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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a7502ac --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #62176 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62176) diff --git a/old/62176-0.txt b/old/62176-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 44747e7..0000000 --- a/old/62176-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4349 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Wrecking Master, by Ralph Delahaye Paine - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Wrecking Master - -Author: Ralph Delahaye Paine - -Illustrator: George Varian - -Release Date: May 19, 2020 [eBook #62176] -[Most recently updated: October 14, 2021] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER *** - - - - -Transcriber's note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - Text enclosed by plus signs is in bold face (+bold+). - - - - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - - * * * * * * - -BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE - -PUBLISHED BY CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS - - -+Sandy Sawyer, Sophomore.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Stroke Oar.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Fugitive Freshman.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Head Coach.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+College Years.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - - * * * * * - -+The Wrecking Master.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.25 - -+A Cadet of the Black Star Line.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.25 - - * * * * * * - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - -[Illustration: "You're working for Jim Wetherly"] - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - -by - -RALPH D. PAINE - -Author of "A Cadet of the Black Star Line," "The Fugitive -Freshman," "The Head Coach," etc. - -Illustrated by George Varian - - - - - - -New York -Charles Scribner's Sons -1911 - -Copyright, 1911, by -Charles Scribner's Sons - -Published September, 1911 - - -[Illustration: Logo] - - - - -CONTENTS - -Chapter Page - I. A Skipper in Bad Company 3 - - II. The _Resolute_ Fathoms the Plo 21 - - III. The Race for the _Kenilworth_ 40 - - IV. Wicked Mr. Pringle in Collision 59 - - V. "All Hands Abandon Ship" 75 - - VI. Dan Frazier's Predicament 93 - - VII. A Fat Engineer to the Rescue 110 - -VIII. A Fog of Suspicions 128 - - IX. The Broken Hawser 149 - - X. Dan's Dreams Come True 168 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - -"You're working for Jim Wetherly" _Frontispiece_ - - Facing page -And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled -aboard like a large and dripping fish 6 - -The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race 34 - -But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared too -much 84 - -Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm 104 - -It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century 120 - -"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't -get very far!" 132 - -She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all 150 - - - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - - - -CHAPTER I - -A SKIPPER IN BAD COMPANY - - -"A thick night and no mistake, Dan. It's as black as the face of a -Nassau pilot. We ought to be nearing the coal wharf by now. Of course -they wouldn't have sense enough to leave a light on it to give us our -bearings." - -Captain Jim Wetherly was growling through the window of the darkened -wheel-house to his deck-hand, young Dan Frazier, as the oceangoing tug -_Resolute_ felt her way up the harbor of Pensacola. She had towed a -dismasted bark into port after a long and stubborn tussle with wind and -sea, and her master was in haste to fill the empty bunkers and drive -her home to Key West, five hundred miles across the blue Gulf. - -The mate and several of the crew had gone ashore for the evening, the -fat and grizzled chief engineer was loafing on the deck below, and -Captain Wetherly was somewhat consoled to have a sympathetic listener -in his youngest deck-hand. This Dan Frazier was his nephew, not long -out of the Key West High School, and trying his hand at seafaring -in the _Resolute_ as the first chance which had offered to ease his -mother's task of caring for him. - -In the presence of any of the vessel's company, discipline was observed -between the two with a respectful "aye, aye, sir," or "no, sir," on -Dan's part, but now when they were alone on deck Dan felt free to reply: - -"It's strange water to me, Uncle Jim. I shouldn't wonder if the old -_Resolute_ felt timid about poking around a crowded harbor on a thick -night. What she likes best is plenty of sea-room with a wreck piled -hard and fast on the Florida Reef and a fighting chance to pull it off. -I wish I could have been on board when you were taking hold of that big -Italian steamer last spring. The men say they thought the _Resolute_ -was going to yank the engines clean out of her before you let go on the -last haul that dragged the wreck clear of the Reef. Is it true that -Bill McKnight clamped the safety-valve down and said it was up to -Providence to see that his boilers didn't blow up?" - -Captain Wetherly chuckled. The flare of a match as he relighted his -pipe illumined a pair of steadfast gray eyes and a smooth-shaven chin -of such dogged squareness of outline that Dan's statements seemed to be -half-way answered even before his uncle said: - -"Pshaw, boy, Bill McKnight is a good chief engineer, but if his engines -didn't get any more rest than that tongue of his, they would have -been in the scrap-heap long ago. I suppose he has been filling you up -with yarns of the wonderful things he has done with this boat on the -Reef. Come to think of it, he _was_ carrying some steam more than the -law allowed when we tackled that Italian wreck for the last time, but -we weren't there for our health. And wrecking isn't a business for -children, Dan. You'll find that out if you stick by me long enough -to get your mate's papers. Seems to me we must have run past that -confounded coal wharf by this time. I don't know whether that light -yonder is a lantern or a store up the street somewhere." - -Dan went over to the side of the deck and peered into the shoreward -gloom while Captain Wetherly jerked a bell-pull. A mellow clang floated -from the engine-room, the _Resolute_ slackened way to half-speed, and -began to swing in toward the puzzling light. Dan Frazier thought he -heard the click of rowlocks somewhere off in the darkness and cocked an -ear to listen. The sound ceased and then he fancied he saw a shadowy -patch moving on the water almost in front of the _Resolute's_ bow. An -instant later Captain Wetherly shouted in alarm: - -"Boat ahoy. Do you want to be run under?" - -Angry, confused voices were raised from the blackness close ahead while -the tug quivered to the thrust of the engines as they strove to check -her headway. Panic-stricken profanity was volleyed from the water, -there was a slight shock and crash as of splintered planking, and the -tug slid over what remained of the blundering small boat. - -"Great Scott!" cried Captain Jim. "The poor fools must have done it -a-purpose. When they come up and yell, stand by to fish 'em out, Dan. -Tell Bill McKnight to man a boat and be ready to lower it. Of all -the----" - -The horrified Dan had already scampered down to the main-deck and, -snatching up a coil of heaving line, he sprang upon the guard-rail and -waited for a call for help from the castaways. The chief engineer was -bawling commands to a fireman and the cook who were fumbling with the -falls of a boat swung aft. The galley boy came rushing along with a -lantern and Dan held it over the side just in time to see a head bob to -the foaming surface with a gurgling lament: - -"Aren't you going to haul me aboard your murderin' tow-boat?" - -Dan tossed him a bight of the line into which he wriggled his shoulders -and with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled aboard like -a large and dripping fish. They did not waste time in looking him over, -but asked in the same breath: - -[Illustration: And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was -hauled aboard like a large and dripping fish] - -"How many more of you?" - -"Only one, and he can't be far off," panted the victim of the -collision. "You'll hear him holler pretty soon unless you knocked his -brains out when you struck us." - -The boat was ready by this time, and Dan and the cook, letting it -down by the run, scrambled in and shoved clear of the tug. They had -paddled only a little way astern when the lantern threw its wavering -gleam athwart the missing man, who was groaning as if hurt, while he -tried with feeble splashing to keep himself afloat. With great exertion -he was dragged over the gunwale and taken to the _Resolute_. He was -unable to stand on deck and blood was oozing from a ragged gash on his -forehead. The engineer helped carry him into his own state-room a few -steps away on the lower deck, where the wet clothing was stripped from -him and the bunk made ready. - -Meanwhile, Captain Wetherly, relieved to learn that no lives were lost, -rang up speed and headed the tug for what he hoped might be the wharf -he was seeking. Presently Dan Frazier reported at the wheel-house door -and explained: - -"You won't be any more surprised than I was to find out that the first -man we picked up is Jerry Pringle. Yes, it's old Pringle himself sure -enough, Uncle Jim. I didn't get time for a sight of him until just now. -What in the world is he doing so far from Key West, and how did he -happen to be run down in a boat at night in Pensacola harbor? It beats -me." - -"What has he got to say for himself?" snapped Captain Jim with a note -of hostility and suspicion in his voice. "Is he sober? And Jerry -Pringle let a tow-boat waltz right over him! Um-mm, he must have been -mighty busy thinking about something else. Who is the other fellow? -Ever see him before?" - -"No, sir. He's an Englishman, I think, a big, strong man with a brown -beard. He is pretty well knocked out and his wits were muddled by a -thump on the head. He talks flighty. Jerry Pringle is with him and says -he will fetch him around without our help and get him ashore as soon as -we land." - -"Well, there's the coal-pocket looming up ahead, and you'd better get -aft to make a line fast, Dan," observed the captain. "As soon as we -dock, I'll step down and see what I can do for our passengers. They're -welcome to stay aboard overnight. Jump lively." - -While the _Resolute_ was deftly laid alongside the head of the wharf, -Dan made a flying leap to the string-piece and dragged the hawsers to -the nearest pilings, bow and stern. Then he hurried back to the chief -engineer's room in quest of more information about the strange and -unwilling visit of Mr. Jeremiah Pringle of Key West. - -Dan Frazier knew him as one of the most daring and successful wreckers -of the Florida Reef, that cruel, hidden rampart of coral which -stretches in the open sea for a hundred and fifty miles along the -Atlantic coast of southern Florida, on the edge of the great highway of -ocean traffic for Central and South America. Because the Gulf Stream -flows north along this crowded highway, the steamers and sailing craft -bound south skirt the Reef as close as they dare in order to avoid the -adverse current. Tall, spider-legged, steel light-houses rise from the -submerged Reef, but its ledges still take their yearly toll of costly -vessels, as they have done for centuries. When such disasters happen, -the wreckers flock seaward to try to save the ship and cargo. - -Jerry Pringle was one of the last of a famous race of native wrecking -masters of Key West. His father and grandfather were wreckers before -him, and they had been hard and godless men, rejoicing in the tidings -of disaster on the Reef as a chance to plunder and destroy. Rumor had -said some curious things about this Jeremiah Pringle's methods as -a wrecking master, but Dan Frazier gave them careless heed, partly -because he had heard so many wicked tales of the by-gone wrecking days, -but more because young Barton Pringle, the only son of this man, was -his dearest chum and school-mate. - -With very lively curiosity Dan halted in the doorway of the little -state-room which Captain Jim Wetherly had entered just before him. -Jeremiah Pringle was sitting on the edge of the bunk as if to shield -his comrade of the small boat from observation, and was gruffly -cautioning him not to exert himself by trying to talk. Captain Wetherly -was eying them both with the keenest interest reflected in his -determined countenance. He was saying as Dan came within earshot: - -"Of course I am very sorry it happened, Pringle, but I don't see how -you can hold me responsible for the loss of your boat. My lights were -in order and the vessel was moving at half speed. I'm sure your -friend there, the master of the _Kenilworth_, lays it to your own -carelessness." - -"Who said he was master of the _Kenilworth_?" spoke up Jerry Pringle. -"You seem to be taking a whole lot of things for granted. He's in no -shape to deny it, so call him what you please." - -Mr. Pringle looked unhappy and not all at ease, nor had he any thanks -to spare for his rescue. Even Dan could perceive how thoroughly -disgusted he was over this unlucky meeting with Captain Wetherly who -replied: - -"Oh, yes, it _is_ Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_, that big English -cargo steamer in the stream loaded with naval stores for London. He -was pointed out to me in the broker's office this afternoon. Were you -coming ashore from his ship when you ran under my bows?" - -Hearing his name spoken, the man with the bandaged head tried to raise -himself in the bunk and muttered, as if his senses were still confused: - -"Malcolm Bruce, if you please, bound home to London, then out to Vera -Cruz with a general cargo. Lost at sea, all stove up, and a black, wet -night. But I get well paid for losing the rotten old ship. How much is -it worth, Pringle? Ha, ha!" - -Jerry Pringle's tanned cheek turned a shade or two paler and he forced -a hot drink between the other man's lips as if to shut off his speech. -The master of the _Kenilworth_ subsided and put his hands to his head -while Pringle explained to Captain Wetherly with nervous haste: - -"He's jabbering about the loss of his boat that you made hash of. It -was nothing but a skiff. It was my fault, I guess. We were busy talking -and I kept no lookout. I'll pay him the cost of the boat, Captain -Wetherly. So forget it, won't you. If you'll send ashore for a hack I -can lug Captain Bruce up to a hotel right away." - -"No hurry, is there? Let him rest," said Captain Jim. "Dan here will -sit up with him if you want to turn in. Of course you know Dan Frazier, -your boy's chum." - -Mr. Pringle glanced up at the doorway and looked even more downcast -and sullen at recognizing Dan. He nodded at the interested lad and -returned: - -"So many of us sort of crowd this state-room. I'll look after Captain -Bruce by myself if you don't mind clearing out, Captain Wetherly." - -The dazed captain of the _Kenilworth_ showed signs of trying to break -into the conversation and managed to sputter excitedly: - -"I get ten thousand dollars for this night's job." - -At this, Jerry Pringle fairly begged the kind-hearted skipper of the -_Resolute_ to withdraw, and although the night was cool for September, -the rescued wrecking master wiped the perspiration from his face with -a wet shirt sleeve. Captain Wetherly gazed down at the man in the bunk -for a moment, nodded gravely, and tiptoed on deck with a parting remark: - -"Ten thousand dollars is a lot of money to pay for a splintered skiff, -Pringle." - -"Captain Bruce is ravin' crazy," grumbled Jerry Pringle as he shut the -state-room door. - -"Go fetch a hack, Dan," ordered Captain Jim, "and help Pringle lug him -ashore. I tried to be decent to them, but my patience is frazzled. I -don't want 'em aboard any longer than I can help." - -"But what are they doing together in Pensacola harbor?" asked Dan. -"There's something mighty queer about it all." - -"Keep your guesses to yourself, and don't think too hard about it, or -you may go off your noddle like the Britisher in yonder," said captain -Jim as he went forward toward his own room. Dan wandered far and wide -ashore before he found a cruising hack and was able to return to the -wharf. Going aboard, he delayed to coil and stow a heaving line which -tripped him as he passed along the lower deck. From a near-by window -came the voice of Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_ in low-spoken -query, evidently addressed to his companion, Jeremiah Pringle: - -"Did I say anything silly? I was a bit muddled, I know. I didn't bring -you into it, did I? There was nothing said about the _Kenilworth's_ -next voyage, was there?" - -"You said a heap sight too much," was the reply in a rumbling -undertone. "That Jim Wetherly is pretty keen when it comes to putting -two and two together. But he has a kind of mushy streak of sentiment in -him and he won't believe anything bad of a man till the evidence is -strong enough to hang him. It's been an unlucky night's work, and it's -time we were out of here." - -Dan knocked on the door and, without even a "thank you," Jerry Pringle -brushed him out of the way and half-dragged, half-carried Captain Bruce -toward the gang-plank. The master of the _Kenilworth_ bade him halt, -however, and, grasping Dan by the hand, told him in a deep and pleasant -voice: - -"You saved my life, youngster, and I won't forget it. Come aboard my -ship before sailing and let me thank you, won't you? I'll be fit and -hearty in a day or so." - -Dan liked the looks and manner of the big, brown-bearded Englishman and -warmly replied: - -"Pulling you out of the wet was the least we could do. I hope your head -will mend all right. Captain Wetherly will be glad to see you on board -again, sir." - -Dan lent a hand as far as the hack and then sought Captain Wetherly's -room. The light was burning and the deck-hand dared to enter on the -chance of having a talk with "Uncle Jim," whom he found reading a -novel in his bunk. The boy had many questions to ask, but he was not -ready to go straight to the heart of the matter, and so began: - -"Jerry Pringle acted kind of ugly and uneasy, didn't you think? I -suppose he was mad at getting spilled into the harbor. You and he never -did seem to be very fond of each other." - -Captain Jim threw down his book and sat up in his bunk with a rather -grim smile as he replied: - -"You're no fool, Dan, though you aren't more than half as old as me. -And you have lived ten of your years in Key West. I know you think -the world of young Barton Pringle. He is a fine, clean lad, the son -of his mother through and through. But there's a different strain in -that dad of his, and you know it. You want to find out what I think of -to-night's business, don't you? Well, I think the big Englishman might -have picked better company." - -"But he said some things about getting ten thousand dollars for losing -his ship and so on, Uncle Jim, and I heard more than you did. He -was worried to death for fear he had talked too much. The wrecking -business in Key West is square and honest as far as I know, but ship -captains _have_ put their vessels on the Reef on purpose in the old -days and the wreckers helped plan it beforehand. And I can't help -wondering if Jerry Pringle came to Pensacola to fix up a deal with this -captain of the _Kenilworth_ to lose his ship on the next voyage out -from London to Vera Cruz. There would be rich salvage and loot in a -general cargo, wouldn't there? She's a mighty big steamer." - -Captain Jim stroked his chin and was so long silent that Dan began -to fidget. Then, as if rousing himself from some very interesting -reflections, the elder man drawled in a tone of mild reproof: - -"There isn't a bit of evidence that would hold water, Dan. I may have -my suspicions, but perhaps they are all wrong, and if we said a word -it might ruin a good ship-master with his owners. Jerry Pringle and he -must have been up to their ears in conversation when they let us run -'em under, and I wish the big Englishman could prove an alibi for the -time we had him, aboard. Better forget it." - -Dan bit his lip and appeared so gloomy and forlorn that his uncle was -moved to ask what troubled him. - -"It's Bart Pringle," said Dan, and his voice was not quite steady. -"When I meet him in Key West I'll have a secret to hold back from him, -and it's about his own father. Oh, I can't believe there's anything to -it. And there's Bart's mother! Well, I think I'll turn in, Uncle Jim. -Good-night." - -Late in the next afternoon the _Resolute_ cast off from the coal -wharf and swiftly picked up headway as her powerful engines began to -urge her, with tireless, throbbing cadence, toward her distant home -port of Key West. Presently she surged past a long, deep-laden cargo -steamer from whose stern rippled the flaming British ensign. It was -the _Kenilworth_, and Captain Jim and Dan Frazier stared at her with -curious interest. - -A tall, broad-shouldered, brown-bearded figure was leaning against the -railing of her bridge. A strip of bandage gleamed white beneath the -visor of his cap. He flourished an arm in farewell to the _Resolute_ -whose deep-toned whistle returned a salute of three blasts. - -Dan passed by the wheel-house door on an errand for the mate and could -not help saying aloud to himself: - -"It must have been a nightmare. That Captain Bruce looks like too fine -a man to think of such a dreadful thing!" - -Captain Jim Wetherly overheard the comment and seemed to echo this -verdict as he remarked in a reverent and sympathetic tone: - -"Lead Captain Malcolm Bruce not into temptation, for Jerry Pringle is a -hard customer to have any dealings with, on or off the Reef." - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE "RESOLUTE" FATHOMS THE PLOT - - -As the _Resolute_ steamed into Key West harbor, Dan Frazier was on the -lookout for his friend Barton Pringle who almost always ran down to the -wharf when the whistle of Captain Wetherly's tug bellowed the tidings -of her return from sea. This time, however, Dan felt that a shadow had -fallen over their close comradeship which had been wholly frank and -confiding through all their years together. Dan could not forget the -events of the night in which Barton's father had behaved like a man -caught in the act of planning something dark and evil. - -But the sight of Barton Pringle waiting on the end of the wharf to -catch the _Resolute's_ heaving lines and welcome him home, made Dan -wonder afresh if he had not been too hasty and suspicious. Barton's -honest, beaming face was in itself a voucher for his bringing up amid -sweet and wholesome influences. Nor was Dan ready to believe that a bad -father could