The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1903-08-07
COMMITTED TO
THE DEEP.
@.@.@..@.@.@.@.@..@.@
BY A. ST. JOHN ADCOCK.

THE steward knocked, and put his
head in at the door.
Cabin passenger. sir, NO. 16," he re
ported, with business-like brevity
Very bad
DR.. Walden glanced up from hi,
desk irritably.
What's the matter with him?"
Dunno, sir. Uncommon bad"
Usual thing. suppose?"
mo. sir. Not seasick. Queer whcr
ne come aboard yesterday. thought
Been in bed all day. Wouldn't let IN,
get him anything till just now Ii
asked me to fetch you
NO. l6, you say? All right"
The steward withdrew, and the doc
tor only delayed 10 finish the first
paragraph of a letter he had beer
writing when he was interrupted.
1t was not precisely an urgent let
ter, for he had no intention of doing
anything with il until the ship al.
rived at Liyerpool; but it was let
ter that required a deal of consider.
alton, and, though he was in most
things phlegmatic. he was impatient
10 have it all ready to post immedi-
ately he landed, for il was to con
tain much that he knew he could not
possibly put into speech, and it was
TO tell the recipient that he would
arrive less than half day behind it.
Few of the passengers were in bed
yet, for the night was young; the
sea was quiet and the outer air
pleasantly warm, and through the
rhythmic throbbing of the engine he
could hear chattering and laughter
and footsteps pacing overhead as he
made his way between decks to his
patient.
The lamp that shonc from the wall
OF No i6 showed him a haggard man
stretched on the bunk apparently
asleep.
He was youngish man-not much
over 30, anyway. His features were
gaunt and tanned with hard living
and rough weather. and his hands
were coarscned as with manual en-
Payments. He slept uneasily. and his
breathing was stertorous and diff
cult.
While tho doctor was taking this
preliminary survey he coughcd and
awoke
steward"
I'm the doctor. You sent for me.
What's wrong?"
"Oh. thanks. = | don't know,
doctor. I've felt awfully knocked up
for days past. and thought could
throw il off-but / can't. MY heads
all afirc, and my hands, too. Feel
that
The doctor took his hand and laid
q finger on his pulse. The hand was
hot and dry, the pulse was galloping
furiously and brief examination
was sufficient to diagnose his all
mcnt.
"A touch Of pneumonia" said
Walden. You must take more care
Of yourself than you've been doing
lately. You were not fit to travel;
you must have felt i'll before you
started"
Il wanted TO get home" the other
answered. YEARLY. i've been away
long time"
I'VE must see what we can arrange
about nursing" the doctor concluded.
"I'll give you some incidence; you've
got good constitution, and, With
care. you'll pull round all right"
Think SOP"
"Oh, yes. He mustn't be
left, Harrow" The doctor turned TO
the steward Somebody will have
70 sit UP with him tonight. III see
him again before turn in: and I'll
get the captain TO let you have as
sistance."
After fulfilling which latter duty he
retired to his cabin and resumed the
laborious composition Of his letter.
A glimpse Of what he was writing
would have amazed any man who
knew him. For TO everybody who
knew. him, with one possible csccp-
tion, DR.. Walden was a matter Of
fact, rather unsympathctic, wholly
unromantic man, of nearer 80 than
40; whereas the letter that was slow
" developing under his pen might
almost have been written by a senti-
mental youngster in the rapturous
ag snies Of first love. Nobody would
have credited the doctor with pos
cssing the smallest streak OF eeuti-
nent anywhere in his robust. sub
stsntial person. lie never s1spected