Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1901-08-19

bound for the place where 1t expected
to meet the enemy's feet Fishing was
excellent. Whenever the barnaele put
forth his little plumelike feet he found
an abundance of tiny sea creatures TO
serve as food. Some OF these were
crabs. SO small that they could not be
seen by the human eye. When the bar
nacle had grabbed a footful of food, he
would. with great expedition, kick 1t
into his mouth, where il went to build
up the tissue of his funny little body.
AT the same time he was building up
his armor-the tiny overlapping shells
that kept him snug and safe-with bits
OF lime from the water, This she'll was
white and contrasted very prettily with
the underlying pink skin of his little
body. His one eye was close TO his
stomach. which indeed formed the
great mass of his body.
"All goo1 fighters are good feeders
the barnacle was in the habit OF re-
marking. Il remember that my cousin.
the crab, had most remarkable appe-
lite" And so he ate anu ate until he
became a barnacle of very respectable
proportions. and dozens of others OF
his kind, Judging from his appearance
| that where he was food was plentiful,
had Joined him. These companions he
grew fond of calling his army. end he
trained them to follow drills which he
devised, so that at word of command
on the approach of a dangerous foe ev-
cry pair of curly feet would be snugly
tucked away inside the shells of their
owners.
! The barnacles enjoyed their life of
travel. In the great tropic seas they
would have seen many strange things
had their sight been a little better; but,
poor creatures, they had only a single
eye that kept guard over their stom-
achs. and this orb was never off duty
since eating was their chief occupation.
The barnacles had all seen little bit
of the world when, as young larvae.
they emerged from the eggs and began
swimming about the brine with as
much aptitude as though they had TAX
en- a course of lessons. When they at
tached themselves TO the ship they had
not given up their rowing life. since the
ship did their travelling for them. ihe
larger the barnaele colony grew tho
more difficult was it for the ship to ma
neuver. The captain one day said:
This ship gets clumsier every day.
II the enemy makes 1t too hot for us,
it's mighty poor running we'll be able
to do
And when the admiral overheard the
remark he said
"The ship that can't run Is the best
one In the fleet for the men aboard her
know that they must fight or die That
flag up there" and he pointed to his
countrys colors flying braveiy at the
masthead. never surrenders while
sail under it
And the sailors, hearing the admi-
rails words. cheered Justify and, shak-
ing hands with each other, felt that II
only the enemy's ships came along then
they would make short work of them.
The barnacles down below wondered
what the cheering was about, but Billy
Barnacle, who now called himself cap
tain. assured them that 1t was a mere
complimentary allusion to his presence
or the craft and that they might go on
eating without alarm.
Each day the barnacles grew more
numerous. AS they cast aside their old
shells the inside skin cracked apart and
the tiny egg cells, cast afoat, developed
rapidly in the warm waters OF the trop-
ical ocean, and many little barnacles as
the ship circled through the south seas
came home to roost
One night the ship that had been
tearing through the water for hours at
terrific speed came to a sudden stop.
The barnacles opened wide their eyes,
wondering what was the matter, but
the ocean looked much as usual. The
light given out by the phosphorescent
fishes made a dim twilight in the sea.
Suddenly a dull boom was heard over
the ocean and the water about the YES
sci was plowed up by dark. round OBJ
lest that Missed by swift as stroke OF
| frc
well did you ever!" exclaimed Cap
tain Barnacle. THE insolence OF that
creature l suppose that is what they
call a cannon ball. and the enemy is
firing at me. Draw up your feet, or
you may have them shot off. I'll at
tend to this affair myself"
The other barnacles hastily withdrew
into their shells and saw no more OF
the conflict, so for after history they
had to depend altogether on Captain
Barnacle's own account Of the battle
On deck quite lively scene was
enacted. The sailors, stripped to the
waist, worked desperately at the guns.
firing at a group of vessels that attack
H.