SYNOPSIS.
CHAPTER I—Robert Hollis, one-time
sea captain, who tells the story. Is a
guest on Gerald Carrington's yacht, Es
meralda. It Is supposed to be a "stag'1
party and Hollis Is surprised on discover
ing a woman, who evidently wishes to re
jmrin unknown, aboard.
CHAPTER II—Hollis, the next night,
•ucceeds In having an Interview with the
woman She merely tells him her name
Is Vera,
CHAPTER III—Carrington tells Ills
guests of the coming war, and that lie
Is engineering a copper pool.
CHAPTER IV The yacht is sunk In a
collision and Hollis saves McCann, mil
lionaire, and one of the party.
Tet, once I had attained the
cabin, all this left nte. Ghastly as the
wreck of that Interior appeared, the
wdder space brought back to me the
seuman’s courage. There was hope yet,
She Possessed Sufficient Nerve and
Strength for the Effort.
an opportunity to fight. McCann lia<l
dropped the lantern on the overturned
plnno, and was urging the girl for
ward toward the stairs. Terror made
1dm oblivious to everything except a
mad desire to escape, but she was
glancing back, as though In search for
me. I clambered to my knees amid
the litter of furniture, und snatched
up the light barely in time to keep It
from smashing on the deck.
“I am all right," I called confidently.
"Get outside both of you as quick as
you can.”
Never In all my life have I experi
enced the same sense of relief as when
I stumbled out of that companion onto
the open deck, nml felt the night air
In my nostrils; yet not until then did
my brain truly grasp the desperate na
ture of our situation. The gleam of
the lantern revealed the sharp slope of
the deck, und the surge of water churn
lug from rail to ruil scarce u dozen feet
away; the riffle of tangled spars and
ropes to port under which I knew lay
dead bodies; the smashed bulwarks,
und a wrecked small boat hanging
stern down from a davit, with a man’s
arm and head dangling. All about us
the night and sea was black as iuk—
not a glow anywhere except a single
white gleam far away to starboard like
a distant star. It was not a star—It
was far too close to the horizon—be
yond doubt It was a masthead light
on the steel monster which had run us
down.
I held the lantern behind my body,
and stared out through the void at the
faraway spark—It was no more than
a pln-prlck, barely visible across
miles of open water, and growing
fainter each second. I read the whole
meaning, despair clutching my heart.
The vessel had waited and picked up
the Esmeralda's boats; believing she
then had on board all who lived, she
had resumed her voyage. We were
alone, deserted, in tin* midst of the
dead, possibly without even a chance
to save ourselves from going down
with the sodden wreck.
Hut if there should be a chance there
remained not an instant to lose. I
flashed the light about Into (he face
of McCann and the girl, the man white
and haggard, his eyes as dull as though
he had taken an opiate, absolutely stu
pefied with fear. But the girl! In
the gleam of the lantern her eyes met
mine, full of questioning, but fearless.
•She must have seen, and understood
also, for she enlled to me, clinging to
the rail to keep her footing, her loos
ened hair flapping In the wind.
“They are leaving us, Mr. Hollis? Is
not that the steamer out there?”
"Ay, the lust glimpse we’ll ever have
of her," I answered bitterly, forgetting
myself in unger. "The d- brutes
think more of a few dollars than our
lives. But we’ll make a fight Just the
same. Come, wake up, McCann ! Aft
with you—dh, yes, you cun; crawl
along the rail; once beyond the cabin
there’s good foothold. Now, my lady.
I’ll not let you fall—good! You are
the better sailor of the two."
I held the luntern in my teeth, and
clambered after tlpun. It was a thirty
foot cliiqb, but the rail stanchions
rimde n fair ladder, giving good hand
and foot hold, although occasionally
the hulk beneath us rolled so heavily
in the sea as to bring us to a pause,
clinging grimly to the tarred rope in
order to retain our balance. Twice I
thought the doomed yacht was actu
ally going down, as under the blow of
some swell she leaned heavily to star
board, giving glimpse of the black
wafer just below where we clung so
desperately. Yet with sodden, sick
ening motion, like the last painful ef
fort of a dying creature, she managed
to right herself once more, every tim
ber groaning in agony, the salt spume
of the sea blown Into our faces.
