Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1889-11-14

together with tho shouts OF tho office
Of tho deck through his trumpet wor
blended with nnswcging cries from th
topmen hnc others aloft, who were furl
Ing aid reehne tho heavier canvas---thl
lighter sails, evidently, having alread,
been taken in.
All these sights and noises, together
with the din Of the tempest, the roar o
the ocean, the lurching and rolling o
the huge black hull as II was hurlot
along like mere wisp through IN,
angry waters, surprised and puzzled
met and IN the half-dazed condition
Of my suddenly awakened brain, scarce
ly realizing my precarious situatiof
there aloft, my hold Of the stay, round
which, when asleep. had still kept my
arm, became loosened by a violent pitch
Of The ship, and away went, falling
headlong from my position.
Down-down, with horrible, sicken.
ing sensation in my breast, and even al
this dreadful moment with q sort OF
consciousness that my impending doom
was the result of neglect Of duty, l shot
through space toward the dimly-lighted
deck, which, before my distorted vision,
seemed springing up TO meet me and
thus hasten my fate OF being dashed to
death. Wildly throwing out my arms
and clutching at the air the instant ]
fell, something the next moment
touched one Of my hands. 1t was, as
atterward learned, . dangling rope
the foreto'-gallant studding sail
halliard - which had previously
been accidentally loosened from
The belaying-pin below, and around this
rope my fingers closed with a convulsivq
grasp, while my other hand was quickly
used TO add to the force Of my grip.
Alasl my descent had been too swift to
enable me TO retain my hold. AS my
body ''righted" my hands kept to the
rope but for a few seconds, my fingers
slid away from the strands, and my de-
scent through the air continued. In some
degree my grasp of the lire had checked
the force OF my fall, but had as yet de-
scended only about thirty feet, and the
frightful distance Of nearly seventy feet
Of space yet intervened between me and
the deck, when, to my surprise, my fur
ther downward course was suddenly
stopped with a jerk that nearly took the
breath from my body, and l found my
self swaying like a pendulum in mid
air, with rope securely tied about my
breast beneath the arms.
1t is perhaps needless to state that this
rope had been made fast TO me, while
was asleep, though by whom could not
imagine at the time. 1t had proved to
be the means Of saving my life, but had
not my fall been previously checked by
my clutching the studding-sail halliard,
as have mentioned, / think / would
have been somewhat injured by the jerk
Of the rope when my swift descent was
so suddenly stopped.
Now as / swung inward toward the
shrouds, l clutched them, and shaking
like leaf, still feeling faint and dizzy,
had braeed myself against the rigging,
while ! stood on the ratlines, when, de-
spite the dense gloom, Imagined saw,
directly ahead Of the frigate, the dim
outline Of a small partly-dismasted YES
sci looming up, not four ships lengths
of, her hull and portion of her shat.
tered jib-toom lighted by the phosphor-
escent CLEAN Of the raging, foaming wa
ters.
"Sail OF right ahead!n Icried. as loud
ly as could, and my cry was repeated
by the sailing-master and one OF the
lookouts on the forecastle, the master
calling out, an instant after, TO the Lieu
tenant, in a voice Of thunder:
"HaTd-a-port, sir, hard-a-port, or we
will be a-foul OF herl'
u,.I
the officer of the deck.
''Hard-a-port it is, sirl' bawled the
quarterrnas.er, but 1t was evident that
no human power could now save us rom
running into the craft ahead.
my God, sir, she is doomed" shouted
the sailing-master 10 me. "Why did
you not sing out before?"
A choking sensation in my throat pre-
vented my answering. One Of the oc-
casional flashes OF lightning tSat ac-
companied this tempest had just plaialy
revealed 70 me the fated craft ahead,
and that brief glimpse had shown me
that she was the brig, our tender, which
was commanded by my father.
We would run her down-this could
not, IL was plain, be now avoided-and
il was all my fault. Had not gone to
sleep--badI / held a strict watch, as
Lieutenant Biddle had ordered me TO do
Il would, from my lofty position, have
seen the craft soon enough TO have en-
abled us 70 keep the ship of and away
from her.
Now, although the two men at the
helm jammed the wheel hard over, the
great frigate, in that gale, with nearly
every stitch Of canvass slowed, was
slow TO answer, and on she went with
terrific velocity, until suddenly there
was tremendous crash, as she struck
the brig amidships with her enormous
bows.
l heard the noise Of the splintered
woodwork, the grinding sound Of the
frigate's keel as she dashed along,
scraping a few cracking fragments
under her forefoot; then she went boom
ing on, probably leaving behind only
few shattered pieces Of the craft she
had destroyed.
Meanwhile / had listened for some
wholesome cry-from the Inflated yes
sci, and had fancied-thOugh 1t might
have been the wild shout from one OF
our own crew blending with the din of
the fierce gale-that had heard yell
of agony as we went crashing through
and over the brig.
But whether or not that cry had come
from the destroyed craft, the terrible
sense OF my being 10 blame for the loss
Of her crew and Of her Captain-my oDn
Jather-lay like a heavy weight upon my
conscience, and as / now unfastened
from my breast the rope which had
saved my life when fell from aloft,
wished, for the moment, in my wild
grief, that there had been no hindrance
10 my being dashed to instant death on
the deck below.
In that tempest and in the deep gloom
there was evidently no chance Of any Of
- l...H.. a.