Adventure, June 1911 — page 40: what you’re looking at

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

226 with several popular songs sung to Polly’s rattling accompaniment, and, best of all, Harold and Elaine had had a tramp around the deck in the moonlight that~ bathed bank and boat, darkling shore and spark- ling river. She was not too communicative about her business, but he gathered that the barge had come down to New York flour- laden and was going back empty. It struck him that there was some difference between his hosts and the crews of the craft lashed alongside, but he dismissed the question with the reflection that canal society had its gradations like all other societies. And truly, Elaine had. wonderful eyes! Jake nudged him in the ribs. you fight with your dad about?” he asked. “Uh?” mumbled Harold. “Why did you leave home and all the money—a skirt?” “Something like,” yawned Harold. ‘He wanted to marry me to his partner’s daughter. ’n’ I—was—umble, umble——” “You don’t tell me?” snorted Jake in deep disgust. ‘“‘Well, a guy that can go to sleep telling how he lost a few million doesn’t deserve to have money! Ugh!” And Jake fell asleep also. ‘““HEIGH-HO!” exclaimed Jake, as they turned out to the tune of a clamorous tom-tom at six the fol- lowing morning, ‘‘how do you like life on the bounding marine?”’ “All right!”? answered Harold, rubbing sleep-heavy lids. ‘But why all the racket so early in the morning? Is the ship afire?” “Nay, bo; it’s pipe all hands to grog— I mean to grub,” Jake explained. “ And— toot! toot! little bright-eyes—on this marvel of a canaller they supply passengers with a razor!” They shaved rapidly and hurried aft. In the dining-room Polly, again wrapped in her kitchen apron, and Mrs. Daniels, simi- larly swathed, were skipping back and forth with steaming platters of buckwheat cakes while Elaine could be glimpsed in the galley beyond, transferring slices of red and white bacon from the frying pan to a mam- moth serving-dish. Daniels was pouring coffee and Brough was dragging the chairs up to the table. “Hi there, Armitage! Get that big knife and cut the bread!” yelled Daniels cheer- fully. ‘“Buchmuller, help ee in with the buckwheats!” “What did. ' Adventure Soon they were all at the table eating with a North River appetite of which Armi- tage was rather ashamed, but Jake was as proud as a peacock. ‘‘Now what have we to do, Cap?” he asked of Elaine. ‘‘We want to be part of the crew and jump in and work with the rest, you know.” Elaine seemed at a loss. hurried to the rescue. ‘* As we are traveling empty there is really nothing to do, you know,” he said. “We generally sit around the deck and read and smoke—that is Brough and I smoke—and watch the scenery. You see?” “Yes,” said Jake, “I see. How could a fellow help seeing,” breath, ‘‘ when it’s as clear as mud?” As they went on deck he observed a lean person’ whose long legs were encased in cowhide boots and whose chin-whisker of red and gray looked like the spike on a picket fence. This person was smoking a black clay pipe and leaning his back against the tiller. ‘“‘Who’s your steersman, bo?” Jake whispered in Daniels’ ear. A slight flush crept into the young man’s cheeks. “He belongs on the next boat,” he ex- plained. ‘‘He comes over to give us a hand in a neighborly kind of way, you know, when we’re busy. How are you, Hiram?” The lean person straightened up stiffly and touched his brow with a weatherbeaten fore-finger. “Good morning—” Polly, who stood beside them, placed her hand on her heart. ‘‘—-sir,”’ said the helmsman. “‘Ahhbhhh!” sighed Polly softly. But Jake didn’t seem to have noticed anything. He followed Elaine and Harold Her brother forward, looking down at the deck. To himself he was saying,’ ‘‘For the love of Mike, what are we up against?” ite THAT night Elaine and Harold sat on the hatch-covers, the girl resting her elbows on her knees and clasping her hands as she looked up into his face. The lights of Saugerties twinkled off the port quarter and a rippling streamer of silver moonlight lay like a bar upon the river. Armitage had just told the girl of the quarrel with his father. ‘““But why does he insist that you marry COMICLOoOkKkS. CGO he went on under his »