December, 1837.
On the 3rd December, 1837, an alarm was given on board H.M.S.
'Inconstant,' at Lisbon, of a man overboard. Mr. John Stephens,
mate, ran to the spot whence the person fell, plunged overboard,
dived, and succeeded, after much danger and difficulty, in bringing
him from a considerable depth to the surface of the water: both were
carried by the tide a long way astern of the ship. Mr. Stephens
found it difficult to support the man, and both were sinking, when
William Henry White, seaman, fearlessly plunged from the topsail,
swam to their relief, and supported them in the water, until a boat
reached them.