Once beyond the overreach on the
cabin we found opportunity to stand
erect, gripping tlie iron supports which
had sustained the awning above the
nfter deck. In the dim rays of the lan
tern the scene was one of utter wreck
and desolation. There had been four
boats bung In davits above the rails:
two of them were gone; one hung trail
ing overboard, half submerged, with
tlie bow still swinging to the tackle:
the fourth had been smashed Into kin
dling. T staggered across to where 1
could look down at the dangling craft,
holding my lantern out over the rail.
It was broken amidships and useless,
but Jammed under a thwart lay a
man's body; the gleam of light rested]
on the upturned face, and I recognized
with horror the features of Fosdlck.
Sickened, covering my eyes with one
arm. I clung to the shattered rail, com
pletely unnerved. The voice of the
girl aroused me, brought me back to
manhood.
“Mr. Hollis, the dory is still here!"
I swept the lantern about, confused,
and unable to locate the sound. Mc
Cann was crouching against the cabin,
but the woman, aided by the flag
locker, had crept aft. and now leaned
out over the stern rail and was point
ing eagerly down into the black water.
1 worked my way cautiously forward
to where she clung, the lantern swung
overside, its small ring of light giving
me view of tlie whole uptilted stern.
The dory, which had evidently been
left trailing astern, was actually afloat,
although linlf tilled, and her oars,
Jammed securely under a thwart, were
still In place.
me position or tno vessel, iiip water
logged Condition of the smaller craft,
told me at a glance the whole story.
What was left of the crew of the Es
meraldn, together with those guests
who had lived to attain the deck, had
made their escape in the two missing
boats—they would hold twenty each,
ami were strong and seaworthy. No
doubt the smashed one there had been
lowered first, but the tackle jammed,
and iii the wreck Fosdick had been
killed. The others hud clambered
aboard the two left, leaving him
crushed behind.
The sight of the little craft, stanch
and buoyant, bobbing about Just below
us In the glow of light, brought hack
my courage. Ay, there was a chance
hero; we could get free of the doomed
yacht; we were not to perish like
drowning rats, helplessly. To be sure,
the boat was a small one, a mere
dinghy intended for use in smooth wa
ters; why they had continued trailing
it astern so far at sea was a mystery ;
yet It would bear the three of us unless
a storm arose. There was no time to
seek either blankets or provisions, nor
was there any fresh water to he had—
hut at least we need not go down with
the ship. We had still a hope of res
cue, a iightiug chance—God be thuuked
Tor that!
My hand closed over hers ns she
turned and looked at me. Never in any
eyes have I seen such glimpse of
steady courage.
“The boat is strong, stanch; she
will carry us, Mr. Hollis?”
“Ay! this is better than I dared hope.
But there is no time to lose; the yacht
is settling fast—see those bubbles of
air! Why, I can almost feel the
droop of the planks beneath my feet.
Here, McCann, benr a hand ! I’ull your
self up by that flag locker; now get a
grip here. Are you sailor enough to
slide down that rope?”
He stared at the boat, bobbing up
and down on the black water, with
lackluster eyes.
"It—It will sink,” he half sobbed,
“It—It Is almost full of water.”
"Sink nothing!” my dlsgast rising
beyond control. "It will hold twice
your weight. Down with you, and bail.
Then stand by to help the lady. Over
you go, my lad, if I have to pitch you
headlong; this is no time to argue the
matter. Will you,try it quietly?”
He stared up into my face, but his
fear of me must have been greater
than of the hipping water below, for
the strands of the rope slipped through
his fingers, and an Instant later he
clambered into the bow of the boat,
and sunk onto his knees in the wuter.
To my relief the dory did not sink
greatly beneath his weight, the water
shipped proving scarcely ankle deep.
It would support the three of us with
out balling. The yacht rolled to star
board, fairly burying her rail. I thought
he would never rise again, and my
arms clasped the girl to bold ber
etendy. Then the hulk rose slowly,
painfully, like a giant struggling for
one last breath. No words can describe
the dead, sodden feeling of the sinking
hulk under us.
CHAPTER VI.
Adrift in the Boat.
