The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-12-25
TO A SAILORS DEATH.
lie Realized 1t Was Beyond Hun
IN I'll Him

Lie, Realized 1t Was Beyond Human
Power to Aid Him.
Our ship lay hove to in gale of wind in
the Indian Ocean. 1t was one of the clear
est skies overhead you ever saw. The eye
could not detect the smallest speck of
cload, and the sunshine was simply glorious.
But how the wind did blow. And what an
awful sea it kick up. 1t was a gale Of wind
such as is never seen on land, with not even
the smallest island in its path for 1000 miles
1t was not hurricane, but steady gale
screaming. shrieking and rushing to the
west, at the rate Of hundred miles-per-
haps faster.
we had hove the ship to at midnight.
She was new and staucn, and her captain
was veteran of the sea, but when daylight
came to give US view Of the ocean no man
dared say our craft would live ten minutes.
Men who had sailed for twenty years felt
the qualmS Of sea-sicknesS as we pitched
about
The seas were something terrible. AS
they came down upon US out of the east
out OF that vast ocean stretching away I'M
broken to the south of Australa-they
lowered up forty feet high. One who
watched felt that the great wall of water
must break over the bows and founder the
shiD by dead weight, but as he continued to
gaze with fast-beating heart her bow lifted
up, and she appeared to climb right up the
wave at an angle as steep as any house roof.
Reaching the crest. she paused for mo-
ment, rolled to starboard and back, and
then went sliding down, down, until your
heart stood still for fear it was all over.
1t was 10 O'Clock in the morning. We
had life-Iines stretched fore and aft, but
none of she men were moving about. They
were gathered IL groups wherever they
could find shelter from the bowling gale and
driving spray, bat ready for any call. l
was looking ahead, when | suddenly caught
sight OF small object Oh the crest of an ap-
preaching wave L could not make it out at
first for the foam, bat presently it came
sliding down the incline and then | saw
that 1t was small raft The structure
was so light and aimSy that the wonder was
how 1t held together. IL was just such
raft as couple of sailors could knock to-
gether in half an hours time, and in the
center of it, with his back braced against
water-Keg, which was firmly dashed in place,
was man. Ills face was toward us. He
was not common sailor man, but a captain
or mate. He bad flashing about his waist,
but his hadS and legs were free.
And now the raft came sliding down the
wave like Sled on a snow-covered hill and
l lookedlthe man square in the eyes. He
was OF middle age and there could be no
mistake as to his vocation. He took in our
craft allow and alOft at one glance For
three or four seconds something like hope
came into his look, but then it vanished.
Ilt itullZeti tHdt IL was utterly out or our
power to aid him. Had there been a thou
sand men aboard of our ship not one of them
could have lifted hand He looked
into my eyes in dumb despair as
he swept past, too far away TO have
caught a rope, even had there been one
at hand to fling him. My eyes may have
EXPRESSED pity. but there was nothing to
bid him hope. 1t was all over in twenty
seconds-his coming ana gning-and then
he disappeared astern. Being lighter, he
drl % at fyA tt,.Rn uTNt,r i
not so much as move foot or raise hand.
but simply cried for help with a look
appealed to US for brief space, and then
went driving into that trdckless waste of
ocean over which we had sailed weeks and
weeks, seemingly the.only living thing upon
il. No one could say whence he came,
but all knew where he was going-to a
sailors death.-M. Quad in the World.