have such a straight and manly son. Before the boys were -within shouting range of each other, Captain Wetherly sent for Dan and -told him: - -"You can stay home until you get further orders. I don't expect to -leave port again for several days. Tell your mother that I will run in -for a little while after supper to-night." - -Dan thanked him with a grin of delight and ran below to yell to Barton -Pringle on the wharf: - -"Hello, Bart. Come aboard and help me scrub decks and get things -ship-shape and I'll be ready to jump ashore just so much sooner." - -Barton made a flying leap aboard as soon as the lines were made fast, -and asked as he picked up a pail and broom: - -"What kind of a voyage did you have, Dan? Anything exciting happen?" - -"Nothing to speak of," replied Dan, and he felt his face redden with a -guilty sense of secrecy. He was about to say that he had met Barton's -father in Pensacola, without mentioning how or where, when the other -lad spoke up: - -"I tried to get away for a little trip myself. Father went up the Gulf -on the mail steamer and I begged him to take me along. But he was going -only to Tampa to see about buying a couple of sponging schooners, and -he said he was in too much of a hurry to bother with me." - -"Going only to Tampa," echoed Dan with a foolish smile. "Oh, yes, only -as far as Tampa. Sorry you had to miss it, Bart. How's everything with -you? Have you bent the new main-sail on the _Sombrero_?" - -Barton plunged into an excited discussion about the fast little sloop -which the boys owned in partnership, while Dan tried to keep his wits -about him, for he was thrown into fresh doubt and uneasiness by the -news that Jeremiah Pringle had said he was going to Tampa instead of -Pensacola. Usually the two boys had so many important matters to talk -about that one could find a chance to break in only when the other -paused for lack of breath, but now Dan found it hard to avoid awkward -silences on his part. He was glad when old Bill McKnight, the chief -engineer of the _Resolute_, waddled up to them and announced with a -sweeping gesture toward the city streets: - -"Back again to the palm trees and the brave Cubanos and the excitements -of a metropolis smeared over a chunk of coral reef so blamed small -that I'm scared to be out after dark without a lantern for fear I'll -walk overboard. I'm due to start a revolution in Honduras, and to-day -I enlist a few hundred brave and desperate Key West cigar-makers, Dan. -I'm perishin' for a little war and tumult. Look out for my signal -rockets." - -With that Mr. McKnight jauntily twirled his grizzled moustache and -ambled up the wharf. He had been engineer of the _Resolute_ when she -was running the Spanish blockade of Cuba, as a filibuster to carry arms -and ammunitions to the revolutionists, and his cool-headed courage -had fetched the tug out of some perilous places. The ponderous, -good-natured engineer was very fond of Dan and every little while -invited him, with all seriousness, to join some new and absurd scheme -for touching off a Spanish-American revolution, with dazzling promises -of loot and glory. - -The boys laughed as they gazed after him, and Barton said: - -"Filibustering must keep your hair standing on end, eh, Dan? I reckon -it beats wrecking, though you couldn't get an old Key Wester to admit -it. There hasn't been a wreck on the Reef for goodness knows how long. -Father promised to take me with him on the next wrecking job if it -isn't blowing too hard when the schooners go out to the Reef." - -"Well, you can count on seeing Captain Jim Wetherly and the _Resolute_ -on the job no matter how hard she blows," smiled Dan with a spark of -the rivalry which flamed high between the tow-boat and the schooner -fleet. Willing hands made short work of Dan's tasks, and he hurried -into his shore-going clothes while Barton swung his legs from the bunk -and retailed the latest news about ships, and the sponge market, and -the High School base-ball team which had won a match from the soldiers -of the garrison. They parted a little later, Dan eager to run home and -see his mother, and Barton anxious to make the _Sombrero_ ready for a -trial spin. - -As Dan sped toward the cottage on the other side of the narrow island, -he said to himself with a puzzled frown: - -"Everything Bart talked about made me think of the other night in -Pensacola: his father's going away, and the next wreck on the Reef, and -all that. And he thinks his father is the strongest, bravest man that -ever went to sea. Maybe he is, but I wish he wasn't related to Bart." - -A slender, sweet-faced woman in black was waiting in a dooryard shaded -by tropical verdure as Dan rounded the corner. She had heard the -far-echoing, resonant whistle of the _Resolute_, and knew that her boy -was home again. Her husband, for many years employed in the Key West -Custom House, had died only two years before, and the love and yearning -in her eyes at sight of Dan would have told you that he was her only -child and her all-in-all if you had never seen them together before. He -was taller than she, and, as her sturdy son stooped to kiss her with -his arms about her neck, she said: - -"I wanted to be at the wharf to meet you, Danny boy, but I couldn't -leave home in time. Bart Pringle's mother ran in to talk to me about -sending him away to school. I told her I wanted to do as much for you, -but the way wasn't open yet. They can afford it, and Bart is too bright -and ambitious to settle down in a Key West rut." - -They walked to the wide veranda across which the cool trade-wind swept, -and Mrs. Frazier ordered Dan to take the biggest, easiest wicker chair, -after which she vanished indoors and almost instantly reappeared with a -plate laden with pie and doughnuts. - -"You had breakfast in that stuffy little galley, I suppose," laughed -she, "but I know you are always hungry. You can stow these trifles away -as a deck-load, can't you?" - -Dan confessed that he could carry any amount of cargo of this kind and -then, between bites of a home-made doughnut, spoke very earnestly: - -"Bart ought to go North to school, mother, and I will tell him so and -back you up for all I'm worth. It will do him good to break away from -home. And Uncle Jim Wetherly will put up the same line of argument to -Mrs. Pringle whenever you say the word." - -"Jim is my dearest brother, but I can't picture him as showing very -much excitement about Bart's education," she responded. "He thinks -there's no finer thing in the world than to be master and owner of a -sea-going tow-boat. Why do you think he will be interested, Dan?" - -Her son took her hand in his hard, sun-burned paw and with a stammering -effort began his confession of all that he had heard and seen after -Jerry Pringle and the English ship-master had been run down in their -small boat. The mother listened with wide-eyed astonishment, and then -with something like indignation she cried: - -"Why, Dan, you ought to be writing novels for a living! That poor -Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_ was out of his head, and you know -that Jerry Pringle has a sour, gruff way with him even when he's on dry -land. I can't believe it of Mary Pringle's husband. It is a dreadful -thing to suspect him of, plotting to wreck a fine, big steamer." - -"That's just like a woman," declared Dan with a very grown-up air of -wisdom. "Mrs. Pringle hasn't anything to do with it. And you are like -Uncle Jim, always refusing to think other folks are a bit less square -and decent than you are. Ask him to-night what _he_ thinks about it, -but don't breathe a word to anybody else, will you?" - -"I shall scold him for putting such silly ideas in your head," firmly -announced Mrs. Frazier. "You couldn't have pieced this plot together -all by yourself, even if you are as big and strong as a young tow-boat." - -"All right," said Dan good-humoredly. "Only I hope Barton will go away -to school before the explosion happens. For if I'm right, Jerry Pringle -may be in disgrace before he's a year older. Captain Jim will never let -up on him if the _Kenilworth_ does happen to be stranded on the Reef." - -When Captain Wetherly strolled in after supper, his sister began at -once to cross-question him. He evaded her as far as possible and -finally declared: - -"I knew that Dan would tell you. I don't want him to keep anything from -his mother. But it must go no farther than this. I will say this much, -that when the _Kenilworth_ is due in the Florida Straits on her next -voyage outward bound, the _Resolute_ will be a good deal less than a -thousand miles away. And just for curiosity I have cabled to London to -find out if she is really chartered to Vera Cruz for her next voyage, -and what kind of a reputation her owners bear. They may be interested -in losing her, do you see? - -"Speaking of cables, Dan," he continued; "I got orders this afternoon -to go to Charleston at once and tow that big suction dredge to -Santiago. We shall be able to get away in a couple of days. You had -better come aboard to-morrow night." - -"Why, you'll be gone for weeks and weeks, Dan," sorrowfully cried his -mother. - -"I won't waste any time, nor try to save coal on this voyage," said -Captain Jim with a grim smile. "I want to be a good deal nearer the -Reef than Santiago, about two months from now." - -"It's a long, long while to have my boy away from me," Mrs. Frazier -murmured with a sigh. "But this tremendous conspiracy will be all blown -out of your heads before you come home again." - -After a luxurious night's slumber in a real bed, Dan felt as if the -cobwebs had been brushed from his busy brain and that the bright world -held better employment than brooding over what might happen to somebody -else. He set forth to find Barton and arrange a match race between the -_Sombrero_ and a rival craft, to be sailed before Dan had to go to sea. -The challenge being accepted on the spot, there was much to be done -in a very few hours, and Dan heartily agreed with Barton's opinion -delivered from the cockpit of their rakish craft: - -"It is a pity we have anything to do but sail boats for the fun of it. -What a bully sou'west breeze we're going to have this afternoon, Dan! -Can you coax old Bill McKnight to come along for ballast?" - -"Yes, if we promise him to smuggle some rifles and dynamite in the -hold," laughed the other. - -After dinner, Dan sauntered along the water front in the hope of -finding the mighty bulk of the chief engineer to serve as two hundred -and seventy pounds of desirable live ballast. The south-bound mail -steamer, from Tampa for Havana, had just landed her passengers, and -foremost among them loomed the tail and lanky figure of Jeremiah -Pringle. The wrecking master spied Dan and hurried to meet him in the -narrow street. His manner was no longer hostile and sullen, and Dan -was amazed to have a greeting hand stretched toward him and to hear a -cordial voice: - -"How's the boy? You and Bart as busy as ever? I went up the Gulf to -buy a schooner or two, and I found a beauty. I need a mate for her, -Dan. You are young, but you know more about salt water than most men. -It means double the wages of a deck-hand on that sooty old tow-boat. I -want you to go to Tampa and help fetch her down right away, which is -why I spring the proposition on you kind of off-hand and sudden." - -It was a chance at which Dan would have jumped a week before. Something -held him back, however, and, although he did not take time to reason -it out, he vaguely felt that Jeremiah Pringle was trying to bribe him -to keep his mouth shut. But he had a natural fear of making an enemy -of such a man as this, and he swiftly decided to make no mention of -the night in Pensacola. That was a matter for Captain Jim Wetherly to -handle. Dan was ready to stand by his guns, however, so far as his own -honesty was concerned, and he stoutly replied: - -"That is a big thing to have come my way, Captain Pringle, and I ought -to thank you. But I don't care to take it. My mother wants me to stick -by Captain Jim Wetherly if I'm going to stay afloat, and she knows -best." - -Jerry Pringle looked black, but forced a smile as he growled: - -"One thing you've got from your Uncle Jim is a swelled head. Well, -we'll say no more about it; _nothing at all about it, understand_?" - -The last words were spoken with a threatening earnestness, and Dan -understood what was meant. He nodded and went on his way, for once -anxious to get to sea, away from a situation in which he seemed to -become more and more befogged. He found Bart dancing jig-steps with -impatience, and trying to listen to a long-winded yarn delivered by Mr. -Bill McKnight who had been already kidnapped for the afternoon. - -The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race, the live ballast -shifted himself with more agility than the boys had dreamed he could -display, and the match was won with the lee-rail under and the cockpit -awash. Mrs. Frazier watched the finish from a wharf and invited Bart -and the engineer to come home with Dan for a festive supper party in -celebration. There could be no long faces or heavy thoughts at such -a time, and Dan forgot the shadow and laughed himself into a state -of collapse along with his mother and Bart when Mr. McKnight, with a -wreath of scarlet ponciana blossoms on his bald head, danced Spanish -fandangos until the cottage shook from floor to rafters. - -[Illustration: The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race] - -They all escorted Dan down to the _Resolute_ in the starlit evening and -sat on the guard-rail while the chief engineer fished a guitar from -under his bunk and sang Cuban serenades, leading off with "La Paloma." -It was as merry as such a parting hour could be, but there were tears -in the mother's eyes when she kissed Dan good-night, and her voice was -not steady when she whispered, "God bless and keep you, my precious -boy." - -When it came to saying good-by to Bart, Dan was more serious than usual -and, he held fast to his comrade's hand for a moment while he looked -him in the eyes and said: - -"Blow high, blow low, you will find me standing by, Bart. Good luck and -lots of it." - -Shortly after daylight next morning the _Resolute_ churned her way out -of the placid harbor and laid her coastwise course for Charleston. It -proved to be an uneventful run with pleasant weather and a favoring -sea. Captain Wetherly had nothing to say about the steamer _Kenilworth_ -until they reached Charleston where he found a cablegram from London -waiting for him. He read it aloud to Dan as soon as they happened to be -alone. - -"_Unable to send required information until later. Will communicate -your next port._" - -"It might have cleared up this _Kenilworth_ business," said Captain -Jim. "However, we may get a message at Santiago." - -But the _Resolute_ was not to see Santiago as soon as her master -expected. There was a week's delay in getting the great suction dredge -ready to begin the voyage. Then, when the _Resolute_ had taken hold of -the clumsy monster, for all the world like a bull-dog trying to drag a -dry-goods box, the captain of the dredge was hurt by a falling bolt and -there was more delay at anchor while a new skipper could be sent for. - -When, at last, the unwieldy tow was got to sea, strong head-winds -buffeted her day after day and urged the panting, sea-swept _Resolute_ -to her best efforts to keep up steerage way. She crept southward like -a snail, eating up coal at a rate which compelled Captain Wetherly to -put into Nassau, and again into the harbor of Mole St. Nicolas at the -western end of Hayti. - -Twice the dredge snapped her hawsers and broke clean adrift. When -the weary tug and her tow crept in sight of the Morro Castle at the -mouth of Santiago harbor, Bill McKnight almost wept as he surveyed his -engines and boilers. Sorely racked and strained they were, and Captain -Jim tried to comfort him by declaring that no other fat engineer could -have patched and held them together to the end of the voyage. Making -temporary repairs was a costly and tedious undertaking, and the crew -of the _Resolute_ tired of the charms of Santiago and grew restless and -homesick for Key West. - -While Dan, the captain, and McKnight were eating lunch ashore one day, -a swarthy, dapper clerk from the cable office sought the Venus Café -with a message which he had tried to deliver on board the tug. It was -for Captain Wetherly who read it with an air of mingled surprise and -chagrin. With a glance at the engineer who was blissfully absorbed over -his third plate of alligator pear salad, Captain Jim remarked as he -handed the sheet to Dan: - -"It is from London. Well, the cat is out of the bag, and we might as -well let McKnight in. We are going to need him before we get through -with this job, and need him bad. I suppose I ought to have been more -suspicious, but it sounded too rotten to be true. Bill, you must have -that engine room in shape this week if it breaks your back. We are -going to make a record run home to Key West." - -Dan read in silence before handing the cablegram to Captain Wetherly. - -"_Kenilworth cleared for Vera Cruz. Heavily insured. General cargo. -Owners hard hit by recent losses. Will bear watching._" - -Captain Jim hammered the table with his fist and tried to speak in an -undertone as he hotly exclaimed: - -"This confidential report makes my suspicions fit together like the -pieces of a puzzle. I couldn't for the life of me understand how the -master of a big steamer could afford to ram her ashore and lose her, -and his berth and his reputation with it, for ten thousand dollars. But -if he knew that his owners would shield him and stand in with him, why, -of course, he might be tempted to clean up ten thousand dollars for -himself when a man like Jerry Pringle crossed his bows and passed him -a few hints. A lot of good it would have done for me to cable Captain -Bruce's owners and give them warning of what we heard that night in -Pensacola harbor. They would have laughed at me as a meddlesome idiot. -Cleared for Vera Cruz, has she? She does her ten knots right along, I -picked up that bit of information at Pensacola. Allow her twenty days -to the Reef." - -Bill McKnight had dropped his fork and was purple with suppressed -excitement. When the captain fetched up for lack of breath, he blurted -in a hoarse whisper: - -"It doesn't take a axe to drive an idea into my noddle. As near as -I can make out, though your bearings are considerably overheated, -Captain, there is scheduled to be a large and expensive wreck on the -Reef, assisted by her skipper and one Jeremiah Pringle. It sounds -like the good old times before the light-houses crippled the wrecking -industry. And we _Resolutes_ propose to be first on hand to pull her -off and disappoint certain enterprising persons?" - -"Disappoint 'em!" fairly shouted Captain Jim. "If the _Kenilworth_ -does go ashore, I'll fetch that vessel off the Reef if it tears the -_Resolute_ to kindling wood. I'll break their rotten hearts and show -them what honest wrecking is." - -"I didn't throw away that clamp I made to hold the safety-valve down, -Captain," chuckled Bill McKnight. "And I ain't afraid to use it again, -either." - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE RACE FOR THE "KENILWORTH" - - -Chief Engineer Bill McKnight hoisted himself up the iron ladder that -led from the fire-room of the _Resolute_ and tottered on deck gasping -for breath. He was begrimed from head to foot, the sweat had furrowed -little streaks in the mask of soot and grease which covered his ample -countenance, and his eyes were red with weariness and want of sleep. He -had shoved the tug back to Key West at her top speed, and now he was -toiling night and day to make her ready for whatever summons might come -for a tussle on the Reef. Captain Wetherly found him slumped against -the deck-house with his head in his hands and exhorted him cheerily: - -"Don't give up the ship, Bill. It is a great repair job that you've -done, and the worst is over. The new tubes are most all in, aren't -they?" - -"The boilers will be as good as new," grunted McKnight, "but how about -my bronchial tubes, Captain? I can't plug them up and make steam same -as I plugged the boilers and fetched you back from Santiago. I'm so -full of cinders inside that I rattle when I walk. But give me another -week and the boat will be fit to hitch a hawser to this benighted -island of Key West and tow it out to sea. Anything new ashore?" - -Captain Jim sat down beside the engineer and made sure that they could -not be overheard as he began: - -"Dan has been watching Jerry Pringle's fleet of wrecking vessels for -me. Those two schooners he bought in the Gulf have come into port, and -it is mighty little sponging he intends to do with them at present, -Bill. They look fast and they can stow lots of cargo. And Pringle has -been overhauling his other schooners and has chartered three more in -Key West. He says he intends to send them out to join the mackerel -fleet." - -"Anything doing in the tow-boat line?" asked McKnight with a new gleam -of interest in his damaged eyes. "If Pringle aims to tackle a certain -job that may be reported from the Reef pretty soon, he will have to -make a bluff at pulling the steamer off, won't he? There might be a -small fortune in salvage, besides looting the cargo out of her." - -"He is dickering for some kind of a time charter on the _Henry -Foster_," snapped Captain Jim. "She couldn't pull a feather-bed off the -Reef without breaking down. And I understand he has been cabling up the -Gulf about another tug or two." - -"Well, we can get all the tow-boats we need and good ones, can't we?" -beamed McKnight. "Maybe we can't handle most any kind of a wrecking job -ourselves! And there won't be any bluffs about it when _we_ take hold." - -"I'm certainly sorry for Dan, poor boy," said Captain Jim with a sigh. -"He feels as if he were spying on Bart's father. And to make it worse, -Bart is going to sail with the old man for a while and the lad will -be mixed up in this nasty mess as sure as fate, and he will be on the -wrong side of it. Here comes our Dan now. Drop the subject, Bill. It -only makes the youngster more unhappy." - -Dan Frazier had passed some restless nights since his return to Key -West, but his mind was too sunny and youthful to believe that things -were ever as bad as they might be. He found comfort in the hope that -Captain Wetherly would spoil the plot to lose the _Kenilworth_. He had -implicit confidence in his uncle's ability to win against any odds with -the stanch _Resolute_, and now that a fair and open battle against -Jerry Pringle was assured, Dan found himself eager for the fray. Barton -had told him that morning: - -"Father and mother are talking of sending me North to school, but I'm -going to rough it at sea with father for a month or so. He said he -tried to get you to work for him. I knew you wouldn't leave Captain -Jim, but maybe we might have been lucky enough to work on a wreck -together." - -"You can't tell, Bart. Perhaps we shall, but we may be working against -each other. I'll back Captain Jim Wetherly to be first man aboard the -next vessel that goes on the Reef." - -"Captain Jim is a good man," declared Bart, "but it will be a cold day -when he lays alongside a wreck ahead of that daddy of mine." - -The boys were busy with their unbeaten sloop _Sombrero_, and one day -slid into another while Dan employed much of his spare time in helping -his mother about the house and in painting the chicken-house, the -fences, and porch with great pride in the spick-and-span results. -Mrs. Frazier still professed to take no stock in the plot hatched by -"Barton's father and Mary Pringle's husband," but she was nervous and -absent-minded at times, and there was even more affection than usual in -her manner toward Bart. - -Dan tacked a calendar at the head of his bed and crossed off the days -one by one, saying to himself when he awoke and looked at it: - -"Twenty days out from London, as Uncle Jim figured it, and the -_Kenilworth_ is one day nearer the Reef." - -Twenty-two days had been counted when Captain Jim called at the cottage -and told Dan to go aboard the _Resolute_ and stay there until further -orders. When the deck-hand reported for duty, he found all hands of -the crew either at work on board or within call on the wharf. Bill -McKnight had steam in his boilers and, although the fires were banked, -he had just finished stowing below a generous supply of resinous pine -wood, oil-soaked cotton waste, and a barrel of turpentine for use as -emergency fuel. - -"I lost thirty-five pounds of weight in three weeks," snorted the -engineer, "but I mended the old hooker to stay mended. Ho, ho, there -goes the _Henry Foster_ to sea, Captain. Wonder if there's anything -doing so soon? Her engines sound like a mowing-machine trying to cut a -path through a brick-yard." - -"Don't worry about her," muttered Captain Jim. "Pringle isn't aboard -her. We won't leave here until he gets uneasy. He is a good deal better -posted than I am about his infernal program and we----" - -Captain Jim stopped short, for Barton Pringle unexpectedly appeared on -deck and announced to Dan: - -"I'm going up the Hawk Channel with father at daylight to look for one -of our sponging vessels that's reported ashore near Bahia Honda Key. -Thought I'd say good-by." - -Dan could not help glancing at Captain Jim as he replied with a quiver -of excitement in his voice: - -"We may be running up the outside channel before you get back, Bart. -Perhaps we shall sight you. Hope you have a good trip." - -Barton was in a hurry and jumped ashore with a wave of his hand to the -chief engineer. When he was out of ear-shot Dan observed with a long -face: - -"I would give six months' wages if I could make Bart stay home. Do you -suppose his father is really going to sea at daylight, or is he just -using Bart to fool us?" - -"I haven't been walking in my sleep," dryly responded Captain Jim. -"There's a hundred and fifty miles of the Reef between here and Miami -and I don't intend to follow any decoy ducks and fetch up at the wrong -end of it. I figure on getting a report of any disaster as soon as the -next man." - -The next day passed without tidings. Jeremiah Pringle had vanished from -his haunts in Key West, and four of his schooners were not to be found -at their moorings. Another day dragged by, Bill McKnight was stewing -with impatience and Dan Frazier was losing his appetite while Captain -Jim Wetherly remained cheerful and unruffled. - -He was like another man, however, when a message came to him at noon on -the fourth day of waiting. It was from the cable office and he had no -more than glanced at it before he darted on deck, ordered the mate to -get the crew aboard, shouted down a speaking-tube to Bill McKnight, and -took his station at the wheel. His keen-witted, masterful energy seemed -to thrill the _Resolute_ with life and action. Black smoke gushed from -her funnel as her stokers toiled in front of the furnace doors. The -engines were turning over when the last deck-hand leaped aboard, and as -the dripping hawsers were hauled in, the tug was moving out into the -stream. - -Key West island was over her stern before Dan found time to run up to -the wheel-house. Captain Jim slipped a crumpled bit of paper into his -fist and motioned for him to keep it to himself. It was from the marine -observer at Jupiter Inlet, a hundred miles to the northward of the -Florida Reef: - -"_Steamer Kenilworth southbound passed seven this morning. Signalled -steering gear disabled by heavy weather but able to proceed._" - -Dan's faith in human nature, as it had to do with the master of the -_Kenilworth_, had been so severely shocked that he wondered whether -the report of her mishap could be true. He was not shrewd enough to -perceive, however, what Captain Jim whispered as he went below to see -how things were moving in the engine-room. - -"Crippled steering gear, bosh. Her skipper has to fake up some excuse -for striking the Reef." - -Dan could scarcely believe that the curtain had really risen on this -seafaring melodrama in which he was to be an actor. A stately ship was -moving blindly toward an ambush which might be the death of her. And -racing to find and befriend her was this lone tug whose throbbing heart -of steel shook her stout hull from bow to stern as she tore through -the long head-seas on the edge of the Gulf Stream. The afternoon was -already waning and night would overtake the _Resolute_ before she could -reach the upper stretches of the Reef. Captain Wetherly felt certain -that the _Kenilworth_ would not be rammed on the coral ledges in broad -daylight, and he foresaw a desperate game of hide-and-seek between -darkness and dawn. But he held to the doctrine that with anything like -even chances an honest man will win against a rascal in the game of -life, afloat or ashore. - -The north-east wind was steadily freshening and the sky had become gray -with drifting clouds. As dusk crept over the uneasy sea a mist-like -rain began to drizzle. The master of the _Kenilworth_ might reasonably -lose his bearings if the night grew much thicker. Bill McKnight emerged -from his sultry cavern long enough to grumble to Dan: - -"What's to hinder our running past that steamer before morning, I want -to know, hey, boy?" - -"You wouldn't worry if you could watch Captain Jim hug the Reef," -assured Dan. "It's like walking a tight-rope. I thought we were going -to climb right up into the American Shoal light-house." - -"Well, this old tug is doing her fifteen knots, Dan, which is faster -than she ever flew before," chuckled the chief engineer, "and if we -touch bottom, you'll know it all right. Look up yonder at my fireworks." - -Dan stared at a banner of solid flame that streamed from the funnel -which glowed red hot for a dozen feet above the deck. With a cry of -alarm he ran to the upper deck-houses which were built just fore and -aft of the funnel and found the wood-work charred and smoking. He -shouted down to McKnight who replied with a laugh: - -"It isn't my affair if your superstructure burns up. My orders are to -make steam. Better mention it to the skipper." - -Dan rushed to the wheel-house but Captain Jim received the news -as if it were the merest trifle. He was sweeping the sea with his -night-glasses and exhorting the mate at the wheel to "hold her as she -is and keep your nerve." To Dan he replied airily: - -"Caught afire, has she? Good for Bill McKnight. He's delivering the -goods. Get some men with buckets and put the fire out. I've no steam to -waste in starting the pumps and putting the hose on it." - -The deck force was taking turns at shovelling coal to reinforce the -stifled stokers, and those off watch followed Dan with cheers. They -knew that a race was on, and it lightened their toil to know that the -_Resolute_ was pounding toward her goal, wherever it was, with every -ounce of power in her. Captain Jim joined the fire-fighters long enough -to yell to them: - -"Look out for rockets ahead. The first man to sight distress signals -from the Reef gets ten dollars and a new hat." - -A brawny negro stoker wiped the sweat from his eyes as he bobbed on -deck and panted: - -"When Cap'n Jim smell a wreck she's sure gwine be where he say. If he -wants to find 'stress signals he better look amongst us poor niggers in -the fire-room." - -Midnight came and no one thought of sleep. The excitement had spread -even to the cook and the galley boy who thought they saw rockets every -time a match was lit up in the bows. Dan gazed out into the starless -night and listened to the clamor of the parting seas alongside with -frequent thoughts of Barton Pringle who was somewhere out here, proud -of his father's seamanship and daring, loyal to his interests, -trusting him as Dan trusted his Uncle Jim. Now like pawns on a chess -board, the two boys were to play their parts on the opposing sides of a -conflict which would be fought to the bitter end. Dan was aroused by a -hoarse shout from the bridge of the _Resolute_: - -"Red rocket two points off the port bow." - -Dan wheeled and looked forward while his breath seemed to choke him. A -second rocket soared skyward, like a crimson thread hung against the -curtain of night. - -"Hold her steady as she is," shouted Captain Jim from his post on the -bridge. "The weather has cleared a bit and that signal was a long way -off." - -There was an exultant ring to his strong voice as if he were glad to -have the climax in sight. He sent for Dan and told him to stay on the -bridge and look for answering signals. - -"It's the _Kenilworth_, a thousand to one," said the captain of the -_Resolute_. "And if Jerry Pringle's schemes haven't missed fire, his -tug or one of his schooners will just happen to be within signalling -distance. Ah, by Judas, there goes his answer, a rocket way out to -seaward. Pringle was afraid to hug the Reef on a thick night. He missed -the _Kenilworth_ when she passed inside of him. It may possibly be a -merchantman that has seen the _Kenilworth's_ signals, but we take no -chances." - -Captain Wetherly shouted the tidings down the tube to the engine-room -force, and the hard-driven tug tore her way through the heavy seas -in the last gallant burst of the home-stretch. Back through the -speaking-tube bellowed the voice of the chief engineer: - -"I've just put the clamp on the safety-valve, Captain. She's carrying -thirty pounds more steam than the law allows, and if she cracks she'll -crack wide open. Hooray! Give it to her!" - -As if the captain of the stranded steamer were content to know that -his message had been seen and answered, he sent up no more rockets, -nor did any more answering signals gleam out to seaward. It was a race -in the dark. The _Resolute_ and her rival, if such it was, must run -down two sides of a triangle whose apex was the unseen vessel on the -Reef. Captain Jim had taken the compass bearings of the _Kenilworth's_ -rockets and, regardless of the risk he ran in driving his steamer along -the very fangs of the Reef, he held her in a straight line for her goal -and prayed that her bottom would not be ripped off or her straining -boilers blow her sky high. - -Almost at the same instant that the excited deck force of the -_Resolute_ glimpsed a red light winking far off to starboard, they saw -the mast-head light of the stranded vessel almost dead ahead. - -"That red light out yonder belongs to J. Pringle," muttered Captain -Wetherly, "And we must be pretty near the same distance from that -mast-head light on the Reef. It's going to be a whirlwind finish, all -right." - -The _Resolute_ kept full speed ahead as if she intended to cut her -way through the stranded steamer. Not until a huge black shape dotted -with a row of cabin lights loomed a little to one side of her headlong -flight, did Captain Jim shift his course to round to in the deep water -beyond the Reef. His fists were clenched and his jaw was set hard as he -glared from the wheel-house door to find the oncoming boat which he -had sworn to beat. Her lights were no more than a quarter of a mile -away as the _Resolute_ crept under the quarter of the stranded cargo -steamer. - -"If that's you out yonder, Jerry Pringle," growled Captain Jim to -himself, "you've slowed up to find out who the dickens we are. No -wonder you're worried. Come on and have it out, you hatchet-faced -pirate." - -He seized the whistle cord and the _Resolute_ roared a long, sonorous -blast of greeting and defiance. Then he caught up a megaphone and -shouted toward the steamer stranded on the Reef: - -"Ship ahoy! I'll stand by to put a line aboard at daylight. Are you -resting easy as you are?" - -"What steamer is that?" came the answering hail from the darkness. - -"The tow-boat _Resolute_ of Key West, first vessel to come to your -assistance. Who are you?" - -"The deuce you are," and there was the most profound amazement in -the other voice. "This is the steamer _Kenilworth_ of London. A -crosscurrent set me on here but I can work off with my own engines, -thank you." - -"You'll never work her off," yelled Captain Jim. "Your vessel will -break her back if it blows much harder. It's high-water two hours after -daylight. It's now or never to pull her clear." - -There was no reply. It was evident that Captain Malcolm Bruce was -shocked and bewildered by the unlooked for presence of the _Resolute_ -and was sparring for time until he could hail the other craft which by -this time was feeling her way nearer. - -Captain Wetherly was in no temper for parleying. He moved the -_Resolute_ up abreast of the _Kenilworth's_ bridge and shouted sternly: - -"I know your voice, Captain Bruce. My name is Jim Wetherly. This is the -only tow-boat within five hundred miles that's got the power to drag -you clear. And I must take hold on this next tide, before you begin to -pound and settle. We'll arrange terms afterward." - -"I'll wait till daylight before taking any lines aboard," was the curt -response from Captain Bruce who had moved aft to hail the other tug -which had now dropped astern of the _Resolute_. - -"This is the _Henry Foster_, in command of Jeremiah Pringle," came -back to him. "We answered your rockets. Shall we stand by?" - -"I will let you know when daylight comes," answered the master of the -_Kenilworth_. - -Captain Jim Wetherly stamped his foot and snarled at his puzzled mate: - -"They must think I'm seven kinds of a fool. I'll block their game right -now. Oh, Dan Frazier, come here, on the jump." - -He grasped Dan by the collar, dragged him into the chart-room, and -closed the door. With swift, emphatic utterance Captain Wetherly shot -these instructions into the boy's ear: - -"Dan, I'm going to put you aboard the _Kenilworth_. I can't spare -anybody else, and you will be my agent, understand? If Captain -Bruce refuses to take my line, this business will be put up to the -underwriters from start to finish. And the crooked owners won't be able -to collect one dollar of insurance, I'll see to that. And I'll have you -as a witness to prove that the _Resolute_ was first on the spot. Come -along with me." - -Captain Jim pulled Dan by the arm toward the lower deck. A boat was -lowered in a twinkling and, while the excited lad waited for a chance -to jump, Captain Jim told him: - -"It's likely that Pringle has Barton with him on the tug, and they may -try the same trick. If they come aboard the _Kenilworth_, you remember -that you're working for Jim Wetherly, no matter if it means a scrap." - -As the yawl danced away from the side of the _Resolute_, Captain Jim -shouted to the _Kenilworth_: - -"Put a ladder overside, if you please, Captain Bruce. I'm sending my -nephew aboard to talk business with you." - -"I will talk no business before daylight," roared Captain Bruce. "Call -your boat back." - -"Oh, yes, you _will_ take him aboard," stormed Captain Wetherly. "_If -you don't, the underwriters will know the reason why._ Shall I tell -_you_ why?" - -"Hooray! but that was a shot below his water-line," chuckled Bill -McKnight from the engine-room door. "But I don't envy Dan his job when -Jerry Pringle climbs aboard the _Kenilworth_." - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -WICKED MR. PRINGLE IN COLLISION - - -In his cooler moments Captain Wetherly might not have ordered Dan -Frazier to board the stranded _Kenilworth_ before daylight, for a heavy -sea was running along the Reef. But he knew there was smoother water in -the lee of the stranded steamer and he had reason for confidence in his -boat's crew. He had been foolhardy in bringing his tug so close, but he -was in no mood to weigh risks; and he was ready to back Dan to play a -man's part in this game for high stakes. - -Dan had learned to do as he was told without asking why, but as he -peered from his plunging yawl at the tall, black hulk of the helpless -_Kenilworth_, his hands were shaking and his lips were dry. Although -the seas did not break over the Reef because of the depth of water, -they threatened to smash the yawl against the steamer's side. Presently -a lantern crept down from the deck above like a huge fire-fly. It -was tied to one of the lower rounds of a swaying rope ladder, at the -sight of which Dan gathered himself for the ordeal. As the yawl rose he -jumped headlong, got a grip on the ladder, and hung on for dear life -while a frothing sea washed over him. Gasping for breath, bruised and -dazed, he fought his way up the side and fell over the bulwark of the -after well-deck. - -Dan had not the slightest idea of what he was expected to do on board -the _Kenilworth_, but after two seamen had stood him on his feet he -limped forward in search of Captain Bruce. Oddly enough, he did not -feel in the least afraid of meeting the hostile ship-master whose -wicked plans had been spoiled by the coming of the _Resolute_. Dan -recalled the big, brown-bearded man with the deep voice and the kindly -eyes whom he had met in Pensacola harbor, and said to himself, as he -had said then: "He looks like too fine a man." But as Captain Jim's -agent, Dan braced himself to be stern and dignified while he clambered -to the bridge. - -He found Captain Bruce standing in the light that fell from the -chart-room door. - -"I am to stay aboard until further orders from Captain Wetherly, sir," -announced Dan in the heaviest voice he could muster. - -"Nobody asked you, so get away from my quarters," was the irritable -reply. Dan stepped forward into the light and Captain Bruce stared at -him with puzzled interest. Then his frown cleared and he exclaimed -heartily: - -"Why, it's the lad that fished me out of Pensacola harbor. I ought not -to forget you, had I? Pardon my rude manners, but a man with his ship -in peril is poor company. Come inside. Well, upon my word, this is a -most extraordinary reunion all round." - -The stalwart master mariner was trying hard to wear his usual manner, -but his words came out with jerky, nervous haste, his gaze shifted -uneasily, and he was twisting both hands in his beard. If his -conscience had been troubling him before, panic fear had now come to -torment him; fear of Captain Wetherly; fear even of this boy, for no -mere chance could have brought about this midnight meeting on the -Reef. In silence Dan followed him into the chart-room and waited while -Captain Bruce seemed to forget himself in gloomy reflection. With an -effort the master of the _Kenilworth_ looked at the boy and began to -explain: - -"I hope Captain Wetherly did not take offence. I am responsible for -the safety of this ship, and until I can get in touch with my owners -my word is final. If I can get her off without help, it means saving -a whacking big salvage bill. She is making no water, and is in little -danger." - -Dan knew enough of the ways of seafaring men to be surprised that this -captain should stoop to explain matters to the deck-hand of a tug. But -the captain's word did not ring true. He was trying to play a part, and -Dan saw through it and was sorry for him. - -"You don't know the Reef," replied the boy. "You struck it in good -weather. And Captain Jim Wetherly is no robber. He would not stand by -if he thought you were not going to need him and need him bad. _We_ -don't do any crooked business aboard the _Resolute_, sir." - -Dan had not meant to deal this last home-thrust. He was one lone-handed -boy in the enemy's camp. Captain Bruce flushed and looked hard at Dan, -not so much with anger as with unhappy doubt and anxiety. He did not -reply and appeared to be struggling with his thoughts. Dan was so worn -out with excitement and loss of sleep that he had to blink hard at -the swinging lamp to keep his eyes open, and after several minutes of -silence, Captain Bruce's face seemed to waver in a kind of haze. Dan -aroused himself with a start when the master of the _Kenilworth_ spoke -the question that was uppermost in his thoughts: - -"How did your tow-boat happen to find me to-night? What were you doing -out here, boy?" - -Dan's drowsiness fled as if a gun had been fired in the room. What -could he say? If he told the truth he might be knocked on the head and -dropped overboard before daylight. Deeds as bad as this had been done -on the Reef, and he was the only witness to back up Captain Jim's story -of a plot to wreck the steamer. He could only stammer: - -"We were running to the north'ard and saw your signals. Captain -Wetherly commands the _Resolute_. You must ask him." - -"He threatened and bulldozed me to-night," exclaimed Captain Bruce. "I -let you come on board because he treated me kindly at Pensacola. I -will give him my answer at daylight." - -Dan leaned forward with his elbows on the table and looked up into the -captain's face. Mustering all his courage, he began to say what was in -his heart, as if he were talking to one of his own friends who had done -something to be sorry for: - -"Captain Wetherly is working for your interests, sir. He knows the -Reef better than any pilot out of Key West. If he says he can get your -steamer off, he'll do it. And--and--he wants to save you--your ship--no -matter what it costs him. It--it--isn't only to get ahead of Jerry -Pringle on a wrecking job, Captain. He likes you, and Barton Pringle is -my chum, and Mrs. Pringle is my mother's dearest friend, and Captain -Jim wants to get you clear and on your voyage again without--without -being forced to--to fight it out to a finish with you and Jerry -Pringle. It's for Bart and his mother, and for you, too, Captain Bruce." - -The ship-master walked to the doorway and stood gazing out into the -night. Then he replied gruffly with a hard laugh: - -"You are almost asleep, my boy. I can't make head or tail of what you -are driving at. I make my own bargains with tugs when I need them. -Lie down on the transom and take forty winks. I am going to start my -engines again and work my vessel off on this tide." - -Dan nodded and promptly curled up on the leather cushions. Daylight -showed through the port-holes when he awoke and stepped out on deck. -A few cable-lengths