To cling there lunger, to delay
another moment, would be suicide. I
leaned fnr over and looked down at
the dinghy now rising nnd falling on the
swell caused by the plunge of the
yacht. McCann was upon his knees
clinging to the gunwales, his face
turned upward pleadingly toward the
light.
"Catch this lantern, McCann,” I
called down to him sharply. “I will
swing it to you on the end of a rope.
Kasy, man ! Now' throw off the lash
ing. nnd make the glim secure on the
thwart behind you; better tie it to
the lock. Good; you’ll make a sailor
yet. Now listen: work your boat over
until you can get a grip on the rudder
chains, and hold her steady—yes, to
She Went Down the Rope Hand Over
Hand.
your right; use one of the oars. Now
hang on—I'm going to send the lady
down; stand by to give her a hand.”
He did as I bade him in a fashion,
but was so awkward about it, I won
dered the boat kept upright. Satisfied,
I glanced aside at my silent companion.
"Not a very easy gangway, but the
best we have. Are you afraid?”
She smiled.
“Not in the lenst, Mr. Ilollis; these
skirts are a nuisance, but I can climb
like a boy. Help me keep my balance
on the roll.”
She was over so quickly I can scarce
ly recall more than clasping her arm
and she went down the rope hand over
hand, ns lightly as a sailor. By the
time she reached the boat, her body
was half submerged in the water, but
McCann gave her his hand, and assist
ed in dragging her In over the side.
"I Bin all right, Mr. Ilollis,” she
called in her dear, steady voice. "Now
you come—come quick!”
".Tust a second more,” I answered.
“Hero is the line; haul It In. Get out
your onrs, McCann, and pull. Don’t
wait, or you'll be sucked down when
the yacht sinks. Never mind me; I'll
jump from the rail, and swim out to
you.”
I climbed onto the rail, gripping an
Iron stanchion for 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 ours. The
lantern rays fell full on the girl’s up
turned face, and once she held out her
hands In pleading gesture. It could
scarcely have been a minute I hesi
tated, yet suddenly beneath me came
a sound of rending wood, a muffled ex
plosion, and the deck reeled ns though
hurst asunder. I leaped straight out
ward, and went splashing down into
the sea.
I must have sunk deeply, for I felt
no swirl of the waters, no suction, hut
when I came again to the surface,
nothing was visible but the bobbing
lantern on the dinghy. The Esmeralda
had disappeared. A faint cry reached
me, and I answered it, striking out
strongly toward the guiding light. Five
minutes later, dripping and a bit ex
hausted—for I had been ashore a long
while—I managed to clamber In over
the stern. Even as I rested breathless
on the thwart, I realized that the girl
had crept aft, and her bunds sought
mine.
“Oh, I am so glad,” she sobbed, al
most hysterically. “I was afraid; I—
I thought you went down with the
yacht.”
“No such luck. I Jumped just ns her
decks blew up. Is there anything in
sight?”
“I—I haven't looked; but there Is no
Sound, no light anywhere. Do you
suppose the steamer lias really left
us?”
“I have no doubt of It,” I answered,
but stood up so ns to see about more
clearly. “They supposed all who lived i
had been picked up, and then continued i
on their course.”
My eyes ranged the horizon, but I !
found nothing. We were alone on the
great ocean in the grasp of the black
night. I sat down again dazed for the
instant by the Immensity of the wa- 1
ters, the niter loneliness, and the sud- !
den realization of the littleness of this
cockleshell In which we floated. Her I
voice aroused me to a comprehension
that I alone was a sailor, and that on
me depended every chance for life.
“Do you know, Mr. Hollis, where we
are?”
“Not exactly. I heard the captain
Alway s'W elcome
“You little rascal-played along the way, didn't you?
Kept grandma waiting! Oh well, it s all right. Because
CALUMET
BAKING POWDER
is always right. It’s worth waiting for. Always wel
come. Never shirks its woik. N ver tails. Never
wastes minutes or materials and I know it’s pure and
wholesome, as Calumet contains only su-h ing edients
as have b*»en approved officially by the U. S. Food
Authorities.”
You save when you buy it—you save when you use it.
HIGHEST
Quality
Awards
state the position of the „__
day noon, about one hundred nnd fifty
miles east nnd south of Montnuk ; we
have drifted some since."
