Adventure Magazine Cover — page 37: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

: aan Kelvett pouted his ee Sn OW jell, we'll try and turn these fellows - into stokers.” “One of them is the donkeyman, sir.”’ “Good. He ought to know enough to get steam on her anyway. Oh, and Mr. Carnell!” “Yes, sir?” “Better get those bodies removed as soon as possible.” ‘Aye, aye, sir; I’ll attend to that.”’ “But I want to see them again,” claimed Vi. ~out, ¥3, dear—— “Don’t be idiotic, uncle,” retorted Vi. “We haven’t even examined them to see what they really have died of. You can’t hold a post mortem by looking at them. Tl go now.’ She descended below forthwith, followed by her uncle. Vi approached the bodies arranged in such solemn sleep around the table and handled them with the dexterity and proper callousness of the trained nurse, watched by her uncle, who seemed as unable as ever to realize any professional utility ina woman. “T thought,” remarked Vi as she left the dead captain, “that perhaps they had been poisoned, but this stout man here hasn’t yet touched his food; and notice, uncle, he hasn’t received his cup of coffee.” She examined again the footprint upon the table-cloth, but failed to gather any suggestion. After raising the eyelids of the dead girl, who had been about fourteen years old, she exclaimed and pulled back the muslin sleeve upon the arm. “Come here!” she called to the captain. “Took! Isn’t that a human bite?” The captain stared at the semi-circular blue marks upon the cold white flesh. “Certainly looks like it,” he assented. “Yes; it couldn’t well be a dog. But how could that “Don’t know. Seems to me that they’ve been drugged by some suffocating medium. We must find out what has done these poor souls to death. Get me some scissors, please. What’s that?” A noise of bottles being moved sounded. The captain walked over quickly and looked in the pantry, where he discovered Chi Loo busily investigating the cupboards. “Oh, Chi Loo,” said the captain. ‘Where ex- oe has Mr. Selwyn gone?” > x he = ‘ ete cine in oe Ny SY a ee peed > 2 a ee 0 Re = <= od Loo, ‘continuing his work. . “But we left him here. Loo blandly. muchee.”’ CHAPTER VIII LTHOUGH Vi was in her second medi- cal year when the kaiser interrupted her studies, and the campaign had afforded her some further practical knowledge in gas, wound, and shell-shock cases, yet she was hardly qualified to make a diagnosis on a mystery that might well have puzzled a specialist; and moreover she had learned by precept and practise not to attempt such a hazardous performance. ‘“‘Can’t make out what it could have been, uncle,” was her verdict. “Seems, as I said, to be a case of poison by some suffocating agent. But that bite puzzles me. I can’t discover any similar abrasions on any of the other bodies.” “Well, dear, perhaps we never will. The sea holds many mysteries that will never be solved by man. And anyway we’ve got to look after the living.” ‘““That’s true, but it worries me. become of Mr. Selwyn?” _“Nobody appears’ to have seen him. Chi Loo says that he followed us down and that there was nobody there.” ‘Seems queer,’ commented Vi. “He can’t have got drunk in such a short time even if he hadn’t had his normal amount of food yesterday; and if he has, where could he have gone?”’ What’s » On deck Carnell met them. ‘“‘The donkeyman seems to know enough to act as engineer, sir,” he reported, “ I’ve divided the other men into watches of six to act as stokers, and you and I, sir, I thought to take the wheel. We'll be able to keep one boiler going.” “Very good, Mr. Carnell,’ assented the captain. “But, uncle,” exclaimed Vi, “I know enough to keep the ship on the point you tell me unless there’s a storm or something, and that would free Mr. Carnell, wouldn’t itr “Ves, dear, but——” “But nothing! I can do it eye To ate ange é have _seen him. He hasn’t come on deck.” F “No see Mistle Sellyn,” repeated Chi “P’laps he cussee ton com cboo ‘S.€OFr a eet ee