Wichita eagle., 1890-01-08

had learned to know the great Gulf as
scholars know deep books by heart; he
knew the birthplace of its tempests, the
mystery of its tides the omens OF its
| hurricanes While lying at Brashear
City he felt the storm had not yet reach
ed its highest, vaguely foresaw mighty
peril, and resolved to wait no longer for
lull. Boys" he said, 'we've got to
take her out in spite of hell" And they
"took her out" Through all the peril,
his men stayed by him and obeyed him.
| By p1id-morning the wind had deepened
to q roar, lowering sometimes to rum
BILE, sometimes bursting upon the ears
| like a measureless and deafening crash.
Then the captain knew the Star was run
ming a race with death. She'll win it, !"
he muttered; shell stand it.
Perhaps they'll have need of me to-
night.
She won! With a sonorous steam chant
of triumph the brave little vessel rode at
last into the bayou, and anchored hard
by, in full view of the hotel, though not
near enough to shore to lower her gang
plank.
But she had sung her swan song.
Gathering in from the northeast, the
waters of the bay were already marbling
over the salines and half across the ISL
ands; and still the wind increased its
paroxysmal power.
Cottages began to rock. Some slid
away from the solid props upon which
they rested. A chimney tumbled. Shut
ters were wrenched off; verandas demol
ished. Light roofs lifted, dropped again
and tapped into ruin. Trees bent their
heads to the earth. And still the storm
grew louder and blacker with every hour.
The Star rose with the rising of the
waters, dragging her anchor. Two more
anchors were put out, and still she
dragged-dragged in with the flood,
twisting, shuddering, careening in her
agony. Evening fell, the sand began
to move with the wind, singing faces
like a continuous fire of fine shot; and
frenzied blasts came to buffet the
steamer forward, sideward. Then one
of her hogchains parted with a clang
like the boom of big bell. Then an
other! Then the captain babe his men
cut away all her upper works clean to
the deck. Overheard into the seething
went her stacks, her pilot house, her
cabins and whirled away. And the ma
k,ed hull of the Star still dragging her
three anchors labored on through the
darkness, nearer and nearer to the i'm
mens5 silhouette OF the hotel, whose hun
dred windows were now all afame. The
vast timber building seemed to defy the
storm. The wind, roaring round its
broad verandas, kissing through every
crevice with the sound and force Of steam,
appeared to waste its rage. And in the
half lull between two terrible gusts there
came to the captains ears a sound that
seemed strange in that night of multi
tudinous terrors-a sound OF musici
Almost every evening throughout the
season there had been dancing in the
great hall; there was dancing that night
also. The population Of the hotel had
been augmented by the advent of fami-
lies from other parts Of the island, who
found their summer cottages insecure
places Of shelter; there were nearly four
hundred guests assembled. Perhaps it
was for this reason that the entertain
ment had assumed the form of Il fashion
able ball And all those pleasure seek
ers, representing the wealth and beauty
of the Creole parishes, whether from As
cension or Assumption, ST. Mary's or
st. Landry's. Iberville or Terrebonne;
whether inhabitants of the multi-colored
and many-balconied Creole quarter of
the quaint metropolis, or dwellers in the
dreamy paradises of the Teche, mingled
ioyously, knowing each other, feeling in
some sort akin. whether affiliated by
blood, connaturalized by caste, or sim
ply inter-assOciated by traditional sym
pathies of class sentiment and class in
terest.
Perhaps in the more than ordinary
merriment of that evening something of
nervous exaltation might have been dis
cerned-something like feverish resolve
to oppose apprehension with gayety, to
combat uneasiness by diversion. But
the hours passed in mirthfulness. The
first general feeling Of depression began
to weigh less and less upon the guests.
They had found reason 10 confide in the
solidity of the massive building. There
were no positive terrors, no outspoken
fears, and the new conviction Of all had
found expression in the words of the
host himself: ''Il ny rien de nlieux
faire que de s'amuser!' OF what avail
to lament the devastation of cane fields.
to discuss the ruin of crops? Better to
seek solace in the rhythm OK gracious
motion and of perfect melody than
hearken to the wild orchestra of storms;
wiser to admire the grace of Partisan
toilets, the eddy of trailing robes with
its fairy foam of lace, the ivorine lowell
ness of glossy shoulders and jeweled
throats, the glimmering of satin slippered
feet, than TO watch the raging of the
flood without, or the flying of the wrack
So the music and the mirth went on;
they made JOY for themselves, those ele-
CANT guests; they jested and slipped rich
wines; they pledged, and hoped, and
loved, and promised, with never a
thought of the morrow, on the night of
the 10th of August, 1866. Observant |
parents were there planning for the fu- |
ture bliss of their nearest and dearest: |
mothers and fathers of handsome lads, |
1.-the and elegant as young pines, and |
fresh from the polish of foreign univer- |
sity training; mothers and fathers of |
splendid girls whose simplest attitudes !
were witcheries. Young cheeks flushed. |
young hearts futtered with an emotion |
more puissant than the excitement of /
the dance; young eyes betrayed the |