The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-02-25
CHAPTER Xxx.

or the Paumotu Archipelago and was
now ripping over a gently undulating
sea sparkling under the morning sun
and scarcely disturbed by the breath of
the cool southeast trade wind. Three
miles away on the starboard hand was
Palmerston island, a long, low stretch
of living green, enctrCled by beaches
of cleaning wbite-the whole lying
within the great circle of barrier reef,
denoted by its Wavering line Of creamy
surf.
The ship was very quiet, for it was
Sunday, and scarce q sound broke in
upon the pleasant silence save the
swish and rustic of the water along
her sides, as the barque Glove her way
through it. and now and then the
creaking OF a block, and the soft rustic
of a sail as it filled and swelled, and
then sank again, for the wind was yet
very light.
Tom, lying against the raised after
flap of the skyIight, had come on deck
to lazy away an hour or two, but he
first wished 70 re-read James Christie's
story, and as he looked at the big, firm
characters, the writing reminded him
of the man himself.
MY dear Tom,'' it began, 81 have
conviction that I have not many days
to live, for the complaint from which
I suffer is, fear, beyond the power
of the best doctors, let alone the French
priest, who has not had much chance
of learning new medicines and diseases
since he became a missionary.
so I have made myself ready Clan
cy will know what to do in all matters
concerning the WarTigal, and also
about yourself When you return home
I want you TO tell your aunt and your
sister that James Christie begs their
forgiveness as he begged yours for the
wrong I did you.
Now I will tell you my story in as
few words as possible.
Seventeen years ago I was master of
a steamer named the Bass Rock. She
belonged to Liverpool and was owned
by Tobias PattermOre. who was then
living in Birkenhead. The steamer was
in the Mediterranean trade, but was
not making much money for Patter-
more. who was always grumbling and
limiting to me that he would have to
make a change of shippers if I could
not make things hum
Now I must go back a bit.
AT this time I had been married
six years, and had one dear child-a
girl Of 8 Ny wife had married ne
much against the wishes of her people
who loathed the. idea of her uniting
herself to a common merchant sea CAP
tain-a man, too, of a common family
for my father was a farm bailiff.
Then, too, she had money! few thou
sand pounds eft her by a relative.
God knows I didn't want the money;
! only wanted her.
when we first net I was mate of d
Calcutta ship. the Earl of Bathurst.
and my future wife, her father, mother
and two sisters were passengers The
father had been in the Indian civil
service and was returning to England
to live on his pension He was pOmp-
Gus. overbearing man. and his wife
thought him A small God Almighty
like most wives Of Ind an officials.
I'VE had a bad voyage from the
start. Gains and hurricanes alternating,
and once nearly fOundered through be
ing taken aback between Calcutta and
The Cape All this rough experience
brought the passengers and ships Of
fcerS much more in contact han would
have been the case if nothing out Of
the common had occurred. and some
how or other Alice Chester and ! be-
came great friends. and before I knew
It I was in love with her, and felt sure
she cared for me more than her father
would have liked had he known Of II.
Colonel Chester-he had been one OF
the old Company's soldiers before ne
went into the civil service-neve1
dreamt that verv often when it was
my watch below 1 was on deck talking
to his daughter. If anyone had told
him of it he would have rejected sucr
a tale as utterly DTeDOsterOus for
daughter of his to display more than z
cOndeScending interest in a common
merchant ships officer would be tran
scending the bounds of possibility
soon after rounding the Cape severa
of our sixty cabin passengers were
taken i'll with fever, caught TO doubt
at CapetOwn, end among them wa:
Aiice's younger sister-a girl of Is. The
doctor had his hands full. for most Of
his patients soon became deliriCus.
zone night IN the middle watch, JUS
after I had come on deck to relieve the
second officer, and whilst the ship wa!
running free over a lumpy sea, one O
the hands told me that one Of th'
strands Of the log line had parted.
went to reeve another, and just as
passed the conn aniOn-way, Nina CheS
ter, in her nightdTess, followed by ont
of the cuddy-boys. rushed past me
cIambered I'D on the wheel grating
and sprang overheard l followed. ant
the cuddy-bOy-whO was Terence Clan
cy-jumped after me.
ITO make my yarn Of this matter a.
short as possible. Tom, 1 soon foun'
the child and collared her She was
thin, delicate creature, and gave M
no trouble to keep her up. although sh
was unconscious. Then presently Ter
ence who is as good swimmer as
am, found us, and in a quarter OF al
hour we were all back on board again
for the third mate had brought the shil
to In no time, and lowered a boat.
sOId Colonel Chester was very crate
full, and next morning offered me fit.
pounds 1 looked at him and then d
Alice, and without work walked on
of his cabin. Before many hours hat
passed Alice Chester and I had me
again and she had told me that sh
loved me and would be my wife.
It's no use asking my father 70
me. jim she said. You might as wei
ask him to blaCken his face and sini
n comic niger song TO the sailors II
the foc'scle.' Then she cried a bit owe
the fifty pounds matter. and said tina
her father had treated Terry, tn
cuddy-boy, just as he had treated me
Lad offered him ten pounds
d" Never mind, Jim, dear she said
half crying, half laughing; if my kisse
are worth only a farthing each, an
Terry will take tEem in payment, h
shall have more than ten pounds wort
before we reach England. I have mad
a good start already, and Nina wi
help me as soon as she is able to sc
uD.'
he Kent her T1rOr1iSf