Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1907-07-11
A HUMBLE HERO.

"He Is the bravest man / ever
knew" said Mr.. F. Hopkinson Smith
of Captain Thomas A. Scott, whose
death occurred a few weeks ago, and
whom the author has made famous
in some of his stories and novels. But
no act attributed by the pen Of fiction
to this submarine engineer and diver
can equal the real facts of his cour-
age and self ss.rtaca. The New
York Tribune quotes from Mr.. Smith
the tale of one of Captain Scott's
deeds which lifts the man into the
ranks of true heroes. The captain
was in the employ of the Off-Shore
Wrecking Company, when one morn
ing in January an accident happened
to Hoboken ferry-boat.
The ice in the river was unusually
heavy, and the boat slowly crunched
her way through the floating floes
until the pack choked her paddles in
mid-river. The weather was bitterly
cold, and a keen wind was blowing
1t was an early morning trip, and
the decks were crowded with labor
ing men, the driveways were full Of
teams, and women and children
stood inside the cabins, a solid mass,
up to the swinging doors.
While the boat struggled to gain
headway, an ocean tug crashed into
aer side, cutting great V-shaped
cash below her water line. Shrieks
vent up from a hundred throats.
Men, women and children were
crazed with fear. The disabled boat
careened and fell over on it's beam.
The water poured in like a torrent.
Sinking seemed only a question of
seconds.
Captain Scott, on the wrecking
tug Reliance, saw the situation.
Bringing his boat alongside, he
sprang to the deck of the ferry.
Quickly he forced the crowd to the
starboard side, and thus righted the
boat, which regained an nearly even
keel. With a threat to throw any
man overheard who stirred, he
dragged mattresses. blankets clothes,
anything, and crammed them into
the hole. 1t was useless even the
oil rags had been used, and still the
water poured in.
Captain Scott stood for moment
as if undecided, then deliberately
forced his own body into the gap
with his arm outside, level with the
floating ice.
An hour later the disabled ferry
boat, with every soul safe. was towed
into the Hoboken slip. When they
lifted the captain, he was uncon-
scious and barely alive. The water
had frozen his blood, and the ice had
torn much of the flesh from his arm
from shoulder to wrist. When he
opened his eyes, he said feebly to the
doctor:
WAS any of them babies hurt?"
Weeks passed before he regained
his strength. Then he went back to
his work on the Reliance. In the
meantime the wrecking company had
presented a bill to the ferry company
for salvages, which had been re-
fused.
Captain" said the president of
the wrecking company to Scott the
first time the latter appeared at the
office, we're going to have some
trouble getting our pay for that ferry
job. Here's an affidavit for you to
swear to-"
The captain took the paper, read
1t, laid it down, and walked toward
the door.
"Did you sign it,"
"No, and | amt going to-
"Why?"
"Cause amt SO mean as you
be. Look at this arm! Do you think
I'd have got into that hole if 1t hadn't
been for them women and babies?
And you want 'em to pay for it,"
Then he walked straight to the
cashier, demanded his pay, resigned
his position and walked out
Some time after some one asked
the captain to tell the story of how
he stopped the leak.
"Oh, there amt nothing to tell"
replied the captain. "She got foul
of tug and listed some, and sorter
plugged her up. Been so long l most
forgot about 1t.