Before daylight, on the 6th of September 1838, a furious gale blowing, Grace Darling, who acted as William Darling's assistant and was on watch, heard, as she thought, the cries of people coming from the direction of some rocks a mile away.  She awoke her father, and together they stood listening to the appeals for help; but in the dark, with the furious sea there was running, it was impossible to put off to their assistance.  When day broke, however, the old man launched his boat, and was about to shove off, when, observing the state of the tide and weather, he hesitated to make the attempt.  As the light increased, Grace, who had been anxiously watching the wreck, declared that she saw some people still clinging to it.