Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-04-14

overwhelmed her. and her eyes melted
into tears.
Christobal. who had missed no word
|of Elsie's frenzied protest in the salon
nor failed to note the manner of Cour-
tenay's, greeting. seemed to take the
collapse of his own aspirations with
the unmoved stolcism, he had display
ed in the face of danger.
"The ships boats he began, but
the captain raised his gun and fred
twice aft alongside the side of the YES
sci. Cries OF pain and good deal of
splashing in the sea proved that he
had expedited the, departure of several
INDIANS WHO We're perched on the rails
beyond the reach of Walkers steam
Jet.
''The ships boats" went on Christie
oal calmly, ''have turned up in some
mysterious manner. just in the nick of
time. A few minutes more and they
would have been too late"
When more extended knowledge of
all that had happened, joined to Il nicer
! adjustment of the time factor in events,
| enabled Elsie to realize the extraor
binary deliverance from death which
she had been youchsafed that night she
began to appreciate the service which
! Christobal rendered her in discussing
matters with such nonchalance.
Barely, minute had, elapsed since
| they were in the throes of a struggle
which promised to be the last act of
a tragedy. The ship was then overrun
by a horde of bowling savages, mad
| dcned by the desperate resistance Of
fered by the defenders and ruthless as
wolves IN their lust for destruction.
Now the Kansas was clear of every
bedaubed Alaculof save the many who
numbered the decks either dead or so
seriously wounded that they could not
move. These men We're so near akin
| to animals that this condition implied
| ultimate collapse save in few in.
stances of fractured skulls and broken
limbs. From the final stage of hope
less butchery the survivors of the
ships company We're suddenly trans
| ferred to position of reasonable Sc
| curity. 1t was not that the arrival of
the ships boats meant such an Access
sion of fighting strength that the Ala
culofs could not have made sure of vic
tory. Gray and his companions were
badly armed. The Indians remaining
In the canoes could have pelted them to
shreds' in a few minutes. Even those
attempt by the newcomers to gain the
decks But the superstitious savages
had already screwed themselves up to
an act of unusual daring I'm delivering
a night attack. and the appearance of
boats filed with men of whose fight.
ing qualities they had already such O
lively experience quite ldemoralized
Them. They fed without attempting
a counter assault.
| At last the sounds ofnconfiict died
away. The black waters closed over
the dead; the last swimmer vanished
into the silence. The spasmodic bark
ing of the dog. the grooming of men ly
ing on the decks and the shouts ex
changed between Courtepay and Gray
for the guidance of the boats were the
only remaining symbols Of the fiercest
crisis which had yet befallen the Kan
sas.
Elsie, wandering through trancelil1s
maze Of vivid impressions, awoke with
a start to the, fact that Courtenay was
giving directions for the lowering OF
the ships gangway, meanwhile receiv
ing information as to the identity Of
the boats beneath.
MIR. Malcolm Is in charge of the
jolly boat" Gray was saying. "Mis.
Barring and Mr. and Mrs. Somervill,
are with him. Miss Baring's maid Il
dead. Senior Jerrera is in my boat
No. .. We have been on White Hors
island all this time, but we have seel
nothing of the other lifeboat.'
Thatmeant that two boats out of thos
which quilted the ship had arrived thu
OPPORTUNITY. Senior Jerrera was tn
4 Spanish mining engineer who had beer
hustled into one of the craft name,
by the mutineers. And Christobal wa
saying:
"Well. Miss Maxwell, you and I chi
C look forward to a busy night. Th
ship is Uttered with wounded men, an
q our newly arrived friends must b
!. worn with fatigue"
o His smooth, even sentences helped
], dispel the stupor of amazement whic
: had made her dumb. And the frs
4 reasoned thought which came to he
Y was that the Spanish doctor had treat
e ed her with the kindness of an indu
d gent parent, for Elsi,. was far too III
/ selfish not to be alive to the unselfisf
r ness of others.
How good you have been to me!
: she murmured. II can never repa
f you. / remember now that 1 sal
& dreadful things to you in the sailor
). But you did not know what it meant t
e me when 1 realized that Captain Coui
g tenay might be falling even then b'
@ meath the blows of those merciless say
!. ages. have not had chance to tie
!. you that he has asked me to be hi
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