Show i i Three e Y Years ars Behind the Guns Ghastly Ship Shipwreck k in in Chinese River River Looters Looters Beheaded Beheaded- Visit Vist to Vladivostok r By L. L G. G T. T I Copyright by Century Co The T Telegrams Telegram's leg am W Wonderful Serial Story of Life in the United r po States Navy l i p m h c o 1 b I I b b 1 g l I i i h a t i t h y I r t a d CHAPTER We were tho It was aa four bells ben of at the on April 13 when Andy threw me out of at my mock ham as he called Jack Ja Jac Jack for tor Gods God's ce be quick Lota of men overboard It was only a 0 mom moment ut until the pipe rang shrill and nd chan tied lied pronounced d' d s1 n eed Ail M h u up a M a-M Il hands man the lifeboat Do he-a he h e you r that now And then all the searchlights were turned on and it was like dL day Early in th the plant pint a dense fog Cog h had d drifted in fro from the Ute ocean and now the incoming tide Ucle was running a 0 torrent whose e angry lashings mingled min mm gle gleI with t the shrieks and moans of oC dying men What a sight it was to behold Th The On o a Chinese passenger steamer coming coining up from the coast on its way to Shanghai had bad collided with witha a tramp freight schooner right at the mouth of the river niver and had bad sunk ILls ILls' estimated that hat b between lw en and OO lives were lost ost t At the time oi of of the the- disaster we were vere undergoing r repairs in fri the har hare h bor Jor er consequently our ship was al 01 most p surrounded by I barges that h served a as as temporary machine shops ITa 1 To cut loose loope these barges in such a raging tide would have added wreck to ruin The ship was so about that we were unable to 10 t o lower more mor than two quarter boats oats r ir i iThe 1 I The barges hages were m manned with tho the h hope ope to rescue those who floated p past ast but the they were rere so high above the he t water that th they saved but few while standing eager but helpless w head after head bob above t the he surge only to bo ho dashed out of e existence against the barges' barges sides shies Th IhO two boats succeeded ed in iii sav say ing ug ight lives four tour of them b Europeans Europea s. s l For r u a L time lime the w water ater was as black with human be ings as 1 I 1 have eyer seen It with porpoises When wo had hauled as m many any ny Into our bo boats ts as s the they would hold old others struggling for Jib lile mo would ling cling to our gunwales and to our oars rs krs and would hn have ve swamped stamped us d we not resorted to the inhuman inhuman- lU tN y of lifting the stretchers from the bottom of the boat and with them breaking the alread already benumbed fingers fin fin- gers ore thus forcing them to to relax their ast last grip on life In In m my boat one m man an died after we had taken him In i. i He was overboard and another nother iloth r picked lip up in hi his place Da Day dawned upon upon a sorry sight The F ho beach was as strewn with the dead auci ud nd be it told to the shame of China that during rl g U bours wc we were ere ere riskIng risk risk- Ing ug tr lives t tp save save her hr people eople hundreds of r Junks ks la i 11 the harbor yet et not a R man man le helping hand haud In hi n tHeir b belief it was a beatific sacrifice sac sac sac- td to U tho j god godt of tho o waters while to o have rescued one would v ild have be been l an lt Indignity to that awful deity moreover r it is decreed that if It a man defy efy tn n the tho t. t water god when he asks ui U. a oui ne lie must after tt look but ut for tor Its body For days day after aCter the catastrophe coolies would wade out into the theater water ater a and d thrusting their long burden bur bun den poles pOle tl through rough tb the garments of or the dead pack and dump them in heaps upon the shore and there the river pirates came both men and women and robbed d the th corpses After Atter the third d day y we fired tired a inch 6 gun across the water ater and more mor corpses came the surface Oh it was sickening The a authorities finally set out to I put an an end end t to the pillage age which r re resulted suIted in the capture of at five pirates From the ship we could see see them plainly With hands tied behind knelt ta racing facing the sea while e the executioner with diabolical flourishes of his sword danced and pranced about them until wearied by the exertion he lie swung five fell tell swoops and the white sand drank up tho lie blood Ugh The word so south th al always ays stands for tor hospitality rh Therefore tore we were surprised to find It to such a superlative su suo su- su degree In Russian Siberia where Icebergs were basking in the theM theMay theMay M May y sunshine We Ve were the first war man to have visited Vladivostok since the Marlon Marion and that is HO so long ago no noone noone noone one has been able to tell me when 5 I I CHINESE CHINESE 1 We Ve were there by special Invitation to witness the celebration of oC the I czars czar's coronation There Is nothing inviting in the barren unfertile landscape wit with its Hi unattractive square buildings nor pleasing in a people as' as a as coarsely dressed as their soldiers whose uniforms uni uniforms forms are made from a material that resembles the lining or ota ofa a saddle pad We We- were made to understand that the town was was thrown open to us Wo We walked into their houses and rode In their carriages Not a penny could we spend either olther for tor eat drink or smoke Unsightly as the picture is by day the night of or the celebration unveiled unveiled un un- veiled one ono never to bo be forgotten The harbor where all of oC Russia's shipping lay at anchor was illuminated illuminated In a manner that probably surpassed sur BUr surpassed passed all the water carnivals heretofore heretofore here here- known Every craft cratt in the theba ba bay battleship or fishing smack from its Us truck to its rail was outlined outlined out out- lined in varicolored elc electric lights or hung with gaudy l lanterns terris the evening bands played from their decks and from the shore and 1130 It grew late a czars czar's salute saute sa sa- na- na lute ute was fired from all the warships warships war war- ships our own guns Joining and then as darkness stole over the waters we espied on the barren cliffs line after aCter line like glowworms glowworms glow glow- I worms crawling faint taint lights that grew and grew until to the delight of oC the beholder Russia's great dou ble eagle blazed out In electric lights and dominated the scene Although Al Al- though many miles mUes away It was a titling fitting tribute to the new czar To be continued |