The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1886-03-11

COuIu leel-uOrTIoio sehso'ou
that our little vessel was being
borne down and carreeing over
There was pom lerous, grating,
crunching noise overhead, mingled
with terrified shouts aud cries.
rben the water rushed into the
cabin, drenching me in n moment ]
rose, half-swimming 10 it, amids,
the boxes, boards and clothes. For
some moments the samo heavy.
grinding noise continued overhead.
II WAS tho keel OF the large vessel
passing over us crushing us down.
| even heard the thrasbing OF bel
huge screw. We were at that mos
ment twenty feet under water, thrust
bodily down by tho sheer weight
and momentum of the steamer. aud
that, too, before our little craft had
time to fill or sink for the instant
the steamers q keel passed off ber, !
folt tho schoouer give a mighty
luich. which pitched me bcadlong
again aud then she rose to the
surface.
"lialf,stranglinS, and tumbling
about, i gained foothold, and
standing up, found my head clear Of
water. was still in the cabin, but
the water came up to my waist. l
was so daized that | had little idea
what had happened at first |
thought for time that the schooner
had sunk, aud | wondered that tue
water did not fill bor and drown
me but after few moments foit
tho motion of the waves. aud knew
then that wo were still ahOat. | say
zee, for | did not then know that
was the only person loft alive on
board Immediately, too, made
the discovery, by stepping about
aud taking hold Of the objects
around me, that l was Staadiag OH
ceiling of our little cabiu, or in 9TH
or words, tho under side of the deck,
aud that the schoOcr was cJuse-
queutly capsized, or nearly 80, aud
floating keal upward Then for u
time ! gave myself up for lost But
the water did not rise any higher
and though the hull careened some.
what to one side, it Continued to
float. l was inside the hull of II
capsized vessel, aud could not get
out If the little cabin filed com-
pletoly, | must drown, whether the
hull sank or not. There was now II
space three or four feet by nine or
ten in length free of water, though
tho water swashod back and forth in
it every time the hulk rolled on the
waves
"rhus, in utter darkness, | stood
without II single chance Of escape
that | could think Of and what
were 10Y thoughts l must let tie
reader Imagine, if he can. At nine
teen, with so much Of life before
one, it is terrible for a young per-
son to feel himself entolnbed alive,
aud bouud to certain death The
rest OF the crew, reflected, had
) either been drowned or picked up
, by the steamer. Better thousand
times been drowned at once, | re-
} hected, than pent up there alive-in
a floating coffin. After long time
: began to notice something like
light in my narrow prison. 1t in
creased, coming up throught chinks
. in the choked-up gangway, din,
wavering, uncertain light, Morning
had dawnod, and the sun, perhaps,
WAS shining on the ocean. A little
of this wave-redocted light struggled
. up into my watery cell my eyes,
dstended in the darkness, we're able
dimly to recognize objects about
me and out Of the chests, boards
and other floating matter, was able
to build kind of platform above
the water, on which / drew up my
body. After time, too, began to
D be hungry aud thirsty. There WAS
; no food in the cabin, At times the
hulk hoated in the midst Of schools
! Of cod, hake aud perhaps other fish
l could hear them in the sea, all
around aud beneath me, for sounds
: n the water were borne in to me
with curious distinctness. knew
that fishing. vessels might be cruis-
ing near by, and after every few
D minutes / would shout as loud as |
} could. My voice had such a strange
I muflled sound that it frightened me
to hear it.
1 "Night cam, on again, aB / knew