The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1907-01-05
CHAPTER ".

day; the wind playing tickle from east by
south, and the sea agold with the light
of an August sun. The yacht lay with
out life in her sails. the flow of the swell
beating lazily upon her, and the great
mainsail rocking on the boom. We had
been out twenty-four hours, and had not
made a couple of hundred miles. The de-
lay angered every man aboard the Celsis,
since every man aboard knew that it was
a matter of concern to me to overtake
the American yacht, La France, and that
life might 90 with long continued fall
ure
The morning passed. long morning,
with sea like mirror. and the sun as
a great circle of red fire in the haze.
Hour after hour we walked from the fore
hatch to the tiller, from the tiller to the
fore-hatch, varying the exercise with a
full inspection of every craft that showed
above the horizon. At SIX bells some dark
and dirty clouds rose up from the south,
and twenty hands pointed to them. Halt
an hour later there was a shrill whistling
in the shrouds, and the rain began to pat
ter on the deck, while the booms fretted,
and we relieved her in part of her press
of sail. When the squall struck US at
last, the Channel was foaming with long
lines of choppy seas; and the sky south
ward was dark as ink.
During one hour, when we must have
made eleven knots. the wind blew strong,
and was fresh again after that. Nor did
the breeze fall, but stifened towards
night, so that in the first bell. when We
came up from dinner, the Celsis was
straining and foaming as she bent under
her press of canvas, and it needed sail
or's foot to tread her decks. We had
hardly come above when we heard Dan
hailing:
yacht on the port bow"
"What name?' came from twenty
threats.
La France" said Dan, and the words
had scarce left his lips when the skipper
roared the order:
Stand by to go about!"
For some minutes the words bout
ship" were not spoken. The schooner
held her course, and rapidly drew up with
the yacht we had set out to seek. From
the first there was no doubt about her
name which she displayed in great letters
Va SOld dUONC ACA ASui w hSh ShS
had made some few hundred yards to-
wards the coast, she jibbed round of a
sudden, with an appalling wrench at the
horse; and there being, as it appeared, no
hand either at the peak halyards or the
throat halyards, the mainsail presently
showed great rent near the huff, while
the foresail had torn free from the bolt
ropes of the stay, and was presenting
sorry spectacle as the yacht went about,
and away towards France again.
The obvious fact that the yacht we had
sought and run down was without living
men upon her decks had taken the Tilt
from the seamen's merry tongues, and a
gloom settled on US all. Perhaps it was
more than a mere surmise, for an uncan-
nv feeling of something dreadful to come
took hold of me.
Skipper" said l, "order boat; I'm
going aboard her."
when the wind falls, perhaps; but
now ~ and he shrugged his shoulders.
As the dark began to fall and the night
breeze to blow fresh, while the yacht
ahead of us swung here and there, almost
making circles about US, we hove to for
the time and watched her. begged
Mary to go below, but she received the
suggestion with merriment.
"Go below, when the men say there's
fun coming! Why should go below?"
Because it may be serious fun"
The skipper called presently for blue
flare, which cast glowing light for many
hundred yards, and still left US uncertain.
Flash again." said the skipper, and as
the blue light flashed we saw right ahead
of US the wanderer we sought; but she
was bearing down upon US.
Ito be continued.)