Thrilling Adventures by Land and Sea - James O. Brayman
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On Sunday, the workmen continued their labor with equal zeal and
uncertainty as before. A sort of inquietude and hopelessness, however,
occasionally pervaded their minds, which may be easily accounted for,
from the hitherto fruitless result of their fatiguing researches.
Discussions now took place on what was to be done; differences of
opinion arose on the various plans proposed, and, in the meantime, the
sounds of the hapless victims from the recesses of the rocky cavern
continued to be distinctly audible. Every moment the embarrassment and
difficulties of the workmen increased. The flinty rock seemed to grow
more impenetrable; their tools either broke, or became so fixed in the
stone, that it was frequently impossible to regain them. The water
filtered from all parts, through the narrow gallery they were
perforating, and they even began to apprehend another irruption.
Such was the state of things on Monday morning, when, at four o'clock,
an astounding noise was heard, which re-echoed throughout the Whole
extent of the mine. A general panic seized on every one; it was thought
that the waters had forced a new issue. A rapid and confused flight took
place; but, luckily, their fears were soon allayed on perceiving that it
was only an immense mass of rock, detached from the mine, which had
fallen into a draining-well. This false alarm, however, operated in a
discouraging manner, on the minds of the workmen; and it required some
management to bring them back to their respective stations, and to
revive that ardor and constancy, which they had hitherto so nobly
displayed.
They had scarcely renewed their endeavors to bore through the rock, when
suddenly one of them felt the instrument drawn from his hands, by the
poor imprisoned miners. It was, indeed, to them, the instrument of
deliverance from their cruel situation. Singular to relate, their first
request was neither for food nor drink, but for _light_, as if they were
more eager to make use of their eyes, than to satisfy the pressing wants
of appetite! It was now ascertained that eight of the sufferers still
survived; and this time an authentic account of the happy discovery was
dispatched to St. Etienne, where it excited the most enthusiastic
demonstrations of sympathy and gladness. But there is no pleasure
unmixed with alloy; no general happiness unaccompanied by particular
exceptions. Among the workmen, was the father of one of the men who had
disappeared in the mine. His paternal feelings seemed to have endowed
him with superhuman strength. Night and day he never quitted his work
but for a few minutes to return to it with redoubled ardor; one sole,
absorbing thought occupied his whole soul; the idea that his son, his
_only_ son, was with those who were heard from within. In vain he was
solicited to retire; in vain they strove to force him from labors too
fatiguing for his age. "My son is among them," said he, "I hear him;
nothing shall prevent my hastening his release;" and, from time to time,
he called on his son, in accents that tore the hearts of the bystanders.
It was from his hand that the instrument had been drawn. His first
question was "my child?" Like Apelles, let me throw a vail over a
father's grief. His Antoine was no more, he had been drowned.
For four days several medical men were constantly on the spot, to
contribute all the succors that humanity, skill, and science could
afford. It was they who introduced through the hole, broth and soup, by
means of long, tin tubes, which had been carefully prepared beforehand.
The poor captives distributed it with the most scrupulous attention,
first to the oldest and weakest of their companions; for,
notwithstanding their dreadful situation, the spirit of concord and
charity had never ceased for a single moment to preside among them. The
man who was appointed by the others to communicate with, and answer the
questions of their deliverers, displayed, in all his replies, a gayety
quite in keeping with the French character. On being asked what day he
thought it was, and on being informed that it was Monday, instead of
Sunday, as he had supposed, "Ah!" said he, "I ought to have known that,
as we yesterday indulged ourselves freely in drinking--water." Strange
that a man should have the heart to joke, who had been thus "cabin'd,
cribb'd, confin'd," during five days, destitute of food, deprived of
air, agitated by suspense, and in jeopardy of perishing by the most
horrible of all deaths!
There still remained full sixteen feet of solid rock between the two
anxious parties; but the workmen's labors were now, if possible,
redoubled by the certainty of complete success. At intervals, light
nourishment in regulated quantities, continued to be passed to the
miners; this, however they soon rejected, expressing but one desire,
that their friends would make haste. Their strength began to fail them;
their respiration became more and more difficult; their utterance grew
feebler and fainter; and toward six o'clock in the evening, the last
words that could be distinguished, were--"Brothers make haste!"
