Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1928-03-30
Around the Horn

proceeded to call the Corsair. He picked
her up off Banks peninsula n told his
little tale hauntingly to the yachts OPP
orator and ordered the Corsair to STAND
by the Endymion and take him of.
Before the reply came back the door OF
the wireless room was burst open and
Sprohl was yanked out of the chair py
the second mate, whose watch on deck
it was. Two men dragged him to the
brig and put him in irons.
"Forty-eight hours OF bareback n
water" was the shippers sentence re-
Ilayed to Sprohl via Mr.. Corson, the sec
ond mate, but couched in much more
picturesque terms. Corson then went
back to the wireless room and received
the insistent Corsairs reply. 1t was
brief. What's the row." signed Edith
Crowell.
The second mate sent back the follow
ing message at the shippers dictation.
mo row. Just giving an employe OF the
company a taste Of his own medicine.
Austin, Master, Endymion."
There was no reply from the Corsair to
this message.
Three weeks later after a swift run
across the South Pacific the Endymion
ran into a southeasterly gale of Cape
Horn. 1t came at dark with a rush out
of the Antartic. Her royals and topgal-
lants had been furled an hour earlier,
but even under the pressure OF moderate
canvas she keeled to the blast as II cuned
by a giant hand. Sleet and hailstones
hammered against her straining topsail.
. Green water roared over her lee bulwarks
and white froth dashed the windward.
The order "All hands on deck" was un-
necessary. Men fought their way in
stinctively across the hurricane swept
deck to clew and buntlines as the mates
let go the upper topsail halyards on the
run.
Kennerly, at the maintop with the port
, watch, barked out his orders, his grizzled
head thrust forward into the teeth OF
the gale as If to defy it by the simple
act Of butting.
Delay there to windward. Lee clew-
line Two Of you to the bunt. Clew her
up, boys, before she pounds to pieces.
Another drag on the clewline, bosun. All
right. Belayl Six men aloft and furl
'er. Bosun, take the rest Of the watch to
the mizzen. Forard, ahoyl Mr.. Corson,
lay aft with your spare menV'.
AYE, aye, sirl Coming, sirl"
you there, Brown, aft with you'll" The
mate bawled at Sprohl, who was clawing
his way blindly, hand over hand, along
the weather pinrail through the driving
sleet. "Bosun. see that the new man
goes aloft. No Sinking on this hooker"
Terror stabbed at Sprohl's vitals at the
order. He numbered aft in the wake of
the men, found the cabin door and flung
himself through it. His respite was short
lived. Captain Austin dragged him forth
and drove him on deck, and he found
himself pulling the stiff frozen ropes on
the poop deck under the Stating mizzen
topsail.
up and make fast"
The order came to his ears like q death
knell. He tried to lose his great bulk in
~ g $50 49, AI.~ afN 81
but the mates iron claws CROPPED for him
in the darkness n dragged him forth
"Aloft with you-and step livelyl"
Half paralyzed by terror, Sprohl scram-
bled into the weather rigging. The boots
of the sailors stepped on his fingers In
the dark as he clutched the ~ratlines, and
the fury of the wind forced him fiat
against the shrouds. Hailstones ratified
on the back of his oilskin coat. He lost
his sou'wester and the wind-driven
frozen pellets dashed his neck and throat
like a cat-o'-nine-tails. He blubbered
with fright, prodded from beneath by
the mates beloved roars.
Presently he found himself on the
yard, beneath which the frozen sail
pounded and Slated in great lunging
strokes. He clawed at its glossy surface
until his finger nails sprang blood. Once
he was nearly knocked off the yard by
the pounding sail, and retreated, knees
shaking. and sobbing with fright, to the
crows nest, only to be discovered there
by the bosun, and driven out on the
yardarm again.
He hardly dared to look down. From
his perch the Endymion looked like q
tiny slender wedge, an insignificant chip
%wallowing in an immense whirlpool.
Water, whipped to froth, buried her
decks for minutes at a time. It's rend-
!, ing weight was transmitted to him by
tho framhlinU Of the gnar tn which he
chung with numb fingers. The air seemed
q solid mass of frozen projectiles that
came hurting out Of the blackness to
, windward and all blu beat him into in
sensibility when he essayed to breathe.
He whimpered with pain, unable to
shield his face in the fear OF letting go
his grip, even with one hand, for a mo-
ment.
After what seemed like an eternity the
sail was finally furled, without an effort
| on his part, n he found himself back
{ on deck. There was even less safety
there. Tons Of water poured over the
vessels bulwarks. He flung his arms
around the nearest object, believing with
fear, his cutlery choked to a splutter by
the deluge. Water swirled about him,
tugged at his body, sucked at his legs
and almost wrenched his arms from their
sockets as he hung on.
When the water receded he crawled
lOlWdlQ OA ildniio dllu hIlttS llOil ldN9C
bit to ringbolt and scuttled for cover IN
der the foc's'le head. Dripping wet and
shaking with cold from his immersion
he CROPPED his way about the dark space.
The banging of the anchor chains against
the great capstans as the heavily laden
Endymion dived into the seas made him
jump with fright. At each dive win
jets of water shot through the hawse
pipes and leaped at him with a terrific
force that all but knocked him of his
feet. The timbers above his head groaned
as tons of water collapsed upon them
and cascadeu down the slanting decks
Cold and terror drove him forth again.
Confused by the darkness and the roar
OF the gale he did not know what was
going on. He was merely aware of dark
shouting figures pulling at ropes, and he
joined them because he was afraid to
die lone. For hours he dragged his
leaden feet about the swirling water and
pulled ropes stiff with Ice.
AT ten o'clock the Endymion was hove
to under bare poles with fore staysail
and a double reefed spanker. Captain
! Austin struck four bells.
Lay aft for a round of grog," he
shouted, as the second couplet of double
notes was borne away or the rush OF
the wind.
The second mate passed the tumbler
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