The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-09-13
CHAPTER XVIII.

CHAPTER XVIII.
 In Which ! Rescue the Cook. ET@l @lHE boat dropped into. the cup
 of a sea, rose level with the.
 Af rail the next instant and toss
 ed perilously. saw the two , women huddled in the bottom of her. their eyes covered; saw Williams climbing over them and easing her at the bo5vlfne Then as we seized the next instant of the rhythm and hauled her alongside Paterson made leap and went aboard her, and Williams scrambled back once more across the two nudd1ed forms I saw him wrench at the engine crank and heard the spit ting chlg of the little motor. They fell off in the seaway, Peterson hold ing her with an oar as he could till the screws caught Then saw her of. passing out of the beam of our searchlighf, so shat it seemed to me I he'd said goodby to Helena forever.
 We who remained had no davits to aid us and must launch by hand. For a moment [ stood and made my plans. First called to Willy, our deck hand. -e hos hHa tEe dinghy now astern some Thsh1on. e.-Are you ready ?" demand- ed But the next moment I heard his calL astern and knew that. monkey like. he had got her over and was aboard her somehow.
 New, boys, said I, "cone here and shake hands with Black Bart" They came, their serious eyes turned up to me And never has deeper. emotion seized me than as felt, their. young hands in mine. We said nothing.
 Now, bear hand there, you, Jeanr' pulled open the gate of the raik and ran out the landing stage on which the flat bottpmed skin sat. With an oar pushed 1t across at right angles as nearly as possible when she cleared. Quick! Get in, both of you, called. I was holding thesinboard end of the plank ainderya wedged oar shaft, thrust, beloWg the sill Of the forward cabin. door. They scrambled out and in, Jean grasping the blight of tlie painter that handed him and passing itaoxer the raai.
 Now look out, called and drop ped the landing stage to meet the swell of the next wave They. slid, tilted, righted rose higEand held The next moment I sprang, fell into the sea, was caught by the collar as my hand grasp ed the cockpit coaming, and so slid in. somehoW. over tie end deck. and caught the end of the painter from Johns hand and cast her free
 The drift carried us off atsonce, and the next wave almost hid the hull. of the Belle Helene. I knew at once we were poweriess and that our one hope lay in dIIfting ashore. There is mo worse seaaboat than low. flat dncking boat tleGAed though she be-. and of good eoaIning for she butts into and does not rise to sea But now [ tIlan1ssd my star one thing only was in our faEorss We rolled like a log, al ready ha1fsflIiI of water. bIl we doated because in each end of our skff was a big empty tin air tank, put there in spite of the laughing protest of the builder. who said no room was left for decoys under the decks. Just now those tin cans were worth more than many duck decoys-
 Keep down. ordered. stAnd hold on!" The boys obeyed me [ could see their gaze bent on me ns the source ef their hope their reliance Jimmy was now free from the first violence of the seasickness, but I saw Jeanis hand on his arm
 Gee,' I heard the latter 1nutter as the first sea crossed under us Dat was peaeh. I took heart myself, 4o- we lived that one through .sBaiIt''. I ordered, and they took t11eir cups to E. while ' did sil could with the long punt paddle to make some sort of course. Now and then the blazing trail of the Belle Helene'ss searchlight swung across as we rolled To leave us the next instant in bIackmess. As the seas permitted. we could see her, rid ing and rocking sometimes. alieht from stem to stern and making q gal liant fight for her life. as were we all.
 So long as the rollers came in oily and black we did well, but where the top of one broke unter us we sank deep into the white foam that had no carrying power. and our cockpit filled so that we all sat in water Only the tanks held us, 1oglike. and we bailed and paddled-i And after they saw we did not sink, my hardy bullies, perhaps il. the ignorance of youth and boys confdenee that a boy and water are friends, began to shout aloud. We waIlpWed on.
 r9o sound came to us from either of th6 other boats. and now. very quickly. 1t seemed. we came at the edge Of the surf.
 
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