FROM THE FROZEN SEAS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2523, 23 July 1902, Page 71

FROM THE FROZEN SEAS.

The English whaling ship John Bradford had stocd due south from Madagascar until she was almost down to Enderby Land. That is a mighty stretch of water, and the ship bad been months working her way down to the edge of the South Pole lcefie'ds.

She had gathered a rich harvest in that desol&te sea. and was ready to square away to the north, when a gale sprang up from that quarter and drove her down into the ice-packs. It was only by the help of another gale that rhe found, clear water •again. She had not made above 100 miles on her course, and tnc hour had gone midnight by the bell, when Ire look-out reported a light dead ahead. For four months Uip Bradford had fcighteel only two vessels, and spoken none. Within a quarter of an hour she was passing a brig, which was driving along in an erratic manner before the wind, and it was seen that her light came from a cabin window. She was hailed again and again, but no one appeared on her decks in answer.

While her masts and yards were all right, the latter had been stripped of all canvas, and the few fluttering rags proved that the sails had been blown away. As &be was yawing about in a dreadful way she was making little progress to the north compared to the whaler, and would have been run out of sight in half an hour had j ot the captain of the Bradford determined to stand by.

"She isn't a wreck," he said, as he ordered his ship to be thrown up into the wind, "but f-he's a derelict with living men aboard of her. She's been down there in the ice for montus or years, and the gale has finally set her free. We'll stand by tilt morning, and &cc the tnd of this mystery.

The biig's bell hid been heard tolling ever since her ii:;ht was seen, and it kept up it.i m Hiinful notes right along through tho remaining hoins of darknes<. E\ery time she lifted to a :ea or pitched into the trough of one. the notes of the bell flrated across the wateis.'as if tolling ior the dead. Mid lonir before daylight came the crew of the whaler w ere worked up to a tension.

There was at Jeist one living man aboard of her, or there would havj -been no light in the cobin. but would" she be found clcai of those who had worked and watched and waited and hoped and finally sought ttieir bunks to die of cold and loneliness snd despair'/

When the morning broke at last the brig was a mile to windward. Theie wa- not much wind, but time was still an ugly sf a on The w h.iler made sail and beat ivp to tho derelict, and a pi un Mght of Le/ showed that she had indeed been a wandeier.

Her ones white Lull had turned to a dingy grey, with here and there a gieat patch of mould Her masts and j-aids were badly w either-beaten, and her ngging was almost white for want of tar. Half a hundred rope-ends swayed like pendulums as she rolled, while her ruddei wa= gone, and piit.il anchor chains were li.in fc '!i,g fr.mi he". hu\*e-holes.

It was only aftc the whaler had fired a blank cartridge from her bomb gun and si great had bje-n raised by her ciew that any signs of life „ ?re nbseived aboard llie biig. Then a figure emerged fiom the cabin, and stood with hands on the lull, and stared hard at th? Uivdtord.

The figure was so hooded and enveloped that no man could be sure of the sex without a glass; but the whaler captain. who had his gliss to his eye, had scarcely brought, the figure into focus when he gave v start, and cried out :

"Before God", men, that's a young •woman, and probably the only living ...oui aboard! Get up a, cheer and wa\e yom tats to let her know that salvation j\ at hand.!"

• The muffled figure did not make a move 5n answer to ths cheers and gestures. Athe whaler ran past the brig and then clewed up and snugged down to drift with her, the woman made her way across the deck and disappeared down the companion without even turning bet- head. "It's all light, men," said the captain, in reply to the look.- of his ciew. *it that person is the only peism aboard, we Juay look to find her out of her light mind. I'ie ioaelinebs would have diiven her intdiie.

We'll stand by till the sea goes down, and iben find out all about it."

All that day end all the night following the whaler stood by and waited for the sea to cilm down until it was safe to launch a boat. The infernal tolling of the brig's bell was ever in the ears of the crew-, but* not once did they get sight of the v oman.

When night fell there was no light from the cabm windows r>r other quarter, and it appeared as if the lone worn in was giving the whaler a hint to resume her course and do no meddling. ''It looks very queer — very queer." said tho captain, "but when we board that l.rig we'll find the woman a lunatic, and hiding away, or we'll find her dead in the cabin.'' At sunrise next morning the sea was sufficiently calm for a boat to be lowered, and the second mate and three men set out to board the derelict. They boarded by the bows, to find the decks coveied by two feet of solid ice and a great laffie of stuff, and to discover plenty of evidence.' that she had been afloat and uncared for for years. They looked into the deckhouse, but i cither living nor dead were to be seen. They looked into the quarters of the boatswain, sdilmaker, and cook, but found rothing. Then they turned to the cabin. There was ice over the skylight, and the mate had to strike a match to find his way to the lamp. Its light «howed him an empty cabin, but when he had opened the doors of fcur or five staterooms he came across the woman She was lying in her bunk, and he thought her asleep, but investigation proved that she had been dead for hours. The craft was the AspU. of Genoa, laden with a miscellaneous caigo for Australia, and she had been down among the ice for o\er four years. How she c.mie to be dm en so fir south 1.0 man could tell, and what had become of the 15 men of her crewwas another mystery. For foui years thit young woman, who had become the captain's bride just before sailing, had been alone in that bug. There had been food and water in abundance, and when the cool gave out she had made fuel o f the cargo to keep the cabin stove going. The log of the bug was missing, and the woman had kept no dhry. but there were papers and letters to solve a part of the ni\ sterv.

Why* iiad death come to the woman after all these year.- of bhtek de-p<»ir jus>t as rescue was at hand? A doctor might have told, but tiie whalers could only giies*. She had died with both hands pressed to her heart, and thcie «v> a look of flight in her wide-open c\es.

All papers which could be found were taken, together with a few f-omeniis. and when the body of '.lie woman had been given a sailor's biuial the whaler filled .'way and left the derelict to ]it;r fate.

The story was toid to the press the papers were forwarded to flip ow ntrs at Genoa, and that was the finis of a sea incident that left its impression upon the reckless, rough-hearted sailors foi many weeks after. I. B. Li:\vi>, in the Boston Globe.