The Colfax chronicle., 1900-09-08
IMPULSE SAVED A LIFE.
Rescue by Pilot Who Pushed
Through Storm Despite the
Warnings of Danger.


"Men in our line of business have
plenty of queer experiences" said a
veteran bar pilot, relates the New Or
leans Times-Democrat, but think the
strangest that ever fell to my lot hap
pened in 1898, right after the great
hurricane that swept down the south
coast and drowned so many poor fisher
folks ION the little islands. The storm
blew itself away on Sunday, . the pilot
went on, "and next Sunday morning,
having nothing in particular to do,
decided to take our steamer. which was
e handy little 12-knot craft, and go for
two hours run out into the gulf from
South Point to see what | could see
The water was still full of driftwood
and wreckage from the fshermen's
cabins, but we noticed nothing in par
ticular until we had been out about an
hour. Then one of the men on the beat
sighted big red can buoy over to the
southwest. 1t was government mark
that had broken away from its moor
ing and he suggested that we go and
see where it belonged. Ordinarily |
would have said all right, but some
thing-I don't know what or why
made me refuse. No. said /, I'VE won't
change our course. Keep her head
straight out for an hour longer and
maybe we'll see something better than
runaway red cans
Il had no idea that my words would
come true. but in half an hour we came
in sight of little raft dead ahead of us
and as we got nearer we made out what
seemed to be child on top of it, We
ran to within couple of hundred feet
before we stopped and then we saw that
the raft was evidently the floor of
some fisherman's cabin. The child was
boy of IA or thereabouts and he was
sitting down with his head hanging
forward on his breast and his arms
stretched out clutching the planks. He
looked for all the world as if he were
dead, but he was only asleep, and when
! rang the bell he Strengthened up all
of sudden and glared at the ship like
person in dream. All he had-on was
q little shirt. And while we lowered
small boat and pulled ever to him he
sat so, staring and saying not a word. |
He had strength enough to climb in,
but when we reached the ship he
tainted.
The poor boy had been on that |
ho1king floor for seven days and l2
hours" continued the pilot '..He was
the son of Gascon oysterman who |
lived on Grand isle, and the hurricane
had caught him alone in their cabin.
1t tore their ramshackle hut to pieces
and he found himself adrift on the
floor. which had hung together. How
he lived through the storm is one of |
those mysteries that can never be ex-
planned, but he was carried far off the |
coast and next morning was out of |
sight of land in the open gulf. Then ]
followed solid week spent without |
food, water or shelter of any kind. I |
have been seafaring man all my life
and have known of many wonderful es-
capes from death on the deep waters,
but never of anything to compare with
this. The boy had TO lie down on the
raft to keep from falling off and when
he grew weak the crayfish bit him
from head to foot until he was a mass
OF wounds. He had been a very strong,
sturdy fellow and before the storm had
weighed 100 pounds. When we rescued
him he weighed less than 100.
"Of course most of what have re-
lated we learned afterward, when he
was strong enough to talk. As soon as
we got him aboard we headed for
South Point, is miles away, for, as bad
luck would have it. there was not a
particle of food or liquor on the shin.
Fortunately, however, we hailed the
Iruiter Breakwater and got a little
brandy and can of condensed milk,
and it was marvellous how few spoon
luis of nourishment revived the lad.
At quarantine l turned him over to
he doctor and in week he was prac-
ticaily we'll Then en- uncle came after
bin and ! have never heard frog him
kncs''