Avon Fantasy Reader No. 9 — page 91: what you’re looking at

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

“Took, Sir,” I said. “There’s a light there, about three points off the bow. It’s moving.” | _ The Mate was staring through his night-glasses, and suddenly he thrust them into my hands:— | 7 “See if you can make it out,” he said, and forthwith put his hands round his mouth, and bellowed into the night:—‘Ahoy there! Ahoy there! Ahoy there!” his voice going out lost into the silence and darkness all around. But there came never a comprehensible answer, only all the time the in- fernal noise of a brook running out there on the sea, a thousand miles from any brook of earth; and away on the port bow, a vague shapeless shining. — I put the glasses to my eyes, and stared. The light was bigger and brighter, seen through the binoculars; but I could make nothing of it, only a dull, elongated shining, that moved vaguely in the darkness, apparently a hun- dred fathoms or so, away on the sea. “Ahoy there! Ahoy there!” sung out the Mate again. Then, to the men below:—“Quiet there on the main-deck!” There followed about a minute of intense stillness, during which we all listened; but there was no sound, except the constant noise of water running steadily. 3 3 eer I was watching the curious shining, and I saw it flick out suddenly at the Mate’s shout. Then in a moment I saw three dull lights, one under the other, that flicked in and out intermittently. “Here, give me the glasses!” said the Mate, and grabbed them from me. He stared intensely for a moment; then swore, and turned to me:— “What do you make of them?” he asked, abruptly. "I don’t know, Sir,” I said. “I’m just puzzled. Perhaps it’s electricity, or ‘something of that sort.” “Oh hell!” he replied, and leant far out over the rail, staring. “Lord!” he said, for the second time, “what a stink!” ‘ As he spoke, there came a most extraordinary thing; for there sounded a series of heavy reports out of the darkness, seeming in the silence, almost as loud as the sound of small cannon. “They’re shooting!” shouted a man on the main-deck, suddenly. The Mate said nothing; only he sniffed violently at the night air. “By Gum!” he muttered, “what is it?” T put my hand over my nose; for there was a terrible, charnel-like stench filling all the night about us. “Take my glasses, Duprey,” said the Mate, after a few minutes further watching. “Keep an eye over yonder. I’m going to call the Captain.” He pushed his way down the ladder, and hurried_aft. About five minutes later, he returned forrard with the Captain and the Second and Third Mates, all in their shirts and trousers. : “Anything fresh, Duprey?” asked the Mate. “No, Sir,” I said, and handed him back his glasses. “The lights have 89 : 3 CONE DOOKKS CO