THE LOSS OF THE MEGÆRA.—" THE STOKER'S TALE."

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1249, 15 February 1872, Page 2

THE LOSS OF THE MEGÆRA.—" THE STOKER'S TALE."

The story of the Megsera has now been told in many forms, but nevef in so graphic and vivid a fashion in " the stoker's tale," as printed in the Daily News —a narrative which, as the Spectator says, is "in the dumb, strong, fact painting style of De Foe himself" It purports to be told in a room in a Southampton hotel just after the Pera's arrival with the wrecked crew, the party consisting of the Daily News' corres pendent, who acted as host, and two Megsera stokers, of whom one told the story, the other by gestures or interjections aciively assenting to and occasionally strengthening its statements. As, a sample of the vigorous style of the story, we quote an extract describing how the ve=isel was run on the bar at the island of St. Paul's :—<'Half the. crew were on the topgallant fok'sle, half aft, every man ready for a spring if she should break her back. Between the sharks, I fear it wouM have gone hard with them. Where was J% o,h \ below, for somebody had to, keep. the. steam up. The stokers were forced to t remain below. At least it warn't altogether force, but d"ty, sir, for we never thought to grumble, although we never thought to see the deck again. Orders were to get on a very strong head of steam. The glands weie leaking, and I thought every minute the stearapipe would go." " Hadn't we got souls to be saved like the rest?" struck in the silent member. " They never so much as asked us to drink, but stuck us in the dangerousest place in the whole ship, and left us there, to, take our chance. My hair, I know, was a standing straight on end." " Why, don't own that you funded it, old chap," said the other, and then, turning to the writer, continued, " But it was an anxious moment. We talked down, there about tilings sailors don't talk about. The engineer contended, that as we were down below on duty, and for the common good, we should be pretty sure of heaven if the burst-up should qonie. Then as we neared the bar, we shook hands and parted, each man turning I)is face lo the. wall. She cleaved the bar, and took the grounji. beautiful. She went on the rocks as smooth and easy as if she had been an egg-shell. Tf sin; had been a sound strong ship, her mast would have gone by the board with, the shock, but she was so rotten that there was no shock, and the rocks came up through her as, if her bottom had been of pie-crust." The.narrative concludes by saying that on the return voyage " the P. and Q. people treated us like princes, nothing was too good for us—beef and beer to, the masthead."'