Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1888-06-07

bho HouoW was now coming to resemble the
ways on which ships are launched: and
you would have conceived by the appear
ance OF 1t that If it should slope a little more
yet, OH would slide the schooner for the yea /;
and In the right posture, too-that is, stern
on But prayed with all my might and
main for anything but this. 1t would have
Deen very wei had the hollow gone in gem
tie declivity to the wash of the sea--to the
water itself, In short but it terminated at
the edge OF cliff, not very high, indeed, but
high enough to warrant the prompt founder
ing OF any vessel that should launch herself
off it, Happily the keel was TOO soidIv
frozen into the ice to render passage of this
! description possible; and tho conclusion l mr.
rived at, after careful inspection. was that
the sole chance that could offer for the de-
livery OF the vessel to her proper element Law
in the cracking up and disruption of the bed
on which she lay.
Satisfied as to the state of the ice and the
posture of the schooner, viewed from with
out, sent a slow and piercing gaze along thu
ocean line, and then returned 10 tho shin.
The strong wind, the dance of the sea. the
grandeur of the great tract OF whiteness.
vltalized by the flying OF violet cloud shad-
ows along it, had fortified my spirits, and
being free flor a while) of all superstitious
dread, determined to begin b. exploring
the forecastle and ascertaining il more bodies
were in the schooner than those two in the
cabin and the giant form on deck 1 threw
some coal on the fire, and placed alt OK
tongue along with the cheese and a lump Of
the frozen wine in pannikin into the oven
for had mind to taste the vessels stores.
ana thought the tongue would make an agree
able change, and then, putting candle into
the lantern, walked very bravely to the fore
castle and entered it,
was prepared for the scene of confusion.
but l must say it staggered me afresh with
something of tho force of the first impression.
Sailors chests lay open in all directions, and
their contents covered the decks. There was
the clearest evidence here that the majority
of the crew had quilted the vessel in a VIC
lent hurry, turning out their boxes to cram
their money and jewelry into their pockets
and heedlessly flinging down their own and
the clothes which had fallen to their share.
This had every right to suppose from the
character of the middle on the floor: for
passing the light over a part Of it. witnessed
great variety of attire Of kind which GER
tainly no sailor in any ago ever went to sea
with-not so fine, perhaps, as that which lay
in the cabins, but very good, nevertheless,
particularly the linen.
In many places, glittering among the
clothes, We're gold and silver coins, a few sill
yer ornaments, such as buckles, and watches
things not missed by the pirates in the
transport of their flight. In kicking a coat
aside discovered q couple of silver cruci-
fixes bound together, and close by were a
silver goblet and the hilt of a sword broken
short off for the sake of the metal it was made
of. Nothing ruder than this interior is i'm
aginable The men must have been mighty
put to it for room. There was a window in
the head but tn. snow yelled it, May be the
rogueS messed together aft, and only used
this forecastle to lie in. Right under the
hatch, where the light was strongest, was a
dead rat. stopped to pick it up, meaning
to fling it on to tho deck, but its tail broke
Off at the rump like a pipe stem.
Close against the after bulkhead that sep
arated the forecastle from the cook room was
little hatch. There was n quantity of
wearing apparel upon it, and l should have
missed it but for catching sight of some
three inches of the dark line the cover made
in the deck. On clearing away the clothes
perceived a ring similar to that in the laza-
rette hatch! and it rose to my first drag and
left me the hold yawning black below. /
traversed by iron pins for the hands and
feet. The atmosphere was nasty, and to give
it time to clear went to the cook house and
warmed myself before the fire.
The fresh air blowing down tho forecastle
hatch speedily sweetened the hold lowered
the lantern and followed, and found myself
on top of some rum or spirit casks, which on
my hitting them returned me q solid note
There was fore peak forward in the bows,
and the casks went slowed to the bulkhead
of it. The top Of this bulkhead was open four
feet from the upper deck, and on holding tho
lantern over and putting my head through
saw quantity of Goals. If the forepeak
went as low as the vessels floor then calcu-
lated there would not be less than fifteen
tons of coal in it. This was q noble discovery
to fall upon, and it made me feel so happy
that do not know that the assurance of my
being Immediately rescued from this island
could have given lighter pulse to my heart
The candle yielded very small light, and
it was difficult to see above yard or so
ahead or around. l turned my face aft, and
crawled over the casks and camo to under
the main hatch, where lay coils of hawser,
buckets, blocks and the like; but there was
no pinnace, though here she had been slowed,
as sailor would have promptly 70
tie way beyond, under tho gr as
tho powder magazine, a srr ded
compartment with litt, of
which was small bulls eyr cred
warily enough, YOU this
place. out pow
der. ID: and
yet, ZACH more
da vino and spirits in the
lNz hold.
I cd tobe explored-th after
part, er the lazerette deck to the
ruddor 1t Ihad seen enough; crawling
about tl;.- black interior was cold, lonesome,
melancholy work, and it was rendered pc
culiarly arduous, by the obligation of caution
imposed, By my having to bear light amid
freight mainly formed of explosives and
combustibe matter. had found plenty of
coal, and that sufficed. So / returned by the
same road l had entered, and sliding to the
bulkhead door to keep the cold of the fore
castle out of the cook room, stirred the fire
into blaze and sat down before it to think.