The general anxiety was now wound up to the highest pitch; it was,
perhaps, the most trying crisis yet experienced since the commencement
of their benevolent labors; at length the moment of deliverance was, all
at once, announced, and at ten o'clock it was accomplished. One by one,
they appeared, like specters, gliding along the gallery which had just
been completed; their weak and agitated forms supported by the
engineers, on whom they cast their feeble eyes, filled with
astonishment, yet beaming with gratitude. Accompanied by the doctors,
they all with one single exception, ascended to the entrance of the
mine, without aid; such was their eagerness to inhale the pure air of
liberty. From the mouth of the mine to the temporary residence allotted
them, the whole way was illuminated. The engineers, pupils, and the
workmen, with the National Guard under arms, were drawn up in two lines
to form a passage; and thus, in the midst of a religious silence, did
these poor fellows traverse an attentive and sympathizing crowd, who, as
they passed along, inclined their heads, as a sort of respect and honor
to their sufferings.
Such are the affecting particulars of an event, during the whole of
which, every kind of business was suspended at St. Etienne; an event
which exhibited the entire population of a large town, forming, as it
were, but one heart, entertaining but one thought, imbued with one
feeling, for the god-like purpose of saving the lives of eight poor,
obscure individuals. Christians, men of all countries, whenever and
wherever suffering humanity claims your aid--"Go ye and do likewise!"
[Illustration: SHIP TOWED BY BULLOCKS.]
SHIP TOWED TO LAND BY BULLOCKS.
A few years since the ship Ariadne, freighted principally with live
cattle, started on a voyage from Quebec, bound to Halifax. A gale came
on, which continued to increase in fury, until it became a perfect
hurricane. The ship was dismasted, and when the mainmast fell, three
poor fellows were crushed to death. A little before sunset, on the
second day of the gale, the appalling cry of "Breakers ahead!" was
raised. All eyes were instinctively turned in one direction; and, about
a mile off, the sea was as a boiling caldron. Toward the breakers the
hull was now drifting, unmanageable, every moment threatened with
destruction. For about half an hour, there was intense anxiety, and an
agony of suspense on board. At length she entered the breakers. A large
wave raised her, and she struck heavily on the rocks as the waves
receded; it was evident, from constant striking upon the bottom, that
the vessel must soon go to pieces; and the sea made a clean break over
her, about half of the length from the stern. The officers and crew were
huddled together upon the deck forward, intent upon devising means of
escape; at last the captain thought of a plan, which, though novel,
proved successful. He fastened ropes to the horns of several bullocks,
and drove them into the sea, their strong, instinctive love of life
impelled them forward, and several of them reached the shore. The ropes
were fastened by some men, who had assembled for the relief of those on
the vessel, and after much exertion and danger all on board were rescued
from their perilous situation, and landed in safety.
DESTRUCTION OF A SHIP BY A WHALE.
The following thrilling account of the destruction of the whale ship Ann
Alexander, Captain John S. Deblois, of New Bedford, by a large sperm
whale, is from the lips of the captain himself. A similar circumstance
has never been known to occur but once in the whole history of
whale-fishing, and that was the destruction of the ship Essex, some
twenty or twenty-five years ago, and which many of our readers fully
remember. We proceed to the narrative as furnished by Captain Deblois,
and which is fully authenticated by nine of the crew, in a protest under
the seal of the United States Consul, Alexander Ruden, Jr., at Paita.
The ship Ann Alexander, Captain J.S. Deblois, sailed from New Bedford,
Mass., June 1st, 1850, for a cruise in the South Pacific for sperm
whale. Having taken about five hundred barrels of oil in the Atlantic,
the ship proceeded on her voyage to the Pacific. Nothing of unusual
interest occurred until when passing Cape Horn, one of the men, named
Jackson Walker, of Newport, N.H., was lost overboard in a storm.
Reaching the Pacific, she came up the coast and stopped at Valdivia, on
the coast of Chili, for fresh provisions, and the 31st of May last, she
called at Paita for the purpose of shipping a man. The vessel proceeded
on her return voyage to the South Pacific.
On the 20th of August last she reached what is well known to all
whalers, as the "Off-shore ground," in latitude five degrees fifty
minutes south, longitude one hundred and twenty degrees west. In the
morning of that day, at about nine o'clock, whales were discovered in
the neighborhood, and about noon, the same day, they succeeded in making
fast to one. Two boats had gone after the whales--the larboard and the
starboard, the former commanded by the first mate, the latter by
Captain Deblois. The whale which they had struck, was harpooned by the
larboard boat. After running some time, the whale turned upon the boat,
and rushing at it with tremendous violence lifted open its enormous
jaws, and taking the boat in, actually crushed it into fragments as
small as a common chair! Captain Deblois immediately struck for the
scene of the disaster with the starboard boat, and succeeded, against
all expectation, in rescuing the whole of the crew of the boat--nine
in number!
