Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-08-31


THE COMMODORE SIGHTED AND FIRED.
the beach, and John Shaw, who was
standing near Commodore Perry, heard
him say to one of them, 'tThis isn t tbs
last of it, for the poor brig is stranded
we want to try to get her off. -
| "Whst Is the British brig?''
al think it the Nimrod, =" said tue
| commodore; "she has been cruising IN
these waters, l learned yesterday, on
| into the hGrbOr,'
| ''ohe is standing of, SAID the officer,
| and John looked and saw that she was.
He did not hear the oommodore's au-
swer, and presently he galloped away,
| after giving some directions to his men
| After two hours the British ship had
sailed out of sight, and many men in
| boats rowed out to try TO help get the
| brig off. But it was of no use. Tia
| tide was falling fast and they knew that
| they must wait for the flood tide before
there was any possibility of getting her
| off She proved to be Swedish brig
| with some name that no Yankee tongue
| could manage, probably, as no record
| was kept of it.
Men watched on the beach all day to
help If needed, and men from the fiotilg
| were sent on board, but flood tide came
| and the vessel did not bulge an inch.
Again the tide went out and in the early
| morning the enemy's brig came in sight
again and stood in for the harbor.
John Shaw could hardly be pursusded
to go to bed that night, and was on the
beach again at the very earliest dawn.
He ran up to one OF the seamen, whom
he knew, and said:
''lsn't the Britisher standing in?''
"She is that-and fast, too, and She
knock the Swede to pieces if she amt
stopped, too"
Just then Commodore Perry came rid
ing down and saw John and beckoned to
him.
John, - he said, "you run and tell
your father to call out the militia and tell
him to bring the two twelve Founders
and plenty of shot. Hurry up now-you
underestimate
eyes, sir" said John, and he took
off his cap, t'I'n do it, sir. - and he was
off like deer. He burst into the old
house opposite the mill like q cannon
ball himself.
"Father-father! he shouted, "the
commodore sent me to tell you to call
out the militia and to bring the twelve
FOUNDERS and plenty of shot,
"What?' said Mr.. Shaw, as he
jumped out OF ed, only half awake,
''did the commodore say that?''
Eyes, he did, and he told me to hurry,
too-and the British brig is standing in
fast -
"Je-ru- selem!' said MT. Shaw, cap
tain of the militia-and that meant a
great deal. elf the commodore said
hurry, there 8 need of it,
He hurried SO much that in half 81
hour the company of militia-very much
mixed as to uniform, it must be con-
fessed-were on the beach with their Two
twelve Founders.
"I thought sol" cried the commodore,
when puff of smoke came from the side
OF the Nimrod, "that hit, too And
he sighted one of the guns and fired, but
the British vessel was out of range, and
the shot fell short. The officers of the
Nimrod saw that the guns were OF no
use, and fired rapidly, not only at the
disabled vessel, but also at the crowd on
shore. But the range was a long one.
and when the shot struck the beach their
force was spent, and the boys, who had
collected in large number-for every
boy in the town was thers-ran to catch
the rest and was lucky enough 10 catch
two balls, but one was just spent and
came down on his shoulder with such
force that he was knocked over. He and
another boy, who was only eleven years
old and who with John helped the men
to serve the guns, caught more balls than
any one else.
The Nimrod fred faster and faeter with
telling effect, and at last every one on
the beach gave great groan, for the
boats of the Swedish vessel were lowered
and the crew and the men from the
fotilla jumped in, and lifted others in,
and pushed off, and at the very same
moment boats were lowered from the
Nimrod and were pulled toward the dis
aDled vessel, while the ships guns fred
over their heads. The crew and the sea-
men reached the beach. They brought
with them several men who were wound
ed, and they were quickly carried up
into the town, and one of the seamen
said sadly:
ave left one of our mess dead on the
deck.
The boats from the Nimrod reached
the ship about the same time that the
crew got ashore, and their men jumped
on board; but Perry's twelve-pounders
were able TO carry as FAR as the stranded
vessel and he opened fire upon it, aud
presently tbs men from the Nimrod
pushed of, and almost instantly great
tongue of flame burst up from the deck
of the ship. The captain stood on the
beach, stamping with rage and grief,
and Commodore Perry went up and
spoke to him; but he was SO wild with
his various emotions that he did not
seem to understand him, but the COM
modore pointed toward the northeast
and he turned and looked and so did all
the people. John looked. too, and III
another moment came great cry, in
which he heard his own voice, Of "The
gunboatsl'
Commodore Perry had sent round two
gunboats through the "stone bridge"
and for so ue reason John never knew
they were behind time. They began TO