The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1897-01-06
AN ENGINEERS YARN.


pore. My duty in the engine room was
done, and L was sitting with the mate
on the bridge watching the downward
sweep of the tropic dusk. cit puts me
i'll mind of Il theater sunset" no was
saying; "thcy always go by tho run.
And that was u pretty theatrical bit you
had i'll tho engine room, > he said to my
chief, who had joined us. We had found
all the nuts but ono off the connecting
rod head. Had another half turn been
made, our engines would have been a
scrap heap.
Only once has it happened before, "
said my chief, land there was Il grand
tablcau, as you call it. but not il the
engine room. Our stem and three wall
eyed junlls were the actors. 1t was up
there" jerking his head northward.
There was nothing but "a thousand odd
miles of water and IL busting of islands
between us and Hongkong. ="
The mate held lighted match to the
chiefs pipe and set him drifting Oh with
the current of his yarn.
You see, it was years and years ago,
kong to Yokohama. We were the first
to employ Chinese fircmen. We had been
repairing and had put on IL fresh crowd,
all except one, Lii Chin. 1t was near
monsoon time, and the second day out
we were sitting rs we might be here.
but there was no sunset on view. 1t had
been hazy all day, and we were watch
ing the moon rising-just past full. 1t
looked as if some ono had Dashed one
side off tho true. 1t got up to the haze,
big and blood red, like fire balloon at
old Cremorne. A mean, staggering swell
had set i'll, so oily that it had no more
90 to it than the slush in greasers
bucket. We were all pretty we'll hippcd
and morosc, being company for no one
except the sea, and that-wel, that
looked rs if it wanted to be sick and
couldn't. Lii Chin, who was decent for
heather, was i'll charge below.
My chief was sitting on the rails,
and somehow he went over the side.
You know pretty we'll how things like
that galvanize everybody. Lose him?
No. The oily swell saved him, for the
old man ran tho boat straight back in
her own wake, which was marked out
like dusty road at night through II
,hilly country. Well, wc came to where
he was yelling and got him ont. BY all
law tho old man ought to have got into
splutter, but instead of that ne said
Look here, Mr.. Gamwell'-that
WAS my chiefs namo-'I knew some.
thing had to happen TO this cock eyed no
side up looking weather, but | don't be-
hovc this is the only thing tonight
And We all said together, That's
just what 1 was thinking, SIR as they
do at church when the parson pipes out
Then send her ahead again, and
let's get it done with, he said
Give her steam, LII CHM I shouted
down the sl;ylight. LII Chin looked up
and chttered:
% Hi, no talkcc talkee! Como chop
chop. So went down to him.
Il was pretty green i'll those days,
and whatever came within "a hair
breadth of happening mndc me feel as
sQucamish us if it had come OFF. Of
course you grow out OF that, but then
felt my hair creep. Our high pressure
connecting rod was on the down throw,
with only u single nut on! She had
the old style engines, remenber, and
when they went on burst they went
handsomely tinkcring up. New CHI
gincs. perhaps new ship, maybe even
new hands. However, we began 10 screw
up-at least the chief did. He'd only
trust himself. Presently he showed "a
nut under my rose.
That your tradomark?' he asked
The nut was Clipped and scribed with
bad spanner marks, which rcpudatcd
In what followed ! can never quite
settle Ii Chin's share i'll the programme
This was how we were after we had fix.
cd all tight again: Ii Chin was leaning
through tho eccentric rods, with the
lamp. | was half out the crank pit, and
the chief was at my back He had the
spanner. All in breath he dragged
me backward, flat, my head cracking on
the plates, and saw the spanner 20
spit through the standards 1t didn't
hit any metal, but something soft. Then
he clapped his hand on my face and held
me stone tight, and something camo
down and rubbed by my chest, scratch
ing mc-no more-and through his fin.
gers could just SEQ the crank moving
but it had passed me- If any one be-
lioves that engines haven't souls, Just
you stick him i'll the crank pit and let
her go, only dead slow and just to clear
him. That converted me.
He dragged mo right out, Missing in
my ear
Whip up on deck! Tell en- to shoot
on sight any who leave the stakeholder