The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1894-02-17

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, material, such as women wear over their
shoulders, and his features were disturbed
by an expression of horror hard to be des-
cribed What had he seen?
Fancying he heard slight rustling sound
in the lazarctte, Martin peered down the
small hatch, but it was so pitch dark that
he could see nothing. Was there anything
down there that might help to solve the
mystery? Just then the hoarse voice of
the seaman was heard in a warning shout :;
"Come on deck, Mr.. Martin, quick or we
shall be adriftr
The second officer rushed up the com
panion ladder on to the quarterback and
cast one sharp look to windward. There
was dense bank of fog not much more
than mile distant, and dark shadow on
the sea showed that wind accompanied it.
Come and help me to lift the captain
up on deck, he cried to the man who had
been keeping watch.
aWhere is he, sir?''
'In the cabin--lying there-dead I"
Dead Then the living come first,
sir, > replied the man grufiy as he ran to-
wards the side. "If we don't clear out of
this now, we shall lose our ship, and be
adrift in this cursed hulk" With that
he climbed over in to the boat
The second mate hesitated for moment,
scarcely knowing what course to pursue,
when the seaman yelled to him again, in a
voice half wild with impatience and fear f;
"Jump into the boat, Mr.. Martin, or we'll
shove off. +"
The words had scarcely left his lips,
when the wind, with sort of mocking
shrek, swept through the rigging of the
derelict, and few moments later the fog
was swirling all round them. Martin sprang
over the side into the boat, and the men
commenced pulling madly in the direction
where the Enterprise had last been seen.
For five minutes they pulled on with all
their strength the sweat pouring down
their faces, then they eaSed up bit, and
the man who was at the after-oar asked the
second mate if he could make out their
vessel.
Martin strained his eyes to pierce the
surrounding gloom, but was obliged to
acknowledge that he could see no sign of
either ship.
"Then, sir, we're hopelessly adrift now,
without drain of water or mOuthful of
food, cried the man, with ring of pas
sionate despair in the tone of his voice.
keep cool, my lads, and pull steadily
on we shall fetch the old Enterprise right
enough" said Martin,
At that moment dull boom was heard
right ahead.
"There goes gun from our ship to show
us our whereabouts" sang out the second
mate, ''give way, my lads y
The men pulled with will and FIVE
minutes later the Enterprise doomed up
out of the fog close aboard of them. \
line was thrown, the boat hauled alongside,
and in few minutes they were all stand
ing safely on her decks.
Martin reported to the chief officer
everything that had occurred; but as the
wind and sea were rising fast, and the driv-
ing mist obscured everything from view,
the only thing that could be done was to
heave the ship to until the weather cleared
bit All night long it continued to blow
hard; but about o'clock the next morn
ing the wind fell light again, and the fog,
lifted little, although it was still very
thick all round the horizon, and it was not
possible to see a greater distance than two
miles. All hands were on deck, peering
into the dim obscurity, to get glimpse of
the derelict in which lay the body of their
unfortunate captain; but to no purpose.
About two o'clock in the afternoon it came
on to rain heavily, beating all the life out
of the wind, while the gray sea rose ard
fell with long sullen heayings. The En-
terprise still remained shove to, as it was
quite useless attempting a search while the
weather remained so thick. So it contin-
ued all the following night, until shortly
after daybreak on the second morning,
when the rain ceased the clouds and mists
drifted away, as the sun rose gayly above
a clear horizon. The whole wide expanse
of ocean was now visible, and sharp-sighted
men were despatched to the masthead on
the lookout, but no sign either of ship or
wreckage rewarded their search. A light
breeze sprang up from the southwest, and
for four days they cruised about those
waters; then the chief officer reluctantly
abandoned the search as a hopeless one and
the Enterprise proceeded on her voyage to
New Zealand
There can be little room for doubt that
the derelict bark foundered during the gale
of wind on that eventful night and if in
deed she was the ill-fated Lord Give,
which, after nine long years of imprison-
ment in the ice, had at last broken loose
and drifted into the ocean highway, then
the strange meeting between those two
ships was more than a mere coincidence.
The men who were in the boat to this day
declare that it was woman's voice which
uttered that startling cry but whether
their statement is correct. and what it was
Capt Roberts saw in the bark's deserted
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