The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1904-02-05

4
an extra hand in the engine room,
why, he was ready to turn to with oil
can or shovel that instant His name?
mo, that is my own concern-no-
body else's. l am a Welshman," he
said, quietly. MY people are well
known In Cardiff. Perhaps l could tell
tale If l liked Perhaps I couldn't.
1t doesn't matter to anybody. And he
looked at the captain with eyes that
meant he had said all he intended to
say on these points.
1t so happened that they were short
handed enough in the engine room that
run, and the captain turned him over
to the burly, growing Scotch engineer,
who did not seem to regard him with
any great favor. "Taffy," as he was
called, disappeared below, and sue
ceeded within an hour I'm completely
reversing the engineers opinion. The
latter, who stood by to watch him,
could see with half an eye that the
man was quite at home among the
throbbing, pulsing engines, and turned
away with the growing comment,
| Hell do"
They had a few passengers aboard
that trip, and In the dusk Of the even
ing, when Taffy stole up for a mouth
full of fresh air, he noticed a dainty,
little childish figure go skipping along
the deck. He stood there, with his
grimy head poked out into the softly
changing twilight, watching her. Every
time she turned and skipped past him
his notable eyes followed her. And as
he gazed wistfully after the merry,
| innocent, little creature the apple" In
his bare throat moved as if with a gulp.
Ay, perhaps he could have told a tale
If he had chosen.
Every evening after that he slipped
away from the engine room at the
same hour. and looked anXiously out
al ng the deck. The child was nearly
always there. Sometimes she smiled
up at the greasy, watching face as she
went past, and Taffy carried that smile
below with him, wrapped up In some
odd corner of his heart.
The steamer had run into ST. Pierre,
and was lying snugged up close to the
shelving beach. They were to sail
bSQlh hNNl Nhdgy anu IL WAC DuoJ
night on board. Cargo had to be un-
loaded, and fresh freight shipped from
the barges alongside.
Taffy, being an "Cdd man." had been
put ON the donkey engine, which he
worked steadily throughout the even
ing. Many a time, while waiting for
the word to 'heave," his eye turned
restlessly to the distant summit of
Mont Pelee, towering high up there in
the darkllng heavens. The huge noun
tain was growing and rumbllng omin-
Ously, and there was a strange, lifeless
lull in the air, like that which betokens
an approaching thunder clap.
1t was far into the night before he
was released from his post and free to
turn in for few hours. Heavy-eyed
and weary, he tumbled into his bunk,
and was soon fast asleep.
What was it that woke him? A
strange moaning sound coming from
the land broke on his ears. He sat up
in his bunk. Something was about to
happen. He felt the mysterious, un-
known calamity coming.
The air seemed to SILVER and then
to stand still A flash, more vivid and
binding than the lightning, followed,
and then it seemed to him as If all the
machinery in the world-aH that he
had ever seen or handled-had been
collected in one spot and had exploded
at the same instant.
For one breathless second he sat
there in his bunk, staring wild-eyed
and open-mouthed The next he was on
the floor, as If he had been hurled
there. He dashed up on deck, whence
S reams-agonized screams-reached
himl
His shipmates passengers and crew
were running madly about there. And
no wonder; people run from a driving
splashng downpour of rain, but now
1t rained fire.
They ran, seeking any shelter from
that awful hail Of redhot scorching
cinders. Taffy ran Also but his eyes
were searching frantically through the
fiery LUCE. The child-the child!
He found her-found her screaming
and panic-strlcken under the bridg
with her little hand pressed to her nos.
trils to shut out the deadly. suffocatin;
fumes. He picket her up, snugg &c
her to his breast, and ran again. tt,
burning hail beat upon his bent back
the fire in the air scorched and shrive
ed him, but still he ran. Down h,
plunged-far down into the body of tn
ship, where the blighting fumes hat
not penetrated and the fire from tn
Oh Nd