The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-11-23
(Continued From Yesterday

(Continued From Yesterday
 By the lord,' suppleented McGuf- fey, you have"
 The commodore smiled and tapped his frontal bone with his forefinger. Imagination, my lads, imagination, he said, and reached for the last of
 Exactly three weeks from the date of the naval battle which took place off the Coronado Islands. and where by MT. Gibney became commodore and managing owner of the erStwh1le Mexican coast patrol schooner Reina Maria, that vessel sailed out of the harbor of Panama completely reiuv- enated Not a scar on her shapely lines gave evidence of the sanguinary engagement through which she had passed.
 MT. Gioney had her painted creamy white with a dark blue water line She had had her bottom clean ed and scraped and the copper sheathing oVerhauled and patched up. Her sails had been overhauled, in- spected, and repaired wherever neces- sary, and in order to be on the safe side, MT. Gibney, upon motion duly made by him and seconded by Me the Gibney motions had developed into a habit), purchased an extra suit of new sails. The engines were over hauled by the faithful McGuffey and a large store of diStillate stored in the hold. Captain Scraggs. with his old-time aversion to expense. made motion (which was seconded by Me Guffey before he had taken time to consider its import) providing for the abolition of the office of chief engineer while the Maggie II was under sail, at which time thee hief ex-off1cio was to hold himself under the orders of the commodore and be transferred to the deck department if necessary MT. Gibney approved the measure and it went into effect. Only on entering or leaving a port, or in case of chase hxra engines to be used and McGuffey was warned to be extremely saving of his distillate.
 MT. Gibney made a splendid job of changing the vessels name, and as she chugged lazily out of Panama bay and lifted to the long ground-swell of the Pacific, it is doubtful if even her late Mexican commander would have recognized her. She was indeed a beautiful craft, and Commodore Gibney's heart swelled with pride as he stood aft, coming the man at the wheel, and locked her oVer It seem ed like a sacrilige now, when he re- flected how he had trained. the gun of the old Maggie on her that day oh the COronados, and it seemed to him now even a greater sacrilege to have brazenly planned to enter her as a privateer in theS truggles of the re- public of Colombia. The past tense is used advisedly, for that project was now entirely off, much to the secret delight of Captain Scraggs, who, if tht hero of one naval enga cement, was not anxious to take part in an- other. In Panama the freebooterS of the Maggie II learned that during MT. Gibney's absence on his filibuster1ng | trip the Colombian revolutionists had risen and struck their blow. After | the fashion of a hot-headed and i'm | petuous people, they had entertd the | contest absolutely untrained As a result, the war had lasted just two weeks, the leaders had been incon- tinently shot. and the white-winged dove of peace had once more spread her pinions along the borders of the | Gold coast.
 Commodore Gibney was disgusted beyond measure, and at special
 meeting of the syndicate. called in l the cabin of the Maggie IT that same
 evening, it was finally decided that l they should embark on an indefinite | trading cruise in the South seas. or | until such time as it seemed their services must be required to free a dowtrodden people from a tyrant's | yoke.
 Captain Scraggs and McGuffey had | never been in the South seas, but they | had heard that a fair margin of profit was to be wrung from trade in copra shell, coconuts and kindred tropical products. They so expressed them selves. To this suggestion. however, Commodore Gibney waved a deprecat- | ing paw.
 Legitimate tradin'. boys" he said, 'is a nice. sane, healthy business but the profits is slow What we want