The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1899-09-30

Ire from niln Auu met WITH little opposition
or resistance Holding him for brief
space, that my power might impress his
companions as well as himself, dropped
him, and he sank TO the deck with a moan
that made me almost regret my act.
But the demands OF war, self-preserva-
ton, pride, and the safety OF others leave
little latitude for the sentiment Of pity in
time OF action. Had in anger alone dis
jolnted the grooming man my conscience
(which, thank God, has never been scared
into inactivity might have upbraidcd me,
but now felt no great pang of remorse as
l ,prang up the ladder, calling the two to
follow.
II the plucky resistance OF the disabled
seaman had impressed the Others, such inn
preston seemed TO have disappeared as they
came with me into the air above Like owls
suddenly brought into sunshine. they
blinked in the now broadened light, and,
hanging on TO the halyards Of the foremost,
gazed with plain interest at the tumult
about them. Sailors though they were, !
would have wagcred that never had they
faced such sight from so small craft.
and this was made certain when the man
named Larry bawled at me, while for mo-
ment i gripped the same rope with him:
"Barrn' an ease o. breath, ye might as
long this way here. IT'S a matter o. wind or
Davy Jones, an ye had better whistle for
the first, let it come high or low. Delay all.
an stand byi"
His exclamation was caused by sudden
| jerk Of the schooner, followed by sidelong
| dip, and a whole green sea came aboard over
| the starboard bow. The full force Of il
was broken by the house on the forecastle
| hatch, but the bulk swept over all obstacles
| like a cascade, and, rising TO our hips, drove
us clear of the deck in a twinlxling. In a
bunch we hung on TO the halyards until the
rush subsidized and let our feet come TO the
| panking once more. / saw the flood
sweep aft and foam over the break of the
| poop, while torrents poured down the gal
| ley and into the forecastle. 1t was the
worst drenching the craft had yet expe-
| rienced, and a few more such visitors would
send enough water into the hold TO make
| her loggy, and that would have been the
last straw, as | guessed the pumps TO be
useless for want OF care. Had | had full
crew, nothing could have been done to case
our state or render our position less peril
Gus. The fact that the seas were now more
bosterous, though the calm had lasted above
| an hour, told me that vicious force was
/ still at work over the breast OF the ocean.
| Though the sun might have been fairly up
by this, there was no certainty of the fact,
for the light was a greenish gray, and the
clouds hung low and in burrows, fold on fold
to where the horizon was blotted out in
thick foglke haze No land was in sight,
and all about nothing showed save the hell
sh turmoil of the sea and the lowering
menace Of the sky above.
How long the schooner might have lived
thus there can be no surety, and even to
| n I 4 -. \. 6 81.
beam, rib and treenail, it was a wonder she
had thus far held her spars and timbers so
bravely.
But she had no longer 10 test a broad
side battering. Having at present nothing
TO fear from the men (for even had they been
given TO plotting it were against human ma
ture TO strike at me while death threatened
ALL, was about descending into the cabin
after ordering the two 10 take the limp sur
| geon forward and stow him in a bunk. For
| a moment stood and watched them careen-
ing along the deck with their burden, won
dering il il were wise TO allow them 10 come
in contact with their disabled mate / saw
the passage made in safety and turned TO
go my way when, on casting my eye over
the taffrail, behed wall Of spray tearing
along the sea off the starboard quarter. The
line Of its advance was as clear as that Of
a thunder gust, and had barely time to cast
loose the main sheet and raise my voice
when the squall struck us. Terrible as was
its appearance, it had not the weight of the
blast that had opened the ball the night be
fore, but it heeled us far on our beams ends,
while sea after sea planted themselves
against the bilge and rolled on deck until /
feared we would founder under the sheer
| pounding of the brine. Like lightning the
boom had flashed to larboard, and that
spar with most of its canvas lay on the
waves. | had grasped the wheel and hung
on for my life 1t seemed that we would
never right again, and | was watching the
flood pouring over us when, with clap like
the discharge Of a cannon the staysai' burst,
cloud Of rags blowing away to leeward
like wads from gun. The very angie of the
vessel saved her from carrying the tons
Of water that had beaten in, and, as the
headsal let go, as an animal goaded TO des-
peration, the Phantom rose and, gathering
way, fed before the gale.
We He'd before the gale, and like the spin
ming spoondrift picked up by the wind and
scattered broadcast without form or consist
ence so also fled my notice OF details. OF
the three terrible days during which this
storm lasted | mind me only of a few poig-
nant facts standing out against a back
ground of remembered misery. The second
stage of the tempest was fiercer by far than
was the first, and the wind came from a
quarter almost exactly opposite the point
from which il broke on the night OF August
ll-namely, southeast. And with it came
rama pcnt-up deluge that laced the sea
and sky with parallel lines like strings Of
polished steel wire. While we held the wind
astern il was endurable, but later, when we
bore into the gale, ones face could not suffer
long exposure to the blast that drove the
liquid pellets before it like volleys OF buck
shot.
We had not held our way for long when
il became plain that to escape 10y running
was impossible, as the following seas reached
height ard speed that threatened TO poop
the schooner at any moment. IL had finally
came TO laying 10 c. being wrecked out of
hand. and every opening in the vessel was
closed as tightly as possible in preparation
for the move.
IL was an anxious moment when the ma