Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1906-01-19

hply>;r.C. fJr nothing. but | wouldn't
Ike /, have any Of you washed over
board hy Ini>l ',".''
1in, h.,i,-ilc> wee haitcned down. and
il was Il S"rr! company that tried to
Wine aAa. TIA" evening in the main
cabin. Nonty'' chatting about the ad
yuiltagrS OF the North cape over the
stormy Atlantic WAS not calculated to
raise the ,lrnpIng spirits, and 1t was
very early when he and his shattered
guests turned in. There was little
sleep OH board the Filter that night.
Even If 1t had been easy to forget the
danger, the creaking Of the ship and
the incesSant roar Of the water were
enough for wnkefulness. With each
lurch of the boat 1t seemed more In
credible that 1t could endure. 1t was
such Il mite of Il thing to meet SO furi-
Gus an attack. Through the night
the fragile little craft fought It's lone
ly way. bravely ignoring its own weak
ness and the Infinite strength Of its On
envy. To the captain. dashed to the
bridge, there were hours Of grave anx-
iety-hours when he feared each wave
as 1t approached and wondered what
new damage 1t had done as 1t receded.
AS the wind increased toward morning
be felt q sickening certainty that the
brave little boat was beaten. Somehow
she seemed to lose courage, to waver
a bit and almost give up the fight. He
watched her missrably as the dismal
dawn came up out Of the seq. Yet 1t
was not until 7 o'clock that the crash
came which shook the passengers out
Of their berths and filled them with
shivering terror. The whirling of the
broken shaft seemed to consume the
ship. In every cabin 1t spoke with
horrible vividness of disaster The
clamor Of voices and the rush Of many
feet which followed meant but one
thing. Almost instantly the machinery
was stopped-an ominous silence in the
midst Of the dull roar Of the water and
the cry Of the wind.
1t was terrified crowd that quickly
gathered In the main cabin, but 1t was
q brave one. There were no cries and
few tears. They expected anything
and were ready for the worst but they
would not show the white feather. 1t
was Mrs. Dan who broke the tension.
Il made sure Of my pearls" she said.
Il thought they would be appreciated
at the bottom Of the sea-"
Brewster came In upon their laugh
ter. II like your nerve. peoplev he ex-
claimed. You are all right 1t won't
be SO bad now. The wind has drop
ped"
Long aftervard when they talked
the matter over DeAIille claimed that
.: the only thing that bothered him that
night was the effort to decide whether
the club Of which he and Monty were
members would put in the main hall
way two black bordered cards, each
bearing q name, or only one with both
names. Mr.. Valentine regretted that
he had gone on for years paying life
insurance premiums when now his only
relatives were on the boat and would
die with him.
The captain, looking pretty rocky
after his twenty hour vigil, summoned
his chief. "We're in a bad hole, Mr.
Brewster" he said when they were
alone, land no mistake. A broker
shaft and this weather make q pretty
poor combination"
"Is there no chance Of making 6
port for repairs?'
Il don't see 1t, sir. 1t looks like &
long pull"
I'VE are way off our course. I sup
pose" And Monty's GOODNESS won Cap
tain Perry's admiration.
II can't tell just how much until
get the sun, but this wind Is bad.
suspect we've drifted pretty far"
Come and get some coffee, captain
While the storm lasts the only thing
to do is to cheer up the women ant
trust to luck"
"You are the nervicst mate I ever
shipped with, Mr. Brewster" And the
captains hand gripped Monty's in q
way that meant things. 1t was q
tribute he appreciated.
During the day Monty devoted him
self to his guests, and ut the first sigr
Of pensiveness he was ready with Q
jest or story. But he did It all with
a tact that inspired the crowd as q
whole with hope, and no one suspected
that he himself was not cheerful. Fol
Peggy Gray there was a special ten
derness. and he made up his mind thai
II things should go wrong he would
tell her that he loved her.
1T could do no HARM" he thought tc
himself. land want her to know"
Toward night the worst was over
The sea had gone down and the
matches were opened for awhile to ad
NIT air, though it was still too rough
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