The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1907-06-28
The P1underers
eycicurlIeFg esNE.


8 Understand that ana asat wAase pa
taYe
= IAe E@ieTtasn seemed Inclined tp h54s
y ttT sn1 hold his ground Alst ~ hsd n,
eSts l tsit SQ9 haFe III Noal3 70
r II w@ gat thV pufetas4n ny said ati|
6 Why. ! csnt hacdly understand th'
Hsssas rnSseif, sata anotaer.
II you're undecided" suggested Cap-
fatn hstsle, you've got 4 ulssei
!. among yoM. Why not SET him o4: (,
taiS II YOU were men. l Wouldn't sal
II, but rs il Is he's as much a man as
any OF you, and perhaps hen throN IN
a sand dance TO eNi!veu proceedings
The n gro from somewhere on the
outskirts of the crowd broke Into 4
loud sgtf0w till soma one kicked him
on the shins and SENT him away ye!p-
ing diminuendo into the farther dark
ness. An angry growl Went up FROM
the white men at the taunt, and one
OF them. a WHISPERED quartermasfer in
a cardigan Jacket. stepped Out al Il spat
into the circle OF light. He looked
OF his mates and then lifted up his
face toward the upper bridge.
See here, Captain Kettle. you'd bet
ter not try US too far. This isn't a
slave ship you're commanding. Its an
ordinary, mrno low down British
clamp, SlliO llle INV oOhS after INe
decklands and all the rest of US"
Now. that's fair speaking" aid
Kettle. I've a profound respect for
the merchant shipping act and all the
rest of the laws. My lad, If you fancy
you've anything to complain of. a sea
lawyer like You must know The rem
edy. Get YOU witnesses and go with
them before the British consul III New
Orleans"
"A fat lot of good that would do" re-
torted the man. VIVA consul ever be-
lieved an old sailor against the skip
per? No, sir. we'd only get peniten-
tiary for Il pains. Besides, what we
want-and what we intend to have-is
an alteration in things, beginning now
All, ! see! And what would You
like? Shall / bave 4 hold cleared out
and tit up with four post beds for You
to make a drawing room of Shall /
order my steward to hand iced pop
round to the gentlemen who are heav-
ms Goals in the stokelold? Come, now.
out with it,"
The little captain was deliberately
irritating the men. and Camoel mar
veled at his reckiessness Once let an
outbreak start. and he and Kettle stood
not n chance in a million of living
through it. But Kettle knew his game
and was playing it well.
Only one man laughed, and his
laugh closed up again in a moment like
the snap of a watch. Some scowled, Il
few swore; the quartermaster in the
cardigan jacket alone remained un-
moved. OF Kettles outrageous raillery
he took no notice whatever, but con-
tinued his plant in a solid monotone.
as though he had been reading it from
a book.
In the first instance. it's the grub
we complains of, particularly the sugar.
1t amt sugar at all. It's just a
slunlph of molasses."
That" said Kettle. SIS due to your
own laziness. The bottom of a sugar
barrels always that way unless You
turn it end for end every day or so.
The molasses'd settle through the
queens sugar at Windsor M spoil
to. So that knocks in the head your
first complaint. By James," he con-
tinued, with a first show of fury. lis
it for this you dogs LAY turned your
selves into Il bowling pack of mu-
tineers and let my ship drift like a hen
coop toward Newfoundland"
The Gu-artermaster was obviously
disconnected by the attack. so much so,
in fact, that he missed the next few
counts of his Indictment and came at
once to the main head. which he had
hoped to lead up to more gently. ITS
a rise OF wages that We insist on prin-
cipally," he said. I'VE take it we've
been signed on for this run to New Or
leans under false pretenses. Nothing
was said about the sort of cargo we
was to carry, which naturally incites
them anarchist chaps to violence. We're
suffering undue risks. There's been
one devil machine found already. and
as lii as not there is Others besides.
The blooming ole tramp may go up any
minute. and because We're standing
that risk We say we ought to be paid
according: The cargo a stand the
pull. and If you aren't willing the hands
here has made up their minds to breach
it for themselves"
you great ~tools!" cried Kettle, this
isn't an ordinary IRIS that you can
help yourselves out of and let the un-
derwriters stand treat. You bet the
tallyman won't wink at any yarn about
damaged In transit over the stuff we're
bringing them. If there's so much as
a miserable half sovereign missing. the
whole sowd here, cook and captains
dog, staA in q New Orleans %calaboose
till it's found n then come out with
their tickets dirtied. oh, you one-
eyed eam R.fs Ys4 SsfY y 75 a9ols s,r,ous,v. His
~trucu1elt tone had left him completely.
His hands had quilted the pistol butts
and We're Clipped on the bridge rail.
His elbows were beating ~nervously.
From Some mouth in the blacker
SiiaiAON CdliIC IL NSeN. Qef!Sl|e 3u2n.
Then a voice, presumably from the
laughter, said VINO wants 10 go to
New Orleans? Who wants to go nearer
than the next key or reef or sand bank
or whatever it may be? Let's pile up
the blazing old tramp on that and then
boat cruise acrcss to Cuba. There's nice
snug bays in Cuba where the guarda
ccstas Cont ask questions. or, il they
did, a bit of yellow ballast out Of Che
boats would stop their jaw quick
cnougn."
The voice laughed again ard ceased.
Who spoke there Captain Kettle de-
niaildcd.
Out rolled into the bright circle the
massive body of the donkeynlan.
"You!'
The aonReynsan knuckled his ereass
cap in assent, hut added tina he was
no leutineel- I'm your man, captain
be said, but I'd be pleaseder TO help
We carrying ont the crews wishes tAan
going agin them. Ven be dealt By
honestly, captain-liberally, yes, better