Adventure Magazine Cover — page 67: what you’re looking at

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

The ‘‘Bosun’’ a regular beat—beat—beat—hbeat rattled on tired ear-drums. Under their breaths both officers and hands began to voice objection. A blessing overdone; generosity grown prodigal! Constantly damp clothes were worse than sweated ones; the dripping of moisture down the back of.one’s neck hour after hour soon becomes disturbing. In hail of Cape Frio the rain suddenly ceased; the sun shone; the vessel shook herself and plod- ded south. Said Charley, “I’ve seen a good many kinds of sea weather, I guess, dad. Some I liked better than others: but they’re all good stuff. Glad it’s getting cool.” Plack gutteraled a disagreement. The heat killed him, and chill weather pene- trated to his bones so.that he was in- capable of thinking. He swore he had never known the Pampas air so cold and was almost afraid of what the westerlies would be. They reached them while he was speaking, and he was pursued down the companionway by a nipping blast. To the boy it was exhilarating, nothing less. His cheeks grew red with the glow of health; his activity increased; his accomplishments mounted. His spirits were not affected; they seemed always at a high point. It became apparent, as soon as ever the bark began to make easting, that she was not herself. The helmsman complained that the wheel dragged and then kicked so that he stood in constant danger of being knocked down by it. ‘The rising seas gave a peculiar motion to the vessel that could not be all of their doing. It was sluggish- ness, and an odd sort of sluggishness that she exhibited. When she set down her head to coast the length of a comber she invariably thrust her nose deep into the the green hill of water up which she had to scramble; at the top she spun upon her quarters. The captain’s face grew long; the mate scowled and put himself into an ugly mood; the second mate, Leiken, shivered and wondered if he cared or not. In two more days Leiken was strapped to his bunk with fever, and to all and sundry who entered he expatiated wondrously of the rain, the feast of rain, the music of rain, the opening up of the heavens. The captain, who had not given up to fever, -hearkened to him for a time and then ordered the hatches unshipped. A dis- 61 tressful odor rose. In a voice of surrender he bawled for the carpenter. After all, the men had a right to know, as he had — that real danger existed. ‘Sound the well!” he ordered puaeny, ae closing his throat. Down went the lead and came up shiny. ‘““Two feet o’ water,’’ was sung out. A hush descended upon the watch gath- ered in the waist; plainly to their ears lifted the swish—swish of seepage rushing pell- mell from stern to stem. “Pumps!” bellowed Plack. His counte- nance held a bitter disappointment. “Great stuff!” sang out Charley, tailing on to a pump handle. “Say, this is the best ever! She’s leaking, isn’t she?” The captain reeled ‘away, his nostrils filled with the stench of mildew from his precious cargo. In the spell of the nipping wind he huddled in his cabin, shaking and staring sightlessly at the far bulkhead. Jahlet took charge. “Tt’s the rain, boys,” he barked. “Get Just like I’ve read about. - it out in a hurry and we'll have a look at the © mischief in the hold.” At Charley’s smiling nod he glared wrath- fully. That was at three bells of the first dog- watch. When the night watch had been set’ and the first mate’s watch sent below, the port watch still pumped, and Jahlet held the deck all through the night, growing more choleric with fatigue. Charley took his turn regularly throughout the span of thundering darkness. One watch went and then the other, and he still kept to the deck, weary and aching but living every minute — with a strange, sweet joy that was nothing else than the glory of the struggle. Jahlet might glare and curse, but he knew he was doing a necessary share. “What’s this sogering?” discanted the mate. “Why don’t you pump her dry?’ “That’s all mnght, sir,” was Charley’s blithe solo, while the others held their eyes down and their mouths shut; “we'll have the keel up for you soon.” But with the dawn glinting palely, ghostly, on cramped backs gleaming with sweat, the sea still gushed from the vessel’s bowels. The captain stumbled up. “Why don’t they suck?” he protested. “Why don’t they suck?” “Well, sir,” replied Charley, who could have fallen asleep if anybody had pushed Gomichooks (¢ (E(0) on ea