The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1898-08-31


proceed with the utmost caution. He
sent for the engineer, and asked him
how soon he could get up steam.
The engineer replied that he could be
ready in about an hours time. You
see this was really most important
matter. If ships boilers are once
allowed to become cold, it takes, as a
rule, good four and twenty hours to
get up steam again. But the Croco-
dile's fires had been banked up, so
the engines could be made ready to
start again at comparatively short
notice. Having given his instruc-
tons to the engineer and mate,
George turned to the custom house
officials and commenced fluent con-
versatiou with them in his best Span
ish. He began by observing that he
thought he had been foolish; and that
it was useless to struggle against
properly constituted authority, and so
he had made up his mind to pay the
fine. He then remarked that the en-
gineer had discovered leak in one
of the boilers and had been busy re-
pairing it. He now wished to give
the ship a short run just to see if
everything was all right again. Pro-
badly they would not object to this.
And he finished up by inviting them
to step down stairs into his private
sitting room and drink bottle of wine
with him.
Whether it was that these poor
Spaniards were guileless souls, or that
offer of drink was one that could not
be declined, / know not, but the invi-
tation was accepted with avidity.
Hospitality is one of Georges strong
points, and it is needless to say that
he spent delightful time with his
two new friends. After while the
steady, regular throb of the engines
began to make itself felt, but this in
no way interrupted the harmony of the
proceedings. Presently, however, the
merry little party was startled by the
boom of gun. They all rushed up
stairs on to the deck.
The Crocodile was steaming as fast
as she could toward the mouth of the
4 harbor. George turned and looked at
the Spanish warship. An angry puff
of white smoke appeared on her side,
and the screeching of the shot as it
passed overhead told him that she was
really in earnest this time. One of the
unhappy custom house officers gave q
yell and leaped into the sea, where he
was presently rescued by friendly
boat. The other, having a distaste
for cold water, ran down stairs and
hid!
George Williams at once made his
way on to the bridge. This is another
of those perplexing nautical terms. 1t
means a sort of perch near the middle
of the ship, from which the captain is
accustomed to give his orders. An
other gun from the warship, and this
time the shot fell into the sea quite
close to them.
"Steward," said George, 'fetch me
my glasses. You will find them on
the table in my sitting-room."
1t was the binocular glasses that he
meant, not the other ones. But there
was no time to explain, Fortunately,
the steward was clever man and un-
derstood perfectly. He ran down
stairs, found the glasses and came
back as quickly as he could. While
he was making his way up on the
bridge the warship fired again. The
shot just whisked off the stewards
cap, and passed on without doing
further damage.
A friend of mine has asked me to
suppress this fact on the ground that
in story of this kind some such Incl
dent invariably occurs. There is q
great deal of force in this criticism,
but cannot comply with my friends
request. ] feel bound to tell the story
as George Williams told it. And he
assured me that it was true.
The Crocodile had by this time got
clear of the harbor and, though the
-of-war continued firing for some
little time longer, none of the shots
took effect. But George Williams
knew very well that as yet he was by
no means out of his difficulty. He
had seen that the Spanish battleship
was getting up steam as fast as she
could, and he was quite aware that
once started she would gain upon him
steadily. SO he steamed away west
ward as fast as his ship could carry
him. 1t was all in vain. Far away
in the distance black smudge of
smoke on the horizon told him that his
enemy was in hot pursuit.
Hour after hour passed, while the
Spanish warship came gradually nearer
and nearer, and George Williams was
enabled to experience those delight
full sensations which all true sports
men declare that the fox so thoroughly
enjoys when he hears the hounds in
full cry. At length Gibraltar ap-
peared in sight. George, in his play
full way, told me that he ''made the
Rock" But, of course, this was only
his humorous exaggeration. George
is a high-minded gentleman, and in
his more serious moments l have
never known him to deviate from the
truth--except when he was talking
Spanish. And that is a language
which lends itself to allegory.
When he was within q mile or two
of Gibraltar, George suddenly stopped
and allowed all his steam to blow off
through something which, believe,
is called the exhaust pipe. have not
an idea what this is, but 1 do know
that the noise was simply hideous.
The captain OF the Spanish battleship