The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1907-03-02

"Give It him for'ard," roared Black:
and the shot that answered his command
struck the quivering hull not twenty feet
from the windlass and you could see the
splinters carried fifty feet in the air, while
the shrieks of terror came over the sea
to us.
Screaming like wild beasts, the men
turned the handles of the Maxim guns |;
the balls rained upon the defenseless liner
as hail upon a sheepfold. l saw strong
men reel and fall their length as death
took them; the breeze bore to me the
wailing of women, and the sobs of chill
dren.
The flag dropped and the signal was
made to us to come aboard.
Lower away the launch, you John =
cried Black, "and take every shilling you
can lay hands on, and hang up that skip
per for thin-skinned FOOL
YOU'D better co." said Osbart to me.
you'll be amused; :" and suggested it to
Black.
Eyes, he shall CO." he cried; "if we
swing, he shall swing. Let him get
aboard"
might as we'll have put pistol to my
head as to have refused. They bundled
me into the launch; but they would not
leave me when they came alongside, and
Roaring John" himself drove me up the
ladder. Seven of us at last stood on the
bridge, and were face to face with the
captain of the Bellonic, and four of his
officers.
The deck was a very babel of sounds,
of groans of weeping. The ships surgeon
himself seemed paralyzed before the sight
of the carnage around him. But above
all this terror, l know of nothing which
struck me with such fearful sorrow as the
sight of a fair young English girl lying
by the door of the great saloon, her arms
extended, her nut-brown hair soaked IN
her own blood, while man knelt over
her, and you could see his tears falling
upon her dead face, and his rawlings were
incoherent and almost those of maniac.
Meanwhile another scene was passing on
the bridge between the man John and
the captain of the Bellonic.
What do you want aboard of my
ship?" cried the latter; and Roaring
john answered him with a hooking
leer:
"We've come aboard to hang you, to
begin on"
their revolvers at this, and l said in
mad frenzy which would not brook ST.
lence:
You scoundrel, if you touch another
soul here I'll shoot you myself" for
had my revolver on me. DO you make
a business of killing children" | cried
again, and pointed to the dead body of
the grl-child. l don't know who was
more surprised, the captain of the Bel
Ionic, listening, or the man John.
"You cub," he cried; 'if you talk to
me I'll skin you alive!' but l said quick
ly:
Gentlemen, these men want every
shilling on this ship. Give it them now
and save your lives, for you have no al
tentative. If you give the money up, you
have my word that they won't touch you"
''As there's a heaven above" exclaimed
the young captain, ''they shall pay for
this days work with their lives. l hand
my specie over under this protest; but
don't deceive yourselves-half the war
ships in Europe shall follow you within
week."
He turned away, and presently the ruff
fans with me had lowered money to the
value of a hundred and fifty thousand
pounds into their launch. When at last
we put off again, and the launch was full
of the jewels and the money, it seemed
that l had passed through hideous
dream.
On the second day after the robbery
of the Bellonic, we stopped second and
then third ship; though l saw nothing
of it, as all the fighting was on the star
board side, and my cabin was to port !;
but there was sharp fight on the third
morning with Cape-bound vessel, and
again towards the afternoon with one of
the North German Lloyd boats home
ward bound to Bremerhaven; Osbart,
coming to my rooms, delighted to give ms
the details of these captures.
Ito be continued.)