The Irish standard., 1902-09-27

part in lake navigation. The little
! schooners, overloaded and unse;l,
worthy, battled With the pillows, and
often carried their crews down to Il
sailors grave at the bottom of the
lake. Young Ryan was numbered
among the men on three wrecked YES
+ sells, each time considerable distance
/ from land. He escaped the fury of
i the waters, while many Of his compan-
, ions We're swallowed in the waves or
dashed to death on rocky sh res. Once
on Lake Michigan he spent several
hours adrift and was finally rescued
by Il fishing boat when he had almost
given himself up for lost.
Like all young men i'll a Scafaring
life, Ryan had an overpowering ambi-
| tiun to command Il boat Of his own.
He wanted to strut the quarter deck,
even if it was only Il lumber hooker
and be called captain. Before his
twcnty-lilth year that ambition WAS
, satisfied. y firm ut Chicago gave him
command of the Sunrise, Il small
, schooner in the Lake Michigan trade
She was the very rottencst craft that
kissed its waters, NJ one of his COM
panions cnvied him, for they sad
THAT tub will so to the bottom the
fl.Sf IL. 1f.n < In hpl
and a stormy night, and that's the last
of ship and maybe the captain"
They were right and wrong. Ryan
seemed to have II charmed life, and
the cracking death trap went and
came regularly, weAthcreu tempests,
bulfeted breakers, and made money
like the best Of them. Old sailors said
twas Ryuns luck, and toll it as Il mat
ter of course.
The captain left this first Schooner
TO take the Heating, Il larger vcssel.
but about ready to fall 10 pieces. III S
successor on the Sunrise lot her in
Georgian bay OH his first trip. but the
cl,w escaped to land in the Lonts.
On the heating lie "kump. Il the
humps" as the %.ilgrS call lltastin%
Mic,liyams stuIby ii, OIL, f'r II arly ten
wears, and made money for his OWL
crs, and also for hms it, His amb.-
ton had now turned to better thugs
tltan sailing. and he determined to get
home. He began to put away Ms
money, and throve and prosperrd
a]n,ce. With typical luck he navi%at-
cd the Heating until llcl. timbcl's We're
s, ruttcn tll.y could ain o be pul'e |
apart, and finally laid her Old homes
down on the shore near milwaukee, to
mould away like many another sailor
whose day of usefulness is Il ne. Mel
who knew the old ship to be utterly
unscaworthy when Ryan took charge
of her, said only Ryan's luck Carried
her and him through.
Capt. Ryan married few We rs az
Then he determined to quit sailing Il
soon as he had Il competence. n stock
and fruit farm and an elegant country
lone was his amb ton "a place VIII It
his wife and little daughter could livr
surrounded by Tie comforts OF the
city. and tllc freedom of rural life. y
couple of years ago he succeeded III
getting just such Il place, near Muskc
4, Il I'm I, IA r1,
that il was the envy o. the rural pop
lIatiun for miles aruurh. He decided
TO retire from the lakes. His forum,
amounted to about $4,000. and TIN
farm promised to be ramuncrativc
He was to spend THE remainder IF his
days with his family. The Old sailors
felt glad of his good fortune, ant
mllscd that il was Rynn's luck.
'rhc present season was to he his las
on the lakes. Two months m re would
have marked the close Of his sailol
life, and he felt that after coming
through more than thirty years will
flying colors he could accomplish t(ht
final haven and without any great e.
fort.
Then after it all. with storm ani
slipwrcck hraych ami conquered. for
tune and cAs, and com 'ort almOs
within his grasp, he was drowned i,
port, i'm about six feet of muddy water
Within ten feet of land.
Was it Ryan's luck? Who shall 81!
that he was not the playthin@ of fate
the football of malevol MT destiny
which danced before him, Turing hin
until his hand was almost upon 1t, am
then at the end called in an uneX
pcctcd and untimely death TO finish TIL,
struggle.