LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2307, 26 August 1881, Page 4

LITERATURE.

THE PILOT’S STORY'. We have grown up together, as it were, Molllo and I, our parents being near neighbors, and—which does not often follow firm friends as well. They were poor, and 1 suspect that fact had much to do with thar friendship, for opportunities were always turning up for helping one another ; and 1 have often noticed that, when near neighbors are well off and have no need of mutual help there is very seldom auy friendship between them . there is more apt to be jealousy and competition. .. Our parents being such good friends, it naturally resulted that Mollie and I followed their example Wo went to school together, read together, played together ; and some how, when Mollie was eighteen and 1 was twenty, wo agreed to travel together all our lives, and were very happy in that arrangement ; in fact, no o l her would have seemed right or natural, either to us or to our parents. . , - _ From the earliest days of my boyhood i had a fondness for the water, haunting the paia’ial steamboats that floated on the great Mississippi river, on whose bmka nestled the city in which we dwelt, and at the period to which I am about to refer, I had just secured a position as pilot on a small freight steamer Ib was not much of a position, to be sure, nor was there much of a salary attached to it, but, small as It was, Mollie and I decided we could make it answer for two people, neither of them extravagant or unreasonable; besides which, I had hopes of better times to coiuo, as I had received words of commendation from ray employers and promises of speedy promotion, . So, early one bright morning, having ob_ tained a day’s leave of absence, Mollie and I ■were married, and stepping into a carriage I had hired for the occasion we started off, having decided on a excursion to a celebrated cave near by, this being all the wedding trip we could allow ourselves, not that we cared in the least, however; we wore too happy to be io the least disturbed by any shortcomings of sum or purse. Wo had scarcely driven beyond our own streets when we were brought to a halt, _ A messenger whom I recognised as belonging to our steamboat company hailed me. * Here’s a note to you from the superintendent.’ Thus it ran — ‘ Am sorry to have to recall your leave for to day, but you must immediately go on board the Mobilia, which is ready to start up tho river. The pilot is too ill to attend to duty, and you are appointed to take hia place for the present.’ ‘ There goes our wedding trip all to smash, said I, as Mollie read tho order. ‘ Why so ? she ashed. * You see I must go into the pilot house of tho Mobilia ’ * Yery well,’ ahe replied ‘We shall just go no the river instead of to the cave. JDrivoon, Bob ; let us go down to the wharf in state.’ * But you can’t go into the pilot house with me ; little goose.’ ‘Of course not; but I can sit on the deck outside,’ laughed Mollie, * and we can oast languishing glances at each other.’ And so it came to that X took possession of tho Mobllia’s pilot house, my heart glowing with love and pride; with love, for there, just before me, on the little forward deck, sat my sweet bride; with pride, because the Mobilia was one of the finest floating palaces of the Mississippi, and to pilot suoh a one had for years been the height of my ambition. The steamer was fitted up with a double cabin, cue above the other ; the upper one opening noon a small deck, reaching out toward the" bow, near the centre of which, on a raised platform, was placed the pilot house. The deck was always occupied by passengers, and this morning it was particularly crowded, for the boat was heavily laden with people taking advantage of the beautiful weather to make an excursion up the river.

Some rough fellows jostled against Mollie’s chair after a while, and she rose up and passed down into the lower cabin, " to get a drink of water," she whispered to me as she passed, but I suspect it was to prevent' the bursting of the thunder cloud she saw gathering on my brow. I saw that the insolent fellows made no attempt to fo'low my dear one, so I gave myself up to my own happy thoughts, and looking oat on the far distant, peaceful shores of the great river, over whose placid bosom we were moving so swiftly, there rose from my heart a glad silent hymn of rejoicing. Bat saddenly a cry broke from the cabin behind me that effectually changed the current of my thoughts : “Fire! fire! fire!" A horrible cry at all times, but most horrible of all when it rings forth in the midst of gay, unsuspicious bundreda floating in fancied security in the midst of the waters. An instant’s awestruck silence succeeded that awful cry, and then three hundred voices of men, women, and children united In the fearful, heart-rendering shrieks for help. “Fire! fire! fire!”

Aye ! there was no mistake about It, nor false alarm. No one could tell how it had commenced, but there it was, creeping along the roof of the upper cabin, with the deadly flames greedily lapping up every scrap of awning and curtain they could find upon their way, ever and anon darting long tongues of flames down to the floor to clasp the light chairs and tables and settees in their fiery embrace. As well seek with a sieve to aooop up the waters of the great river on which the Mobilia floated, as to try to snbdue the roaring, devouring enemy that had seized upon the ill-fa'.ed steamer.

The people darted down from the blazing upper cabin to the forward deck below, ■where as yet the foe had made but little headway, and there our brave captain—who was that ram avis, * the right man in the right place ’ —succeeded in partially quelling the panic.

‘ Keep quiet! ’he ordered—‘ keep quiet, and stay just where you are, or I will not answer for the lives of any of you ! The steward will provide every one of you with life preservers ; but there is no reason for any person to go overboard—not yet awhile, at any rate, unless suicide is desired, Keep quiet, I say ! Pilot, head her straight for the land, half a mile ahead.’ (We were at least twice that distance from the main land on cither shore.) ‘ Engineer, put on all steam —crowd her on ! We will run a race with the foul fiend who has boarded the Mobilia.’

There was an instant's pause, and then, with a groan and a surge, with the timbers crackling and straining, and the windows rattling, as though in mortal terror, the Mobilia gathered herself up to run her lait race.

