The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1885-11-13
TIKI STUPID y

iR 7tiil'i't iOiBlt I'll iNbHb AtdL vas
what the other passengers called them dur
ing the first few DAYS of the voyage after
the ship had sailed from Queenstown.
John P%ierrepoint and his wife had come
on board the Shasta at Queenstown by the
last tender a few minutes before the pro-
peller commenced to revolve slowly, and
they had not yet found their stateroom
when the signal 'Full speed ahead pass
ed from the bridge to the engine-room.
She was the largest and newest ship of the
line, and was commanded by the company's
commodore, Capt. Hood, a general favor
tie.
John Pierrepoint and his wife seemed to
be particularly inexperienced in travel, and
therefore deserving of being called stupid;
they must certainly never have taken a
long voyage before; they showed no dis
position to struggle for what some thought
the best seats at table, and they accepted
without a grumble the stateroom assigned
to them, which was one of the smallest in
the ship. In fact, they were too easily
satisfied. The P~ierrepoints were reserved
because they knew no one on board, but
this seemed to give them no concern, they
being perfectly satisfied with their own
society.
The weather was splendid out in the At
lantic. The ocean had its long, low roll,
sometimes showing a ripple where the wind
touched it tenderly, and sometimes crisped
by a light breeze, which generally died
away at sunset, and each day the voyagers
saw a red sun sinking into the water right
ahead. At length, one afternoon, the voy-
age was half over-mid-A Atlantic had been
reached. Pierrepoint and his wife were
far aft on the poop, close to the rail. he
reading and she knitting, as their custom
was. She is a fair, gracious woman, with
gray eyes and squirrel-colored hair, per-
haps about twenty-five years of age. He
is a long-limbed, well-knit fellow ofthirty.
deep-chested and lean, black-haired, with
a crisp beard and tawny skin. He is dress
ed in one of his old white flannel cricket
ing suits, with a hat of the same stuff.
There was one passenger who attracted
more attention than any other, and this
was not a young lady, nor a gentleman
with a diamond pin; he was simply a lit
tie boy of s; but then he was Capt. Hoods
son, and every one wished to be friendly
with him and to amuse him. IIehad made
friends of ali the passengers, and was
..,,;t, - a,,.-a 49, ~ -, .o- $780,.
ming to and fro on the poop among the
groups of ladies and gentlemen rolling a
great colored ball of hollow India rubber.
Capt. Hoods home was on the Hudson,
a few miles from New York city. His
elder children were girls, and little lack
washis only son. Ithad been an old prom
Use that as soon as Jack was s years of age
his father was to take him on a voyage to
England and back. When the time came,
and Capt. Hood saw he could take Jack
over, his mother was very unwilling to let
him go; she feared some harm might hap
pen to him, and raised all the difficulties
and objections she possibly could; but Jack
and his father carried the day. The first
eastward run of the Shasta was a chance not
to be missed; and the weather was very
fine and settled. Mrs. Hood with her
daughters came down to the wharf in New
York to see the steamer off. Her last
words to her husband We're: Remember,
if You don't bring Jack safe home you
needn't come without bim." The captain
remembered these words later. He rcpli-
ed: 'All right, little woman; well be
back with you for breakfast some fine
morning in less than five weeks
During the voyage to Liverpool all went
well. The chief stewardess took Jack I'M
der her special care, and he slept in her
He had become quite friendly with
many Of the sailors, and he had not the
least objection to a confidential chat
with some of the grimy and half-naked
stokers, most of them Irishmen, who came
up on deck when they could from the depths
of the stoke-holc to get a breath of fresh
The solemn old Scotch engineer was
the f~avoritc.
Jack Hood was rolling his great ball and
rushing about after it screaming with de-
light, when suddenly after a strong throw
it fell on the rail and then with a bound
into the sea. The child stood still with
amazement for a second, and then, run
ming to where his ball had disappeared, he
climbed on the rail to see what had become
of it, and before any hand could reach him
terrified passengers saw him rise to the
and stretch out his arms, while
the SETTLING foam from the ships pro-
peller turned him round and round in the
water. and the ship rushed on, leaving him
behind. The P%ierrepoints were not very
near the place where little lack fell over;
they were at the other side of the deck;
but Mrs. Pierrepoint when she saw him
climbing, laid her hand quickly on her
husbands shoulder. lie looked up in
stantly, and following her eyes to the spot
saw the boy just as he fell. In one mo-
ment he was on his feet, kicked off his can
vass shoes, threw his hat on the deck, and
turning his face toward the bridge, where
he knew some of the ships officers were
always stationed. he called ont in a voice
which rang like a trumpet-call over the
shin. syNau overboardl'' Then. with a