Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1913-01-11
cHApTER N-fcontinued.)

CHAPTER N-(Continued)
"'Stand by!' roars Nat It's
squaIl. dead astern and comm abilin!
II take her, Bile. You look out for
them tops'ls.'
$50 Nat grabs the wheel and Bile
tears for'ard and sends the two fo'mast
hands aloft on the jump. Zach was
skipper, but all he done was race
around and boiler and trip over his
own feet. 1t hit 'em fore they got
even one tops1 clewed down. That
one, the foretops1 twas. split to rags.
The main tops1 was set, and when the
squat struck, the rotten old topmast
went by the board 'Kerrash-o!' Course
splinters few like all possessed. and
one of 'em, about a foot long, sailed
past Mats head, where he stood heay-
in his whole weight on the wheel, and
lit right on the pinnacle, smashin' 1t
to matches
'fWeIl, there they was, afioat, but
with their upper riggin' gone and the
compass smashed fat A howlin' moth
wester BLOWN and fog thick as ever
Zach was whimperin', fidgetin' old
woman, Lafayette and Eniulous was
prayin' in the scuppers-and that amt
an exercise they're used to, neither
even Bile was mighty shock up and
worried-he says he was himself. But
Nat Hammond was as cool and re-
freshin' as the bottom OF my we'll up
home.
Then Nat suggests gettin' the spare
ompass and, 10 and behold you! there
want any. Compasses cost money
and moneys made to keep. SO Zach
thinks
so there they was. Wind was fair.
or ought to be, but twas BLOWN hard
and so thick you couldn't hardly see
the jib boom. Zach he wanted to an
Choir. then he didn't, then he did. and
so on Nobody paid much attention
to him.
"'whatn we do. Nat?' says Bile,
He knew who was the real seaman
aboard.
well, If twas me. wouldn't an
Choir till l had to. Prob1y twill fair
off tomorrow, but if it shouldn't, we
might have to lay out here all day
Anyhow, we'd have to wait for full
tide
I'm afraid were off the course
says Bile. else we'd been acrost the
bar by this time
We'll Nat tells him. if we are off
the course and too far inshore, we
would have made the bar-the Bay
port bar-if not the Trumet one. And
If were off the course and too far out.
we'd ought to have deeper water than
five fathom, hadn't we? Course I'm
not sure, but What's that. lands
mann
Three and half, sir says the fell
| Ter with the lead. That showed they
was edgin' in somewheres. Nat he
shifted, for all the world like a dog
catchtn' scent. so Bile declares
Tell you / smell home, says Nat
calm and clipper. and I'd know that
smell If 1 met it in Jericho. Hal
! there she deepens again That was
the bar and we're over it,
The wind had gone down to a stiG
! sailin' breeze, and the old Debby s
slapped along afore it Sometimes
there was twelve foot under her keel
and sometimes eight CT nine. Once
/ twas only seven and g half Zach and
Bile both looked at each other, but
| Nat only smiled.
"'Oh. you can Taught hollers Zach
''Tain't your vessel you're runnin' in
| to danger You amt paid out your
| good money
NAT never answered; but he stopped
smilin'
And all to once the water deep
ened- Hammond swung her, up into
! the wind
| Nov you can anchor says he.
| "'And bout time, too. / guess. says
Bile. 4 cal1ate the shippers right
| This Is Horsefoot and we're right be
tween the shoals Yes, sir, and heal
breakers Lively there!'
They hove over the mudhook ant
! dropped the sails Nat shook hi.
/ head
"Breakers or not,' says he, I tel
/ you I've smelt home for the last hal
hour. Now, by the jumpin' Moses,
can taste IT.,
| And inside Of a couple OF shakes
come the rain II poured for q Will.
| and then the fog cleared. Right across
| their bows was Trumet, with the tow
| clock strikin' ten. Over the fat plac'
between the hills they could see tn.
light on the ocean side And they wa