The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-29

VVYYHEN Mess Lethierry of Saint A/ Sampson in the island of
 w Guernsey had completed fifty years of sea he discovered one day that he could no longer lift his great three- hundred pound anvil with one hand, and thus was brought face to face with the sudden Knowledge that he was no longer young.
 With the same swift determination that had so often taken him to the side of wrecked ships through spouting seas, like lion with foaming mane, the old seaman set to work at once to provide competency not so much for himself, as for his bewitching, beautiful, entirely delightful niece, Deruchette.
 On Deruchette old Lethierry would have staked his life, his soul and his future throughout eternity without hes itation. For her sake he staked his whole fortune, all his painfully gath cred hoard, and in addition all that he could borrow, on a venture that for those days was almost diabolic.
 It was just at the time when peo- pie began to talk with sage shakes of the head and with superstitious thrill of new kind of ship that was moved, not by sails, but by a strange power that came from boiling water. Leth- jerry heard, considered and investigat- ed. Soon ne began erecting a strange hull on great covered stocks. He ex- hausted all his skill as shipwright in this construction. As his vessel grew his love for her grew. until when her wonderful engines at last arrived from France and had been installed, his pride and joy In Durande, the ship, were barely second to his worship Of Deruchette, the girl
 One day when Mess Lethierry had spent his last franc the frightened peo- pie of Guernsey, crossing themselves as they stood grouped on the rocky coast, beheld a monstrous form which puffed and blew, horrid machine which roared like a wild beast and smok ed like a volcano, as 1t rushed out to sea with frightful beating of it's fins and a throat belching forth flame. From that day the impious contrivance was known throughout the Gurnsey islands as the Devil boat.
 With typical wick edness, however, the devil has foul trick of making himself impressively useful, not to say necessary; thus the Durande, being able to carry four times as much cargo as the biggest sailing vessel and in one-quarter of the time between ports, became a great success. Therefore, though many honest people declared that they could distinctly see the horns of the evil fend himself sticking up between her paddle boxes, and though sermons were preached in village churches to prove that the vessel was a work of black sin, because God had divorced fire and water at the crea- tion Mess Lethierry soon began to pay eff his loans.
 Mess Lethierry commanded his be- loved Durande till rheumatism had him by the heels. Then he turned the com mand over to Sieur Clubin. Sieur Clu- bin looked like notary, but was a wonderful sailor; he was a renowned swimmer and as taciturn as the chan- mel rocks and he had impressed his strict, quite painful honesty on men so long that they often said. "As hon est as Sieur Clubin.
 Nevertheless. Sieur Clubin's envia- ble reputation. which he had earned by many years of scrupulous honor in matters of sous and francs, was only the stake that he had laid on life S gaming table. He but bided his time for making one, and only one, great stroke which should sweep off all the stakes leaving trusting fools behind to gape and wonder. One day when he brought the Durande, as usual, into St. Malo he saw the game shape his way.
 That night Sieur Clubin furtively barrained with a vagabond for a cer- tain ingenious new contrivance which that gentleman had brought from America It was that important, If not useful. invention, the revolver. Armed vritb this novel means of making ones self irresistible. Sieur Clubin made his way next day to a great cliff near St. Malo. where the rocks rise sheer as inc side of A monstrous house out of a sea monstrously deep.
 On the very edge of this dizzy plateau there stood a coast guard on this day. looking fixedly at a vessel that was lying to off the shore Soon he saw a boat lowered away IL moved VIZ Drously toward the ciin.
 At this moment man of huge stat N are stepped from the concealment Of a rock where he had lain hidden His foot fell as silently as cats. lie moved swiftly, yet with infinite pre- caution, toward the unsuspecting watcher. Suddenly his two fists flew