. Mine son is
gone. Oh, mine Colt, mine monish is
all GOMEZ
Again and again that mournful vail
went up. Then I heard the tall man
call out wrathfuly
"'Won't some one kill that fellowN
"Then | dozel off again. When I
woke, more people were coming in,
bearing woman, and they were saving
she was the only woman saved. heard
them say that eight men swan ashore.
and twenty were saved in boat. Only
twenty-eight saved out of over four hun
drcd! Toward evening they put us all
IN heavy lumber wagon-on beds of
straw-to take us, they said, to 'Llovd's
Tavern, three miles away Jolting along
over rough road, the pain in my chest
and limbs became unbearable, and l re- ]
member nothing more.
days afterward l awoke from what
seemed long sleep. | found myself |
lying on bed in a strange room, alone.
The sound of voices came in through the
open window and from the halls, where |
people were constantly passing to and |
fro. They were talking of great dis
aster, of dead bodies lying in heaps on
the sand waiting to be claimed, and of |
others being buried in trench. There
was something about county lines, of !
coroners quarreling over fees, of thieves
in boats at night stripping the drowned |
bodies, and tearing rings from fingers
and ears. Those monotonous voices
were forever talking about that one |
thing,
"Well, what if they were dead? The |
dead were at rest. What had I to do |
with that shipwreck' Why did not
some one come to me? What was |
doing here in this strange room? Why |
was | so stiff and sore, so full of pain, SO |
weak | could not move? | fell asleep
again, and when awoke still the same
voices were talking about poor drowned |
bodies, thieves, coroners and boats;
and then came a dim recollection |
that I had known something about |
that shipwreck. 1t all came back to me |
clear and distinct. Soon afterward a
man came with broth and nourish-
ing food, of which | ate with relish
while he answered my questions. This
was Saturday, and had left Buffalo on
the Sunday preceding Lloyd's tavern
was fifteen miles from the city of Cleve-
land. must get up. How could | lie
here? must get into the air. must
go home, Home, Why, at home doubt
less they mourned me as dead. / had
been dead for days to them. | begged .
the man to bring me some clothes. He .
brought me some old garments much too
large for me, with an old black slouched |
hat, and helped me to dress, for l was