Argosy All-Story Weekly — 'The Metal Monster' — page 80: what you’re looking at

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

wr ore / a Rela My. <5 _ RRO OO ae AP I re 5» Lae Oe 74 But the sight of {he Koromanti, black smoke pouring from her funnel, steady as a ship can be in such weather, overcame their timidity. They were willing to mnsk anything rather than remain another hour aboard the storm-swept Barbuda, driven about at the mercy of wind and wave. Boats from the Koromanti aided m the work of rescue. -The hazardous task of transferring passengers and crew was car-— ried on by grim men from the two ships. The Koromanti’s doctor came in the first boat from that. ship’s side. Katrina was sent out of the room while the two broken legs were set and the captain made as easy as possible under the circumstances. To move him was out of the question. This the doctor flatly msisted. The Barbuda was sound. There was no immediate danger of any kind, save the scant possibility of the hurricane recurrimmg. The captain, mate, chief engineer, senior wireless man, and second steward would remam aboard the ship, the Koromanti standing by overnight. The doctor was needed for the hysterical women taken to the rescue ship, but would come over in the first boat at daybreak. Then the Koromanti would take the Bar- buda in tow and make for Bermuda. Thus they planned, and the work of transferring passengers and crew was Car- ried on through the day. It was arduous work, and went slowly. Dark fell early m the afternoon and found the last boat-load making from the side of the distressed ship, leaving the senior wireless man, Baker, in the wireless office; the second Godfrey, doing his best to get together 2 meal of tea and canned stuff; the chief, smoking sadly in the useless engine-room; the mate, on the bridge, moodily cursing the day he ever signed on a ship that car- ried foreigners for her crew. The one thing which was least expected happened. The hurricane returned during the night. Or, in nautical parlance, it re- curved. There was httle prelude to it. It came upon the two ships in full, ternfying force, sending the Koromanti hastening off from the close menace of the other ship. But just before this happened a discov- -- . net Dw ol — ee OMe 2. ge wo Ptianrgme-+ ~ = a Ne Ne ee -—wW -- - ~~ . steward, ARGOSY- ALLSTORY WEEKLY. ery had been made. Two people were miss mg. This discovery was made after dinnef aboard the Koromanti, a dmner which wag served to double the number of the Kore~ manti’s original crew and passenger-list, and which, therefore, took much time. combined with the fact that the ship. wrecked people were being cared for by the men and women of the rescue ship—mer and women who shared their rooms and their clothes with the unfortunates—made an earlier tally impossible. Wireless messages were flashed to thé Barbuda, and a hurried search was made of that ship, but the result stood at “ twe missing.” The two were Katrina Flemmg and Laws rence Thorpe. During the transferring of the passen-+ gers they had been seen in a dozen different: places, assisting terrified women. Some one remembered seemng them near a boat on the boat-deck. Later they. were seen by the rail of the saloon-deck.” The officers m charge of the rescue work took it for grant- ed that they had taken their places m one of the boats. cause of the coming dark, there was time for nothing but “ taking it for granted.” | There was only one solution to the lem. They had been swept from the boat- deck. worried the already harassed mates; chance of some one being jostled or thrown overboard by either the excited crew or the lunging of the ship. The boat-deck was railess, and, ~ sinee most of the boats had been carried away, there was nothing to prevent a slipping person from going straight over the side. In the confusion and semidarkness attendmg the last boat-loads, this could have hap pened without any of the officers having - seen it. It was decided to keep the news of Kaw trina’s loss from the captain. Alone, save for an occasional visit to his room of the overworked second steward, he was endur-. ing enough. He could have the news gently, broken to him later, when he was safely, aboard the Koromanti. Thoughts of the loss of Katrina and Thorpe were quickly overshadowed w GOR GDOO In the enforced haste be+- It was the thing which had most, the, ‘SS (CO