Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1917-09-21

IOr WdlSI. OOu0 lew DIOuSLt TC'
lfreshments aboard and this they
freely shared with their neighbors
II was indebteded to a young man
for a part of his lunch and a bottle
of soda water. Also the captain sent
me a cup of tea and the following
morning a cup of coffee. In this l
was more fortunate than many Of my
fellow passengers. But on the whole
voyage, which lasted all day Tues
day and all that night, until six the
next Wednesday morning, over thir-
ty hours and from food till food
some thirty-six hours, | heard less
complaint from the entire passenger
list, than | have heard frequently at
the breakfast table in our modern
hotels.
| A Dash of Bitters
My throat was parched with thirst
My face and arms were sun Bills
tered almost raw. My stomach was
as empty as the sail overhead l sat
for hours on that blistering deck
and watched the pitch boil out of the
cracks in the planking. l finally
brought myself to take a drink of
black water from the very black cup
the sailors used. Ugh. Call that
water? 1t was thick enough to pass
for soup, black enough to pass for
ink and strong enough to pass for
roquefort. Water, like a shirt is all
| the better for an occasional change.
One swallow and l went back again
to my thirst and discomfort.
thought of all the sweet watered
gushing springs l had known in my
whole life. l could shut my eyes and
see running brooks, gushing torrents
on mountain side, and the old pump
on the farm back home where we
Sed to stop up the spout and drink
through our fingers. Hunger can be
held in allegiance, but not thirst.
At all times We could look across
that beautiful smiling sea and see
the beautiful island of St. Thomas
ahead, or turn aft and gaze on the
headlands of st. Croix gilded with
the glory of the tropic sun. We could
look and long, but that was ALL They
lay there in repose on the painted
sea and Knocked us in our misery.
Off in the suns trail a school of por-
po1se played tag in a copper sea,
and to the starboard a giant silver
sided king fish leaped occasionally
1t would have been interesting under
other circumstances, but not now.
A essen in Patience
And the people! They simply sus-
pended animation. When the sun
| drove them out of one place they
| crept into another. some of them
never moved from the time they en-
barked until we arrived. Others
passed the time in chatting, telling
stories and discussing the cricket
game. Some funny clown would
| start story and a roar of laughter
would pass over the company like
| joy wave. How they could laugh and
be miserable at the same time, was a
| conundrum. Then up forward some
| body started a song. 1t would be
licked up by others, increasing in
volume until the whole ship company
Or thoes awake would join in the
melody. And what did they sing?
Listen:
There's a land that is fairer than
day,
And by faith we can see it affair.""
And the chorus enriched by the
powerful throaty voices of our new
citizens would roll out over the
sleeping ocean,
''In the sweet, bye and bye,
We shall meet on that beautiful
shore"
Old Methodist hymns they sang,
songs associated with my childhood,
songs l least expected to hear under
the circumstances, and songs that
sounded inexpressibly sweet and
made us forget our discomfort for
the time being.
| AS the day closed and the night
came on it grew cooler but only to
increase our hunger and thirst. All
night We drifted until finally the
rev went ahead with the boat and
towed us part way. A patrol boat
of the United States Navy also gave
us a lift. We arrived at 600 a. M.
Wednesday morning.
I have enjoyed a good appetite all
my life l enjoy a bath occasionally.
Each has its proper place. But it
remained for me to visit the Vir-
gin Islands to learn just how a
breakfast really tastes and just the
right amount of enjoyment to be de-
rived from BATH
And as for sailing vessels
know it all!
LOU D. MacWETHY.