Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1910-04-26

less. He looked up ut her. then at the
men. and he smiled as his eyes met
hers again.
Funny thingr' he said. with a nat
ural tone that was reassuring. Il
thought the windlass smashed itself
into smithereens. But 1t couldn't
What was 1t that bangedT
"A shell fred from the island" said
the girl.
Hozier Strengthened himself little
He was hearing marvels. though far
from understanding them as yet.
"A shellr' he repeatedly vacantly.
Had she said "a comet" 1t could not
have sounded more incredible.
"Yes. 1t might have killed yOu. Sew
sral of the men are dead. I myself
saw three of them killed outright. and
two others are badly wounded"
"Here you are. sir-drink this" said
a fireman. Offering a pannikin Of beer
It was unpalatable stuff, but It tasted
like the nectar of the gods to one who
had sustained a blow that would hsv'
felled an OK. Hozier had almost emp
tied the tin when an exclamation from
an Irish stoker drew all eyes to the
after part Of the ship.
"Holy war! VIII ye look at that!
shouted the man. "Sure the skipper
isn't dead at all, at allP'
Iris had failed to grasp the mean.
ing Of Coke's antics In the chart room.
but they were now fully explained.
The bulldog breed Of this self confessed
rascal had taken the upper hand Of
him Though he had net scrupled to
plot the destruction Of the ship aud
hus rob a marine insurance company
Of a considerable sum Of money, though
Mt that very instant there was actual
proof Of his scheme In the preparations
he had made to jam the steering gear
when the anchor was raised after the
tanks were replenished, 1t was not In
the mans nature to skulk into COM
parative safety because foreigner,
pirate, a OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
society Portygee. opened fire on him In
this murderous fashion. Moreover.
Coke's yillainy would have sacrificed
no lives. The Andromeda might be
converted into scrap iron and thereby
give back, by perverted arithmetic, the
money invested In her. but her white
decks would not be stained with blood.
Whatever risk was incurred would be
his, the responsible captains, his only.
II was vastly different thing that
shot and shell should be rained on an
unarmed ship by the troops of civi-
lized power when she was seeking the
lowest form of hospitality. No Won
der II the bull necked skipper foamed
at the mouth and used words forbid
den by the catechism. no wonder II he
tried to express his helpless fury IN
one last act Of defiance.
He rummaged the lockers for
union jack and the four flags that
showed the ships name In signal let
ters. He determined that she would
20 down with colors flying If he were
not put out Of action by bullet be-
fore he could reach the main halyard.
The swerve In the ships course as
she passed the island gave him an op-
portunity. In justice to Coke 1t should
be said that he rocked naught OF this.
but 1t would have been humanity i'm
possible otherwise for the soldiers to
have missed him. And now, while the
vessel lay with straight keel In the set
of the current. the national emblem or
Britain, with the Andromeda's code
tlags beneath. huttered up the main
mast.
There are many imaginable condi-
tions under which COke's deed would
be regarded as sublime; there are none
which could deny his splendid audac-
lty. The soldiers. who seemed to be
actuated by the utmost malevolence.
redoubled their efforts to hit the squat
Hercules who had beloved at them
and their fellow artillerists from the
bridge. Bullets struck the deck. lodged
In the masts, splintered the roof ana
panels of the upper structure, but
not one touched Coke. He coolly made
fast each flag in Its turn and hauled
away till the union Jack had reached
the truck; then, drawn forward by n
hoarse cheer that came from the fore
castle. he turned his back on the enc
nv and swung himself down to the
fore deck.
AS he numbered along the deck he
mopped his face vigorously with a
pocket handkerchief, and this homely
action helped to convince Iris that she
was mistaken In thinking him mad.
His words, too, when he caught sight
Of her were not those Of maniac.
"Well, missy" he cried. "wot'll they
say in Liverpool now? s'pose they'll
ear of this some day." and be jerked
q thumb backward to indicate the un'
ceasing hail Of bullets that poured Into
the after part Of the ship.
The girl looked at him with an air
of surprise that would have been com
ical under less grievous conditions
She knew with vague definiteness
that death was near. perhaps unavoid'
able, and It had never occurred to her
that she or any other person on board
need feel any concern about the view
entertained by Liverpool as to their
fate. Before she could frame reply
however, Hozier seemed to recover
his faculties. He stood up, walked
unaided to the side Of the ship and
glanced ahead.
Shouldn't We try to lower a boat
sir?" he asked instantly.
"Wot's the user growled Coke
zoos goin' to lower boats while them
blighters on the island are pumpin
lead into usf And wot good are the
boats wen they're lowered? They've
been drilled full
!: ! ! ! !: ! J; !: !: !: !:
A Of holes. You
might as well try
n to float sieve"
~ @AH "Are none OF
A5 ~FG the boats sea
~1 AylE worthy"
| H~ IHya 'Not one. They
AN-\N are knocked to
& pieces. Sorry fol
| " M you. Miss YOrke
/kH " Rut we're n