Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1901-09-17

Il
choose. You will find there nothing
but few poor sailormen half in pieces
with the scurvy No, you can steal
nothing here but blows, Dason, and
we will give you those with but little
asking"
II am glad to see that you state your
cargo at such slender value" said the
envoy, "for it is the cargo must take
back with me on the galley. If you are
to earn your safe conduct to home"
| lob knit his brows. "You had bet
ter speak more plain" he said. X
am common sailor and do not under
stand fancy talk"
"It is clear to see" said Dason, that
you have been set to bring Deucalion
back to Atlantis as prop for
Phorenice. Well, we others find
Phorenice hard enough to fight
against without further reinforce
ments, and so we want Deucalion in
our own custody to deal with after
our own fashion"
"And If do the miser and deny you
this piece of my freight?''
The spruce envoy looked round at
the splintered ship and the battered
navy beside her. "Why, then. Tob, we
shall send you all to the fishes In very
short time, and instead of Dsucalion
standing before the gods alons, he will
go down with fne ragged company
limping at his heels"
II doubt It," said Tob, "but we shall
see. AS for letting you have my Lord
Deucalion, that is out of the question.
For see here, Pot-Mate Dason. In tho
first place, II went to Atlantis with
out Deucalion, my other lord, Tatho,
would come back one of these days,
and in his hands I should die by tho
slowest of slow inches; in the second,
I have seen my Lord Deucalion kill q
great sea-lizard, and he showed HIM
self such proper man that day that
I would not give him up against his
will even to Tatho himself; and in
the third place, you owe me for your
share in our last wine-bout ashore,
and I'll see you with the neither gods
before give you aught till you've
| settled that score"
swell, lob, hope you'll drown easy
| AS for that wife of yours, I've always
had fancy for her myself, and shall
know how to find use for the
woman"
"I'l draw your neck for that, you
son of European" said lob; "and if
| you do not clear off this deck I'll draw
it here. Col" he cried, you father Of
monkey children! Get away, and let
me fight you fairly, OF by my honor
III, stamp the inwards out of you and
make ybur silly crew wear them as
necklaces"
Upon which Dason went to his gal
ley.
Promptly Tob set going the ma
chine on our own Bear, and bawled
his orders right and left to the other
ships. The crew might be weak with
scurvy, but they were quick to obey.
Instantly, the five vessels were all
started, and, because our lord the
sun was shining brightly, got soon to
the full OF their pace. The whole of
our small navy converged, singing
out one ship of their opponents, and
she, not being ready for so swift an
attack, got Hurried, and endeavored to
turn and run for room, instead of
trying to meet us bows on As
consequence, the whole of our five
ships hit her together on the broad
side, tearing her planking with their
underwater beaks, and sinking her
before we had backed clear from the
engage.
But II we thus brought the ene-
my's number down to five, and SO
equal to our own. the advantage did
not remain with us for long. The
three nimble galleys formed into
line; their boatswain's whips cracked
as the slaves bent to their oars, and
presently one of our own ships was
gored and sunk, the men on her be-
ing killed in the water without hope
| of rescue.
And then commenced tight-locked
melee that would have warmed the
| heart of the greatest warrior alive.
The ships and the galleys were
forced together and lay savagely
grinding one another upon the swells,
as though they had been sentient
animals. The men on board of them
shot their arrows, slashed with axes,
thrust and hacked with swords, and
hurled the throwing fire. But in
every way the fight converged upon
the Bear. 1t was on her that the
enemy spent the flercest of their
spite; 1t was to the Bear that the
other crews of Tatho's navy rallied
as their own vessels caught fire, or
were sunk or taken.
On our side the battle-cry was
"Tob!" and the name of this obscure
ship-captain seemed to carry conf
dence with 1t for our own crews that
many well-known commander
might have envied. The enemy had
dozen rallying cries, and these con-
fused them. But as their other ship
commanders one by one were killed,
and Dason remained, active with mis-
chief, ''Dason!" became the shout
which was thrown back at us in re-
| Spouse to our 'Tob!''
| However, will not load my page
| with further long account of this OBJ
| scure sea-fight, whose only glory
was its ferocity. One by one all the
ships of either side were sunk, or lay
with all their people killed, till final
| ~ only Dason's galley and our own
Bear were left. For the moment we
! were being mastered. We had a score
OF men remaining out of oil those
that manned ths navy whsn Il aailad