1.Out from the harbour of New York sailed the good ship Sharon ,bound for Liverpool.She soon passed Long Island,and,turning her head north-east-ward,sailed out into the broad waters of the Atlantic Ocean.At first all seemed to promise a pleasant voy-age,but off the "Banks"of New found land sprang up.
2.For a time the Sharon held bravely on her way;but the wind rose to a hurricane,and it was all that captain and crew could do to keep their ship under control.As the weary hours went by,it be came plain that the battle was to be one of life and death.
3.In a squall the ship was thrown on her beam-ends,and the cargo shifted to one side.Captain Wilson,almost in despair of saving his ship,ordered two masts-the main and the mizzen-to be cut away,hoping that the ship would right herself when freed from their weight.
4.Unfortunately,the crew did not manage this dangerous task in safety.Hatchet and saw soon cut through the masts;but as the spars and rigging came crashing down,they did terrible injury to life and limb.The first mate and one of the sailors were killed on the spot,and Captain Wilson himself was badly hurt,his right arm and collar-bone being broken.
5.In his helpless condition,the captain was unable to do anything more to save the ship.The second mate,who should now have taken the command,was not man enough to rise boldly up and face his difficult task with a brave heart.The sailors gave up all hope of safety,having no one to command them and decide what should be done.
6.But in this dark moment of despair there shines forth a bright star of hope.If no,man can take the command,a woman will do it!A clear voice was heard above the thunder of the storm-"Men,I will save the ship,if you will but obey!"
7.It was Mrs.Wilson,the captain's wife,who had spoken.She loved the sea,and had spent most of her life on it;she had studied it,in storm and calm,till she was as good a sailor as her husband;and the men knew well that under her command the best would be done for the safety of the Sharon ,if indeed it was still possible to bring her into port .
8.Roused by this woman's courage,the sailors sprang to their tasks with new life.All the wreckage was cleared away,and as soon as the ship was freed from its weight she began to right herself in the water.The following day being calmer,the cargo was got into its place,and the Sharon began once more to obey her helm.
9.The good ship,however,as her brave little captain discovered,had been driven to the south,far out of her course;so Mrs.Wilson tried to reach Bermuda,an island in the Atlantic.This effort failed from the want of masts to take the place of those which had been cutaway;the Sharon could only sail before the wind,and her course was there fore changed further to the south.
10.Day after day went by,and the captain's wife still kept on at her double task,nursing her suffering husband and managing the vessel,till at last all were landed in safety at St.Thomas,a small island in the West Indies.In this port the ship was repaired,a doctor attended to Captain Wilson's injuries,and the captain's wife was welcomed as a heroine .
