Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-02-01
IN An OPEN BOAT.


hospital, Brooklyn, may be seen sailor a
work on sketch of a wrecked bark sinking
In stormy sea- The sailor is TN elderly man
but he works away with confidence, and there
is something about his picture that jndlcates
al once that the man knows all about tbs
scene be is portraying. Such, in fact, is The
case, for the picture accurately represents tht
disaster which resulted in landing him in thc
hospital, while four of his shipmate5 lost theil
lives out Of hand. the rest having been saved
only after floating about in an open boat al
sea, with no food worth mentioning, for more
than n week. The Old man is David Lund
blad, and he was the carpenter of the Swedish
bark Augusta that foundered at sea late OF
the afternoon of Saturday, Oct -, 1857.
The Augusta sailed out OF Swansea with q
cargo OF coal, bound for Aspinwall, on Sept
s. under the command OF Capt NJ Mailer
and was manned by & crew Of fifteen. all told
including a stout young British cabin boy
named Tom AIasten, who was shipped at
Swansea. The voyage out for more than a
month was as pleasant rs one could ask for,
there being a SUCCESSION of favUring winds
until after the Azores had been left astern,
where the northeast trades were found and
carried day after day without starting a
found, after working out his noon observa-
tions, that he was in latitude is dass North
and longitude IS dogs. west The sky did not
loo!, very favorable just about that time, and
the barometer vas falling, but Capt Maier
had no iGea that he had worked out his last
problem in navigation when he announced
the position Of the ship and her course to
Mate Spangberg a few minutes later. The
he Ellt in
creased III force and the weather got thick 50
that TIE lighter staysails, royals and topgal-
liant sails were taken in before I.ightfall. The
nen were all KEEP. on deck during tho dog
watches slowing the Lighter sails. After s
o'clock, finding the wind still increasing rap
idly in force, Capt. MaieT got i'll the spanker
and then hauled up and furled the main
course, and put up the ship square before the
wind, which was then hauling to the east
ward The rain fell in solid sheets, and the
darkness was such that the men had to feel
their rag about decks and UP aloft in short
eninE sail. 1t was not until after midnight
that the canvas was snugged down to suit the
captain. There were then set the two main
topsailS, the foresail, and fore lower topsail,
ard the forestaysail There was a heavy,
short sea running tt.a5 made the vessel labor
very hard but when the pumps were tried,
soon after midnight, she was found to be dry.
At daylight or Friday morning the wind
had settled into gale dead from the east
ward that drove the deeply laden bark
through the ugly black waves in way that
strained the hull, spars and canvas terribly.
The sea would sweep under and toss her up
where the full force of the gale could strike
her and make her rigging scream and howl
antil every other sound was lost, and then
she would plunge down into the hollow and
send tho boiling water away from her bows
with a roar that was almost IS loud as the
bowling Of the rigging overhead. She was
rushing along on fair course for her deSti-
nation, and her captain was loath TO shorten
sail further, but while he hesitateQ the storm
did it for him. At s o'clock, as the vessel
rose on an unusually large wave, the upper
Inaintopsaii blew clean away with q noise
like the explosion of II dynamite bomb, leav-
ing the bolt ropes and = few shrcds of canvas
To form the outlines of n sail, like the lines
that represent sails in an artists free hand
Sketch.
Thus admonished, Capt. Maier prepared to
shorten sail still further. The nlaintopsail
yard was lowered to the cap, and then the
men began to reeve off splitting lines on the
forpSaii. intending to take that in next, and
attcrward the fore lower topsail. She would
have then been allowed TO run for it with
I0aia lower topSai! and foreStaysail set, but
before they were ready TO start tack or sheet,
the fOrJSail blew away as the main upper
topsail had done. II WIS Immediately fol
lowed by the fore lower toissail, and shredS
&C the two pieces Of canvas went flying off 10
leeward like a Aock OF some new sort OF wild
fowl
This was at about o'clock The effect Of
taking SO much canvas Off her was at once
apparent. Her speed decreased, and the seas
that had before vaiaiy chased her now rose
up and swooped down on her quarter deck
in a way that meant mischief. Pretty soon
one larger than ordinary swept on board and
went crashing along forward bursting in
cabin doors and windows, and knocking bull
warks % shivers Another followed. COM
p,etiug the wreck of the bUiwarl;S, and leav-
ing the deck bare of everything movable eX-
cept The big spare spsrs dashed on each side
forward OF the quarter deck. Such warn
ings could not be ignored. Such seas, If
they continued 10 board her, would pound
her out of sight in notime, SIZE had to be
hove ia or founder.
At $50 the word was passed to heave her
to on the port tack, ard the men crswled for
ward between seas and hauled down the
foresJaySails. Quantity Of oil was alsn
poured over forward to prevent the water
from breaking on board, and then the wheel
was put down and the yards hracsd Under
the influence Of this work tie vessel slowly
got her head around 20 the south. But al
though the oil prevented to a certain extent
tho breaking OF the seas about the bow, there
was either TOO little Of it used or it had not
been over long enough 10 prevent disaster.
As she Sct hroads.da Oil 10 the sea huge
wave broke fair on her deck. sire heeled her
Zee stanchlons out of sight under the inliu-
;lce of the blow, and then the next wave
ickcd her as 1t were out OF the SLOUGH and
bsscd her child might toy boat. The
increasing blast struck her, ard her sole re-
naming sail, the lower maintopsaii. blew
away ike puff of smoke. She threatened 10
fall away then and roll herself under in the
trough of the sea, but the men got I'D = bit
Of canAaS IN the weather mizzen rigging, and
she then came 10 and rode somewhat easier
Fox the first time since the gale BEGAN the
might before, the men thought they could
now get little rest, 1t was impossible for
them 10 get to the forccastle, and Icy the cap
tain'S orders they were taken into TIE cabin,
where Steward Ekstrum served a glass of
brandy ana a portion of cold meat and bread
to each man. Somewhat refreshed by this
they got back on the quarter dscl The seas
constantly swept across the deck, SO that no
one could stand st the pumps, and ropes were
rove so that tho pumps could 30 worked NON
the quarter cccs Ii was found thar she was
leaking, but no one supposed that the Lax
Ec..-t al =. ferrous. although tie well could