Show A romance north A ahall ic CO 0 ww il A C 0 A co on any LADY tj mirl geme A ETC TOM goo HOLLIS AND VERA BECOME VERY FRIENDLY THOUGH HE IS UNAWARE OF HER IDENTITY MCANN MAKES TROUBLE AND REGRETS IT synopsis robert bohills who tells the story Is a guest on girard ons yacht Estu eralda it Is supposed to be a stag party and hollis la Is surprised on discovering a woman who evidently wishes to remain unknown aboard hollis the next night succeeds in III having an interview with the woman she merely tells him hor her name Is vera carrington tells his guests of the coming coining war and that ho he is engineering a copper pool tho the yacht Is sunk in a collision ond and idol Us its saves mccann millionaire ind and one of the party hollis and mccann rescue vera and leave the ship in a small email boat CHAPTER V continued 4 the sight bight of the little craft stanch and buoyant bobbing about just below lug in tile the glow of light brought back ny courage ay there was it chance biero we could get free of the doomed yacht wacht we were not to perish like drowning rats helplessly to be sure jibe ithe boat warf it n small email one a mere anero dinghy intended for usein use in smooth waiters why they had continued trailing it astern abstein so far at sea was a mystery yet it would bear tile the three ofus of us unless ox storm arose there was no time to look cither blankets or provisions nor ehe went down the rope hand over hand was there any fresh water to bo be had but at least we need not go down with the ship wo we had still a hope hopa of rescue a fight fighting lug chance god be thanked for or that I 1 1 my hand closed over hers as she turned and looked at me never in tiny any eyes have I 1 seen such glimpse of steady courage the boat I 1 Is strong stanch she fihe will carry us mr hollis ay I 1 this Is better than I 1 dared hope but there Is no ume time to lose the yacht Is settling fast seo see those bubbles of airl why I 1 can almost feel tho the droop of the planks beneath my fert here bere mccann bear a hand I 1 pull yourself up by that flag locker now get a grip here are you sailor enough to slide down that rope he be stared at the boat bobbing up ap and down on the black water with lackluster eyes it it will sink lie halt half sobbed it it Is almost full of water sink not nothing hingl I 1 my disgust rising beyond control it will hold bold twice your weight down with you and ball then fyhen stand by to help tho lady over you go my lad it if I 1 have to pitch you be headlong adlong this Is no time to argue the matter will you try it quietly he stared up into my face but his fear ear of roe me must havo have been greater than of the lopping lapping water below for the strands of the rope slipped through ids his fingers and on an instant later he clambered into the bow of the boat and sank sack onto his bis knees in the water to my relief the dory did not sink greatly beneath his bis weight tho the water shipped chipped proving scarcely ankle deep it would support the three of us without balling the yacht rolled to starboard fairly burying her rail I 1 thought tho the would never rise again and my farma clasped the girl to hold her steady then the hulk rose slowly painfully like a giant struggling for one last breath no words can describe the dead sodden feeling of the slaking sinking hulk bulk under us s CHAPTER VI adrift in the boat to cling there longer to delay another moment would be suicide I 1 leaned far over and looked down nt at the dinghy now rising and falling failing on the caused by the plunge of the yacht mcclain was upon his knees clinging to the gunzales gunwales gun wales willes his face turned upward pleadingly toward tho the light catch this lantern mccann I 1 called down to him sharply 1 I will swing lt it to you on the end of a rope eniy easy man now throw throve off tho the lash ing and mal make e the glim secure on the thwart behind you better tie tic it to the lock good moke make a sailor bailor yet now listen work your boat over until you can get 0 grip on tho the rudder chains and told her steady yes to your right use one cue of the oars now liang hang on im going to send the lady down stand by to give alvo her a hand lie iio lid did as I 1 bade him in a fashion but was so awkward about it I 1 wondered the bout boat kept upright satisfied I 1 glar glanced iced aside at my silent ellent companion not a very easy gangway but th the best we have are you afrasi afra Sj 12 she smiled not in the least mr hollis these skirts ore are a nuisance but I 1 can climb like a boy help me keep my balance on the rail mil she was over so quickly I 1 can scarcely recall more than clasping her arm and she w went ent down the rope hand over hand as afi lightly ns as a sailor bailor by the time she reached the boat her body was half submerged in tho the water but mccann gave her his hand ban and assist ed in dragging her in over the side 1 I am all right mr hollis she called in her clear steady voice now you come come quick 1 just a second more 1 I I 1 answered here Is the line haul it in get out your oars mccann and pull dont wait or be sucked down when the yacht sinks never mind me ill jump from the rail and swim out to you I 1 climbed onto the rail gripping an iron stanchion for or support and poised myself for the plunge the