There were now eighteen men in the starboard boat, consisting of the
captain, the first mate, and the crews of both boats. The frightful
disaster had been witnessed from the ship, and the waste boat was called
into readiness, and sent to their relief. The distance from the ship was
about six miles. As soon as the waste boat arrived, the crews were
divided, and it was determined to pursue the same whale, and make
another attack upon him. Accordingly they separated, and proceeded at
some distance from each other, as is usual on such occasions, after the
whale. In a short time, they came up to him, and prepared to give him
battle. The waste boat, commanded by the first mate, was in advance. As
soon as the whale perceived the demonstration being made upon him, he
turned his course, suddenly, and making a tremendous dash at this boat,
seized it with his wide-spread jaws, and crushed it to atoms, allowing
the men barely time to escape his vengeance, by throwing themselves into
the ocean.
Captain Deblois, again seeing the perilous condition of his men, at the
risk of meeting the same fate, directed his boat to hasten to their
rescue, and in a short time succeeded in saving them all from a death
little less horrible than that from which they had twice as narrowly
escaped. He then ordered the boat to put for the ship as speedily as
possible; and no sooner had the order been given, than they discovered
the monster of the deep making toward them with his jaws widely
extended. Fortunately, the monster came up and passed them at a short
distance. The boat then made her way to the ship and they all got on
board in safety.
After reaching the ship a boat was dispatched for the oars of the
demolished boats, and it was determined to pursue the whale with the
ship. As soon as the boat returned with the oars, sail was set, and the
ship proceeded after the whale. In a short time she overtook him, and a
lance was thrown into his head. The ship passed on by him, and
immediately after they discovered that the whale was making for the
ship. As he came up near her, they hauled on the wind, and suffered the
monster to pass her. After he had fairly passed, they kept off to
overtake and attack him again. When the ship had reached within about
fifty rods of him, they discovered that the whale had settled down deep
below the surface of the water, and, as it was near sundown, they
concluded to give up the pursuit.
Captain Deblois was at this time standing in the night-heads on the
larboard bow, with lance in hand, ready to strike the monster a deadly
blow should he appear, the ship moving about five knots, when working on
the side of the ship, he discovered the whale rushing toward her at the
rate of fifteen knots! In an instant, the monster struck the ship with
tremendous violence, shaking her from stem to stern! She quivered under
the violence of the shock, as if she had struck upon a rock! Captain
Deblois immediately descended into the forecastle, and there, to his
horror, discovered that the monster had struck the ship two feet from
the keel, abreast the foremast, knocking a great hole entirely through
her bottom. Springing to the deck, he ordered the mate to cut away the
anchors and get the cables overboard, to keep the ship from sinking, as
she had a large quantity of pig iron on board. In doing this, the mate
succeeded in getting only one anchor and one cable clear, the other
having been fastened around the foremast. The ship was then sinking
rapidly. The captain went to the cabin, where he found three feet of
water; he, however, succeeded in procuring a chronometer, sextant,
and chart.
Reaching the decks, he ordered the boats to be cleared away, and get
water and provisions, as the ship was keeling over. He again descended
to the cabin, but the water was rushing in so rapidly that he could
procure nothing. He then came upon deck, ordered all hands into the
boats, and was the last to leave the ship, which he did by throwing
himself into the sea, and swimming to the nearest boat! The ship was on
her beam end, top-gallant yards under the water. They then pushed off
some distance from the ship, expecting her to sink in a very short time.
Upon an examination of the stores they had been able to save, he
discovered that they had only twelve quarts of water, and not a mouthful
of provisions of any kind! The boats contained eleven men each; were
leaky, and night coming on, they were obliged to bail them all night to
keep them from sinking!
Next day, at daylight, they returned to the ship, no one daring to
venture on board but the captain, their intention being to cut away the
masts, and fearful that the moment the masts were cut away that the ship
would go down. With a single hatchet, the captain went on board, cut
away the mast, when the ship righted. The boats then came up, and the
men, by the sole aid of spades, cut away the chain cable from around the
foremast, which got the ship nearly on her keel. The men then tied ropes
around their bodies, got into the sea and cut a hole through the decks
to get out provisions. They could procure nothing but about five gallons
of vinegar and twenty pounds of wet bread. The ship threatened to sink,
and they deemed it prudent to remain by her no longer, so they set sail
in their boats and left her.
