Mountain advocate., 1920-04-16


80 -, -g.s.z.---s-s ~ -s--..- g--.----s----.-
berth of second boy on the Were
Here" at $1,000 per month.
Harvey had fit of sullenness, but
his sullenness worried nobody; he
went to work. The dOries were re-
turning to the vessel with their catches
of fish: so for the first work Of his
| life Harvey was set to helping Dan
| hoist I'm the dories, to swabbing the
curry from their insides and then to
nesting them on the deck. By the
time he had finished doing that and
| eating his supper it was nighttime, and
| Manuel, Penn, Long Jack, Old Salters-
| Tom Platt-all hands were standing
by to dress fish.
Manuel and Penn stood deep among
| the fish, flOurishing sharp knives.
"Hiw shouted Manuel, with one fin
ger under the gill of cod, the other
| in an eye. The blade glimmered, there
was q sound OF tearing, the fish
slit from throat 60 tall-drOpped at
Long jacks feet. eli! cried Long
Jack and. with scoop of Il mittened
hand dropped the Gods liver into u
basket; another wrench and scoop
sent head and offal flying. The gutted
fish slid across to Old Salters, who
snorted fiercely, ripped out the back
bone and Spashed the headless, gut
less fish into Il tub of water.
Harvey pitched the washed fish
down into the hold, from whence came
tramplings and rumblings as Tom
Platt and Disko moved among the salt
bins The rasping sound Of rough salt
-7,bbed on rough flesh from below
made Il steady undertOne to the Click
nick Of the knives in the pens, the
wrench and schloop of torn heads'
fhe flap OF ripped-open fish falling into
the tub on deck.
AT the end of an hour Harvey
wanted terribly to rest, but also ior
the first time in his life he was one
of working gang Of men; and SO.
heginning TO take pride in the thought.
he held on grimly. Not till the last
fish war slowed below did IL man rest.
But when that moment came! DisSn
and Old Suffers rolled toward their
, cabin hunks, Manuel and Long jack
went forward. Tom Platt waited only
long enough to slide home the hatch.
, All LANDS were below and asleep,
! cxccrs the two boys; they had Ia
stand watch; so by and by the moon
looked down on one slim boy in kmck-
crbockers, which was Harvey, stag
p corning around the cluttered deck
E. while behind him, waving i knotted
.Fope. walked another boy, which was
Dan. yuVuinH and noddinS between
. t.us he dealt ,ae first boy to keep him
: awake.
/; The were Here" was on salt
, fishing trip which meant four months
T. away from home; SO there was time
{ for Harvey to learn many strange new
things if he cared to. After time
, AS the pride in honest work well done
l began TO grip him, he cared. lie
, learned to fish from a dory; TO make
r his way in safety around heaying
/ vessels deck; to know what each rope
l and sail aboard vessel was for
Disko allowed him, when the wind was
light to steer the vessel from one
;. berth to another, and wonderful wa'
: Hurvcy's sense Of power when he mrs
- felt th, vessel answer to his touch Of
\ the wheel. Almost did ne come t.
= understand, as fisherman under
\ stands. the never-abseRt dangers ol
@ the banks, the eternal fogs, the tides
= the gales, the wicked seas; ant
r learned, too. assignments opinion of tn
officers of the great steamers who
o. after cutting a vessel down, raise higl
? hands to heaven and swear witt
y ununimity that the careless fisherman
:, had npver-absolutely nevcr-showl
SO much as u single light.
Il He saw one day foul, dragged, un
2 kempt vessel heaving up past tn
c '\Ne're Here" for all the world like
D blowsy, frOusy, bad old woman sneei
y ing at decent girl, saw her sail OF
l. and into batch of watery sunshin
Z and-go under, taking all hands wit
u her! He saw, while his hair stood
d end, Whiteness moving in the white
\ ness of the fog with u breath like tn
70 breath Of u grave and then he hear
n a roaring plunging and spouting; tina
u was his first iceberg, He saw the SUI
\ break over Virgin Rocks and the fis
IT strike in so thick On shoal that score
IS of dories stood riding gunnel to gunn'
q while their crews battled for the catcl
u He saw Il gale break so sudden an
d. fierce that everywhere on the sea WEI
y men in dories cutting riding lines an
"a racing for their vessels, but SON
Is never making their vessels.
~ so he passed four busy. wonderf'
=" months, growing in body, mind an
1e soul with every hour that passed; IN