The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-12-25
LIFE SAVERS SEE HUMoR.
Boatmeh Often Find Funny Incl
dents In Their Calling.
From die Chicago Chronicle.

dents In Their Calling.
From the Chicago Chronicle.
Humorous incidents in our lives?"
said one of the old life savers last week
when asked concerning the nature of
his work. Il can spin you good many
yarns that are sad and good many
that are heroic, but funny tales are
not in my line. Still, 1 have seen some
queer things, too.
One night about ten years ago,
remember small sailboat had upset
In squall little distance from the
shore and We set out to get the occu-
pants. There were two of them, a man
and woman, and, as it afterward
turned out, a dog also. When we came
up to the overturned boat we found
the woman clinging to the only want
age point, and the man, who was a
strong swimmer, taking things easy
round the boat. He explained that he
mad been the first to get a good posi-
tlon on the overturned boat; that he
mad swum to the woman, got her, and
then took off boots and stockings and
MS outside garments with one hand,
holding her up with the other. That
was a pretty piece of work.
But the woman was the most nerv-
Gus creature l have ever seen. She was
cllng1ng on to the boat and screaming.
My poor Peter!' My poor Peter!' Well,
we asked her who was lost, and she
said Peter l asked her how old he
was, and she said only seven years
CID. The boat was going to put back.
when the man, overhearing, said. IT'S
only dog; go on
Well, sir, that woman nearly tore
herself to pieces for that little dog. AS
cnance would have it, a sea showed
the pet dog trying to struggle through
the water. The woman saw 1t, too. and
though she had just been pulled ont
of the water and could not swim out
sne jumped after it. We had an awful
job getting her on board. for che
wouldn't come in until we had reached
the little beast. She thought more of
the cur than of her own life.
Another time another animal ea,,a
US quite little experience. This time
again 1t was a yacht l wonder whv
tnese people always carry a menagerie
on their boats. Well, the beast This
time was goat, an ornery goat. We
got nold OF the owner of the yacht ana
some or the guests that he had with
her, and then this goat wanted -
climb in. We couldn't pull away for
the passengers had not all been res-
cueo, and this animal was irving IN
nutt way in with his head. We had
TO stun him with an oar"
Did he die"
D1d you ever see a goat die2 T
suppose ne swan ashore when he got
good and ready. No Won CANT LII 81 -
billy goat with anything short of aiac-
trocution. And even then it's odds he
VIII hlre lawyer to saw Won ore
charging too much for magnetic heal
ing" NEAR
Dlo you ever rescue big animals p,
we went out after an elk last vear
That had escaped from the Lincoln
Park zoo. We couldn't catch the beast
though; all We could do was to turn
IL to the shore. Finally we got II in
an angle of the pier and it was lassoed
from shore.
Then of course, horses often get
out TOO FAR in the water and the own
er will give the crew a donation -
turn them back. But those sort of
things are only incidents that serve r.
While away the monotony of a dull dav
we are not supposed really to go in this
way, out we are supposed to take a
practlce spin every once in a while
and this is regarded in that light.
curious applications are not infre-
quent, and we get calls to go out and
rescue everything from a toy boat to
an ocean steamer"
An ocean steamer"
Yes: there is one man in this tou,r
VINO was in a big wreck at sea. once
and 1T turned his mind. He is nerfact'
~ sane, but in certain conditions Of
the weather a sort of vision comes over
him and he sees this wreck apain
Then he buttonholes some passersbv
ana tells him to run to the life sa vtny
station, as there is a wreck at such and
such a place" ''
How do you know that it is this
man unless he comes HIMSELF"
We had talk with him and humor-
ed him that the life saving department
had presented him with medal which
ne must wear on broad red ribbon
right across his waistcoatA So when
any one comes to us with a story of
big wreck of which we have not
heard, we ask him whether his infor-
mant was not wearing this ribbon. and
In every case we are able to show that
the report is false.
There are not many false alarms.
for the reason that our telescopes are
so powerful that in nearly all instances
we can cover the field we have to cover
with vision, and, therefore, can soon
verify the truth or the falsity of a re-
port. Indeed. report which is true
seldom comes before we are in our
boats ready to go out or already on the
way.
Then all sorts of people imagine
that they are called to be heroes and
wish to go out with the boats and save
lives and do all sorts OF meIodramatic
things. but there is nothing in II save
craving for notoriety, and the occa-
sions when a visitor has gone out with
boat are very few. and then Il has
generally been due to Official order and
on a calm day.
Belts are a great help, and there
would be many more lives lost than
at present II II were not for these de-
vices. But strange things happen in
connection with these at times. I re-
member a wreck about three years ago
when three men were thrown into the
water. Life belts were handy and each
got hold OF one.
Now, these men had never seen a