The Republican journal., 1906-04-26

| and | shall never forget the frightened
and anxious Look depicted on all elrth
faces. The sight was so appalling that
| nearly lost my balance tor few
| moments. could, OF thought could,
see the object plainly, yet no one
else could see Ii, and l thought TO my
| self, what If there Is nothing: What II
it is but Il deluslon: that my great ahX-
| iety has caused my braln TO be affected
! for the time being. For moment |
| felt that my burden If responsibility
was greater than | could bear. But at
| that instant Quartermaster Nlliam
! Charles. who had been scanning With
the glass, roared out out like hon TIA
| he saw it; that 1t was big black can
buoy. Instantly a simultaneous shout
went up from every throat, and at the
same time, as t seemed TO me, at least
three ton weight fell from my shout
! ders and caused me to feel as light as d
feather.
The captain came and stood by my
side. giving my hand a hearty grasp
but uttered not word. In less than
half hours time We We're up with the
buoy, but the SEE had Increased to such
an extent that Tie outside of the bar
was almost one continuous breaker.
Seeing one spot near the buoy where
the water ran a little smoother, and
knowing that this was where the water
was the deepest / showed her nose into
it and in less than ten minutes time
we were in out OF an ocean graveyard,
where thousands of lives had been lost,
and where (as previously mentlontd)
ten days later the Monitor beng lowed
by the Rhode Island, bound to Port
Royal, sank.
Though out of the graveyard we were
not out of danger, for 1t was more than
two miles to the anchorage and IN no
WAYS smooth water so | did not know
what way to steer but we had been
sighted from the Fort and instantly we
saw boat put off with man in the
bow with a flag and a staff in his hand,
who waved the flag i'll the direction for
us to steer. | followed his directions
and in short time we were up With
the boat. 1t was too rough for the
Government pilot to board us, SO we
slowed down and the boat pulled ahead
of us into the anchorage, where we
came to anchor in smooth water. And
when we listened to the thunders OF
old ocean as it rolled its mountainous
waves in onto the beach just outside of
US we were as happy body OF men as
could have been found in Uncle Sans
service, for one night at least.
The captain being Cody MANI
called all hands to muster and told
them that it was their duty to return
thanks for their wonderful escape
from watery grave, and he also told
them, what they already knew, that had
it not been for Acting Ensign j. y.
johnson as an instrument in the hands
of Almighty God there would have
been no more of them until the sea
gave up its dead. At this time the
sailors paid me the highest compliment
that a sailor knows how to pay an
officer. Before l knew it | was seized
by old Jack Stone, boatswain's mate,
who had served more than twenty
years in an English man-ofwar. His
weight was $50 pounds, while mine was
Just half that. He picked me up as
though l was a baby and placing me on
his shoulders, though he was more
than fifty years of age, began to prance
around the deck with me as though he
was colt. The rest of the crew all
followed cheering Justify. This may
seem childish to the readers bu: 1t was
very gratifying to me at the time, for l
knew what it stood for.
In conclusion l will say that | have
had many good rides in my time, but the
happiest was on the shoulders OF old
Jack Stone. JOHN o. JOHNSON.