The Irish standard., 1899-04-29

.>.s-
Sam belonged had left the place only
the day before, and gone down to Car
diff, in Wales, to load with iron for
home.
AT Glasgow our homeward cargo was
soon taken in, and after dropping down
to Greenock we made sail OH our return
voyage; and how romantic the Scottish
coast appeared as we passed, under all
sail, down the Firth OF Clyde. There,
close at hand, were the isles of Butte and
Arran, and there, too, was old Ailsa
Craig, 500 feet high. How l enjoyed
such u scene!
We doubled the Null of Cantyre, at
the mouth of the wide firth, and with
every sail drawing, from courses to
royals, passed rapidly out through the
North channel, between Scotland and
lreland-the stout ship pitching and
rolling merrily as she took the broad
swells that met her from the Atlantic.
Some of our Scottish passengers wept
outright as the beloved shores Of their
country faded away; and l heard one
of them repeating verse of poetry,
something like this:
Butte .Arran Isle is passed,
Scotland farewell, for Aisa Craig
Is out of sight at last"
On we went, leaving astern the great
Irish promontory of Malin Head. until
Ireland, as we'll as Scotland, sank final
ly below the horizon. And now, with
only the wide ocean about her. the Rob
ert Burns kept steadily on her way.
Then commenced the usual routine
of sea life. We had our "whecls" and
our ''lookouts," each man in his turn
standing two hours at the wheel and an
equal time on the top-gallant forccastle,
to guard against any possible collision
with another vessel
1t being the month of June, there eX-
listed some danger from floating ice,
which had begun to come down from
the north, loosened by the summer sun.
We, however, kept on our way without
seeing single fragment, until close Off
Cape Race, in Newfoundland.
One very dark night, when we were
nearly up with the cape, | took my po-
sition as usual on the top-galant fore
castle, which was about four feet high
er than the deck, and one foot below
the head-rail. 1t was impossible to see
anything through the darkness, but the
lookout must be kept all the same.
The ship was moving only about three
knots an hour, and l was seated on the
head-rail with my legs hanging over it,
when suddenly there was heavy shock,
which threw me headlong over the bow.
l remember the shock and the plunge,
but nothing further. My head must
have struck with force enough to stop
all thought, rendering me entirely UNI
conscious.
When recollection returned il was
near morning, though it was still dark.
AT last the sun came up. and then was
able to realize what had happened.
was on an ice field, and the ship was
out of sight. AS soon as my head be-
came sufficiently clear to admit of CO.
hereut thought 1 saw how the accident
had occurred, and why | had been left
behind. The ship, | reasoned. must
have struck a CHANGING blow on a cor.
ner Of the drift ice, aud then, her head
way being stopped. and her topsails
perhaps, being caught aback, she ha,
cleared the obstruction and finally slid
past it. All this, admitting that she
had not gone to the bottom, which !
] thought not improbable, though she
was moving so slowly at the time. OIL
: course. in the darkness, | would not be
missed, or, if SO, l should be supposed
to have been drowned.
My head achcd badly from the blow il
had received, but otherwise l felt in
sound condition..
, AS the sun mounted higher saw that
the field of ice was of no great length
comprising, I should think, five or six
acres, with the surface about four feet
above the water. What was to do:
Nothing at all, but remain there till !
) should starve to death. There was nc
land in sight, no sail visible; and when.
!. ever. Since then, have heard person
complain of loneliness, ] have thought
} of that hopeless morning.
Towards evening there came up n
heavy gale from the northwest, raisin.
; Il tremendous sea, which broke con.
tinually against the windward side OF
the ice, sending a deluge of water over
the entire field, but my strange raft was
quite steady through the whole; being
rs suppose, too large to pitch like a
) ship.
The night which followed, was, OF
course. a short one in that latitude, but
the gale continued, and the sea roare[
and swashed SO that did not get much
comfort from the morning light. Soon
after daybreak | discovered close over
my head flock of wild geese, which
had, no doubt, been driven off from the
land by the storm. They circled over
, me few times and then settled upon
, the ice hardly a hundred feet from
where l stood.
Apparently they were so much ex.
hausted as not to mind the presence OF
a human being; and, in fact, ] don't
know but they felt glad to find any liv.
ing shape SO far from land. The sight
of those geese, with their constant
"honl, honlS, honk," as they sat hul.
died together, stretching up their long
black ncclls, gave me a certain sense OF
relief. They represented some kind OF
life, at all events.
Another day passed, and towards
n;rht tho wind bry;Drr ob,,,r,x1 - :.