Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1908-08-05
The " oinaa CI1uIns.
IOrisiual 1

safi!nS iA Kara bay, part of the Are tie ocean lying between Russia proper and Siberia. About five miles froH the Russian coast at sunrise in tn" morning the lookout in the fire top a woman (Womrn oa Scandinavian ship do the same work before tue mast a5 mem, saw on the port quarter q blaca Speck on the track of sunl sht ShiW, mering ou the waves. X black spcch on a river usually means nothing. bu at sea always eXciteS attention. The lookout seized glass and brought IL eo bear on the object, which under the magnifying power of the glass was re- solved into a boat With a person in it. The lookout sent word to the captain, who gave orders to put the vessel off q point or two with view to discover ing if tue lone boatman needed as SiSthnee.
 As the Sea Gui! approached the boat the figure in it was discovered 10 be that of Il woman. Sbe was lite! o@er the ships side in an exhausted conii- ton. pale and emaciatcd, but when they asked her questions she could re- spond only in tue Russian language. which was unntelligible to the Scan dinavians. One of the crew was l young Russian woman, katia ,1arof. who had shipped at Siberian port I few days before Knowing little Scandinavian she was brought for ward as aTI interpreter X close ob- server would have noticed a slight start on the part of both her and the woman from the boat when they first saw eaeh other, but they sufficiently restrained themselves so taat olhing unusual was noticed Nati1 questioned the stranger and reported that she claimed to have been aboard a Russian vessel and, mourning the dspieasure U. the captain, had been marooned. She asked where the Sea Gull was bound and when told that she would tirS: stu,, at d Norwegian port asked to be tr:,as-
 
 she was required to work her passase before the mast
 Naturally the two Russian women became companions. The woman Who had been maroonea, Sonia Sartier- 1 hof, was large and soon regained her strength, which was considcrab!a. Katia, on the contrary, was delicate. and sue seemed to have been pulled down bH some past hardship. Both women were intellectual looking, and their station was evidently far above that of the balance of the crew. Soma from the time she was able to stand watch offered to do duty also for Katia This. she insisted upon and most of the ] time did double work relieving katia.
 The first mate, Swede named Scan derson, became enamored Of Nata and made ioYe 10 her katia repellel him, but he persisted Sonia took the girl , under her protection, which led to hard wor'.S between the mate and Sonia, and during the altercaton Sonia told hiu that if he Ail not cease annoying her irir:!. aHl couutgywoman she would , co1Ni>eI kim to do so, This interested the creW who rdiculed Seanderson. IIr paid no attention to Sonia's threat, but persisted in annoying katia,
 One day while he was 50 doing he vas leiled to the deck by. q blow from SoAiA When the mate got Up several of the sailors Were laughing at him. He attempted to bring the open palm of hi. hani against Sonia's ear; but, leaving his own face unguacded, he re ceived I knock under the jaw which "ai>p. him off his feet and landed him on tie deck again.
 \ fight hetWeen a man and a womaa brought tAe creW, teeel her t9 sec ,IIA mate a&oae and Iat Gri1e at Sonia. He Was no"' in earnest. and the fight was more even. Sonia was at a disad vantage from her skirts, but she had tho luck to knock her enemy against the capstan, which stunned him, and he was carried below unconscious, That ended the mates attentions to N1ta. and from the time of the fight the two women were inseparable.
 But Sonia had nothing to do With any of the women of the crew except Kata. She would not occupy bunk with the women. sleeping when she did sleep at night on deck. She was q puzzle to the men, and her devotion to Katia excited a good deal of curios ity The cantgiO hearing of her Ollar-