to seaward rolled the _Resolute_. Astern of her -was the _Henry Foster_. Beating up the Hawk Channel inside the Reef -came two schooners under clouds of canvas. Other sails flecked the sea -to the southward, all hastening toward the _Kenilworth_. From among -the low islets to the westward the smaller craft of the "Conchs," -or scattered dwellers on the Keys, were speeding toward the scene. -The _Kenilworth_ lay with a list to port, her bow shoved high on the -invisible Reef, her stern still afloat. It would have been hard to -convince a landlubber that this great steamer was in danger of going to -pieces. No seas were breaking around her. She looked as if she had come -to a standstill in mid ocean. - -Dan Frazier had the love of the sea in him. The sight of this helpless -ship as he saw her by daylight appealed to him as tremendously sad and -tragic. He picked up a sounding lead and let it fall over the side to -find the depth of water amidships, for a glance at the chart-room clock -had told him that the tide was almost at the flood. The sound of voices -made him look aft. Captain Bruce was coming forward with Jeremiah -Pringle, and behind them was Barton. A moment later, Captain Jim -Wetherly threw a leg over the steamer's rail and shouted to his men in -the yawl to wait for him. He ran forward to Dan without speaking to the -others as he passed them, and shoving his nephew toward Captain Bruce -he exclaimed: - -"Here's my man, aboard your ship hours ahead of Pringle. You'll have to -talk business with me first. And all I ask is a square deal." - -Barton hung back and acted as if he had caught the spirit of the -hostile rivalry that threatened an explosion of some kind. He was more -highly strung and impulsive than Dan, less used to knocking about among -men, and he felt that Dan was somehow taking sides against him. Before -Captain Bruce could speak, Jerry Pringle strode up with an ugly scowl -on his lean, dark face and said: - -"Let Wetherly talk terms. When he gets through, I will be ready to sign -a paper to take charge of the job for half the figure he names, I don't -care how low he goes." - -"That ought to settle it. You can't do as well as that, Captain -Wetherly," put in the master of the _Kenilworth_. "If you are so sure -my ship can be pulled off, I see no reason why Captain Pringle isn't -the man to do it." - -Captain Jim was trying to keep his temper under, but the fact that -these two men were trying to carry out their vile agreement right under -his nose was more than he could stand. He shook his heavy fist in Jerry -Pringle's face and declared: - -"The _Resolute_ will make fast to this ship this morning. And if you -want the _Henry Foster_ to get action, it will be under my orders, and -at my terms. By Judas, this play-acting ends right here. I mean you, -too, Captain Bruce. I have been hoping that I could keep my mouth shut. -I'd rather cut off my right hand than drag certain other people into -it. I know why you brought your boy along with you, Jerry Pringle. To -put a stopper on my tongue, wasn't it? Hide behind women and children, -eh? Well, I'm in charge of wrecking this steamer, understand? Get back -to your tug. I've a good mind to----" - -He felt a pull at his arm, and turned to look into Dan's imploring face -as the boy whispered: - -"Don't say any more, Uncle Jim. Wait till Bart is out of the way, -please, oh please do." - -Captain Jim rammed his hands in his breeches pockets and addressed -Captain Bruce: - -"I've said my last word. My hawser will come aboard at once." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ wavered and looked at Jerry Pringle as -if appealing to the stronger will which had tempted and entrapped him. -The hapless ship-master had gone too far with the plot to let it go by -the board. Pringle muttered with a sneer: - -"Who is master of this steamer, anyhow?" - -Captain Bruce echoed the remark: - -"I command this ship, Captain Wetherly, and the sooner you leave her -the better." - -Wasting no more words, Captain Jim called to his boat's crew to stand -by to take him off, and said to Dan: - -"Pringle is going back to his tug. You stay here. They won't dare to do -you any harm. Keep your eyes and ears open." - -Presently Bart followed his father on board the _Henry Foster_. Dan had -found no chance to talk with him and he was not sorry. He was afraid -Bart would ask him what Captain Jim's angry speech had meant. Already -the stranding of the _Kenilworth_ had dragged the two lads into its -tangle of motives and events. - -Dan was too absorbed in wondering what Captain Jim could do next to -dwell long with his own troubles and perplexities. He watched the -_Resolute_ steam nearer the _Kenilworth_, while Captain Wetherly's -deck-crew gathered around the huge coils of steel hawser on the -overhang. Soon the _Henry Foster_ wallowed closer and her men were also -busy making ready to pay out a towing hawser. Dan could not understand -how Captain Jim was going to get his line aboard the _Kenilworth_, and -he breathlessly awaited the next move. - -On board the _Resolute_, Captain Wetherly was standing at the wheel and -watching the _Henry Foster_ with the light of battle in his gray eyes. -Jerry Pringle's tug had forged ahead until she lay square in the path -of the _Resolute_ which was thus prevented from getting into position -for taking hold of the steamer on the Reef. - -Captain Jim pulled the whistle cord and the _Resolute_ clamored to the -other tug to move out of the way. But Mr. Pringle seemed determined to -remain exactly where he was. Again and again the _Resolute's_ whistle -was sounded, but the _Henry Foster_ refused to make room. Captain -Wetherly finally growled to the mate: - -"He doesn't seem to have very good manners, does he? Maybe he ought -to be taught a lesson. Take the wheel while I go below and have a few -words with Mr. McKnight." - -The chief engineer was leaning against a stanchion and muttering -insults at the balky _Henry Foster_, with special emphasis on the -shortcomings of Mr. J. Pringle. - -"Are you going to sit here all day and let those _Henry Fosters_ laugh -at you, Captain?" asked McKnight. - -"Not if you have steam enough to do as I tell you, Bill. All I want you -to do is to jump her ahead for all she's worth when I ring the jingle -bell. Then hold on tight and say your prayers." - -"Going to push Pringle out of the way?" asked the engineer with a smile -of happy anticipation. "Well, there's steam enough to make the _Henry -Foster_ know she's been bumped. It's about time something happened." - -The captain returned to the wheel-house and gave the signal to back -her. The _Resolute_ slipped very slowly astern until she was in a -position for a "running start." As a final warning her whistle was -blown, without reply from the _Henry Foster_. Then, with one long -blast like a war-whoop, the _Resolute_ moved straight ahead, gathering -headway until her rearing bow was flinging cascades of spray. The mate -gasped: - -"Keep her off, Captain, or you'll be in collision." - -Captain Wetherly grinned and nodded as he held his tug straight at -the after part of the _Henry Foster_ on board of which there was much -shouting and running to and fro. - -Her crew had taken it for granted that the _Resolute_ would pass -astern of them until her tall cut-water loomed within a hundred feet -of their overhang. Then her engine-room bells ding-donged one frantic -signal after another, but she began to move too late. _Crash!_ and she -heeled far over from the shock of the collision. Like a keen-edged axe -through a soft timber, the bow of the _Resolute_, with her weight and -momentum behind it, sheared through the overhang and sliced a dozen -feet off the stern of the luckless _Henry Foster_. It was done and over -within a twinkling. The _Resolute_ ploughed on with headway almost -unchecked, and as her horrified mate rushed forward to see what damage -had been done to her own hull, Captain Jim Wetherly looked back and -remarked to himself: - -"As neat a job as I ever saw. Her after bulkhead will keep her afloat, -but the _Henry Foster_ is surely shy her tail-feathers. I guess that -winds up her career as a tow-boat for some time. Jerry Pringle looks -kind of upset and agitated." - -Mr. Pringle had picked himself up from the deck, where he had been -hurled headlong, and was wildly shaking his fist at the _Resolute_. The -crippled tug was drifting off broadside and was evidently helpless. -Presently a small boat put off from her and headed for the _Resolute_. -As soon as he was within shouting distance, Jerry Pringle rose in the -stern-sheets and yelled in a voice broken with rage: - -"You'll pay for my vessel, Jim Wetherly. You run her down on purpose. -She'll founder or drift on the Reef if you don't tow me to Key West." - -"You violated all the rules of the road," sung back Captain Jim. "And -you're so fond of wrecking other people's vessels, supposing you see -what kind of a job you can make of the _Henry Foster_. Tow you to Key -West? You're joking. I'm going to put my line aboard the _Kenilworth_ -and I'll settle with you later." - -Dan was dancing up and down on the _Kenilworth's_ deck as he stared at -this amazing collision. It might be a reckless and lawless thing to do, -but Dan saw that Jerry Pringle had brought the disaster upon himself, -and that it had given Captain Jim a clear field. Throwing his cap in -the air, Dan let out a series of shrill and joyous war-whoops. He had -forgotten all about Barton, but in the midst of his noisy jubilation -he caught sight of his chum standing aft on the _Henry Foster_ and -peering down at the havoc made by the collision. Dan's voice must have -carried across the water, for Bart turned to look at the _Kenilworth_ -and shook his fist with every sign of rage and resentment. Dan -subsided, but the mischief had been done. He had made an enemy of -Barton, and he muttered with a sorrowful face: - -"I can't blame him for getting mad as a hornet at me. I ought to have -kept still. I don't know how we can ever patch up this misunderstanding -either. He ought to hold his daddy responsible for thinking he could -monkey with Uncle Jim Wetherly and the _Resolute_." - - - - -CHAPTER V - -"ALL HANDS ABANDON SHIP!" - - -Nobody was more dumfounded by the ramming of the tug _Henry Foster_ -than Captain Bruce of the steamer aground on the Reef. In a twinkling -his wicked partnership with Jeremiah Pringle had been smashed beyond -mending. He could no longer refuse to accept help from the victorious -_Resolute_. This meant that Captain Jim Wetherly would take charge of -the wrecking of the steamer and try to save her and her cargo by every -means in his power. Jerry Pringle had been driven from the scene. He -was on board his shattered tug which was drifting to the southward, -in no great danger of going ashore, while several schooners were -clustering around to give her aid. - -Dan Frazier paid no attention to Captain Bruce, but ran to the stern of -the _Kenilworth_ to watch the _Resolute's_ crew send its towing hawser -aboard. Captain Jim was at his best in such an undertaking as this, -and his men were obeying his shouted orders with disciplined skill and -haste. The hawser writhed after the yawl like a sea-serpent and was -dragged up the side of the stranded vessel by her own crew, who were -jubilant at seeing active operations under way. When the line was made -fast, Captain Jim bellowed through his megaphone: - -"We have wasted time and lost the best of the tide, Captain Bruce, but -I'm going to pull for an hour anyhow. Set your engines going full speed -astern and throw your helm to port." - -Captain Bruce obeyed with eager energy. He seemed to be coming to -himself and honestly anxious to get his ship afloat. His broad -shoulders were thrown back, and he held his head erect, while his deep -voice had a tone of masterful decision. If he had made a compact with -the Evil One, he acted like a man who regretted the bargain and wanted -to repair the damage already done. Fate had suddenly snatched him out -of the clutches of Jeremiah Pringle and perhaps he was glad of it. At -least, Dan Frazier was ready to look at it in this way, and as Captain -Bruce came aft to examine the hawser the lad said to himself with a -wisdom born of his own experience: - -"Last night he kind of behaved like a boy that had done something he -was awful ashamed of, but was scared to own up to it. Now he looks as -if he felt the way I do when I've decided to tell mother all about it -and promise her I'll do the best I can to make things all square again." - -Dan found time to take an anxious look at the weather, and a sweeping -survey of sea and sky told him why Captain Jim did not want to wait for -the next flood tide before beginning work. The ocean had turned from -green and blue to a dull gray. The clouds were low and far-spread and -the wind was seesawing in fretful gusts, now from the north-east, again -from the north-west. The barometer had sought a lower level overnight, -and all these signs declared that a gale was brewing. If it came out of -the north-west, the charging seas would drive the _Kenilworth_ farther -on the Reef and perhaps lift her clear across the coral barrier to -sink, with a broken back, in the deep water of the Hawk Channel. - -The _Resolute's_ whistle signalled that she was ready to match her -power against the Reef. As she forged ahead, the sagging hawser -tautened and twanged like a huge banjo string, while the sea was -churned to froth in her wake. At the same time the _Kenilworth's_ -engines lent their mighty strength to the task. Her hull vibrated as -if the rivets were being pulled from their steel plates, but the keel -did not move an inch. Dan's faith in Captain Jim's word was so implicit -that he expected to feel the steamer start seaward in the first ten -minutes. At the end of the hour, however, the _Resolute_ was still -tugging away without result, like a man trying to lift himself by his -boot-straps. Then she slackened up on the hawser as if to get her -breath for the next tussle. - -The wind was blowing with more and more violence. It picked up the -white-topped seas and hurled them high against the _Kenilworth_, while -the tug rolled and plunged amid driving foam and spray. Gulls were -flying in from seaward to seek the shelter of the distant keys. But -it was not yet rough enough to daunt Captain Jim Wetherly and he was -evidently waiting to make a second attempt on the afternoon tide. -Dan had seen these northerly gales blow themselves out in a few hours -and he felt no uneasiness at being left in the _Kenilworth_, although -he muttered to himself as he felt the helpless steamer tremble to the -shock of the seas: - -"I don't see why Uncle Jim left me here now that Pringle is out of the -way. I guess he hasn't time to remember that he is shy one deck-hand." - -There was some truth in this surmise, for Captain Wetherly was having -all he could do to keep the _Resolute_ at her station and her propeller -clear of the hawser which he refused to let go because he feared the -weather might make it impossible to lower the yawl for another trip to -the _Kenilworth_. He knew what Captain Bruce was not aware of, that -the steamer had been shoved on a shelving slope of the Reef where she -could withstand a terrific pounding without having the bottom torn out -of her, and that if she once started to move astern she would quickly -slide off into deep water. Therefore Captain Jim was ready to take long -chances with his tug before he would run to Key West for refuge from -wind and sea. - -In the afternoon, when the _Resolute_ whistled that she was about to -go ahead again on the hawser, the green billows were breaking over her -bow and flooding aft in booming torrents. Her funnel was white with -sea-salt from the spindrift as she plunged and reared like a bucking -bronco. Dan was watching the laboring _Resolute_ from the stranded -steamer's bridge when Captain Bruce put a hand on his shoulder and said -with hearty frankness: - -"That skipper of yours is plucky, and he is a first-class seaman. But -he will lose his vessel if he stays out here much longer." - -"He may have to give you a wider berth by dark," said Dan. "In ordinary -weather he could take the _Resolute_ over the Reef along here, but now -the seas would pick her up and drop her on the ledges. I guess he will -have to leave me aboard here overnight, Captain. There's no getting a -boat over to me now. And he can't take the _Resolute_ to leeward of -you, on the inside of the Reef, for there isn't a deep water passage -through, for miles and miles." - -"You are welcome to stay aboard with me, lad," replied Captain Bruce. -"We may have a tough time of it ourselves before morning, and I fancy -your uncle is sorry he did not take you off with him. But that can't be -helped." - -The _Resolute_ had begun to pull. It was a thrilling battle to watch. -The seas were so heavy that her power was applied in a series of -tremendous lunges which threatened to snap the hawser every time her -stern rose skyward. Dan held his breath and gripped the rail with -both hands as the tug surged ahead again and again. Her mate and two -deck-hands were crouched far aft, ready to cast loose the hawser -whenever the captain dared to hold on no longer. After a while Dan saw -the chief engineer waddle back to the overhang to take a look at the -situation. There was something cheering in the sight of this bulky, -stout-hearted veteran of many a desperate venture at sea. Bill McKnight -plucked off his cap and waved it in greeting to Dan, as if signalling -him that all was well. - -"I guess he's clamped down his safety-valve long before this," said Dan -aloud as he flourished an arm at Bill McKnight. - -"My word but you are a desperate lot," observed Captain Bruce, and a -smile lightened his anxious face and weary eyes. "I think we are safer -aboard the _Kenilworth_." - -He turned away to talk to his own chief engineer and his first officer. -They had come up from below to report that the crew were beginning to -talk of quitting the ship, and that it was hard to keep them at their -stations. The news aroused Captain Bruce like a bugle-call to action. -If he had been weak in an hour of temptation he was now once more the -able, resolute ship-master, trained by long years at sea to face such a -crisis as this. - -"Do the cowards want to abandon ship while we are trying to work her -off?" he thundered. "Look at that tug-boat out yonder. She isn't afraid -to stay by us in a bit of a breeze. Come along with me. I'll handle -them." - -He hurried after the first officer, and Dan was left alone to gaze -at the brave struggle of the _Resolute_. It seemed impossible that -she could hold on much longer. Her hull was buried by one sea after -another, but she shook herself free and plunged ahead with dogged, -unflinching power. The afternoon was nearly spent. A stormy dusk was -beginning to steal over the tossing sea. - -Dan perceived that Captain Jim was trying to stand to his task until -high water might help to lift the _Kenilworth_. But for once that -square-jawed uncle of his had dared too much. The _Resolute_ had -endured more than steel and timber could be expected to endure. Dan -yelled with dismay as he saw the massive timber framework of the -towing-bitts fairly jump out of the deck, splintered and broken, and -vanish in the sea astern while the hawser slackened and buried itself -in the waves. The mate and deck-hands were hurled this way and that. An -instant later the wind bore a terrific crashing noise to Dan's ears. -A gaping hole showed in her after deck as the _Resolute_ dove ahead, -suddenly released from her grip on the _Kenilworth_. - -[Illustration: But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared -too much] - -"Great Scott, she jerked the towing-bitts clean out of her," cried Dan. -"It was just like pulling the stem out of an apple. Now we _are_ done -for. Is anybody killed?" - -His eyes filled with hot tears as he saw Bill McKnight rush aft and -help pick up the mate and deck-hands who lay sprawled in the scuppers. -The mate was huddled in a heap where he had been flung, and the -rescuers dragged him clear and carried him forward between them, his -legs and arms swaying limp. - -"He looks dead," moaned Dan. "And it leaves Uncle Jim single-handed. He -can't run home before this sea with a hole in his after deck like that. -She'd swamp in no time. He'll have to buck into it and try to fetch -Miami. And we can't get any help to him." - -The _Resolute_ steamed very slowly away from the Reef, fighting for -her life. Three long blasts from her whistle came down the wind as she -spoke her farewell. Before long her reeling shape was lost to view on -the shadowy sea; then her mast-head light gleamed for a little longer -before she wholly vanished from Dan Frazier's yearning gaze. - -Captain Bruce had rushed on deck at the sound of her whistle and Dan -pointed to the dim outline of the beaten and crippled _Resolute_ while -in a voice broken with grief and excitement he explained what had -happened to the tug. - -"Uncle Jim will have other tugs on the way as soon as he can wire for -them," added Dan. "I think he ordered a schooner to run to Miami this -morning with orders for more help to be sent you." - -"They can't get out to us until this blow is over," said the captain. -"We are in for a bad night, my boy. I wish you were out of it. But -Captain Wetherly couldn't have taken you off to save his soul." - -"I wouldn't have been here if you had been square--" Dan began to say -with a sudden rush of anger. But it seemed as though Captain Bruce had -not heard him, for he went on to say: - -"If my boy had lived he would have been about your age now, Dan. He was -just your kind of a youngster, too. Go below and get some supper, and -some sleep if you can." - -There was to be little sleep aboard the _Kenilworth_ through this -night. The gale had no more than begun to blow when the _Resolute_ was -forced to retreat. Long before midnight it was lashing the shoal water -of the Reef into huge breakers which assailed the _Kenilworth_ with -thundering fury. Her keel began to pound as she was lifted and driven -a little farther on the Reef by one shock after another. The decks -sloped more and more until it was not easy to keep a foothold. The -noise of the water breaking over her hull, the booming cry of the wind, -the groaning and grating and shrieking of her steel plates as the Reef -strove to pull them asunder, made it seem as if the steamer could not -hold together until daylight. - -The grimy men from the engine-room and stoke-hole had fled to the -shelter of the steel deck-houses where they huddled with the seamen, -shouting to each other in English, Norwegian, and Spanish. Captain -Bruce and his officers finally gathered in the chart-room and discussed -the chances of launching the boats if matters should grow much worse. -Dan Frazier was doubled up in a corner chair, half-dead for sleep, but -fighting hard to keep his wits about him and tell the