The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-05-14

ths way Ssr she no9ted; It,s w e the beams
CAPTAIN. Why, Il a breeze was TO come on
Now. to Kettles honor be Il said seeing
man as he knoit there peerlng into the iazarot.
Instead he waited till he stood up again, and
then made his statement coldly and deliber-
This ships not too, dangerous for me. and
choose to Judge, And If she'll do for me she's
good enough for the crow I've got In your boat.
Now. | want them on deck and at work with
out any more palayer."
DO you; by CAD . said the mate. and then
the pair OF them closed without any further
preliminaries. They were both OF them well
ised TO quick rough and tumbIes and they both
grip IN these, wrestles usually wins, and in
stinctirely each tried to act on mat knowledge.
Rut Il the third mate had bulk and strength
though the pair Of them lost their footing on
the %sloping cabin floor at the first embrace and
wrlggled over and under like u pair o cells.
Capt: Kettle got a thumb artistically fixed in
me bigger mans w,ndnipe, and held II there
aoRGedly. The mate, growing more and more
purple. hit ont with savage force. but Kettle
lodged the bull-like blows. like the boxer he
was. and the mates Efforts gradually relaxed;
But at this point they we're interrupted.
That wabbly boat was making me seasick."
said a voice,,"so l came on board here. Hullo,
you fellows"
Kettle looked up. Mr.. Philips" he said. Il
Wish you'd go and get the rest Of our crew on
deck out OF the boat
but What are you two doing down there"
I'VE, disagreed over a question Of Judgment.
He said this ship isn't safe. and | shouldn't
have the chance to take her home. / say
there's nothing wrong with her that cant be
remedied. and home I'm going to take her
anyway. 1t may be the one chance In my life.
not going e miss IT,,
"Ho.' said Dayton-Philipps.
III you don't like to come you needn't" said
Kettle. But I'm Ioing'to have the stone ma
son and the DaCo and those We coal beavers.
Perhaps you'd better 60 back.-lt will be wet.
hard work here. no way the sort OF lob to suit
DAYTON Phillips flushed slightly and then
n ma ts"F he said. ?"H Wsii. ea ennts ' I snali aa 'S to to
prnvs to you that we soldiers are equal to a bit
OF manual labor sometimes. BY the way, l
but III like it as a favor ii YOU wouldn't Xiii
st!rake luite: l rather like him"
his thumb out OF the third mates windpipe.
AND now. sir. as you've, 80 to speak. signed on
fEr duty here. away With you on deck and get
,Dayton-Pbllipps touchcd.his hat and grinned.
Aye. aye, SIR he said. and went back up the
Shortly afterward he came to report the men
on board; and Kettle addressed his late oppo.
want TO have more trouble on deck before the
hands. Have you had enough"
"for the present, yes" said the third mate.
other day to have q bit of further talk
I'm sure, l shall be quite ready. No man
ever accused me OF refusing n scrap. But, me
lad, Just take one tip from me. Don't YOU go
and make Capt. Image anxious by saying this
ship isn't seaworthy, or hell begin to ask ques-
you're proud about"
You can go and get drowned your own way.
AS far as I'm concerned. no one will guess its
coming Off iii they see it in the papers."
THANKS said Kettle. Il knew you'd be
The :hirj mate went down to his boat and
the three rowers took her across to the M'poso.
where she was hauled up to darirs again.
she got under way again and Kettle with his
own: hands unbent the reversed ensign from
the ship,s main rigging and ran it W to he
hreathed more freely now. One chance and q
host OF unknown dangers 10y, aheai Of him.
nothing new to him., 1t was the chance
which lured him on. Chances SO seldom came
his way that he intended to make this one into
Il certainty II desperation could do 1t.
Alone of all the six men on the derelict Capt.
Kettle had knowledge OF the, seaman's craft
were required. The vessel lay in pathetic
heIplessness on her side, liable to capsize IN
the first sluall which came along, and their
while the calm continued. They pulled aTay
the hatch covers and saw beneath them smooth
As though they were an invitation to work.
shoyels We're made fast along the combines Of
shouts dropped down upon the grain. And
then began a period of Homeric toll. The fire
man and the coal trimmer set the pace and
WIZ u llIlC IoIltSlIiIJ III Nv ulllldllulltSS u
amateurs did not fail to give a display of their
,utmcst. Kettle and Dayton-Philirps gamely
turned out to have his pride also o'' and did not
lag. and only the free.born, British subject
from Sierra leone endennvored to Shirk his due
theories as to the rights of man were regarded
here as little as threats to lay information be-
Observation-Disclosures Of shovel blows from
whoever happened to be next To him. the I'M
fortunate colored gentleman descended to the
pln ~ EfrDn nm ~ md nl1n1 gu.l VFAatn
equally with his hetters.
The heat under the decks was sitting. and
but the pace of the ~circlinE shovels was never
allowed to Slacken. They worked there
stripped TO trousers. and they understood one
and all that they were working for their lives.
A breeze had Strung w almost as soon as tho
M'poso had steamed away. and hourly it was
fresheninE: the barometer In the cabin was
registering a steady fall, the sky was banking
Kettle had handled shec!s and braces and
hove the vessel to so as to steady her as thry
worked. but she still Iahored heavily in the
sea. and beneath them they could hear the
beneath. Their labor was having its effect.
and by iniinitesimal E~rnduatlons they were
roHhnte tMt nS the MiSI Iis T6 ana gttIinG the ship nnd up ?,
seemed to them ~alsv:that the water was getting
deeper undcrthelr feet and that the vessel rode
sluggishly.
So far the we'll had not been sounded. 1t
was no use getting alarming statistics to dis
night had fallen. and it was impossible to see
to work in The gloomy hold any longer without
lamps. Capt. Kettle took the sounding rod and
found eight feet.
lie mentioned this when he took down the
lamps into the hold. but he did not think it
necessary to add that as the sounding had been
.aken with the well on the slant it was there
fore considerably under the truth. Still he
sent Dayton hillppS and the trimmer on deck
to take a spell 1T the pumps. and himself re-
sumed his shovel work alongside III" others.
Straightwav ON through the night the six
men stuck to thelr savage toll. the blood from
their blistered hands Icddcning the shafts Of
the Shovels. Every now and again one or an
other OF them rhoked with the dust and went
t. getsa drauEht OF lukewarm water from the
scuttlebutt. But no ono saved overlong on
these excursions. The breeze had blown IN
int n gale. The night overhead was s~tarless
and moonleSS, but every minute the black
heaven was spit by bursts of lightning, which
shove the laborinE, dishevelled ship set
among great mountains OF breaking seas.
The sight would have been bad from a we'll
manned powerful steamboat: from the deck
OF the derelIct 1t approached the terrific. The
men with the shovelS worked among the
frightened, sGueakinG rats in the closed-in box
of the hold.
There were four on board the ship during
that terrible night who openly owned to being
cowed and freely bewailed their insanity in
having been lurcd way from the M'poso. bay
ton-philiups had sufficient. self-c ontrol To keep
his feelings. whatever they were. unstated: hut
Kettle faced all difficulties with indUmitaDle
courage and Il smiling iace.
Il believe. ".said Philips to him