Adventure, January 20, 1922 — page 50: what you’re looking at

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

48 of the tortured rigging. Hungry men licked their unshaven chops and glared at the flooded galley; the slaves who tended it strove frantically to clear scupper-holes and release the foul water before more came down the shattered hatchway and drowned them completely. Eyes glinted wolfishly at sight of the beef-cask, and with a noisy swallow of rum a bold spirit announced: “Full an’ plenty today an’ be to tomorrow, lads! I’m fer makin’ a proper meal, 1am. What say ye all?”’ “Ha’ ye ever starved?” demanded a wizened little rufhan sneeringly. % ’s mirth! Ain’t J starvin’ now?” “Real starvin’ I mean. When yer belly’s slack trips yer knees, an’ ye’d~ sell yer mother’s soul to buy ye flesh, or kill her an’ eat her yerself if ye lacked buyers. Ain’t ye had as much rations as the rest o’ the lads today?” “Clap a stopper on thy babblin’ kisser!” roared the malcontent savagely. “‘ Tis all or none. What say, lads? Shall we eat full fare today and trust in Ed - Davies’ reckonin’ for tomorrow? Didn’t Steve Carr say th’ land’s close aboard?”’ “Aye, but he may be guessin’ again. Ha’ any of us sailed these seas before, that any man may know where lies the land wi’ surety?” : “That’s the talk!” roared the prime mover in the proposed feast with fine disregard for the line of his own argument. ‘Do we know? Do Ed Davies know? Then let’s fill our bellies while we ha’ meat!’’ A sudden yell pealed out on deck as the men paused. He cocked_his ear,, and a yellow-toothed grin broke out on his ugly face as the yell became coherent and pene- trated clearly to the huddled wretches below. “Land! Land ho!” Up they poured, heedless alike of cold and driving spray, staggering deck and crashing seas, to climb on to midship house and forecastle, into the rigging and upon guns, every frowning face peering into the snowy murk ahead and to windward. “Where away?” growled one. A pair of eyes sharper than the rest picked out a blacker wave than its fellows, a wave that stayed-up against the slaty sky when the-others went roaring down to sea-level or passed beyond the ship to the farther horizon. “There’ she looms—broad on th’ lar- Adventure board bow!” shrieked Steve Carr from the high elevation of the mizzen-top. “That’s a woundy big sea, fool!”’ screamed the wizened little pirate who had counseled patience below. “?Tis no sea, lads, but the Virgins!” shouted Davies in jubilation. “Hang on awhile like stout lads, and I'll ha’ ye in snug harbor before many glasses ha’ run.”’ The Cadiz stood on, carrying the same tack, for with the next she would head in fair for the Straits entrance did the wind but hold. On deck Davies kept only the few men needed for helm and sand-glass, with lookouts on each lower yard; the rest of the hungry, shivering crew poured back through the hatchway to huddle again in the filthy reek of their quarters. “Now, bold rovers, will ye argue ag’in’ feastin’ our bellies now?’”’ demanded the ravenous one uproariously. Even the wizened little pirate was silent. The galley slaves were ordered with curdling oaths to boil beef, and to keep tight lips about it on peril of their bodies and souls. ven the land developed into a screaming storm that blew the Cadiz far offshore again and lasted a full week. And at the end of seven days a battered ship manned by gaunt, hollow-eyed specters once more fought her stubborn way in toward the Virgin Cape. “Tf I haven’t lost every bit o’ luck I ever had, yell pick up the Cape at dawn, Steve,” rasped Davies after making up his reckoning. ‘‘How goes the larder? Mis- tress Nell’s looking ghostlike, but never a whimper will she make.” “T had th’ last bit o’ green hide chafing- gear stripped today,” growled Steve Carr sullenly. ‘“’Tis ascurvy diet. Boiled raw- hide for a week on end, by satan! And none too much o’ that either. —— me, but had I been master o’ the ship I’d ha’ made yonder scum go short for their fault.” ‘““Aye, and so should they, had there been aught of advantage init. For my part I’m more than satisfied wi’ the bit o’ rations I get. By chewing all day I manage to swallow the mess before turning in to sleep. How Nell contrives is more than I can guess. XIX A SNOW-SQUALL that blotted out te CoOnmiclboool< (C@