Page:How the Mail Steamer Went Down.pdf/2

 'It's rather thick to drive her, isn't it?' 'Thick be blowed. We ain't got to mind that much. We shall slow her down a bit if we blunder into a regular fog, but she can't spare a yard. Reckon we shall average seventeens right across.' Our talk went on till the curtain of midnight was fairly folded round us, and then I went aft to lend a hand with the log. Sure enough we were going 'sixteens,' and our progress was rather like that of a mackerel than a ship.

The enormous pulse of the engines sent great tremors from stem to stern, and at every wheeling lash of the propeller the boat thrust her way through the black mountains that came down on her, tossing their savage white crests. In the morning the gale blew harder, and the decks were almost deserted save by the few seasoned hands who came up to smoke in the alleys. It was not till the fourth day we had a fine spell of sunshine, and from the fore hatch to the spare wheel the deck was crammed with jostling lines of pale but cheerful people. I did not much like the appearance of our Liverpool lot. I had an intermediate ticket, but I wandered among the steerage company without much interruption until I happened to stumble against one of the English roughs. I begged pardon, but the surly fellow said: 'What be'est moochin' round here for? Say, Curly, see this blank swine majorin' round's zif the place b'longed to'm. I'll give you my toe, my joker, 'fore you can say knife if you come that agin!' I said: 'I've asked your pardon, my man, and I assure you it was an accident. As for your toe, I advise you not to try it on. I have a full allowance of toes and boots.' He was a fellow with that type of snake head which denotes the fighting man; his jowl was vast, the point of his jaw was covered by the strained skin which showed how he was clenching his teeth; and his evil little eyes looked venomous under his rugged, bestial brows. He said: 'Do you know who I am? I'm Jim Cormick and I'm going out to spar with the Boston Boy.' I was not much alarmed, though I saw that his fist would mark me if he got home. His friends came round, and I am bound to say that they were as unpleasant a lot as you can meet. There was no sign of discipline among the 560 steerage passengers, though it is fair to say that the foreigners behaved admirably. When a vessel hove up there was a nasty rush to the side where she could be seen, and the women had to get out of the way as best they could. The officers' uniforms cowed the most offensive of the rowdies, but I don't think the terror was very deep-seated. The after-cabin passengers were a nice lot, and I particularly admired some of the ladies who came out in their sea rig, and made the deck gay. One Englishman of distinction attracted me strangely. He had his wife and family with him, and a more beautiful group I never saw. The eldest girl was a dark beauty about eighteen years of age, and it was a pretty sight to see the father beau-ing her about. The time went by pleasantly enough with us all, but I did wish that some sort of discipline could have been established among the more blackguardly males, for their games were senseless and offensive.

On the fifth night out the moon shown beautifully, and we were surrounded by a fretwork of silver. I could not sleep for the very delight of living, and I walked up and down crooning over old rhymes under the glad mystery of the night. A sudden freak prompted me to hoist myself up from the alley, and I had a look at four of the boats. The thole-pins were laid ready, water casks made fast forward, oars lashed handily, plugs out. I counted the thwarts, and it struck me that the other four boats must be pretty big, for the four amidships were certainly small enough. At the finish I calculated that, by loading all the eight boats down lo the water's edge and packing the children along the bottom boards, we might accommodate 390 people. We were carrying 916 altogether.

The next morning at three o'clock I felt restless; so I came up, and found that we were lungeing over a long, true sea, that moved in grey hillocks under a thick haze. It was not really a fog, but it was puzzling. The look-out man sang shrilly, 'Vessel away on the starboard bow, sir.' 'All right.'