Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1886-03-12
tMUTINY AND MURDER.

american Rural Home. % - go
We were becalmed in mid Pacific.
The sails swelled no more than if they
had been molten sheets in the tropical
sunshine. Yet there was something
strange about the sea, for twas rough.
We had been making good time the
day before and I concluded we must
have come into a region over which
some storm had passed. 1t was the
dry season, too and / could not &C
count for it. But man iindsa good
many things on the high seas that he
can't readily account for, however
scientific he may pretend to land-lub-
bers to be. 81
When 8 man loves the sea, the deck
of ship is more to him than palace,
and the salt air and the heaving waves,
life itself. But there are times when
he would give something to have the
solid earth to step upon, not in a
storm, there he stands to his colors
and trusts in Him who can say to the
waves: "Peace, be STILL" But there
are uglier things at sea than storms,
things that rise up out Of q seeming
calm. These compared with storms
seem to me like the Atlantic and the
Pacific Oceans-one stormy and fierce,
the other tranquil for days together,
but with terrible element brewing in
this stillnes.
There WAS ON the deck of my good
ship, "Vestigia," an atmosphere more
oppressive than the tropic heat with
the storm brooding in its heart Like
every sailor, I had faced the thought
Of shipwreck. But this dreadful, in
visible something hanging over me
was different, was horror undreamed
Of, uncomfortable. Yet how could i
tell that the dread OF danger to my
wife and baby boy who were with me
had not conjured up q phantasy?
I tried vainly to tell myself that
there was really nothing; there was
something, intangible, shapeless, horri-
BILE, palpable at least to those fine per-
ceptions' which transcend the senses
and often forerun them. had not an
enemy In the world, yes, possibly one,
but II SOFA man whom had never seen,
though l had cut sharply across his
plans and purposes without being re-
sponsible. He was the nephew Of my
mothers uncle, his wife's nephew. He
had been brought up with the old gen
tleman and expected to inherit the
greater part Of his property. But my
uncle had left it all to me. Pierce Ar
mitage trusted too much to the fact
that my uncle disliked my father. Ar
mitage was wild and lawless and when
the money came to me, was glad to
be out Of reach of his vindictiVeness
l would have righted him ifhe had been
dealt with unfairly, but he had been
repeatedly warned by my uncle. What
was this old story, however, to me in
lnid-Pacific? Yet, for all my endeav-
ors, the shadow grew nearer.
One day as sat on deck with my
wife under an awning, she whispered
to me suddenly:
II don't like that man." I looked
up. The first matewas going by. All
in an instant my dread took form.
This mate, Griggs, had been in the
"Vestigia" when was transferred to
command OF her. My own mate had
been promoted, and Griggs was highly
recommended by the ships owners.
but, as the saying is, had never
''cottoned' to him. l had struggled
against my prejudice, now / under
Al
happened to confirm my dread. My
little boy in his play ran across
Grigggs' path. The mate swerved
aside and passed on, and then I saw
him cast at the child look so ven
omous that it was with great difficulty
| restrained from snatching up my
boy i'll my arms. .....z
At last / was awake, and saw that
! should not have had. instincts, or
that they should have guided ME
sooner. tt was too late: Some OF the
men had sailed in the *'Vestigia" be-
fore, others were of Griggs' own choos-
ing. They were a motley crew, Irish,
Swedes, Italians chiefly, good sailors,
but men did not trust, scarcely
Yankee among them OF late they
had obeyed me sulkily, and now that
my eyes were opened, recollected
how much Griggs had gone among
them on some plea, had fattered one,
had relieved another from some oner-
Gus task, done a favor to q third, and
so on. recalled significant looks
and whispers, and saw that the
crew were in the hands of my first
mate, and chat ne meant mischief.
looked at Mary and my boy. To
whom could turn? Iglanced at the
second mate, but just then I saw
Griggs in passing him thrust Q bit of
paper into his hand, and q few minutes
after I saw this second mate as he
stood talking to the man at the wheel
give the paper toss from him into
che sea. Instead. it fell against the
railing Of the ship and caught there
uncertainty. III 1.1,.5,f...... = g :. hi
I began with my boy q game Of ball
such asswe often played on shipboard,
when the unexpected directions Of the
ball were q great amusement to the
child. To-day after taking different
directions, 1 suddenly rolled the ball
close to the paper, and told him in q
low tone to bring both balls, thepaper
and the rubber one. He obeyed,
Laughing, and Ii read secretly: n
When the watch. changes. Have
the men armed and ready. Better dis
patch Keefe with the captain, he will
make trouble. I'll look aftert The Wom-
on and the boy I, III Nj # 81 81
I had, then, an hour OF life, and he
would look after my wife and boy
Hsla looked at them. would fight
to tho last. With q silent prayer I
sent for Kesfe in my cabin. In q few
moments we stood looking into one
another faces like doomed men.
Sig there nobody among them all
I we can trust? asked.