Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-01-14

/ got SO Huch scratch
| 1t was all the affair of a minute. 1t does
| not do to let these little impronptu scrim-
images simmer ever long. In fact. the whole
| afair was decided in the first rush. The
| quarter of English went in. despising the
| dagos and quite intending to clear them off
! the ship. The invaders We're driven over
| board by sheer weight of blows and pres
| tge,' and the victors leaned on the bull
| wark. putting and gasping, and watched
| them swim away to their boat through the
| clear water be.ow
| Set of blooming pirates" said Kettle.
| But Dayton-Philpps seemed to view the
! situation from different point. I'm rather
1 thinking We the pirates How about
! those three we've got on board? This
sort of press-gang work isn't quite approved
| of nowadays is it, SKIPPER
They no speakee English" said Kettle
| dryly. You might have heard me ask
| that. sir, before l started to talk to that
| skipper TO make him begin the show. And
i he did begin ii. and that's the great point.
! If ever you've been in police court you IL
! always find the magistrate asks, Who be-
| gan this troubles? And when he finds out,
| that's the man he logs. No. those fisher
| men won't kick up a Robbery when they
get back to happy Portugal again, and as
| for our own crowd here on board. they
| aren't likely TO talk when they get ashore
| and have money due to them
| "Well, / suppose there's reason in that.
| though l should have my doubts about the
| stone mason. He comes from Sierra Leone.
| remember. and theyr great on the rights
of man there"
| Quite So said Kettle "I'li see the stone
| mason gets packed off to sea again in a
stokehoid before he has chance of stirring
| UP the mud ashore. When the black man
gets too pampered he has to be brought low
again with a rush"
| Il see." said Dayton-Philipps and then
| he laughed.
There's something that tickles you, sir?'
Il was thinking, skipper, that for man
who believes he's being put in the way of
| a soft thing by direct guidance from on
| llgh, YOU using a tremendous lot or
energy 10 make sure the Almfghty's wishes
| don't miscarry."
Mr. Philips said Kettle gravely cit
was understood when He let me know I
was to have this chance / was to do my
human utmost to carry it through myself
| God sends us all into this world with hands
and heads. and He isn't pleased with man
who doesn't put these TO their proper uses"
The three captive Portuguese were
brought up on deck and were quickly in
duced by the ordinary persuasive methods
of the merchant service officer to forego
their sulkiness and turn to diligently at
what work was required of them. But
even with this help the heavy ship was
stin considerably undermanned. and the in
| cessant labor at the pumps fell YEARLY on
all hands. The bay, true to its tickle ma
ture. changed on them again. The sun
SHINE was SWamped by driving gray mist
of rain, the glass started on a steady fall
and before dark Kettle snugged her down
| to single topsails. himself laying out on the
| foot ropes with the Portuguese. as no 9TH
| ers of his crew could manage to scramble
| aloft with SO heavy a sea running.
| The night worsened as it went on. The
wind piled up steadily in violence and the
| sea rose till the soddeD vessel rode it with
| a very babel of shrieks and groans and
| complaining sounds. Toward morning a
| terrific squall powdered up against them
and hove her down, and dull rumbling
was heard in her bowels to let them know
that once more her cargo had shifted.
For the moment even Kettle thought that
| this time she was gone for good She lost
\ her and Law down like 1ntr in ba
water, and the racing seas roared over her
| as though she had been a half-tide rock.
Then to the impact of a heavier gasp of
the squat, the fopgallantmasts went, and
| the small loss of top weight seemed mo-
| mentarily to ease here. Kettle seized upon
| the moment. He left the trimmer and one
! of the Portuguese at the wheel and hand
| ed himself along the streaming decks and
| kicked and cuffed the rest of his crew into
| activity. He gave his orders, and the ship
wore slowly round before the wind and
| began to pay away the other tack.
| Great hills of sea deluged her in the pro-
cess, and her people worked like mermen,
| half of their time submerged. But by de-
| grees. as the vast rollers hit and shook her
! with their ponderous impact, she came up
/ right again, and after a little while shook
| the grain level in her holds, and assumed
| her normal angle of heel.
| Dayton-Phil:pps struggled up and hit
| Kettle on the shoulder. "How's that, UNI
pire?' he bawled. My faith, you are a
| clever sailor
| Capt. Kettle touched his cap. God bore
/ q hand there, sir he shouted through the
wind. IF I'd tried TO straighten her up
like that without His help. every man here
| would have been fish-chop this minute
Even Dayton-Phiiipps. skeptical though he
might be, began to think there was some
| thing in it, as the voyage went on. To
begin with, the leak stopped. They did not
know how it had happened. and they did
| not very much care. Kettle had his the
cries. Anyway, it stopped To go on with.
| although they We're buffeted with every
| kind of evil weather. all their mischances
were speedily rectifed. In heavy sea
| their unstable cargo surged about as though
it had been liquid. but it always shifted
| back again before she quite capszed.
| All hands got covered with salt water
| boiis. All hands, with the exception of
| Kettle, who remained, usual. neat, grew
| gaunt, bearded, dirty and unkempt. They
| We're grimed with sea sat. they were fiayed
| by violent suns; but by dint of hard school
| Ing they Were becoming handy saiormen,
| all of them, and even the negro stone ma
| son learned to obey an order without first
| thinking over its justice till he earned
premonitory hiding.
| It's a blooming Flying Dutchman were
| on said the coal trimmer. who acted as
| mate. There's no killing the old beast.
| Only hope she gets us ashore somehow and
doesn't stay fooling about at sea forever
| Just to get into risks. | want to get off
| her. She's too blooming lucky to be quite
| wholesome, somehow.
| In Bristol channel little scattering tug
|
| on the brown waves of the estuary. and
| her skipper in the green pulpit between the
| paddle boxes waved hand cheerily.
| Seem to have found some dirty weather
| captain?' he bawied. Want "a pull into
| Cardiff or Newport?''
| "Cariff. What price,?
Say f1oo.''
81 wasn't asking to buy the tug. You're
| putting a pretty fancy figure on her for
| that new lick of paint you got on your
| rail-
! I'll take ESQ.,
! oh, l can sail her in myself il you're
| going to be funny. She's as handy as
pilot boat, brig-rigged like this, and my
| crew know her fine. I'll give you Ed into
| Cardiff, and you're to dock me for that"
| Twenty wicked people Now look here
| captain, you don't look very prosperous
| with that vessel of yours, and you'll prob
| ably have the sack from owners for mis-
| handling her when you get ashore, and
| don't want to embitter your remaining
| years in The workus SO I'll pull you in for
| 30 quid.'
| Twenty pounds, old bottle nose
| Come, now. captain, thirty. I'm not
| here for sport. I've got to make my liy-
| ing"
| My man" said Kettle. "rll met you and