Beadle's Dime Library No. 230 — page 3: what you’re looking at

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

P ' | | ae ‘ ee of the Flying Dutchman, though most sailors believe ha the hasn’t Bedi tie) for a good fifty years, And on came the ship straight wards us, till she wasn’t more than two cable- lengths away, and the silence on our ship had become so intense that you might have heard a pin drop, when I heard a sort of a groan aloft in our fore-top, and then the men by the rigs oot heads burst into a cry of terror as I saw a black object fall from the fore-topgallant cross-trees. knew what it was before it struck the deck uash that though the sickening thud and ookout had heard turned my stomach. The fallen from the mast-head | In another minute every soul aboard the Spindrift seemed to have burst into one great cry of horror and fear as the fiery stranger ‘came on, si‘ent.as ever, with the waves dashing 1 up green billows of flame against the pale blue of Rey corpse-like hull, and it seemed as if she was bound to run us down, And at the sound of that cry, while women were poream ing: men shouting and cursing, and every ove looking as if they were going stark crazy on board the qe t; up into the rig- ging of the fiery ship leaped a number of blac gures, with blue flames all round them, and the stranger swept past our stern, and on into the wind’s eye without.so much as a sound out of her. And then came a puff of wind as hot as if just out of a furnace, and struck us full on our pyramid of sail with a force that sent us over on our beam ends; while I heard the crack- ing of sticks that told me some of our stu’nsail booms were going, if not worse. Of course, that put all Fig of the Flying Dutchman out of our heads for awhile, and by the time I’d got the men out on the yards, taken in the light kites and got the ship into safer canvas, the flery stranger had gone—vanished, disappeared out of sight—clean as if she’d never been there, though there was no mist on the sea, not a cloud in the sky, and the water was clear all round us. And where that flery hot puff of wind came from was another puzzle, It Jasted nearly two minutes, carried away five of our booms, and sprung the main op yn mast, yet it came out of a clear sky, and left the sea as oily as ever. When the muss was all over, and the vers busy jabbering over the incident, orrard to see who had been killed. I didn’t let the passengers know what had happened, though one or two of them possibly suspected it, and the bustle of getting in the light sails bad taken off their attention from the man who fell from the cross-trees. When I went past the fore-hatch I saw that the men had Iaid the body out on the hatch cover, and covered it decently with along watch- coat, while several old sailors were gathered round it, whispering to each other, and the third mate, Denyse, was are putting back a flap of the coat asif he’d n inspecting th 8 2 Who is it, Mr. Denyse?” I said. “Tt’s poor Ole Nelson, sir,” he answered. ‘Lars Nelson’s brother. The poor boy had a fit, so his brother says, and fell out of the cross- trees as the thi assed us,” I could see the young chap give a shudder as he spoke, as if hed not become hardened like ssen- went the rest of us, and I asked: ‘Where's Lars?” “On duty, sir. He wouldnt come down, though some of the boys offered to take the rest of his watch aloft. The men say he looks dazed and stupid.” > pend him down to me at once,” I said. “‘Grief’s all right enough, but I don’t want a dazed man on we lookout with fifty-two souls a look after, lieve bim, and send him down me. Ney se touched his hat and sent a man aloft, while t a lantern and looked at the body of the dead boy. . I knew him well enough; a fair, slender lad, hardly strong enough for a sailor’s life, always sticking close to bis big brother, who was a reg- ular giant of a fellow. He was dead enough now, but not so much disfigured as I should have thought. His face had a still, eeful look, as if known what fork him. He had struck on the back of his head which was all crushed in, but for all thut showed on his face might have been only asleep. [I couldn’t help feeling sad over the poor boy; but there was a sense of mystery and fear stilt hanging over me at the way in which bis death had ha nearly out of my head... I felt stupid as I looked at him, and ’t quite understand the whole business. And while I was looking down at him, the me. gathered ro me, every one si- jent and white in the face, I heard Denyse say: “ Here’s Lars Nelson, eRADY And there