OCR Text |
Show E taken the pirates than go down. Down there the noises of the water and the ship will be like the crying of the banshee In the Green room where grandfather died. No, no! In the cabin there Is only death, and the light Is dim, and the noises will be whispering at my elbow the livelong time. Ill have none of It! Sure, I care not what dangpr there Is, if I e ARTHUR D. HOWDEN SMITH by CHAPTER XIII Continued 16 Essentially true," agreed my I must confess myself Ignorant of such staple points as why we are here, the excuse for human existence, the relative significance of this world of ours, the utility of the differing qualities of .goodness and evil. But any serious consideration, friend e. great-uncl- must convince as profound Peter, thinker as yourself that the very a ex- istence of men and women Is of Itself prlma-facievidence that there can be no Divine Author of omnipotent or sentient powers." We better go on deck," said Peter. After you, protested my relative as we rose. 'Tis a pleasure to debate with you, Peter. Take care, pray I Gunn has not removed all of the evidence of Diomedes passing Strange, Is It not, how a black fellow like Diomede and a man who hath been the confidant of princes, like ODonnell, should both be abolished by a simple organic disruption? That alone, Peter, should suffice to disprove Providence. the humbug of an An forsooth! ITovIdence, Here am I, arranging to reconstruct for the better a most unhappy trio of kingdoms, with consequences bound to of the entire Improve the world, and my plan Is suffered to be placed In Jeopardy by an Ignorant sailors blind shot In the dark I What could be more absurd?" Peter did not answer him, and we out upon the main deck, where , passed sailors were busy removing the traces of the Walrus first broadside 'which had wrought a certain amount of minor damage and caused the deaths of several men. Twas now light , enough to see about us, but the light was of a quality I had never known before a hard, coppery glare, with the sun obscured from vlew The sea was quite flat, and the wind continued Intermittent, veering from of the south to the other. s Island lay to larboard, Its contour amazingly dlstlnctas If It were bitten Into the frame of steel-blu- e sea and dully shimmering sky that encompassed It. The Walrus, like the James, had cleared Captain Kidds anchorage, and was running due north before the wind betwixt us and the Islet called Skeleton Island. Murray bent a shrewd eye aloft and hailed Martin. IIow Is It you carry no sail on the mlzzen? he demanded. Account o that there last shot, capn," answered the mate, tugging his forelock. If ye look to It yell see as how a twelve-pounde-r bored Into her." We all followed his pointing finger to n gouge beneath the mlzzen yard. The shot that had grazed Colonel ODonnells head hud done more than graze the mlzzen. The mast was whittled away to a depth of several Inches as cleanly as If a giants ax had chopped Into It. took snuff very My great-uncl- e slowly. What luck I What luck he muttered. And then louder: Twas an expensive shot for us, gadzooks! Well, Martin, we must fish the mast at our earliest opportunity, but we cnn make shift to corner Flint without It. The Walrus Is foul and heavy in the water. The James can snil circles round her In this wind." There was a worried look In Mar-tln- s weather-beateface. "Askin your pardon, sir, I dont like this wind. Were In for a of a storm or Im a lubber. My great-unclshrugged Ids shoulders. Storm or no storm, Martin, the Walrus carries nigh four hundred thousand pounds." Aye, sir; and by your favor, best sink her and be done wl It and run for shelter." Sisk her I Man, wed lose the e e all-wi- well-bein- g one-quart- Spy-glas- ARTHUR. HOWDEN SMITH say wed head back In to the anchorage, Walrus or no Walrus." stiffened. My great-uncl- e TIs Impossible, he replied haughtiHowever, we will bear up for ly. tbe Walrus, and you may bid Coupeau to see what harm he can contrive against her with Ills chase-gunMartin .saluted and went forard. led us to the poop. My great-uncl- e Your old sailor Is eke much of an old woman Into the bargain, be remarked perfunctorily, climbing the stabd ladder ahead of me. Let him but sniff tbe approach of a tempest, and be Is all for the nearest haven aye, the hardiest buccaneer no less than the merchantman. O'Donnell was right, It seems, when he advised you to finish the task you had begun In the Inlet, I snapped, none too pleased, myself, with the outg look. In that case, my dear nephew, a rehalf of us must have perished, torted my relative. You have had some experience of these wolves of ours when their lusts are roused. No, r no; I am no fighter, but I prefer to batter my enemy safely at long range rather than give him an equal opportunity to tear my throat." Ieter grunted. You said?" Murray Inquired courteously. Neon, I saldt notlngs. But I tInk I tInk It Is all right If you get der Walrus and yourself come safe. If you dont do hot It dont matter If you do der odder; neen." raised his prospect-glasMy great-uncl- e s. You have ably stated one of the primary rules of success