Los Angeles herald., 1907-11-03


the. door, !clamoring for admittance to. the
cabin, while the mutineer-it was Guipe-
i was shouting derisive words at them.
Pound away, my fine fellows" said Gmpe
You'll have to use something heavier ,a1a tnan
| your fists if you pound it in, though why
don't you take an axe"
"Silence!" commanded Brant.
"Halloo, in there!" came the voice OF
| Ricketts,
"Well?" rejoined Brant.
Something's gone wrong with the steer
| ing gear It's fouled somewhere aft, Digby
! says Let us in SO that we can go below and
fix it."
"I'll not let you in We have barricaded
the, door, and We, propose to keep you at bay
as long as possible"
the south. Digby says he can make her out
from the wheel-house. She's loaded down
soldiers, She's after you fellows"
I've I've know it, replied Brant:., ,,,
Ricketts,, for the first time seeming to realize
| that things were different below. where's
young Rankin"
LOCKED up in state-room."
bers. Though they did not grasp the whole
situation, they understood enough for their
'Fetch handspike, or something" shout
him. "We'1l see whether we won't get into
the cabin. Well smash the door in, and
then somebody had better look out"
Hurrying footsteps were heard on the
deck
"Lay forward-into the engine-room,"
Guipe and two others of the mutineers,
with one of the marines, who had walled
themselves in on the farther side of the bar
| ricade, climbed over and followed the other
The action of Ricketts,, in concentrating
| his attack upon the door at the foot of the
companion-stairs. had given the young COM
mander new idea.
the forecastle had escaped and that the rank
| and file of the mutineers had joined forces
| with them, with the lawful commander of
the vessel at the head of all-if Ricketts, had
/ not have allowed all his men, with the excep-
1 tion of Digby, who was at the wheel, to con:
| gregate in the companion-way. He would
have guarded the engine-room and the deck
i Commander Brant saw his chance and
was prompt to avail himself of it.
| As the party from the cabin reached the
engine-room, they heard the attack begun on
| the barricaded door.
/ raining blows upon it with a stoker's iron
| and with handspikes. The door could be
heard to crack, and every instant the oc-
cupants of the engine-room expected to hear
/ a. crash that would tell them that it had
| given way.
But it would take some moments for the
| robbers to brush aside the barricade, if Lofty
Rankin and Thad Mcpherson did not escape
| from their confinement and remove it for
them.
| 1t looked to some of Commander Brant,s
| followers as though that officer had blunder-
| ed when he ordered his men forward, instead
| of remaining to defend the barricade. But
the followers had forgotten for the moment
| about the steamer that was coming down
| from the windward Commander Brant had
not.
Standing in the doorway of the engine
| room, looking aft through the passage-way
| between the engine-room and the cabin,
| Brant could see the barricade. He waited
| till he saw the barricaded door come crashing
inward, followed by the arm of Ricketts,.
who was reaching to remove the articles OF
furniture which still held it nearly upright,
toward Boatswain Barclay, who stood where
he could survey the deck aft.
GAIL clear up here, sir" announced the
boatswain, in response to the look. They're
all on the companion-stairs with Ricketts,
All but one man on the bridge"
"On deck, lively! Secure the matches, for
ward and aft!"
They sprang to obey. AS they issued upon
| the deck they were seen by Digby, who
stood on the bridge gazing to windward,
where the Chicora, the Ventures pursuer,
was by this time plainly to be SEEN
The Venture had lost all progressive move
ment, and was rolling heavily in the trough
! of the waves. During the last few minutes
the Chicora had approached to within less
than mile.
Digby viewed the on-G;oming steamer with
was that the Venture get under way quickly,
| and while his companions stormed the cabin
| door. he had stuck to his post, ready to re-
sumo the helm the instant the disabled steer