, 1906-01-03
stand our position. Captain Perry2o

additional trip, captainY' asked De-
Mile.
"They shipped for five months and
will receive five months pay. The
men have been handsomely treated,
and they will stick to Mr.. Brewster to
the end" said the captain.
"There is no chance for a mutiny,
them" asked Smith regretfully. The
captain gave him a hard look, but said
nothing. Everybody seemed uncom-
Portable.
apparently the only way is the one
suggested by Mr.. Smith this morning"
said Mrs. Dan, speaking for the wo-
men. mo one will object, | am sure,
if Captain Perry and his chief officers
are allowed to hear the plan"
ut is very necessary, in fact" said
Mr.. Valentine. 1--WE cannot proceed
without them. But they will agree
with us, | am sure, that it is wise"
An hour later the meeting broke up,
and the conspirators made their way
to the deck. 1t was a strange fact that
no one went alone. They were in
groups of three and four, and the mys-
terry that hung about them was almost
perceptible. Not one was willing to
face the excited, buoyant Brewster
without help. They found strength and
security in companionship.
Peggy was the one rebel against the
conspiracy. and yet she knew that the
others were justified in the step they
proposed to take. She reluctantly join
ed them in the end, but felt that she
was the darkest traitor in the crowd.
Forgetting her own distress owe the
way in which Monty was squandering
his fortune. she stood out the m de-
fender of his rights until the end and
then admitted fearfully to Mrs. De-
Mile that she had been ''quite unrea-
Bonable" in doing so.
Alone in her stateroom after signing
the arrangement she wondered what he
would think of her. She owed him so
much that she at least should have
stood by him. She felt that he would
be conscious of this. How could she
have turned against him? He would
not understand - of course he would
never understand. And he would hate
her with the others-more than the
others. 1t was all a wretched mud
die, and she could not see her way out
of it.
Monty found his guests very difficult.
They listened to his plans with but lit
tie interest, and he could not but see
that they were uncomfortable. The
situation was new to their experience,
and they were under a strain. '"They
NOPE around like a lot of pouting boys
and girls" he growled to himself. But
it's the North cape now in spite of ev-
erything. | don't care if the whole
crowd deserts me. My mind is made
up"
Try as he would, ne could not see
Peggy alone. He had much that he
wanted to say to her, and he hungered
for the consolation her approval would
bring him, but she chung to Pettingill
with a tenacity that was discouraging.
The old feeling of jealousy that was
connected with Como again disturbed
him.
"She thinks that I am a hopeless,
brainless idiot" he said to himself.
"And 1 don't blame her either"
Just before nightfall he noticed that
his friends were assembling in the
bow. AS he started to join the group
Subway Smith and DeMille advanced
to meet him. Some of the others were
smiling a little sheepishly, but the two
men were pictures of solemnity and de-
cision.
Monty" said DeMille steadily, I'VE
have been conspiring against you and
have decided that we sail for New
York tomorrow morning."
Brewster stopped short, and the ex-
preston on his face was one they nev-
er could forget. Bewilderment, uncer-
tainty and pain succeeded each other
like flashes of light Not a word was
spoken for several seconds. The red
of humiliation slowly mounted to his
cheeks, while in his yes wavered the
look of II who has been hunted down.
you have decided?' he asked life
lessly, and more than one heart went
out in pity to him.
1--WE hated to do it, Monty, but for
your own sake there was no other
way" said Subway Smith quickly.
"We took a vote, and there wasn't a
dissenting voice"
at is a plain case of mutiny, l take
it." said Monty, utterly alone and
heartsick.
ut isn't necessary to tell why we
have taken this step" said DeMille.
"It Is heartbreaking to oppose you at
this stage of the game. You've been
the best ever and"-