Page:The Wireless Operator with the U.S. Coast Guard.djvu/174

 At this instant the tide turned. Jar to seaward the men from that first ill-fated boat had now been swept, out into the blackness of the night, past the possibility of assistance. But the struggling crew of the other boat were now borne slowly shoreward. Now wave and wind combined to wash them toward the distant sands. It did not seem possible that they could safely pass through that seething caldron. With incredible fury the waves beat down upon them. Like chips in a mill race they were tossed helplessly this way and that. But every man of them wore a life belt, and despite the buffeting of the seas all remained afloat and alive. Bravely they continued to fight for their lives.

Two boats had been swamped. Two crews were battling for life in the waves, and one was irrevocably lost. But men still pressed forward and begged to be allowed to try again. No boat could live in such an awful sea, yet the men of the Iroquois pleaded for a chance, a last chance, to save their comrades. The captain ordered one more boat lowered. Like its predecessors, it lived but a few minutes in the awful sea.

Three boats had now been capsized, and three crews were struggling in the sea. Many were clinging to the overturned boats, while others had gained some of the buoys thrown to the crew of the first overturned boat. Numbers were swim