Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1911-07-03
Before Night
BY D. e. Dermody.
Copyrighted, 1910. by The Pearson
Publishing Co.
BY D. E. Dermody.

| toiu mdo ullOCl
tant from the scene of the collision,
| and his instructions to the first officer,
| in charge of the boats, was to sight
the shore, which would be a straight,
| rocky coast, impossible of landing, and
then lead southwark to Eureka. The
captain himself was in charge of the
RATS, the more dangerous detachment
Of the fugitive feet. An attempt to
tow these was found to be impractic-
able owing to the increasing velocity
of the headwind. The two RATS were
dashed together, and fast drifted
farther out to sea- And then. with the
variableness of the weather, character
istic of the northern Pacific coast of
the United States, great gale came
on swiftly-the fog-calm had been its
sure harbinger-which in the murk of
evening tore the RATS apart and sent
them scattered and wallowing into the
black abyss Of the South.
Sometime during the night, John,
one arm hooked under q chain flashing
for holding on and lacerated almost to
the bone by the twisting and pitching
of the loosely wrought catamaran. the
other arm clasping the little girl to
his breast with a grip of locked steel,
tried TO have speech with the third Of
f1cer, who was in charge of that par
ticular raft. He could get no answer
In the morning. six out of the eighteen
men who had taken refuge on the raft
were missing, the mate among them.
About ten o'clock in the forenoon, the
castaways were picked up by a tug
from San Francisco harbor that had
come out In search Of them. The cap
tain's raft was never found.
Receiving orders at San Francisco to
report for duty to the commander Of
the torpedo flotilla at San Diego, John
took the waif that he had rescued with
him. Subsequently. he made a half
hearted, far from diligent, inquiry
about her people. She was not booked
at San Diego or San Francisco, and
the one surviving passenger of the
SOlcitO whom he contrived to interview
explained this by the statement that
she was second-class, child's rate fare.
In the end, John laid the JUNCTION to
his soul that her folks would seek her
out; but in that same soul, though he
would not admit It even to himself, he
treasured the certainty that they
would assume her to be one of the
fifty-seven that were lost Later he
paid large fees to a lawyer to prove
her dependency in order that he might
legally adopt her, which in time he did.
His conscience was further eased by
the conviction that her mother was
dead. She had gone away-way; away
way -way-way-
Tears welled into Johns eyes when
he thought like that
OF the child herself he inquired
fully, but could never learn from her
more than that her name was 'Mawg-
wet" and that her age was "Nearwy
Fee" And little Margaret became the
apple of his eye, the star of his hope,
the flower of his life, watered by the
opened f1oodgates of a strong soul that
had been bubbling nigh 10 bursting
these several years. He installed her
in friends home in San Diego, and
that house became shrine. which
daily, whenever possible, he visited
and there committed idolatry.
On representations made by his for
mer shipmates on the Busy, the naval
authorities instituted an investigation
touching Johns conduct on the occa-
sion of the blowing up of the torpedo
boat, and deciding II to be case Of
official extraordinary heroism," he
was rewarded, after having been found
qualified by examination, with a boat
SWANS warrant. A few months pre-
viously the promotion would have
brought him no Joy, but now he
thought of little Margaret, and his
heart pounded. He could dress her like
a young princess; he could give her
all that such as she should have; he
ontt1I ad, IN hnr rroolya Iady nf hnr
I'm an officer, Marble Chat was his
pet nickname for herr; your daddy Is
going to wear a sword" he exulted, as
he galloped her cock-horse on his knee.
Margaret probably did not know the
difference between an officer and a
Brownie hobgoblin, but she understood
that 1t was something which made her
guardian glad, so she twined her arms
around his neck, kissed him under his
lovelock and whispered. 'Ps dwad."
My angel-my little Marlie!" he
oreathed hoarsely, shutting her on his
breast in frenzy Of tenderness, in
sanely striving to draw her to him
more closely than materialistic laws
allow
Johns second chance at happiness
This first was his marriage with janet
lasted something longer than the
other. For two years, during which he
remained on the torpedo boats and
spent the greater portion of the year.
round at San Diego, he dwelt in
One only cloud marred
his summer sky; Margaret did not
grow strong as fast as he had hoped
that love and care would make her.
The hours not spent in her presence
were golden with thoughts of her and
with planning for her future. Then
came the day of retribution for all that
had gone before, and desolation In
finite. His boat was at the summer
resort of Catalina Island, thirty miles
from the mainland, when boy from
the wireless station brought the mes
sage that broke his stout heart:
Margaret dangerously i'll. You
must get here before night to see
her alive.
o Henry.
Even then he did not know that be- |
fore night not only would his house |
Of joy fall down-it had fallen already |
with the message, for this thing he |
had feared before-but that all the l
fabric of his pride and superstrength
was to crash about him.
Obtaining permission from his COM
he caught the first passenger