San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1897-01-10
CHAPTER TX.
OVERHEARD.

OVERHEARD
The Queen struggled with this violent
weather for six days. It was in the
teeth of her course and blew her north
northwest above 100 leagues She was
nothing strained in the hold, her pumps
sucked after brief spell, but aloft she
showed distressed look, with the rain
blackened canvas trapped to the yards
and the gear blowing out slack as a
man-of-war's pennon in light wind.
The roaring outside, however, sub
dued all life within. The captain and
mate would occasionally talk over the
robbery of the arms chest, but the gale
and the safety of the ship were over
whelming present anxieties, and the in
cident of the theft grew dim as fact
and as a dangerous riddle. Likewise the
captain gave but scant attention to the
ten. They loafed through the furious
weather as best they could, smuggling
down in corners for smoke, and mark
eddy breaking themselves up SO that
they seemed no longer the same compa-
ny of gentlemanly men who had come
together by chance and quickly devel-
oped into ganglike clan. They'd come
ON deck, and, holding on stoutly, stare
for little into the whole heart of the
blast.
On the evening of the fifth day the
weather moderated. At midnight some
stars were shining, the loose scud flew
white as milk, and much about this
hour beautiful light that irradiated
wide space Of sea and air, like little
moon, fell out of the heavens and smote
the water with note of thunder. This
seemed like signal to the wind. In 30
minutes it had fallen stark calm, and
through the dark hours of the morning
the ship lay rolling upon a round, vast
black swell, without a single pulse Of
life in her outside the trouble of the
sea.
Two men, pipes in mouth, passed
from under the break of the poop and
stationed themselves at the foot of the
mainmast for chat and smoke. 1t
was a warm night, but the place these
men had chosen was made pleasant by
refreshing tanning Of the mainsail,
that hung festooned from its yard. All
this particular part of the deck was
thick and black with the huge pillar of
the mainmast and its lines of gear, be-
layed to girdling pins, along with other
furniture such as the pump, the winch
and the rest of it hereabout in the
wake of the main hatchway. The two
men were Mr.. Dixie Caldwell and Mr..
Patrick Weston. They were both fresh
from the cuddy and the grog bottle, but
there was no virtue in whisky to give
animation to Caldwell's surly voice.
81 wish," says Weston, lighting his
pipe at silver finder box, then hand
ing the toy to Caldwell, that this had
been the night fixed ON. We're most OF
us beastly sick of waiting"
'"The weather wasn't to be helped"
said Caldwell.
81 suppose the gold'll be easy to get
at?' says Weston.
"Hankey knows where it's stored.
Trollope's notion of keeping couple OF
men aboard is good un. The whole
ten'll want to go ashore with the gold
to make sure of, its tomb. The fellows
we detain il watch the ship while we're
gone j"
"They may run away with her. "
"That's to be provided against, a." said
Caldwell in his slowest, ugliest tone.
"Od's thunderl Don't you know sail
Orsi"
81 suppose Trollope will stick to to-
morrow night?" said Weston.
eff it's like this, answered Cald-
well. Hand us that finder box Of
yours.
The steward had come out Of the