New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-06-04
A LUMP OF COAL.
From The London Star.

tude, which meant that she was coming up 10
that dangerous collection OF ieeis anu tIJn
! known as the AbrOlhos Shoals The chart "nID,"
! covered them was from a French survey III loul'
and as any amount Of unrecorded changes inIsn ao
have been wrought since then by that hl''"'c
! mason Of the deep, the coral insect NdP'"l"
! Crmebaw was very much the qul VlVe so
/ long as his ship was in the neighDorhood, I'll.
! being a wise master-mariner, he depended pu.
| little on either the chart or the ADroihos I'b"'
! itself. 49,, ..to,,
! But if the captain did not fancy this parucu-
lar patch of the sea for reasons relatlhs ~ nav
CATION. the third engineer did for purposes VI
! his own In short he hoped to earn the SNIP
| insurance money and a couple or hundred
| hounds for himself somewhere IN the venue.
1t was an excellent locality for pausiDlG stolg
about the GOshaWk running on some ut'""i w."
eboaI and sinking as she backed INTO deep
water. So wnen he was relieved OF ms nan
watch at Il O'Clock by the cher engineer ne WIZ
straight 10 the engine-rOom mess-tdple LOT M
tea carefully forgetting his b!ue jacket where
hung on a rail the forward side OF the en-
gine-room bulkhead. Having partaken hastiy
and sparngly Of the bad tea ana potato na9n
/ supped he turned into his own room, ioched
the door. and arranged a pair OF trousers 10
hang so that one Of the Legs might cover tic
kevh,le Then he knelt though not eNaCty III
prayer, beside his chest, and proceeded TO
unnack IT, till at length he reached a sInaH
wooden box with "A sliding top. Al hfst slSn'
/ n did not appear why his hand should tremble
A little as ne pulled the lid aside and drew from
its well-wadded cradle very commonplace
lump Of coal 80,
1t was exactly like any other piece Of coal
about the size Of a large fist-say the mates
and il had all the jetty sparkle and SHINE OF the
newly broken article. The only difference pc
tween il and the other Jumps in the bunkers was
that 100000 worth and few mems llves lay IN
its nascent possibilities.
on closer inspection, however. II revealed one
little popularity a little square projection such
as any lady or gentleman who does not use
stem winder may see in his watch any night OF
the week Tom Tudors own Watchkey. when
he now tried upon it to see If everything was IN
proper working order. fitted it exactly as mat
ter Of fact.
Another hour and it will be pretty nearly
dark That will be my time he thought to
himself with anything but hendish chuckie
As yet he was considerably removed from the
villain teres atque rotundus OF sanguinary fc-
ton. OF truth he was conscious AT the mo-
ment OF a curious sickness, a tickling In ms
stomach which not even the recent potato stew
could account for No, it was the thought OF
the coming appalling moment Of flame and
death-and the captains daughter. curse the
captains daughter! When he had entered INTO
this nefarous contract with certain unnamabe
people at home, he had not counted on this dis
turbng element That he, hard hearted and
hard headed scoundrel as he was, should ieeI
this immense tenderness for pretty ang girl.
away with her father for voyage on account
Of her health an alteration beyond al! cal
culatiOn. Was il love? 1t worried and pricked
him. and it awakened old unwelcome chords in
the atrophied sense Of fitness which had been
his conscience. Yes. it was love- and-bless
Alice the captains daughter!
| could never have done it," ran his thoughts, +
waking fierce tenderness in his sallow, hand
some face. "A touch of her hand and the Cos I.
hawk would have stemmed the Thames River .
again Suppose the ship sank in couple of
minutes. before they had time to lower the /
boats. There are sharks about ! don't mind /
sending old fireman or trimmer 10 hotter +
furnaces. But the flop Of the brutes round her
sweet body! It's horrible BY heavens, can't
do it. after all"
He bent his forehead against the raised lid Of
AZ. trttpl m ia hot hgI no
cursed thing is calculated to give the ship half
an hour Therell be lots of time for everybody .
to get clear except the poor fellows who get
blown to atoms from the stokehol". Then the .
Weather's quiet. and we're right in the track Of
ships-certain to be picked up within forty-eig
hours"
lie dandled the black mass on his fingers
Five turns If the key, and then fiv4 minutes .
before the explosion. every turn a minute, II .
push the job through III never tackle another
God of heaven. | wish We were all safe in the
b ats"
He replaced the grim handful of doom i'm its
cradle again replaced it in its box and went mp
To- the windy deck. The heat below laid fiery
hand his throat and brain.
\ slice of young moon with few attendant
stars. slowly climbed into lumnance against the
last ardors of the sunset, as he leaned modify
against the deckhOuse
How the misery hour caught up its golden
coin of minutes and fled!
Time time, tme-time, time-time," sang the
watch bell mOnStrOusly soon.
IT'S got to be done" he muttered between his
locked teeth, as he stepped unsteadily out of the
moonlight along the engineer room passage. once .
more unpacked the fatal lump. turned the key
five times. and with flying heart descended /
the steel ladder to the engine-room. the bomb
ticking in the loose breast Of his shirt as he .
went.
"HuO. Tudor. Forgot your Jacket sang out
the chief, as he stopped over the rails and tried
the heat Of his bearings.
Aye" replied the third engineer, he passed
n # 10 RI of no