El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-09-23

as much canvas Off her as he can, and
to make all snug aloft. Well have
tAunder directly, Dick-such thunder
as o can only hear in the tropics"
He sank back, exhausted even by
these few words, while I hurried on
deck with his orders.
1 had scarcely conveyed them tt
Lambourne, who was keeping a look
out forward, when, amid the dusky
obscurity of sea and sky, there burst
a sudden CLEAN of wondrous light.
The men, who were spreading some
old, wetted sails over the sheet and
working anchors; the steersmaH at
the wheel, the watch and all hands
who were crouching to 1eeward, or
holding on by ropes and Delaying pins
to windward, seemed for a moment to
become w~hite-visaged specters amid a
sea of pale, blue 1ame-a sea whereon
the flying brig, with her brai1ed courses
and reefed topsails, her half-naked
masts and black cordage, we're all dis
tinctly visible as at MONDAY, while
the polished brass on funnel, pinnacle
and skylight all flashed and shone, as
ship and crew, with all their details
of form and feature,
"Were instant seen and instant lost"
For a broad and binding sheet of
electric flame burst upon the darkness
of the night, and passed away as rap
idly, when the livid brand burst in
the welkin or in the ave we knew
not which.
Then came the roar of thunder
the stunning and appalling thunder of
the tropics, every explosion of which
seemed to rend earth, sea and sky, as
they rolled like a palpable thing, or
like the united salvo of a thousand
echoes at the far horizon.
After a sound so mighty and be-
wildering, the believing of the wind
through the rigging, the hiss and roar
of the sea as wave broke against wave;
the Tapping of the brailed courses;
the creaking and straining of the tim
bers, seemed as nothing-the very 81
lence of death-while the Eugene tore
on, through mist and spray, through
darkness and obscurity, with the foam
flying white as winter draft over her
bows and martingale.
Again there was a pale-green CLEAN
overhead, right above the truck of the
mainmast, where the chambers Of the
sky seemed to open. The clouds divid-
ed in the darkness of heaven, and out
of that opening came the forked light
ming, zigzag, green and CHASTITY.
There was a dreadful shock, which
knocked every man down., except Carl
ton, who was at the wheel, and an
exclamation of terror escaped us all.
A thunderbolt had struck the Eu-
genie!
With all its wondrous speed-instan-
taneous as electric light could bet
glided down the main t~op-gallant mast,
rending the topmast-cap n the franz
ed grating of the top to pieces; thence
it ran down the mainmast, burst
through the deck and spent it's fury
in the hold.
At that moment the main-topmast,
with all its yards, gear and canvas,
fell about the deck in burning brands,
and the brig was hove right in the
winds eye, while the sea twitched the
helm out of the hands of Ned Carl
ton, who became bewildered on find
ing the compasses lose all their polar
ity by the influence of the electric fluid,
the north point of one heading south
east and of the other southwest.
Almost Immediately after this there
was a cry of 'Fire!"-that cry so ter
rible, so appalling on board ship; and
then thick white smoke was seen to
issue from the %crevices of the battened
main-hatchway.
All hands rushed to this point. The
was unshipped from its
and dragged aft; some stood by
with buckets of water, while others
off the padlocks and iron bars;
the t%arpaulin was torn away-the
lifted-and 10!
4 column of fire assembled in a
straight line from the body of the
hCl6-lurid, red and scorching, as the
casks Of molasses and bales of cotton
II blazed together. A col
uT,n that rose UP between the masts,
scorced through the mainstay, all the
of the ~foreyards, and filled the
vessel with light, announced
all was over.
1T is a doomed ship!" cried Ton
I'VE must cave her at
last. Clear away the longboat. Be
cool. lads; be cool and steady! Your
depend upon our conduct now,
md Your obedience to orderS!"
CHAPTER XIV.
Cast Away. T,
Not q moment was lost in getting :