boat sur sounded by its little circle of light drifted away mccann awkwardly struggling with the heavy oars the lantern rays fell full on the girls upturned face and once she held out her hands in pleading gesture it could scarcely cely have been a minute I 1 hesitated yet suddenly beneath me came a sound of rending wood a muffled explosion and tho the deck reeled as though burst asunder I 1 leaped straight outward and went splashing down into the sea I 1 must have sunk deeply for I 1 felt no swirl of the waters no suction but when I 1 came again to the surface nothing was visible but tho the bobbing lantern on the dinghy the esmeralda had disappeared disappear vil A faint cry readied reached me and I 1 answered it striking out strongly toward the gulding guiding light five minutes later dripping and it bit exhausted li for I 1 had been ashore a long while whilce I 1 managed to clamber in over tho stern even as I 1 rested breathless on the thwart I 1 realized that the girl had crept aft and her hands sought mine oil oh I 1 am so BO glad she sobbed al most hysterically 1 I was afraid I 1 I 1 thought you went down with tho the yacht no such luck I 1 jumped just as her decks blow blew up Is there anything in sight 1 I I 1 looked but there Is no sound no light anywhere do you suppose the steamer has really left us 1 I have no doubt of it I 1 answered but stood up so as to see about more cli clearly arly they supposed all who lived had been picked up and then continued on their course my eyes ranged tho the horizon but I 1 found nothing we were alone on the great ocean in the grasp of the black night I 1 sat down again dazed for the instant by tho the immensity of tho the waters the utter loneliness and the sudden realization of the littleness of tills his cockleshell in which we floated iier her voice aroused mo me to a comprehension that I 1 alone was a sailor and that on me depended every chance for life do you know mr hollis where wo we are not exactly I 1 heard the captain state tho the position of the yacht yesterday noon about one hundred and fifty miles east cost and youth mouth of montauk we have drifted some since are we in the steamer lanes not of the north atlantic liners they would pass farther eastward I 1 cannot imagine what that fellow who rammed us was doing up in here so far out of his course yes that was a liner I 1 could see the lights of her ports the only vessel passing along here will bo be coasters or by luck laly some tramp lound bound boston way now bow lets let se ise what Is on board try tho the locker forward and miss vera vcra you might examine beneath the stern sheet this boat has haa never been inboard since wo we palled they went at the task no n though glad of the opportunity mccann creeping forward on hands end and knees kneed theres heres nothing here he be reported but a roll of tarpo 11 llo 11 n some rope ends and the splintered handle of a paddle well what more do we want that means mcana a salt sail if we can make a hole in ono one of the thwarts to step a mast how much cloth Is there two or three yards 1 I pass ass it buck back here good solid stuff that hint now miss vera vcra what are arc your discoveries T she loo looked ked up quickly her ber eyes sparkling in the dim gleam of the lantern A bag of sea biscuit a 0 small beaker 0 of f water insipid but sweet strong cord and a brad awl lord I 1 I 1 exclaimed this Is almost too good to bo be true why wo we are on outfitted t for a voyage however there Is little use endeavoring to rig up a jury must mast before daylight when we know la in which direction to steer mccann you haveit been overboard and no doubt your our watch runs what time Is it ile ho fumbled about and found the timepiece storing staring at it in amazement must have stopped hollis lie he eald no by jove the thing Is running all right the blinds bands point to about tho the hour tho re collision occurred before eight bells or else seeley would have been on the bridge instead of aft by the cabin have you any idea who was saved 1 I heard the captains voice bock back thero there under the awning ordering out tho the boats and otter after I 1 was caught under that wreckage carrington came up from below and climbed along the rail I 1 called to jilin him but lie ho paid no attention thero there was considerable noise then and he be might not have heard beard MO me vern vera was leaning forward listening did mr seeley leave in tho the boats she asked was he be hurt I 1 tried to stop him from answering by a gesture of my hand but tho the man was gazing out over tho the port quarter and saw nothing seeley the second mate no he get awny away tho the same spar that got me caught him and he never spoke after that seemed like a nice fellow too her face was like marble la in the lamplight no he was killed 1 then it was waa b because ho be was killed lie he did not unlock my door 1 I 1 I am glad I 1 know she burled her face in her hands and sat bat there motionless there was nothing I 1 could do or say cay for I 1 had no conception its as to what the man was to her lover husband father friend truly only the last relationship appeared possible for seemingly there could be no closer ties between the two they were nvere clearly not of the same class yet the girls sorrow borrow wrt was evidently real