others what he -knew of the Reef and the water that stretched to leeward of the ship. - -In answer to a question from Captain Bruce he said: - -"This is the narrowest part of the Reef, Captain Wetherly told me, and -if you can get your boats away in the lee of the ship and keep them -afloat through the breaking water you will be in the Hawk Channel, only -three miles from a string of keys. The channels between the islands are -deep enough for a ship's boat. You don't need any chart to find smooth -water in those lagoons, sir." - -"Her bottom plates are opening up," growled the chief engineer who had -just come up to report. "The sea is coming in fast. It has begun to -flood the fire-room, and I can't make steam to keep the pumps going -much longer." - -"The bulkheads forward are twisting like so much paper," added the -first officer. "They can't stand up if she racks herself any worse. -Then she will be flooded fore and aft." - -Captain Bruce jumped to his feet and gruffly broke into this dismal -kind of talk: - -"Get all the men you can and come below with me. Her after part is -still afloat and tight, and if we can brace the midship bulkheads with -enough timbers and cargo, they may hold for a while yet." - -It was a forlorn hope, but even the seamen and stokers were glad to -be doing something to save the ship, and most of them rallied to the -call of the captain and mate and followed them down into the gloomy -hold. Dan went along to try to do what he could, and also because he -remembered that Captain Jim had told him to "keep his eyes and ears -open." - -"If we abandon the _Kenilworth_," thought Dan, "and I see Uncle Jim -again, the first thing he will ask me is what shape we left the steamer -in--had she begun to break in two, and how badly was she flooded, and -so on. I guess it's part of my job to find out all I can." - -He picked up a lantern which had been overlooked and crept after the -men, down one slippery iron ladder after another. It was a terrifying -trip below decks where the angry ocean sounded as if it were about -to tear its way through the vessel's side, amid an awful hubbub of -shifting cargo, and breaking beams and plates. Dan hesitated more than -once and tried to choke down his fear. He was in strange quarters and -the men ahead of him, used to finding their way all over the vessel, -moved much faster than he. They had reached the engine-room and were -moving forward while he was still clinging to the last ladder. Then a -lurch of the ship dashed his lantern against the hand-rail. The glass -globe was smashed and the light went out. - -The electric lighting plant had been disabled and the cavern of an -engine-room was in black darkness as Dan vainly searched his pockets -for matches. He heard faint shouts from somewhere forward and thought -he saw the gleam of lanterns. He tried to grope his way toward them, -but stumbled and fell against a steel column. With aching head he -staggered to his feet just as the whole hull of the ship seemed to be -raised bodily and let fall on the Reef with a deafening crash. Dan was -more frightened and confused than ever. A moment later his feet began -to splash in water. He thought the sea had broken into the engine-room, -and he tried, with frantic haste, to find his way back to the ladder -and regain the deck above. By this time he had completely lost his -bearings. He did not know whether he was going toward the bow or stern. -At length his trembling fingers clutched the rail of a ladder which -ran upward from a narrow passageway. It led him to another deck still -far down in the vessel's hold, where he could find no more ladders to -climb. After what seemed to him hours of feeling his way this way and -that, he bumped against a solid steel wall. Dan knew it was a bulkhead -of some kind, but it must be far from the toiling crew of the ship, for -he had long since ceased to hear or see them. He had never been in such -utter darkness nor so hopelessly lost and bewildered. - -The frightened lad shouted for help, but his voice could not have been -heard a dozen feet away, so great was the din around him. He tried to -think, to get back his sense of direction, to feel his way along the -bulkhead in the hope of getting his hands on some object with whose -outline he was familiar, which might tell him into what part of the -ship he had wandered. - -He was leaning against the steel wall of the bulkhead when it buckled, -sprang back, and then quivered as if it had been a sheet of tin. -There was a tremendous noise of crackling, rending timber and steel -above Dan's head. He whirled about and tried to flee as he heard the -collapsing bulkhead give way. - -The boy could hear the cargo toppling toward him with the roar of a -landslide. He threw up his arms to shield his head, then something -struck him in the back and hurled him to one side. He fell across a -bulky box of some kind while other heavy boxes, a deluge of them, -thundered from above and crashed all round him. Dan cowered in a -frightened heap, expecting every instant to have his life crushed out. -But gradually the descent of the cargo ceased, and he was still alive. - -He tried to move his legs and found they had not been smashed. -Struggling to turn over on his back he put up his arms and discovered -that a huge packing case had so fallen as to make a bridge over him and -keep clear the little space in which he crouched. But he was walled in -by packing cases on all sides and he struggled in vain to move them. -Until his fingers were torn and bleeding and his strength worn out, Dan -tried to make an opening large enough to wriggle through and escape -from this appalling prison. - -When at length he lay still and panted aloud the prayers his mother had -taught him, there came the echo of hoarse shouts above the clamor of -the ship and the sea. Through a crevice between the boxes of freight -that penned him fast he glimpsed the gleam of moving lanterns. The -captain and crew were deserting the hold of the ship. Dan tried to call -to them but his cries were unheard. - -The shouts ceased, the gleams of light vanished one by one, and Dan -was left alone in the flooded and shattered hold of the _Kenilworth_. -Far above him Captain Bruce and his crew were making ready their -life-boats, preferring to trust themselves to the storm-swept sea than -to the steamer which they believed doomed to be torn to fragments -within the next few hours. - -"They must have given up the fight", moaned Dan between his sobs. "I -guess it means all hands abandon ship at daylight. And they will think -I've been washed overboard in the dark." - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -DAN FRAZIER'S PREDICAMENT - - -Imprisoned as he was in the hold of the _Kenilworth_, and feeling sure -that the steamer was to be abandoned by her crew as a hopeless wreck, -Dan Frazier became almost stupefied with terror and exhaustion. As long -as there was any strength in his athletic young body he had pushed -and tugged at the mass of freight which penned him in, shouting in -his frenzy until his voice failed him and died away in hoarse, broken -weeping. - -At length his benumbed senses lost themselves in heavy slumber. He -dreamed of being at home with his mother in the palm-shaded cottage and -she was holding him in her lap and stroking his forehead with her cool -hands. But nightmares came to drive away this sweet dream, and he awoke -with a choking cry for help. - -Dan thought he must have been asleep for hours and hours. More -torturing than the realization of his dreadful plight was his burning -thirst. But his brain was clearer and he listened to the medley of -noises around him with a glimmer of hope. The water had not reached the -deck on which he had been trapped, although he could hear it washing -to and fro in the bottom of the hold below. The hull of the ship had -ceased to pound on the Reef. The breakers beat against her steel sides -and fell solid on her upper decks with a sound like distant thunder, -but Dan began to feel confident that the gale was blowing itself out -and the steamer was going to live through it. - -He thanked God that he had not been drowned, at any rate, even -though he seemed likely to perish where he was for lack of food and -drink. Youth grasps at slender hopes and finds strength in dubious -consolations. Dan had expected to be overwhelmed by the sea without a -ghost of a chance to fight for his life. Now that this peril seemed -to be passing, his wits began to return, and he fished his strong -bladed sailor's clasp-knife from his trousers pocket. To hack away at -his prison walls was better than doing nothing. He twisted painfully -about until he had located the widest crevices between the sides of -the packing-cases and began to chip away at the stout planking. It -was a task tedious and wearisome beyond words. There was no light, -his nerves were unstrung, and he worked with unsteady, groping hand. -Rats scampered over him, or squealed in the darkness close by, and he -slashed at them savagely. They startled him so that more than once he -gave up the task and wept like a little child. - -At length Dan cut through the planking of a box which was wedged fast -between two larger ones and his knife clinked against tin. He managed -to break off a splintered end of board and pulled out a round can of -some kind of provisions. This was unexpected good fortune, and he -carefully cut into the lid with a muttered prayer of thanksgiving, -hoping to find enough liquid to wet his parched tongue. The can proved -to be full of French peas, packed in enough water to supply a long -drink of cool, refreshing soup. Dan scooped up the tiny peas with his -fingers, emptied the tin, and eagerly drove his knife into another of -them. The nourishment made him feel like a giant. He returned to his -task with genuine hope of being able to whittle a way out of his trap. - -But as the weary hours dragged by, and the strokes of the knife became -more and more feeble, the prisoner gave himself up to despair. His -strength had ebbed so fast that he slumped down and slept with his face -in his arms. - -A great noise awoke him. The cargo was shifting and tumbling with -fearful uproar. From below came the rumble of coal sliding across the -bunkers. The deck rolled violently and pitched Dan to the other end -of his pen. He expected to be crushed by the cargo, and thought the -ship must be turning over. But the commotion gradually ceased and, to -his great astonishment, he was alive and unhurt. The deck seemed to -have much less slant than before. He raised his arms and they touched -nothing over his head. Unable to realize the truth, he scrambled to -his feet and stood upright. The great package of freight which had -roofed him over had slid clear, carrying along the boxes piled above -it. Frantic with new hope of release, Dan clambered upward, tearing his -clothes to tatters, plunging headlong from one obstacle to another, -bruising his face, hands, and knees against sharp edges and corners. -Scrambling over the disordered cargo until he had to halt to get his -breath, Dan gasped to himself: - -"I can't get on deck through a freight compartment. The hatches will be -fastened down above. I must find out how I blundered in here as far as -the broken bulkhead." - -A moment later he fetched up against solid tiers of cargo which had -not been dislodged and knew he must be headed wrong. This gave him a -clue, however, and with fast-failing strength he stumbled back over -the way he had come. At last he saw a streak of daylight filter down -from a skylight far above. Yes, there was a road to the upper deck. -Dan glimpsed the shadowy outline of a ladder. It was all he could do -to muster courage to attempt the long and dizzy climb. But he set his -teeth and clung like a barnacle to one round after another until he -fell against the iron door of a deck-house, fumbled with the fastening, -and tottered out into daylight. - -Half-blinded and blinking like an owl, Dan Frazier covered his face -with his hands until his eyes could bear the dazzling reflection of -sea and sky which were flooded with glorious sunshine. The wind sang -through the shrouds and funnel-stays and the blue ocean upheaved -in swollen billows, but the gale had passed. Dan's bewildered gaze -fell upon the empty chocks, the dangling falls and the davits swung -outboard, where the steamer's life-boats had been. These signs were -enough to tell him that the ship had been abandoned. He was left alone -in her, and he went forward with a feeling of uncanny isolation. Water -to drink was what he wanted more than anything else, and before making -a survey of the ship he sought the tank in the chart-room and fairly -guzzled his fill. Then he made a ferocious onslaught on the cabin -pantry and carried on deck a kettle full of cold boiled potatoes, beef -and hard bread, and climbed to the battered bridge. - -Looking down at the steamer from this lofty perch, Dan understood what -had caused the violent roll and lunge that set him free from his prison -below decks. The storm had driven her, head-on, far up the outer slope -of the Reef, where she had lain as if about to break in pieces, with -the seas washing clean over her. But while her forward compartments -had filled with water, her stern was still buoyant. When the gale had -subsided the ship was hanging over the deep water on the inner side of -the Reef, and the next high tide had lifted her stern so that she slid -bow-first, for half her length, down the opposite side of the shelf -which had held her keel fast. It looked like a miracle to Dan, but here -was the ship still solid under his feet. Gazing down from one end of -the bridge, he could see the inner edge of the Reef shimmering far down -through the clear water and the hull of the _Kenilworth_, hanging only -by the after part. - -"Where, oh where, is Uncle Jim?" he thought. "He might patch up her -bulkheads, lift the water out with his wrecking pumps, and pull her off -yet. And I'll bet he'd keep her afloat somehow." - -Then a stupendous thought flashed into Dan's mind. It was such a -dazzling, gorgeous idea that it made him dizzy with delight. Yes, -it was all true. The _Kenilworth_ had been abandoned by her captain -and crew as a wreck. She was like a derelict at sea. Whoever should -find and board her would have the right to claim heavy salvage on the -vessel and her cargo if they were saved and brought into port. It was -the unwritten law of the Reef that the first man to set foot on an -abandoned wreck was the wrecking master, to be obeyed as such, with -first claim on salvage. - -Dan tried to arrange his thoughts in some kind of order, and at length -he said to himself with an air of decision: - -"The wrecking master on this job is Daniel P. Frazier. I earned it all -right, and Key West will back me up whether Jerry Pringle likes it or -not. And I'm going to hold her down till Uncle Jim comes back. There -can't be any more question about who has the wrecking of her. General -cargo, too!--I'll bet it's worth several hundred thousand dollars!--and -a four thousand ton steel steamer. If we can save her, the owners will -have to give up fifty or a hundred thousand dollars in clean salvage -money." - -The weight of his responsibility soon tamed Dan's high spirits. He -could make no resistance if a crew of hostile wreckers should happen -along to dispute his title in the absence of Captain Jim Wetherly. The -morning sun was no more than three hours high. He must watch and wait -through a long, long day, any hour of which might bring in sight the -sails of a fleet of wrecking schooners. Dan reckoned that he had been -penned below for about thirty hours and that this was the morning of -the second day after the wreck. Captain Jim must have a tug on the way -by this time. But, on the other hand, if Captain Bruce and his men had -been picked up and carried to Key West, their tidings would send Jerry -Pringle and his horde of wreckers flying seaward by steam and sail. - -Every boy who plays foot-ball has dreamed of breaking through the line, -blocking a kick, scooping up the ball, and running down the field like -a whirlwind to score the winning touchdown with the other eleven vainly -pounding along in his wake. So most of us have dreamed of playing the -hero by stopping a runaway horse, saving the life of the prettiest girl -that ever was, and being splendidly rewarded by her millionaire father. -Dan Frazier's pet dream had a salt-water background. It was of being -the first to find an abandoned ship with a rich cargo, triumphantly -bringing her into port, and winning a fortune in salvage. At last he -had found his ship, but the lone hero had an elephant on his hands. - -Dan was too weary in body and mind to roam about the steamer. He rigged -a bit of awning on the bridge, dragged a mattress up from below, and -lay gazing through the rents in the canvas weather screen until noon. -A mail steamer northward-bound passed close to the Reef, slowed down -to make sure the crew had left the wreck, and ploughed on her way. Dan -grew tired of looking to the southward for schooners beating up from -Key West and concluded that the head wind and heavy sea were holding -them in harbor. There was no black smudge of smoke to the northward to -show that Captain Jim was coming out from Miami in a tow-boat. Over -to seaward, however, in the east-north-east, three sails glinted like -flecks of cloud. They were close together, and Dan gazed at them idly, -thinking they might be coastwise merchant vessels hauling southward -before the piping wind. But as they lifted higher, he noticed that -they were shaping a straight course for the Reef instead of swinging -off to follow the track through the Florida Straits. They were -schooners coming with great speed and showing a reckless spread of -canvas. - -Soon the low hulls gleamed beneath the towering piles of sail and Dan -jumped to his feet as he scanned the beautiful sea picture they made. - -"Bahama schooners; I know their cut!" he exclaimed. "They've smelled a -wreck on the Reef as sure as guns. The news must have reached Nassau -by cable yesterday. And those pirates have got a clear field for once. -What _can_ I do? They won't listen to my story, not for a minute. -They'll swarm aboard like rats and be ripping the cargo out of this -vessel in a jiffy." - -The youthful wrecking master was at his wits' end and his head began -to throb as if it would split, for he had little endurance left. He -remained in hiding on the bridge and tried to think out a plan of -action as the Bahama schooners swooped across the frothing sea, laying -their courses in a bee line for the _Kenilworth_. Dan's only hope was -that he might be able to stay aboard until Captain Jim should return -to enforce the law of the Reef with his crew of hard-fisted tow-boat -men to back him up. He thought of telling the wreckers that he was -a stowaway, left behind when the steamer's men deserted her, but, -although Dan Frazier was far from perfect, he hated the notion of lying -his way out of this tight corner. He was truthful by habit, for one -thing, and there was another reason which he muttered to himself: - -"There's been lying enough on this job. The poor old ship has been -rotten with lies ever since her skipper first ran afoul of Jerry -Pringle. Even her grounding on the Reef was a lie. And I don't believe -Uncle Jim would lie to save the ship, or his own skin either. No, this -poor old vessel has been good to me so far. I got out of her hold by -good luck and I'll trust to luck to pull me out of this scrape." - -Dan picked up a pair of glasses and looked at the nearest schooner -which had boldly crossed the Reef and was rounding to in the smoother -water of the Hawk Channel while a group of black-skinned, ragged -wreckers were shoving a boat over the side. Dan felt a new thrill of -surprise and alarm as he scrutinized a burly figure poised at the -schooner's rail. It was "Black Sam" Hurley, a Bahama wrecker of such -evil repute that he had been pointed out to Dan in Nassau harbor as one -of the notorious characters of the islands. - -[Illustration: Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm] - -"There are plenty of honest wreckers in the Bahamas," said the lad to -himself, while his teeth chattered. "But they don't sail with 'Black -Sam.' And he was alongside the _Resolute_ at Nassau, talking to the -cook. He'd know me again. It's a good thing I chucked up that idea of -lying out of this. It's time for me to get under cover, all right." - -Dan crept off the bridge along the windward side of the deck-house and -kept well out of sight of the schooners until he reached the shelter -of the funnel and the engine-room skylights. Then he slipped into the -nearest door and made his way to the flight of ladders up which he -had climbed in the morning. He had fled in a state of panic, but one -glance down into the black hold made him draw back and take measures -to provision himself against a long siege below. There was no need -for great haste, and Dan delayed to equip himself with a lantern, -matches, a jug of water, and a canvas bag, crammed with food, which he -slung about his neck. Then he made his way below with lighted lantern, -seeking to find as secure and comfortable a refuge as possible. The -Bahama wreckers would begin to loot the part of the cargo easiest -to get at and handle, he reasoned, and therefore he passed by the -uppermost cargo deck and explored the region below, slowly making his -way aft. - -It was a dangerous and desperate journey, but Dan was thinking only of -keeping out of the way of "Black Sam" until Captain Jim should come -back and retake the ship which belonged to him. - -"I'm what the lawyers call a vital document when they're arguing a -salvage case in the Key West Court," thought Dan with a half-hearted -grin. "And from all I've heard of 'Black Sam' Hurley, he'd chuck this -vital document overboard if he thought it might interfere with his -possession of the wreck." - -In this game of hide-and-seek the advantage was with the lad in the -hold, and fear of discovery by the wreckers did not greatly trouble -him. After a long time he heard clamorous voices somewhere above and -he doused his lantern. The wreckers seemed to be exploring the upper -cargo decks. Some kind of a dispute arose and the sides of the ship -flung back the echoes of it as from a great sounding board. Dan could -not make out what the quarrel was about, but at length the sounds grew -fainter as if the wreckers had returned to the outside world above. - -Dan had felt a gush of cool wind from somewhere over his head and -shifted his quarters to get beneath it and out of the reeking, stifling -atmosphere of the hold. He knew it must come from a pipe running to -one of the great bell-mouthed ventilators on deck and was glad that it -had been turned so as to face and catch the invigorating breeze. He -had not dreamed that the ventilator might serve as a speaking-tube. -While he waited, however, to learn what the wreckers intended to do -next, some one began to talk, and he heard every word distinctly. The -voice sounded so near his ears that he was as startled as if a ghost -had stepped out of the darkness. Dan jumped to his feet, his nerves -all of a quiver. He would have fled anywhere to get away from this -uncanny voice, but a stronger gust of wind struck his upturned face and -the mysterious voice sounded even louder. He thought of the ventilator -pipe, got a grip on himself, and scarcely breathed as he listened -to the odd intonations of the Bahama negro speech. "Black Sam" was -talking. Dan remembered the peculiar guttural cadence of his voice as -he had heard it in Nassau harbor. He must have been standing directly -in front of the ventilator on deck, for every word carried down the -pipe to Dan: - -"Ah don't care nuffin' 'bout de ship. We ain't got no tow-boats to pull -her off. An' if we don't work quick an' soon them Key Westers'll be -a-scatterin' down an' run us back home--you heah me? Take a big bag o' -powdah an' blow de side outen her. Dat's what I say do. De cargo ports -is all jammed fas'. We can't open 'em nohow. An' we ain't got no steam -to hoist wid a donkey-engine. Blow de side outen her. She's hung fas' -on de Reef. She ain't gwine sink. When we'se done loaded our schooners -wid cargo we can strip the brasses in de engine-room. Blow her up. -Ain't I wrecked plenty vessels? Don't I know?" - -Dan heard one of the other wreckers rumble: "Sam knows bes'. Cut de -fuse to burn ten minutes an' let us get back aboard our schooners. Hang -de sack o' powder 'g'inst the ship's plates inside an' let her go. -Reckon we'll blow a hole in her fit to run a tow-boat froo, Sam." - -To Dan Frazier these last words sounded faint and confused, as if -something was the matter with his hearing. He had only time to mutter -"They are going to blow her up and me with her." Then he felt so giddy -that he put out his arms to steady himself. His knees gave way and he -sank down in a heap. