The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-01-18

we were in for heavy weather, and
the worst yet. Long before daylight
the tug was hove to, but she was that
crammed with cargo and coal there
was no life in her. The seas were
washin' clean acrost her, and hammer
in her till you couldn't hear yourself
think.
| thought we were plenty bad
enough off, but when day broke we
found our troubles hadn't fairly be-
gun. We could make out a vessel,
hove to mile or SO away, low and
lean and gray, a vessel of war show
ing no cOlOrs.
1t was a remarkably funny thing, la
dies and gentlemen, and somewhat
disturbin If this was 2 Salgada gun
boat, then she was cruisin in search
of us to sink us with all hands. And
here we were in plain sight, within
easy range of her guns, but she was
as helpless as we were. 1t was still
gamble whether both vessels would
not go to the bottom before the day
was over, for all they could do was
to try to buck the storm, hove to,
and pray that their engines would
hold together. By this time the pa
triots were chatterin like flock of
parokeets, feebly waving their arms,
and trying to find their rifles and ma
chetes.
Morales said: eve are up against
fO~ eo I,oIOxod Mortimer Goo
will bet you the best box of cigars
in Rio de Contas when we have cap
tured it, you and me, that this vessel
is the little cruiser Emelio Sanchez,
which is good for eighteen knots. She
was built for river service, wherefore
she has three fighting tops on each
mast for shootin' over the banks. She
has good battery, too some four-inch
guns. She will make us look like 30
cents, think"
By noon the wind was falling and
! the sea was not quite so heavy. But
we were taking in water so fast that
the pumps had all they could do to
keep the fireroom from being flooded
out
Thinks I, 1--WE can't run away, an
it looks as if we'd have to fight"
set Morales to try and get his gun
crew orard, if they wasn't too sick
or washed overheard 1t looked bad
to me, but the lad who was ready to
wade through two thousand troops to
get his arm around his sweetheart
wasn't going to be dcwnhearted over
a proposition like this.
| found three men who could walk,
and hauled them on hands and knees
to the stern, where by old 12-pounder
was shining between the seas that
most buried her.
Morales grabbed three or four other
tarriers by the back of the neck, and
cuffed them for'ard to man the other
gun. We got ready not minute too
soon. We were hanging on, half under
water, just rammin' a shell into the
breech Of my gun, when heard dull
"boong," and in a minute something
cried in the air overhead and splashed
off to starboard.
Her officers knew our old tug all
right, and they had opened the ball.
Before l could make ready to fire,
crash! and the old tug shiyered as if
she had hit a reef, and | craWled to
the rail to see past the deckhOuse, and
there was Morales waving his hand to
me, and hangin' on to the breech of
his 12-pOunder. He had cut loose
ahead of me. 1t was gun practice fit
for a crazy house, you can guess, with
both vessels pretty near rolling their
tunnels under, but it struck us as
mighty serious and absorbing bust
ness.
The cruisers shells were wailing and
whizzing all around us, but the only
damage so far was her knoclzin'
couple of feet off the top of our fun
rel, which didn't do our draught any
good
Meanwhile Morales landed a shell so
close astern Of the cruiser that |
thought he must ha' taken the stern
post out Of her. | yelled to him to
keep it up, and he waved his hand
and got busy again.
All but he was the picture of
brave and handsome lad as he stood
there over the gun, the water swashin'
around his knees, his black hair fly
ing into the wind. was on my way
to him when his finish happened.
Bang" went our bow gun, and
turned to follow the shot. Holy
mother! My heart leaped and 1 yell
ed like lunatic.
A cloud Of steam burst out of the