Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1900-02-22
Copyright, 1897, by D. Appleton s. Co. All
rights reservedl
CHAPTER XIII.
IN THE HEART OF THE STORM.
By CHAUNCY c. HoTCHKISS

IN THE HEART OF THE STORM.
In five minutes we were in the trough of
It. Without a zephyr to steady ber, the
schooner wallowed like a crazy thing. The
roll, the sdeong heave and lurch, the jerk
ing pitch and recovery were terrible tests
TO the stanchness of the vessel. Alternately
the bow and stern rose to dizzy altitude,
then sank with a rapidity that even to my
Grained nature was sickenng. Each joint
and block found voice which complained
in notes ranging from a bang to a squeak,
of its unnatural treatment. Allow and aloft
the poor Phantom protested, and, as /
looked calmly on, | knew that if the condi-
tions continued she would end in rolling her
masts out leaving us to finally founder,
sheer hulk. The main topmast swayed like
a whip, cutting through the arc of its mo-
ton with amazing swiftness. The dimin-
ished sail beneath it, with its spars slashing
hither and thither, shook out report like
cannon, and threatened to burst as its slack
bunt drove from side to side. Everything
loose or insecure fetched away and wan
rdered at random about the decks. The
Jumps OF lead l had brought up the night
before rolled betwixt the hatch combing and
,bulwark, banging the latter with blows that
threatened to drive out the planking, and
would have done so had | not gripped my
way to them and thrown them overheard.
The scuttle butt sprang from its skids and
came aft with bound, halting and spinning
like a top when in the waist then dashed to
lIarboard only to be stopped by a sidelong
lift of the stern which shot it into the
bows where it hung fast, bung up, jammed
betwixt the hukes of the spare anchor and
the bulwarll stanchion.
noted these things with an eye more in
terested in the antics of the barrel than in
sught else. Its speed and agility were Won
drous, and ! thought more of its fearful
force and erratic movements than OF the
general straits in which the schooner was
nov held Through it all felt my impotent
numbness, and it was with the mere animal
instinct of getting food for craving stom-
ach that 1 wearily moved to go below.
Stiff, sore and dispirited enough l was as
I staggered toward the companion way and
entered the cabin. The first sight of its in
terror was enough to break ones heart, and
Ghat fact probably did much to pull me to-
sether. The surgeon, the cowardly, be
sotted wretch, lay drunk on the floor, and
also on the floor was Gertrude King, dead,
thought for an instant, but soon found she
wrs not only alive but conscious. Having
beea thrown from her bunk, she had
crawIed over to her brother to prevent a
like disaster to him, and now lay or leaned
against his transom, powerless alike to help
him or herself. She was almost dead from
sea sickness and pain, yet when she saw ms,
the frSht that came into her eyes reminded
zxe of Lounsbury's last look 1t was plain
chat McCary had but given her dram to re-
vfve her and when this had been accom-
pIished, without going further or vouchsat-
ing an explanation of the day later events,
started in to finish the drunk had so sud
denly interrupted. The fever for rum was
upon him, his manhood and morals having
been consumed along with the liquor.
Notwithstanding the suffering his actions
had entailed, | could almost have thanked
him for being the cause of putting into me 8
sense of real existence, for there was
slight awakening from the heavy lethargj
that held me as | stopped to the poor CIR
aud lifted her in my arms as though she was
a child to be comforted. The instructive
shrinking she had shown when L reached toi
her gave way to a moan and the llmpness ol
total abandonment as she .elt the strength
Of nay arm about her. AS laid her on the
trausom by the side of her brother, WHOSE
eyes were shut and whose heightened color
now betokened fever, she placed her un
wounded hand against my cheek as II tc
make sure of my being mortal, and falterec
oHt:
IL thought you dead o ODonald! Donald
i thought you dead!'
In the mere sound of human voice ther'
was something that stirred me to livelie
sense of myself and surroundings. But he
wards did more than this. OF themselves
Az I set them here in cold black and white
they hold no significance, but as ] hearc
them there was something which caused tn
waxing spark within me to burst into ham
and shoot through the dullness of my ex
haus4ed body and overtaxed brain. Tn
touch of the smooth hand, the look, and tn
simple tones Of this il-used wounded ant
bedraggIed girl were beyond misinterpreta
tfon to me, when to others it might hav
been but trihe more than commonplace
Like a sAr-ck the attending danger of ou
situatie~ -.shed upon me, and again L real
fzed my responsibility; feeling that ha'
been dead for hours, and which was nov
resurrected by the light that burst upon IN
at the girls words.
Size was a ptiful object as she lay prom
at sler brothers side. Her left arm wa
powerIess, and the blood from her wounde
head still stained her face, neck and hanC
The Cow had ceased, but through her brigh
hair | could see the location of the cash.
~as 70 surgeon to dress eitae' she cut o