The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1911-11-18

cropped peppelanu-SdlJ mar, Shaggy
Eyebrows and mustache, shrewd brown
eyes, large, lopsided nose, and
cheeks the color of raw beef. He paced /
the deck, his hands behind his back,
until we we're assembled; then faced
.us while the mate read the ship S
Iarticles
was more taken up with the cap
'tain's personality than with the read |
ing, so my recollections of the articles |
are vague Peters noticed them more |
than | did He hesitated before sign |
ing them, as all of us we're presently |
required to do.
"Of all the ridiculous rot!" he burst |
out as we left the after-deck Did you
ever hear anything like it? Mutiny, |
manacles, confinement on bread and
water, the power of life and death
Why, darn it! this ships worse than
Roman galley!"
. Barely had we returned to our hay
, when we were ordered below for sup
plies-straw mattresses, shoddy blan
kets, tin cups and plates. We carried
/ our bedding to the bull-pushers' room
81 and set to making up our hunks, Pc
, ters grumbling, meanwhile because
. there were no chambermaids. Sud
denly he gave a cry.
t 81 don't sleep here!" he exclaimed,
5 pointing at something that was prom.
1 enading upon the wall It's occupied
l already"
= That was enough for us. Retreating
t to the deck, we resumed our places on
Y the hay.
2 Boston Light came abeam and drop
i ped astern. The sun scorched down
:. relentlessly. We moped and mopped
and wondered what was coming next.
4 1t proved to be the thing that they
n called dinner-greasy, dirty, lukewarm
S soup and an unsightly mess of stringy
/ beef. A red-faced, knob-headed man,
S who told us with engaging frankness
t that he had deserted from the navy,
e burst into oaths mysterious and
4 strange, at sight of it; and a half
starved-looking little Irishman named
" Jerry Murphy, who sat near me,
J. abandoned hope of nourishment after
n few half-hearted efforts, and with a
wis full look set down his cup and
n plate. He was a withered, thin-haired
little pei .on-a rind of man-out of
e whom the say Celtic spirit must have
h been squeezed drop by drop, fancied,
in the press of some brutal inevitable
id circumstance, until here was left only
the shadow of a twinkle in the depre-
T. eating eyes.
II IF We won't be wantin that bread
- said Jerry as we arose.
e NO" | said. Help yourself"
e He did so eagerly.
l. On deck the heat was undated. We
# sat and mopped our brows. There was
:, a sadly ruminative look in my com
e panions eyes
/ It's out of the question to try to
r live on that stuff, he declared after Il
e time. Let's go to the purser and see
r if we can't arrange for special grub
Accordingly we went
+ Had we known that the company
r had lad i'm up" for doing just the
l. thing we wanted him to do we might
e have spared ourselves the trouble of
?, visiting the purser.
j He greeted our proposal with rau-
y cOus cockney laughter and bad Ian
guage, which rose from a shriveled,
greedy heart. The greed shone in his
- little eyes as we exhibited money that
he itched to take
i Peters is patient with the patience
S of most large, powerful men, but the
p Ipursers language sorely tried him.
t "Shut up!" he ordered suddenly.
You are a barnacle and when you
o speak | want to scrape you OFF,"
With that we retired majestically to
4 the sweltering, malodrous region of
l. the hay.
?, Gee! doesn't that water look fine!"
Z sighed Peters, gazing wistfully at the
II glittering sea. Then after a pause: -
v, wish we had gone TO New York and
st taken a minimum rate on one of the
greyhounds."
Ie l wished so, too, but did not say so.
is Peters grew restless.
n, Come on" he said, rising; lets go
1t back and look at the wake"
Repairing to the deserted after-deck,
,e we leaned upon the rail and stared
ie into the froth of cream and green
re dashed up by the screws. Boston
y, Light showed as a pin-point miles
N astern on the horizon; back of it a
smoky streak indicated the position of
the city.
s Say said Peters after a time
Of take these"
What for?" / asked as | Mechanic
~ ally accepted the watch and pocket
at book he offered me.