Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1908-10-10
SATURDAY. OCTOBER 10, 1908

~N'ltAA 10 AfNHEH AE nHIilS llaNdEtu
to say. clumsily. must recognize right
and Justice and
Il should have acted quite as quick
". quite as determiuedly as Senorita
Bostos acted" she broke in. and there
was strange ring 10 her voice He
tried to LAUGH. but her steady. nm
swerving gaze checked him: he tried
to switch TO another phase OF the gen
eral subject but her mind kept in the
old channel doggedly My captain
does not believe that 7 should have
sacrificed as she sacrificed" she went
on. in n tone OF injury.
such candor. Senorita Lopez" said
he. cannot be doubted"
There was strange light In her
eyes rs she turned them TO the sea.
and he was becoming more and more
uncomfortable To him she was a
revelation. the most remarkable girl
he had ever met. never before had he
seen such fraukDcss. such openness
displayed under similar circumstances
He was familiar enoush with Spanish
blood 10 make biz allowances. hut he
could not bring himself to understand
this daughter OF a Crcesus.
How long viii YOU Doe Ga Havana?"
she asked. after q long thoughtful ST.
lence
"Only a short time-maybe not more
than few hours" he answered.
MY father has been called to the
City OF Mexico" said she. land I am
going with him From ,here we shall
make tour OF che United States We
shall spend two weeks In Havana Can
you not come 10 Mexico2"
This completely stumped Jerry.
why" said he. - intend 20 leave Ha-
vana almost Immediately for Vera
Cruz. from where I shall move on to
the capital"
Leave Havana immediately" she
exclaimed. Then We may conclude
20 leave ou the same vessel How
glorioust"
Jerry Chambers was one % the most
unassuming men I'm the world. but
SO persistently did Scnorlta Mercedes
force herself upou him that at last he
was compelled 20 believe that she had
become desperately infatuated with
him He felt thar tho inf2uation was
very shallow--an emotion az a girl
whose nature taj for its foundation.
superstructure 1nd an romantic
spirit Tfe thought her startling can
dor could ho traced tC a fathers stern
and rrid watcbfulncss. In fact she
as much ms had TOLD him that She was
constantly under her fathers eve. and
that she was fast 'irtng 90 a.
on the afternoon OF The following
day very strong eastern wind came
mp snd set the ola Pranzos TO dancing
restlesslv l}y dusk there came dis.
tant rumhlings of thunder and faint
flashes OF heatlightning The waves
rolled higher as the storm laden wind
increased into the fcrceness Of a gale.
and by nighuan the heavens were
booming constantly directly above.
The long table In the dining saloon
haG been prepared for the supper Of
honor. but much OF the spirit OF the
occasion was lost ia the fear that had
become almost panic IN the heart OF
every PASSENGER Although appreciat.
ing the peril quite as keeuly as the
others. Jerry was composed. and his
apparent unconcern served as an In
SEPARATION 10 many OF the men. At last
the 30 or more women became panic
stricken. some falling into the throes
OF ungovernahls- hysteria. The men
were helpless 20 curb their fear and
excitement Jerry struggled 10 the
captain Of the vessel and put this:
Are we in great danger? Be frank
with me-"
we are" answered the officer. al
though she is holding her own as well
as any similar boat could under the
conditions. This is the worst storm
I have ever seen IN all my life on the
water. II we can keep away from the
rocks-and they are plentiful along the
coast-she may weather it out all
right At present my whole mind IS
on escaping two massive rocks. about
80 or so feet apart. known as the ST
lent senunels Each stands so feet
out Of the water We cannot be far
from them"
How far are we now from shore?"
The wind has blown as to within
Ken miles OF il. We are going in near
er every minute" and the captains
face became very grave
How far are the silent sentinels'
from shore?"
About four miles"
Good God. captain" exclaimed Jer-
~. IF we strike them?"
Therein be hell 10 pay, sir" roared
the officer. The women must be kept
quiet; they upset my men completely"
For moment Jerry seemed para
lyzed. Finally recovering his wits. he
laboriously picked his way back TO the
dining saloon, where the white-faced
passengers were huddled In plunging,
reeling groups. His face wore an ex-
preston OF cOmplacence as he tum-
bled into their presence.
BE calm" Jerry urged. THE cap
tain requests that the supper be de-
layed no longer. The cooks are very
impatient and they fear that IL the
coffee stands much longer 1t viii lose
all its strength"
Jerry's purpose in getting the pas
sengers 10 the table was 10 make pos
sible more systematic retreat to
deck In case the vessel reached the
rocks The terrible tossing Of the
old craft had made many OF the pas
sengers care little whether they ever