In any branch of warfare, friend Ieter," he said. "Captain Flint Is making better going of It than I had expected. Apparently by some perversity of our continuing he hath a more constant wind close under the Islund than we out here. Ah I I hear Coupeaus bark." A cloud of smoke rolled aft as the long eighteen on the labd side of the James' focsle boomed. The shot dashed up a fountain of water a few feet ahead of the Walrus, which was now running neck and neck with us. Flint replied with one of his long twelves, but the shot fell short, and he edged away as much as he dared, which was very little, for Murray had seen to It that he had bare sailing-room- . Our chase-guharked again, and this time the round shot ricocheted from the waters surface and slapped Into the Wulrus hull. ; Neat," commented my great-ifncl- e "but what we require Is a fair hit on a spar. Coupeau realized as much, as was evidenced by his next two shots going high and striking the water beyond k n e Hotter lose the Walrus treasure than go down ourselves, Insisted Martin doggedly. Have It your own way, sir, but Im a If It aint flxin to blow up one o these I., re tarrlble Carrlbbee storms as pluck the hairs oatn your head." Murray legarded the four quarters of the sky for several moments. With your prognostications I find no quarrel, Martin," he said finally; "but I believe we have ample time to bead tbe Walrus. Flint dares not run south because be knows tbe hornet's nest we have stirred up In those seas. My purpose Is to box 1dm In and force him to beach. If this wind coutinuec we should bring him to book on the north coast of the Island, and so eoon as the Walrus Ims taken grcwnsl we will wear and beat It for the North Inlet. Doth that satisfy you?" The mate hesitated. Yet capn, sir. But If twas my by can stay up here and meet It In the open. "We let you stay, said Ieter soothJa, we better let der little ingly. gal stay, Murray. Bob andt L we take care of her. That will we, I Indorsed him. My great-uncl- e eyed me a thought quizzically. "You are, It seems, subject to change of opinion, Robert," he remarked. "By all means let Moira remain with us. I daresay shell he none the worse for a wetting. But the storm held off throughout our morning-lonchase down the east coast of the Island and then out to sea to herd the Walrus In from the north. Coupeau hulled the miserable craft again and again, and shot away her foretopmast; but she steadily and made desperate clawed attempts to steal ahead of us and win a clear path before the wind, and when, toward noon, the breeze died completely the positions of the. two vessels were practically the same as they had been from the beginning of the game that Murray' played. The Royal Janies, by nimbler handling, had gained In the last hour, and to the was more than a cannon-sho- t northwest of the Walrus, with the northernmost of the Islands chain of hills the one the pirates called the Foremast hill almost due southeast of us. If the wind sprang up again In anything like the same quarter the Walrus was fast In Murrays trap. She would have the choice of two alternatives: She could stand on and fight, with the practical certainty of destruction for all hands, or she could drive ashore, In which case the crew might take to the woods, with every prospect of eluding pursuit, unless Murray made a determined effort to comb the Islands craggy recesses. After the battering they had received all morning, on top of the hammering In the action In the dark, there was not much doubt that the Walrus disorderly crew would take the decision into thoir own hands and choose the latter as offering a fair chance of life, no mutter how circumscribed. The helmsman had Just turned the hour-glass- , which lay beside the compass In' the hooded box In front of the steering-wheewhen a shout came from Martin, who was half-waup the sweeping the horizon with a glass. My great-unclhad been pondering the desirability of getting out the boats and undertaking to tow the James wtthin range of the long elghteens, and he called back "Is It wind? "Aye, aye, sir," roared Martin and there was no mildness now In the old fellows tones. "Theres the est blow o' wind as ever came bowels o the sky out o the swab as ever was. or Im a lie tumbeld from the ratlines and ran aft to the break of the poop, his face lifted earnestly In appeal. Best le me lay an ax to the mlzzen, sir," he culled. took snuff, calmly My great-uncldeliberate. "Curb your fears, Martin," he answered. "I have weathered a lifetime of gales in the Royal James. Take In sail, of course; but If we sacrificed a mast needlessly twould cripple us for weeks. Where away Is this wind? Martin' waved an arm across the northwestern arc of the horizon. Look for yourself, capn. I be an old man, and I never seed the like." Murrays reply was to swarm up the mlzzen rigging wltH the uncanny .agility of which he was capable, and I climbed after him. We were some fifty feet above the deck when we saw clearly with the naked eye a vast purple canopy arching forward across the northern sky, a thing of splendidly colorful Intensity, savagely beautiful. Jagged streaks of lightning flashed forth from its mlrky depths. A tattered fringe of storm-cloud- s whipped out ahead of it like the tentacles of some monstrous And It advanced at an Incredible speed, covering miles of sea and sky In the few moments that we watched g off.