Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1907-09-06

the lads 20 give WAY with VIII. we
showed OF from the sides Of the old
brig. | saw the tail, bent form OF Cap
tain Thompson pecrlng down upon me
for moment. but the next instant the
boat rose on the bosom of swell. and
that was the last ever saw of my old
skipper.
The brig quickly faded from sight.
hid by a thin mist Of haze which had
suddenly arisen. and, in fact. was
conscious of a strange change in the
appearance OF the weather. The stars
had entirely disappeared from the
armament. hid behind the gauZy veil
which had so myste.iously arisen. and
low down on the horizon | noted dark
bank of clouds. The heat was Intense,
the stout seamen wiping the perspira-
ton from their streaming brows as
they toiled at their oars. Not breath
OF air disturbed the CLASSY waves. All
nature appeared to be hushei into a
terrible calm.
| must confess | felt rather appre-
hensive as | glanced about the horizon
and looked back In the direction where
knew the old brig must Ice, rolling
and pitching idly on the long swell,
which every moment was increasing.
But my fears and npprehensions were
soon chased from my head 10y matters
of more exciting interest
As we nearei the burning craft !
l., la, Lot
tiers of gold on the huge stern. The
light cast by the burning spars and rig.
ging aloft afforded ample power for me
TO form my conclusions.
The ship was Spaniard. The empty
davits and dangling falls told their
own story plain enough TO seaman's
eye.
The burning wreck had been de
serted.
Shooting under the broad, heavy
counter. we caught mt the iron works
of the mizzen channels, and. directing
two men to remain in the boat, | clam
bered on deck, followed by the other
two seamen.
ut snip tN bNNi Oii iiiN
some time. the flames having full con
troll Of the forward portion. The fore
mast had gone by the board. The top
gallant forecastle was il sea of fire
The mainmast was already lettering
and knew there was no time t. lose.
The smoke was dense and sitting, but
as vet did not affect the extreme after
portion of the vessel. The decks were
strewn with remnants of provisions,
| half open cases and articles of cloth
ing, but no trace of human being
could be seen.
Diving down into the main cabin,
which was half filed with black twist
! ing smoke. | took n haSty glance
about. The rich hangings, appoint
ments and ornamentation surprised me,
showing that the unfortunate ship had
been designed to carry passengers. The
sharp, shooting CLEANS of writing
flames from aloft penetrated through
the broad skylight, tingeing every OBJ
ject with Il ruddy glaze
From stateroom to stateroom | hur-
red, but found them all empty until
came to the after one. There | eX-
perienced some difficulty in opening the
door, the smoke every moment becom-
ing more dense and respiration more
difficult EXerting my strength, the
woodwork gave way, revealing con
fused mass Of white drapery lying on
the stateroom floor. The very sight
made my heart beat quick with ap
prehension, and, STOPPING, | soon ascer
tanned that 1t was woman.
Placing my hand over her heart,
felt II throb, and without further de
lay | rushed on deck with her in my
arms. Through the companionway
staggered with strange dizziness il
my head, gasping for breath. but still
retaining my grasp on her | had saved
The fresh air revived me, and the
pain left my head, so that | was en-
abled to pay proper attention to the
woman who lay helpless in my arms.
Then, for the first time, | looked al
the face of my burden, and by the
bright light of the wreck discovered
she was both young and handsome A
that moment the mainmast went crash
ing over the side, sinking with hiss
in the black water A shower of Gin
ders and sparks, column of roaring
flames, shot on high, followed by the
excited shouts of the men, who hat
leaped, panic stricken, into the boat
urging me to follow.
Clasping the lady with my left arm
used my right in gliding down thu
ships side. The mems oars were
poised. | gave the word, and the mex
instant we were clear of the vessel
which was now wrapped in flames
from stem to stern.
Dashing some water into the lady's
face, I began to chafe her hands. The
treatment, though rough, had the de
sired effect. She opened her eyes
closed them again as if the awake ninl
was painful, but in II few moments
was fully herself. In few words
told her how she had been saved ant
assured her that in short time sht
would be in safety on board the brig.
In return she told me that her ia
ther was the Senior Jose Gonzales o
Santos, the wealthiest planter in tn,
country She had been on a visit tt
Spain, where her father had large
number of relations, and had takel
passage for home in the Spanish ship.
The i'll fated vessel, by some means
to her unknown, had caught fire dur
ing the night. A panic ensued, and
overcome by terror, she tainted away
Probably, in the excitement and alarm