A Man to His Mate

rmous stretch of canvas, spread to the limit on all possible occasions by Captain Simms, was offset by the pendulum of lead that ma

had shown that he possessed sea-legs, a fair amount of seacraft and, what th

n." He had not brought up the subject of Rainey's kidnapping, and Rainey let it go. There was no use arguing ab

save for taking noon observations with the skipper and working out the reckoning, left his duties largely to Rainey, who was glad enough for the experience. A sailor named Hansen was

earning capacity. The forecastlemen acted, on occasion, as boat-steerers and rowers f

' quarters, where they messed apart, and helped Tamada, the cook, in the galley with his pots and dishes. But now there was no work in prospect

each sailorman, an' they chip in for the boy. Two for the hunters, two for the cook, four for Bergstrom,

hip's share'?"

t belongs to the gal," said Lund. "Simms gave her

get forty-five shares, a

news of a strike. An' I had nothin' to show for it. Not even a color of gold. Nothin' but the word of a dead Aleut, my own jedgment, an' my own sight of an island I never l

n the Seattle News-Courier, that the Karluk was listed as 'Arrived' in San Francisco, it was all I could do to git carfare an' grub money. If I hadn't bin blind, an' some of 'em half-way human to'ards a man with

here the doctor comes in. If he marries the gal he'll git her twenty shares, ennyway. Though he ain't married h

doc's queered me. He's pussy-footin' about with 'em a good deal. But I'll talk with you about that later. It's me an' you ag'in' the rest of 'e

not exactly a liking, but an attraction, a certain compelled admiration. The giant was elemental, with a driving force inside him that was dynamic, magnetic. What

buy ennything I set my fancy on. The answer to that is Gold. With it you can buy most enny thing. Not all wimmen, I'll grant you that. Not the kind of woman

h hell-fire hip-deep to git the right kind-an' to hold her. An' I'll buck all hell to git what's comin' to me in the way of luck, or go down all standin' tryin'. This is

it rankled in Lund's mind. The five, Peggy Simms, her father, Carlsen, Lund and Rainey, ostensibly messed together, but Rainey's duties generall

And served them, Lund making good play with spoon or fork and a piec

om morning until night, efficient, tireless and even-tempered. The crew, though they acknowledged his skill

h her headway was materially lessened by contrary wind and sea, and the persistence and in

doctor appeared able to get along with him on easy terms, and Rainey not

k of his tanned skin grew until the flesh seemed continually dry and of an e

and, under reefs, the Karluk heeled far over until the hissing seas flooded the scuppers and creamed even with the lee rail. In

," he was saying. "It's this sci

of them noticed him, but he saw that the captain was shiver

his cabin partition. "Tell him I can't stand this

umped in his chair, his face buried on his folded arms. The girl glanced at him doubtfu

Miss Simms? Your fat

speak to him was very plain to Rain

er than requested. "Ask him to come as soon as

get him into the ca

, save that his body twitched. While Rainey took most of the weight, he marveled at the strength of the slender girl and the way in which she applied it.

doctor immedia

er's hands, her own face pale, and

rward. He knew where Carlsen was, in the hunters' cozy quarters, play

said Rainey. "No puls

aised his

st one of his spells. I'll finish this hand. Too

time to draw his cards, make his bets an

wn announcement Carlsen was deliberately neglecting the father of the girl he was to marry and at the same t

players. "Luck may swing all round the compass bef

the hunters regarded him with an amused tolerance that lacked disrespect by a small margin. To them he was only the amateu

health. Carlsen kept his own counsel, and Peggy Simms spent most of her time in the main cabin with her eyes always roving to her father's door

here an' you an' me got to uncover him, matey, afore we reach Bering Strait, or you an' me'll fin

t in with the crew or the hunters. They're ag'in' both of us-leastwi

ontempt of the sailors that w

a blind man ashore t

useful, but you can't navigate, an' you've helped train Hansen to yore work. You were in the way at the start, an'

t a little chill raise gooseflesh all ov

ewarned is forearmed. He ain't over an' above liked, but they've got used to him goin'

wanted it. An' there ain't much goin' on that Tamada ain't wise to. See if you can't get next to him. Trubble is he's

r do I," he concluded. "An' I've got a card or two up my slee

fair rate where a less well-designed vessel would barely have found steerage way, riding on an almost e

he coast, out of the fogs, apparently alone upon the lonely ocean that ran sparkling to the far horizon. It was

elf to her father. Yet she seldom went into her cabin, never remained there long, and time must have hung heavily on her hand

he ship was almost uncanny. Except that his arms were generally ahead of him when he moved, his hands, with thei

he would even take the wheel and steer perfectly by the "feel of the wind" on his cheek, the slap of it in the canvas, or the creak of

ack and forth behind Rainey, who had the wheel. The hunters were grouped about Carlsen, who, s

ad for us. He's the sort of fine-feathered bird that wouldn't give those chaps a first look ashore. Gittin'

he's a good sailorman,

I'm no eye specialist,' sez he. 'Try some boracic acid, my man.' I wouldn't put ennything in my eyes he'd give me, you can lay to that. He'd give me vitriol, if he t

lotion if he did not mean to use it, but he did

skipper enny good

Rainey. He wondered how much of Carlsen's increa

sen's a bad egg an', w'en he hatches, you'll see a buzzard. An' you wait till he's need

nters. Lund turned his specta

"Goin' to play poker? Wish I had my e

t, offering to

Meester Carlsen he put up prizes. For rifle an' s

ns between fore and main masts for the competition, and telling Lund what was happening. Carl

hey usually have some shells on hand for the rifles, but the paper cases o' the shotgun cartridges

him for a poor thrower. A hunter named Deming made no misses, and secured first prize of ten dolla

iled, and in perfect condition. As Lund had said, each of the hunters had a few shel

to keep it upright, and a tin can, painted white, set on a short spar in one end of the keg. A light line was attached to a bridle, and the ma

ng one. Without the counting, each would have deliberately waited for the most favorable moment when the schooner hung in the trough and the white can was backed by green wat

ragged and blotched where the steel-jacketed missiles tore through. Beale and Deming both had five clean, undispu

out the last shell there was in the magazine. If there are any m

er shy on cartridges! Lucky we ain't

p the shooting. You boys have got me beaten on rifles and shotguns," he went on, producing from his

hook their he

kind, ennyhow. Give me a revolver, an' I might make out to hi

" said, Carlsen. "Any

f a vessel for pistols to be owned forward of the

pistol

an exhibition myself. Any bottles lef

ttles in mid-air. He missed the last, but retrieved himself by breaki

nd asked Rainey. "Enny

the taffrail, a

nd as well as by sigh

not," sai

have some one run a line, head-high, an' fix a bottle on it, will ye? I ain't got a gun o' my own, Doc," he cont

ith a stick," he said. "Si

cord, passed his fingers over the suspended bottle and stepp

" he muttered. "All righ

e tinkle, lost immediately in the crash of splintering glass

asked Lund. "Ha

und the mark, leaving only the neck of

anted to show ye what a blind

d forward with the hunters and the onlookers, disappearing below. R

w off his fancy shootin'. Wal, I've shown 'em I ain't entirely wrecked if

h his entire meanin

l bet Carlsen knows where they's plenty more shells, if we ever needed 'em bad. But now those rifles an' shotguns ain't no more use than so many clubs-not to the hunters. An' he's found out they ain't got enny pistols. He's got one

iously, well ple

gun along with ye?" he asked

stay," Rainey replied d

heartily, sla

have bin a good idea, though. It sure pays