-ho- re long-rang- e l, y main-riggin- e e 1 treasure." SUN. SAUNA. UTAH clutched firmly aa ana of Peter and me, each. No, no, HI not be going down there On the Inside of again," she erted. a door I can think of naught but the' Borrow that Is come upon me. Ill stay up here In the open." Certes, this will be no safe place In a storm, I urged. But she clung the tighter to ns. Ill not go down. Id sooner be PORTO BELLO GOLD D. cat iva The Walrus Was Running Due North . Before the Wind Betwixt Us and the Islet Called Skeleton Island. the target. But I was distracted from watching his efforts, for at tbe fifth discharge Moira ODonnell crept up the poop ladder, her eyes wide with misgiving. "Troth, yourself promised only a few minute since youd not leave me by my lone was there more fighting. Boh," afie reproached me. 'Tis no fight," I answered. "Aye, we do but seek to drive yonder knaves ashore," Murray assured her. They cunnot reach us at this It. My great-uncle- s jaw squared grimly. 'Tis too late to sacrifice the mlzWed not have time zen," he said, to clear the wreckage." His commands rang through the ship. Aloft, topinen! Strip her to a storm-jib- ! llola, Coupeau! Doublelash your chase-gun- s er.d be certain the broadside batteries are secured and the ports closed. Batten all hatches, Saunders! Twas as much as I could do to distance." keep pace with him as he descended She surveyed the scene with a to the poop. Fetch a coll of light rope, Robert," doubting eje and was constrained to' credit us. he ordered briefly. We shall all reBut why is the light so strange? quire to be lashed fast." Tis as If the door she demanded. 1 Shall I carry Moira below? of a cookstove was ajar." asked. "We are In for bad weather, sweet, He hesitsted. You must sh will have a better replied my great-unclNo, go below chance " But sha shrank away from him and lie checked himself. Let her bide on deck. Here we can aid her at need. Haste, boy I We must have the rope before the wind strikes ns." I slid down a stay to the main deck and dug the rope out of a chest of spare gear which was bolted to the cabin bulkhead. My great-unclelast words had Impressed me even more than the spectacle of that baleful curtain across the northern sky; and I was thrilled, too, by the task of preparing the ship to meet the tempest. There was almost no noise a few shouts of command and halls of acknowledgment ! but every man worked as If his life depended upon It. When the fouled Martin slashed It free with his knife and the sail came down with a run. By the time I had regained the poop the upper spars already were bare. Murray was standing with Moira and Ieler beside the helmsman, and while they stared, fascinated, at the oncoming storm, his eyes wer upon the Walrus. "Flint must be sober," he said bitterly. He Is taking In sail. Stap me, what a fit endto a luckless day! In the hollow of my hand, and now Aye, 'twould be all fitting did he escape, whilst we A snarling moan, as of great winds tortured and confused, came to us from the belly of the storm. The sky A gust of air, sulphurous darkened. and warm, ruffled my hair. The moan beenme a howl, a clamor. snatched the clasp-knif- e My great-uncl- e from the belt of the helmsman, a splay-foote- d Easterling whose flat, face had remained Impassive during all the excitement since Martins warning shout had announced the storm's approach. Give me that rope, Robert, he exI am a fool to stand talkclaimed. ing. Here, Peter I" He flung the Dutchman a length of 's Jib-she- s d foenal. Giant comb-er- g crowded so fast that w choked beneath their deluge. The waist wan a lather of creamy seas that wrenched and battered at hatchcoamlnga and bulwarks. Murray staggered to bis feet and set his lips to my ear. breach Must cut free rnizzen low on poop and hull" So much I understood, and assisted him to slash the rope which bound us to the deck. Peter saw what we were up to and loosed himself, taking care In his deliberate fashion to Then strengthen Moiras lashings. the three of us fought our way down Into the hell-reeof the waist, where small boats and water-butt- s and tfead men swirled fore and aft In a torrent of pounding seas. There were axes In the box from which I had procured the rope, and we equipped ourselves with them, waded thigh deep through the tangle of water and wreckage qnd attacked the maze of stays, and rigging that united the dangling mizzenmast to the ship. Not a man helped us. There was not a living man In sight aft of the malnmabt, and Jtwas as much as a mans life was worth to try to work aft of that point, for on the one side there was a wide breacn In the bulwarks through which the waves poured, and opposite was the gap the mizzenmast had crushed. Whoever crossed the deck there must have been carried overboard, one way or the (Copy for Thla Department Supplied by tb American Legion