The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1885-10-14
JACK FAVOR.

The waves ran high upon the shores o
Chappaquiddick, beating themselves into
foam and casting shadows Of spray high in
to the air. The night was dark and wierd
and, though it was midsummer, the vino
from the ocean sent a sharp chill through
i the frame and caused the two young mer
who stood upon the beach to shiver with
the cold.
LET us 60 in," suggested one; 'you have
studied the scene enough, and can catch the
idea ON you canvas tomorrow"
"In just a moment" said tina other,
Here comes the coast patrol. Perhaps
you may coax a story from him."
A moment more and the surfman, his
lantern casting a little circle of light upon
the sand about his feet and causing the
deep gloom around to seem the more in.
tense by contrast, drew near and hailed the
watchers:
"Ahoy! there! Bless me, men, 1 thought
| you were two ghosts, at first. 1t isn't often
that people come down to the beach such
nights as this, though it doesn't rain"
"Weli, it is much pleasanter to come here
when one does it for amusement than when
one Is obliged to come, as you are. Your
life must be a hare one"
AYE, sir, there isn't much pleasure in it.
But [ nave a family now, and the woman
isn't easy when Pm off on a v'y'ge. So, |
put up with this. though it's hard work and
poor pay. But the Life Saving Service is a
great thing, sir. Many a life has been saved
that, without the Service, wouldn't be
worth a nickel. Poor Jack Favor, now.
might not AVE been a helpless cripple, ii
the Service had only been working when he
was wrecked. You know Jack. It's him
that peddles peanuts up to the Bluffs:
You've seen hin there. He was wrecked
right OF this beach,"
How did it happen?"
wall. you see, Jack went as mate O. the
coaster Sally and Jane He used to go
whaling, but after he got married he went
one voyage an und a little chap waitin'
to call him daddy when he got back. So
he thought he wouldn't go any more long
y'y'ges. He tried tishin' an bought a
smack, but the cap'n OF the Sally and Jane
urged him SO ha d to go one wye to the
Carolinas that he let his smack an went.
"'Ill be back by THANKSGIVING | heard
him say to his wife as he bid her goodbye
at the door. | see tn tears in her eyes rs
she watched him get into the yawl an row
out to the schooner, an later in the day
she came out here with the little one an
watched the schooner sail for Boston,
where she was to take in ii cargo. She had
come here with lumber for the Bluffs, from
Maine.
ut was such a common thing for men to
go ii coastin' that nobody thought any
thing OF it. The sailing OF a whaler used to
he an event Durin' the war, when | see
companies go out from New Bedford for
the front, an see wuInen hangin' Ola the
necks Of the men. an cryin' an takin' on,
it made me think OF the old whalin' days
for all the world.
'Ye See, Jack was the only Vineyard man
aboard the Sally and Jane She hailed
from Portland, an had only put in here
for a harbor, after dischargin' at the Bluffs
an to get a mate, for the mate had fell
sick an was sent to the hospital. That's
how Jack caine to ship.
Wall. time vent by, an Jacks wife had
one letter, mailed at Charleston, sayin'
that the schooner had Jest finished takin'
in her cargo an would sail for Boston the
next day. If we have fair winds and good
luck We shall reach Boston by the 25th he
wrote, an as Thanksgiving comes on the
2Sth, I'll be in good time to eat the turkey
with you an the boy
The woman knew well enough that he
was likely to be delayed by headwinds at
hat season Of the year, an didn't much
expect him by Thanksgiving Day; but still,
she thought, she would lie ready for him.
iiut on the 23d, two days before he had
SAP = hiohS poAC az DOct'u VlCAC
came up a heavy blow an storm from the
east ard, a there was a tremendous sea
on. The sea tonight is notlin' to it.
Right in the worst Of the tempest we heard
a signal gun, an then We see a schOOner
comm right on shore. OF course it was the
Sally and jane you lave guessed that.
But there wasn't a thing that mortal man
could do to help the poor fellows. We
watched her till she struck, and then we
see the mainmast go by the board, and
then we knew it must be all over with the
crew, and when we turned away from the
beach to go home there lay Jacks wife in a
dead faint among the beach grass. Sue
had seen it and knew.
1t was Saturday afternoon when she
an in the night the clouds
broke away and the wind veered clear
round to the west'ard and stayed there all
day. The next day it thickened up again
and the wind came round to the BASTARD
again, an for two days we had a blindin'
snow storm. Then it cleared away again
the wind went down. By Thursday
the sea had got quite calm, an, as it was
Day an a holiday, a few of US
thought we would row out to the wreck an
see how she laid. We found her pretty
we'll broke up, but the foremost was still
standin' and she had listed to port. Part
liz io1Cto pa 1 q tIiS Ill CiC ioS
trees, an as we crossed her bows an come
on the port side we heard a low cry, as
if somebody was sufferin' dreadfulIy.
"'God saw us, men, said l. There's
somebody in the foretop."
1T wasn't a minute before two or three
Of US was up tie mast an cuttin' away the
tackle with our sheath knives, for it was
frozen stiff. An what do you think We
dashed to the foretop cross-trees an
wrapped in d hit OF sail we had seen hang
thereo 1t Vas poor Jack Favor-what
left OF him. We hadn't none OF US an
idea that anything could live drought that
st rm and cold. or we would a.
tried to reach the wreck before.
''We took him down as quick as we could, |
an wrapped our great coats around him
an took him ashore. We didn't dare to !
tell his wife, for we knew that she lay sick
bed with grief, and we were afraid the
joy would kill her. So while part of
Is did what we could to save the poor fell
Ows lie, two went over to the parsons to
yet him to break the good news. He came
'ight over. though it was most time for his
! hankssivln sermon, an how he told her |
know. But he told me afterward thai
Is soon as she understood, she saiu: I'm
,oilg t., get up an get up she did. though
he hadn't lifted her head for mure'n four
lays, an she went right to him an had him
home an she tended him through
us sickness, an with Il smile always on her
IN her eyes jest silnin' with Joy.
The parson got to neetin a little late.
N when he rz up in the pulpit ne was So
o! Joy that he had to tell the people all
bout it In place OF a sermon, a , a pretty
God Thanksgiving dinner it was"
What do you think the people did?
want'd to show how glad they all
'ere. an almost every mar in the meetin'
went of an had it sent to Jacks
louse, with his compliments. Of course,
70 one man knew what the Others did. So
ack's wife had twenty or thirty turkeys
her"
What did she do with them alp"
'I1i tell We. She ust made out a list OF
ii the poor people an widders and lone
omen she could think OF an sent them
ach a turkey, an on each one she put a
ard that said:
''Rejoice with mo, for / have fouhd that
mich WAS lOSt,h