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had enough, and soon both he and the steward were watching breathlessly.

“'Go on, sir, keep him offlook out,' from the steward. "Jump in and finish him, knock out of him,' from Brown. "The two two spectators' remarks and encouragements explained the action like a Greek chorus, but were useless to the fighters, who fought oblivious to all else but their immediate business.

"Connor and Handley were fighting now more warily. They were well matched. Connor was the heavier, but Handley had the longer reach.

"After the first rough-andtumble, Handley had been keeping away from Connor's heavy rushes, stopping them with well-judged blows, but neither man escaped punishment. Each had a fast-closing eye. Connor's nose was bleeding in a disgusting manner, though only a thin stream of crimson showed that Jack had suffered too.

"Perhaps Jack thought his adversary was tiring, or perhaps was judging damage by the blood on his opponent's face, for suddenly he changed his tactics, rushed and clinched with Connor, raining vicious short-arm blows. This was Connor's opportunity, and after struggling desperately together he had Jack's head in chancery.

Brown's delight was manifest. 'You've got him now,' he yelled, and danced in his delight until the steward caught his arm and twisted viciously to remind him of his place.

"Jack was nearly stunned with heavy blows upon his face, but it is difficult to keep a powerful man for long in chancery, and at last Jack made a superhuman effort, and with a desperate twist he broke away.

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Connor rushed to finish him before he had recovered from his hammering. Halfsilly, seeing little, Jack struck just one tremendous upper-cut which found its billet by a miracle, and Connor staggered, wilting. They both closed after that, and crashed down on the deck, still hitting furiously, but their blows were wild. The sense was nearly out of both of them.

"They fought on, rolling on the deck, and grunting with their blows. Both men had pluck, but at last there came a limit to their endurance in that tropic heat; their efforts became quite feeble, laughable and babyish, until they lay exhausted side by side, glaring impotent defiance.

"We better put them in their berths now, Mr Brown— will you lend a hand to get them in?' the steward said.

"The fight was over.

"Both warriors slept the sleep of exhaustion, and woke up later, sore and swollen, with aching heads, to find the ship at sea.

"Then Wilkes came in to talk to Connor like a Dutch uncle, thinking that the Chief Engineer might be in a more subdued and more receptive frame of mind.

"You've been guilty of a

serious crime in striking me,' Captain Wilkes began, 'how serious you probably don't realise; but as you've had a tidy gruelling, I've half a mind to let it go at that if you'll act different for the future. As it is, I'm going to log you for insubordination and bad language; but bear in mind that even that can be remitted for good behaviour subsequently. Let's have no more trouble on this voyage.'

"Connor raised himself upon his elbow, and turned a scowling swollen face towards the skipper. 'I'll do my work, if that's what you mean,' he said sullenly at last, but just you wait.'

"That was the attitude of the engineers that homeward voyage sullen acquiescence with a threat behind. Brown took his lead from Connor, who seldom spoke when in the cabin, but muttered darkly to himself.

"Meals aft were ceremonies of awful gloom, as Wilkes and Handley were not there together very often. Usually spirits rise, and all is cheerfulness when a tramp ship is turned for the last homeward stretch, but there was no cheerfulness on board the old Minerva.

"Such an atmosphere is infectious on board ship, and forward things were none too bright. No doubt the engineers had been talking to the crew, for many a head was shaken in the fo'c'sle about the danger of the deck cargo. A sailor is a funny being. If once he

senses any loss of confidence among the after-guard, there's no greater pessimist than he. Tales of overloaded cranky ships lost with all hands were rife in the dog-watches. The sailors revelled in the morbid details, and freely prophesied a disastrous voyage.

Nevertheless the Minerva had good weather while she made her northing, and the pessimists found themselves belied. 'We're getting too far north,' they said then. 'The old man didn't ought to take the old ship so far up north late autumn time across the Western Ocean.' A slow and ambling passage across in the tropics, the more days the more dollars, and plenty of good weather for drying up washed clothes; a halt at the Azores, perhaps, for water and provisions, and then only a very short run home across the boisterous Bay. That was what they preferred, the old artfuls; and the engineers drank all this in from different members of the crew, and more than ever were convinced that the Captain was determined to risk their lives that voyage.

"At length the Minerva struck the Westerlies, and turned eastward with the Gulf Stream, her nose at last towards the Skelligs and the Fastnet. No weather for washing clothes now. Each day the sky was lowering, overcast, and cloudy, while with each roll the big Atlantic swell came washing across the deck. There was little comfort on board in this weather, but the current

and the strong west wind were pushing the Minerva homeward at close on two hundred miles a day.

"The Minerva's luck was not to last. The barometer began to fall, the wind increasing with stinging gusts of rain from the south-west, where greasy-looking heavy clouds were banking up. The great run of the ocean swell was broken by a curious uneasy motion, and the heads of the great seas began to have a nasty trick of breaking suddenly on board in a disconcerting manner. Altogether the indications were very threatening.

"But the wind was fair, and Wilkes drove the Minerva onwards. Sail was shortened in good time before the rising gale. The foresail was clewed up and furled and stowed before the wind would make the effort with this heavy sail too much for the Minerva's scanty crew, and under reefed topsails and reefed main the ship drove on wallowing to the eastward.

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"The gale increased. tain Wilkes stood on the poop straddle-legged in oilskin and sou'wester. Now and then he gave word to the helmsman, a wizened ancient salt, who yet had strength enough to be the best helmsman in the ship. He always took the wheel when shortening sail in heavy weather. But mostly Wilkes looked out to windward. Occasionally he glanced down in the waist where the men were working, dodging the cold waves which curled and boiled on board more frequently.

