Adventure Magazine, December 10, 1924 — page 74: what you’re looking at

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

52 finally conceded that crazy Sewdes might possibly have second sight, for Swenson told a multitude of tales of lurid disasters— but as for Yankees, a crazy Yankee was just a nut. 3 Se) IN THE meantime Andy sat in cy ] black, hopeless despondency. If S89 Stivers scuttled the vessel a hundred miles from New York, he had about twenty-four hours more to live. That the captain would allow him to take a place in the lifeboats he did not believe. He might »e left locked in his room, handcuffed, when the ship went down. More probably there would be a pretense at release, and then in the confusion a pistol butt would strike him behind the ear, and he would ve heaved over the side. As for preventing the scuttling, or keeping the ship afloat, a week of constant thought had simply convinced him it would be im- possible, even if he were free and unhindered on deck. One man could not place a col- lision mat, or improvise the gear at a moment’s notice. The loss of the Sedalia would break To- bias Luce’s heart. And his daughter Margaret would wonder what had become of Andy. Vanished after leaving hospital in St. Nazaire. That would be ‘all she could find. He wondered gloomily if she’d trouble to look him up. Probably she wouldn’t. Just because she had always been friendly was no reason to suppose—— From forward the throbbing sound of the Sedalia’s engines and the steady hiss of the water overside was split by a frantic shout. The words were indistinguishable but Andy could sense the terror and excitement with which the lookout had hailed. He was prepared for Stivers’ bull-like roar of “Hard- a-Port!’”’ He felt the ship’s way check as the helm went over, and jumped from his bunk as frightened feet pounded by his door. Then the Sedalia struck; a sharp blow that knocked Andy down. There was a clang and the snarling crunch of riven steel at the starboard bow. The whole ship seemed to lift under his feet, twist terribly to the right, then subside; stopped dead in full career. Bells aft jingled as the engines were rung to slow speed; men shouted, but there was none of those other, more distant shouts which would have been heard had the accident been a collision with another vessel. Adventure Sharp as the blow had been, in spite of the ripping plates, the stroke had lacked the heavy impact and the grinding release of a collision at sea. Perhaps for a second, Andy stood irreso- lute. Then he snapped off his light, backed to the farthest corner of his stateroom, and hurled himself against the flimsy lock of his door. It snapped, and he tumbled out on the dark deck. With one glance over the side, he ran awkwardly forward, holding his manacled hands close to his chest, and dodged into the darker shadows of the forward well-deck. Over his head Stivers was bellowing. ‘“What’s the damage, Mr. Johansen?” Flashlights were dancing on the forecastle head. A panting sailor carrying a sound- ing-rod brushed by Andy, tripped on a ringbolt in his haste, fell headlong and with an oath, picked himself up and ran forward. ‘Derelict, Captain! We rammed a float- ing spar. It’s sticking clear through the side,’’ screamed Johansen. “Steady, Mr. Mate, steady,” Stivers boomed. ‘“‘Take your time, Mister! Sound the forehold—is it a bad leak?”’ “The sounding-rod’s broken!”’ Stivers gave a bark of disgruntled disdain. “Well, get another then, Mister,’ he shouted with slow reassurance, and then after a pause he called again. This time to Andy’s ears there was a sinister double meaning in the tone in which he gave his order. ‘‘Inspect the holds personally for damage, Mr. Johansen}”’ Was this the premeditated scuttling of the ship? Andy wondered. It was almost a day too soon. Yet even now they were within life-boat distance of shore. Had Stivers abandoned his plan to open the sea- valves, and. deliberately steered into a derelict? At some risk of discovery, Andy leaned over the bulwark, and saw a broken spar from a dismasted sailing vessel sticking out at an angle from the Sedalza’s hull, its butt punched through the bow plates, rising and falling half out of water as the vessel rolled. No, obviously the accident was unforeseen, but the captain had seen his opportunity to take advantage of it to sink his ship. Andy was positive from the po- sition of the spar that the blow was not serious. “The forepeak’s full of water!’ reported the mate. CoOMmiclbool Wh) CO 5}