Each passing moment the flames crept on and on and on, never pausing In the terrible march. Fortunately, they leaped upward rather than downward, so that there was as yet little danger to the panic stricken crowd cn the lower deck.

But the pilot house was directly in the track of the flames, and already their advance guard was beginning to surround me, singeing my hair and eyebrows. Suddenly there was a murmur among the people below, and the next instant a light form flew up the ladder leading to the little deck of the pilot house, and before I could say a word my precious Mollie had thrown open the door, and closing it again, stood at my side.

‘ Moliie, Mollie I’ I cried, 'for heaven’s sake go back—go back ! Don’t you see how the flamed are creeping toward us here ? Go, "go, my dearest, my own true wife! Don't unman me by making me fear for you. Go down where I can feel yon have a chance for safety. ’

‘Bob Thorne!’ she exclaimed, with her eyes looking straight into mine, * Am I your wife ?’

‘ Surely, surely, thank God!’ I mattered. ‘ But go, go !’ 1 My post is here, just as much as yours is,’ she answersd, firmly. ‘ I will stay hero, Kob, and if you die, I will die, too. Wa will make our wedding trip together, my dear husband, even if it he into the next world. Keep to your duty, and never mind me, Bob. There is hope for ns yet, and If it comes to the worst, why’—and a grave, sweet smile crept round her lips— 1 we are still together, dear love.’ I saw that it was no use to urge her any mere, oad besides something swelled in my throat bo that 1 could not utter a word, so I just gripped the wheel hard, and looked right ahead, though everything looked very dim j'uit then, and my devoted darling stood

calmly at my side, 'watching the flames that were creeping closer and closer upon us, leaping round the pilot house like hungry demons impatient for their prey. ‘Thorne,’ shouted the captain, ‘come down. Lower her and yourself over the rail. We’ll catch you. You can not stay there any longer. We are very near the shore now, and the rest we’ll take our chances on.’

It was an awful temptation. I know that, did I follow the captain’s advice, both Mollie and I would bo safe, for I was a good swimmer, and should the boat not roach the shore, I could save her and myself; but then if 1 did this, would I not deliberately expose every one of the 300 souls on board to destruction ? True, the boat might keep in her courto during tho short space remaining to bo passed merely from the impetus of her approach, but then she might not—and then ?

I looked at my dear wife inquiringly. ‘ r-tick to your post. Bob,’ ahe said. * No, sir,’ I ahonted back. ‘ I shall stick to my post; I shall stay here till I ran her clear to tho shore, or die first.’

‘My bravo Bob —my noble Bob ! ’ rant' me rod Mollie.

But alas for my devoted Mollie ! alas for mo ! Not the pilot house only, but the entire deck around it, was surrounded by flames It was too late to lower ourselves to the deck below. The railing was all ablaze. My arms, released from their guardianship over the wheel, clasped Mollie close to my heart; but my eyes and brains were busy seeking for some mode of escape from death that seemed each instant more certain.

All at once my eyes rested on the paddlebox. It had not taken Are yet ; the dying spray had saved it. I had only to dash across the flame-swept deck and fling open a little door on its side, which afforded easy access to tho wheel, to lower my precious charge to the water beneath with safety. No sooner thought of than done. ‘ Take my hand, Mollie,’ I said, * and run with me. We shall be saved after all. Wrap your shawl across your mouth. Now, now—run ! ’

Leaping down on the dock we aped, hand in hand, to the paddle-box 1 dashed open the little door, and pmhed Mollie inside, passed in myself, and drew the door close again, shutting oat the eager flames whose angry roar pursued us as we dropped gently down into the shallow water, and crept from beneath the wheel

Our appearance was hailed with a shout of delight and relief, for all had given us up as loot, and we must have been but for the heaven - inspired thought of the wheelhouse.

Now that the danger was over, poor little Mollie fainted, and no wonder But she soon came out all right ; and as the people began to find out that the ‘ brave little girl,’ as they called her, was really a bride of only a few hours, and that we were on our wedding trip, there was a regular ovation, followed up by nine deafening cheers. The island upon which the Mobilia had been beached was low, sandy, and nninhabit d, alogether not an inviting place for 300 people without a particle of shelter to pass half a day upon, yet even In this plight there were few grumblers in our midst. There was no room in our hearts for any feeling bat that of thankfulness from our preservation from a fearful death, and after the peril of tho last hour or two it seemed a small matter to wait patiently for the coming of the relief boats that wo knew were sure to arrive before many hoars were past. Though some miles from any large city, we knew that tho burning steamer must have been seen from the farm houses scattered along the river bank, and from these notices of the disaster would be sent to the nearest town. And so it was. Before night several small steamboats arrived, and after that but a few hours elapsed before we found ourselves safely at home, and our adventurous wedding trip at an end. But tho terrible nervous strain I had endured, combined with the severe burns on my face and hands, threw me prostrate on a bed of sicaness.

When I was able to report for duty again, two weeks later, I learned that a noble gift from the Mobilia’s grateful passengers —no leas a sum than 20O0dols. —lay in the Bank awaiting my order Not only this, but the steam boa'} company had voted me a gold medal and the appointment of pilot of the finest steamer on their line.

Years have gone by since my brave wife and i had so nearly journeyed out of the world on onr wedding trip. From pilot I have come to be captain and part owner of one of these beautiful floating palaces that used so to excite my envy ; but never do I pass without a sickening shudder the little island where the Mobiiia won the last race—a race of flro against steam, of life against death