The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1898-03-30
Shot With a History.

A twenty-four pound round shot,
with a short chain attached, now
lying on the table Of General Superin-
tendent Kimball, of the Saving
Service, calls up noted occurrence
long since forgotten, except by few
old people, which was ia its time a eele-
brated case. The ball is no less than
the first shot fired in the United States
for the purpose of saving life, and after
performing its noble service it lay for
over twenty years in the bottom Of the
sea.
On the 18th Of December, 1919, the
British ship Ayrshire sailed from New
ry, Ireland, bound for New York, with
2O2 persons on board, most immigrants
seeking homes and fortunes in the
States. In those days transatlantic
steamers were not numerous, the first
regular line, the Cunarders, having
been established only nine years before,
and thousands Of immigrants were
transported in the sailing packets Of
the time. Six weeks later the Ayrshire
was Off the port of destination in the
midst of northeast tempest, which
rolled and pitched her about with great
fury.
About midnight of January u, 1860,
she struck bottom with terrific force,
keeled over toward the beach. and the
sea began to sweep over her sides in
great volumes that drenehed and terrifi-
ed all on board. Many of the passengers
were women and children, who were
either crowded into one of the small
dock houses or Iashed to the bulwarks
and rigging to prevent their being
swept overheard The night was dark
and bitter cold, and for two hours de-
spair reigned on board, for there was
little hope that the ship would hold
together until morning, and no hope
of escape should she go to pieces be-
fore that time.
However, about two hours after she
struck, the halffrantic company be-
held flash of light inshOre, then de-
tected a sound rs of muhied cannon,
and q minute later heard the wreck be-
gin to settle down in the sand, and
was finally wholly covered up. There
it lay for twenty-three years, when
heavy gale set upa strong current along
shore that dug away the sand and once
more exposed the skeleton of the old
wreck to view. a party of wreekers
were soon on board, and in searching
the cabin came across the old mortar
ball.
There was no doubt of its identity,
and it was returned to the companion
ship Of the mortar which sent it whiz-
zing seaward on its errand of humani-
ty more than twenty years before.
Since the recovery of the ball, it and
the mortar have been on exhibition at
all the great inter State and interna-
tional expositions. At present they are
awaiting transportation To the expOsi-
ton at Omaha.
When the Ayrshire was wrecked the
lifs-saving service of the United States,
now so important, was little more than
a name, and many ships company
was thereafter lost on the black and
ugly coasts Of Long Island and New
Jersey.
IL is known that during the twenty
years from 1850 to 1870 as many lives
were lost by shipwreck ON the two
coasts named as were lost under the
present life-saving system in the next
twenty years on all the ocean and lake
coasts of the entire country.
The old life ear has been superseded
by lighter, though larger one, and
for ordinary reseues a device known as
the breeches buoy was adopted. By
this agency two persons may be taken
ashore at a time, and when the num-
Der on board is small, as is usually the
case, it is much the handler and pre-
ferable appliance.
n modern line-1ring gun, too, has
taken the place of the old mortar. This
gun is the invention of Captain b. A.
Lyle, Of the United States army, and a
Jealous member of the Life-Saving
Board on devices for rescning the ship
wrecked. To its design and perfection
he devoted himselfas to labor of love,
and with the result that to-day the life
saving service Of the United States has
the most far-reaching gun and the best
equipments pertinent to it of any
similar establishment in the world
the gun, the powder, shot and line be
ing manufactured expressly for it.
The old round shot and mortar had
their day and are entitled to respect
ful attention and the gratitude ofmany
a rescued cast-away, but the Lyle gun,
with its extended range and unfailing
reliability, is as much ahead of the
old-time appliance as the modern can
non is in advance of the ancient ear
I rOnade e-WaShinOtOn Star