The Mena weekly star., 1908-11-19
CHAPTER |.
Wave-Tossed and castawsy.

E4 llis bSSlhiiiu6 NdS 1dpo SASaA Winthrope boarded the steamer as fellow passengers with Lady Bayrose and her party
 This was a week after Winthrope had arrived on the tramp steamer from India, and her ladyship had ex- plained to Miss Leslie that it was as well for her not to be too hasty in accepting his attentions. To be sure, he was an Englishman, his dress and manners were irreproachable, and he was in tbe prime of ripened youth. Yet Lady Bayrose was too conscien- tious chaperon to be fully satisfied with her countrymans bare assertion that he was engaged on diplomatic mission requiring reticence regarding his identity. She did not see why this should prevent him from confiding in her.
 Notwithstanding this, Winthrope came aboard ship virtually as mem Der of her ladyship's party. He was so quick. so thoughtful of her comfort. and paid so much more attention to her than to Miss Leslie, that her lady ship had decided to tolerate him, even before Blake became a factor in the situation.
 From the moment he crossed the gangway the American engineer en- tered upon daily routine of drinking and gambling, varied only by attempts to strike up an off-hand acquaintance with Miss Leslie This was Win thrope's opportunity, and his clever illustration of what Lady Bayrose termed that low bounder's impu- dence" served to install him in the good graces of her ladyship as well as in the favor of the American heiress.
 Such, at least, was what Winthrope intimated to the persistent engineer with superciliousness of tone and manner that would have stung even British lackey to resentment To Blake it was supremely galling. He could not rejoin in kind. and the slightest attempt at physical retort would have meant irons and confine ment. It was British ship. Behind Winthrope was Lady Bayrose; behind her ladyship, as matter of course, was all the despotic authority of the captain. In the circumstances, it was not surprising that the American drank heavier after each successive goadirg.
 Meantime the ship, having touched at Port Natal, steamed on up the east coast, into the Mozambique chan mel.
 On the day of the cyclone. Blake had withdrawn into his stateroom with a number of bottles, and throughout that fearful afternoon was bissfully unconscious of the danger. Even when the steamer went on the reef, he was only partially reused by the shock
 He took long pull from a quart flask of whisky. placed the flask with great care in his hip pocket, and lurched out through the open door way. There he reeled headlong against the mate. who had rushed below with three of the crew to bring up Miss Leslie. The mate cursed him vir- ulently, and in the same breath or dered two of the men to fetch him up on deck
 The sea was breaking over the stesmer in torrents; but between waves Blake was dragged across to the side and flung over into the bot tom of the one remaining boat He served as cushion to break the fall aF I fnGgad in after him. At the same time, Win thrope, frantic with fear, scrambled into the bows and cut loose. One of the sailors leaped. but fell short and vent down within arms length of Miss Leslie.
 She and Winthrope saw the steam CT slip from the reef and sink back Into deep water, carrying down in the vortex the mate and the few remain ing sailors After that all was chaos to them. The, ware driven ashore be- fore the te-rinc gusts of the cyclone, bIn ed by the stinging spoondrift to all else but the hell of breakers and coral reefs in whose midst they swirled so dizgily. And through it all Blake lay huddled on the bottom boards gurgling blithely of spicy zephyrs and. swaying hammocks.
 There came the seemingly final mo ment when the boat went spinning stern over brow
 Half-sobered, Blake opened his eyes and stared solemnly about him. He was given little time to take his bear ings. A smother of broken surf came seething up from one of the great breakers. to roll him over and scrape him little farther mp the muddy shore. There the flood deposited him for a moment until it could gather force to sweep back and drag him down again toward the roaring sea that had cast him up.
 Blake objected-not to the danger of being drownsd. but to interference with his repose He had reached the obstinate stage He grunted protest Again the flood seethed up the shore and rolled him away from the danger This was too much! He set his jaw turned over, and staggered to ms feet. Instantly one of the terrlne wind-blasts struck his broad back ano sent him spinning for yards lie brought up in a shallow pool, beside hummock.
 Under the lee of the knoll lay Win thrope and Miss Leslie Though con