The record-union., 1892-01-23


she wouldn't come, in spite of his desire
to see her. During the days of the cruise
the cadets were drilled in all the duties OF
seaman. from boxing the compass to
turling the Hottest sail, and in this Harry
found sort of comfort, for he took
grim satisfaction in the fact that but one
OF his prosecutors could rival him in his
duties aloft or tie q sailors knot quicker
than he
One morning. after a sea breakfast of
canned vegetables, ham and coffee had
been disposed of, the First Lieutenant
came on deck, as was the custom, all
hands were called to make sail" The
officers orders rang out, the boatswain's
shrllI whistle, followed by his deep voice,
| caught up the orders before their echoes
| had died away, and repeated them in
long. drawing tones, and in few min
utes all was life and hustle, and every one
seemed determined TO be the first at
qulckness in everything in Uncle Sans
navy.
After the sails were cast loose and the
order had been given to 'let fall" Harry.
from where he stood on the swaying foot
runs at the end of the topsail yard, eighty
feet from the deck below, glanced in to-
ward the mast just in time to see Dick
Martin lose his balance and be swept
from the yard, clinging to the reef tackle
block, half way down the edge of the sail.
In this perilous position he hung, with
out the strength or presence of mind to
raise himself; the sail Tapped in the wind,
and for an instant everyone looked at the
boy, swaying to and fro on the sail, and
momentarily expected TO see him lose his
grasp and fall to certain death. Then q
clear voice sung out, Hold fast, Dick ~
and moment later Harry Burnham was
seen scrambling down the leech of the
sail, until he was just above his unfor
tunate classmate; then, clinging to the
nj a nv is md
hand, he reached out and grasped the
reet-tackle that hung, down by the sail,
and, quickly oyerhauling it, he caught
| loop around the body of Dick Martin and
fastened it securely.
The few minutes that it took to do this
seemed hours to the crowd that stood on
the decks and in the rigging, breathlessly
awaiting the result, and expecting every
moment to see both boys hurled to the
deck below. By this time willing hands
were out on the yard above the two boys
dangling in midair and a rope-end was
| quickly lowered TO Harry, by means of
| which he was hauled up to the yard again.
| 1t took but few minutes to haul Dick
Martin up, and then, in spite of all order
and discipline, the crew broke into wild
cheer of applause, and the cadets acad-
envy cry rang out with a will over the
waters of Gardeners Bay, 'Rah! Rah!
! Rah! u. S. n. A.! Burnham ~
time to see this brave act, and at his or
der the two boys came down from aloft.
AS Harry reached the deck the Captains
hand grasped his, and he heard, well
done, my boy, there's the making of a
Farragut IN you Then Dick Martin,
with the ears rolling down his cheeks,
tried to thank Harry for saving his life,
but all he could say was stammered
apology for putting Harry in coventry
Harry's classmates gathered around him
to shake his hands and ask forgiveness
for ever accusing him of cowardice.
one big, burly, good-natured fellow
turned to the crowd and said: by Jove,
| if anyone every calls Burnham coward
again, he'll have to whip me soon after
ward" Little Ben Davis was fairly
wild with joy, and as he danced around
the crowd he yelled: 81 knew he wasn't
coward, / knew it all the time"
Harry was nearly overcome by so
much attention and tried to get away
from the crowd, but in spite of his efforts
to prevent it he was raised to the shout
ders of dozen cadets and carried all
over the decks, until the officers were
compelled TO stop the rejoicing. From
that day on he was the hero of the class,
the coventry that had made his life a
burden was gone and with the magma
nimity that is nearly always found in
the clean heart of an American boy, he
forgave his prosecutors all their taunts
and jeers and accepted them as friends,
| for after all they were kind-hearted fell
lows, and were only misied by a wrong
custom in doing him such an injustice
as they did when they put him in COW
entry.
This was not all; the Captain reported
the whole affair to the Navy Department,
and in two weeks the whole ships COM
pany were assembled to hear an order
from the Secretary of the Navy COM
mending ''the gallant conduct of Naval
Cadet Burnham in saving fellow-cadet
| from mortal peril" and on his return to
the academy he received a pretty gold
medal from the Superintendent and Off
GERS Of the academy, commemorative of
the event. Our hero has graduated now,
and wears the silver anchors of an ensign
on his collar, but ifhe ever thinks of the
old academy, as he doubtless often does,
he must realize that his strict compliance
to duty did more than years of legislation
could to put an end to the unmanly prac-
tice of hazing.-Dion Williams, in Cincin-
natl Commercil Gazette.