Accidents > Dangers of the deep, or, Narratives of shipwreck and adventure at sea

398 BURNING or THE
much reason to fear, were doomed to destruc¬
tion.
It would appear, for the poor men them¬
selves gave an extremely confused, though I
am persuaded not a wilfully false, account of
themselves, that shortly after the departure
of the last boat, they were driven by the
flames to seek shelter on the chains, where
they stood until the masts fell overboard, to
which they then clung for some hours, in a
state of horror that no language can describe;
until they were most providentially, I may
say miraculously, discovered and picked up
by the humane master (Bibbey) of the Caro¬
line, a vessel on its passage from Egypt to
Liverpool, who happened to see the explosion
at a great distance, and instantly made all
sail in the direction whence it proceeded.
Along with the fourteen men thus miracu¬
lously preserved were three others, who had
expired before the arrival of the Caroline for
their rescue.
Quitting, for a moment, the subject of the
wreck, I would advert to what was in the mean¬
time taking place on board the Cambria. I can¬
not, however, pretend to give you any adequate
idea of the feelings of hope or despair, that