Evening star., 1898-07-30

barratry of this kind are gone about nova
days they are performed with shrewdness
Your ingenious gentleman who makes a
devil of a clockwork and guncotton to
blow out steamers bottom, or makes a
compact with one of her crew to open the
bligecocks, Is dexterous enough to cover
up his trail very completely, having a
wholesome awe of the law of the land and
a large distaste for penal servitude.
Moreover, Owen Kettle was not the man
to receive gratuitous information on such
point from his underlings To begin
with, he was the Sultan of Labuan's cap
tam, and by the immemorial etiquette of
the sea a ships captain is always a man
socially apart He is dictator for the
time being, with supreme power of life
and death, is addressed as sir" and would
be regarded with social awe and coldness
by his own brother, If the said brother
were on board as one of the mates or one
of the assistant engineers. With the chief
engineer alone. although he does not sit
at meat with him, may a merchant cap
tain unbend, and with the chief of the
Sultan Of Labuan Kettle had picked a
difference over a commission on bunkering
not ten minutes after he had first stepped
on board. He had the undoubted knack
of commanding men; he could look exactly
after his employers property, but he had
an unfortunate habit Of making himself
hated in the process.
coal CRIME from the slips outer fabric he
had already come into intimate contact
with his crew. The tired deck hands had
refused duty; clumsy old Murgatroyd had
endeavored to force them into it by the
me-honored methods, AMI had been knock
ed down in the scuff1e and tramped on:
when up came Kettle, already spruce and
clean. and laid ilnpartial;y into the whole
grimy gang of them with Il deck scrubber
They were new to their little sk!ppers yir-
tues, and thought at first that they would
treat him as they had already treated the
TAT old mate, and as Il consequence bleed
inc fnca llra6h
and curses went up, bitter and deep in half
the tongues of Europe. But Kettle still 1e-
manned spruce. and clean, and aggressive
and untouched.
1t takes some art to thoroughly thrash
dozen savage full-grown men with n
light broom without breaking the stick or
knocking off the head, and the crew of the
sultan OF Labuan were not slow to recog-
nize their captains ability. But at the
same time they were not inspired with any
overpowering love for him. In the course
OF that night an iron bellyIng hin yhisked
up out of the darkness and knocked Off lis
cap as he stood on the upper bridge; and
Just before the dawn chunk of coal
whizzed up and smashed itself into splint-
ers on the wheel mouse wall not an inch
from his ear. But. as Capt. Kettle replied
10 the hrst 2f these compliments by three
prompt revolver shots almost before the
thrower had ;ifpe u think. and rushed out
and caught hiA SECOND assailant by the
neck scruH and forced him to eat every
SSA.p VI Codi t'tftI hay pecN thrown, the all
nation crew decided that he was loo ugly
TO tackle usefully, and taCitly agreed to let
him alone for the future, and to do their
lawful work. TIE which, of course, was
exactly what fttleilesired.
BY this time The Sultan Of Labuan had
run down the Cornish Coast, had rounded
Lands End, and was standing Off on a
course which would MAKE Finisterre her
next landfal. The glass was sinking
steadily; the Seascape was made i'm Of
blacks and whites and Iurid grays bur
though the air was cold and raw the
weather was not any worse than need have
been expected for the time of wear The
matches were off, and n good strong smell
OF coal gas billowed up from below ana
mingled with the sea scents.
With all northern sailors Gistrust for a
dago," Kettle had spotted his sprI,cs
young Italian second mate as Gedve.s
probable tool, and watched him like The
apple OF his eye. No mans actions could
have been more innocent and normal. and
TINS, OF course, made things all the more
suspicious. The engineer staff. who had
access to bilge cocks. and could arrange
disasters to machinery, were likewise eY
ohcfo suspicious persons, but as II was
quite impossible to overlook them at all
hours and on all occasions, he had regret
fully to take them very largely on frust
laundering, incompetent old Murratroxd
| the mate. was the only man on board In
whose honesty Kettle had the least fsIth
| simply because he considered him too
i stupid to be intrusted with any Operation
/ SO delicate as barratry, and to Murgatroyd
he more or less confded his Intentions
Il hear there's scheme on board tn
scuttle this steamboat" he said, "bseauss