Arizona republican., 1911-07-02
Before Night
BY D. E. Dermody.
Copyrighted. 1910, by The Pearson
Publishing Co.

At his instigation, she lured Jane to
the house on a Sunday, when Stork-
ley was absent at a lodge picnic; and
JOhnH coming out of hiking, dramat-
ically repented of his misdeeds on the
night that he learned other marriage.
On his knees before her, he promised
never to touch liquor again. But, bar
barian-like. in the same breath, he re-
newed his VOW of eternal hatred for
her husband.
You don't love him., Jane" he Ia
mented, and he won't treat you right
/ hope he may die, and then I'll get
you"
Strangely when two months later
his vessel returned TO San Pedro, he
learned that his evil wish had been
granted. StOrkley had resumed his
job on the breakwater and had been
killed by a topping stone of many tons.
Not being OF the fiber that holds deli
cate views about SUCH things, John
wasted no thought on the CHASTITY coin
cidence of his wish and its fulfilment
He fastened to Jane, oy erwhelmed her
with his masterful personality, and be-
fore his ship sailed again he had
known a week of marital happiness.
At Mare Island Navy Yard he was
drafted to service on torpedo boat
cruising TO Alaska, and about six
months later he found himself at the
home station of the torpedo fleet in
San Diego Harbor. He obtained leave
and hurried to VISIT his wife, He
found her in bed, pale and hollow
eyed, with her mother in attendance.
As he bent over and kissed her sad
mouth he heard a sound like the squeal
OF rat, and looked about inQuiringly
As he looked at jane again she turned
away from him, but mot before he de-
tected a terror in her hollow eyes. The
rat squeaked again. His heart ham
mered resoundingly land a blight came
into his own eyes rs he reached over
the crumpled form of his wife and
lifted the coverlid beyond her. A tiny
pink ball, that undpr his misted stare
resolved itself into the caricature of a
human face, lay inert on James arm
and blinked up at, him. He at once
saw that il was tbs face Of Jim Stork-
ley; for even in that seemingly shape
less little lump OF humanity he dis
cerned distinctly the square forehead,
the thin lips and the protruding chin
of his ancient enemy.
He stood up. Mother!" he called
childishly
Mrs. Whylie, who had been watching
him through a crack of the kitchen
door, came out, Vliping her eyes on her
apron. He appeared not to have
wanted her, for he took up his hat
and stumbled toward the door without
looking at her. The old lady ran and
grabbed him 'Johni" she wept
He turned and took her in his arms,
kissed her passionately, showed her vio-
lently from him and went out They
did not hear of him again for years.
He had deserted the half of his life
that was love for the half that was
hate, unable to- bring himself to father
the babe of MS dead but unforgiven
enemy.
SomethingFOver two years after John
deserted his wife and home, the tor
pedo boat Busy. on her way from
Seattle to San Francisco, was cauti-
ously steanri1g through dense day fog
off the northern coast of California
sounding her shrill whistle at thirty
second intervals. The little vessel that
often travelled at twenty knots an hour
was barely making eight. The quar-
.ermaster- at the wheel and Lieutenant
Wicker, commanding, on the bridge,
simultaneously exclaimed at hearing
he long blast of a siren close upon
them ahead
Hard a-port," directed the lieuten-
ant calmly.
Somebody on the other Sip blum
lered. The exact location Of sound in
iog is hard TO determine. As the little
Busy swung swiftly to the right, the
high Write wall of a steamers hull,
If the, color of the fog, doomed up d.
rectly in her path and scarcely a hun
1red feet distant. The quartermaster,
Of his own initiative, was reversing
the helm as the captain gave the order,
twirling the wheel rapidly to star
board. but the vancouver was too late.
The hull of a torpedo boat is but a
thin shell of steel. The sharp bow Of
the Busy, ramming the bow OF the
tast-swinging passenger boat, crumpled
up HE a crushed box of cardboard. II
was inevitable that the Busy should go
down under any circumstances, but
ordinarily all hands might have been
sayed and the other vessel damaged
but slightly. But torpedo boats usually
carry in their forward hold certain
potentialities of destruction that must
be guarded like invalids in a bleak
cline. Under the forecastle of the
Busy were five "warheads." such as in
time of war are kept inserted in the
noses Of torpedoes, and which are ex-
ploded by conclusion when they strike
ths-enemys ship. AS the forward COM
partment crushed in, these detonated.
theoretically, one of them would dis
able a battleship. The forward half
Of the Busy was blown into fragments,
end the mangled stern sank like a
stone anchor Nevertheless, sixteen
out Of the forty-two men aboard man.
aged to gain the water, not including
the commander, who on the bridge
over the forecastle was torn into
atoms. With the aid of ropes, buoys
and life-preservers thrown TO them, the
swimmers reached the deck Of the
larger vessel
The passenger boat was in distress.
Fortunately, the elevated position of
the warheads, coupled with the inter
yention OF the caved-in plates and
packed-in ships gear, reduced the de-
structiveness of the explosion to a min
imum. The upper part of the bow of
the SOlcitO-that was the name of the
passenger steamer-was rent away. but
in still waters the hull would have
shown intact over the water-line. In