Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1918-01-31

shades settled about us, and the
staunch Indian Chief drove her sharp
bows through the black waste Of sea
in a race to cross the Zon of danger
before the coming of another dawn.
Apparently everything vas in our ia
vor, and / stood there, leaning against
the rail, chatting with Miss Vera, our
conversation drifting idly.
1t must have been after nine when
the girl left, complaining of being /.
chilled even in the protection of the
great cloak. I crossed the deck with
her to the head of the stairs, and our
hands clasped as we fingered there a
moment, the dim light revealing her
face uplifted toward mine.
"You are not going below, then, Mr..
Hollisf" she questioned. "Surely all
goes well?"
$50 remarkably WE'LL" I admitted,
las to rather puzzle me. No, I shall
remain on deck until morning; not
that I really anticipate trouble, but the
entire responsibility rests with me-"
"You do not feel that your officers
are eficient2'
"Only within their limits Of knowl
edge. I like the men, and trust them,
but at that they are only promoted
from before the mast in an emergency.
Neither possess any real knowledge Of
yseamanship. You can go to your berth,
and go to sleep, Miss Vera, assured
that the ship will be in safe hands,"
II know it will, if you remain OF
deck" she answered earnestly. "I-I
have learned to trust you"
The hours Of the night gave me am
pie opportunity for thought, and care
full consideration. The wind held
steady, and while the sea roughened
somewhat this slight change was not
sufficient to diminish our progress, or
cause any swerving from the course
set. All remained quiet forward, the
watch on deck finding little to do other
than their routine duties, and no mem
Der of the crew had any occasion to
come aft, except those detailed to the
wheel. There seemed no reason why I
should remain on deck, yet the respon-
sibility rested upon me-, and the impor-
lance of the nights run prevented my
having any wish to retire below. How
ever, I found no occasion to interfere
with the operation Of the ship, and re-
NAMED mostly on the main deck,
where my watchfulness assured me
there was no communication passed
between f%orecastle and cabin.
The fog grew steadily more dense,
until at dawn, we were steaming reck-
lessly through a thick cloud of vapor,
barely able to observe the surface Of
the sea, dull, sodden gray, a few yards
in advance Of our bow. The dense,
watery folds swept along our sides, and
the rigging dripped moisture onto the
glistening deck planks. 1t vas a
gloomy, dreary morning enough and,
even as the light Of early dawn
strengthened, I could scarcely distin-
guish a thing forward of the main
mast. However, there vas no slowing
up Of speed or sounding of siren. Con-
vinced that We were now safely to the
north of the usual course of ships, I
preferred to take the chance of posi-
BILE collision.
My eyes were heavy from lack Of
sleep, and long staring out through the
black night my senses dulled by hours
Of inaction, during which nothing I'M
usual had occurred to arouse me to
realization of impending danger. I no
longer even suspected trouble, or any
active hostility forward. With the
dawn the density Of fog enwrapping
us seemed to increase, and completely
blot out every glimpse Of sea and sky.
Even Leayord leaned over the rail
just above me, could scarcely be dis
tinguished as a man, and evidently his
eyes could not make me out at all, for
he hailed doubtfully:
"Are you still on deck, MI. Hollis?"'
eyes," I answered, staring up at his
shadow. "a bad fog"
ut is, sir. Would we better reduce
speed?"
mo, not yet; I am counting on open
water, and would rather chance strik-
ing a stray than risk being overhauled
by "a British cruiser. The sun will
split this mist before noon, and mean
while we must make all the northing
possible"
I heard his faye, aye, SIR" as I
crossed to the port rail. I had reached
a point nearly opposite the broken
stump of the foremost when I was sud-
denly confronted by two blurred fig
ures emerging noiselessly from the
deeper shadow cast by a quarter boat
swinging in davits. The fellows must
have known who I was, and the path
{ Of my approach; no doubt had been
close enough aft to overhear my con-
versation. with Leayord. At least they
were on me before I truly realized
their nea presence-the one gripping
the arm I flung up in startled defense ;
the other driving his fist straight into
my face, a sledge-hammer blow which
sent me crashing back full length on
the deck. Stunned, dazed as I was by