The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-11-04
CHAPTER III,

In the office of the Red Stack Tug Boaf company Captain Dan Hicks. mast master of of the tug Aphrodihe: Captain Jack F'laherty. master of the Bode- ga, and Herman, the assistant super- lntendent on night watch, sat around not httAe box stove engaged in that pccupahlon so dear to the maritime healN' to-wdt: spinning yarns.
 The telephone rang and 1iec-na- answered. Hicks and F'lah erty hitch ed forward in their chairs to lis- ten.
 Hello. Yes Red Stack office. Whats that? silk and rice?
 Hal ia mile below the Cliff house. away, Iindstrum."
 VI i1eInan s,si an hung up and faced the nounced, "here's 8. chance for a little salvage money tonight The Ameri- can steamer Yankee Prince is ashore naf a mile below the Cliff house Shes big tramp with a valuable car go rom Hong Kong, with the rudder gone and hen crank shaft busted"
 Its high water at twelve thirty seven" Jack F'la1perty pleaded. "You' d better send me, Tiernan. The Bode- rodite.''
 This was the truth and Dan Hicks knew 1t, but he was not to be beaten ouf. of his share of the salvage by such himsy argument. "Jack,S he pleaded. ''don't be a hog all the time. The Yankee Prince Is an eight thou sand-ton vessel and it's a two-tug and play safe. Chances are our competitors have thnNee tugs on the | way right now"
 "What wonderful imagination you have, Dan. Eight thousand tons! You're crazy, man. She's thir- teen hundred net register and I know it because I was in Newport News when they launched her and I went out with her skipper on the trial trip.Sh a long, narrow-gutted craft with engines aft, like a lake steam | er.''
 wen play safe" Tfernan decided. "Go to dt-both of you, and may the best man win. She'll belong to you Jack, if she's thirteen hundred net and you get your line aboard first Ii she's as big as Dan says she is you |
 be equal partners
 . But he was tal11ing to himself
 Down the docks Hicks and FNahertJ wer,e racing for the respective com
 mands, each shouting to his night
 Watehman to pipe all hands on deck F'ortunately goodly haad of steau
 was up in each tugs boilers; because or Fhe fog and the liability to col
 lisions and consequent nasty sum. 7 mons, one engineer on each tug wa , on duty. Out through the Gate the.
 no5sd nonefnnans1,, thesr way heaving the leat ca, around Mile rock and the Seal rocks
 swung mile to the south of tn, position of the Maggie, and the1 s came cautiously up the coast, whist . ilng continuously to acquaint tn
 Yankee Prince with thedr presence il the neighborhood. In anticipation ]. of the necessity for replying to thi , welcome sound, Captain Scraggs anv !; NIT. Ghbney had, for the past tw hours, busied themselves getting III
 another haad of steam in the Mag . gie's boilers. repairing the whistl |. and splicing the wires of the engin
 room telegraph. Like the wise me,
 they were, however, they declined t . sound the Maggies siren until tn | tugs were quite close. Even ther = MT. Gibney shu ddered but needs mus . when the devil drives, so he pulGe. the whistle cord and was rewarfie with a weird, mournful grunt, dyin
 away with a gasp.
 I Sounds like she has the pip" Jacl s Flaherty remarked to his mate. 3 Must have taken on some of tha ! dirty Asdatic water," Dan Hicks so 3 1iIoqui1ed, land now her tubes hay ] gone to gbory.'
 Immediately both tugs kicke ]. ahead under a dead slow bell, guide l by a. series of toots as brief as M r Gibney could make them, and pre- = sentay both tug lookouts reporte l breakers dead ahead.
 }. (Continued Tomorrow.)