Argosy and Railroad Man's Magazine — page 78: what you’re looking at

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

420 ARGOSY AND RAILROAD MAN’S MAGAZINE. boat with adequate provisions. . Daniel Gaylord was helped into the boat, followed by his daughter, and the five of them were soon clear of the ship and rowirig away from the cliffs. With the departure of all hands the wind again rose; the ship, like a thing alive, with wheel lashed, lights blazing fore and aft, and engines going full tilt once more, steamed straight toward the cliff, but in- stead of being dashed to pieces and sinking before their eyes she. was suddenly swal- lowed up, hull, deck-house, stacks, and lights quite as if she never had been; she seemed a fantom ship, indeed. All exclaimed with horror at this inex- plicable phenomenon. The three rowers re- doubled their efforts to combat both wind and current, and upon gaining some half mile of distance from the cliffs they di- rected their course westward. At length they succeeded in*making a landing on the lee shore of a:small promontory, and here they passed the night. In the morning the sea was still running. They did not dare venture out in the boat._ Falkens and Mankus devoted the day in an effort to reach the top of the cliffs but failed. They learned, however, that Ulm- quist’s gang had landed about a mile further west, on a palm-lined beach. For the next two days the high wind obtained. The scanty provisions and the single keg of water began to run short. There were no fruit trees except betel-palms near this bar- ren part of the coast. The sailors, too, were having their trou- bles, for about noon Ulmquist and the larg- ‘est of the negroes came over to borrow a box of matches. Falkens gave him some matches and asked for a sack of potatoes: Ulmquist laughed his hoarse laugh and said he would take the question under advise- ment. Then he said he would give them the potatoes if “‘ the little leddy, ma’am ” would return with him to his camp and select the ones she wished. Of course this offer was promptly de- clined and Ulmquist, remarking that he would see her again when she “ warh’t too high-toned and too high-brow ” to talk to him, took his colored retainer and returned to his men. The few crabs and shell-fish on the beach were not enough to sustain life; all--were agreed it would be most unwise to have further dealings with Ulmquist and his precious crew; and the following morning, the sea being rather calmer, they embarked before daylight and rowed back along the cliff to find a more fertile country. ‘Upon rounding a projecting lip of rock - they were hugely surprised to find a deep inlet. This they entered forthwith, with the result that by 9 a.m. they were all safely back aboard the Irene. From the signs in saloon and galley it was evident that the ship had been visited in their ab- sence and they concluded that some of Ulm- quist’s gang must have come for food and water. Daniel Gaylord was delighted to reach the ship again. Rapidly recovering his health he vowed he now had enough ma- terial to write seven novels, the first of which he meant to begin work on at once. Falkens, however, was restless. Upon him seemed to devolve the responsibility, and he realized the necessity, of reaching the high ground of the island to determine if it were inhabited, learn its resources, and take steps looking toward an escape. _ Accordingly, shortly after lunch he and George Letcher took the boat and rowed away. They were now three hours over- due and every one was feeling anxious. Such, then, was the brief narrative of what had befallen ship, passengers and crew from the moment I was struck on the head and knocked into the hatch till the present time. “Well, sawbones,”’ said Mankus, who had now joined us at dinner and was busily picking his teeth with a sharpened match, “that there’s the answer to ¢hat question. An’ all along we thought ye was croaked an’ overboard. But instead ye was a layin’ in the cabbitch crate down in the aft-hatch, whicht was different agin. Who'd ’a’ thunk it? Why, I never heerd o’ sitcha think, doc!” Having now reduced the end of the match to pulp he spit it out and inserted in his mouth five sticks of chewing-gum one after the other before he continued: comicbooks-com