Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1888-07-05


nights rest to sit up without tumbling off
the bench
! This time | carried with INC an old uer-
spectlve glass l had noticed in the chest i'm
my cabln-the chest in which were the nauti-
cal instruments, charts and papers-and
! leveled u along the coast of the island: but
IL was poor glass, and found Lcould man
age nearly rs well with the naked eve
There was no change of any kind. only
that there was a sensible diminufion in the
/ blowing OF the wind, and a corresponding
decrease III the height of the seas The ice
stretched in considerable he'd on either
hand the ship and ahead Of her; the water
frothed freely over it, and there was a great
Janghng and flashing Of broken pieces but
the hull was no longer heavily hit by them
! l got into the main chains to view tn,
BODY OF the vessel, and noticed with satisfac-
ton that the constant pouring of the sea had
thinned down the frozen snow to the depth
OF at least foot. This encouraged me to
| hope that the restless tides would sap to her
Keel at least and put her into posture TO DO
easily launched by the blow of a surge upon
her bows--that is if fortune continued to
| keep her head on.
To determine the hour and our position,
fetched quadrant from my cabin, and was
| happily just in time to catch the sun crossing
| the meridian Ny watch was half an hour
fast, 50 had been out of my reckoning to
the extent of thirty minutes ever since | had
been cast away. | made our latitude TO be
64 degs. Is Minis. south, and the computation
| was pe<haps near enough.
This business ended, went to the cook
house to prepare dinner, and the first object
| saw was Tassard fat upon his face near the
door that opened into the cabin. He groaued
when | picked him up-wbich MANAGED
without much exertion Of strength. for 50
much had he shrunk that | dare saw more
than half his weight lay in his clothes-and
set him upon his bench with his back to the
dresser ! put my mouth to his ear md
roared, Are you hurt. His head nodded
as if he understood me, but question if he
dsi. He was the completest picture of old
age that you could imagine ! fetched
couple of spears from the arms room. and
cutting them to his height put one in each
hand, that he might keep himself propped.
and while my own dinner was broiling |
made him mess Of broth, with which | fed
hisl, for now that he had the sticks ne would
not let 50 Of them. But in any ease doubt
if his trembling hand could have lifted the
spoon to his lips without capsi2ing the con
teiets down his beard.
With some small idea Of rallying the old
villain, mixed him very stiff hummer Of
brandy, which he supped down out Of my
hand with the utmost avidity. The draught
soon worked in him, and he began to move
his head about, seeking me in his blind way.
and then cried, in his broken notes, 81 have
lost the use of my legs, and cannot walk.
Mother of God, what shall ! do! Oh, holy
st. Antonio, what is to become of me!n
guessed from this that, impelled by habit
or some small spur of reason, he had risen to
go on deck, and had fallen. lie went on va
porting pitifully, gazing with sufficient stead
fastness to let me understand that his vision
received something of my outline, though he
would fix his eyes either to the left or right
of me, as though he was not able to sec il he
looked straight; and this, and his mournful
cackle, and his nodding head bowed form.
propped hands and diminished face, made
him as distressful and melancholy picture
of Time as ever mortal man viewed He
broke off in his rambling to ask for more
brandy taking it FOR granted that | was still
in the cook room, for | never spoke: and
filled a can for him, and as before held it to
his mouth, which he opened widc-a piece of
behavior which went to SHOW that some of
was strong dose and, cooperating with the
other, soon seized hold ON his head. and pres
entity he began to laugh to himself and talk.
and even broke into a stavc or two-some
French song, which he delivered in a voice
like the squeaking Of rat, alternating with
the growing Of a terrier.
guess his stumbling upon this old French
catch (which l took it to be from seeing him
fcebly flourish one of his sticks, as if inviting
q chorus put him upon speaking his own
tongue altogether; for though he continued
to chatter with all the volubiity his breath
would permit during the whole time l sat
eating, not one word Of English did he speak.
and not one word therefore, did | under
stand. Seeing how it must be with him pres
emily, / brought his mattress and rugs from
his cabin and had scarce laid them down
when he let fall one of his sticks and dropped
over | grasped him, and, partly lifting,
partly hauling, got him on his back and
covered him up In few minutes he was
asleep.
trust ] shall not be deemed inhuman if
confess that | heartily wished his end woui
come If he went on living he promised to
be an intolerablc burden to me, being quito
helpless. Besides. he was much too old for
this world, i'll which man VIC reaches tie
age of 30 is pointed to as Jrt of wonder.
Nothing worth recor ing happened that
day The wind sac1ened, and the ice trav-
eled so slow that at shutdown / could not dis
cover that we had made more than a quarter
of mile of progress to the north since noon,
though we had settled by half as much again
that distance westward.
/ had not closed my eyes on the previous
night, ami was tired out when the evening
arrived; and as no good could come of my
keeping watch, for the simple reason that
it was not IN my power to avert anything
that might happen, | tumbled some further
covering over the Frenchman, who had lain
on the deck all the afternoon, sometimes
doing, sometimes waking and talking to
himself, and appearing on the whole very
easy and comfortable, and went to my cabin.
| slept sound the whole night through, and
on waking went on deck before going to the
cook house and lighting the furnace las was
my custom) 50 impatient was to observe our
state, and to hear such news as the ocean
had for me. 1t was after S-a very curious
day, somewhat darksomc, and a dead calm,
with q large long swell out Of the southeast.
The sky was full of clouds with STOPPING
appearance in the hang of them that re-
minded YOU of the belly of n hammock;
Jney were OF SallOW Drown, very UuCOIu-
mon; some of them round about slipped the
sea line, and their shadows, obliterating
those parts of the cincture which they over
hung, broke the continuity of the horizon as
though there were valleys in the ocean there.
A good part of our bed of ice was gone-at
least fourth of it, but the schooner still lay
as strongly fixed as before. / had come to
the deck half expecting to find her afloat
from the regular manner Of her heaving, and
was bitterly disappointed to discover her
rooted as strongly as ever in the ice, though
the irritation softened when | noticed how
the bed had diminished. The mass, with the
ship upon it, rose and sank, with the slug
gish, squatting motion of water logged yes
sci. 1t was an odd sensation to my legs after
their long rest from such exercise The heav-
ing satisfied me that the base of the bed did
not go deep, but Mt the same time it was all
too solid for me, could not doubt: for. had
the sheet been as thin as l bad hoped it, it
must have given under the weight of the
schooner and rplaacod baY.