Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 47: what you’re looking at

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

THE ROARING FORTIES. the adjacent water front, where a crowd of many thousands gathered, all struggling for a closer view of the Valkyrie. They beheld the sharpest and loftiest clipper ever built in a New England shipyard. Her long black hull glistened in the morning sun- light, while her yards and masts shone like silver. ‘Donald MacKay never did anything so lovely before,’ exclaimed one with the soul of an artist. “Aye, and he’ll never do anything so lovely again. She’s incomparable.” The figurehead was a beautiful full length representation of a young woman, partially clad in gossamer drapery of gold and white, with shapely arm extended, her small foot lightly stepping upon the crest of the waves, her flowing drapery, and her streaming hair completing the noble outline of her bow. The after body was long and clean, though fuller than the bow, while the stern was semielliptical and ornamented with gilded carved work, though this really added nothing to the graceful, strong, sweeping outline of her hull. : From end to end she looked an out and out clipper. From the main she carried a long scarlet burgee. From the other three spars she flew large United States ensigns, from a staff on the bowsprit the Union Jack. Mary’s heart beat both fast and slow as she drove down with her Uncle Donald to the shipyards. Long before they arrived, : she caught a glimpse of her scarlet burgee. Every one had a remark to make on the loftiness of MacKcey’s new beauty, whose soaring maintruck queened it over all the water front. A guest in the party of Cap- tain Forbes, alighting from his carriage, gazed upward, then turning to Forbes, he said: “Hey, captain, youll have to give the apprentice a biscuit before you send him up to furl your skysail.” At four o’clock the signal was given, and the shores began to fall, to the wild chorus . of topmauls, while ten thousand hearts paused. Twixt life and death Valkyrie shuddered —would misfortune dog her once again? For an instant she canted, ever so slight- ly, and a hundred gloom birds gasped: 677 ““She’s tumbling!” But this time, freed from evil rumor, she moved slowly, then gathering way, fairly leaped into the sea, amid smoke and fire from the burning ways. The Valkyrie was named by Mary Wil- liston, who performed the ceremony by breaking a bottle of soda water over her bow as she began to move along the ways. Formerly, for such christening, they used good old Medford rum. The soda water innovation was in deference to the wishes of Nathanael Gertridge, Sr., and Jr. Both father and son were ardent temperance workers, and seized this opportunity to ad- vertise their wares. After the launching, when the new clip- per rode at her anchors, a select party was taken over the ship on a tour of inspection. Here Richard Dunbar made his début as a lady’s man. “‘ Didn’t I tell you she was the loveliest thing afloat?” asked Richard as he watched Mary Williston’s eyes dancing with delight. In order to-attract favorable attention of shippers, and to secure the highest rates of freight, it was necessary for a clipper to be handsome, as well as swift. There- fore, in spite of the parsimonious Gertridges, no furnishings had been thought too costly. The inner sides of the bulwarks and rails were painted pure white. The hatch coam- ings, pin rails, and companions were of Spanish mahogany. The narrow planks of her clear pine deck, with the gratings and ladders, bore a creamlike whiteness, The brass capstan heads, bells, belaying pins, gangway stanchions, binnacle and skylights were of glittering brightness. Throughout she was a triumph of the shipwright’s toil. Mary followed Richard while he ex- plained the mysteries. When at last they had completed their rounds, waxing bold, he offered to escort her to the banquet in the mold loft. To which she replied, airily: “No, E have company, thank you.” “But I want you to come with me.” There was a compelling note about Rich- ard Dunbar. It was natural for Mary to say no. But her intuition told her that here was some one who could not be denied light- ly. She hesitated in a quandary. “ Come on, you can accompany me all right.” oO Copmmicoookxs (S@)