tEbe Storm's TEttumpb 139 



the water the vessel was seen to give a wild sheer and 

 gradually to approach the shore. Soon, she struck on 

 Middleton Beach ; the hawser had parted. There had 

 been but twenty fathoms of it. 



This was, in truth, an inglorious ending to a sea- 

 combat the like of which had never before been 

 witnessed on that part of the coast, and the grief 

 among those who had watched the beautiful manoeu- 

 vring of the barque all day was most poignant. They 

 consoled themselves, however, with the thought that 

 she was safe enough on the smooth sandy beach, as 

 there had never been loss of life upon it in the memory 

 of the oldest inhabitant. 



They were certainly unprepared for what happened. 

 No one expected that a tug would get a rope aboard 

 and drag at her in such a way as to quite prevent her 

 being driven up the beach and left high and dry by 

 the receding tide, when the crew, judging from past 

 experience, could have stepped ashore. Yet that is 

 what was done. Nay, more ; she was kept broadside 

 to the stroke of the seas. 



On darkness falling the tug relinquished her efforts 

 and the lifeboats drew in towards the vessel. There 

 were two of them at first, then three, but as each 

 essayed to get near the barque it was beaten back by 

 the great recoiling waves from the West Hartlepool 

 pier. One lifeboat was struck by a big sea which 

 broke four of its oars and injured two of the crew, 

 whereupon the other boats pulled clear. The damaged 

 boat refitted in port and returned to the vessel, but 

 was washed on to the beach. Then, so far as the life- 

 boats were concerned, the Fmn$ais was left to her 

 fate. The brave fellows in them could do no more. 



