The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1915-03-16

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drew closer. the sail was taken
In and the mast unstepped. Oars
were shipped, and its occupants
waited for us to heave to and
take them aboard.
Smoke, who had descended to
1 the deck and was now standing
by my side. began TO chuckle in
a significant way. ! looked at
him inquiringly.
Talk OF a mess!" he giggled.
Whats wrong?" demanded.
Again he chuckled.
Don't you see there. In the
stern-sheets. on the bottom. May
never shoot a seal again II that
amt woman!"
| | looked closely. but was not
sure until EXPLANATIONS broke out
on all sides. The boat contained
four men. and its fifth occupant
was certainly woman. We were
agog with excitement, all except
Wolf Larsen, who was too evil
IDENTIFY disappointed In that Ii
was not his own boat with the
two victims of his malice.
We ran down the flying jib,i
hauled the iib-sheets to windward
and the main sheet flat, and came
up into the wind. The oars
struck the water, and with few
strokes the boat was alongside.
i now caught my first fair glimpse
OF the woman. She was wrapped
in long ulster. for the morning
was raw, and | could see moth
ing but her face and a mass of
light brown hair escaping from
under the seaman's cap on her
head. The eyes were large and
brown and lustrous, the mouth
sweet and sensitive, and the face
itself a delicate oval, though sun
and exposure to briny wind had
burnt the face scarlet.
| She seemed to me like a being
from another world. l was aware
OF hungry outreaching for her..
as OF a starving man for bread.
But then. ! had not seen woman
for very long time. know that
] was lost In a great wonder, al
most stupor, this, then. was a
woman?-so that forgot myself
and my mates duties. and took
no part in helping the newcom-
ers aboard. For when one of the
sailors lifted her into Wolf Lar
sens down-stretched arms, she
looked up into our curious faces
and smiled amusedly and sweetly,
as only woman can smile, and
as | had seen no one smile for so
long that l had forgotten such
smiles existed.
mr.. Van Weyden!"
Wolf Larsen's voice brought
me sharply back to myself.
"Will you take the lady below
and see to her comfort? Make
up that spare port cabin. Put
Cooky to work on II. And see
what You can do for that face.
It's burned badly"
He turned brusquely away from
us and began to question the new
men. The boat was cast adrift,
though one OF them called 1t a
"bloody shame" with Yokohama
SO near.
| found myself strangely afraid
of this woman l was escorting
aft. Also | was awkward. II
seemed to me that l was realiz-
ing for the first time what a deli
cate, fragile creature a woman is;
and as | caught her arm to help
her down the companion stairs,
| was startled by its smallness
and softness. Indeed, she was a
slender, delicate woman as woman
J go, but to me she was so ethere-
ally slender and delicate that 1
was quite prepared for her arm
to crumble in my grasp. All this,
In frankness, to show my first
impression, after long denial, of
women in general and of Maud
Brewster in particular.
mo need to go to any great
trouble for me-" she protested,
when l had seated her in Wolf
Larsen's armchair, which l had
dragged hastily from his cabin.
The men were looking for land
at any moment this morning, and
the vessel should be in by night;
don't you think so?"
Her simple faith in the immedi-
ate future took me aback. How
could ! explain to her the situa-
ton, the strange man who stalked
the sea like Destiny, all that 1t
had taken me months to learn? |
But / answered honestly:
"If it were any other captain |
except ours, / should say you
would be ashore In Yokohama to-
morrow. But our captain is a |
strange man, and / beg of you to
be prepared for anything, under
stand?-for anything"
Il confess / hardly do I'M
derstand," she hesitated, a per-
turbed but not frightened express
sion in her eyes. '.Or is IL a mis-
conception OF mine that ship
wrecked people are always shown
every consideration? This Is such |
a little thing, you know. We are
SO close to land"
"Candidly, do not know" Il
strove to reassure her. II wished |
merely to prepare you for the
worst, IL the worst is to come. |
This man, this captain, is a brute, |
a demon, and one can never tell
what will be his next fantastic |
act"