Las Vegas optic., 1912-10-23

~waterl" he screeched. 'waterl
Are you goin' to leave me, you d--n
cowards?"-
For Heaven sakesl" cried Burgess.
clutching the rail. what's that?"
Ellery answered him. It's one of
them. he said. and his voice sounded
odd in his own ears. "It's one Of the
crew"
The minister turned. "Hushi" he
called. In answer to the voice, hush!
I'll bring you water in a minute. Bur
CESS" he added. you and the rest go
ashore. / shall stay"
You'll stay? You'll stay? With
that? You're crazy as loon. Don't
be fool, mani Come on! Wen send
the doctor and somebody else-some
one that's had 1t, maybe, OF amt
afraid. am and I'm goin'. Don't be
a fool"
Thoph. from the dory. shouted to
know what was the matter. Ellery
climbed the ladder to the deck and
walked over to the rail. AS he ap-
preached. Burgess fell back few feet.
s'Thoph." said the minister. address
ing the pair in the dory, there is a
sick man down in the forecastle. He
has been alone there for hours, l sup
pose. certainly since his shipmates ran
away. If he is left longer without
help. he viii surely die. Some one
must stay with him. You and the rest
row ashore and get the doctor and
whoever else you can. I'll stay here
till they come"
Thcph and his companions set up a
storm of protest. 1t was foolish, 1t
was crazy, the man would die anyhow,
and so on. They begged the minister
to come with them. But he was firm.
The oars dipped, bent, and the dory
moved of. The sound of the creaking
thole pins shot a chill through Ellery's
veins. The water butts stood amid
ships. not far from the open door of
the galley. Entering the latter he
found an empty saucepan This he
filed from the cask. and then, with it
in his hand, turned toward the black
hatchway. Here was the greatest test
of his courage. To descend that lad
der. approach that bunk, and touch
the terrible creature in it, these were
the tasks he had set himself to do, but
could he?
The sick man was raving in delirium
when he reached him, but the sound
of the water tapping the sides of the
saucepan brought him to himself. He
seized Ellery by the arm and drank
and drank. When at last he desisted,
the pan was half empty.
The minister laid him gently back in
the bunk and stepped to the foot of
the ladder for breath. This made him
think of the necessity for air in the
place and he remembered the little
window. It was tightly closed and
rusted fast. He went up to the deck,
found a marlin spike, and, returning,
broke the glass. A sharp, cold
draught swept through the forecastle.
stirring the garments hanging on the
nails.
An hour later. two dories bumped
against the side of the San Jose. Men,
talking in low tones. climbed over the
rail. Burgess was one of them:
ashamed of his panic, he had returned
to assist the others in bringing the
brigantine into safer anchorage by
the inlet
DR.. Parker, very grave but business
like, reached the deck among the first.
Mr.. Ellery." he shouted, where
are you?"
The minister's head and shoulders
appeared at the forecastle companion.
Here I am, doctor" he said. "Will
you come DOWN."
The doctor made no answer in
words, but he hurried briskly across
the deck. One man, Ebenezer Capen,
an old fisherman and ex-whaler from
East Trumet, started to follow him,
but he was the only one. The others
waited, with scared faces, by the rail.
Get her under way and inshore as