The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1891-09-02
How Hero Died.


1881, off the coast Of Wales, is
abridged from an account publish
ed at the time in the London Tele-
graph. The disaster is now remem-
beied chiefly because OF the heroic
conduct of the captain, who showed
to what grand heights human ma
ture is capable Of rising. Thous-
ands Of he- brave sailors, perishing
in storm or battle, have so borne
themselves us 10 make the name Of
England glorious ; but none ofthem
ever died a nobler death than John
Strachan Of the Cyprian.
Our abridgment from the Tele-
graph account begins at the point
where the crew and passengers
abandoned the wreck:
BY this time the Cyprian was
driving higher up in the frightiul
sea which ragged along the shore.
The distress signal could not be re-
cognised, and no life-bOat could live
in such a surf There were a couple
of hundred people waiting on the
beach ready TO save, but utterly
pOwerless and at last off Nevin
the steamer grounded on a rock,
and opened at each shock from stem
to stern. One after the other, those
who had life-bells dropped over the
vessels side into the water Some
who had not any artificial support,
seized an oar or q barrel, risking
anything rather than stay on a ves-
sci with broken back, soon TO be
engulfed in the boiling waves.
Meanwhile, what was the captain
doing, captain John Alexander Stra-
chan, Of Great Crosby, Liverpool,
who had counselled everyone
to look to himself ? Dis
cipline was at an end.
The vessel was breaking up; there
was no human hope of saving so
much as a rope or a spar, and the
captain. who had seen the rest of
them take to sea, stood ready TO
Jump with a life belt about his
waist. Ifthey could see a chance
in those wild billows, why not he ?
for already he heard the encourag-
ing voices on the beach.
At the very moment captain Stra
chan was ready to jump for life, he
noticed in all this hideOus confusion
the terror-stricken face of a neglect
ed stowaway. The lad had shipped
for a aghastly voyage, hiding in that
doomed ship. Yesterday he was a
young scamp, worthy of the ropes
end now he was a wretched crea-
ture left alone OH the sinking steam.
or. A few hours ago he was a sneak,
miserable pilferer of privileges
but now the skipper remembered
only that be was a human being, to
be saved if possible, at any rate not
TO be left behind. Without a mo-
ment's hesitation captain Strachan
unbuckled his life-belt and lashed |
il upon the little stOwaway, bidding |
him TO save himself if it were the
will of Providence that this should |
be. 81 can swim, said the cap
tain, "take the belt" Over the
side went the stowaway, lifted upon
the surf like a cork over the side
went the brave captain, trusting to
his stout heart and strong arms But
swimming was impossible in such
sea. The boatswain, struggling for
his own life, caught at the captain,
who was still making headway, and
both vent down never to be seen
again; while the stowaway. with
the good captains belt about his
waist, was flung upon the Welsh
coast, battered but alive, to tell the
story Of his strange fate and his
kind friends heroism.
The moral of such q story
is contained in its sim
pie recital. Words would be
wasted in saying more of the per-
feet humanity and fearlessness Of a
man capable Of giving up his last
chance for life for that unworthy lit
tie one who stood helpless by his
side when man and boy were in the
presence of death. John
of Great Crosby, unloos-
ing his life-belt-with two miles Of
white water between himself and
the shore-to tie it upon the little
rascal who had stolen passage with
him, is a figure which tells US with
noble force that manhood is strong
err than storm, and love mightier
than death.