| OCR Text |
Show 222 Tll£ LILY ANO THE TOT£)!. Capitaioe, not as we deem her the source of power and of mercy, but as we hold it inevercn~ to rush even with our prayers to the feet of the awful Father himself; and rejoice to believe t!Jat she who was specially chosen, as one who slwu!J bear the burden of the Saviom··ehild, was of a spirit properly sanctified and pure for such purposes of interposition. But, as thou sayest, we willlcal·c this matter. If we offend in our rites and offices, it is because we err in judgment, and not that out· heart~ lfi.sh to :dllict tho feelings or the thoughts of those who sec with other eyes the truth. Resides, my long nnd outlandish abode among the red-men, might well excuse me many errors." "And so, indeed, it might, Senor Spani:m.l," s:~id Laudonnicro graciously; then, as the latter remained silent, llarbu continued: "Doubtless, Sel1or, :~s I said bctOrc, the bloody Juan de Mores y Silvt1 1 was tho Jonah of our vessel, on whose occount fhl} Dlcsscd Providence turned a deaf car to our prayers and o::ntrca· tics. It was not decreed tlmt he should escape to rejoice in his ill·gottcn treasure ; and his fortunes were 1!0 mixed up with ours, that the overthrow of one was ncccs.<>arily at the grici'Ous loss and peril (I[ us all. II ow many days we lay tossing on the tumultuous waves, or swept to and fro, beaten and sore distressed by the 1·io· lent and changeful winds, I do not now remember, but it was in very sickness and hopelessness of heart, that we lay down at night as one lies down and submits to a power with which he feels himself wholly powerless to contend. Thus did we cast ourselves down-ns the dreary shades of night cnme over us, with a deeper and drearier cloud thnn ever,-not seeking sleep, but seized upon by it, M it lvcre, to srwo us from the snfiCring1 akin to madncs.~, which must haply follo\v upon our fearful waldng thoughts. While we slept, our vessel struck upon the low flats of the l\Iartyrs - _thosc shoals 223 which have laid bare the ribs of so many goodly and gold-laden sh ips of my countrymen, sucking down thei1· brave hearts :~nd all their treasures in the dellp. W c were lifted high by the surges, and rested, beyond recovery, upo~ the shoal,;;, from which theremorseless seas refused ag'.1in to lift us off. Our vessel by upon one side, and the greedy waves rushed into her hold. 'V e were stunned rather than awakened by the shock. 'V c strove not for safety or repair. llow many perished in the moment when the sl1ip fell over I know not, but one of these was the husband of my sister. Jlc was drowned in the first rush of the billows into the ship, though, :1s it wa.s night, we knew it not. My sister had tl1rown herself beside my brother, :~nd was sleeping upon his arm. She was the first to learn her misfortune, awaking, a.s she averred, to bear tho faint cries of her lord for succor, though she knew not whence tllO sounds arose. \Vhcn our eyes opened upon the scene, strange to say, the clouds ht~d disappeared. The dark waves of tho tempest "had sped away to other regions. A gentle breeze from the land had arisen, full of sweet fmgrancc aud a. healing freshness, and, brigl1t over head, in the blessed heavens, blossomed fresh the eternal host of the stars. Ob! the life and soothing in that smile of God. But we were not strong for tho blessing, nor sufficiently grateful that life was ~:~till vouchsafed us. The day dawned upon us to increase our wretchedness. It left us without hope. Our food wns ruined by the waves that filled tho Ycssel, and though the land was spread before us in a lengthened stripe, bearing forests wl1ich were surely full of fragrance , we beheld not the means by which we should gain its pleasant shores with safety. Our bonts bad perished in the surf; one of them stove to pieces, and the other !!Wept away. In our despondency and our sleep we had yielded our courage and our provi· |
