The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1889-04-17
The Great War Syndicate.


bright" '"The Bee Man of Orn," 'The
Christmas wreck, ''The Lady tho
Tiger" ''The Late Mrs. Null,' THE
Hundredth Man." '"The Casting Away
of Mrs. Lecks and Mrs, Aleshine." ''The
Dusantes," etc.
fCopyrighted by p. T. Collier, of Golfers Once
a Week. and published by special arrangement
with him through the American Press Associar
i ton All rights reserved.
The Lenox now put on greater head
of steam, and as she was in any case
much faster vessel than tho repeller, she
rapidly increased the distance between
herself and tho syndicate's vessel, SO that
in few moments Mailing was impossible
Quick signals now shot up in Jets Of black
smoke from the repeller, and in very
short time afterward the speed of the
Lenox slackened SO much that the repel-
Ter was able to como up with her.
When the two vessels were abreast of
each other, and at a safe Mailing distance
apart, another signal went up from the
repeller, and then both vessels almost
ceased to move through the water, al
though the engines of the Lenox were
working at high speed, with her propel-.
Ter blades stirring up whirlpool at her
stern
For a minute or two the officers of the
Lenox could not comprehend what had
happened. 1t was first supposed that by
mistake the engines had been slackened,
but almost at the same moment that it
was found that this was not the case, the
discovery was made that the crab ac-
companying the repeller had laid hold of
the stern post of the Lenox, and with all
the strength of her powerful engines was
holding her back.
Now burst forth in the LenoX storm
of frenzied rage, such as was never seen
perhaps upon any vessel since vessels
were first built, From the commander
to the stokers every heart was filed with
fury at the insult which was put. upon
them. The commander roared through
his trumpet that if that Internal sea
beetle were not Immediately loosed from
his ship he would first sink her and then
the repeller.
To these remarks the director of the
syndicates vessels paid no attention, but
proceeded to state as briefly and forcibly
as possible that the Lenox had been de-
tanned in order that he might have an
opportunity Of speaking with her com
mander, and of informing him that his
action in coming out of tho harbor for
the purpose of attackinga British vessel,
was in direct violation of the contract
between the United States and the syn
dictate having charge of the war, and
that such action could not be allowed
The commander of the Lenox paid no
more attention to these words than the
syndicate's director had given to those
he had spoken, but Immediately com
menced a violent attack upon the crab.
1t was impossible to bring any of the
large guns to bear upon her, for she was
almost under the stern of the Lenox but
every means of offenSe which Infatuated
ingenuity could suggest was used against
it. Machine guns were trained to fire
almost perpendicularly, and shot after
shot was poured upon that portion of its
glistening back which appeared above
the water.
But as these projectiles seemed to have
no effect upon the solid back of Crab H,
two great anvils were hoisted at the end
of the spanker boom and dropped, one
after the other, upon 1t. The shocks
were tremendous but the internal con-
struction of the crabs provided, by
means of upright beams, against injury
from attacks of this kind, and the great