Argosy, Vol. 147, No. 1 — page 72: what you’re looking at

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

wn aS As >) » —* be J 7 - +, ; . > a ' j “ Fé wy 4 were” = <_< 1 : | * ‘4, a va wv are, ss! th it, stung them and then blew it eir already soaked necks. at, gray sea lifted her bow up, and then, with a rush, left her there sus- in mid-air. She dropped with a e earth seemed to hesitate in its It thi sea lawyer flat on his hen a crashing, swishing roar and a more terrible than any before, d the door to the galley, washing 4k out on deck, raced ait and crushed atch agail the bulkhead, and sub- with a swash and a gurgle as it ran rough the scuppers. The watch fled ye ' . It threw the ‘o hell with the ship and with orders, sobbed the sea lawycr, throwing his * ed into their bunks and listened to the um ling down above their heads. any didn’t care. <a : - wanted was to ride the e hard gust came as g; it bent the masts with their { away; a black, whirling a — e, wire, and splintered wood. jisted to starboard—a mur and the men below . The last agony he wreckage that strewed ; Pads * Aes, wi * : ob J weep . any dic Let them go. Let sink like sick rats if they cared to. ne V storm—to his hand, his feet, where they should came—to breast and the seas four- ° a the pillar he was struggling to he had been ex- A boom told him something had \ shred ver his head and he knew it was |. A cracki smash and the foremast down, splintering close to the deck, ngled mass of rigging creating a maze hurried, fev- staggered of desperation crazed, they | the s—reacting | to each. com: ‘on the poop—the quiet, tr 2 that pierced the medley of ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. oe ning. The wind lashed their carried away, snapping the lines that held it like so much twine. «She comes!” The cry, almost of exul- tation, hurtled from the poop. A big, foaming sea came charging like a maddened giant—it towered up and up— up above the men who scrambled for safety —up like a wall of green glass, hung for a bare instant—and dropped. Like a broken thing the Riding Scud stopped and wavered; she gave a sickening lurch and rolled over to leeward, dipping her gunwales. Half naked and staring wildly the men clutched any manner of support and clung there, their feet kicking and sliding on the slanting, slippery decks. Doors flew open; all manner of gear belonging to seamen came tumbling out upon the sea. They dug their fingers into each other in a mad attempt to hold on to the only thing that promised them life; others dug wildly at the deck for support. “Cut! Cut!” their voices yelled hysteri- cally. “ God in heaven—the mast—cut it! She’s coming back! She’ll come—” And just as the vessel struggled back, like some tired thing, a sea that blanketed out the very sky itself whirled smashing down upon them. TX. Tue wind died slowly, as if reluctantly and thwarted of its purpose: At sunset the sun broke through in a golden glance that bathed the mastless derelict that floated on the bosom of the ocean with a coat of gold. The sea, weary of strife, passed into a long, rolling swell that rocked the half- sunken craft to and fro. | The girl with jade eyes stood staring at the figure wedged upon the poop, stared at the pale, bronzed skin. She leaned over and drew the lids until they hid the fixed, blue pupils of the eyes. She looked quiz zically at the smile resting SO lightly upon lips that were at peace. She turned her gaze and let it dwell upon the cruiser bearing down upon her from the on Po a ; - ave came aboard. The rag- west. arkness howled and sang 4 “He was a queer “un,” she mumbled ch th ing rigging. —-Stupidly, and with deft fingers, set abou! “The main tops’! into the approaching world of different mens aes 5 E .. eal Ae = xX comicbooks.com