The Jasper news., 1918-11-07


and those who were helped last got
less, because the dividers got more
careful toward the end and gave
smaller portions.
But we did not get macaroni very
long. A cook from the Voltaire was
cleaning copper dixie that the mac
aroni had been cooked in, and he was
holding it over the side when the yes
sci rolled heavily, and dropped the
dixie into the briny. A sentry who
saw him drop it forced him up to
Badewitz, who began mauling him be-
fore the sentry even had told his
story After a while Badewitz quit
pounding the cook, and listened to the
sentry. Then Badewitz said the cook
had put note in the dixie before he
dropped it, so they beat him up again
and put him in irons. After that they
sent the rest of the cooks back, and
would not let them on deck again.
They had plenty of canned goods and
meat aboard, but they would not give
us any.
Five of the men were buried at sea
that day. More men were going mad
every minute, and 1t was terrible
place; pitch dark, grimy, loose coal
underfoot, coal-dusty mir to breathe,
body-filth everywhere. Some Of the
crazy men howled like dogs. But we
were not as much afraid of these as
we were of the others who kept still,
but slipped around in the dark with
Inv ne In fhni
got so we would not go near each
other for fear we were running into
crazy man. Those of us who were
sane collected as near the fiddley as
we could, and we would not let the
others get near us, but showed them
back or SHE'D Jumps of coal ut them.
And every once in a while some one
Of us would begin to act queer. May
be he would let out q howl suddenly,
without any warning. Or he would
just quit talking and. begin to sneak
around. Or he would squat down and
begin to humble. We could not tell
just when man had begun to lose
his mind. He would seem just like
the rest of us, because none Of us was
much better than a beast.
We could not take turns sleeping
and standing watch against the crazy
men, because when we talked about
| it, we agreed that none of US could
tell whether or not the sentries would
60 crazy while on watch and have the
rest of us at their mercy. 1t was aw-
full to talk about going crazy in this
way, and to figure that you yourself
might be the next, and that 1t was al
most sure to happen If you did not
get some sleep soon. But 1t was worse
to find q man near you going, and have
to boot him out with the other insane
men.
The days passed like that, with
nothing to do but suffer, and starve
and freeze. 1t got colder and colder,
and all we could wrap ourselves In
was the coal. We began to speculate
on where we were. 1t was not till
later than an old skipper in our bunch
told us that we had rounded the north
ern coast of Iceland.
Finally, one day, lad yelled down
Land" and we all dove for the I'D
could get near enough looked out, ant
sure enough there was the coast Of
Norway. very rugged and rocky ant
covered with snow. We thought Il
was all over then, and that we would
be landed at Bergen sure. Then there
was the usual running around ant
yelling on deck, and we were not 81
sure we would be landed, and yer!
suddenly 1t got colder than ever.
t was In the fiddley. aching to &c
out, and ready for anything tina
: might happen, when the door opened
suddenly and Badewitz grabbed me
and asked me in English If l was I
quartermaster. said yes, and h
, pulled me by the arm to a cabin.
: did not know what was going to hap
( pen, but he took an oilskin from tn
wall and told me to put 1t on.
/, There were two sailors there also
t and they put life belts on, and the
: l was more puzzled than ever, an
scared, too, because thought mayb
4 they were going to throw me over
t board, though what that had to
3 with being q Quartermaster I coul
4 not see.
e But they drilled me up onto tn
t bridge and told me to take the whee
t What their idea was l do not know
!. Possibly they wanted noncombataI
D at the wheel in case they were ovel