Storm Warriors

John Gilmore

Description

For centuries, a 10-mile-long sandbank off the coast of Kent, England posed a perilous and often fatal threat to sailors, causing thousands of shipwrecks and untold numbers of fatalities. In the early 1800s, however, a number of forward-thinking inventors began to dabble with the idea of a "lifeboat" -- an unsinkable rescue vessel designed to save the survivors of shipwrecks. This fascinating volume of maritime history recounts early rescue efforts in the region of the Goodwin Sands.

Sujets

• Histoire
• History

Informations

• Publié par: The Floating Press
• Date de parution: 01 octobre 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781776592739
• Langue: English

Extrait

STORM WARRIORS
OR, LIFE-BOAT WORK ON THE GOODWIN SANDS
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JOHN GILMORE
 
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Storm Warriors Or, Life-Boat Work on the Goodwin Sands First published in 1875 Epub ISBN 978-1-77659-273-9 Also available: PDF ISBN 978-1-77659-274-6 © 2013 The Floating Press and its licensors. All rights reserved. While every effort has been used to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information contained in The Floating Press edition of this book, The Floating Press does not assume liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in this book. The Floating Press does not accept responsibility for loss suffered as a result of reliance upon the accuracy or currency of information contained in this book. Do not use while operating a motor vehicle or heavy equipment. Many suitcases look alike. Visit www.thefloatingpress.com
Contents
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Preface Chapter I - How the Shipwrecked Fared in Days of Old, and the Growth of Sympathy onTheir Behalf Chapter II - Wreckers Chapter III - The Inventor of the Life-Boat Chapter IV - The Growth of the Life-Boat Movement Chapter V - The Invention and Launching of the Prize Life-Boat Chapter VI - The Ramsgate Life-Boat at Work—Storm Warriors to the Rescue Chapter VII - The Rescue of the Crew of the "Samaritano," and the Return Chapter VIII - A Night on the Goodwin Sands Chapter IX - The Wreck Abandoned, and the Life-Boat Despaired Of Chapter X - Signals of Distress—Out in the Storm Chapter XI - The Emigrant Ship Chapter XII - The Rescue of the Crew of the "Demerara," and the Emigrants' Welcome toRamsgate Chapter XIII - The Wreck of the "Mary"—Gales Abroad Chapter XIV - The Wreck of the "Mary"—A Struggle for Dear Life Chapter XV - Deal Beach Chapter XVI - The Loss of the "Linda," and the Race to the Rescue Chapter XVII - The Rescue of the Crew of the "Amoor" Chapter XVIII - The Rescue of the Crew of the "Effort"—The Dangers of Hovelling Chapter XIX - The Hovellers, or Salvors, Saved the "Princess Alice" Hovelling Lugger Chapter XX - The Saving of "La Marguerite" (A Hovel) Chapter XXI - The Wreck Brought In Chapter XXII - The Wreck of the "Providentia" Chapter XXIII - Hardly Saved Chapter XXIV - Saved at Last the Fatal Goodwin Sands Chapter XXV - Saved at Last We Will Not Go Home Without Them Chapter XXVI - Saved at Last Victory or Death Chapter XXVII - Of Some of the Life-Boat Men Chapter XXVIII - The National Life-Boat Institution Endnotes
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TO THE MOST BELOVED MEMORY OF MY LATE FATHER, JOHN GILMORE, COMMANDER, R.N.,
AND TO THE MOST BELOVED MEMORY OF MY LATE ELDEST BROTHER, ROBERT GRAHAM GILMORE, CAPT., R.N.R.,
TWO MOST BRAVE, AND SKILFUL, AND TRUE, AND LOVING-HEARTED SAILORS, WHO HAVE PASSED IN FAITH AND PEACE TO THE HAVEN THAT THEY HUMBLY SOUGHT, I INSCRIBE THIS WORK.
J. G.
Preface
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"O Mamma, I do hope that we shall be wrecked on the Goodwin Sands, thatwe may be saved by the brave life-boat men!"
"You horrid boy, hold your tongue, do," replied the Mamma, who wasanticipating, with some degree of nervousness, starting upon a voyagefor Australia in about three weeks' time, and could scarcely be expectedto enter to the full into her young son's very practical enthusiasm.
But within the last half hour the boy's shrill voice had been heard atthe Ramsgate pier-head, among the cheers that welcomed the life-boatback from a night of toil and triumph on the Goodwin; and for thepresent, to be saved from a wreck by the life-boat men is to him one ofthe most delightful ideas on earth.
After reading an article in 'Macmillan's' of the life-boat men's doings,a brave English Admiral, then commanding a fleet, wrote—"My heartwarms to the gallant fellows; tell them so, and please give them theenclosed (a guinea each) from an English Admiral without mentioning myname."
A Kentish Squire, sending a donation of a guinea for each of the menwrote,—"To read the brave self-sacrificing doings of the Ramsgatelife-boat men, makes me proud of the men of my county."
Other gentlemen wrote, and ladies wrote, and by-and-by we heard fromAustralia, America, South America, and also from other parts of theworld came evidence, that English hearts, wherever they are, cannot butfeel deeply as they read the simple narrative of such gallant deeds."Your life-boat stories have undoubtedly helped on the good life-boatcause," said Mr. Lewis.
"The public have evinced considerable interest in those tales oflife-boat work," said Mr. Macmillan; and so the idea grew that I mustwrite a book about the life-boat work on the Goodwin Sands.
