Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-04-18
CHAPTER XIX.

For seven days the gale ragged with uncom-
mon violence; ii then broke, and this brought
us into the first week in August. The wind
fell in the night, and | was awakened by
the silence, which you will not think strange
il YOU consider how used were my ears to the
fierce seething and strong believing of the
blast. l lay listening, believing that it had
only veered, and that it would como on
again in gusts and guns; but the stiffness con-
tinued, and there were no sounds whatever
save the noises Of the ice, which broke upon
the ear like slow answers from batteries near
and distant, half whose cannon have been
sienced.
/ slept again. and when 1 awoSe it was
7:30 o'clock in the morning. The French
man snoring Justify. l went on deck
before entering the cook house, and had
like 10 have been blinded by the astonishing
brilliance of the sunshine upon the ice and
snow. All the wind was gone. The air was
exquisitely frosty and sharp But there was
heavy sound coming from the sea which
gave me to expect the sight of strong swell
The sky was a clear blue, and there was no
cloud on as much of its face showed be-
twixt the brows of the slopes.
My attention was quickly attracted by the
appearance of the starboard cliff over against
our quarter. The whole shoulder of it had
broken away, and l could just catch view
Oh Jnb uOflZOH VI Uuo Btu from Jn6 ueCR ny
stretching my figure. The sight of the ocean
showed me that the breakage had been pro-
digious, for to have come at that prospect
before / should have had to climb to the
height of the main lower masthead. No
other marked or noteworthy change did do
tect from the deck; but on stepping to the
larboard side to peer over l spied q split in
the ice that reached from the very margin of
the ravine-I mean to that end of it where it
terminated in a clif-to and past the bows of
the schooner by at least four times her own
length.
returned to the cook room and went about
the old business of lighting the fire and pre-
pairing the breakfast-this job, by an under
standing between the Frenchman and me,
falling to him who was first out of bed-and
in about twenty minutes Tassard arrived
1.-THE wind is gone" said he
eyes" / replied sit is u bright, still morn
ing, have been on deck. There has been
d great fall of ice close to-"
"Does it block us?"
mo; on the contrary, it clears the way to
the sea; the ocean is now visible from the
deck Not that it mends our case" added
But there is great rent in the ice that puts
fancy into my head; I'll speak of it later,
after closer look.n
The breakfast was ready, and we fell to in
a hurry, the Frenchman gobbling like hog
in his eagerness to make end. When we
were finished he wrapped himself up in three
or four coats and coaks, warming the under
ones before folding them about him, and
completing his preparations for the excur
sion by swallowing half pint of raw brandy
/ babe him arm himself with short headed
spear to save his neck, and thus equipped we
went on deck
He stood stock still with his eyes shut on
emerging through the hatch crying out with
q number of French oaths that he had been
struck blind. This did not believe, though
l readily supposed that the glare made his
eyeballs smart SO as to cause him good deal
Of agony. Indeed, all along had been sur
prised that he should have found his sight so
easily after having sat in blindness for forty
eight years, and it was not wonderful that
the amazing brillance on deck, shifting his
sight on a sudden, should have caused him to
cry out as if he had lost the use of his eyes
forever,
waited patiently, and in about ten min
utes he was able to look about him, and then
1t was not long before he could see without
pain. He stood n minute gazing at the glo-
ries upon the rigging, and in that piercing
light | noticed the unwholesome color of his
face. His cap hid the scar, and nothing of
his countenance was to be seen but the
cheeks, eyes and nose He was much more
WTDlkleu DDdn udu supposed, anu lit
thought the spirit of cruelty lay visible in
every line. l had never seen eyes so full of
cunning and treachery so expressive,
should say, of these qualities; yet they were
no bigger than mere punctures. was SEN
sible of a momentary fear of the man-not,
let me say, an emotion Of cowardice, but a
sort of mixture of alarm and awe, such as
ghost might inspire. This l put down to
the searching light in which l watched him
for a moment or two-an irradiation subtle
enough to give the sharpest form to express
sion, to exquisitely define every meaning
that was distinguishable in his graveyard
physiognomy. l left him to stare and judge
for himself of the posture in which the long,
hard gale had put the schooner, and stepped
over to the two bodies. They were shrouded
in ice from head to foot, as though they had
each man been packed in glass case cum
ningly wrought to their shapes. Their faces
were hid by the crystal masks Tassard
joined me.
''Small chance for your friends now" said
/, ''sven if you were agreeable to my pro- |
posal to attempt to revive them"
'Sow cried he, touching the body of the |
mate with his foot; land this is the end of |
the irresistible Trentanovel for what con-
quests has Death robed him SO bravelyi |
See, the colors shine in him like fifty differ |
ent kinds of ribbons Poor fellowI he could |
not curl his mustaches now, though the |
lovelest eyes in Europe were fixed in pas |
sionate admiration on him. He'll never slit |
another throat, nor hiccough Petrarch over |
gobletful, nor demonstrate with me for my |
humanity. Shall We toss the bodies over
the sidei'
''They are your friends" said 1 ''do as
you please"
"But We must empty their pockets first
Business before sentiment, Mr. Rodney"
He stirred the figure again with his foot.
sWell, presently said he, this armor
will want the Ratchet. Now, my friend, to
view the work of the gale.n
The increased heel Of the ship brought the
larboard fore channel low, and we stepped
without difficulty from it on to the ice. The
rent OF fissure that have before spoken Of
went very deep-it was nearly two feet wide
in places; but, though the light poured bril-
liantly upon it, could see no bottom.
IF only such another split as this would
happen t'other side" said the FrenchmAn,
II believe this block would go adrift.n
"Well, said |, after uausing little while, as