Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1896-08-17
CHAPTER XIII.
THE LOSS OF THE BRIG.


1t was already late at night, and as
dark as it ever would be at that sea-
son of the year land that is to say, it
was still pretty bright, when Hoseason
clapped his head into the roundhouse
door.
Here, said he, "come out and see if
''Is this one of your tricks?" asked
Alan.
''Do 1 look like tricks?' cries the
captain. II have other things to think
of-my briggs in danger!'
By the concerned look of his face, and,
above all, by the sharp tones in which he
spoke of his brig, it was plain to both
of us that he was in deadly earnest; and
SO Alan and l. with no great fear Of
treachery, stepped on deck.
The sky was clear; it blew hard and
was bitter cold; a great deal of daylight
fingered: and the moon, which was
was close hauled, so as to round the
southwest corner of the Island of Null
the hills of which land Ben More above
then all. with wisp of mist upon the
top of it, lay full upon the larboard bow
Though it was no good point of sailing
for the Covenant, she tore through the
seas at great rate, pitching and strain
ing, and pursued by the westerly swell
Altogether it was no such i'll night to
keep the seas in, and l had begun to
wonder what it was that sat so heavily
upon the captain, when the brig, rising
suddenly on the top of high swell, he
pointed and cried to us to look. Away
ON the lee bow, a thing like q fountain
rose out of the moonlit sea, and immedi-
;ately after we heard low sound Of roar
ing; -.
'What do you call that?" asked the
captain glOOmily.
"The sea breaking on a reef" said
L
and what better would ye have?'
cay" said Hoseason, eff it was the
only one"
And sure enough, just as he spoke
there came second fountain further to
the south.
''Therer' said Hoseason. aye see for
yourself. If [ had. kent of these reefs,
if l had chart, or if Shuan had been
spared, it's not sixty guineas. no. nor
six hundred. would have made me risk
my brig in sic a stoneyard! But you,
sir. that was to pilot us, have ye never
a word?"
''I'm thinking" said Alan, "these'll
be what they call the Torran rocks"
care there many of them?" says the
captain.
F'Truly sir. I am nae pilot" said Alan;
'but it sticks in my mind there are ten
miles of them"
Mr., Riach and the captain looked at
each other.
"There's a way through them, 1 sup
pose?" said the captain.
Doubtless said Alan; ''but where?
But it somehow runs in my mind once
mote that it is clearer under the land"
"So?" said Hoseason. well have to
haul our wind then, Riach; well have
to come as near about the end of Null as
we can take her, sir; and even then
we'll have the land to keep the wind off
us, and that stoneyard on our lee. Well,
we're in for it now, and may as weh
crack on"
With that he gave an order. to the
steersman, and sent Riach to the fore
top. There were only five men on deck,
counting the officers; these were all that
were fit (or, at least, both fit and will
ing) for their work; and two OF these
were hurt SO, as [ say, it fell to Mr.
Riach to so aloft, and he sat there look
ing out and hailing the deck with news
"The sea to the south is thick" ht
cried: and then, after awhile, at does
seem clearer in by the land"
''Wcu. sir said Hoseason to Alan
''we'H try your way of it. But I think
might rs well trust to a blind fiddler
Pray Gcd you're right"
''Pray God I am"' says Alan to ne