The record-union., 1896-05-03

| low, and you knew some of those treacn :
| erous rocks We're not only out Of water,
| but making a breaking sea- There
We're reefs in midchannel which were
only dangerous in a heavy gale, when
low tide caused the great rollers to
| break in destroying "combers." On such
nights you long for daylight to come,
| for it generally just as hard to sleep
as it is to keep quiet and read.
| Suddenly I heard step on the gravel
outside and a rap on the window pane;
| turning, saw face pressed against
| the glass. 1t was Dick, Captain Jack S
| nephew, and one of his crew. / could
| just make out the fiat of his nose and
the two high lights where his eyes
shone, surrounded by an indistinct glow
| Of yellow from his oil clothes.
Whats the matter, Dick?" 1 called.
| There's a wreck, sir, ON the Runnel
Stone.'
| 1t took but a few short minutes to get
into my storm clothes, and, drawing
on my big sea boots, / was ready to
join the men outside. 1 found DICK
and his brothers Bill and Bob waiting
for me. We went down the steep steps
| of the terrace on which their cottage
was built, into the potato field, through
the gate guarded by the half of a state
room door from the ill-fated Schiller.
We made our way slowly toward the
cliffs, stumbling in the deep blackness:
| The wind was so strong we could
| scarcely make headway against 1T, as
we came out upon the open downs, put
after a while we reached Tol Pedn and
| We're safe under the lead of boWlder.
| Way to the southland we made out a
light shining clear, little diamond,
and beneath it a smaller ruby, but oh,
| the terrible setting! Every few seconds
they would both rise, with a sickening
movement, like the chest of dying
man, and a faint streak, just little
| lighter than the night, would sweep by
beneath them.
| We crept out further upon the crags,
shielded by rampant of granite. The
surf foamed below us; the spray and
spume swished through the air above,
carried far inland by the gale.
My God" cried Captain Jack, 1T S
a steamer on the Cairn. She's gone, sir;
they can't get out to her from Pen
zance.'
The Cairn was a rock lower in the
water than the Runnel Stone, and laS
about hundred fathoms or so to the
westward of it.
We all knew that it would be as easy
| to get a boat to the moon as it would
| beyond the great pyramids of water
| that were rushing past the Cove below
US, even if there was a boat in all
| lPorthgwarra that could live in such a
sea. There was no way to get word to
| the lifeboat station in PenZance soon
enough to do any good, and there was no
tug there powerful enough to haul the
| lifeboat into the teeth of such gale.
1t would take hours to do it in any case,
and we knew that this was but a ques-
tion Of minutes. Fishermen were now
coming up in groups behind US, un-
shapen Jumps rising every now and then
out of the black night rack. The hor-
rible situation of the poor helpless
steamer so impressed US that no word
was spoken. There was no hope to ex-
press, no advice or help to suggest. The
bright masthead light appeared quite
high above the red of her port light
when we first made her out, but now 1t
had sunk lower showing that she had
listed to one side. Sometimes a little
greenish glow would shoot up above
|
and. the green glow was her starboard
light shining on the foam as it drove
over her.
| A streak of fire suddenly shot up into
| the sky and burst into a shower OF stars
the steamers cry Of distress; a groan
came from the men around me. Then
up shot another. and this rocket verged
toward US, as If appealing directly to
1 -
helpless in their distress! Small yell
lew dots of light now ran to and fro,
clustering here and there in spots. They
were getting out the boats. What good
would that do? Even if they could live
in such a sea, where could they land !?
Mill Bay was their best chance, and
they could not find it unless there was
a light there Beside, it was too far to
the nor'ard, and any light would be hid
by some intervening cliff
Run you, Dick and Jim, set light
at the Cove! It's their only chance"
A dozen of the younger men made off
glad to do anything to bear aid even If
| they knew anything they could do
would be in vain. AS the different
groups of men had come up they had
blown out or shielded their lanterns
they would only do harm. If the boats
could get off and live, a lantern seen
there would only lure them to sure de-
struction. There was a chance, how
ever, if they could be guided to the
Cove-yet only the Dearest chance
Now the green light shone quite
clear or was reflected on the foam con-
tinually flying over the steamer The
masthead light was nearly between the
| two. She was on her beams end, and
her deck must be perpendicular A lit
tie yellow light seemed to leave the
side, then another-and then-one went
out. From the cliff overlooking Hella
Rock-the windward guardian Of the
Cove-came the light of a lantern or
two. \ little later small wind-driven
flame and-we knew the strong young
sters had found tar-barrels. God di-
rect those boats!
But suddenly, while the light of the
steamer seemed to lurch downward, the
long line of a breaking wave was first
lit by the red light, and then that dis
appeared, giving place to the clear
white light. 1t was reflected up from
the foam against the sides of a noble
steamer. 1t seemed to run along from
stem to stern, and then it went out, and
the darkness was deepened. For few
moments the greenish light fingered,
and that, too, was wiped out as the
others had been.
Three little bobing lights danced
around in the darkness. We watched
them, knowing they were the crowded
boats and all that was left of the
| steamer. They were evidently being
| driven seaward. The tide race runs