"The Minerva was rolling through it all at a fine pace, and throwing off the heavy water through her wash ports like a duck, but Wilkes knew that soon he would have to heave her to. He dare not risk a really heavy wave with tons of energy behind it which might come green on board, might start the hatches, wash the boats and ventilators away, and then roll on majestically to leave the ship sorely stricken, at the mercy of its fellows following hungrily behind.

"Just then Connor-who had been to see that everything was secure below among the engines

emerged from the hatchway, and carefully watching for a chance between the waves, raced to the Captain on the poop.

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The beams down in the engine-room are working badly,' he cried. The whole place is creaking like a musical-box. The barrels, too, on deck; if they break loose we're done. Why don't you heave her to?'

"Old Wilkes stood there deliberately unconscious of the engineer, and answered nothing, but mentally resolved to carry on for half an hour longer. Connor went off muttering threats. The old sailor at the wheel smiled grimly as he disappeared.

"At length matters could be delayed no longer. The Captain called Jack Handley aft, and shouted instructions through the gusts. 'Get the upper topsail off her, then the mainsail; then get the storm spanker on the mizzen; I'm

going to heave her to.' Wilkes had to shorten down to reduce the speed of rounding to. The spanker was to keep the ship up to the wind when round. All hands worked with a will. The engineers, too, hauled with the rest. They got wet, but did not care: they were glad the ship was to be checked at last, for there is a great sense of relief when the headlong course is stayed, when a ship has ceased to run the frenzied gauntlet of the elements and lies snugly to the wind, waiting for the storm to pass.

"The sail was off her, the lee braces hardened in as much as possible, and all was ready. The hands were called to safety from the waist, and then Captain Wilkes eased down his helm.

"The Minerva came-to slowly and staggered wallowing, the swell abeam. One great comber broke on board, and she lay down to it, the main-deck just a mass of foam. There was a moment of suspense as the next big wave bore down upon her, but she recovered marvellously just in time, it seemed, and came round staggering like a drunken man, to ride at length more easily to the seas.

"Jack Handley and his men struggled forward then to tend the braces and gather up the ends of ropes that one great sea had cast adrift. Jack examined carefully the hatches and the lashings of the barrels, but found them tight and strong, and, much relieved, went aft to tell the Captain.

"The ship rode easier now, rising manfully to every sea. Hard work was over for the time, and dinner was the thought of every man. Not much of a dinner was possible in that weather, though the cook had managed to keep some sort of fire in the galley. Tin mugs of coffee with tin plates of bully-beef, pickles, and biscuit was all the fare, but it tasted good to all the hungry sodden toilers. They blessed the cook for that hot coffee, and forgot to curse because the hash had crashed to ruin on the galley floor.

"But dinner could not relieve the Captain of his responsibility, and he was anxious. He knew what these Atlantic storms could be.

"You can all imagine heavy weather pretty well-weather when it is possible for sailors to work aloft or on the halyards and the braces, although you think they must be mighty tough to do it. But unless you have actually experienced a furious cyclonic storm in the Atlantic, no words can convey the terrible force of wind and sea. No work can be performed. The wind and rain and spray tear at you with invisible talons, and make movement wellnigh impossible. If you believe in a God above the God of Nature, the only thing to do is to pray that the stout ship and all her gear, the work of human craftsmen's hands, may find favour, and may prevail against the Elemental Storm. You can do

no more. Or so at least a sane man thinks. And yet I have seen men, quite ordinary men, desperate in the extremity of peril, do superhuman feats which they and you will look back on afterwards with wondering awe.

"Wilkes' fears were justified. 'That night the storm increased with the darkness, which added to its terrors. There was not a dry spot in the cabin or the fo'c'sle, and no man could keep his feet without support, so terrific was the motion.

"Around the ship was darkness, profound and terrible, picked out at times by hungry gleaming wave-crests upreared far above the ship, then foaming off below, and sometimes falling down to smother her. The roar of the tempest was overpowering, like many trains continuously converging through a tunnel.

"The engineers lay huddled in their bunks, anxious and overwhelmed, their oilskins spread out uselessly to keep them dry. They had prophesied disaster, and now they had the barren satisfaction of murmuring 'I told you so.'

"The storm seemed to increase, if that were possible; and then the lightning started. By one of these quick flashes the black square of lower topsail was seen to have disappeared, blown clean from out its bolt ropes and never missed.

"But what was that dull crash which shook the ship,

and could be felt above the storm?

"Jack Handley and the Captain struggled to the break of the poop, and crouched together, peering out.

"The next flash of lightning showed the cause. A barrel was adrift. No, two-three! Good God! The ring bolts in the rail had pulled right out, and twenty barrels, each four hundredweight, were breaking loose about the deck!

"It was but a matter of minutes now before the hatches would be started, the rail battered down, and the great seas would roll on then callously above the old Minerva and her crew.

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There was just a slender hope that some big sea would breach the rail and sweep the heavy barrels overboard together. But twenty were too many, and the Minerva's rail was stout.

"And still those sickening crashes shook the ship. Nothing could be done. It seemed the end.

"The first crash had brought Connor, white faced, to his cabin window.

"The barrels !' he cried despairingly, then dived down to his drawer, searching frenziedly for something.

"We're done,' he muttered to himself, but first I'll do that devil Wilkes in.' He lurched out up the ladder to the poop with something gleaming in his hand.

"Both Wilkes and Handley saw him in the lightning flash

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