The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1908-06-18
eaAeI scon.lnuedl.

E<He wasgA2IfAS{Wt. of breath and al
u most drehcM8XIB3N Vie skin when he
/ reached tHe Hajof st. Chloe bay and
saw bsloW hfBSseveral tiny points Of
light. Hespahsed for a moment, and
the sound OF. voices fell distinctly on
his ear. Mt/was a steep descent, and
observation-disclosures on so dark a
night. B1t<In a moment of such SUI
preme suspense peril was not thought
of
He lost his lantern before he reach
Cd the bottom and came near break
ing his neck more than once, but he
had no time to worry about himself.
He could have found a much easier
path ,f he had made a detour through
the village, but he was too impatient
70 brook any delay. The jewellers
along the coast knew by painful exs
perience what 1t meant for a vessel to
be caught by the Beetles, and he was
anxious to be on the spot as quickly
as possible II haply he might be able
70 render assistance.
He found himself at length In the
center of a little crowd of men, WON.
en- and children. All st. Chloe APP.
peared to have emptied itself in the
bay. No one. however, knew exactly
what had happened. That a vessel had
gone on the Beetles there was no
doubt. For a while rockets had been
hired. and those earliest on the scene
had heard voices faint and indistinct,
but the fog had been SO thick hat 1t
had been impossible to see twenty
yards away. Fortunately the rain
was thinning the fog a little.
He came across the curate at
length, standing knee deep in water.
Can you make anything out. Gray
toni" he asked, excitedly.
II think they must have taken to
the boats" was the answer. Il heard
voices distinctly a little while ago,
and we raised o shout here in re-
sponse."
But you have seen nothing?
Nothing at all. Our men are out in
the lifeboat. But l fancy the ships
boats must be keeping out to sea to
avoid the rocks"
"If the fog will only lift" Clement
said. regretfully.
"It is lifting a little. Hank! that's
our men shouting"
The next moment a loud and united
"Ahoyi" rang out across the water
from the shore.
Hold your lante as as high as pos
sible," shouted the .drate.
A few minutes later another call
came from the sea. 1t soon became
evident that the lifeboat was return
ing, and all the lanterns were center
ed at n point.
1t was a perilous landing place at
the best OF times. The foreshore was
spiked with innumerable rocks, the
passages between were narrow aud
t~reacherous. A yard to the right o.
left might NEAR certain destruction.
Clement waded into the water by
the side of Grayton and strained his
eyes through the murk and spray for
the first sign of the returning boat.
Fortunately in the matter OF sea there
was nothing worse than a ground
swell; but that was bad enough on
such a muggy night. 1t needed care
ful handling to bring a boat safely
through.
Suddenly the fog drifted away like
niagis, the Lizard flashed on its rocky
eminence, dark specks on the water
proclaimed the existence OF boats, and
Q shout from the shore fioated out
over the water like a bugle call.
In a moment or two the white prov
OF the lifeboat was seen In the dis
lance; she came up the narrow char
mel like a flash, and fifty resolute meA
and women rushed forward to render
assistance to the dozen h~alf-drowned
people on board.
Their boat was wrecked" the
coxswain explained, "and we picked
'em up. Some Of EN- were ~clinging to
the rocks. others floating about. I
fear we haven't get all OF 'em. But
other boats are coming"
The next boat claimed attention.
She came safely through, and her pas
sengers were soon hurried away to
the village.
The third boat was caught BY . rock
and overturned, and a moment Of the
widest excitement followed. Clement
and Grayton threw or their outer
clothing and plunged into deep water.
snd for what seemed an ago they
fought the hungry sea and rescued
one aftsfs another from the jaws OF
death. 1Nh
Z It ri long after midnight before