stood the dead boy’s brother beside me, ned, that put sorrow CHAPTER IL. THE DANE'S PROPHECY. THERE stood Lars Nelson, a big Dane, weigh- ing over two bundred pounds, with a yellow - ‘that covered more than half his hairy : and fiarpe-locking blue eyes, blood-shot in corners, Talk about your black eyes The Flying Dutchman of 1880. a eS ee ewe -_— + ee ee —————————— flashing fire: I’ve seen wickeder looking blue and gray eyes than any of them, and Lars was tes of that kind when he got a few drinks in m. He looked quiet enough now, and, just as the men had said, he was dazed-like and stupid. — When he saw the body, covered with the watch-coat, he gave a sort of shivering sigh, more like a groan, and began to shake like a leaf, his face as’ whive as chalk. ** Lars,” I said to bim gently, ‘how did it happen, my poor fellow? I don’t want to burt your feelings, but, if you can tell me, do.” Lars Nelson said nothing, but went on star- ing at the body, shaking and muttering to him- self in Danish, as if he hadn’t heard me, sol hy the shoulder, saying: " Come, Nolen. rouse up. How did the boy fall?” The shake seemed to rouse him, for he looked at me as if he had just waked up, saying: ‘* Captain, what is it?” “How did the boy fall?” I asked. ** Fall? fall?” He seemed to feel dazed again; for he passed his hand over his forehead, and then took off his cap and began to clutch his thick yellow curls of bair, re Hing: all? How did Ole fall? Eh, my God! shook bim ‘* Fall? how can I tell? It is the Evil One, has come again to punish me for my sins. Oh, cap tain, be was all I had to love, that Ole. I Pes my mother to take care of him, and ring him back. It was his first voyage—no, his second, for | had to go home to Kiobenhavn for him— é And he seemed to be wandering off again, when [ brought him‘up by saying sharply: “Never mind all that, Nelson. Tell me how he fell. Was he subject to fits?” The big Dane glared at me as if be meent to strike me. “Fits! fits!” he cried. ‘‘Who said my Ole had fits?) We are men, we Danes! We don’t have fits. No, no, Ole died like a man, nota sick girl in a fit. Captain, the Evil One has set his eye on this ship. e’ll never see land again. Never!” “Shut up!” I cried, angrily, for I knew the men were all chock-full of superstition, listeu- ing to his wild talk; and didn’t want it to go any further, ‘“‘If you can’t tell me bow that boy came to fall from the mast-head, keep your jaw tackle belayed. Tell me how he fe I, and nothing more.” My rebuke seemed to sober him, just as if he had been drunk, and he stood up, respectfully enough, as he answered me: ‘He fell, through mepes| his footing, sir, when the Evil One looked at bim.” * A at cried I. “ What do you mean by that He was quite reasonable now, [ could see it in his face as he answered me quietly enough: **[ mean that, when the Evil One's shi passed by us, I was at the mast-head with my brother and we saw a man with horns on his head and flaming eyes at the mast-head of the flery ship. And he looked at us as he passed, and I heard my brother give a groan; saw him start back, letting go his hold, and then J was all alone in the top with the Evil One glaring at me.” Do what I would, I could not help the cold chills running down my back when | beard the man talk in this way; but I shook off the feel- ing, for I Enew it wouldn’t do to let the men see I shared their notions, so I said: “ Well, Lars, my poor fellow, Ill see that the boy is mee | buried and the very first port we come to I'll send word to your people, if you cannot write yourself,” He shook his head in a solemn sort of way and answered me: “Thank you, captain, but we shall never see a port in this ship, and poor Ole will go down with the rest of us.” ; ‘Oh, nonsense, Lars,” I said. ‘Don’t be superstitious. If you can’t talk sense, keep stiil,” He shook bis head again. You don’t believe me, captain. It matters not. You will see. We Danes can see more than other men, and I’ve heard my father say that the ship which meets the Ghost Sea King ery we en, sa “ that to yourself, and don’t. Oto scaring the men. I su the ship founder if a storm comes on, do you?” The man drew himself up and his blood-shot eyes flashed as he shook. his great arms in the air and cried out: “Sit down; No, captain, you don’t know a true Dane. He'll fight death and the devil to- gether, if they choose to come. hear 0 nar Oleson?” “Can’t say I did,” I said, to humor the man and get him off his morbid ways. “ r Oleson was my own ancestor, cap- tain, and pirate in the days when pirates were