Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1903-10-14
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Skin Niger is the sbellback name
for Romer shoal. The light. could be
seen about three miles out yellow,
low lying speck midway between the
blinking beacon on the highlands and
the steady CLEAN of the Coney Island
light. II this tug We're towing scow,
there was little chance Of her being the
Refuge, but as she was In the path of
the Wanderer they would shortly be
able to make sure.
Now, OH the way down the bay they
were being slowly overhauled by n big
coast line steamer, and when they
slowed down to speak the tug this
liner, brilliant with electric lights and
gay parties Of tourists on their way to
southern resorts, surged past them
heavily. When, however, the Wanderer
regained her former speed, the coaster
drew away less swiftly, and the Wan
derer hung, on to her port quarter and
tossed about in the muss of her screws
for fully fifteen minutes. An orchestra
was playing on the big boat, and her
searchllght fitted hither and thither
about the bay. The sight was enliven-
ing to the men in the pilothouse Of the
hospital boat. 1t was SO different from
that of which they We're in pursuit
While they were looking wistfully
after the liner, Swainley in particular
making some invidious comparisons
they heard Off to the right peculiar
spine racking sound which brought
them up standing with excitement. IT
began with one of the lower notes in
the musical scale, the wonderful low
d of "Gotterdamerung" which "a ter
ror compelling in itself, and ran up, o.
tave on octave. until 1t thinned out In
to sustained Shrek Then 1t dropped
swiftly, steadily, until 1t sank to a
weakening moan. 1t was the siren call
Of the police boat, the signal which had
been agreed upon. There was rush
of the liners passengers to the star
board side of the vessel, and the
searchlight, which had been playing
along Coney Island beach, came around
and shot out to the right. The Wan
derer slowed down Immediately, and
the lif5s. drew away, leaving an unob-
view of the bay. There, about
Of a mile away, illumined by
s5uring shaft of light, was what
T ;iii,S.;.fSi 10 be II geyser sprung sud
denly from the bed of the bay, a rising
column of steam that dispersed In the
upper darkness. Deep In the middle Of
the rising steam was dark object
without form or shape. Near by pat
ent dumping scow tossed about help
lessly In the surges that sped away
from the liners screws
why, what can 1t beY asked Bax-
ter, who with pair of night glasses
was scanning the queer cloud Of vapor.
Must be the tow that fellow spoke
Of up above,n said the captain Of the
Wanderer. Ills engineer II lose his
certificate. He's let his water go down
until his fuse plug has given way and
flooded his fires. It'll rise off in min
ute. Wonder II he got burntY'
The liner did not slacken its speed
and shortly drew 30 far away that the
electric light no longer picked out the
rolling folds of steam wildly. Yet the
passengers did not lose interest in. the
spectacle. They crowded to the quar-
ter and peered astern. The lengthening
shaft Of light quivered as II some ono
We're adjusting the protector. Then,
strangely enough, the gigantic shadow
of mans hand was outlined momeD-
tarily on the white steam. Some one
on the liner had moved In front OF the
lens. Finally the shaft of light turned
rapidly away to the forhfcatons on
Sandy Hook. As 1t swept around It
lighted up the dumping scow for an In
stant.
"Good heavens! Did You see thatY,
calculated swainley
"What - the shadow Of the handf
oh, that's q common phenomenon
said Baxter.
mo! No! The scow! IistenY
From the direction Of the bumper
came q strange. weird. discordant
noise. Its volume kept pace with the
varying strength of the land breeza.
Sometimes it was faint; sometimes It
came over the water in heavy roars.
Out Of Its vortex came words:
Star spangled Il. ;. banner
land ~. the freeze
ho-ome =. the bravo
Far in the distance the siren call Of
the Patrol caught up the last note Of
the refrain and hurled 1t high into a
fearful Shrek, which seemed to tap the
very pinnacles of the heavens with re-
proach and which, when it could go NO
higher, fell again to the lowest depths.
"Why, it's the quartet. cried Baxter,
with the glasses to his eyes, 'and all
the rest of them too! But how did they
get on the dumper7 Patrick dkl not
say anything Of that"
There was q scow tied up at the
lower wharf at the island" said the
superintendent In suppressed tone.
Peterman must have taken that too"
YES" continued Baxter; there they
are. There's the Mathematical Genius,
and Dockey Ut is Dockey sure enough
and Central Park and East River;
there's the tandem, lockstep and all,
just us though they were In the pa
vilion on the island; there's that big
hydrocephalic nodding In the stern,
and there's Eddie Apple leaning over
the bow. What is he doing. wonderf
Here, Swainley, take look.
Swainley took the glasses and looked.
In the bow Of the bumper stood an
enormous boy. He was not over FIVE
feet tall, but his girth was SO great
that he had been dubbed Eddie Apple.
He must have weighed 300 pounds. he
was not pathologically an idiot. he be-
longed In the feeble minded class. He
was looking toward the Refuge. from
which the steam had cleared. A smoke
begrimed man stood in the stern Of the
steamer gesticulattng wildly with 900
hand. Eddie gaDed stuptdiy at him
across the rift OF waters on which the
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