| The wind suddenly shifted to the northeast, and... 218 |
[Jan. 31st, 2010|02:43 am] |
The wind suddenly shifted to the northeast, and the remnant of the sea fog melted in the blastAnd then, mirabile dictu, between the piers, leaping from wave to wave as it rushed at headlong speed, swept the strange schooner before the blast, with all sail set, and gained the safety of the harbourThe searchlight followed her, and a shudder ran through all who saw her, for lashed to the helm was a corpse, with drooping head, which swung horribly to and fro at each motion of the shipNo other form could be seen on the deck at all
A great awe came on all as they realised that the ship, as if by a miracle, had found the harbour, unsteered save by the hand of a dead man! However, all took place more quickly than it takes to write these wordsThe schooner paused not, but rushing across the harbour, pitched herself on that accumulation of sand and gravel washed by many tides and many storms into the southeast corner of the pier jutting under the East Cliff, known locally as Tate Hill Pier
There was of course a considerable concussion as the vessel drove up on the sand heapEvery spar, rope, and stay was strained, and some of the 'top-hammer' came crashing downBut, strangest of all, the very instant the shore was touched, an immense dog sprang up on deck from below, as if shot up by the concussion, and running forward, jumped from the bow on the sand
Making straight for the steep cliff, where the churchyard hangs over the laneway to the East Pier so steeply that some of the flat tombstones, thruffsteans or through-stones, as they call them in Whitby vernacular, actually project over where the sustaining cliff has fallen away, it disappeared in the darkness, which seemed intensified just beyond the focus of the searchlight
It so happened that there was no one at the moment on Tate Hill Pier, as all those whose houses are in close proximity were either in bed or were out on the heights aboveThus the coastguard on duty on the eastern side of the harbour, who at once ran down to the little pier, was the first to climb aboardThe men working the searchlight, after scouring the entrance of the harbour without seeing anything, then turned the light on the derelict and kept it thereThe coastguard ran aft, and when he came beside the wheel, bent over to examine it, and recoiled at once as though under some sudden emotionThis seemed to pique general curiosity, and quite a number of people began to run
It is a good way round from the West Cliff by the Draw-bridge to Tate Hill Pier, but your correspondent is a fairly good runner, and came well ahead of the crowdWhen I arrived, however, I found already assembled on the pier a crowd, whom the coastguard and police refused to allow to come on boardBy the courtesy of the chief boatman, I was, as your correspondent, permitted to climb on deck, and was one of a small group who saw the dead seaman whilst actually lashed to the wheel
It was no wonder that the coastguard was surprised, or even awed, for not often can such a sight have been seenThe man was simply fastened by his hands, tied one over the other, to a spoke of the wheelBetween the inner hand and the wood was a crucifix, the set of beads on which it was fastened being around both wrists and wheel, and all kept fast by the binding cordsThe poor fellow may have been seated at one time, but the flapping and buffeting of the sails had worked through the rudder of the wheel and had dragged him to and fro, so that the cords with which he was tied had cut the flesh to the bone
Accurate note was made of the state of things, and a doctor, Surgeon JCaffyn, of 33, East Elliot Place, who came immediately after me, declared, after making examination, that the man must have been dead for quite two days
In his pocket was a bottle, carefully corked, empty save for a little roll of paper, which proved to be the addendum to the log
The coastguard said the man must have tied up his own hands, fastening the knots with his teethThe fact that a coastguard was the first on board may save some complications later on, in the Admiralty Court, for coastguards cannot claim the salvage which is the right of the first civilian entering on a derelictAlready, however, the legal tongues are wagging, and one young law student is loudly asserting that the rights of the owner are already completely sacrificed, his property being held in contravention of the statues of mortmain, since the tiller, as emblemship, if not proof, of delegated possession, is held in a dead hand
It is needless to say that the dead steersman has been reverently removed from the place where he held his honourable watch and ward till death, a steadfastness as noble as that of the young Casabianca, and placed in the mortuary to await inquest
Already the sudden storm is passing, and its fierceness is abatingCrowds are scattering backward, and the sky is beginning to redden over the Yorkshire wolds
I shall send, in time for your next issue, further details of the derelict ship which found her way so miraculously into harbour in the storm-The sequel to the strange arrival of the derelict in the storm last night is almost more startling than the thing itselfIt turns out that the schooner is Russian from Varna, and is called the DemeterShe is almost entirely in ballast of silver sand, with only a small amount of cargo, a number of great wooden boxes filled with mould
This cargo was consigned to a Whitby solicitor, MrBillington, of 7, The Crescent, who this morning went aboard and took formal possession of the goods consigned to him
The Russian consul, too, acting for the charter-party, took formal possession of the ship, and paid all harbour dues, etc
Nothing is talked about here today except the strange coincidenceThe officials of the Board of Trade have been most exacting in seeing that every compliance has been made with existing |
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