On the 22d of August, at about five o'clock P.M., they had the
indescribable joy of seeing a ship in the distance. They made signal and
were soon answered, and in a short time they were reached by the ship
Nantucket, of Nantucket, Mass., Captain Gibbs, who took them all on
board, clothed and fed them, and extended to them in every way the
greatest possible hospitality.
On the succeeding day Captain Gibbs went to the wreck of the ill-fated
Ann Alexander, for the purpose of trying to procure something; but, as
the sea was rough, and the attempt considered dangerous, he abandoned
the project. The Nantucket then set sail for Paita, where she arrived on
the 15th of September, and where she landed Captain Deblois and his men.
Captain Deblois was kindly received and hospitably entertained at
Paita by Captain Bathurst, an English gentleman residing there, and
subsequently took passage on board the schooner Providence, Captain
Starbuck, for Panama.
[Illustration: BURNING OF THE KENT--EAST INDIAMAN]
BURNING OF THE KENT.
The annexed engraving represents the burning of the Kent, East Indiaman,
in the Bay of Biscay. She had on board in all six hundred and forty-one
persons at the time of the accident. The fire broke out in the hold
during a storm. An officer on duty, finding that a spirit cask had
broken loose, was taking measures to secure it, when a lurch of the ship
caused him to drop his lantern, and, in his eagerness to save it, he let
go the cask, which suddenly stove in, the spirits communicated with the
flame, and the whole place was instantly in a blaze. Hopes of subduing
the fire at first were strong, but soon heavy volumes of smoke and a
pitchy smell told that it had reached the cable-room.
In these awful circumstances, the captain ordered the lower decks to be
scuttled, to admit water; this was done; several poor seamen being
suffocated by the smoke in executing the order; but now a new danger
threatened, the sea rushed in so furiously, that the ship was becoming
water-logged, and all feared her going down. Between six and seven
hundred human beings, were by this time crowded on the deck. Many on
their knees earnestly implored the mercy of an all-powerful God! while
some old stout-hearted sailors quietly seated themselves directly over
the powder magazine,--expecting an explosion every moment, and thinking
thus to put a speedier end to their torture.
In this time of despair, it occurred to the fourth mate to send a man to
the foremast, hoping, but scarce daring to think it probable, that some
friendly sail might be in sight. The man at the foretop looked around
him; it was a moment of intense anxiety; then waving his hat, he cried
out, "A sail, on the lee-bow!"
Those on deck received the news with heart-felt gratitude, and answered
with three cheers. Signals of distress were instantly hoisted, and
endeavors used to make toward the stranger, while the minute guns were
fired continuously. She proved to be the brig Cambria, Captain Cook,
master, bound to Vera Cruz, having twenty Cornish miners, and some
agents of the Mining Company on board. For about a quarter of an hour,
the crew of the Kent doubted whether the brig perceived their signals:
but after a period of dreadful suspense, they saw the British colors
hoisted, and the brig making toward them.
On this, the crew of the Kent got their boats in readiness; the first
was filled with women, passengers, and officers' wives, and was lowered
into a sea so tempestuous as to leave small hope of their reaching the
brig; they did, however, after being nearly swamped through some
entanglement of the ropes, getting clear of the Kent, and were safely
taken on board the Cambria, which prudently lay at some distance off.
After the first trip, it was found impossible for the boats to come
close alongside of the Kent, and the poor women and children suffered
dreadfully, in being lowered over the stern into them by means of ropes.
Amid this gloomy scene, many beautiful examples occurred of filial and
parental affection, and of disinterested friendship; and many sorrowful
instances of individual loss and suffering. At length, when all had been
removed from the burning vessel, but a few, who were so overcome by fear
as to refuse to make the attempt to reach the brig, the captain quitted
his ill-fated ship.
The flames which had spread along her upper deck, now mounted rapidly to
the mast and rigging, forming one general conflagration, and lighting
up the heavens to an immense distance around. One by one her stately
masts fell over her sides. By half-past one in the morning the fire
reached the powder magazine; the looked-for explosion took place, and
the burning fragments of the vessel were blown high into the air, like
so many rockets.
The Cambria, with her crowd of sufferers, made all speed to the nearest
port, and reached Portsmouth in safety, shortly after midnight, on the
3d of March, 1825, the accident having taken place on the 28th of
February. Wonderful to tell, fourteen of the poor creatures, left on the
Kent, were rescued by another ship, the Caroline, on her passage from
Alexandria to Liverpool.
THE END