The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1903-07-03

t9N lglu house OF tine Bodrlngalli
colliery, near RhOdda. At
the moment a cage with eleven men In
u was slowly descending the shaft
The fames spread rapidly and the heat
became almost unbearable. But even
Lloyd. the engine man, never dreamed
OF quitting lis post. Catching up a
sheet Of metal be propped II in front
Of his face, and gTimly held on TO his
winding lever until the Indicator
showed that the cage was safe at the
bottom Of the shaft. Then. and not
till then, scorched and blackened, he
staggered out into the open air.
A few moments later the wire rods
attached 10 the cage snapped with the
heat, but by that time ten OF the men
were in safety. Only one was injured
by the falling metal, and he not NOR
/ tally.
An English railwayman the other
day saved IN express train full Of
! passengers bound from Liverpool 10
/ London. a Glasgow goods train was
/ shuntjng on the l.. and y. w. Railway.
near Tamwor,h. 70 make way for the
, express train 10 pass. The signal fell
/ Tor the express 10 pass, but the driver
/ OF the goods. under some misapprehen-
sion, imagined that il was for him TO
leave the siding. The points being
against him he was derailed.
Eight trucks left the rails and lay
about, utterly blocking the main line
Both driver and fireman were badly
hurt; but the latter, "A Swansea man,
by the name OF Frederick Davis, real
izing the danger 10 the oncomng eX-
press, picked himself up, and, though
in terrible pain, crawled 3lowly toward
the nearest signal box. As he went he
laid danger signals on the line. When
he reached the box he had just strength
enough left 10 tell what had happened
Then he fell unconscious and was car
ried to n hospital.
In the two desperate battles OF
Rorke's Drift and Isandlwhans the gal
liant Twenty-fourth lost twenty-one of
ficers and 5S7 men, and the survivors
received no fewer than eight Victoria
crosses. OF these the most magnfi-
Gently won is that which Sergeant
Hook. now employed at the British
Museum, still wears. For four long
hours Hook and two other men held
the hospital at Rorke's Drift against
a host of huge Zulus. At last his two
companions fell. and the survivor ran
short of ammunition. Undismayed. he
fixed his bayonet and st!ll held off
the rushes Of his foes. As one after
another fell he piled their bodies up
until a barricade was formed five feet
high.
Then the Zulus give up the attempt
to rush and set the place on fire. The
sole survivor seized pick and broke
through three successive walls of sun
dried clay 10 get st the hospital be-
hind. There lay eight men too badly
I hurt to move. And already the danes
were bursting in upon them. Hook
picked up the nearest and staggered
away with him to the other building
behind Then Lance Corporal Will
Jams came 20 the rescue, and with his
help al the sufferers We're carried into
safety. Before rescue came Hook had
been fighting eighteen hours.
One of the heroes of the world is n
told 10y Mr.. Granville Sharp, of Hong
Kong. Mr.. sharp was on a French
steamship on its way from Hong Kong
To TOuron on the Chinese coast. The
steamship ran on rock and was
beached TO save her. Her captain
hired two Chinese junks to take the
crew and passengers back to Hong
Kong, ard Mr.. Sharp went with the
captain in the smaller one. \ typhoon
swept down upon them. Masts. bull
warks and rudder were swept away in
an instant The Chinese captain. be-
lleving all was over went below and
drrgged himself with opium.
Three Chinese fishermen, who had
been firemen on the steamship, We're
aboard. and they knew the coast. They
managed 20 repair the rudder. but only
one could steer well enough to save il
from being again broken. He had TO
watch every wave and bc ready to
ease her of each sea. With no one TO
relieve him. this man stood at his post
!
ness. and endured the awful strain
for thirty-six hours. He never once
let 60 his hold. A boy stood by him
and put food between his lips at inter-
walls TO give him strength for his all
but hopeless task. He saved the junk
and all aboard her
What threatened TO I've one Of the
worst disasters in the history of ship
ping was the burning of the Ocean
Monarch. Fire was discovered in her
/ forehold an hour or two only after
she had Lett the Mersey. There was q
/ strong wind breeze anu she was headed
{ for the Welsh coast.
( BY some uulucky accident an anchor
was dropped. and the big ship was
/ brought UP all standing. head TO the
/ wind. The flames came roaring aft.
where COO passengers and crew We're
crowded.
\ Brazilian frisate. q yacht and a
! pilot boat We're near. but they only
l attempted 10 pick W. those who jumped
/ and swan. suddenly up came tho
American clipper New World. and
rounded ilto the wind barely 2C1 yards
/ away. In her irst boat was FredeTicS
/ jerome. only On able seaman. but one
] "a the bravest men that ever lived
/ In a fash his boat was alongside the
burning ship. and be climbed on deck
/ amid the sCc-ch and smother. There
] u . L..