The Saint Paul globe., 1900-04-02

away over the head rail, about two points
on the weather bowVoo RS. sa9v -
Wheel there!" he roared. .tStarboard
your helm. Let her go off five points,
"Starboard it is, sir came back the an
swer.
See that sheen out to starboard there
sir?" rang out a voice which sounded
clear through the barking of the dog
Hush! Sailor. Down, sir Hush, my
beauty" cried Hardy, and the dog was
instantly silent. clark now"
A sort of oozing Of light, dimly scarlet,
wild and weak and wet as some ghos ly
star Of death lowering over a grave, was
visible to windward, trif1e forward of
the fore rigging. 'Hark!' cried Hardy,
and, sure enough, amid the greasy sloD-
ping of water, falling lazily from the
thrust of the ships bow, they could hear
distant noise of shouting, of cries re-
echoed as from one part of deck to the
other, with a deeper threading of some
throat hoarse in a speaking trumpet.
''Is the mate forward?" sang out the
voice of the ships carpenter.
"Fire one right away off,, shouted Har-
dy, knowing what the fellow had got and
meant
In few heart beats a stream of sun
bright fire was pouring like water from
a hose over the bow;5bu its lightning IL
| Elimination touched but narrow stcetcn
of the dark water The foresail turned
of a sickly Yellow and the staysail
scared wan as the wing of the aibatross
in dying moonlight. All above and abaft,
and then forward to5 the flying jibboom
| end, yards and sailoioth lay STEPPED In
| the impenetrable smother, and within the
area of the light the fog drove slowly in
a very milky way of silver crystals. But
the men could see one another, and, help
ed by the light, Hardy sped aft to BE- near
l.
ard
There's a ship off the starboard bow,
| sir" answered the commander. '"They Re
| burning flares, or we shouldn't see her.
foreigner, by the row. How's she head
ing?"
That question was answered even as
he asked it by the revelation Of ship.
1t had the suddenness of a magic Ian
tern picture flung swiftly. They saw
at the range of a pistol lurid shape,
! which they easily distinguished as a
barque with painted ports, a tall poop,
and a tall topgallant forecastle. She
was burning flares upon her main deck
| and waist, and the red fiames winding
tongues of fire into feathers of SCOT
| black smoke, jeweled the whole appari-
! ton with red hot stars. They pierced
through the fog like sunlit rubies from
glass and brass, from wet plank and
| mast, and the grease of spars. She
was so close that she shone out clearly,
and made light enough for the people Of
the York to see by. Her helm was hard
up and she was slowly paying off, but
| her flying nbboom must catch the miz-
zen rigging of the Australian clipper. You
! heard the splintering of wood aloft, the
4, crash of nearer timber broken off car
rot like betwixt lazy roll of both ships.
The barque's decks were {. sight for the
gods Figures of men could be Seen rush
! ing franticaIly herei and there. They
were all shouting; men on the poop were
screeching orders, and nothing but the
! i7eIrf EaV6 heeds men on the forecastle
were roaring and f1ourish1ng their lists.
| The flames duplicated the shadows of the
running figures = painted lines Of the
rigging upon the plafks writhed between
the water ways, like serpents snaking
their acknowledgements overheard New
er did any seau light flash up more
startling, wilder, "a more CHASTITY ta-
pestry. Twas Ike a painting in flames
and ruddy stars upon the black canvas
of the fog, and the hull, with it's lines
of ports like the keys of plano, reeled
slowly off on the lift of the brine, yard
arm to yard arm the beating canvas OF
each red as thsV powder flag, and dying
out up aloft like the reflection Of burn
ing ship upon a cloud.
It was all too bneathless for action
aboard the York. Before a brace could
be let go, before an order could be
yelled, the strangers flying jibboom was
cracking and gone, and her topgallant
mast, with its canvas, was plaisterins
the topsail; and then 1t was almost chan.
mel to channel, and the barque's poop was
abreast of the York's quarter deck.
Great God!" cried Hardy.
figure standing near the stranger.
mizzen fell. and another figure fed aft
but at that instant some back draught
of breeze thickened the crystals of the
fog smoking close to the strangers taf