The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-02-07

room telegraph, which was pointed d
full speed astern;" Carnforth and tn
old second mate stood with their chin
over the top of the starboard dodger
and all three sof them peered into tn
opalescent banks of the fog.
They had reason for their anxiety
Not five minutes before, a long, lear
torpedo-c catcher had raced ND out o.
the thickness, and slowed down along
side with the channel spindrift blow
ing over her low superstructure il
white hailstormS. An officer on the
upper bridge in glittering oilskins ha6
sent across a sharp authoritative hail
and had been answered, Sultan OF
! BorneO; Kettle MASTER; from SCutl
Shields to Havana
What cargo?" came the next ques-
ton.
Coal"
"What?"
"Coal?"
Then, Mr.. Tyne Coal for the Ha-
vana, just heave to whilst send away
boat TO look at you. l fancy you
! will be the steamboat I'm sent to find
and fetch back"
The decks of the uncomfortable war
ship had hummed with men; a, pair OF
boat aavits had swung cupboard, and
the boat had been armed and manned
with naval noise and quickness. But
!
driven down upon them, blanket like
| in its thickness, which closed all hui
man vision beyond the range Of a
dozen yards, and Captain Kettle
jumped like a terrier on his Opportun-
ity. He sent his steamer hard astern.
with slightly ported helm, and
whilst the torpedo catchers boat was
searching for him toward the French
shore and sending vain halls into the
n Of tA ic-f ~ -t,-
| cling slowly and silently round to-
ward the English coast
So long as the mist held the Sultan
OF Borneo was as hard to lind as a
needle in cargo of hay; did the air
clear for so much as a single instant
she would be noticed and stand self
confessed by her attempt to escape.
and as result the suspense was vivid
enough to make Carnforth feel ply
steal nausea. He had not reckonetl on
this complication. He was quite pre-
pared to risk capture in Cuban waters.
where the glamor of distance and the
dazzle of helping insurrectionists would
cast a glow of romance over whatever
occurred But to be caught in the
English channel as a vulgar smuggler
for the sake of commercial profit, and
to be hauled back for hard labor in an
English gaOl was a different matter.
He was a member of parliament. and
he understood these details in all their.
niceties.
But Captain Kettle took the situation
differently. The sight of the torpedo
catcher stiffened all the doubt and
limpness out of his composition: his
eye frightened and his lips grew stiff:
the scheming to escape acted on him
like tonic, and when an hour later
the Sultan of Borneo was Steamine
merrily down channel at top speed
(through the same Uncomfortable fog)
the little skipper whistled dance music
on the upper bridge, and caught the
notion for most pleasing sonnet.
That evening the crew came aft in q.
state of mild mutiny, and Kettle at
tended to their needs with gusto.
He prefaced his remarks by slight
exhibition of Workmanship. He cut
away the vane which showed dimIv
on the foretopmast truck with a single
bullet, and then, after dexterously re-
loading his revolver lounged over the
white rail of the upper bridge with the
weapon in his hands.
He told the malcontents he was clad
OF the opportunity to give them his
views on matters generally He in
formed them genially that for their
personal wishes he cared not one deci-
mai of a jot. He stated plainly that he
ndu got them on board and intended
by their help to carry out his owners
instructions, whether they hated them
or not. And finally he gave them his
candid assurance that if any cur
among them presumed to disobey the
least OF his orders he would shoot that
man neatly through the head without
further preamble.
This elegant harangue did not go
home to all hands at once, because
being British ship, the Sultan of Bor-
neo's crew naturally spoke in five diff
ferent languages and few of them had
even a working knowledge of English.
But the look of Kettles savage little
face as he talked, and the red torpedo
beard which wagged beneath it. con-
veyed to them the tone of his speech.
and for the time they did not require
a more accurate translation. They had
come off big with the intention of fore
ing him Gf necessary with violence) to
run the steamer there and then into
an English port; they went forward
again like pack of sheep, merely be-
cause one man had let them hear the
virulence of his bark and had shown
them with what accuracy he could
bite If necessary. And that's the beau
ty of mongrel crew" said Kettle COM
placently. IF they'd been English. I'd
have had to shoot at least two of the
beasts to keep my end up like that
you're marvel" Carnforth adj
mitted. I'm a bit of a speaker my
self, but 1 never heard a man with a
gift of tongue like you have got.''