The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-02-04

what threw the action of these savages
into grotesque relief was the sight OF an
other man crouched in prayer beside the
bulwarks. 1t was the bishop. His tot
tering hands were pinning the crucifx TO
his hollow chest; his hips were swaying
under him with weakness; his dry, crack
ed lips moved noiselessly; and the molten
sunlight beat upon him as it pleased.
The sight OF that man gave me bad
feeling. Before knew quite how 1t hap
pened, was down on. the frizziing main
deck, and the Juju had been plucked from
the winch barrel and flung over the side.
together with the tortured hen, ana was
fighting for my life amongst crowd or
furies. Tordoff was there, too, though
I'm sure / don't know how he came, and
thanks to him / got back again on the
bridge deck: but the bishop did not come
with us. He stayed down there amongst
those suiisa, animal blacks. imploring
them, praying with them, soothing them
He was a Drawer man than !, that Portu-
guese.
Another night came down. and the
steamer wallowed in inky blackness. In
the morning we were still more helpless.
The mates, the few remaining sailors, the
stewards and cooks, and the two yellow
traders had gone; the captain lay In the
alley way with a knife between his shout
der blades; the bishop and and Tor
don were the only white men remaining
pantry smoking a cigarette, and found
him there, eating biscuits and raisins-
You here? / said. why. man. i
thought you cleared out with the rest"
No" he said: II thought 1t would be
so fine to stay behind and be able to scof
the cabin grub just as / pleased. l just
stayed for the grub: it's worth it."
You're rather a decent sort of liar"
said. do you mind shaking hands"
II don't see the need" he said, and,
besides, I'm using my hands to eat these
raisins; but you may kick me If you like.
There isn't a redder fool than me in both
Atlantics. BY the way, how's the padre? ?"
Very sick looked into his room and
found him lying in his bunk. He couldn't
talk"
II put him there. Found the old fool
preaching TO those beasts on all fours this
morning, and looked on till he dropped;
then 1 logged him under cover"
ANY more deadT'
Five pegged out during the night
They were lying pleasantly in and among
the others, and there were seven more
sick. | told the head man when / went
down with the padre to have them put
over the side or I'd kill him. And when
came back l found no had showed the
whole dozen. The man and brothers a
toierable brute when he comes to hand
ling his own kind, Mr.. Calvert
We went out then and set the passen-
ger boys 10 washing down decks We
could not give them the hose because
there was no donkey working; but they
drew water in buckets and holystoned
and scraped and scrubbed TIL they clean
ed the Infection out OF the decks, and
sweated 1t out of themselves The chol-
era seemed to have exhausted itself.
There were three other cases, IL is true
but they were mild and none died. In
their fright the boys would have chucked
4 R-f- s1...xr
were taken sick, but promised the head
man to shoot him most punctually IL any
one went over the side who was not a
pukka corpse, and II niggers were addict
ed to gratitude (which they are noD, there
are gentlemen now living on the Kroos
coast who might remember me favorably.
For we did get In. A IL. and A. boat
picked us up three weary days later. and
towed us at the end OF an extremely long
| hawser into the very place TO which /
| wanted to go.
| or course Fernando Pc. being Spanish.
| kept us very much at arms length; and
| We did a thirty days most rigid quaran-
tine. which made latter the last case had
| recovered) matter of forty days In all.
| But we had no more deaths. and the
| bishop pulled up into fine form. He was
! not man I could ever bring myself to
| like, and az Tordoff was. for the most part.
| sullen and unwishful for talk. the time
that We swung at anchor on foIt Iihf-
ence was not exhilarating.
| Still II was pleasant to think that one
was alive. and to realize that one had got
/ respectfully out of very tight corner
| yes one of the tightest. The tramps two
| boats never turned up again. l suppose
| they carried cholera away with them, and
| drifted about in the belt of equatorial
/ cairns full OF sun-dried corpses. till soms
\ tornado came and swamped them. SO that
/ wo three were tho only Europeans left
/ out of thirty-four. and OF the 20 negroes
/ who left Banana. in the Congo. only seven.
| ty-four came TO Fernando Pc. II was q
| tcierahle thinning out. but when 1t eams
| TO climbing the peak. that made up for al
| which had gone before. Indeed. 1t Is 0
wonderful mountain.
saw rordoff again just as l was going
| away from the island, and tried to put u
! to him deileately that was not badly on
| and would like to give him lift IL the
| thing could be managed.
mo, MIR. Calvert" he said; thanks
! prefer 10 go to the devil my own gait.
| don't suppose you'd ever know who am
| but IL anybody describes me and asks
| Just say you haven't seen me-"
And that is the last l have seen or hearc
/ OF him IL is extraordinary how one drifu
! away from men. But on the other band
| I should not be in tho least surprised al
/ stumbling across Tordofr again. in plrpl'
and fine linen for choice, on the next &C.