Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-01-11

missed all the fun and only had the
shaking, and I'm afraid we shall find
them in baddish preservation"
CHAPTER XIV.
-, SaIvaeed.
Day was lit by this time and the
chill had slipped away, and the air
was already beginning to warm up
toward that baking temperature on
which the edge Of the Sahara rests
SO much of it's evil reputation.
The battle had been fought in val
lev of the dunes, and the vanquished
tribesmen had scattered away In the
direction of their villages, north, east
and south. To the west, over a low
line of hummocks lay the lagoon.
Shall we find the Wangaroo still
there" wondered the kaid.
Don't know" said Sir George.
These gentry may have captured her.
or at least driven her away to sea-
She'll be there and untaken," said
Captain Kettle shortly. II left McTodd
in charge, sir, and though he may have
failings, and be argumentative when
he's near drink, when 1t comes to
looking after the interest Of the owner
who pays him. Mr.. McTodd is as eff
cient as the king Of England"
But in spite Of these confident
words, anxiety presently crept into
Captain Kettles eyes. eve should
have raised her mast trucks before
this above those sand hills he told
himself. And presently, when he could
hold in his patience no longer. he
clapped the sharp heels Of his stirrup
irons into the ribs of the black stni-
lion, and galloped to the crest. The
lagoon lay clear before him. with the
spouting reefs and islets at it's farther
side The anchorage was deserted.
"My great James, muttered Cap.
tain Kettle. where's my ship. and
what do do next?"
But even as he stood there. stiff
little mounted figure standing out
clearly against the farther dunes, he
had been seen by some sharp observer.
and after preliminary huskiness. the
deep boom of the Wangaroo's enor'
nous siren hummed through the air,
away on his left hand.
He turned sharply. Yes, there she
was, the little beauty, down at the
other end of the lagoon. close. in fact.
to the Norman Towers. But in the
name of wonder what was this? Foam
dubbed from her tail and lay round
her in a hoary ring. Her engines were
running, and yet she did not appear to
move. Aground? No chance of 1t. He
had sounded every bit Of the lagoon
at that end. and was prepared to,swear
before a board of trade inquiry that
-
fathoms of water under her bottom.
He forced the black horse down the
slope, and then galloped south along
the hard beach, waving the others to
follow him. E. .,.a ..r -r-
Half mile farther on. when he had
got the steamboats, clear Of one an
other, he saw why the Wangaroo did
not move ahead. She was tethered by
heavy wire hawser. The other end
of. the wire, which was as taut as an
iron bar, led in through one of the
Norman Towers hawse-pipes. 1t was
obvious she was trying to tow. It was
equally obvious she could not do it,
and Captain Kettle cursed Mr.. Neil
Angus McTodd, unqualified second en-
gineer and acting captain of the
Kangaroo, with maritime point and
fluency. ..
"McTodd's polished his old coffee
mill OF an engine till he thinks there's
no limit to her power" Kettle told
himself, land now he's trying to pull
a steamboat full Of dead weight. and
anyway six times our size. through
what practically amounts to dock
wall" ..s
A moment later he pulled I'D sharply
and took a quick cross-bearing Of the
Norman Towers foremost against 4
cleft of the chocolate colored rock be-
hind. "By the living James" he cried.
"he's budged her She's moving ahead
The Berber kaid pulled uD along
side him 81 thought you and McTodd
decided that the local ragamuffins had
built that ship up inside a coffer-dam
that weighed about a million tons Of
solid stone?"
81 saw the stone myself" said Ket-
tie shortly and looked at his watch.
cts bang on the top of high water
this minute, and now they've got a
move on her she's coming Oft like n
bar pulled through a key Of tallow.
Look at those links of cable hopDing
in through her port hawse-pipe. Macs
laid out an anchor ahead and he's
heaving on that as well as with the
old girls own steam on her own
windlass. You can see the leak Of it
now through the escape. Great James!
why can't find boat?''
But the engineer in charge Of the
salvage operations was not the man
to break off just then for the mere
pleasure of being superseded by his
superior officer. Mr.. McTodd stood on
the forecastle of the Norman Towers
enjoying himself hugely.
He was wet through and dripped
brine as he stood: his overalls were
smeared with every variety Of sea i'm
purity from black grease to the red
rust of iron. There was seaweed in his
beard and an oozy red cut on the
bridge of his nose He exuded mixed
aroma of whisky, competency, and
authority, and from Trethewy. the
mate on the Wangaroo's upper bridge
to the meanest no-nation deck-hand
awaiting orders on the Norman
Towers, all within ear-shot were ready
to Jump to do his bidding.
Inch by inch, and then foot by foot,
the Norman Towers hove up to her
anchor, and the windlass engines.