The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-02-16
PASSING THE WORD.

III was ton years ago IN NOvomptrs
6aid the old lake sailor "We were bound
for Buffalo with lumber from Michigan
and had Just got clear Of the Limekilns
and out into Lake Erie when saw 1t was
going to blow. 1t was about the time Of
year when we get EN- good, and I knew
that the tow would get a shaking up before
we got under the breakwater at Buffalo.
Y There were four barges In tow of an
old steam barge that could hardly take care
of herself In the best of weather. Astern
of the steam barge was the McDougal, a
big scow that could carry bigger deck
load, stand more sea and steer easier than
anything ever saw. We were next. I
was on the Buckout; then came the Belts
and last the Norris.
"Well, the gale came, as Iexpected, and
right square nfter us. We got clear Of
Point Pelee and well out In the lake by
daylight, and the steam barge checked
down for fear Of breaking the towline.
"The old scow ahead Of us swashed about
like raft, but roll she would not. But the
box was In, the Buckout, began her aero
baltic performance early. She would sheer
off till sea caught her under the quarter
and then she would try to roll way over
like q horse, and then she'd dive and then
get up and rear. We would 60 down be-
tween seas, and the tow posts would creak
and groan from the strain Of the weight Of
the bargee behind the sea astern. Then
we would come up with slack line and
see the tow diving and steering below U.s.
Then we would 60 down again, and the
slack Of the line would come up with
swish and snap, which told US that the
- Aha toov hos i,Et t,s.
was doing when he checked for fear Of
parting the tow.
"Well, we dove and plowed and sheered
and rolled and jumped till afternoon be-
fore anything Of interest happened. Ii
was about O'Clock, when heard some one
astern shouting, 'Buokout, ahoy.y-yP I
called the captain, little, dried up, fan
mel mouthed Irishman, to answer the hail.
"Phot do thot crazy Frenchman want9'
he asked.
~ told him I had no idea, and he came
on deck and stood, with one hand on the
tow post to hold himself from going over
board, till he learned.
"Again came the hail from astern.
"'Hsllor shouted the lrishman in an
swer.
"'Pass do word, came from the Beta
"'All roight.'
"Phen came lot of sounds in broken
Canadian French, which made the Irish
man say: Would yez listen to thot nowp
Pilot the divil Is he troin to sayp' Then
he howled: 'Phot do yez say2 Talk United
States
"Thon we heard it: The Belts, she's
waterlog. Pass de word to de oap-i-tan to
mil bunder Long Point
1.-The Irishman went forward and hailed
the McDougal. The captain Of that craft
happened to be Swede.
"'Wot-a you wantp' he called In answer
to the hail.
"'Pass the woordr
"'Ole Alright. Wot-a you sayp
"Then the Irishman mixed his brogue
and the French Canadian dialect and the
information that Belts WAS wateriogged
and the wish of the crew that the steam
barge would pull under Long Point into
one mass of noise and cast 1t forth upon
the water.
"There was q short silence, and then
came back the maddening refrain, 'A-wot
a-you sayp'
1.-The Irishman walked the deck and
cursed SO that every syllable could have
been heard to the steam barge, but when
he at lust tried to convey the information
concerning the misfortune of the Belts he
was answered by, I hear you a-swear,
but volta you sayf'
"Then the Irishman cut 1t short.
aye ould Sowegian, OF said thot the
Belts was watherlogged. Can yez under
stand thot2'
"Yaas.'
"And they want the ould man to pull
under Long Point.
"Ole Alright, came back the answer,
and the fair haired descendant of the Morse.
men went forward to pass the word to the
steam barge.
"In little while the Swede again hailed
us, and the Irishman went forward. The
Swede's voice was good, and could hear
every syllable distinctly.
"'The ole-a man says to tell tho captain
of the Belts to ago to h"
"The 1rishman came aft and passed the
comforting message to the Belts. 'Thot
Frenchman is crazy, said the Irishman by
way of comment. Sure, he should know
thot to troi to pull this tow off into the
!. trougls Of the sea would break 1t up in a
seeond.
1.-THE Belts dove more deeply and shcered
worse as the hours went by. Twice the
Frenchlnan induced the Irishman to pass
the word that tho Belts was sinking and
the same stereotyped reply caLne back re.
gardng where tho captain of the Belts
could go II no didn't like the way the steam
barge was towing him.
ut was about o'clock, and everybody
was aft Watching for the line to part, when
the Belts took long, rolling, lazy sheer,
and cloud CT mist half way between us
told us the Belts was adrift. The crew,
hutldled together on the house, made run
for the rigging, and she preached to In the
troughs of the sea- When she came out Of
the first sea, the decklOad was gone, but
the crew was safe half way between rail
and trucks. The Norris, astern, had cut
adrift from her at once, the line had parted
and little. mutton leg sail was run up.
Under this sho came on, passed the tow
and beat it to Buffalo by three hours.
1--WE got there in the morning, and at
about noon the Belts was sighted wallow-
ing along in the troughs. No tug would
go out, and we watched her drift toward
the breakwater Every third sea would
completely cover her decks, and she rolled
like drifting log Everybody, including |
the woman cook, was dashed to the rig |
ging, and when she eventually got within
reach of the tugs there was not one OF them |
had strength enough to take line. The
tugs managed to get her before she struck |
and towed her under the breakwater No |
one died or was hurt And every one of |
that crew knew that had the tow barge at
tempted to pull under Long Point there
would have been four waterlogged barges
drifting into Buffalo instead of one
"Of course it looked as II come one
would be drowned. And there was nothing
to laugh at, but l think l laughed more
and harder listening to that Frenchman,
Irishman and Swede cursing each other
and trying to pass the word than I ever
have before or since. Paul Armstrong
in Chicago Herald.