The evening world. Newspaper, March 10, 1915, Page 15

nesday, Mo: M a i. | By Robert Minor|* ‘Spring Pruning : he ar a a nar ne pn ne St THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE DONNA ISABEL a ae 2908, by 4. 0, MeClarg & Ce.) Juctantly, “I oan find it unless the ice shuts us in first. But what's the use taking such @ chance, lerson? ‘was probably just as crasy Ahat matter as he was over To my mind he never any, islands where he said he did. enment ships have surveyed ali ‘waters again and again, and ts show no land anywhere fhat latitude. I’m for calling it @poor job and turning back before ‘we get nipped. Look where we are 3 swe baves’t a mile of clear water side of vs, and « shift of wind crush our sides like an hell.” tiprim erpanee af Vem, loo and x oe an ‘but Anderson only scowled up my myer slapping his mittened S axes other ae] ir gue? ae i iy lively, m; I watched them ae earn Mke so many schoolboys at dereon and Nova drivin, their various tasks. A po: ing @ terrible chance. your courage, Lady shall do my best to justify your con- fidence in my seamanship. But to must go below, out of this wind. mit me to assist you down the ladder.” CHAPTER VI. In Which We Bury Our Dead. OW, rapidty moving clouds, I rising from the westward, Drought with them « furry sel of snow, the atinging parti- cles blown almost hori- gontally by thé flerce wind, yet within a few moments they powdered the decks and so completely blotted out the surrounding sea that we were compelled ¢o strain shaded eyes to perosive even dimty where the epray leaped high along the edge of the foe- Geld, Black smoke was already trailing from out our funnel in ever increas- ing volume, the steadily revolving screw was driving the yacht forward ‘with new power, and the only bit of f canvas showing was the close-resfed do the ol’ man was a bit nutty, @ knew how to sail these seas, he told a atraight yarn about that ish ship, just the same, I'm Amin’ out whether or not it was je We've come a long ways down Yess no bagi eg took our wan ont ‘We'll rot in prison when we go ut discovered 3 affirmatively. mate, wi fare all tongue-tied. How ou, Mr. De Nova? Are you south or a quick run f ee £ a if: joe across toward ‘ia cheek. ‘say, monstour? Oh, ont; I t up zo stream in ze engine, a dash, By gar, maybe za! oneys to make us all rich. ‘Wiz ze steam we cheat zo d, Bah! I seen it worse as wat,’ ‘offrue," I urged in final effort, “but Sad ‘season is wrong. We are driving uth in tho face of winter, the ice pecks are forming, and not breaking » - warn one of you the i be nipped.” 0 it easy in three days, Mr. Stepbens,” broke in Anderson, jeudly. “If we only have decent eather, we could rip up that copper the swag, and be morthbound in “that time. It ain't in' be such awful job. A ateamer ain't like a sailin’ ‘vessel, sir, ‘an’ this Idne o’ clear water won't @lose until the wind changes.” 1 nover glanced anv are him, my o7es still on the mate, “But the women, De Nova?" fe was looking at them, and, fol- dowing Dis eyes, I turned also. Ce- Jeste wis Bending eagerly forwar r dark eyes sparkling with excite t; her mistrens stood erect, grasp i the edge of the long-boat, hi fare fltished by the keen wind, her lips firmly pressed together. i an zat maybe zey vote wir ze smiled the creole, Mtb, left as an aid to the wheelemen. While I could remain in charge on the dridge I drove the Sea Queen to the full capacity of her engines, my Glasses diligently searching for safe passageways down the narrowing lane of green water yet open before us. But ee the time approached for our burial service and De Nova came for- ward to relieve me, it was thought beat to shut down to a mere steerage- past ‘so that all the crew might gather \dships in memory of their departed comrades. was, none there could comprehend its full significance as clearly as 1 did. ‘The responsibility which had come Sater ata ever eat ow jon of 3 fos Pg) fee without and the men it ‘with! Their uneasy, and the impatience Sepicted. on their faces, aroused me to the requirementa of the moment. I advanced to the oor) peat beside the corpee of the Sg 1 By eoberty, “when we solemnity about the eters le esr ay ut the je ceremon: known to the ‘land. way threat along the sides, scraping and bump- ing, until they dropped away astern, yet fortunately the rudder esca; serious injury and the screw worked steadily. However, it was touch and 0, the deadly grind of those closing foe masses astern borne to us on the wind, the dash of spray along edges flung high above the deck. Every instant for an hour I thought the end had come, expecting to hear those awful ice jaws rending our steel eldee and jamming us into pulp. But we made it, rounding that last foe