"A Man overboard!"
This was the startling cry that rang out from the multitude swarmingforward on the ferry-boat D. S. Gregory, one wintry night, as she wasapproaching the dock at the foot of Courtlandt Street, on her trip fromJersey City.
For a few seconds confusion and excitement reigned supreme.
The boat was crowded with passengers, many of whom had passed out of theforward cabin doors, and were pushing toward the bow, eager to be thefirst to leap ashore, scarcely willing to wait till the lattice-like gateswere drawn aside to allow them to pass.
Some were smoking, many were talking, and no one was dreaming of anythingwrong, when the alarming cry resounded through the frosty air.
The captain heard it on the instant, as did the engineer; for the latterchecked the swinging of the ponderous working-beam at the same second thathe received the signal from the captain--a thing which never happensunless in some such emergency.
As the throbbing of the engine ceased and the boat glided smoothly along,there was such a general rush toward the bow that a dangerous dipping ofthe craft followed--a peril which no one beside the officials on thevessel observed.
"Who is he?"
"Did he jump over?"
"Did he fall?"
"Was he pushed?"
"Can he be saved?"
"Where is he?"
These and similar questions were on a hundred lips; and before anyintelligible answer could be given, a woman gave utterance to the mostheart-rending scream, and made such frantic attempts to spring into thewater, that the intervention of several strong men was required to preventher.
"It must be her husband."
But the expression was yet in the mouth of the speaker, when, falling limpand despairing into the sturdy arms of the unknown friends, she wailed,--
"Will no one save my child? Let me go to her; she is all that is left tome--oh, let me die with her!"
"It's a little girl that fell overboard," called out some one who had seenthe accident. "There she is--hello!"
The last exclamation was caused by a second splash, as a dark body clavethe air and dropped into the water within a few yards of where the dressof the little girl could be faintly discerned.
"Heavens, that is only a little boy!" called out an excited individual."Are all the children to be drowned before our eyes?"
The general belief was that this lad, through some strange mischance, hadalso fallen into the river, a belief which was quickly dispelled byanother boy, no doubt his playmate, calling out,--
"That's my chum, Tom, and you needn't be afraid of him; he can outswim aduck and a goose and a fish all together; he jumped over to save thatlittle girl, seeing as all you big men was afraid--and you can just bethe'll do it too."
There was a tone of absolute certainty in these remarkable words whichlifted a mountain from more than one heart, and instantly transferred allinterest to the brave young lad who had sprung into the water to save alittle girl that was a stranger to him.
A cold wintry night was closing in when this accident took place, and thelights from the shipping and the great city twinkled like myriads ofstars.
Great black hulls lay still and motionless in the water, as if they wereenormous ogres of the deep waiting for human prey to come into their vastmaws; steam-tugs were puffing and darting here and there, in and outamong the shipping, as though they were playing hide-and-seek with eachother; another ferry-boat was just putting out from the dock on the NewYork side, the paddle-wheels crunching and grinding the chunks of ice, asif masticating its food.
In the chilly gloom of the evening, the crowds that swarmed to thegunwales and peered forward could see something floating in the water; andthough no one could define exactly what it was with the aid of the sightalone, yet, by a general consent, it was accepted as the form of thelittle girl that had fallen overboard.
A second figure was seen working his way toward the nerveless and silentone.
The two were no more than fairly out of the path of the steamer, which wasgliding so closely by them that any movement of the wheels would haveendangered both.
Among those who forced their way to the side of the boat was the lad whogave utterance to the words before recorded. It was natural that he shouldbe deeply interested when his dearest friend was risking his life to saveanother. As soon as the lad on the boat caught fair sight of the other, heshouted,--
"Hello, Tom! do you want any help?"
"Three chaars for the wee one!" called out an Irishman, boiling over withenthusiasm, "and if there's a spalpeen on boord that don't jine in, I'llcrack the head of the same, or me name isn't Patsey McConough!"
But the deck-hands had not been idle spectators during the few minutessince the accident.
Prompt as they had been, the children were, however, so far off at themoment of tossing over the life-preservers and hurling out the ropes, thatnone reached the lad, who was too intent on saving the child to pay anyattention to these little helps, which he did not need.
When the craft stood at a dead halt, the engineer caused a slight and onlypartial reverse movement of the wheels, so as to approach the couple.
"Yes, there he comes," shouted a tall fellow, leaning so far over the railthat he was in danger of falling, "and I'm blessed if he ain't got thegirl!"
Such was the fact, as all perceived the next moment. The boy wassupporting the little form with one hand, while he propelled himself withthe other.
As soon as Tom came within reach, another lasso-like fling was made, thecoil dropping so near the boy that he succeeded in grasping it with hisfree hand.
Whoever the little fellow was that was acting the _role_, he certainly wasa genius in his way. His presence of mind was almost marvelous.
When the waves from the threshing-paddle so unexpectedly overwhelmed him,he had just time to draw a deep inspiration before he was environed bydeath. The most skillful swimmer in the world cannot sustain himself insea-foam, or in the white caps of the breakers. The only safe course whenthus caught is to hold your breath and wait for "solid water," where youcan paddle your own canoe.
Almost any one thus entrapped would have let go the rope and been drowned,but the boy held on with the grip of death, and as soon as he could catcha mouthful of fresh air, shouted,--
"Pull up; I'm all right."
A dozen hands were outstretched to help, and the next minute the bravelad, still holding the senseless girl with one arm, was drawn up on deck,and received into the crowd, who almost pulled him apart in their frenziedcongratulations.
It was found that the little girl was alive, and carrying her into thecabin where her mother had just recovered from her swoon, a medicalgentleman announced that there was nothing to fear.
The wheels of the ferry-boat were again in motion, and the slip wasreached, while a hundred men were demanding the name of the young hero,praising him, offering to make up a purse, hurrahing, and going wild overwhat was unquestionably a most praiseworthy deed.
In the midst of the excitement and rattling of chains, the crowd swarmedoff the boat, and the lads were lost sight of.
Chapter IX.