"Are we In the steamer lanes?”
“Not of the north Atlantic liners;
they would pass farther eastward. I
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 could see the lights of her
ports. The only vessel passing njong
here will be coasters, or, by luck, pos
sibly some tramp bound Boston way.
Now let's see what is on board; try the
locker forward; and Miss Vera, you
might examine beneath the stern sheet.
This boat hus never been Inboard since
we sailed.”
They went at the task as though
glad of the opportunity, McCann creep
ing forward on hands and knees.
“There’s nothing here,” he reported
diseouragingly, “but a roll of tarpau
lin, some rope ends, and the splintered
handle of a paddle.”
“Well, what more do we want? That
means a sail, If we can make a hole in
one of the thwarts to step a mast. How
much cloth Is there?”
Two or three yards.”
“I’ass It back here; good, solid stuff
that. Now, Miss Vera, whut are your
discoveries?”
She looked up quickly, her eyes
sparkling In the dim gleam of the lan
tern.
“A hag of sea-biscuit, a small beaker
of water, Insipid, but sweet, some
strong cord, and a brad awl.”
“Lord!" I exclaimed, "tills is almost
too good to be true. Why, we are out
fitted for a voyage. However, there is
little use endeavoring to rig up a Jury
mast before daylight, when we know In
which direction to steer. McCann, you
haven’t been overboard, and, no doubt,
your watch runs; what time is it?”
lie fumbled about and found the
timepiece, staring at it in amazement.
“Must have stopped, IIollls,” he said.
"No, by Jove, the thing is running all
right; the hands point to 1:30.”
“That’s about the hour. The colli
sion occurred before "eight bells, or
else Seeley would have been on the
bridge, instead of aft by the cabin.
Have yon any Idea who was saved?”
"I heard the captain's voice hack
there under the awning, ordering out
the boats, and after 1 was caught under
that wreckage Carrington came tip
from below and climbed along the rail.
I called to him, hut he paid no atten
tion ; there was considerable noise
then, nnd he might not have heard
me."
Vera was leaning forward listening.
“l>ld Mr. Seeley leave In the boats?”
she asked. "Was he hurt?"
I tried to stop him from answering
by n gesture of my hand, but the man
was gazing out over the port quarter,
and saw nothing. ___
j “Seeley—the second mate? No, he
didn't get away. The same spar that
! got me, cnughtrhim, and ho never spoke
after that; seemed like a nice fellow,
too.”
Her face was like njarble In the lamp
light.
“He was killed! Then It was bo
cause lie was killed lie did not unlock
my door; 1—I am glad I know.”
She burled her face In her hands,
and sat there motionless. There was
nothing I could do, or say, for I had
no conception ns to what the man was
to her—lover, husband, father, friend?
Truly only the last relationship ap
peared possible, for seemingly there
could be no closer ties between the
two. They were clearly not of the
same class, yet the girl’s sorrow was
evidently real and genuine.
To relieve my mind, I compelled Mc
Cann to r»ick up a panakin, which had
lodged under a thwart, and bull out
the boat. He crept about, grumbling to
himself, but did a fairly good Job. As
It Was a Gray, Ghastly Morning.
no water oozed In through the seams,
we were soon flouting with much
greater buoyancy, the plunking under
foot rapidly drying.
The flight was dark and tldck, but
without ruin. My wet clothes clung
to tne in discomfort, yet I had
no reason to fear evil results, as the
air was warm, and the salt water laid
its own virtue. It was a gray, ghastly
morning, the sky overcast, the great
surges hearing down upon us, ever rac
ing toward our little cockleshell, ter
rifying iu their aspect. The sharp bow
rose to them buoyantly
enough, but the broad expanse of trou
bled waters stretching all about, the
black, cloud shadows overhead, and
the little boat In which we were tossed,
combined to bring to me a feeling akin
to despair. The only hope was the
possible overhauling of some passlnc
snip, urn me lowering tsa.v scarcely en
abled me to see clearly a hundred
yards, even In the light of the gray
dawn. A rescuing vessel might easily,
pass us by within a quarter of a mile
unseen, nor had we any means of at
tracting attention. I confess that, sit
ting there In loneliness, staring about
Into the grim expanse of fog and sea, I
fell into a blue funk. Nor was I
greatly heartened when the sun finally
rose above 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 heaving leagues of ocean.