cape by s0 narrow a margin that I_could have leaped the gulf, and to Swept out into the open blue water, I searched the after-cabins thor- wh of the Scriptures, or ‘er the — eer possibly have been away in the locked chests, but I did not feel authorized to break these open on such quest and so returned to the deck with nothing to ad in the services to be net ‘The boatewain, assisted by two sea- men, had prepared the bodies for their st long voyage, and while the crew @athered in a ly ered deck, the dead, shrouded beneath white sheets, were silently borne ferth from cabin and forecastle reverently upon planks across rail. ‘eights tached to the feet of each, oughly for a oo) any book oon‘ vice, One o in gailors were stationed ready to tilt the planks when the signal should be given to consign the bodies to the Se? sould greatly have 2 ho Meamnaln below Lady Darlington to during the ceremonies. There is much depression about such burial @cenes at sen, ly so in our circumstances and surroundings. But she insiated upon being present, and #0 at the last moment I returned to the cabin and eco! both her and Celeste to the deck. tsmal, ftly descending ened decks, tram of the men, the the low flying, dun-colored clouds; the gray, tumbling waters; the low growl of tie ico as the waves bat- tered its front; the atlent semicirole of men standing motionless except for their shuffling feet; and those two white-draped figures lying extended across the rail—all combined to form a grim sea-picture the memory of which can never dissolve. Protected somewhat from the sharp wind by the oabin, the men had flung aside their mufMfiers, so that their ‘old weather-beaten faces, most of them heavily bearded, were plainly re- vealed. I could not but be impressed with the motley crowd, as the linea- ments of negro? Kanaka and every variety of white degenerate were thu: exposed, Not but that honest face were conspicuous in the line, but, as @ whole, I doubt if any pirate chief ever looked upon a chosen crew more fit to do his pleasure, Surely Tuttle had made no mistake in these choice spirits whom he had enlisted for his desperate enterprise. These were men wee, wou front hell, smiling and curs Now Tuttle was dead it depended upon me to control the Bea Queen. I must master these beauties and bring those women safely back to civiliza- tion. It caused my heart to beat rap. idly as the reality of the problem , came before me—my eyes wandering th hat go on, eae glare, id pene from the two sheeted forms, down the to where on the snow-cov- nothi: if only the reward was sure. hy may oughly exhausted I could een ip the eallor’s sepulchre, the roar of the great waves his requiem. Iam ne sea preacher, able to address you u the hereafter, or fitted to eulo- the apirite of those whose bodies ‘we are about to bury. You desire read over these forms the usual burial however, the only sound on whistling through the rigsing ‘thing of the men. IT added regretfully, bes. s0 commit their simple breathing upward of a pet tion to the Almighty Father for dance, yet never bef lay auch mighty hold upon only « few falter- ing but the hon of it, the faith so ol ly evidenced in both worms and face, impressed the rough- est there, She paused, her head still towered. @ome one say “Amen” sol- were uptil and two figures glia toeanele mto the water. Instantly (3 isa) ben the unfatho! depths. So silently and expeditiously was this accomplished that ahe even failed to note the action, lifting her eyes won- deringly to the bare pi and with e eemteg eob burying her in her an Withers vectering 0 word T led ber through the ice-girded waters in des- perate effort to attain her goal. now ceased falling, Siu ents ‘back horror stricken to watch hummocks pile up as the im- foar reverbera throug eolle tudes iike a usend of thunder. For the time, at we were free, and with limb: J. under me from the terrific saint called De Nova to the bridge, went below into the cabin so thor- out a-giase of brandy before tr Pavesi, ell Sully dresqed, upon the, The stretch of open although lashed into fury creasing weight wi ing of the kind, Neither can I ge), along the semictrole of expecting nothing from the 1 of the crew, se qa é : : d 4 i ei nal i iy 2 B EE 38- | i H i ; if i 5 : i 8 + Ht oti S385 fie Rj 53 iff i i aD i} Fa ne E s te i F f t pain tee 5 ¢ i : i ud 5 = : Ee ff i + 44 iit Fe I tale agtes B' Bt Hl wet il i =. He F H FE i i s é 5 F g 4 ge i : a q ut i ut <p. ap i et - tt tf 3 i s i i 1p LA a ¥E A] d ate ut elit tah j E 2 fl : = * i H i ¥e H z it i ie : : | : i fy i a tts i i f if Hs He re H i if i ; i i 8 iff i i i ft = if i i HT a li | ge E 8 i 3 4 ; Ez i is ‘ cl iil Hi “5 2 Pa t net i te if i i if i | i Eells | 4 E i i 3 $ Saad t