SEA-FOG, AND WRECK-III. 1. The pinnace now contained seventy-nine men and one woman, the cutter forty-two, and the gig eighteen, with which cargoes they barely floated. Captain Hickey, of course, was the last man who left the wreck; though such had become the respect and affection felt for him by his crew, that those who stood along with him on the last vestige of the ship, evinced great reluctance at leaving their commander even for a moment in such a perilous predicament. So speedy, indeed, was the work of destruction, that by the time the captain reached the boat, the wreck had almost entirely melted into the yeast of waves. As she went down, the crew gave three hearty cheers, and then finally abandoned the scattered fragments of what had been their house and home for nearly seven years. 2. The fog still continued as thick as ever; and as the binnacles had both been washed overboard, no compass could be procured. The wind also being still light, there was great difficulty in steering in a straight line. In this dilemma, a resource was hit upon, which for a time answered pretty well to guide them. It being known loosely before leaving the wreck in what direction the land was situated, the three boats were placed in a row pointing that way. The sternmost boat then quitted her station in the rear, and pulled ahead till she came in a line with the other two boats, but took care not to go so far as to be lost in the fog; the boat which was now farthest astern then rode ahead, as the first had done; and so on, doubling along, one after the other. 3. This tardy method of proceeding answered only for a time; for at length they found themselves completely at a loss which way to steer. Precisely at this moment of greatest need, an old seaman, Samuel Shanks by name, recollected that at the end of his watch-chain there hung a small compassseal. The course now secured insured their hitting the land, from which they had been steering quite wide. 4. Before reaching the shore, they fell in with an old fisherman, who piloted them to a bight called Portuguese Cove, where they all landed in safety, at the distance of twenty miles from the town of Halifax. The fishermen lighted great fires to warm their shivering guests, most of whom, being very lightly clad, and all, of course, dripping wet, were in a very sorry predicament; many of them, also, were miserably cramped by close packing in the boats. Some of the men, especially of those who entered the boats last, having been obliged to swim for their lives, had thrown off everything but their trousers, so that the only respectably-dressed person out of the whole party was old Shanks, the owner of the watch and compass-seal, a hardy sailor, who throughout took the whole affair as deliberately as if shipwreck had been an everyday Occurrence. He did not even take off his hat, except, indeed, to give his good ship a cheer as she went to the bottom. 5. Their subsequent measures were soon decided upon. The captain carried the three boats round to the harbour, taking with him the men who had suffered most from fatigue, and those who were worst off for clothes. The officers then set out with the rest, to march across the country to Halifax, in three divisions, keeping together with as much regularity as if they had been proceeding upon some previously arranged piece of service. Very few of the party could boast of shoes, an inconvenience which was felt more severely than it would otherwise have been, from their having to trudge over a country but partially cleared of wood. Notwithstanding all this, there was not a single straggler; and the whole ship's company, officer, man, and boy, assembled in the evening at Halifax, in as exact order as if their ship had met with no accident. 6. I have been more particular in describing this shipwreck, from its appearing to offer several uncommon and some useful details, well worthy, I think, of the notice of practical men, in every profession. It is rather an unusual combination of disasters for a ship to be so totally wrecked, as to be actually obliterated from the face of the waters, in the course of a quarter of an hour, in fine weather, in the daytime, on well-known rocks, and close to a lighthouse, but without the loss of a single man, or the smallest accident to any person on board. 7. In all probability, the lives of the crew could not have been saved, had the discipline been less exactly maintained. Had any impatience been manifested by the people to rush into the boats, or had the captain not possessed sufficient authority to reduce the numbers which had crowded into the pinnace, at least half of the crew must have lost their lives. 8. It was chiefly, therefore, if not entirely, to the personal influence which Captain Hickey possessed over the minds of all on board, that their safety was owing. Their habitual confidence in his fortitude, talents, and professional knowledge, had become so great, that every man in the ship instinctively turned to him for assistance; and seeing him so cheerfully and so completely master of himself, they relinquished to his tried sagacity the formidable task of extricating them from the impending peril. It is at such moments as these, indeed, that the grand distinction between man and man is developed, and the full ascendency of a powerful and well-regulated mind makes itself felt. The slightest hesitation on the captain's part, the smallest want of decision, or any uncertainty as to what was the very best thing to be done, if betrayed by a word or look of his, would have shot, like an electric spark, through the whole ship's company, a tumultuous rush would have been made to the boats, and two out of the three, if not all, must have been swamped, and every man in them drowned. 9. Captain Hickey and his crew had been serving together in the same ship for many years before, in the course of which period they had acquired so thorough an acquaintance with one another, that this great trial, instead of loosening the discipline, only augmented its compactness, and thus enabled the commander to bring all his knowledge, and all the resources of his vigorous understanding, to bear at once, with such admirable effect, upon the difficulties by which he was surrounded. 10. There are some men who actually derive more credit from their deportment under the severest losses, than others can manage to earn by brilliant success; and it may certainly be said that Captain Hickey was one of these. Ves'-tige, trace or remains. From Lat. vestigium. Re-luc'-tance, unwillingness. From Lat. re, against, and luctor, I struggle. Pre-dic-a-ment, condition. Basil Hall. Dis-as'-ter, misfortune. From Lat. dis, negative, and astrum, a star. Disaster is literally an evil star. It was long believed that the stars had an influence, good or bad, on human affairs. Ob-lit'-er-at-ed, blotted out. From Lat. ob, over, and litera, a letter. Litera originally meant a smear. For'-ti-tude, strength of mind. From Lat. fortis, strong, brave. In-stinct'-ive-ly, by natural impulse. Sa-gac'-i-ty, acuteness, shrewdness. From Lat. sagax, acute, from sagio, to perceive quickly or A-scend'-en-cy, superior influence. Com-pact'-ness, firmness. De-port'-ment, behaviour. EXERCISES.-1. Explain the following: (1) Evinced great reluctance; (2) such a perilous predicament; (3) In this dilemma a resource was hit upon; (4) they relinquished to his tried sagacity the formidable task of extricating them from the impending peril. 2. Analyse and parse the following: 'I must here remark that I do not suppose the process ever goes on so regularly as is represented in the diagram.' 3. Name all the derivatives you know from the following Latin roots (1) Fortis, brave, strong; (2) litera, a letter; (3) sagax, wise; (4) claudo, clausum, I shut; (4) claudo compounded with con-, re-, se-, pre-, in-, ex-. GREECE. [This is a fragment from The Giaour (1813), one of the beautiful poetical tales by Lord Byron, whose works contain many fine passages contrasting modern Greece with its ancient glory. One of the noblest acts of his later life was the aid he gave in the struggle for Grecian independence. Byron died while on this mission at Missolonghi, Western Greece, in 1824.] Clime of the unforgotten brave! Whose land from plain to mountain-cave |