Waterbury evening Democrat., 1892-01-05

By stuffing all the crevices of our little cabin room and keeping the stove red hot. we made out to be comparatively comfortable. Baby was sleeping sound ly in the middle of a big feather-bed on the floor, and in his warm nest was happily oblivious to the tempest and arctic temperature outside.
 By and by, without undressing at all and, in fact, putting on overcoats and wraps, wife and I laid down and tried to sleep and forget how the gale was shrielxing in the black night without and how our boat was creaking and straining and tossing on the rough wa ters.
 The wind and the rocking of our craft after awhile made us sleepy, and soon we were slumbering as soundly as the baby.
 I was dreaming of shipwreclzs and drowning when suddenly awol1e.
 It seemed as if our boat was pitching harder than ever and being battered and knocked about frightfully.
 The noise of the hitting against the wharf and the creaking of the ropes I missed. got on my feet and man. aged to get to the little window and peer out through the frosted glass.
 The city lights had vanished and nothing but intense blackness met my gaze.
 Something was wrong knew. Mounting the ladder stairs and open ing our little hatchway door I looked out. We had broken loose from the dock and were flying before the sRriek- ing gale and the huge waves to almost certain death.
 Where we were-what to do 1 knew not I quickly reused my wife and told her of our danger How brave and how calm she looked. Her courage made mine.
 Leaving her to bundle things on the baby and prepare for what was to hap pen, stuck my head outside again to try and discover a way to safety if there was one.
 We were drifting rapidly across the bay. and so far, luckily, had not struck an anchored vessel.
 Behind us l could see the distant and disappearing lights of New York city. In front the lighthouse on Robbins reef, and beyond that the lights on Staten Island.
 If we were not carried out on the ocean through the Narrows-if we did not collide with a ship or strike the reef, we probably would bring up against some dock on Staten Island providing our frail and clumsy craft lived to get there.
 As soon as we struck anything, I re- alized too surely that in a moments time after the crash we must founder and die.
 Our only chance, then, was to be ready to leap, if possible, on the object 1 we should dash against, and trust Prov i idence for the rest.
 The Sally had whirled around, and was rushing stern foremost through the laundering pillows, ard l hoped when we. struck that end on which we were would hit first If it didn't, no use leaping. for we never could all of us make our way over the icy, slip ] pery two foot wide deck on the boats sides to its other end.
 Passing large ship so close that thought our end had come, barely miss ing the lighthouse reef, we were fast approa ching Staten Island-and the 1 Narrows.
 For time it looked certain that we l J { perish-then we switched around and went before the wind straight for the island docks. Five minutes l calcu- , lated and our fate for life or death would be sealed
 Getting rope placed our darling baby, laughing and growing at the cx- citement, on its feather bed, rolled the soft bed entirely around it, trusting ii l the precious bundle firmly with the rope. Taking it in my arms, bidding my brave and quiet wife to hold me and follow, l gained the stern, over the l slippery boats deck.
 Thank heaven, we were still stern foremost-dashing straight on a dock
 One moro moment of suspense ant horrible dread-then with crash that smashed the boat under us like an egg shell we hit the wharf
 At the same instant. before the wreck could rebound. l flung bed and baby or the dock, seized my dear wifc's hand and leaped for life.
 We landed safely alongside of oul child-then down under the raging waters plunged our good boat, drown ing the awful cries of the poor mules left on board.
 Cutting the ropes to give air to oul babe, blown along by the blasts be hind us, we reached land and a house and, soon inside, found shelter and { warm welcome.
 We also found the Sally after the storm was over, raised and mended her and now she is as good as ever fol fresh water sailing, which she means to stick to for the balance of her days
 And this is why am provoked wher land lubbers try to ridicule her, or hel captain, mate and crew.-H. c. Dodge in Goodall's Sun.
 l The Pin Just Suited Him.
 The other day young man of Will | lows Cal entered A ieyeler'S store