Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-01-10


GAME a jerk, long and dragging re-.
- s'stanco. then q terrific straiuuE un ih"
many cords The score and half oi men
brcathcd hard; on their naked arms lhr
veins and muscles swclcd; the torchi'ENt
cleaned blue on their sweating faces ana
| bodies
! And spontaneously as at all times Of
great cndcavor among the Folk waluG
song arose 1t echoed through the eternal
| dark Of the Abyss II rose. uncannN, H'Ii
shaking, weird beyond all telling
Stern felt the shuddcring chtlIS chasc
each other MP and down his spine. playing
nervous accompaniment to their chant
| Cad" he muttercd. shiverinE, what 81
| situation for a hard-hcadcd, practical man
| Ike mo- It's more like scene from some
weird pipe dream magazine story "i the
! remote past than solid reality
Again tho Folk strained at the ropes,
| Stern with them; and now the great weight
| below was surely rising inch by inch, up
| up toward the black and cleaning surface
| OF the abySmal sea.
Stcrn's heart was pounding wildly II
only-incrcdiblc as It secmed-thc Pauilac
really were there at the end Of the con-
vcrging ropes and If It were still In con-
dtion to be repaired again If only the
hook and the hard-taNed ropes held
"Up boys Hcavc err" he shouted
pulling tn his muscles hardened like steel.
and the cauoe-balauCed, though 1t was by
five oarsmen and the patriarch all at the
other gunwae-tpped craaily Pull ! |
Pun"
Beatrice sprang to the rope. Unable 10
restrain herself, she too laid hold on the |
taut. dripping cord, and her white hands, |
firm muscular shapeIy, grippcd with a !
strength one could never have guessed lay |
in them.
And now the ropes were sliding up out OF |
the water faster ever faster; and higher !
rose tho song Of all those laboring Folk and |
all who watched from the outlying ring OF
boats
"Up with IT, men! Up" painted the en-
gineer
them began to boil and bubble strangely
as though with the rising of a monster fish.
and all at once. with a heayc, sloshtng
spattcr, huge, wecd-covcrcd, winglilIe
object. sluicng brine, wallowed sharply out
into the torchlight.
A great triumphal howl rose from the
waiting Folk-a howl that drowned Stcrus
cheer and that of Beatrice and for n mo-
ment all was confusion Tn" wing rose, fell.
slid back into the water and again dipped
inward The canoes cauted, some took
water, all were throwua against each other
in the central group. and cries, shouts, or
ders and wild fencing Off with paddles
followed.
Stern yelled in vain orders that the old
.
ders which would not. even though heard
have been obcyed But after a moment or
TWO comparative order was restored and
the engineer veins standing out on his
tcmp,.s eyes ablaze, beloved.
Hold fast, you No more, no more
don't pulI up any more damn you! Hey, {
stop that-you'll rip the hook clean out and
lose II again
You, father-here- 'em to lrt it 5
down a little, now about six feet. .r FNeE-
does it--easyi'' Z
Now the Pauillac. soddeu "rth water. .
hanging thcEy with the MAummr weed ,
clusters which even i'm fortnight had D
grown in that warm sea, was suspended ut D
he end of the ten cords about sis ur eight
feet below the kecls of the canoes D.
Tell em 10 let H. stay that way now ~
continued the engineer. 'Tnl rm r hnd N
ast those that have the ropes Tine uta.rs 4
paddle for the shore as fast as they DHu.- Do
,ud damn the man that loafs now
The patriarch conveyed the Ha" ur. 81 1
htse instructions to the oarsmcn aUd NOW. n
.ouvoycd by the outlying boats fHn r"u
aHoes moved very slowly toward 'ae vile o.
age
Retarded by the vast. blrdIike bulk .at
rallied below, they seemed hardly tu make ID
my progress al all. stern ordered the free 4,
,oats 10 hitch on and help by towing Lines 70
we're passed and after a while an twenty o.
I've canoes, driven by the power of $50 %
airs Of sinewy arms, were dragging the d
'auiIlac shoreward. 4
Stern's eXcitement-now that the machine H
'as really almost in his grasp agaiu-rar
rom diminishing, was every minute grow
lg keener. A
The delay until he could examine fl and "
ee It's condition and its chances cot repair iD
6emed ntermiuahle. Continually ne urged
he patriarch-himself profoundly moved #
to force the rowers to stiil greater eNer- m
on. At a paddle ne labored throwing u
very ounce Of strength into the toll. Each | M
loment seemed an hour y. ~
Cad II it's only possible to make il ! >,
y again.!" thought he. 70,
Half an hour passed and now at length ''
le dim and clustered lights Of the village
agan 10 show vaguely through the mist 81
Come on, boys; now for IT," shouted vi
tern. Land her for me and IN show ell
)u wonders you never even dreamed Of 2" th
They drew near the shore Already stern ag
as formulating his plans for landing the
achine without lnjurng IT, when out from
e beach a long and swift canoe put rap III
ly, driven by twenty men. tiC
AT sight of Il the rowing in Stern's boats de
eakened. then stopped. Confused cries "c
ose alterations and strange shouts then
hush OF expectancy, Of fear, seemed 10 / -.
lssess the boat crews. ~,
And ever nearer, larger drew the long ~
noe two-pronged, blazing cresset AT ~,
bows. ~,
Across the waters drifted a word Ds
Go on, you Row !" cried Stern. Land
Q machine, / tell you Say. father he
lat's the matter now? What are my men a
strike Tor all Of a student Why don't M
~ finish the iob7' va
The cid man, perplexed listened intently ,
IuH