and genuine to relieve my mind I 1 compelled mccann to pick up a gatial pan aLln in which had lodged under a thwart and ball out the bont boat ile he crept about grumbling to himself but did a fairly good job As aa no water oozed in through tho the seams scams we were soon floating with much greater buoyancy tho the planking king under foot rapidly drying the night was dark and thick but without rain my wet clothes clung to mo me in discomfort yet I 1 hild had no ito reason to feao evil results as the air was worm warm and the salt water had its own virtue it was a gray ghastly morning tho the sky eky overcast the great surges bearing down upon us ever racing toward our little cockleshell terrifying in their aspect the sharp bow of the dinghy roso rose to them buoyantly enough but the brond broad expanse of birou troubled waters stretching nil about gibout the black cloud shadows overhead and tile the little boat in which we were tossed combined bobring to bring to me a fooling feeling akin to despair the only hope was the possible overhauling of some passing ship but tho the lowering sky scarcely enabled abi L 1 me inc to see clearly n hundred yards enids even in the light of oc the gray 74 ja it waz a gray ghastly morning dawn A rescuing vessel might easily cosily pass us by within a quarter of a n h lie unseen nor had we any means of attracting tr attention I 1 confess that sitting there la in loneliness staring about luto into the grini grim expanse of tog fog and sea ben I 1 fell into a blue funk nor was I 1 greatly battened when the sun un finally rose lobov 1 the horizon for it was no more than a sullen red glow barely visible through the clouds of vapor and only rendering more ghastly than ever the leagues of ocean occult my glance turned downward to my in the boat mccann still slept with head bead pillowed billowed pill owed on his arm but the he woman lay with her eyes wide open looking upward at the drifting gumc ner her eyes met mine and she sat up tip grasping the gunwale with one hand and stared about her over vor tile the drear expanse of son sen there Is nothing in sight she spoke wearily are arc you sure mr carrington made his escape As AB certain as I 1 can be I 1 did not see him after I 1 left the party in the after cabin last evening but mccann insists flint lie came on deck and joined the others in lowering the boats boata doubt lie ho got away safely and was picked up by the liner she was silent ellent for sonic some time her gazo gaze on the he man inon sleeping in the bows lie iio rolled over revealing his face gray and haggard in tho the dawn who who la Is that tant man she questioned you call him mccann to Is ho he a sailor bailor no ho he was ono one of tile the guests ho Is a rich mans son boni who occasionally takes a flyer on well wall etrest not not fergus mccann mccanna McC annl 1 I believe that Is his name now that you recall it why did you ever know tho the fell follow owl V only by reputation which la Is not the best ile he was involve d rather unpleasantly in the bascom shooting shoot lne case cac aye I 1 remember I 1 read about tho the affair in a chicago paper tit lit tile alio time but failed to comprehend it was this mccann who was involved did dd bascom die diet ile iio will bo be crippled for life of course his assailant may not have been entirely to blame it was a drunken quarrel over a woman well I 1 sold said quietly tho the man Is in for n job of sailor work here whether it pleases iam him or not iio acted a bit sullen last night but I 1 am in no mood just juht now to baby him have you ever steered a boat with an oar miss bliss vera vcra 1 I havo have dono done lots of 0 cano canoeing eink ant last summer nt at palm reach sho she stopped laughing at tho the slip blip yes actually at palm beach I 1 steered some larger boats 1 I I 1 believe I 1 could you will find oita somewhat different still there Is not much of a it and I 1 am going to let you try your hand do you think you can hold her all righta of course I 1 can almost indignantly I leally mr hollas I 1 have steered boats in worse seas than this it if the oar quite so heavy there Is no steering paddle aboard well if anything ROCS goes wrong sing out im going to rout out that fellow fori ward and get at our work vork I 1 cannot pay that mccann was particularly ticul arly pleasant about tt it lie he had a way of showing that lie rather resented my assumption of authority and performed what I 1 ordered with a deliberation which was wats almost insolent however lie ninde no open revolt and I 1 thought it best beat not to anger the man unnecessarily we worked steadily for an hour the fellow proving practically useless except to hand roe me the article required or to throw his weight on a ropes end vera succeeded in holding the boat steady although I 1 thought the weight of the waves increased as though thoi igli wo we were on the outer edge of some storm I 1 lashed tin an oar upright to a thwart brit bracing eing it securely by ropes to oar locks on either side bide then secured tho the broken paddle handlo handle as a spar notching the oar to give purchase and rigged up the tarpaulin being compelled to use rope ends enda to secure it in position it was a rough job yet the stiff canvas bellied out in the wind and I 1 was waa conscious of a |