The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-07-03

I
\ a pair Of US having the meat cooked from
| our bones over a one-man job. Twenty
| seconds later the roar Of steam stopped,
| so that meant he'd got it turned off. But
| in twenty seconds man can get scalded
to death seven times over with high-pres-
| sure boilers like ours, so I wasn't alto
| gether sweet on his chances. However,
| I just waited for the muck of steam to
| clear trife, and was just going down,
| when who should come up but the stoker,
| who I had thought on watch below.
"Hullo my son." said /; you've saved
your bacon. anyway. Where have you
/ been off tor
The chief sent me for a ball of marline
! from the bO's'sn's stores in the forepeak,
sir"
We'll then, you can come below with
| me and give it him, and I got on the
! ladder and led the way The place was
stil pretty binding, and it took US a
! minute before we found our man. But
| once we had him lifted between US it
| wasn't long before we got him out on
! deck. The coat had saved has face but
| his hands were very badly scaided ana
! probably other parts of him as well But
! I wasn't wanted there; he had plenty Of
| others to look after him; and the eldest
| miss showed clearly enough who was go
! ing to be head nurse. So I just said to
| her, Wrap him up quick as you can
| so as to keep the air away, and put on
/
medicine chest" and then off went again
| to the engine room
The steam there had cleared by that
/ time and was blowing off noisily through
! the escape. So 1 let it have bit more
| play there, so as to ease the pressure on
the boilers and set to look for the break.
II was not hard to find. One of the cop
! per steam pipes had split for a foot all
| down the brazing, and with the tackle and
available crew We had on board it would
| take US three solid days TO replace it. So
l went on deck with my report, and found
| the Old Man getting her under canvas
already.
You can't give US the steam. anyway"
said he.
mo, sir"
well, we can't get back to vardo with
out it, and as I've a fair wind for the
Jar Fjord 1 shall go in there just as We
intended Sure you can tinker her up here
yourself, Mr. McTodd?"
Just as well as they could at Clyde
Bank, Captain Besides, there are no
shops at Vardo worth mentioning. Hows
the chief, sir?"
Badly scalded about the hands and
arms, but he's got off a lot easier than
might have been expected. I've had him
carried to his bunk, and Miss Vasey is
down there dressing his burns. Pity we've
no whale oil on board. There's nothing
like it for bad scalds, once you get over
the smell"
The chain of snow mountains opened as
We closed with them, and let us through
into a narrow ford. The Starry Head was
a regular fool under canvas; but we'd
a soldier wind, and her two small try
sails and the jib gave us a bit more steer
age way which was all that was wanted.
We weren't exactly making passages just
then. The snow left us as we sauntered on,
and the banks of the ford grew green
with moss and then with grass and then
we passed the tree line and could look out
upon forests of scrub biTches, many of
them as much as three feet high The
mosquitoes came also, which most of us
could have done without comfortably.
The mosquitoes it was which drove us
away at the end of a weeks stay. There
was a whale factory, with a couple of
half-hensed timers on the beach before it,
which interested Sir Rupert very much,
| because he found that round there they
fed their cows on whale beef, as we'll as
Gods heads and he wanted to include all
details of that in his report. But the young
! ladies and the other guests aft could not
| stand these pestilential insects a any
! price and there was something like mu
tiny amongst them till Sir Rupert con-
| scented TO compromise matters by putting
! back to Vardo.
| But during that week a good deal hap
! pened. l didn't see the chief much for the
| hard at work repairing damages; but
! when things were fixed up again, ! used to
/ sit by him most of the time when the ED
| est Miss was not there. And learned
curious thing. He had gone and fallen
| in love with her himself
Well any one would think that was
rather q good move But that was not
his way of looking at it. He did nothing
but moan about dragging her down 10
| his level" and "spoiling her life out OF
selhshness," and slddge of that kind But
7 judged him to be bit off his head, and
only just said, "Oh" and ''ah" and "weel
| man" and 81 suppose you'u be right %
just by way Of politeness. It was rot till
We were back amongst the stinks of Var
do harbor that the chief and 1 had our
final Hare up.
ia come down the companion rather
| suddenly, and heard out eldest Miss call
ms him Archie. and him calling her Eve
lyn, though when she saw me she ran
| away with a face of fire
| I'm sorry to have disturbed" [ said
when she'd gone. ''But-I suppose / ought
| to congratulate? Yen have fixed il up?'
That's as may be"
'Weel, man, it's fine to be provided for
all the rest of your days"
You'd better have a care what you
say"
"Dinna fly at me, Mr. Erchie I'm trying
to be ceevi."
You damned Scotchman," he cried;
you naturally think L was after her for
her money
'Well. and weren't ye?"
He looked at me with tight lips and an
ugly eye. At last he spoke
''Mr. McTodd,' he said, you shall have
the whole history of the business. Miss
| Nasey took a fancy for me from the mo-
ment 1 came on board. 1 saw it and
made it grow. 1 cared not one brass far
thing for her but l wanted a rich wife
who could lift me up out of this hateful
life. So l lured her on till she loved me.
you saw how; you helped. l was going 70
propose to her when L saw the time was
fitting, and not before. liked her then.
| but nothing more.
THAT day had a talk with you in Var
do street. 1t came upon me that ] loved
her, and l quarreled with you because
you had brought the knowledge to me I
went off into the hills and argued with
| myself alone in the cold and the rain. 7