Alpena argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1893-1909, 1893-12-27
TOLD BY A pEEP.sEA ENGINEER.

picked up. Here's Mr.. Danvers'--
he's fond of paying us visit down
here"
l had just got into the engine
room of the Ocean Monarch, bound
as usual, for Cape Town. Twas the
second engineer, and had come
aboard a week ago, scarcely recover
ed from a low fever. This was my
first appearance, and the chief en-
gineer came forward to greet me.
Mr.. Danvers, one of the passengers,
with whom | had made great
friends, smiled.
"Sea-air does wonders" said he.
81 suppose had better depart in
peace, as you, too, will have plenty
to do"
"Oh! no hurry" said Paterson.
"You know we shipped some fresh
stokers, Logan?"
"Yes-two," I answered; "how
do you find themp"
II have had no complaints.
I opened the door of the stoke
hole and looked in. Danvers put
his hand in behind me. He al
ways said the great red eye of the
fire had a fascination for him. The
furnace-door was open, and one OF
the men was flinging on GOALS
The hot glare of light fell on him
as he moved backward and forward
He looked weird-terrible.
l turned back hastily to Paterson
"Who is the third manp" | said
"Third man! What do you
mean? What's the matter, Logan
you are quite whiteP
"There are only two men" sai'
Danvers, following me back int
the engine-room.
We heard the clang-to of tn
furnace door. | looked from on
to the other. | felt scared. | sup
pose | showed the feeling, for boil
men seemed concerned.
"ThreeP" l said, in a curiousl.
questioning voice, as if | were no
sure of what / had seen.
Thompson" Chat was the stoke
who had been with us for years
"and the new men-I don't know
their faces"
YOU'D better go to the docto
again." said Paterson. 81 was il
there five minutes before you came
there were only Thompson an
Holker, one of the new hands, there
and nobody has gone in since"
"You see double, Logan" sal
Danvers, smiling.
| was silent. Nothing coul
have been easier than to return
the stoke-hole, and there and the
settle the matter; but / had sol
of shrinking from seeing again thu
strange red figure, and preferre
dropping the dispute.
Thinking over it later, it SCENE
probable that the others were RICH
The fierce light might produce al
manner of effects, and the thir
man had certainly looked shadow
enough to be only an optical de
fusion.
But the second time / saw Holke
was in broad day light. / met hir
face-to-face in the passage runnin
: forward past the engineers cabins
and again there seemed some one b
hind him-another man; q film
, shape, and yet distinct. ! felt pal
, alyzed. There was nothingremarl
. able about the stoker. He was
quiet man, rather "close" with h
mates, and therefore not much Liked
but we engineers found him goo
worker.
Thought the fever was still hans
ing about me; yet ! felt strong an
well, slept soundly, and ate as onl
q convalescent can. / took I
watching Holker, although | ha
a horribly nervous feeling abor
him. l asked Paterson and I'll
third engineer if they saw anythin
odd about the man. Nothing I
| all, they said. Couldn't they Sc
/ thought, that something alway
behind the stoker that wasn't
likeness Of himp Whenever / sa
him, | saw it, too--in the lurid glal
r Of the fire, about the lower deck an
: passages, in the fresh sunshiny al
always that other man, like SON
haunting fate. Was mad, or W,
every one else blindp
"Danvers," / said one night,
= he and were walking the dec
smoking, 'do you believe in uncanr
q thingsp"
"Do you mean ghostsp"
: mot exactly. Iwish you'd let n
tell you something; only don
laugh at me-"