Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1904-11-25

the weight of the sea which 1t haC
taken from below, and when it's rotten
hull struck the snag it was practically
torn asunder. -
| It went down like a rock, and the
young fisherman had either of two al.
| ternatlves. One was to take refuge by
clinging to the cause of his disaster
and the other was tc swim for the is.
| land. T.
But there was no time to waste un.
der such conditions. As soon as he
! had recovered from the shock which
hao sent him deep below the surface be
| arose and swan for the snag which
danced about for moment, after its
contact with the boat, like top.
He chung to this for several mo-
ments when he discovered. that it was
taking a course ranging farther from
the island and heading directly for
Disappointment rocks. The expert
enced fisherman knew what this
meant. Raising his head as high as
he could above the sur face of the water
he sighted the dark outline of the near
est point on Sand island as marked by
the accumulated dri1twood, taking
Tillamook lighthouse for his guide,
and swan in southwesterly direction.
Dan Lapham was a good swimmer
and was strong and experienced. but
the water was cold and the current
pulled at him like thing Of life.
Battling to keep from being drawn to
Disappointment rocks and at the same
time to gain the nearest point of the
island he soon found it telling upon
his strength.
Benumbed and exhausted he felt
that ease coming over him which is
never experienced except under certain
conditions. He had heard men rescued
from drowning, tell of this sensation.
He knew at once what it meant. His
strokes grew weaker, and in spite of
the fact that consciousness came over
him that he was gradually giving
away he felt a certain amount of relief
that is said to always come to the per-
ishing nan in his last Moments diz-
zy, lulllng feelings that makes death
rather welcome than appalling.
A dull buzzing sound entered his
ears. His limbs moved as if in a
dream. The water seemed freed all at
once from it's chill. The darkness
gathered more deelpy but it was as
gentle as the shadows OF sleep. The
waves rocked him as smoothly as a
babe in cradle.
"Sankala!' he spoke. "Sankala! |!
1t cannot be! 1 cannot leave you.
must not surrender. Arms and legs,
you have never failed me. Heart, send
forth that blood you owe to Sankala
and revive this body to battle the waves
and live for the poor, unfortunate or
phan girl!''
With spasmodic effort he arose
from his sinking attitude. He shot
forth his limbs with forced and awk.
ward motion. It was then that Dan
Lapham discovered the weakness of
will power compared with the grip of
fate. He saw that youth, strength,
determination, must all yield to the in
evltable. .....
But the same fate that had carried
him to the border of the dark shadow
now threw straw within his reach.
A dark solid object grated against his
side. He was caught by it and carried
along at a slow but steady 1ate of speed.
He reached out his hand and clasped
the limb of tree. One of the fallen
monarchs of the upper country had
been caught in the food and was being
carried to the ocean.
Lapham dragged himself upon its
branches and closed his benumbed
hands upon two of them that he might
not be swept away. Thus, exhausted
and in a semi-conscious condition, he
lay upon the drift, which was pursuing
its course toward the ocean.
"Steer clear of that drift, mate"
exclaimed a mans voice, low and
husky.
Five men were seated in a boat.
Four of them we're lying upon their
oars. The fifth was steering the craft
The Gnen were merely using their oars
to keep the boat from drifting seward
and the steersman was holding her
along side the current. While the men
held the oars in their hands long, black
guns lay across their laps.
1t was the advance guard of the
southsiders. They were in waiting for
the approach of the northside fisher
men. A slight redness above the hori-
zan to the east indicated that morning
was approaching. The men had been
watching for the approach of the north
sidels for several moments. They
were the lower guards, who expected to
apprehend the fishermen of the traps
in the lower bay. A large log with
branches extending in many directions
had almost run into them. So dark
was the night that it had approached
them very elosley before they saw it.
1t was this that had called for the COM
mapd to the steersman.
"There is man aboard that drift"
exclaimed one of the men. 'Tie on to
the DRIFT" said the leader.
One of the men grabbed branch of
the drift and the boat and log hoated
along together.
"The mans Dead" remarked one OF
the fishermen as he came near the OBJ
ject. "Bring him aboard, anyway"
said the leader. "and we will hurry him