Evening star., 1940-01-14

ne DOdtS dIc Ill tIC ~dtCi, Oh,
said the mate, reporting. He was
wringing wet with spray. his cheek
wound pinched white with the action
of the salt. The second mate is bunch
ing them and they'll stand off and on.
I've two left for the rest of U.S."
Very good" Captain Rahlee bent
down to catch the message the little
apprentice was trying to give him.
"The operator says to tell you, sir. all
ships are steaming for US. and sea-
planes will spot us by dawn"
The captain patted him on the
shoulder and looked at the mate. The
destroyers should be here in matter
of hours. Just heave the boats to and
wait"
Were lucky the seas no rougher,"
the mate said grimly. Captain Rahlee
twitched his lips in a half-smile.
Every lucky Is this your first wreck,
mister?"
Third, sir. Once by fire. And once
in collision off Cape Hatteras. Messy.
Six men killed
1T happens" said Captain Rahlee
with effort, and he wondered vaguely
why they were talking so when the
Cynthia was sinking under them. The
engine-room speaking tube whistled
again even as the engine and the pump
pulse died.
Were drawing fires, sir" said the
chief calmly And we're coming up"
Captain Rahlee plugged the tube,
turned to the mate again.
You can abandon ship; all hands,"
he ordered quietly. The black gangs
coming up" He turned to the little
apprentice, Sonny. tell Sparks to get
out, and you go with him."
They went away. and unnecessarily
but mechanically he jammed the
engine-room telegraph to Finished
With Engines. He remembered the
man at the wheel then, and turned
with curt, That will be all. Join the
rest in the boats. The man swallowed
and slid hurriedly down the COM
panlon to the main deck.
Slowly the waterlogged ship fell
into the trough again as the way was
lost on her. and she began to roll with
sickening slowness. Amidships, Cap
tain Rahlee could hear the black gang
noisily crowding the rail and dropping
oversize. The lights went out sud-
denly, as the dynamos ran down. so
there we're only a few oil hurricane
lamps and the CHASTITY pale moon to
see by.
Then from the boats that had
already pushed off there came an
abrupt blossoming of white flares.
Captain Rahlee WINGED little, think
ing of the mine-shattered Ivanhoe and
the face of Captain Waterman in just
such bitter light. The wind tugged
viciously at his sou wester and oilskins;
the cold spume hammered his face. He
hardly felt it for his side was one vast
sheet of dizzying pain.
He was remembering now his first
bridge watch, when he had been third
mate on the Highland Pride. Only
three months out of his time in sail.
the ink hardly dry on the ticket in his
sea chest. He had been sick with ner-
vousness and in a cold sweat when he
had taken over from the mate that
night, seeing lights where there we're
no lights, hearing sirens where there
were no sirens, hardly able to keep
still; crossing to look at the compass
every few minutes, then to look at the
chart. then to strain his eyes ahead
until they almost fell out. His first
meeting with iron responsibility! He
had not known until long afterward
that his captain had been on the lower
bridge all that first watch, just in case
his new third mate should crack, or
make some lamentable error.
Then there was the time he had
taken over the Maid of Aran His first
.oo,o,,oI He had heon almost &C