Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-06-13

sure enough. But the 1oremast Is gone
and they have rigged out a jurymast in
its place. That puzzled me a little at
first, and one of the boats is gone from
the davits, but can see the figure head
of old Ethan Allen and his cooked hat at
the bows. Yes, that's the Ticonderoga,
and with this wind she'll be in GARDENERS
Bay this afternoon"
At this announcement, Uncle Bill
leaned over the parapet of the tower,
made speaking trumpet of his hand and
shouted to the crowd waiting below,
"The Ti-con-de-ro-gaw In less than an
hour the news of the safe return of the
whaler was the subject of joyful discus
sion in every household of the village.
Now if the wind holds on, by O'Clock
they will cast anchor in the outer bay.
While the women are preparing the va
riety and abundance of food that nature
provides so bountifully for these dwell
ers by the sea, and looking to the apart
ments so long unoccupied that they shall
be in readiness, the men after the dinner
hour start for Sag Harbor to welcome and
bring home their sons and brothers.
They have not long to wait on the dock
before boatloads of men and sea-chests are
being rapidly rowed to land. Up the
dock stairs they swarm, swarthy young
men with the activity of cats and 'beard-
ed like the pard." The imagination can
picture better than the pen describe the
welcome they received, and no man
WINGED at the strong grips given and re-
ceived on that May afternoon on Long
wharf. But home was still ten miles
away. Soon the sea-chests were bundled
into the farm wagons and the procession
took its way toward Southampton.
"Well, Marshall" said Squire Gelston
to his son, as they left the toll-gate be-
hind them and entered the struggling
fringe of woods, through which the sum-
mer seabreeze must sift before it fans the
brows of the denizens of Sag Harbor,
''what detained you so long beyond the
time we naturally expected you to re-
turnW
Everything. As sailor you know
the old I'll. is an old tub anyhow, one of
those ships that make fourteen miles in
fifteen days. Then when we were re-
cruiting in vegetables and water in Hon
olulu had chance to ship home 500
barrels of oil and concluded to do so, af-
ter sounding the officers and crew, and
cruise a month or two for sperm whales
off the coast of Africa. So l laid in some
more casks and actually was lucky enough
to fill up again with sperm oil. It's the
best voyage I ever made. Then after leav-
ing the last whaling ground for home, in
latitude twenty-five degrees north we en-
countered a heavy gale that carried away
our foretopmast. We had taken in all
sail but reefed foretopsail, and kept her
as near the wind as we could till the gale
at its height split the topsail into ribbons
and brought down topmast, rigging and
all about our heads. The gale whirled
the ship around in the trough of the sea
and the only thing left was to cut away
the mast and run before the wind. We
were in some danger of being over
whelmed by the big seas that sometimes
broke over the stern but we rode it out,
and when the gale broke and the sea went
down we were good ways off our course.
However, we rugged out jurymast at the
fore, and saved the ship and cargo. We
lost one boat in the scrimmage and
thought ourselves lucky to get off as
lightly as that. Of course the seas often
swept the decks and made lively times
for ten or twelve hours. Every man on
board stood up tohis work like hero. p"
s'What kind of man did you find
your second mate Henry Mithell in those
times of danger3" the Squire asked.
GAS plucky man as ever trod a deck.
And quick to see and take advantage of
the means of handling the ship. Ask
the men what they think of him. sup
pose l owe my life to him to-day for his
promptness in knowing what to do and
doing it. We were off, three boats of
us, after a sperm whale. He came up
near me and my boatsteerer fastened a
harpoon into him. He began to show
fight, and just then Harry came up and
the whale made for his boat, head on.
Harry picked him several times with his
lance and thus kept off the attack, all the
time watching an opportunity to lance
him in vital part. I laid as close BY
as I dared, when suddenly the whale
turned to strike the boats with his tail,
and Harry seized the moment to lance
him in earnest, at the same time shouting
to his men to back water. This saved
his boat in the nick of time, but the
hukes came crashing down on the gun
vale of my boat, and broken oar OIL
lance-pole knocked me insensible, over.
board. The whale was spouting blood
Just out of reach, and Harry pulled uI
and was in the water instantly. He sue,
ceeding in reaching me and brought mt
to the surface, and both of us were taker
aboard. l was not much hurt, bu
stunned by blow on the head, and wa'
over it in day or two. Yes, he is pure
grit, and as good seaman as any master
in the Harbor."
What were the feelings of the gooG
squire at this moment we can easily con
lecture. A revolution begun in the Sc
bonac woods now fairly converted him
Yes, he acknowledged it at last to him
self, Harry Mitchell was good enougl
even for his own loved Nellie. He no
only could no longer oppose the match
he would take the boy as one Of his owl
sons. In this frame of mind he pulle'
up his team at the old homestead. A