The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-09-15

and plenty of them were to be caught
only in the open. He watched Spinel-
| los launch ascend an ACTIVITY or
CLASSY water, slip down the incline like
a duck, sending back over the water
it's spiteful chug-chug, chug-chug of
! derision.
The handsome. daredevil Spin
clio turned and hurled a half-laugh-
| ing taunt at the laggard.
| Come on. little one, catch crabs.
| What you wait for2 Sneak back, tell
! Babette your nets fouled-you lost
your catch-ten her your gasoline en-
CINE got broke. Don't tell her cow
ard was at the helm
His boat swept into a yawning
chasm and his voice was lost.
Stung to recklessness. Garcia stood
up in the Liberty and flung forward
mis- answer: Pm not afraid, you thief,
you liar. You turn my crabs loose.
loose -- on you"
A green mountain of water lifted
the Liberty and swept her outward.
Garcia sent her along under full head
way, and the spray dashed on either
side, great spreading plumes of water,
that fell over him and soaked him as
in a shower bath.
Spinello, rising on wave, looked
back with a loud laugh. 1t was not in
his merry soul to estimate the venom of
the small mans anger. He did not
push the Victory. He was already four
miles out from the Heads, and this
was a good place to cast his net. 1t
would not be convenient to lose his be-
loved launch in that wild sea; Spinello
without a launch would be broke"
but what the launch would be without
Spinello out there in the madcap wat
erS never entered his head. He slowed
down and began to haul on the nets.
The Stanch little Victory slipped into
the trough of the sea. She sobbed like
peanut shell in a boiling caldron.
The waves curled above her big and
threatening, and at times it looked as
n hoo h
in a watery embrace. This was not
satisfactory to Spinello. It was just a
bit rougher than any fisherman could
calculate from shore, and here was
the Liberty coming at him like a live
thing.
Garcia's head shot out of the little
hatchway- You call me coward he
liar. l will ram your boat to the bot
tom"
Spinello grasped the situation. 1t
was to be a duel between two gasoline
! launches in the open sea, with waves
running mountain high and spray
filling the air like smoke. He thought
regretfully of his great strength and
scornfully of the wiry muscles of the
| little man in the boat. On shore he
could have finished Garcia with one
shake, as a dog finishes a cat; but
| Garcia in a gasoline launch was as
capable of infiicting damage as a man
twice his size.
Garcia was steering straight at the
Victory to strike her amidshipS, but
! Spinello started his boat forward at
full speed, and saw the other dash by
and bury her nose in wave. He
! threw out a tantalizing laugh.
$50, very little man, you would
make an end of me. Now, just see
what the Victory can do at ramming."
Before the men got their launches
under control, the sea had uplifted
| them again. this time both on the same
/ wave SniOellO and Garcia. were close
/ enough to look into one another'S eyes
and read the purpose in them. They
! had passed the stage of wordy conflict
They looked. That was enough
That day in the rhythmic succession
of the waves the seventh gathered all
the force of the wind and the furious
sea- and moved across the exDanse of
| water like a frowning coast line. AS
the watery height began to feather on
the crest and spume and curl. victory
and Liberty swung in the trough df-
rectly in its course.
I Then SpineIIo heard a roar like the
breaking apart of the skies, and green
| water was above him-on either side
everywhere. He thought the end had
come. But the sea rejected him. He
was popped to the surface. coughing
and gasping for breath The Liberty
and Victory, walIowing fearfully, en-
gines flooded, were still af1oat
Spinello was a brave man. but he
was not ready to die at twenty-five:
| Garcia thought of Babette, ana 1ought
death at thirty.
In their terrible peril, facing death
by the sea, the two men forgot their
personal grievances. They were ready
| to unite against a mightler power ana
a more relentless than they.
Keep your boat back-keep back!
Engines dead" yelled the other.
foot away.
A mountain of water, so high the
men dared not raise their eyes to 1t.
had reared beside them. The two
launches were swept to its spuming
crest bow to bow. 1t seemed as IL the
world were rising in a mighty swell
directly under them. Then with spite
full fury wave and wind spatted the
two boats at each other me men
were thrown into the sea, and the two
little crafts. smashed to kindlfng wood:
were scattered on the foaming crest OF
the next wave.
Babette sat on the end of the stakerope
and knitted till late in the afternoon that
memorable March day, and toward DUSK,
cheeks ting1ing and eyes snartlng from
the wind drove her little Jersey down
Francisco street to the dornlclIe OF Ger
penIrious old father. They had crab for.
dinner that night. 1t had recenuy De-