kings. One day Yarl Erik, the Fork-beard, took him and his men prisoners, when they were all ‘dead drunk, and ordered them to be chained to a log til my, got sober, and then to have their beads cut off.” : ; “Serve them right,” sald I, “for being pi- . ne ee ee ee mee ee eee ee ie eee hi want to sit down and let mm me d you ever | h a — me ee ee rates, robbing honest men be ss to work for a living.” - 3 cause they’re too +h AS. 5 if Ison laughed in a wild sért’of way and went on: “AY, ay. dered bis i So Erik ‘Forkbeard vaid, and 6r- dsman to strike, beginning at the last man on the log. And they all taunted him and gt as they were being killed, till there were only nine roared out to Erik: left. And then Ra gnar ‘Ole 50n “*Your héadsman’s a coward. He diren't strike at me while I look in his eyes.’ Then Erik was angry and called the headsman to the front and to im to strike off Ragnar Oleson’s. bead from before, taking him across the throat. And ha tried to do so, but up rose Ragnar Ole- son, with his glaring eyes, and stared at Lim, so the headsman faltered and did not dare tostrike. And Erik the Fork-beard was so an; seiz-d the sword hinself and strode at that he ry to kill him. And Ragnar stared at him—like this, captain.” As be spoke the big Dane folded his stared at me out of those terrible bl eyes of his, and looked so like a devi Me I’m a living man, I began to realize t story might be true, for I felt half self to face him as he went on: , . : ** And Ragnar waited till the Fork-beard was” when he suddenly. within Bore pulled t e Yarl to bim by the beard, gave ae the skal—the butt with his bead, ca fein—ant killed Yarl Erik dead. And then he cut his ropes with the Yarl’s sword and got 0 and his men raged so like devils that t Yarl Erik’s men .as if they Now, captain, they called me goar Oleson. Am age of fy them to make me wink when the my face.” striking distance, . and nd ar ia he ‘they drove t home the im- ely to quai astorm? Let death and the devil come. de- y strike at And I must say the fellow looked as if be re- all had roused up his pride. So I said, briskly: “That’s the way to talk, Nelson! N die. Keep up the men’s spirits, and way to any nonsense about devils. did not fear death or the devi) , now that!” ever say | Nas have any devils nowadays. They all died a” hundred years Then T went ‘oway aft, for I didn’t want to have him answer back, and I saw he was just the mod when a yery little would ota going like a maniac, like all the rest of th I've noticed in men pppesive sides of ne earth—the . name ys. One set fair and blue Danes a ack, Bot anes, It’s a queer th the other red and yellow and bia but let eitker of them get they'll fight a buzzsaw. a muck with a big knife, stabbing at every one; and I’ve seen Danes. Nor wegiatis atid Simcoe do to ys ust the same, without so much as a sti ht with, and knock men. right and n a butt of ns, some dead and some all in him "rapid, with their hard heads or a kick. — But that’s neither here nor there. I went back to the quarter-deck, thi had bappened, and more puzzled own to myself, when I saw of the ca over what than I liked to ker coming out looking grave and anxious. “What is it, Falker?’ I said, for when his face looked grave there was so to be grave about. He came up close to me and said, in a very low voice: ‘‘ The glass has dropped two in: hes since the Flying Dutchman passed us knew what he meant well enou the glass drops an inch ina short latitudes, it’s a sure sign of a terril coming. and we were not quite out of the range | of the Mauritius hurricanes yet, while we were coming irto the track of the moonset everything b that they looked like dull yellow + he Se ae [ looked up at the sky, and then I saw that’ the face of the heavens had chan again been clear, . At blazing like balls of fire, and afterward they had seemed to die out without any er om they were blazin ain, brighter but one place, de of t There, a small cloud as black as” oe 4 risen up out of the sea, and | heard a low, faint mut- be told from the ter, hardly plain oaning of the spars, but ke the tims. And teh a rtd the edge of the little ke a white light,'so that I was coming, __ It was a tyt and ‘the hot; st , D oe the wind me that’ it would be one, for they’re always worst when the we Oe “i+ Gok the ship stripped,” I ‘6 t e p Ham © ker. ‘“ Send down ot ge ean send, an ft the rot, She’ll stand a jib and one storm © that's all she'll stand to-night. Calf all-hands, : fore he ‘all the men at work, the old Spindrift. They worked like bees <€om (E JOOKS anew - col