Evening star., 1898-02-19
SHOT WITH A HISTORY

A twenty-four pound round shot, with a
short chain attached, now lying on the
table OF General Supsrintendent Kimball
OF the hfe-saving -ssryice. calls up noted
occurrences long st1ee Forgotten. except by
a few old people. 4hl& was In fts time q
celebrated case. Tie NAH Is no less than
the first shot ever tksa IN the United States
for the purpose of saS!ng life. and after
performing Its meets ebie service it lay
sea.
On the 2eth of pecensber, 1s4e. the Brit
ish ship Ayrshire 1sit& from Newry. Ire
land, bound for New Hork. with 2o2 per-
sens on board. n,obtIy immigrants. seeking
homes and fortune. ia the states. In those
days transatlantic steamers were not num-
erous. the first reeuiar line. the cunarders.
having been established only nine years
before. and thousands Of immigrants were
transported In the famous sailing packets
was on the port Of destination In the midst
OF g northeast tempest. which rolled and
pitched her about with great fury.
About midnight Of January II. 1850. she
over, toward the beach and the sea began
to sweep over her sides In great volumes
mat drenched and terrified all on board
Many OF the passengers were women and
NsAAehx Su, WHO were 6ltnef CrOWueu lhtu OtiO
of the small deck houses or lashed to the
bsiwarks and Rigging to prevent their be-
ing swept overheard. The night was dark
and bitter cold and for two hours despair
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 before that time.
However. about two hours after she
struck. the half frantic company beheld a
flash of light inshcre, then detected a sound
as OF muffled cannon, and q minute later
heard heavy iron ball crash on board.
That was the ball referred to. Attached to
1t was life hne that was to be the means
OF rescuing all save one Of the entire num-
Der on the -Ayrshire. A larger line was
soon drawn to the ship by the sailors. and
then came the life car, then a new and un-
tried device. 1t wes q small iron boat COW
cred over SO that 1t was very nearly alike
on both sides. and having in the top an
opening through which persons to the num-
Der or SIX or seven could crawl and then
shut themselves up, when they would be
hauled ashore. To some of the more timid
the remedy seemed almost as bad as the
disease. but all finally concluded that in the
little ark was to be found their only safety,
and eventually all save one were taken to
the land without the smallest mishap. The
person lost was Mr.. Bell Of New York,
whose sister and her two or three daughters
had been placed in the car and were about
to be sent ashore when he insisted upon ac-
companying them. AS there was no room
took to cling to the outside of it, and. as
matter of course, was washed OFF and
drowned.
soon after the storm was over the hulk
OF the wreck began to settle down in the
sand and was finally wholly covered up.
There 1t lay for twenty-three years. when
a heavy gale set up strong current along
shore that dug away the sand and once
to view. party of wreckers were soon on
board and In searching the cabin came
across the old mortar ball.
There was no doubt of it's identity, and 1t
Was returned to the companionship of the
little mortar which sent 1t whizzing sea-
ward on its errand of humanity more than
twenty years before. Since the recovery of
the ball 1t and the mortar have been on
exhibition at all the great interstate and In
ternational expostiosrs. At present they
are awaiting transportation to the exposI-
ton at Omaha.
When the Ayrshire was wrecked the life
saving service ofIfthe United States, now
80 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
1t is known that during the twenty years
from 1850 to 1870 as many lives were lost
py shlpWreck on She two coasts named as
were lost under the present life-saving sys-
tenn In the next twenty years on all the
ocean and lake coasts of the entire coun-
The old life car hasslbeen superseded by
a lighter, though lie rger one. and for or
anary a rescues arafleFics, known as the
breeches buoy. was adopted. BY this
agency two persons ihay be taken ashore at
a time, and when the number on board is
small. as is usually thetcase. It is much the
handler and preferable appliance. ~ -.
a modern line-fiFing gun,. too. has taken
the place Of the old mortar. This gun is
the invention of Capt B. A. Lyle
OF the United States army and
Jealous member of the life-savins board on
devices for rescuipg the shipwrecked. To
its design and perfection he devoted shim-
self as to a labor Of love, and with rhe
result that today, the life-saving service of
the United States has the most far-reach-
ing gun and the best equipments pertinent
to 1t Of any similar establishment in the
world-the gun. the powder. shot and line
being manufactured expressly for It,
The old round shot and mortar had their
day and are entitled to respectful atten-
ton and the gratitude of many rescued
castaway, but the Lyle gun, with Its ex-
tended range and unfailing reliability is as
much ahead Of the old-time appliance as
the modern cannon is in advance of the
ancient carronade.,