Evening journal., 1890-02-11
WRECK OF THE ATLANTIC.
OLD JACK WATTS TELLS HOW SHE
WAS LOST ON DEVILS CRADLE

II WINS al, Nng holiday week about fifteen
.aars arothat Nfhe i'll fnted steamship Atlantic
~ ,vreelse,a III on tl.a reels on Devils era
sleu wit6',n for " feet Of the lofty rock
ho,nd ,rast y, st Of Nova Scotia. 1t was
one al the most n >~4trous Of ocean horrors
al record. The oldest ~SldeDt Of that vicin
ity is venerable, silver hair, = JACK VOLTS
who hes just turned his SD ar. he IS
stalwart, hardy, rough, weather be- zen iisn-
ernan, and has brilliant record there
abouts for not few deeds of life risking .>ll
life saving valor. With muscles like wire
ropes and sinews like steel, his strength. too,
do | remember that nightl Do II You
wouldn't ask that question, my boy, il YOU
had been here, for if you lived ever So. many
lives you would not forget that awful night
through all eternity said he, ana the sturdy
old mans voice o'-sverud as he paused te elaar
ms throat, aid his eyes glistertl as Though
they s.uarted with the sally moisture II a
gathering tgar
We'll, sir, he continued, ''you remarked
that this was stormy night when YOU came
in. Pshawi this is nothing. Sure there is a
biz Of storm brewing and a rather stiff
breeze, but nothing worth noticing. Look
out bin And as he opened the door a
gust Of wind extinguished the lamp on the
table, leaving the room in total darkness
THAT DARK STREAK
We walked out toward the bluff The air
was murky, raw, and growing bitter cold
Eighty feet below the waves dashed against
the rocks pounding like some enormous
sledge hammer, with noise like distant thun-
der, and causing the ledge under our feet to
U rate with each blow.
has been famous
Far away in the distance there was now
and then visiblea tiny point Of light-of some
vessel; SO far that it would wholly disappear
| for awhile, and then again come into view.
THAT light is about sixty miles away, and
a steamship, likely one of the English or
| French liners,n he said. We had reached
near the very edge of the bluff far as it
was safe TO go-when my companion pressed
my arm and paused Stretching out his arm
and pointing with his long, bony fingers he
exclaimed: "Down there just beyond us-it is
| only eighty feet from dry land--you see that
dark streak in the seal That is the Devils
| Cradle, and is under water at very high tide.
| 1t is called that name because the reef is like
a set of big saws; the sharp rocks hold a YES
sci that runs on them, and sometimes the sea
| has beaten and pounded and shook the
| wrecks, very much as a cradle is rocked,
| until they are torn to pieces.
Nine have been lost there during my time.
| But that was not the luck of the Atlantic,
which was too firmly set in the rocks to be
moved, and the waves pounded and broke her
| in two, and after awhile tore her to pieces.
| But that night set in hard. 1t was cold-bit-
ter cold-and the sun went down IN a blind
ing snow storm, and the wind blew every
way with force that was awful; then came
sleet and hail that cut your very clothes and
drew blood wherever it struck your flesh.
All the time the wind was rising and the air
was getting more bitterly cold. It was SO
cold that the air seemed to sting you, and the
wind would whirl you around almost of
your feet; it whistled and howled and
screeched with a frightful noise. says to
my pious old woman: Mary Ann, it does
seem as though hell itself had been let loose
tonight And says she to me; Jimmie, ]
| believe it -Jimmie-harkn and she
aud / ran to the window and looked out and
listened.
"Well, with all that unearthly uproar Of the
I tempest you could not hear much else, yet
we did hear rant boom, like the sound Of
a cannon; in minute Of two we saw a streak
Of fire shooting up through the snow and
hail and then we knew that the Devils Ora
dle had, or would have, another wreck.
God helpth poor soulsr CRIED and Mary
Ann went down on her knees and prayed fol-
them and the poor lad Of ours-our boy
Jamie-who we thought was on an East In
dia merchantmen But-he wasn't, thought
And the old mans voice was chozed init
silence.
JAMES, SURPRISE.
"Wel, sir" he resumed, 1.-THE wife put on
a boiler Of water and put wood to the fire
We always do when we think we may have
good use for it, il some are rescued. Then
ran out in the storm. l was good bit of
strong man then, sir, but could hardly
stand up in that gale. 1t blew with awfu
force, and one could not see ten feet away
yet pushed on to just about where we ar
standing Another rocket shot up, and il
track Of fire disclosed an awful sight.
1t was all in minute, and had to strai
my eyes and look under the peak Of my ha
through the binding storm There was
, great, big, splendid ocean steamship drive
| over the outer edge Of the reef; the wave
looked as though the whole bottom Of tn
ocean had violently heaved them up; the
! were actually like mountains, and they lifte
that huge steamship up and let it dow
4 humping over those Jagged points Of flint
rock.
"Then all was pitchy darkness again, ar
although / could not see anything ] kept N
eyes in the same direction. In few minut
another rocket shot up, and again ] saw thi
+ noble vessel lifted up almost out of the wat
l. by mighty wave; astern it seemed caugl
h and pivoted on one great point Of rock; thu
= 1t was wheeled around, and as the waters 4
i coded the bare, rough rocks seemed like
I huge jaw, down into and upon which Il
q steamship dropped with a crashing noise
H broken iron, glass, tackling and machiner
!, loud above which could hear the smotherl
4 but unmistakable sound Of women's shrie
I. and the shouts OF men--one loud, hideous
I piercing pandemonium Of anguish and 4
y spair.
II Then all was inlxy black darkness, and I
4 waves and winds seemed to vie with ca
other in transcending their fiendish parts
the horrid elemental orgy. had hard wo
to hold my balanoe-keep my feet, and get
our little home
ne "We were up soon after daybrealS, and
e. the storm had somewhat abated / join
ne SONG neighbors and went down to the base
d. the cliffs. There we saw the noble steanst
en- Atlantic hard fast on the rocks, split in I
ed center and strained all over. The waves we
al yet furiously breaking over her, ice h
he formed on various parts Of the deck, b
se warks and rigging; bodies we're frozen sta
ifs and still All was as silent as the grave
nd a living soul in sight on board. But Fl
a | bodies were washed ashore until the next df
rs and one had been thrown up near wher,
stood ] leaned and reached forward a
drew it in II was the body of a man;
overcoat had been twisted over his face a
to was stiff with casing Of ice. We turned |