A formidable idea this for a man with no "learned leisure," and quiteunconscious of possessing any especial literary skill, or any especialliterary ambition.
Certainly, I could have no difficulty in obtaining full and abundantparticulars of the various adventures of the life-boat.
It was gravely said to a friend of mine,—"It is really very wrong ofMr. Gilmore, as a family man, to risk his life in the life-boat." I havebeen able to get all particulars without risking my life, and without,which is not much less to the point, lumbering up the boat with auseless hand; moreover, I doubt whether I should have had very keenpowers of observation, while cold and exhausted and breathless, andclinging for very life to the thwarts, with the seas rushing over me,and tearing at me, striving to wash me out of the boat; which would havebeen my condition and very soon the condition of any unseasoned landsmanwho went to share the strife which the experienced boatmen often find ithard enough to endure.
I have managed better: I have had sometimes two, three, or four boatmenup to my house; and we have fought their battles over again; Iquestioning and cross-questioning, getting particulars from them, smallas well as great.
"What did you do next?" To one such question, I remember the answerwas—"Why then we handed the jar of rum round, for we were almost beatento death."—"But with the seas running over the boat, and the boat fullof water, it must have been salt-water grog very soon—how did youmanage it?"—"Well, Sir, when there was a lull, a man just took a nip;then if there was a cry, 'Look out! a sea!' he put the jar down betweenhis legs, shoved his thumb in the hole, held on to the thwart with hisother arm, then bent well over the jar and let the sea break on hisback."
Thus getting them to recall incident after incident, I got the fulldetails of each adventure; and when we arrived at the more stirringscenes, it was very exciting work indeed; the men could scarcely sit intheir chairs—their muscles worked, faces flushed, and most graphicallythey told their tales, I, not one whit less excited, taking notes asrapidly as possible.
Truly I must live to be an old man before I forget the hours I havespent in my study with Jarman, Hogben, and Reading, and R. Goldsmith,and Bill Penny, and Gorham, and Solly, and some other of my braveboatmen friends, as they have told me their many experiences and toilsand dangers in life-boat work.
To Jarman especially do I owe thanks for his many graphic narratives; hewas coxswain of the boat for ten years, and during the time of most ofthe adventures related.
One difficulty I have had to contend with has been the comparativesameness in the ordinary life-boat services. I could have had ninenarratives in one especial fortnight, for nine times was the life-boatout during that time; but it has taken nearly ten years for me to finda sufficient number of narratives so varying in their chief incidentsthat the book should not of necessity be wearisome from repetition, andat the same time give a picture of the varied experiences and dangers oflife-boat work.
I must leave my Readers to judge how far I have gained my object in theselection I have made.
As the few life-boat stories I have already published have been used tosome extent in public Readings, Penny Readings, and on the likeoccasions, I have thought it well to make each story, as far aspossible, complete in itself, although to effect this, some repetitionof similar incidents has been unavoidable.
I come of a sailor family—this will account to landsmen for my seemingacquaintance with nautical matters; I have never been to sea—this willexplain to sailors the ignorance on such matters that they will not havemuch difficulty in detecting.
"God help the poor fellows at sea!"—"God protect and bless thelife-boat men!" (humble, honest, hardworking and most generous andbrave-hearted men as I well know full many of them to be);
"And God prosper the good Life-boat Institution, and advance its nobleobject!" that many a brave fellow may be spared to his family and home;many a good man be plucked from death to be yet the joy and support ofloved ones; and many a man, unfitted to meet death, be snatched from itsjaws to live to repent and to seek that peace which he had formerlydisregarded. With such prayers I launch my book. And may God further itto His glory, by making it instrumental in gaining yet increasedsympathy with the already much-loved life-boat cause; thus blessing itto be one of the humble instruments, among many, in helping to work outthe results for which, in our sailor-loving land, so many are ever readyto hope, to work, to pray.
One last word. The narratives related are, I firmly believe, as far aspossible, strictly and literally true; I am positive the boatmen wouldnot knowingly exaggerate in the least; and I have sought to tell thetales, incident by incident, what the men did, and what the mensuffered, and what the men said—simply as they related eachcircumstance to me.
Chapter I - How the Shipwrecked Fared in Days of Old, and the Growth of Sympathy onTheir Behalf
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A worthy Quaker thus wrote:—"I expect to pass through this world but once; if, therefore, there can be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again."
Before in fancy we man the Life-boat, and rush out into the storm, andhave the salt spr