Nows Service.) BOOSTS COMMUNITY BETTERMENT WORK k j other. Where we were we had some slight poop, but twas sufficiently hazardous In all conscience. I can see my great-uncl- e still, in his black silk coat and breeches, all adrlp shelter from the It. Bind Mistress Moira to those ringbolts and best knot her to yourself as well. She'll not be able to stand alone. Aid me with this fellow here, We must tie him to the Robert. wheel. One of the clouds In advance of the storm curtain reached out over us with a crackle of lightning-holt- s and spatter of rain, and our fingers flew as we secured first the helmsman and then ourselves. The voice of the tempest was become a sullen, animal roar, riven at Intervals by the crash of the thunder. And the Immense curtain of Its front overhung the James, sooty at the base, Impenetrably opaquely purple as It toppled forward. The Walrus was a specter ship t;o leeward, and disappeared In the gloom as I watched. Oh, holy Mother I gasped Moira. 'Twill be the end of all things." And so It seemed. The Walrus was The northern coast of the gone. island dimmed and vanished. For an Instant the peak of Foremast hill hung In the upper air. Then that, too, was blotted out. The purple twilight deepened. Rain sheeted down from clouds scarce higher thnn our mast-headA lurid glare of lightning flickered and was quenched In the sea. And the wind smote us. with a mad howl of exultation, sucking up Into Its embrace everything that was not fast'. ened to the deck. The James shuddered under the blow, bearing down by the head and heeling to starboard. My great-uncl- e and I were pushed forward on our The helmsman was doubled faces. over the wheel. Peter bent to cover Moira, crouching above her on hands and knees. Presently the ship righted herself; but as she neared an even keel there ! of was a prolonged breaking wood, and the wounded mizzenmast went by the board, crushing a score of men In Its fall and brushing as many more through the hole it stove In the starboard bulwarks. A wall of agony pierced thinly the tumult of the storm, and the James was Jarred from end to end as the big spar, with all Its litter of yards and lunged at the hull Its dead weight like a dragging us broadside, on into the path of the waves, which followed the winds first Irresistible rush. Steep walls of w ater dropped on us Irom as high as the malnyard, thudding hol craa-aa-ae- k r, . -- Baseball Contests for Boys Planned Murray Gave It One Look and Leaped for the Wheel. with the s< water as he labored with the energy of a man of half his age, always swift to perceive the strategic center of the tangle, always first to wade Into the tricky web of cordage where a misstep meant a plunge over- I side. Twice Peter, rescued him from certain death, and once the Dutchman saved me when a mountainous tea curled down upon us over the James bulwarks and was like to have carried me off In its passing. And It was Peter whose brute strength and made the most of my great-uncle- s agility of wit, and hewed and hacked the mizzenmast from Its moorings. Aye, and none too soon; for when we clambered back on the poop Moira met us with hands clasped to leeward In terror and pointed where a rocky headland loomed . through the gray rain. Murray gave It one look and leaped for the wheel. The Easterling was bent over In the odd, huddled posture he had assumed from the moment the storm hit us, and he lolled sidewise as my great-uncl- e grasped his shoulder, his body all askew from the small of his back upward. He made no response, and slipped lower in the colls of rope that bound him to his post; his gnarled fingers slid off the spokes, his feet went out from under him. ss (TO BE CONTINUED.) T- a a - YT - . nVS Alchemists of Middle Ages Not Charlatans "The alchemists of three or four gold; they left directions for making centuries ago were the chemists of it. Either they were frightful liars their day, says Dr. E. E. Free, writ- or they had made something that ing in the Forum. "They were honest, It Is always industrious, respected. unwise to Imagine that the great men of another age were either knaves or fools. We define gold, today, in a We know of cerchemical fashion. tain chemical tests to which the atom of no element except gold will respond. We apply these tests. If they full we say that the substance before us Is not gold, no matter how gilt-Imay be Its may be nor how gold-likproperties. "This Is a new way to define gold. The alchemists had no acquaintance with atoms nor were they much conWhen cerned with chemVal tests. they wanted gold, what they wanted was something which would look like gold, would feel like gold, would behave like gold against tjie air and water and fire. Such tests constituted tlieir definition of gold. If a metal met them, that was enough. It Is distinctly possible that a number of the alchemical procedures really did produce Just this not gold us we define it, but something Just as good ; something that was gold as the alchemists defined ft. S number of theta recorded that they hud made suited them. And it Is not very probable that they were liars. We know how to