Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1911-02-24
The DIAMOND SHIP
MAX PEMBERTON
Author Of Doctor Xavier" THE Hundred Days" etc
Copyright by n Appleton & Co
CHAPTER XVI.

Cain, the quartermaster, who was q
the wheel, for a collier he had seer
some months back at Cardiff.
Size new a Brazilian flag, sir, anc
carried a Russian skipper what had {
picture nose," said he cheerily enough
Il remember the boys said that som
one tattoed q bit OF a circus scene or
his flgurehead when he was took IL
drink at Rio last trip. I'd have knowec
the ship anywheres by that dolls houst
abaft the funnel. Leastwise, IL there
amt two OF 'em, she's the same"
His logic was commendable, n We
questioned him.
Had she any arms, Cain?"
Nothing that I see, sir, saving the
shovels."
And you didn't know where she was
bound to?"
They gave It as Rio, sir. 1 had a bit
Of a tumble-to with a Portuguese stew
ard Of theirs, and / give him Port Ar
thur for himself. 'You come out to
RIo,' says he. and I'll d-n we'll pull
your nose!' 1t seemed to me a Ions
way to go for the job, sir, and that
could get IL done cheaper at home. ]
never see him again. and next day the
ship sailed"
We laughed at his manne Of telling
1t, but the news proved acceptable
enough, / had already come to a de-
termination, and this I communicated
Immediately to Larry.
I'VE mus stop them" I said, IF we
are TO save Joan Fordibras; that
steamer must not put her cargo on the
deck Of the Diamond Ship. The risk is
small enough, captain. / think that a
signal will do tiff not q signal then
a gunshot, anyway. Let us put 1T to
the proof. The success or failure will
mean more than any CO you imagine"
He obeyed me without question, and
we steamed straight for the tramp,
steering such a course that we yer
took her on the port-quarter, n so
were difficult to come at by any for
ward gun, should she carry one. My
own impression IA that she did not.
Her safety from inquisitional officers
in port would be better assured by the
normal practice Of ocean-going cargo
boats. l believed that the quartermas-
ter had told us the truth, n upon
that supposition / acted.
Signal to her to bring to, Larry!'
I said. and he assented Immediately.
1t was pretty to see u flags iut-
tertng upon the breeze OF morning, and
TO watch the commotion upon the deck
OF the tramp. We knew that she had
sighted US almost as soon as we set
u engines going. The far horizon
disclosed no trace OF the Diamond Ship.
We two appeared alone in all that
vista Of the rolling waters.
Now tina ship answered ~ demand
ing our name and our business. We
could make out the figures Of two or
three men upon her bridge; but the
crew appeared an unusually small one,
n the aft decks were completely de-
serted. To their signal. we replied i'm
m~ediately:
Q) That Imroth was flying from
British warships.
CD That their own safety depended
upon their immediate submission.
Not the whole truth, perhaps, and
yet. as I hoped, truth enough. 1t had
been In my mind all along that the
government would send ct least a pa
t-ci. &c the seas ( had named. / could
not believe that, after my revelations,
ports would not be watched. So
signalled this message and waited with
not a little expectation for an answer.
To my establishment, their captains
reply was TO ask me TO GO aboard.
meaning, Of course, the master Of the
yacht.
Come with me, Timothy" said 1 to
McShanus; don't talk about pistols,
man! Larry will stand by for danger.
We could sink them IN five minutes IL
we had h mind. It's as safe as Rot
ten Row.
mo safe place at all for a man who
is susceptible to woman's beauty. Go
aboard, Fan, my bhoy; I'll take your
word for Ii when 7 come hacLin
We put out a gangway and lowered
the lifeboat from the starboard davits.
The collier, lying some 200 PAGES from
our lows. let down a pilots ladder for
me, n / caught II as 1t swung, and
climbed to her decks. Far down below
ma nnU thn nnrfIv Ttvnnfhry N clIaI 80
II | thought he was a bird. I left him,
full of strange oaths, In the boat and
presented myself Immediately to the
captain OF the steamer.
DO o speak English?" I asked.
He shook his head and said Mitch
evo!" empllatically.
a phrase In German, however, OBJ
tanned an immediate answer. I per-
ceived him to be a coarsely built man
OF some 80 years OF age, his nose
Scared roughly by a seaman's needle.
as the Quartermaster Cain had told
me, and his manner as threatening and
full of buster as his master, Imroth,
could have wished.
Whats your business with me ?" he
asked. while his clumsy fingers fondled
a revolver he carried in his breeches
pocket.
ITO keep your neck out of the moose
said !. without any preface E.s
Your game Is up and Val Tmroth
taken. That's what brought me here!"
He spat on the deck and called a
mate to him-another Russian no more
beautiful than he.
whats this man to me?' the cap
tain asked. Am l his servant?''
Undoubtedly, since you carry coal
to his ship"
Suppose l tell you to mind your own
business 2"
Il am going to give you 10 minutes.
II you are not steaming eastward at
the end OF that time. / promise you
that / Will most certainly send you to
the bottom. Reject upon 1t calmly.
You cannot help Imroth, but may save
yourselves. I'll tell you something else.
II o have any coa to sell, I am a
buyer. Now, do not finger that pistol
or yours, for IL might go Off, and as
cure as Gods In heaven, II it did, this
crew would be on the floor OF the At
lantic in less than five minutes. Rattle
your senses my man, and speak up.
II yonder warship spies us out, she'll
not deal SO tenderly with you. What Is
Imroth to you. and why should you sell
your liberty for him? Come, think OF
itl I am not a patient man. but I will
give you time enough not to make a
fool OF yourself
They were brazen words, upon my
life! When l pointed westward to O
loom OF smoke upon the horizon scarce
ly bigger than a mans hand-when ]