Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-06-17

a foreigner they'll feed us extremely well,
which is great thing for this time of
year"
Then you think we shall have a very
bad crossing?' Mrs. Codrington asked, anx-
iousy.
we may have a breeze or we mayn't.
The western ocean is always delightfully."-
uncertain about that. But l was thinking
about the cold. Thercll be precious little
going out on deck; meals will be the most in
teresting item of the dar, and therefore
good table is distinct pleasure TO look
forward to-
DO you think there is any danger?" said
Mrs. Codrington.
1 smiled. Remarkably little Considera-
bly, less, for instance. than you would be
exposed to If you Travelled by train for a
week backward and forward between Lon
don and Glasgow. In fact if you care to
give me the sum of one penny apiece FL
insure you each for f1,O00 against fatal ac-
cident all the way across, like the weekly
papers do ashore. Come, now, will You let
me do that stroke of business?"
Save your coppers," said Vanrennan,
laughing. Calvert is too grasping. Come
along down below and get settled in your
quarters and then bid me affectionate
goodbye. l shall have to clear if / don't
want to be taken on Ta-ta, Calvert, old
chap. So awfully good of you to take these
damsels under your charge. Hope YOU all
have good time on the other side. and not
get frozen Oh the road. Goodbye"
We hove up at dusk that afternoon, and
beca use the channel outside was white with
ugly, choppy sea there Were fiddles on
the table at dinner and extraordinarily few
Giners. l sent down dry champagne and
biscuits to Mrs. Codrington's room, and
then, seating myself next to the purser,
made a gorgeous meal.
we do ourselves Well here in the grub
line, don't we?' said the purser. Better
than the English boats We're dragging all
the passenger trade away from them now.
Come along down to my room for your cof-
fee and wen have a quiet smoke before l
To. r lnerS I.nr.i
] wouldn't care to be the old man tonight!
He'll be perched there freezing on the up
per bridge till were bang clear of the chan
ne and very likely for the next twenty
four hours after that, if the weather's at all
thick. He's got just over thousand human
lives on this ship, and l guess they give
him all the responsibility he's any use for
Steward. bring me down bottle of green
chartreuse to my room. Now, Mr. Calvert,
if you're ready"
The purser and l talked western ocean
shop during the burning of the two Cuban
cigars, and then he turned to at work and
I slipped off to the smoke room and read
the illustrated papers. 1t was IL O'Clock
before the smoke room steward limited that
the hour of closing had come.
I went out into the night. black. misty
night full of rain and spindri1t driving
down from the mormon west | cooked my
eye and saw the skipper and two mates
patrolling the upper bridge; on the break of
the deck ahead of me were three men in
glistenng oilskins; in the crows nest for
uriously and thanked the fat>s that ]
a mere passenger who could travel in abso-
lutte safety and have no watch TO keep. And
then l went below and made fast my port
manteau and turned in. Sleep humored me
at once.
1 woke to the tune of colliding ships and
the full orch@ Stra of death.
To say that my senses came to me with
out furry and at once would be too gseat
claim BY some violent shock from be-
meath l was banged up against the iron
roof of the cabin. 1 pitched back on the
floor. and for a minute or SO lay there
stunned.
Something serious was going on. l be-
came duly conscious of this, and with an
effort reused myself and stared curiously
at the curtain rod of the bunk, which lay
doubled up and twisted between my hands.
Then it began to be borne in upon me that
the ship was awake with screaming and
the tramping of frightened feet, and then
the Interpretation of these things came to
me in a flash. We were in collision.
A man snatched open my door. stan-
mered out, We're going down! oh, what
shall / do?" and ran away shouting. The
ship was full of noise and darkness and
hammering. The propeller had stopped, no
light came when / turned the electric
switch, and we had so heavy a list to star
board (ny side) that already the ports were
covered most of the time. 1t was precisely
clear that the steamer, was in a bad way.
and ones first and most natural instinct'
was to bolt for the upper decks.
/ I'm ashamed to say that l had already
rushed outside the door. with this idea be-
fore got my wits in hand again. But then
! pulled myself up, and want back and
dragged on some heavy serge clothes over
my pajamas, and added boots and whisky
flask, after which I pounded off along the
alleyways to the room which Mrs. Codring-
ton shared with the Vanrcnnan girl. The
door of it was slamming noisily with thu
roll of the ship. / looked inside. The place
was empty, and from out of the darkness
came swirl OF water, which ran coldly