make today a number of alloys thnt look enough like gold to he its twin. Even jewelers have been fooled by some of these alloys. Prob- ably this is Just what a few of our q.nclent fellow chemists did and what they considered, rightly enough, to be a considerable success." The first Junior world series baseball contests ever to be held will be played this year on October 11, 13 and 14 at Philadelphia. The world series for boys baseball teams will be the culmination of the American Lebaseball program gions nation-wid- e for boys, which was launched this year by the Legions Americanism commission. Championship teams of four regions, the Far West, the Middle West, Central and Eastern regions, will play off the junior world series. The play will be on the mornings of the above dates and will take place during the national convention of the Legion at Philadelphia, October 11 to 15. The winning team will be given a suitable trophy Identifying It as the worlds champion boys baseball team. Organization of the Junior Baseball league was authorized at the last national convention of the American Legion. The National Amateur Athletic federation with the Legion In launching the boys league. The plans provide for championship contests In local communities, In congressional districts, in states, In1 sections, in regions and finally In the Junior world series at the Legion convention. More than 2,000 boys teams have been entered in the leagne throughout the nation and many hundreds more are expected to enter. Teams how organized under the' sponsorship of churches, industrial plants, commercial firms, boy scouts, with the Leetc., are gions baseball program and are entering the league. . Good sportsmanship among! our American boys as It relates to and makes good citizenship' Is the chief motive behind the Legions baseball" declared Frank C. Cross, program, director of the natiohal Americanism commission of the Legion. The Playground and Recreation Association of America Is In the plan and recently contacted 800 Interested persons In several hundred In cities, urging them to forming leagues. Believes Every Eligible Pole Should Join Legion s Jan Paderewski, pianist and Polish patriot, believes that every Pole who Is eligible should Join the American Legion. In a message to. Natjonal Com- Ignace t e Community betterment work in all 10,250 posts of the American Legion throughout the nation is being prompted and Increased by a campaign recently launched by the National of the commission Americanism Legion, which operates a community betterment bureau for advice and guidance to posts In community service work. At least one act of unselfish service to the community each year, Is the motto which National Com. John R. McQuigg has laid down for every post In the entire organization. A survey recently made by the Americanism commission Indicated, according to Frank C. Cross, director, that some 4,000 Legion posts are now carrying on work distinctly . and exclusively of a community betterment character. An additional 2,000 posts, he said, are engaged in projects partly for the benefit of the post Itself and partly for the benefit of the community, according to the results of the survey. Where posts are already carrying on community betterment work. Commander McQuigg urges that they undertake an expansion of their programs. Every post is called upon to Join In the work In a spirited determination to do some service worth while for its local community. A feature of the Americanism commissions campaign to Increase this type of work among posts was a referendum held by the post in its local community to give the citizens of the community an opportunity to suggest what, in their opinion, Is the community activity In which the post can best engage. Some fifty community betterment activities, covering the entire field and falling Into the general classes of civic improvement, juvenile activities, education, recreation and public education, have been carried on by posts. of the Indiana Burned Coal Coal, , as the advertisement says, may answer the burning question, but here Is an oddity about coal known to few. remarks Gerard" In the Phlla delphia Inquirer. Jesuits traveling westward through Canada as early as 16150 found Indians burning coal Instead of wood. In "The Jesuit Relations, edited by Edna Kenton, 1 discover the earliest record of coal as a fuel anywhere In America. the PonalaV nation, Describing which was a fierce an warlike people, the Jesuits made this observation : As wood la acanty In supply ana their country, nature mall In slaa has taught them to make lira with coal from the earth." i I j world-famou- mander John R. McQuigg, Mr. Paderewski said: My opinion Is that all those of my blood who either have been normally drafted or who voluntarily enlisted In the United States army should now Join the American Legion. They should join It not merely on account of material advantages hut for higher reasons. "The lofty Ideals which Inspired and guided throughout history the best and noblest among our ancestry are precisely those for which the American Legion stands and will stand . |