The herald., 1898-05-01
BOOKS AND THEIR MAKERS

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that terrible night.
Wien Caleb, completely equipped.
stepped on the top round Of the ladder
fastened to the ships side, the crowd
climbed hurriedly over the wrecked cars
to the stringers Of the trestle, to get a bet
ter view of the huge manfish with its dis
torted head and single eye, and its long
antennae of hose and life line. Such y
sight would be unoanny even when the
blazing sun FURNISHED the Divers polished
helmet and the one eye Of the face plate
glared ominously; but at night, under the
wide sky, with only a single swinging
lamp to tllumine the gloomy shadows, the
manflsh became o thing of dread--a ghoul-
ish specter who prowled over foul and
loathsome things, and rose from the slime
Of deep bottoms only to breathe and sink
again.
Caleb slowly descended the yachts lad
der, one iron-shod foot at time, until the
water reached his armpits. Then he
swung himself clear and the black, oily
ooze closed over him.
Captain Joe leaned over the yachts rail,
the life limo wound about his wrist, his
sensitive hand alert for the slightest nib
BILE from the nanfish below; these nibbles
are the unspoken words to his tender
above. His life often depends on these
being instantly understood and answered.
For the diver Is moro than amphibious;
he Is ce-bodied-one man below, one
man above, with two heads and four hands.
The connecting links between these two
bodies-these Siamese twins-are the life
line and signal cord through which they
speak to each other, and the air hose car
rying their life breath.
As Caleb dropped out of sight the crow
crowded to the yachts rail, straining
their eyes in the gloom. In the steady
light of the lantern they could see the cord
tighten and slacken. as the diver felt his
way among the wreckage or sank to the
bottom. They could follow. too. the circle
Of air bubbles floating on the water above
where he worked. No one spoke; no one
moved. An almost deathly stiffness pre-
vailed. The only sounds were the wheel
ing Of the air pump turned by the sailor,
and the swish Of the life line cutting
through the water as the diver talked to
his tender. With these were mingled the
unheeded sounds of the night and Of the
seattle soft purring of the tall grasses
moving gently to and fro in the night
wind, and the murmuring of the sluggish
water stirred by the rising tide and gurg-
ling along the yachts side on its way to
the stern.
These varied movements on the yacht
stirred the overhanging crowd into &C
ton. They hoped the diver was coming
up; they hoped. too, he would bring the
dead man. His appearing with his awful
burden would be less terrible than not
knowing what the manfish was doing. The
crew of the yacht crowded still closer to
the rail; this fishing at night for the dead
had a fascination they could not resist.
Some of them even mounted the ratliEes,
and others ran aft to see the diver rise from
the deep sea.
In a moment more the black water
heaved In widening circles, and Caleb's
head and shoulders were thrust up with
In an oars length Of the yacht.
The light of the lantern fell upon his wet
helmet and extended arm.
The hand clutched a mans boot. At
tached to the boot were a pair of blue over
alls and jacket. The head of the drowned
man hung down in the water The face
was hidden.
Captain Joe leaned forward. lowered
49, 49, - 49, ne. ,,v. go o,,ar hara
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nearer.
Caleb placed his foot on the ladder and
drew himself up until his waist was clear
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