The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-10-10
CHAPTER XIII.
The Wasp Loses Two of Her Men.


They speedily run down bay from
Philadelphia passed the Capes, and bore away to the
southeasward After they had been out for few days
they a gale, which up early
afternoon, increasing in violence the day
until at nightfall they fairly in the heart of
tempest The had been shortened by the
watchfu captain at indications of
the serious nature Of the Storm and before its fury
broke upon them, everything made snug allow
and aof the light yards sent down. rolling tackles got
preventers rugged, boat gripes looked to- felines
passed,
Now, as 1nidshipman on the forecastle it was Neds
duty, shortening sail, supervise of the
the head blooms. About ten o'clock at night,
from unexplained the lashngs of the jib
worked loose, and the fierce wind ripped Of the
sail out in great baggy from the cenpede The
storm at its height at the moment and the Wasp
rolling and pitching terribly in the tremendous
seas-it to jerk the masts an booms out Of her., as
Lang said
catastrophe to the captain Who from the fact that the
ship instantly began to fall off and bring the wind
abeam, had already apprehended that something
wrong. Meanwhile, as the wind caught more and more
SAIL boom bent sharply under the strain and
to buckle from the awful pressure it; and
the pull aloft by the jib and fore top-gallan stays
it possible that the opgallant mast might
also unless the strain were relieved at once Some
thing had to be done, and done quickly.
Whether it due to carelessness the part Of
Of the forecastle men or not, no could say
but two of the seamen, charged with the
duty furng the jb evidently felt that the situation
in certain sense, reflection upon them so with
out orders they bowsprit dropped the
foorope the jib- BOOM their knives
tried to cut loose the huge of To refurl
it in that storm impossibity.
noble idea of his duty Ned would have
followed them to the shaking spar had not old Jack
Lang caught him by the shoulders and forcibly
strained him. The midsfpman only a baby in the
arms of old sailor, who lifted him up unceremon
ously held him tight in spite of his orders and his
while he fought and kicked and screamed with
all his might. :
Eye can't go out there, Master Ned, an nobodyd
ought done it. That boonlu away in minute.
See how buckles an bends, an them menH go to
Davy Jones' locker sure" -.~. g. ~
officer of the forecastle Mr.. Rodgers, had been
quick the the sailor. following his
shouted in voice of stentorian power, to the
infu1 xincra on
come in. The spray dashing them furously
ripped its bolt ropes, the stays and halyards
There was no rope which could stand such
tremendous pressure. .~,4- ..t&@
With a crash that heard above the screaming
tempest jibboom parted at the iron clean
as if it had been chopped The ha1yards, stays
guys, martingaes way at and the whole
mass, carrying with it the two brave fellows on the
BOOM whired to leeward in flash. r
The pressure forward relieved by this accident
the ship came to the wind and plunged
steadily on There nothing earth or sea that
any one could do for the who had been carried
z%1@s
8 The boy stood aghast within the shelter of the
old His little heart almost stopped beating
These were lives he had lost at and
what made it harder to bear the consciousness
that would come to him that in way he was to
I blame for the accident 5.tE@ -
>--$3s@@ (To be continued.)
! T1uSsy'S Trolley.