Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-02-04
CHAPTER iIl-Continued.

When I turned around, a momen,
later. / saw the cabin-boy staggering
to his feet. His face was CHASTITY
white. twitching with suppressed pain
He looked very sick.
well. Leach. are you going for
'ard?" Wolf Larsen asked.
yes, SIR" came the answer of q
spirit cowed.
And your" I was asked.
I'll give you q thousand" I be
gan. but was interrupted.
STOW that! Are you going to take
up your duties as cabin-boy? Or do
have to take you In hand?"
What was to do? To be brutally
beaten. to be killed perhaps, would
not help my cause. l looked steadily
into the cruel. gray eyes. One may
see the soul stir In some mems eyes
but his were bleak and cold and gray
as the sea itself.
"Well?"
"Yes." said.
Say Yes. SIR"
yes, SIR" ! corrected.
What 10 your name?"
Humphrey. sir; Humphrey Van
Weyden."
"Thatn do. Go to the cook and
learn your duties"
And thus It was that passed into q
state of involuntary servitude to Wolf
Larsen. He was stronger than I, that
was all. But 1t was very unreal at the
time. II is no less unreal now that I
look back upon It. 1t will always be to
me a monstrous, Uncomfortable thing,
horrible nightmare.
Hold on. don't 60 yet"
stopped obediently in my walk
toward the galley.
"Johansen, call all hands. Now
that we've everything cleaned up. well
have the funeral and get the decks
cleared of useless lumber"
While Johansen was summoning the
watch below, couple of sailors. under
the captains direction. laid the can
vas-swathed corpse upon hatch-cover.
On either side the deck. against the
rail and bottoms up. were dashed a
number of small boats. Several men
picked up the hatch-cover with its
chastity freight. carried 1t to the lee
side. and rested 1t on the boats, the
feet pointing overheard. To the feet
was attached the sack of coal which
the cook had fetched.
Wolf Larsen stepped up to the
hatch-cover, and all caps came of. I
ran my eyes over them-twenty men
al told. twenty-five including the man
at the wheel and myself. The sailors.
In the main, were English and Scan
dinavian, and their faces seemed
OF the heavy. stolid order. The
hunters. on the other hand. had
stronger and more diversified faces.
with hard lines and the marks OF
the free play of passions. Strange
to say. and noticed 1t at once. Wolf
Larsen's features showed no such evil
stamp. There seemed nothing vicious
in them. could hardly believe-until
the next incident occurred-that It
was the face of man who could be-
have as he had behaved to the cabin
boy.
Il only remember one part of the
service" he said. and that is, And
the body shall be cast into the sea-
So cast 1t in"
He ceased speaking. The men
holding the hatch-cover seemed per.
picked. puzzled no doubt by the brief
ness Of the ceremony. He burst upon
them in q fury.
Lift up that end there, damn you!
What the hell's the matter with your"
They elevated the end Of the hatch.
cover with pitiful haste. and, like a
dog flung oversize. the dead man slid
feet first into the sea. The coal at
his feet dragged him down. He was
gone.
"Johansen." Wolf Larsen said brisk.
ly to the new mate. keep all hands on
deck now they're here. Get In the
topsails and jibs and make a good Job
OF 1t. We're In for q sou'easter. Bet
ter reef the jib and mainsail, too.
while you're about It.
Then It was that the cruelty of the
sea. its relentlessness and awfulness.
rushed upon me. Life had become
cheap and tawdry. a beastly and mar.
ticulate thing. soulless stirring of the