The Grit-advocate., 1905-11-24

across which ragged patches OF darker
furious velocity that they looked like
smoke-the utter dreariness Of that
dun brown sky, the desolation Of the
scene terrified me as no combination
of sea and sky had done before.
HoltZen had left the wheel and
Bobbilt had taken his place. The
Dane stood holding the lee rigging to
keep his feet. and his fiat. expression
less face turned toward the wind.
my fader in de storm was
drowned" he said to me- Perhaps he
felt grim satisfaction in dying as his
father did.
The captain glanced to leeward.
then he shifted an utterly hopeless
gaze to the wheel.
Lash it and come below" he said
in a sharp voice.
Sir" bawled Bobbitt. not trusting
his ears.
The captain strobe over and with
lire lashed down the wheel.
"All hands come down in the
SAbaA' i' Suu VIC N' louSHL tlC
storm together, and we'll die together.
Well strike in half hour at most"
We trooped down the companion
after the captain. Leaving the wind
swept deck. that small cabin seemed
stuffy. 1t caught my lungs and | felt
1t difficult to breathe. Besides, | didn't
care to die that way, like rat in a
trap.
The captain drew piece Of plug
tobacco from his trousers pocket and
began chipping it on the cabin table.
twenty-five minutes" he said, as if
talking to himself, Just enough time
for pipeful."
He crammed the tobacco into his
pipe and lit it: then he offered the
plug to Bobbitt. who shook his head
Course the luck" growled Bobbitt
stamping his foot viciously, ''if I'd
shipped on that bark for Buenos
Ayres I'd "a missed this"
"I'd die heap harder" remarked
the skipper, blowing cloud of smoke.
my life and knowing the old woman
and the little one IL have enough to
pull along with"
"Well," said Bobbitt, recklessly
"the whole Bobbitt family goes down
when | go. thank God. | leave no
body TO cry and nobody to starve."
remember my own sensations. l
was simply inert. looked forward to
nothing but an end, and vaguely
wished it was over. | was sorry for
nothing. | expected nothing but death.
and yet had been carefully brought
up and well catechised as to the
future state Of man.
"The old woman and the little one
are eatin' turkey and mince pie to.
day." A sharp twang coming above
the hurry burly on deck interrupted
the skipper. He started and laid his
pipe on the table. 1t rolled to star
board instead of to port. as it should
have rolled for the list of the schooner
was changing. "On deck!" screamed
the captain. as he rushed for the lad
der. We piled on his heels. 1t was
dark as pocket on deck and there
was wind-the most welcome wind
that ever blowed, sweeter than a
zephyr to parched traveller on a des.
ert, for it was coming from the Sou.
west
Then four men who were ready
to die, sluggish and hopeless. worked
like beavers for the life they had
felt was practically ended The old
schooner, as encouraged as the men
WHO fought with her, answered her
helm, and with the wind growing in
force and slipping toward west, We
got her nose away from the Diamond
shoals straight for the open sea.
The wind did not stay west. 1t
shifted to nor'west and came as great
guns A friend that wind was, though
rough one. He had an edge to him
that bit and he flung snow spits into
ones eyes which made the eyeballs
smart, but he was a friend, and we
hailed him joyously.
We ate our Thanksgiving dinner OF
bread and water thankfully. the best
we could have had to eat with an
overturned galley and drowned cook
but what mattered it with nor'west
wind and the Martha Dawes headed
for the open sea?
= = - n