The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-10-19
well, Colspepper. he said when

w I'll, SoASpCppCl, AC Sdlu WAch
they We're alone, "what is it2"
Look at the glass.
DR.. Tring did SO and whistled. .P-
love, ">he said. sit has gone down, and
no mistakel"
can inch and a quarter in the ]ast
20 minutes, observed the captain,
'sand it's still falling. We're in for
something out of the common
The doctor thought for moment
''Then, if that is SO, " he said at length,
wed better hurry up and get below
the surface again before it begins Now
| that we've hit upon the spot where the
| gold lies we can afford to be lavish
with our supply of oxygen. Well just
stay down below there till it has blown
itself out.
"Aye, assented the captain, 1--WE
might do that if it was going to be an
ordinary storm. I've no more fancy
than you have for leaving the Santa
Catarina now that we've got our fingers
in her money box at last but this blow
isn't going to be matter of hours or
of days either maybe It's regular
tornado that We're in for, l tell you
Look at the sea-dancing up and down
like plate Of calf's foot jelly, though
there isn't as much wind as would
blow a match out. I've been in storm
of the kind before, and I know the signs
We shall be precious lucky if we escape
with the loss of spar OR two. "
'sDo you mean that we shall have to
leave this spot now, when the Spanish
gold is almost in our pockets9''
eyes, DOCTOR do. We shall have to
set about putting the ketch into sea
trim again as fast as we can and then
run before the storm wherever it chooses
to take u.s. If we're lucky and DOM go
to the bottom, we can come back here
afterward for the rest of the gold. If
we're not lucky, we shall be dismasted
or worse. A West Indian tornado is the
hottest sort of terror when it fairly
breaks loose, and that's what we are
going to have before we are couple Of
hours older, Your trick of command is
over for the present, doctor, I'm afraid,
for there will be precious small chance
Of any more undersurface work for a
spell. It's pity, but there's no help
for it, SO we'd best be setting about
putting the Eureka into shipshape
again.
The two friends left the cabin and re-
turned to the deck. The gold and silver
had by this time all been sorted out
from among the slime. and Tom Jelly
and Henrietta We're already busy with
the buckets washing down the mud
fouled decks. Captain Colepepper ex-
planned matters to the others and then
ting up the canvas again 1t had to be
hurriedly done. for there was no time
to be lost, and hardly had the necessary
rags of storm sail been set when the
tornado broke upon them.
The first squall came down upon the
Eureka with rush, driving a wave of
! white foam before it. The sea had risen
rapidly, even before the wind came,
running crosswise in several directions
at the same time and giving clear evil
4 dence by its confused warning of the
nature of the tempest which was COM
ing. 1t was one of the circular storms
of the tropics, than which no wind that
blows is more destructive.
The time at their disposal had been
too short to allow them to get the run
ming tackle of the mainmast set in or
der. To make sure that its standing
rigging was all taut and firmly secured
was all that they had been able to do.
They had managed, however, to set the
mizzen and small jib and under these
Captain Colepepper hoped that she
might be able to weather the tornado
1t might be, perhaps, that even this
small sail spread would be too much for
/ her.
AS soon as the storm was fairly upon
them Guthrie was sent to the forward
lockout, not that there was any very
strong likelihood Of their falling in
with any other vessel in these ATTITUDES,
but Captain Colepepper would take no
unnecessary risks and the awful expe-
4 rience which they had already had with
the P. and O. liner in the bay of Biscay
was sufficient reminder to the most
thoughtless that their skipper caution
was by no means unreasonable.
Presently Guthrie was joined at his
post by Dolly In the rapidly growing
| darkness the young man could just
make out that there was an expression
of intense disappointment on her face,
which even the excitement Of the COM
ing battle with the sea did not avail to
drive away.
'.Alan, she said. isn't it horrid
to be driven away like this, just when
we had got to the interesting corner of
that galleon thing? It's too provokingl
Guthrie nodded, and there was mo-.
ment's silence, broken only by the in
creasing voice of the tempest The
young man shared to the full the gen
eral disappointment and was thorough
ly out of temper with himself and his
fate. He was in no mood, therefore, for
discussing the situation, even with
Dolly, for at that moment it seemed
to him that the Flat Holme light had
been lying beacon after all.
The sea had got up quickly, and just
then wave struck heavily against the
bows of the ketch. Its top curled over
the weather bulwark, and heavy
shower of spray dashed against the girl