Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1915-12-28
bane and Honolulu.

For a lew days IL was satisfying
enough to pick up the lost ends of the
worlds stale news. While I had been
marking time, the world had been
marching. hundred paragraphs had
been lived into history.
! On the fourth day slender thread
of smoke, rose over the western hori
zon and grew into clean-paintedean
white-cabined steamer.
AS the gap closed Whitehead men,
even women, stood out against the
deck rail- Then, with much signaling
from the halyards, the two vessels
had converse of which was the OBJ
ject, and, I with my chest went over
the side. Y ~ -
l told the steamers purser as much
of my story as had I told on the
Gretchen and when that evening ap-
peared p the captains table trans
formed by bathing in a real tub and
submission to real razor in the
hands of barber, it was to find that
my story had travelled forward and
aft.
st. Paul was a very good man. He
had piety and feryer, but also, in :.
superior and godly fashion, he was a
man of the world. Perhaps he gained I.
firmer grip on his followers by reas-
on of his ability to say Il have been
twice stoned and thrice shipwrecked."
had been only once shipwrecked, yet
ready-made audience awaited enter
tainment.
1t was on the second afternoon that
Captain Keller appeared in the smoke
room He was man Of about my own
build and almost as bronzed, but fair
haired, and his carriage proclaimed
the soldier before he introduced him.
self.
was idly enjoying the comfor. Of
wicker chairs and windows which
framed white decks and dancing seas
The few other occupants Of the place
were lounging about in pongee and
linen, chatting lazily of those things
which make talk among men coming
out of the east-tribal risings in Java
the late race meet In Melbourne. The
military looking young man droppe,
into a seat at my table and signalled
F., to the spotless Jap who affiliated as
smoke room steward.
LEFT you alone yesterday" he be-
gan, by way Of introduction. II saw
you didn't relish being treated like
the newest and strangest animal il:
captivity. I take it they're accus
toned to you now. What win you
have?"
Brandy and soda" decided. Then
I added: Perhaps, after being re-
cued, I ought to make myself more
volatile and amusing, but the fact is
I'm readjusting. Did you ever hap
pen to spend six months on an undis-
covered cannibal island?"
He shook his head and laughed
with a pleasant CLEAN of strong, reg
ular teeth.
"Then," I assured him, 'tyou don't
understand the desire to sit still for
a while. You don't understand the
sheer wonder of a soft chair, white
woodwork, the regular throb of en-
gines, and the sight Of white clad
men and clean, well dressed women.
Look there" held out my copper
colored forearm.
He smiled again and nodded. 'I'm
going back to the States" he said,
latter three years in the islands,
capped with two months in India and
Australia. "Pm Keller Of the TWEEN
ty-Third."
He paused, then went on in a mat
ter-of-fact way: 1--WE been in the jun
gle three months on end. know
what 1t means. This is my second
term of Philippine service, and it's
the first time I've gone home quite
sane. After the first three years the
melancholia had me. When the trans
port left Manila, and thought of the
three weeks before I could see the
Golden Gate it took three good hus'
kies to keep me from jumping over
board.
ut touches one here" with finger
at his temple,- "and know some fell
lows who weren't stopped in time.
One must readjust slowly"
NODDED, putting with sense of SUI
'preme luxury at the Cairene cigarette
he had offered me, and listening to
the tinkle of ice in my tall glass.
There were some days of almos!
pure creature contentment, and as We
sat under deck-awnings or burned CT
CARS in the smoke-room our acQuain.
lance ripened to intimacy.
The engines, with their muffled
throb, were churning out their fifteen
knots an hour and the timbers creak
ed their complaint to the rise and fail
OF the PROV. Sometimes at night we
hung elbow to elbow over the after
rail, watching the broken phosphorus
Of the wake.
We were standing so on the night
before reaching Honolulu, where Kel-
Ter was to spend few days while !
made immediate connection for the
States. He was telling me many
things about himself. There was
baby, born after he had left Ameri.
ca, now old enough to chatter and do
u u a. "a