Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-11-29

boat so far. Hence. what you can do
can do. and have no objection to dying
in that way
why should either of us die?'
You know better than l how little
chance there is of saving those men. You
may deem me callous IL / suggest that
the reasonable thing would be to forget
the miserable statement you have just
heard. Oh. please hear me to the end. 1
am not alking for your sole benefit. be-
lieVe me. Greatly as i and all on board
are beholden to you I do not propose Civ
ing my life in your stead because of my
Astounding admiration for your many vir-
tues. Well, then since you are so i'm
patient as to be almost rude | come
straight to the point. II you take COM
mand of boats crew and endeavor to
save the men imprisoned over there you
Will almost certainly throw away your
life and the lives of those who help you.
both interested will suffer grievously. On
the other hand. If j were killed. she
would weep a little. because she has a
large heart. but you would console her.
And the odd thing is that you and are
fully aware that either You or / must go
Oft on this fools errand. There is none
other to take the vacant place. Now.
have l made myself clear?'
You are a good fellow. Christobal.
You revive my faith in human nature,
you just now by my attitude. But don't
you see that / can neither accept your
generous offer nor sail away from our
harbor of refuge without making an at
tempt TO save my menu
They are not your men. They for
feited your captaincy by their own ac-
ton: In the effort to succors them you
will lose at least one life which is prec-
ious to all on board this ship. / am
twice your age. Courtenay. and I affirm
flr1h . tslf Inc hot
Yet you are ready to take my placer"
II have given you my reasons
They do you honor; but you would fall
where l might succeed. You are not
sailor. Brave as know you to be. you
are not physically fitted for the rough
work which may be needed. think. too.
you exaggerate the risk. The Alaculofs
are broken by last nights failure. They
will not dare to face u.s.
AT least spare me argument which
does not convince yourself. otherwise you
would depute me instantly for the serv-
ice"
We'll you force plain speaking. While
/ command the Kansas j am responsible
for the wellbeing of the ship. her crew
and her passengers. i could never for
give myself If l left those men to the
mercy of the Indians. 1 cannot permit
either you or Tollemache to take a risk
which l shirk. Boyle and Walker must
remain on board-lest fail Now. Chris
hands! l am proud to claim you as
friend
HUH" said Boyle, strolling toward
them. What is it? A bet?''
Yes" laughed Courtenay, from whose
face all doubt had vanished; "a bet, in
deed, and you hold the stakes. Have
you seen the smoke signal yonder?" and
he pointed across the bay.
Yes Tollemache found it again, TWEEN
ty minutes since"
hot al -
there. expecting us to save them. Hoist
the ships answering pennant from the
main yard swung out to starboard. Build
a small fire on the poop and throw some
oil and lampblack ON it. If they don't
recognize the penbant they will under
stand the smoke. Get some food and
water slowed in the lfeboat. and offer
five pounds head to six men who will
volunteer for trip ashore"
Il go in charge, Of course, sir?' said
Boyle.
You remain here and take command
during my absence. / want two revolvers
for couple of the crew and shall take
my own gun. Please make all arrange
ments promptly. 1 am going to my cabin
for five minutes. and shall start imme-
diately afterward." e
This was. the captain speaking. His
tone admitted of no contention. Boyle
hurried off, and Courtenay went into his
quarters.
What do you think of it?' Christobal
asked Tollemache, as the latter appeared
to be sauntering after the chief officer
Rot! said Tollemache.
But what can we do? He is commit
ting suicide
"One must do that occasionally. It's
rotten, but it can't be helped
Christobal threw out his hands in a
despairing gesture. Il tried to stop him,
but l failed,. he cried.
''Courtenay is hard man to STOP"
said Tollemache, vanishing down the
companion. The. Spaniard was left alone
on the bridge. He paced to and fro. deep
in thought. He scarce dared probe his
own communings. So complex were they,
such a queer amalgam of noble fear and
base expectation, that he could have cried
aloud in his anguish. Big drops of per-
spiration stood on his forehead when
Courtenay came to him.
For Gods sake, don't CO." said he
hoarsely. DO you know you are placing
me on the rack?'
Your sufferings are of your own con-
irving. then. Why. man, there is no rea-
son for all this agony. l have written to
Elsie. briefly explaining matters. Here
is the letter. Give it to her, If 1 don't
return. And now pull yourself together
/ want you to cheer her. Above all
things, don't let her know I am leaving
the ship. I'll just swing myself: over
board at the last moment / can't say
goodbye. l don't think / could stand
that
(To be Continued Tomorrow