My glunce turned downward to my
companions In the boat. McCann still
slept, with head pillowed on his arm,
but the woman lay with her eyes wide
open, looking upward at the drifting
spume. Her eyes met mine, and she
sat up, grasping the gunwale with
one hand, and stared about her over
the drear expanse of sea.
“There is nothing In sight?” she
spoke wearily. “Are you sure Mr. Car
rington made his escape?”
] “As certaii* as I can be. I did not
see him after I left the party In the
after cabin last evening. But McCann
Insists that he came on deck, and
Joined the others in lowering the boats.
Beyond doubt he got away safely, and
was picked up by the liner.”
She was silent for some time, her
gaze on the man sleeping in the bows.
He rolled over, revealing his face, gray
and haggard In the dawn.
“Who—who Is that man?” she ques
tioned. “You call him McCann; is he
a sailor?”
“No; he was one of the guests. TJe
Is a rich man’s son, who occasionally
takes a flyer on Wall street."
“Not—not Fergus McCann?”
“I believe that Is his name, now that,
you recall It. Why? Did you ever
know the fellow?"
“Only by reputation, which Is not
the best. He was involved rather un
pleasantly In the Bascom shooting
case.”
“Aye, I remember. I read about the
affair In a Chicago paper at the time,
but failed to comprehend It was this
McCann who was Involved. Did Bas
com die?"
"He will 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 said quietly, “the man Is
lu for a Job of sailor work here, wheth
er It pleases him, or not. He acted a
bit sullen last night, but 1 am in.no
mood just now to baby him. Have you
ever steered aXboat.wlth an oar, Mias
Vera?”
‘I hare done lots of canoeing, and
last summer at Palm Boh eh." she
stopped, laughing at the slip— ‘Ter,
actually at Palm Beach, I steered some
larger boats. I—I believe I could.”
"Von will find this somewhat dif
ferent. Still, there Is not much of a.
trick to It. nnd I am going to let yo’x
try your hand. Do you think you caa
hold her all right?"
“Of course I can.” almost indignant
ly. “Really, Mr. Hollis, I have steered
boats in worse seas than this. If the
oar wasn’t quite so heavy—”
“There is no steering paddle aboard.
Well, if anything goes wrong, sing out.
I’m going to rout out that fellow for
ward, and get at our work."
I cannot say that McCann was par
ticularly pleasant about it; he had a
way of showing that be rather reseut
ed my assumption of authority, and
performed what I ordered with a de
liberation which was almost insolent.
However, he made no open revolt, and
I thought it best not to anger the man
unnecessarily. We worked steadily for
an hour, the fellow proving practically
useless, except to hand me the article
required, or to throw his weight on a
rope’s end. Vera succeeded In holding
the boat steady, although I thoughMhe
weight of the waves Increased as
though we were on the outer edge of
some storm.
I lashed an oar upright to a thwart,
bracing It securely by ropes to oar
locks on either side; then secured the
broken paddle handle as a spar, notch
ing the oar to give purchase, and rigged
up the tarpaulin, being compelled to
use rope-ends to secure it In position.
It was a rough Job, yet the stiff canvas
bellied out In the wind, and I was cm
scions of a thrill of hope, as I crept
back to the stern sheets, grasped the*
steering oar, and headed the boat Into
the southwest.
(Continued Next Week.)
Accusation Wat False.
“When I hired you last week," said
the boss, who had summoned the new
employee Into the Inner office, “did yflu
tell me the whole truth about your
self?”
“Why, yes. What do you mean tko
whole truth?”
"Well, I have a letter about ymi. t
will take your word If you tell uie that
It Is false. The letter Is anonymous.”
“Wh—wh—what does It say about
me?”
“Don’t be scared. It doesn’t tigcuso
you of any kind of crime. It merely
says that you are a reformed d
nrd.”
“lhnt, sir, is a malicious lie, made
out of whole cloth.”
“That’s all I wanted to hear you say.
Don't worry about It.”
And as the new employee went forth
in the pride of his virtue, he said to
himself:
"The Idea! And I never thought of
reforming 1”