Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1913-05-08

force Of loyalty to his salt which the
and the wonderful personality of SUI
perintendent Kimbau has bred in
these men-somehow they gained th5
bank
And without waiting even for
breath, Midget plunged back again TO
the wreck. Twice he lost his footing
and was swept head over heels. Twice
he came up spluttering and choking
with sand and water, but he struggled
on until near enough to catch and
hold the second man who took what
was left Of his life and with it jumped
into the smother Of dirty water. And
once more the fight was taken up and
once more Midget and his prize won
through to victory. Once more? Aye.
once more, and again once more, and
again and again and again, until sew
en- men were taken from the jaws OF
death, from the wry pit and rim OF
He'll. and clustered. huddled, exhaust
ed in mind and body, in the shadows
on the spit
hree MORE trips.
But there were still three left. Ano
these three could not do as had their
mates-they could neither jump to
Midgett's arms nor help him with
even feeble strength in the fight for
life. For these were the wounded
three-the captain with jagged hole
in his chest where a splintered spar
had struck, two others so bruised, cut
and exhausted they could but wave
shiVering hands to him, as If begging
that they be not forgotten
But Midget had no intention of for
getting them. He was blind with un'
reasoning rage now. furious with the
sea and wind. His blood was up, and
not the worst sea that ever broke, nor
all the winds that ever blew, could
have kept him from doing the utterly
foolhardy. crafty daring thing he did,
| not once but three timesi
Down he went right to the vessel
caught rope and swung himself
aboard what was left, grasped a figure
in his arms, then plunged himself
overheard on the back of a breaker
| and took his chance of glory or the
grave as many another man has done
But never another man in the an
nails of the service did it three times
and won out! For that is what Mid
gett did. Battled with by mountain
Gus waves, crippled by boards ane
boxes and spars which beat and tore
at him in both the water and tbs
driving air, harried by wind thai
was like wall against him, and ex
hausted by his seven previous trips
Midget nevertheless won through
and when he finished, saw ten wrecks
of what once were men, standing ant
lying In the semi-darkness on thu
wind and wave-swept beach.
Even as he turned, perhaps in numl
| wonder at what he had done, the hall
of the Priscilla groaned, crashed once
or twice and-was gone.
"For Extraordinary Heroism."
The keeper of the station wouls
hardly believe his tale when Midget
rode his horse back to the station fol
help. 1t did not seem believable. Blu
there were the rescued to tell tn,
amazing story over again, when, after
day and night of tender nursing a
the station, once more clothed, fet
| and warmed, they were able to speak
The life-saving service report Of thu
| following year contains this succinc
| mention in the Medals Awarded
| columns:
Doc NIidon4+ N
Gull Shoal Station For extraordi
nary heroism In rescuing, single-hand
ed, ten men from the wreck of the
barkentine Priscilla, three mile,
south of Gull Shoal station, Angus
IS, 1899, Gold Medal. The rescue was
| effected at night and during tn,
height of a disastrous storm which
| inundated the whole coast in that vi
entity"
The records of the life-savfng serv
| ice will parallel the records of any
army or navy with deeds of daring
and heroism, of bravery and courage
and willingness to die for the sake o
| tie duty that lies before it's crews
Eut in all its annals of forty-one years
OIL eAAStenCe, uuIIhS WHICH llue 1o1,
| 03S persons have been saved from
%, Ill wrecks, it has nothing to, com
pare with this rescue. 1t has plenty
Of deeds as daring and as courageous
| to keep alive in its reports, but nc
| other instance where one man, single
| handed and alone, defied such storm
| as this, and rescued ten men without
other means than the strength of his
body and the fine courage of hi
| heart.
| Copyright. by Ridgway Co