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -A FAT ENGINEER TO THE RESCUE - - -Dan Frazier came to himself with the message from the ventilator pipe -surging in his confused brain. The Bahama wreckers were going to blow -up the ship. "A ten-minute fuse," he whispered as he began to crawl -forward to escape from the hold. How long had he been unconscious? The -explosion might come on the next instant. Dan was afraid to face "Black -Sam" Hurley and his lawless crew, but he was far more afraid to stay -below. His only thought was to gain the upper deck and jump overboard -in the hope that the wreckers might pick him up. Fear gave him strength -for the journey, fear such as he had never known before. - -Losing his bearings in his headlong panic, Dan turned toward the side -of the ship, for he had not delayed to relight his lantern. A little -way in front of him a red spark glowed and sputtered. It burned a hole -in the gloom, and Dan stood stock-still and stared as if fascinated. It -was the fuse of the charge of powder. He wanted to run away from it but -his legs refused to carry him. - -When he moved, it was not in flight but straight toward the sputtering -slow-match. It was not in the least a conscious act of bravery. Dan -felt sure that he could not regain the upper deck before the explosion -tore him to pieces. He turned at bay to fight for his life with the -instinct of a hunted animal. - -Springing toward the terrible, winking spark with his fists doubled -as if to ward off an attack, Dan struck at it, tore the trailing fuse -free from its fastening, trampled it under his feet, and pulled it to -bits after the fire was dead. The explosive itself was also an enemy -which he must destroy. As if he were in a delirium, Dan whipped out his -knife, cut the lashing of the sack of powder, and dragged it after him -in his retreat. He came to a hatchway, let the sack drop, and heard it -splash in the water which flooded the lower hold. Then he clawed his -way toward daylight. - -Dan no longer cared whether the wreckers saw him or not. No danger -could have forced him down into the hold of the ship again. It was -a place filled with horrors. When he came out into the sunshine and -wind it was a kindly chance which made him lie down in a corner of the -deck that was screened from sight of the wreckers' schooners. Dan had -forgotten all about them. He had come to the end of his rope, and all -he could think of was, "I want to go home. I want to go home." - -"Black Sam" Hurley was impatiently awaiting the explosion which should -tear a gap in the _Kenilworth's_ side and allow his greedy wreckers to -begin operations. Ten, fifteen, twenty minutes passed, and there was a -great hubbub on board the Bahama schooners tossing at a safe distance -from the steamer. At the end of half an hour "Black Sam" ordered a -boat away and the crew crowded in pell-mell. They boarded the lee side -of the _Kenilworth_ with the agility of monkeys and their bare feet -slapped the deck as they ran to the hatch. - -Dan heard them and realized that he must try to find a resting-place -where they would not discover him upon their return from below. He -might perhaps be unseen if he took refuge on the bridge which the -wreckers were not likely to ransack until later. He managed to drag -his aching, weary body forward and laid down on the mattress behind -the canvas weather screen. After a few minutes he heard the wreckers -come boiling out of the hold with cries of amazement, anger, and fear. -They had expected to find a faulty fuse, but fuse, powder, and all -had vanished. Some of them swore the ship was haunted and refused to -have anything to do with fetching another sack of powder. Their leader -bellowed and threatened, but he could not quell the riot. At last he -yelled that he would lay the second charge himself and stay aboard if -he blew up with it. Scoffing at the idea of ghostly interference, he -ordered his men to search the ship. - -These plans were suddenly knocked all askew. Shouting arose on board -the schooners whose crews were waving their arms toward the north. The -wreckers on the steamer rushed to the side and discovered the cause -of alarm. The funnel and upper works of a tug were lifting from the -sea, beneath a trailing banner of smoke. Dan had been watching the -scene on deck with absorbed attention, and as he looked seaward and -caught sight of the tug his heart stood still. He squinted through -the glasses. There were two white bands around the funnel. Could it -be the _Three Sisters_ of Jacksonville, the big wrecking tug of which -Captain Jim's cousin was master? The streaked smoke-stack and the -stubby derrick-masts--the drab wheel-house--yes, these were things -which Dan remembered noticing when the tug was in Key West. And Captain -Jim must be in her. She was hurrying to find out what had become of the -_Kenilworth_. "Perhaps they are looking for me," thought Dan. "And I'm -still wrecking master if 'Black Sam' doesn't see me first." - -The Bahama wreckers were very busy with their own affairs. The sight -of the on-coming tug had altered their campaign in a twinkling. "Black -Sam" was now determined to keep possession of the wreck at all hazards, -acting on the theory that he was the wrecking master by the law of the -Reef. He told his men to stay where they were and slid down the side of -the steamer to pull off to the schooners and muster reinforcements. A -score of stalwart negroes rallied to his summons and tumbled into their -boats. - -A picturesque and piratical looking force they were as they scrambled -over the _Kenilworth's_ bulwarks and scattered along her sea-scarred -decks. "Black Sam" showed his teeth in a snarl as he yelled to them: - -"Dey ain't gwine be no argifying 'bout dis yere wreck. We'se heah an' -we stay heah. If dem tow-boat folks tries to come aboard, keep 'em busy -wid dem belaying-pins yondah an' yo' knives--yo' heah me?" - -The _Three Sisters_ was rapidly nearing the scene. From his ambush Dan -watched her with yearning, happy eyes. He was not yet out of trouble, -but Captain Jim would somehow rescue him in the nick of time. He saw -the powerful tug sweep around to leeward of the Bahama schooners -and slow down as if her people were trying to fathom the situation. -Captain Jim Wetherly was standing by the wheel-house door, shading his -eyes with his hand. Dan wanted to call to him, but he dared not show -himself. The tug crept nearer, and Dan rejoiced to discover that most -of the _Resolute's_ crew were clustered along the lower deck, including -the portly chief engineer, Bill McKnight, who loomed like a whale among -minnows. - -Presently Captain Jim sung out: - -"What are you Bahama niggers doing aboard that steamer? She belongs to -me. I had hold of her once and am in charge of wrecking her. Clear out -before I put my men aboard." - -A row of black heads bobbed in violent agitation along the -_Kenilworth's_ bulwarks, and "Black Sam" Hurley shouted back with a -loud laugh: - -"Go back home, white man. We foun' dis yere wreck 'bandoned. I'se -wreckin' marster--yo' heah me? If you all wants her, come aboard an' -take her." - -Dan saw Bill McKnight waddle aft in great haste, dive into his room, -and beckon to a _Resolute_ deck-hand. Presently the two reappeared -dragging a long, heavy box which the engineer began to break open with -furious blows of a hatchet. - -"It's the case of Mauser rifles Bill stowed away from the last -filibustering cargo he ran over to Cuba," murmured Dan. "He said -he was saving 'em to start another revolution with. Hooray! hooray! -there'll be something doing." - -Bill McKnight was passing the rifles out to the eager crew of the -_Resolute_ who looked as if they were about to earn their passage -aboard the _Three Sisters_. Captain Jim made one jump from the upper -deck, without delaying to find the stairway, and caught up a rifle and -a handful of cartridges. Once more he shouted to the wreckers on the -_Kenilworth_: - -"If you want trouble we'll give you plenty. Are you coming off?" - -"We ain't scared by dem guns," yelled "Black Sam." "You ain't got no -rights in dis vessel. You all don't dare to do no shootin'." - -"I've got the underwriter's agent aboard this tug, and he knows the -facts," returned Captain Jim. "You are pirates and I intend to have no -monkey-business. I know all about you, Sam Hurley." - -"Show yo' claim on dis wreck. We'se heah. You ain't," replied the negro. - -Dan could hold in no longer. He poked his head above the canvas screen -of the bridge, waved both arms over his head, and yelled at the top of -his voice: - -"You bet we're here, Uncle Jim. And I'm wrecking master and it is your -job." - -The men on the _Three Sisters_ dropped their rifles and stared in -silence, with mouths agape. It was a voice and a vision from the dead. -"Black Sam" and his wreckers stood poised in their various threatening -attitudes as if petrified. It was a strange tableau. If Dan had -hopped off a passing cloud he could not have caused a more breathless -sensation. The spell which his appearance cast on all who beheld him -was broken by the jubilant voice of Captain Jim: - -"It's Dan Frazier sure enough. Thank God you're alive and kicking, boy. -Captain Bruce reported you drowned, and nobody's dared to tell your -mother till I could get out to the wreck. Hold your nerve. We're coming -after you." - -The words awoke "Black Sam" Hurley to swift action. He was beside -himself with rage at the boy on the steamer's bridge who had spoiled -the explosion and then made a jest of his claims as wrecking-master. -The desperate negro had only one idea in his head--to square matters -by getting his hands on Dan. He ran toward the bridge with several of -his men at his heels, and Dan hastily climbed on the rail ready to jump -overboard as the only way of escape. But before the wreckers had gained -his refuge, he heard Captain Jim cry: - -"Hold on, Dan. Don't jump. Duck and lie flat where you are." - -The boy flopped full length on the bridge an instant before several -rifles barked on the _Three Sisters_ and bullets came singing over the -_Kenilworth_. The wreckers halted, huddled in confusion, and ran for -the shelter of the nearest deck-house. "Black Sam" delayed to hurl an -iron belaying-pin at Dan's head and paid dearly for the act. It was -Bill McKnight who drove a bullet through his arm and made him fly for -cover with blood trickling from his fingers. Then the clarion tones of -the fat chief engineer sounded across the water as if he had taken full -command of the expedition: - -"Half a dozen of you men stay here to sweep the _Kenilworth's_ bulwarks -with your guns and give us a chance to climb over. The rest follow me -to board her. _A la machete!_ Out cutlasses. _Viva Cuba!_ Hip, hip, -hooroo!" - -Two boats were fairly thrown into the water from the _Three Sisters_ -and the cheering _Resolutes_ fell into them, grabbing capstan bars -and coal shovels, or clubbing their rifles. The Bahama wreckers had -no intention of being driven from their prize without making a fight -for it. Several of them pulled revolvers from inside their shirts and -popped wildly away at the approaching boats while "Black Sam" led a -crowd of his followers behind the tall bulwark where they crouched, -sheltered from rifle fire, and ready to receive the boarders as they -came over the side. Captain Jim was in the bow of one boat, the chief -engineer in the other. The wreckers had been unable to cut away the -dangling boat ropes and bowlines by which they had climbed on board, -and the attacking party ascended like so many acrobats. Bill McKnight -was boosted and hauled part way, but as soon as he found a secure -purchase for his fingers and toes, he dove over the bulwark like a -landslide and pranced into action like a cyclone. - -It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century. The _Resolutes_ suffered some cracked heads and -bloody faces before they gained foothold and swept forward. Try as -he would, Captain Jim could not keep the terrific pace set by Bill -McKnight who was swinging his rifle like a flail and clearing a wide -path while he grunted maledictions at the foe. - -[Illustration: It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the -prosaic twentieth century] - -"You're blockin' my way, you google-eyed thief. _Bing!_ there's one on -the cocoanut," he panted with a cheerful grin as he smote a stalwart -wrecker and sent him spinning. - -"We're a-coming, Dan. Keep your reserved seat," he bellowed to the -bridge as he wiped the sweat from his eyes. "Black Sam's" men could not -withstand the determined and disciplined onslaught and began to leap -overboard, _plop! plop!_ into the green sea over which the boats from -their schooners were racing to pick them up. Only their leader stayed -behind, sullenly nursing his wounded arm. Captain Jim halted long -enough to tell him: - -"My men will take you aboard the tug and patch you up from my medicine -chest. Then you'd better make sail for home. The Reef isn't healthy -for your breed of Nassau wreckers. Better pass the word among your -friends." - -Then Captain Jim ran to the bridge, but Bill McKnight was already -hugging Dan and fairly blubbering over him. The boy was too weak to -struggle out of this crushing embrace, but he waggled a free hand to -Captain Jim and stammered: - -"W-wow, ouch. Glad to see you aboard." - -"Glad to see us aboard, you rascal," laughed his uncle as he yanked the -engineer away and thumped Dan on the back. "_Well_, we're tickled to -death to see _you_ aboard. How in the--, of all the-- Whew, what are -you doing here anyhow, Dan?" - -His nephew made a brave attempt to answer him. Now was the time to play -the hero, to tell how he had stuck to the ship and saved her. But Dan -Frazier was no hero. He was just a stout-hearted lad who had weathered -one cruel ordeal after another with the Almighty's aid, and he had -hung on to himself as long as he could. Now there was no more call for -courage. He was safe and the ship had been restored to Uncle Jim. Tears -streamed down Dan's face and he swayed against Bill McKnight who put a -steadying arm around him. - -"I--I'm just tired out, I--I guess," he sobbed. "Please take me home, -Uncle Jim. I--I want my mother." - -Bill McKnight coughed and wiped his eyes as he lifted Dan's feet clear -of the deck, while Captain Jim lent his sturdy arms to the task of -carrying the boy to the ship's side and lowering him into a boat. -They got him aboard the _Three Sisters_ without mishap, took off his -tattered, grimy clothing, and tucked him in the captain's bunk. - -"The boy is bruised and scratched from head to foot," said the master -of the tug, Captain Jim's cousin. "We'd better sponge him down with hot -water and arnica. He must have had a tougher time of it than most grown -men could live through, Jim. See here, these are fresh burns on his -hands. Now, where did he get those?" - -"The Lord only knows," said Captain Jim as he patted Dan's flushed -cheek. "Don't pester him with questions now. He's got some fever and -his eyes look bad to me. I'm going to leave McKnight on the wreck with -some of my men to stand off any other kinky-headed pirates that may -light on the Reef. And we're going to take this boy home to his mother -as fast as you can poke this old hooker of yours into Key West." - -Dan opened his eyes and smiled at Captain Jim who motioned him to be -quiet. But Dan was already restless with fever and he had a hundred -things to talk about if they would only stop whirling around in his -head long enough to be laid hold of. He looked at his scorched fingers -which were pecking at a corner of the blanket and said in a voice so -weak that it sounded foolish to him: - -"They tried to blow her up--to blow Jerry Pringle up--no, I don't mean -that. It was 'Black Sam' Hurley--he lit the fuse, Uncle Jim--and I put -it out--all alone down in the hold. You never saw such big rats--with -sacks of powder tied to their tails--and eyes like sparks." - -Captain Jim soothed Dan as best he could and whispered to his cousin: - -"Did you get that? It's all true, I reckon. That's an old trick of the -Bahama wrecking gangs. Ask Mr. Prentice to come in. The underwriters -ought to be interested in the boy." - -Mr. Prentice, the Florida agent of the English marine insurance -companies, was a sharp-featured, elderly gentleman of few words. He had -a great deal of confidence in Captain Wetherly's ability to handle such -a bad business as a costly steamer high and dry on the Reef, but he was -not prepared to hear such an astonishing tale as was whispered to him -in the doorway of the captain's state-room. - -"Mind you, we don't know a quarter of it yet," added Captain Jim. "But -it looks as if you'll have to thank Dan Frazier, not me, for saving the -steamer out yonder." - -"U-m-m. Bless me, but it's most extraordinary," murmured Mr. Prentice. -"I must go aboard at once and look for confirmation. It's a very -unusual wreck, Captain Wetherly," and the underwriter's agent shot a -keen glance from under his gray brows. "I shall be much interested in -getting Captain Bruce's version. Jeremiah Pringle was off here, also, -the night the _Kenilworth_ went ashore, was he not? I understand you -were in collision with him next day." - -Mr. Prentice had slightly raised his voice. It carried to Dan's ears -and he raised himself on his elbow and cried out in excitement: - -"We'll pull her off, Uncle Jim, and Barton won't know. And his mother -won't know. Don't let them know. The captain is sorry. We can handle it -all by ourselves." - -"The lad is off his head, and no wonder," said Captain Jim, addressing -the keen-eyed underwriter's agent. "Come outside, if you please." - -"What are you holding back?" asked Mr. Prentice severely as they moved -away from the door. "I intend to get to the bottom of this, you know. -There is some mystery about it that is eating that lad's heart out." - -"I haven't time to talk," was the reply. "But I'm going to get that -ship off for you, thanks to the boy in there. And if we _are_ holding -anything back, it will have to stay hid and hawsers couldn't pull it -out of me." - -He went aft to meet Bill McKnight who had come over from the -_Kenilworth_ to get his orders. - -"How's the boy?" anxiously asked the engineer. - -"Pretty sick, I'm afraid, Bill. But home will cure him if anything -will. He's talking wild and saying too much." - -Captain Jim jerked his thumb over his shoulder at Mr. Prentice and -went on, "It's the mysterious ways of Providence, Bill. Captain Bruce -gave the dirty business away when he was queer in his head aboard the -_Resolute_ at Pensacola, and Dan has put that gimlet-eyed agent on the -track by going daffy here. You can peek in at the boy, and then you -hustle your dunnage and pick your men and go to the _Kenilworth_. I'll -be back to-morrow, and more tugs and lighters will be on the way. Take -Mr. Prentice along with you. Good luck." - -The engineer tiptoed into Dan's room and laid his rough hand on the -pillow. He looked down in silence while his gray moustache quivered -as if strong emotion was held in check. Then he lumbered on deck and -prepared to quit the tug. A few minutes later the "jingle bell" rang -boisterously and its clamor was borne to Dan. He smiled at Captain Jim -and murmured: - -"Full speed ahead! And mother will come down to the wharf when she -hears our whistle off the red buoy." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -A FOG OF SUSPICIONS - - -It was not until a fortnight after Dan Frazier had been taken home to -Key West that he was allowed to leave his room and lounge in a wicker -chair on the cottage porch. His face and hands were thinner and the sea -tan could not hide the pallor caused by fever, but he looked at the -glad, green world with bright eyes and clamored for food like a young -cormorant. His mother, who fluttered about him with fond anxiety, had -tried to banish all mention of the _Kenilworth_, but now that he was -able to be outdoors he fairly bullied her with questions which had been -disturbing his days and nights of illness. - -"I am sure Barton is as fond of you as ever," said she. "He may have -been angry at first, but he has been here to ask about you almost every -day. He told me you had nothing to do with his father's tug being cut -in two by brother Jim, but he said you hooted at him when it happened. -That wasn't like my Dan." - -Her son tried to look repentant, but his eyes twinkled and he grinned -as he replied: - -"It wasn't nice of Bart to laugh at me while his cantankerous old -daddy's tug was keeping the _Resolute_ away from the wreck. How did -Bart explain the smash-up?" - -"He as much as said that Jim Wetherly behaved like a pirate and a -lunatic, though of course Barton is too polite to put it in so many -words," confessed Mrs. Frazier with a sigh. "It has made a lot of talk -in Key West. Mr. Pringle swears he is going to take it into court. He -declares he had made a contract with the captain of the _Kenilworth_ -when along came Jim and rammed him to get the job away from him." - -"Made a contract with the _Kenilworth_! I should say Jerry Pringle -did," snorted Dan with rising color. "He made his rotten contract in -Pensacola, months before the ship was wrecked. He didn't get half -what's coming to him. I wish Uncle Jim had sunk the _Henry Foster_. -What else has happened?" - -"Captain Bruce has called twice to see you. And since meeting him I am -more skeptical than ever about your conspiracy story, Dan." - -"Captain Bruce been here? So you like him, too, do you?" exclaimed Dan. -"Were all hands saved from the wreck?" - -"They got away from the ship in their boats at daylight," answered Mrs. -Frazier. "Captain Bruce had some ribs broken by being dashed against -the side, and two boats were swamped. But they reached the keys with -all hands and were picked up a day later by a sponger and brought down -the Hawk Channel to Key West. Captain Bruce was broken-hearted over -losing you, and when he heard you were still alive he insisted on -leaving the hospital and coming up here, broken ribs and all. He seems -very moody and depressed. I suppose he is unhappy about losing his -ship." - -"He is thinking about several things, I reckon," said Dan. "That ship -has made everybody unhappy. She is loaded with trouble. Captain Bruce -is sorry he ever clapped eyes on Jerry Pringle for one thing. And he -hates himself even worse for not sticking to his vessel. And he quit -her and left me on board to come through the gale all right with the -ship still under me. What is he planning to do now?" - -"Wait, and take the _Kenilworth_ again if she is floated," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "He is going up to the Reef as soon as the doctor will let -him." - -She walked to the end of the porch and brushed aside the tangle of -vines which partly screened her view of the street. Then she turned and -said to Dan: - -"Here comes Mr. Prentice and I think he intends to call here. What a -very stiff and formal looking person he is!" - -The underwriters' agent opened the gate with a courtly bow to Mrs. -Frazier. His greetings were most polite, but he lost no time in coming -to the point. Mrs. Frazier was about to withdraw, but Dan spoke up -sharply: - -"If it's about the _Kenilworth_, Mr. Prentice, I want my mother to -stay. I keep no secrets from her." - -Mr. Prentice bowed gravely and seated himself facing Dan, who could not -help feeling that this elderly gentleman was unfriendly to him. The -underwriters' agent opened fire without further warning: - -"I am pleased to note your rapid recovery from a very trying -experience, Mr. Frazier. As you may know, I represent English insurance -interests which wrote a total of a hundred thousand pounds sterling -on the _Kenilworth_ and her cargo. If the efforts to float the vessel -prove successful, the loss may be comparatively small." - -Mr. Prentice adjusted his glasses, cleared his throat, and resumed with -emphatic earnestness: - -"You hinted at having prevented a disastrous explosion in the steamer's -hold, Mr. Frazier. You may not recall the words you used. It was after -you were taken on board the tug _Three Sisters_. I have made the most -thorough examination of the _Kenilworth_ and failed to find any traces -of explosives." - -"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't get very -far," hotly cried Dan. "Do you think I cooked up that yarn to get -a reward out of the insurance companies? Did you fish in the water -amidships for a sack of powder? Wait till the ship is pumped out and -I'll find it for you fast enough." - -[Illustration: "If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you -won't get very far!"] - -Mrs. Frazier laid her hand on the lad's shoulder, whispered in his -ear, and he sank sulkily back in his chair while the unruffled Mr. -Prentice asked: - -"Why did you dump the powder down the hatch instead of letting it stay -where it was as evidence of the dastardly attempt of the wreckers?" - -"I didn't know what I was doing," exclaimed Dan in a flare of -impatience. "I was scared clean out of my wits. I was afraid to turn my -back on that bag of powder. Maybe you wouldn't have been as cool as an -ice-chest, either, and thinking about _evidence_. What the dickens are -you driving at anyhow?" - -"I will drop this matter for the present," said Mr. Prentice, fishing -out a small note-book as if to confirm his recollection before he -declared: - -"I heard you say on board the _Three Sisters_, '_Don't let them know. -Keep it dark. We can handle it all by ourselves. The captain is sorry -he did it._' What did you mean, Mr. Frazier? This wreck is to be -investigated. I am already convinced that certain persons on board -the tug _Resolute_ had advance information of the intended loss of -the _Kenilworth_. Your tug had steam up and her crew on board for -several days before the disaster. Captain Wetherly started for sea in -a tremendous hurry after getting a cable message that the _Kenilworth_ -had passed Jupiter Light. I have copies of the message he sent asking -for this information and the reply from the Government signal station. -Then, as if to prevent interference with a bargain made in advance, -Captain Wetherly deliberately cut down and disabled the tug _Henry -Foster_. I believe you know the truth. What did you mean by '_Don't let -them know? Keep it dark?_'" - -Dan looked bewildered for a moment and stared at Mr. Prentice who -seemed to be talking the sheerest nonsense. Then, as the meaning of -these suspicions filtered into the boy's mind, his face became red -with wrath and astonishment. His world was turning topsy-turvy. The -underwriters' agent was actually accusing Captain Jim Wetherly and the -_Resolute_ of the wicked deed which they had been trying to mend--of -plotting to put the _Kenilworth_ on the Reef! Why, this was like one of -the dreams of Dan's weeks of fever. At length he pulled himself to his -feet and fairly shouted: - -"I know who started this crazy story of yours, Mr. Prentice. Jerry -Pringle must be at the bottom of it. Do you mean to say you have -listened to such infernal lies about a man like Captain Jim Wetherly? -You didn't understand what I was talking about on board the _Three -Sisters_. And do you think _we_ had anything to do with the stranding -of Captain Bruce's steamer? Do you want to know the truth? I'll tell -you the truth--No, I won't. Captain Jim is my skipper and I must take -my orders from him. He told me to keep my mouth shut, and I can't say -anything until he gives me the word." - -Mrs. Frazier was wringing her hands as she stood between Mr. Prentice -and Dan, as if trying to shield her boy from harm. "Dan must not talk -to you another minute," she exclaimed indignantly. "He is all of a -tremble now. It is cruel of you to torment and bully him, Mr. Prentice." - -The underwriters' agent apologized and tried to explain his errand in -more detail. - -"I like your boy, Mrs. Frazier. He is a manly fellow. I am inclined -to believe that he is prompted by good motives. He is loyal to -Captain Wetherly and the _Resolute_, which is quite natural. But this -_Kenilworth_ affair looks like a bad business from start to finish. -Something was in the wind before the steamer went ashore, and it is my -duty to get at the facts without sparing any one's feelings. I want Dan -to think it over and I shall have another talk with him when he feels a -bit stronger." - -"Why don't you tackle Captain Bruce and make him tell what he knows?" -burst out Dan. "What does he say about it?" - -"The case of Captain Bruce will be disposed of in London," answered Mr. -Prentice; "but the evidence must be gathered in Key West." - -He reluctantly took his departure and, as his tall, spare figure -moved down the street, Dan followed Mrs. Frazier into the cottage and -declared: - -"This notion of fighting to keep disgrace and exposure away from Bart -Pringle and his mother has gone about far enough. Do you suppose I am -going to have you dragged into it, all because Jerry Pringle is smart -enough to cover up his tracks and shift the suspicion to Uncle Jim? Not -in a thousand years. Uncle Jim will have to come to Key West and clear -himself somehow." - -A heavy footfall sounded on the porch and the spoon on Dan's medicine -glass jingled as the ponderous presence of Bill McKnight filled the -outside doorway while he raised his big voice in "Ship, ahoy? Is Dan -aboard?" - -"The very man I want to see. Come in," called Dan. "He won't excite me, -mother, he'll be just like a hogshead of soothing syrup." - -The chief engineer advanced cautiously, as if not quite certain how to -handle himself in a sickroom, and whispered hoarsely: - -"Keep perfectly cool and calm, my boy. We'll say nothing at all about -wrecks, riots, and revolutions, will we, Mrs. Frazier? Birds and -flowers and how's the weather, eh? They're the topics." - -"Oh, shucks," was Dan's rude comment. "I want to know all about -everything, don't I, mother? Where is the _Resolute_? What's the news -from Captain Jim?" - -Mr. McKnight turned to Dan's mother and waited for orders. She nodded -her assent, and the visitor set himself down in a chair which creaked -and groaned. Then he extracted a package from his white duck coat and -removed the paper wrapping. A glass jar was revealed which Mr. McKnight -placed on the table with the explanation: - -"Calf's-foot jelly, ma'am. I had to cable for it. There's a poor crop -of calves in Key West. I've never been sick myself, except when I got -my head busted, or broke an arm or leg, or got shot up. But we fished -a box of books out of an English wreck one time, and they were mostly -novels. We dried 'em out in the engine-room and all hands read 'em. And -whenever anybody in them yarns took sick, I'm blessed if the vicar's -wife, or the squire's daughter, or the young ladies next door, didn't -trot in with this here calf's-foot jelly. They used tons of it in every -novel, ma'am. I reckon it'll put Dan on his pins." - -The chief engineer wiped his face and fixed a pair of spectacles on his -ruddy nose, after which he gazed searchingly at Dan as if to satisfy -himself that the boy was all there. Bashfully waving his paw as if to -ward off Mrs. Frazier's laughing thanks, he went on to say: - -"The _Resolute_ is almost ready for sea and your berth is waiting for -you, Dan. Captain Jim jerked the life out of her when he fetched away -the towing-bitts. She was most as sad a sight as the _Henry Foster_. -I've just come down from the Reef to see that the repairs are all -ship-shape and run her to sea in three or four days." - -"Can't I go in her, mother?" begged Dan. "I won't do any work. Tell the -doctor the air will do me good. I've simply got to see the wreck. How -about it, Mr. McKnight? Is she really going to come off?" - -"You'd think so, if she brings a chunk of the Reef along with her," -chuckled the engineer. "Captain Jim has built two coffer-dams in her, -where her bottom was ripped out. He'll begin to pump 'em out next week. -That will lift the bulk of the water out of her. And the wrecking pumps -can handle the rest of the leaks. He's a terrible man is Captain Jim, -when he gets a full head of steam in his boilers. He's patching up -the bulkheads, lightering the cargo, got a force of mechanics in the -engine-room, and so on till she hums like a beehive. Good weather, -Reef like a mill-pond, and two chartered tugs waiting to hook on to -her, not to mention the _Resolute_." - -"That beats doctors and calf's-foot jelly for putting me on my toes -again," was Dan's jubilant comment. "Have you heard anything ashore -here about her going on the Reef?" - -Mrs. Frazier tried to head off this agitating topic, but Mr. McKnight -failed to comprehend her manoeuvres and briskly replied: - -"No, I just come away from the Reef and hustled straight up here from -looking over the _Resolute_. There's nothing leaked out, has there? I'd -like to see somebody punished, you understand, but Captain Jim told me -to shut up and stay shut up." - -"Well, _we_ are accused of putting up the _Kenilworth_ job," exclaimed -Dan. "Don't mind mother. She's one of us. If you're going to have a -fit, please go outside. This house isn't big enough." - -Mr. McKnight was too taken aback to display any violent emotion. He -wiped his spectacles with great care, as if they had something to do -with his hearing, and asked Dan to "say it again, and say it slower." -Dan told him all about the visit of the underwriters' agent, whereupon -Mr. McKnight raised both hands and exclaimed: - -"Hold on, boy. It all sounds plumb raving crazy to you, but there may -be a heap more in it than you think. Who knew Jerry Pringle was aboard -the _Resolute_ that night in Pensacola harbor? You and me and Captain -Jim, and the cook and galley boy. The rest of the crew was ashore or -down below. Did you know that the cook and the galley boy quit the -_Resolute_ last week and went up the Gulf to ship on a Central American -fruiter? They may be mighty hard to find if Jerry Pringle had anything -to do with getting them out of the way. Where are our witnesses, eh? -And you tell me old man Prentice has copies of the cable messages that -prove Captain Jim was waiting for the _Kenilworth_? They may be mighty -hard to explain." - -"How about Captain Bruce?" asked Dan with a very sober face. "He is the -only man that can clear it all up in a jiffy." - -"I can't quite fathom him, Dan. Sometimes I think he only needs a good -strong shove to make him own up to it all and take his medicine like a -man. But supposing Pringle offers him the ten thousand dollars anyhow -to saddle the job on us _Resolutes_? It's worth that to Jerry to save -his own skin." - -"Captain Jim must get after Captain Bruce and make him tell the truth -if he has to choke it out of him," cried Dan in great excitement. "As -soon as we pull the _Kenilworth_ off the Reef there is going to be a -fight to a finish." - -"You ain't quite fit for wrecking or fighting, and your mother will -scold me directly for getting your bearings hot," quoth Mr. McKnight. -"You just sit tight and maybe you can go up to the Reef in the -_Resolute_ with me." - -With this the chief engineer departed under full steam, evidently -afraid of facing Dan's mother. The patient suffered no relapse, -however, and felt so much stronger next day that Mrs. Frazier suggested -a walk as far as the parade-ground of the artillery barracks, hoping -to give him a respite from any more disturbing visitors. They strolled -slowly through quaint crooked streets of the sea-girt town, into the -shaded plaza of the garrison which faced an expanse of green lagoon -and low mangrove-covered keys. A wharf ran out from the seawall in -front of them and they walked idly toward it to look at the schooners -beating up to the town. - -Dan delayed to watch a distant sail which was scudding in from one of -the near-by keys. Presently he called out: - -"Don't wait for me, mother. That's the _Sombrero_ yonder, and she will -pass within hail of the wharf. I'm going out there and catch Bart -Pringle as he scoots by." - -The boys had not met since Dan's return from the Reef, and Dan was a -trifle surprised that Bart had let the last three days pass without -calling to see him. "I want to beg his pardon for laughing at him when -the _Henry Foster_ was stood on her ear," reflected Dan as he walked -toward the end of the wharf. "We have a pack of things to talk about, -and I must be awful careful not to say a word against his father. But -there's due to be a rumpus before long." - -The _Sombrero_ tore past with a free sheet, fluttered into the wind, -and slid gracefully up to the wharf. Dan jumped onto the bowsprit and -footed it aft with a cheery greeting to Bart who was busy with sheets -and tiller. - -"Hello, Dan. Glad you feel so spry. Want to run down to the fort and -back?" said Bart without his usual smile. His manner was so glum, in -fact, that Dan spoke up rather sharply: - -"What in the world has happened to you? Has the _Sombrero_ been beaten -while I was laid up? My goodness, I thought you'd be glad to see me." - -Bart rubbed his head, scowled at the main-sail, and sighed before he -responded with an effort: - -"I've got to tell you, Dan. Mind you, I don't take any stock in it, but -I hate myself for letting it worry me. It's about the _Kenilworth_. -It's too tough to repeat, really it is, but you ought to have a chance -to come out and nail it as a lie. They say Captain Jim Wetherly knew -she was going on the Reef, and that you knew it, too. I wish----" - -"And you listened to such stuff?" Dan fiercely broke in. "Who told it -to you?" - -"Mr. Prentice asked me a lot of questions and I couldn't help seeing -what he was trying to prove, Dan. I asked my father about it and he -seemed to think things looked pretty black for Captain Jim. And father -is mighty seldom fooled about anything that goes on along the Reef. I -want to tell him that you say it's all foolishness. He would be mighty -glad to have it cleared up all right for Captain Jim Wetherly. And he -knows how chummy I am with you." - -"Y-you asked your f-father about it?" stuttered Dan and his eyes were -blazing. "Bart Pringle, you make my head dizzy. Look here, I'll tell -you one thing that's straight goods. I wouldn't believe _you_ were -guilty of a murder, not if they had a million witnesses, unless I saw -you do it with my own two eyes. And as for the _Kenilworth_, whether -Captain Bruce meant to put her on the Reef or not, Captain Jim Wetherly -had nothing to do with it. And that's all I can tell you. Of course -that lets me out." - -Dan's heart was sore that his chum's loyalty should have been shaken in -the slightest degree, but he tried to be fair, and added in a milder -tone: - -"Mr. Prentice got things all snarled up somehow, but it's sure to come -out right. Maybe I ought not to blame you for being worried, Bart. -Things have been happening mighty fast for all hands concerned." - -By this time Barton was honestly ashamed of himself and could think -of nothing to say but a stammering apology which Dan accepted with a -rather gloomy nod. It was the nearest their friendship had ever come -to a break, and both boys would have preferred an open quarrel to this -cloud of aggrieved misunderstanding. There was little more talk between -them while the sloop crashed into the long seas of the outer roadstead. -After they had put her about and were heading homeward, Dan exclaimed: - -"There's the good old _Resolute_ at her dock, and she is getting up -steam. She must be 'most ready to go to the Reef. Put me alongside, -Bart. I want to look her over. I'll walk home from there." - -As Dan sprang up the deck of the tug he was hailed by the chief -engineer. Leading the way to his state-room, Mr. McKnight picked Dan up -bodily, tossed him on the bunk, locked the door, and spoke as follows: - -"Things are a-popping red-hot, my boy. Captain Jim landed from the -Reef an hour ago. I told him all I knew about his being suspected of -the crooked job, and what does our busy skipper do then? He promptly -lays for Jerry Pringle. Does he beat him to death, same as I figured -on doing sooner or later? No, Captain Jim, as usual, does what you -least expect. He tells Pringle that he needs help on the _Kenilworth_ -wreck. Weather looks unsettled; must lighter more cargo out of her -quicker than blazes; needs all the schooners he can lay his hands on, -and is in a desperate hurry for another tug. Then he up and offers J. -Pringle a contract to take all his vessels up to the _Kenilworth_ and -go along himself as assistant boss on the wreck. Jerry hems and haws, -but Captain Jim looks him square in the eye and tells him to have that -Tampa tug of his ready for sea at daylight to-morrow. And Jerry agrees -as meek as Moses and goes off to find the skipper of his vessels." - -"But why and what for?" exclaimed Dan. "Jerry Pringle working for -Captain Jim on the _Kenilworth_! It's too much for me to fathom." - -"For one thing, Captain Jim needs his help to get the steamer off," -returned Bill McKnight. "There isn't a smarter wrecker on the coast -than this same Pringle. The love of wrecking is in his blood, and -it fairly kills him to be idle with a fine, big ship on the Reef. -Now that his plot to lose the _Kenilworth_ is spoiled, why shouldn't -he win a nice pot of money by helping save her? Then, again, maybe -Captain Jim wants to heap coals on his head till he hollers for a -fire-extinguisher. There is going to be something doing on the Reef, -Dan. Better come along with us. You will be plenty strong enough if you -have eaten up all that calf's-foot jelly I lugged up to you." - -"Where does Captain Bruce come in?" asked Dan. "Will he be on the -_Kenilworth_, too?" - -"He goes up in the _Resolute_ with us, but Jerry Pringle doesn't know -it," answered Mr. McKnight with a solemn wink. "Everybody that has -played a hand in this game is going to round to on the deck of that -unfortunate steamer in a couple of days from now, and I'm a poor -guesser if it don't turn out to be a lively reunion before she comes -off the Reef." - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE BROKEN HAWSER - - -The battered _Kenilworth_ lay heeled far over to one side, looming -forlornly from the Reef in the midst of a smooth and sparkling sea. -Her sides were gray with brine and streaked red with rust, her grimy -decks strewn with a chaotic litter of cargo, timbers, and rigging. -The once trim, seagoing steamer made a most distressful picture as -seen from the _Resolute_ which was bearing down from the direction of -Key West. Captain Bruce was standing in the bows of the tug. Gazing -at his helpless ship, he found it very hard to realize that he had -deliberately placed the _Kenilworth_ in this pitiful plight. - -She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for good and all, -but it was plain to see that the wreckers did not think so. Cargo -was tumbling from her ports into lighters strung alongside, tugs -hovered fussily near-by, and groups of active men toiled at capstans, -derrick-booms, and donkey-engines. - -[Illustration: She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all] - -"It looks like trying to float her before long," Captain Wetherly sung -down from the wheel-house of the _Resolute_. "Come up here, Captain -Bruce. I want to show you something." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ mounted the ladder with an air of -reluctance, for it hurt him even to talk about the ship. He looked worn -and haggard and he could not rid himself of a great dread lest the -_Kenilworth_ might not be floated after all. - -He was cheered, however, by the buoyant confidence of Captain Jim -Wetherly who exclaimed with a note of mirth in his voice: - -"There's a sight to make you rub your eyes, Captain Bruce. That is -Jerry Pringle's tug from Tampa on the port quarter of the _Kenilworth_. -And there he goes up the side. Hooray! see him chase that gang of his -down the hatch. He is surely shoving the job along for all he's worth. -That's his way when he once buckles down to it." - -"But you were fighting each other alongside my ship not long ago. I -don't understand it," commented Captain Bruce. - -Captain Jim led the other man out of ear-shot of the wheel-house and -told him with a grim smile: - -"Jerry Pringle expected to work on this wreck. You know that even -better than I do. I upset some plans of his, and yours. Now he has to -do the job _my_ way--understand? Do you know that I am suspected of -plotting with you to put this ship on the Reef, Captain Bruce? You -haven't heard it from Mr. Prentice? Um-m; well, you will hear a whole -lot more about it from me before this ship of yours slides off into -deep water." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ winced at the threatening tone of these -words, and his face was very red as he tried to bluster it out: - -"What rot! That Prentice is a doddering old fool. Talking behind my -back, is he? Of all the wicked, silly nonsense! Well, upon my word!" - -"That will do for you," was Captain Jim's curt reply. "_You_ are going -to clear me. I kept my mouth shut to shield some innocent people, women -and children, friends and kinfolk of mine--do you see? I expect to -give your ship back to you. And you are going to do the square thing -by me. Think it over and think hard." - -Captain Wetherly faced about and left the other gazing with a troubled -frown at the _Kenilworth_. Presently Dan hailed his uncle: - -"Bart Pringle came along with his father, sir. I'd like to go aboard -the wreck and see him if you don't mind, sir." - -"Go ahead, Dan. Last time you two lads met on that deck you bristled -at each other like two terrier pups. But I don't expect to cut his -dad's tow-boat in two this trip, so I reckon you'll be glad to see each -other." - -Dan followed Captain Bruce up the steamer's side and found Barton -dangling his legs from a heap of hatch-covers. - -"Why don't you get busy? I want you to know that I am the real -wrecking master of this vessel," cried Dan as he thumped his friend on -the back with a generous impulse to forgive and forget their recent -misunderstanding. "I never saw a Pringle that was willing to loaf ten -seconds on a wreck. Gracious, look at your father. You can't see him -for dust." - -Mr. Jeremiah Pringle was, indeed, making good his surprising contract -with Captain Jim Wetherly. He viewed a difficult task of wrecking as a -personal battle between the Reef and himself; his brains, brawn, and -courage matched against the perils of the sea. While the boys watched -him drive his crew of hardy wreckers, Bart remarked: - -"I thought father and Captain Jim were red-hot at each other over -the _Henry Foster_ business, didn't you? They must have patched it -up all right, and that's enough to show how silly those stories were -about--about the wreck and Captain Jim. Father wouldn't lend a hand in -a crooked job for any money. I have been feeling meaner than a yellow -pup for ever bothering my head about those rumors that lugged you into -the dirty work, Dan. Will you really forgive me?" - -"I was mean and nasty to you when the _Henry Foster_ was split wide -open, so I reckon we are quits," confessed Dan. "Let's shake hands and -forget it." - -"I'd trust you as I would trust my own father," earnestly exclaimed -Bart. "Right down in my heart I would no more dream of your being -mixed up with a crooked wrecking job than I would think of suspecting -him. That's as strong as I can put it. You won't hold it out against me -any more, will you, honest?" - -Jeremiah Pringle had come out of a forward hold and was making his -way aft along the ship's side to release a fouled guy-rope. The boys -did not see him pass behind them, and as Bart waxed earnest his voice -carried to his father's ears. The stern-visaged wrecker halted and -listened with the most intense interest. He heard his own son say: - -"_I'd trust you as I'd trust my own father.... That's as strong as I -can put it._" - -Jeremiah Pringle had been dealt a blow from a quarter so unexpected -that he was quite staggered. Moving stealthily out of sight of the two -lads, he went about his duty but his mind was painfully active with -emotions which were as novel as they were disturbing. - -It had never before occurred to him that his boy's life was anywhere -linked with his own. He did not intend to set him a bad example, nor -bring disgrace on the name he bore. But now Barton had accused and -condemned him, not by doubting but by believing in him. It was brought -home to him from a clear sky that his son was shaping his own course by -what he believed his father to be. As Jeremiah Pringle sweated through -the long day, he sullenly reflected: - -"I can't argue it out with the fool boy. And what gets under my skin, -too, is the way Dan Frazier has handled himself since that night in -Pensacola. He must have got wind of the _Kenilworth_ job then. I hate -to be under obligations to anybody, and Jim Wetherly and that boy -have been keeping it all back from my boy. Why? So Barton wouldn't be -ashamed of his daddy. That's a cheerful notion to take to bed with me." - -He had begun to feel that it might be unfair to his son's faith in him -to engage in any more shady wrecking operations, and he was nearer -being ashamed of himself than he had been in many years. It seemed as -if Captain Jim Wetherly read his thoughts, for he halted him next day -long enough to say: - -"You have taken hold in great shape. It helps square matters, Jerry. -It is your duty to get this ship off the Reef; you know that. And you -will never be able to look that boy of yours in the eye until the -_Kenilworth_ is towed into port and made ready for sea again." - -Mr. Pringle was in no mood to have his sins or his duty flung in his -teeth, and he retorted savagely: - -"Don't preach at me, Jim Wetherly. I break even with you by helping -you get this vessel afloat. And I won't make you pay for smashing the -_Henry Foster_. That squares all debts between us." - -Meanwhile Dan and Barton had explored the _Kenilworth_ from end to -end, Dan telling at great length the story of his imprisonment among -the cargo in the hold. When he came to the chapter dealing with the -visit of the Bahama wreckers, he hurried Bart to the spot where he had -found the lighted fuse and sack of powder. Alas, even the fragments -of the fuse had been swept away in the task of lightering the cargo. -Dan headed for the nearest hatchway to search for the powder. The -compartment into which he had thrown it was cleared of water, the -débris shovelled out, and the shattered bottom plates covered deep with -cement and timber bracing. - -"Our wreckers didn't find the powder bag, or Captain Jim would have -told me," mourned Dan. "The canvas may have ripped open or rotted where -it fell. You believe it all, don't you, Bart? But that hatchet-faced -old Prentice as much as called me a liar. And I won't be happy till I -can make him take it back. He thinks I was trying to pull his leg with -the explosion yarn. Why, I couldn't have made up a story like that in a -thousand years." - -"Don't you care. Of course it's true. And it was splendid. I am -certainly proud of you," declared Bart who was anxious to make amends -for the rift in their friendship. "You and I will back old Prentice -into a corner first chance we get and make him apologize--won't we?" - -The underwriters' agent came on board two days later and had a long -interview with Captain Jim behind the locked door of the chart-room, -after which Captain Bruce and Jeremiah Pringle were singly summoned for -more mysterious conferences. But no attention was paid to Dan who felt -that he moved in a cloud of suspicion and dismally reflected: - -"Old Prentice has set me down as a liar and won't even give me a -chance to deny it. I wish I could have kept that fuse to hitch to his -coat-tails. I won't save another ship for him,--that's one thing sure." - -At length the day came when Captain Jim Wetherly announced that he -intended pulling on the stranded steamer with all four tugs at high -water in the afternoon. They might not be able to start her, but it was -worth trying, for the spell of fair weather could not be expected to -last much longer. Dan was still grumbling to himself as he went off to -the _Resolute_ which had signalled for all hands to return. - -One by one the tugs got into position for a "long pull, a strong pull, -and a pull all together." Captain Wetherly stayed in the _Kenilworth_ -to direct operations and took his station up in the bows. To Jerry -Pringle was entrusted the important duty of properly making fast the -hawsers from the tugs. It amused Captain Jim to hear him fiercely -shouting orders to the crew of the _Resolute_ who glared at their -former foeman as if they would like to muster a boarding party and -attack him. - -The men in the yawls and on the rolling decks of the tugs worked with -more caution than usual. They did not mind falling overboard or being -upset by an obstreperous hawser as part of the day's work. But the -dumping overboard of damaged cargo, including smashed cases of salt -meats and other provisions, had lured scores of huge sharks which -hovered in the clear, green depths at the edge of the Reef or rushed to -the surface at the splash of box or barrel. All hands breathed easier -when the hawsers had been passed aboard without mishap. - -When all was in readiness to begin the tug-of-war between the tow-boats -and the Reef, Captain Wetherly's nerves were tingling with excitement. -The hour had come to put his faith and his works to the crucial test. -It meant more to him than salvage, for he was also seeking with might -and main to undo a wrong of which this ship had been the victim. - -"The old _Resolute_ will pull her heart out before she quits," he -muttered. "I've given her the hardest berth, for she knows we can't -afford to lose this ship." - -Slowly the tugs forged ahead until they were straining at their -hawsers like a team of well-handled horses, each using every bit of -its strength to the best advantage. Then it was "full speed ahead," -and they buckled down to their task as if no odds were great enough to -daunt them,--_Resolute_, _Three Sisters_, _Fearless_, and _Hercules_. -Soon the rusty, high-sided _Kenilworth_ was veiled in the black clouds -of smoke which drifted from their belching funnels. Captain Jim moved -to leeward to get a clearer view and observed that Jeremiah Pringle -was standing within a few feet of the vibrating steel hawser of the -_Resolute_, where it led in over the bows of the _Kenilworth_. - -"That is a brand-new line, but it isn't healthy to get so near it," he -called out. "That tow-boat of mine has busted them before this, Jerry." - -"Always bragging of those engines of yours. You are as bad as Bill -McKnight," Pringle shouted back. - -He looked down at the ponderous steel cable with a careless laugh. A -moment later Captain Jim forgot his own warning and ran to the side to -shout an urgent order to one of the tugs. He stood for a few seconds -almost on top of the hawser where it led inboard and was about to -retreat to his former station when the huge line twanged with a rasping -note as if its fibres were overstrained. He wasted a precious instant -in looking down to find out what the trouble might be, heard the steel -cable crack and give, tried to flee, and caught his toe in a ring-bolt -screwed to the deck. - -Just then Jerry Pringle lunged forward and knocked Captain Jim flat -with a sweep of his powerful right arm. This deed, done with lightning -speed and rare presence of mind, sufficed to put Captain Jim out of -harm's way, but it used the precious second of time in which Jeremiah -Pringle might have saved himself. - -Before Pringle could drop on deck or leap for shelter, the hawser -snapped in twain with a report like that of a cannon. The ragged -ends whizzed through the air with the speed and destructiveness of -projectiles. One of them crashed against a metal stanchion, cut it -clean in two, and knocked a pile of timber braces in all directions. -These obstacles saved Jerry Pringle from being sliced in twain, but he -was swept up in the flying debris and sent spinning overboard as if he -were a chip caught in a tornado. - -The accident happened with such incredible swiftness that Captain -Wetherly scrambled to his feet and stood blinking at the spot from -which Pringle had vanished as if he were blotted out of existence. -Then, pulling himself together, with a yell of horrified dismay he -rushed to the side of the ship and stared down into the sea which was -seething with the foamy wash from the screws of the nearest tugs. He -saw a black object rise to the surface, drift toward the stern, and -then slowly sink from sight. Running aft where the water was clear, he -caught a glimpse of the body of Jerry Pringle settling toward the white -coral bottom. - -Two of the tugs were hastily manning boats. Captain Jim glanced toward -them and knew their help would come too late. He thought of the sharks -which had been flocking around the ship. They could not have been -driven very far away by the tumult of the tugs. While he wavered, -Captain Jim said to himself: - -"He didn't figure on the odds when he bowled me out of danger before he -tried to save himself. Here goes." - -Springing upon the bulwark, he jumped clear and sped downward with feet -together and arms stretched above his head. It was a thirty-foot drop -to the water and he shot into it as straight and true as a dipsey lead. -His impetus carried him far down into the cool, green sea and, opening -his eyes, he dimly discerned the shadowy form of the man he sought -drifting above him. As Captain Jim rose he grasped the other by the -shirt and struck out with his free arm. Pringle might be dead for all -he knew, but he hung to him like a bull-dog, fighting his way upward to -reach the blessed air and ease his tortured lungs. - -A boat was pulling madly toward the scene, the crew yelling and -splashing to hold the sharks at bay. Most clamorous of the party was -the chief engineer of the _Resolute_ who was roaring with tears in his -eyes: - -"Wow--wow--wow, keep a yellin', boys. It's Captain Jim they're after. -Jerry Pringle's too tough for 'em." - -A black fin skittered past the boat and Bill McKnight blazed away at it -with a rifle which he had caught up on the run. A few more desperate -strokes and they slackened speed and beat the water into foam with the -flat of their oars. A long, sinister shadow slid swiftly under the -boat and the men yelled as they saw it veer toward the stern of the -Kenilworth. But this hastening shark had overrun its prey. Captain Jim -and his burden rose within an oar's length of the yawl and were grasped -by a dozen eager hands before they could be attacked. - -Dan Frazier was not in the boat. He had not recovered his wits until -his comrades had shoved clear of the _Resolute_. He stood as if -paralyzed and watched the rescue. When the two dripping figures were -hauled into the yawl and he saw Captain Jim sit up and shake himself -like a retriever, a wordless prayer of thanksgiving welled from the -depths of his heart. - -Then he saw the boat move toward Jerry Pringle's tug which lay on the -other side of the _Kenilworth_, screened from view of the rescue. Bart -had gone on board this tug earlier in the day, and Dan felt his knees -tremble as he saw the body of Jeremiah Pringle hoisted over the low -bulwark. It seemed an age before the yawl returned to the _Resolute_ -and Captain Jim leaped on deck, followed by the chief engineer. Their -faces were very solemn and they spoke with evident effort: - -"Were--were you too late, Uncle Jim?" stammered Dan. - -"Yes, he must have been dead when he struck the water," slowly returned -Captain Wetherly. "But I'm glad I went after him. He made a brave man's -finish. It's awful tough on Bart, but he is standing up under it like a -thoroughbred. Jerry Pringle staked his life and lost it for me." - -Captain Jim wiped his eyes and coughed. Bill McKnight ventured to say -to Dan: - -"He'd have done the same trick to save one of his own deck-hands. Jerry -Pringle was a brave and ready man, we all know that. It was instinct. -He didn't have time to figure it out. But I reckon God Almighty will -give him plenty of credit and square accounts for whatever he did -wrong. Whew! I can't realize it a little bit." - -"The tug will take him down to Key West right away," said Captain Jim. -"I'm going along with Jerry Pringle on his last voyage. Want to come, -Dan? It will do Bart a whole lot of good to have you as a shipmate -and you can tell him that his father was a man to be proud of. We'll -forget everything that happened before to-day. You come aboard the -_Kenilworth_ with me and I'll leave orders for my men. I'll have to be -back here to-morrow if this steamer is to come off the Reef. I have a -notion that Jerry Pringle was sorry he ever helped to put her on there. -And from watching him lately I believe we couldn't please him any -better than by getting the _Kenilworth_ off and mending the wrong he -planned to do." - -As they boarded the _Kenilworth_ Captain Bruce met them and asked in a -voice hoarse with emotion: - -"They tell me he has slipped his cable. If my ship had not stranded it -would not have happened." - -"What are you going to do about it? Let _me_ be accused of helping -to wreck your steamer?" sternly replied Captain Wetherly. "Jeremiah -Pringle has squared his accounts and made _his_ record clean. But how -about you?" - - - - -CHAPTER X - -DAN'S DREAMS COME TRUE - - -The first pull on the stranded steamer had been halted by the tragedy -of Jeremiah Pringle's heroic death. As soon as possible Captain Jim -Wetherly hastened back from Key West to the Reef and Dan rejoined his -shipmates in the _Resolute_. They were very loth to leave the widow -and the son of the wrecking-master who, with all his faults, had died -as he had lived, unflinching in the face of the perils of the sea. But -Duty sounded a trumpet-call to save the _Kenilworth_, and with flags at -half-mast the tireless tugs again hovered about her under the vigilant -direction of Captain Wetherly. - -Meanwhile the wreckers had been toiling in night and day shifts, taking -out more cargo. When at length the tugs were summoned for another -titanic tussle, every man felt that the supreme moment was at hand. It -was now or never. Captain Wetherly voiced the feelings of all with -passionate energy: - -"She has _got_ to go. That's all there is to it." - -The tugs had been pulling a scant hour when Captain Jim felt the keel -of the _Kenilworth_ grind on the coral bottom. It was no more than a -slight shock which made the ship tremble as if she felt a thrill of -returning life and freedom. Then she hung fast for a long time, moved -again, and perceptibly righted herself. Another interval of futile -effort, and at last the steamer slid forward with a dull, harsh roar as -her broken keel ripped through the coral and ploughed slowly down the -sloping shelf into the deep water on the landward side of the Reef. - -The frantic tugs behaved as if they could not believe the _Kenilworth_ -was actually afloat. They refused to stop pulling with might and main -until their prize was trailing after them down the fairway of the Hawk -Channel. Their whistles bellowed jubilation while Captain Jim signalled -the _Resolute_: - -"Keep her going for Key West." - -The panting tugs led the sluggish, battered steamer out through the -nearest gap in the Reef, and she rolled solemnly in the swells of -the open sea where she belonged. Captain Bruce was pacing the bridge -of his ship, nervous, absorbed in his own thoughts, and oblivious of -the general rejoicing. Above the stern of the _Kenilworth_ the British -ensign still flew at half-mast and served to recall a tragedy which -Captain Bruce wanted to forget. His partnership with Jerry Pringle -had been ill-fated from the start. In a flash of splendid manliness -Pringle had given his life to save the man who had smashed the evil -partnership. And was he, Malcolm Bruce, ship-master, willing to let -this Jim Wetherly stand accused of the crime planned in Pensacola -harbor? No, he had not come to such depths of degradation as this. -He had fought it out with himself and he was ready to take the -consequences. Dan Frazier came on board the _Kenilworth_ for orders -when the tugs slackened way to shift their hawsers, and Captain Bruce -beckoned him to a corner of the bridge where Captain Wetherly was -standing. The haggard ship-master placed his hand on the lad's shoulder -as he began to speak: - -"I want Dan to hear what I have to say, Captain Wetherly. He came -aboard my ship when she went on the Reef and refused to believe the -worst of me, though he knew it all the time. I abandoned the ship and -left him on board instead of sticking by her as I honestly intended to -do. But I see now that my will had been undermined. There was a rotten -spot in my heart." - -"You didn't mean to abandon me, sir," spoke up Dan. "I never held that -against you." - -"I am glad you have a decent word for me," replied Captain Bruce with -the shadow of a smile. "The long and short of it is that I am going to -make a clean breast of it to the underwriters' agent, Mr. Prentice, -when we get to Key West. It seems to be the only way to clear you, -Captain Wetherly. Of course I never dreamed that circumstances could be -twisted about to fetch you into this miserable business. But Pringle -has gone, and I am not quite enough of a cur to dodge my share of -the punishment. I make no defence, but my record was fairly clean -until--well, you know when. My owners are shrewd, tricky, close-fisted -men who got me into their way of doing business a little at a time. -My ideas of right and wrong were warped by degrees. Men don't go bad -all at once, Dan. Don't ever forget that. A ship's timbers don't rot -overnight and let her founder in the gale that tests her strength. The -first speck of rot is almost too small to see, but it grows. At last -these people had me fit for their work, and three voyages ago they -put it at me that there would be no great sorrow if the _Kenilworth_ -met disaster. I should have quit them on the spot, but I took the -temptation to sea with me. And in the next voyage I ran afoul of -Jeremiah Pringle in Pensacola. He found me willing to listen. Five -years ago I would have kicked him out of my cabin. You know the rest of -it. Ten thousand dollars was the price if he could have the vessel to -wreck. And my owners were ready to give me a bigger, newer ship if I -lost her for the insurance. But you spoiled all that, and I am glad you -did. I seem to have been a weak-kneed kind of a rascal." - -"Bully for you," cried Captain Jim. "Shake hands on it. Dan here was -sure you were sorry you ever got into this mess, the first time he met -you. But this is mighty serious business for you, Captain Bruce. The -underwriters will make an example of you, as sure as guns. Are you -going back to England to face the music?" - -"It means that I am in disgrace and will command no more ships, I -suppose," was the reply. "And I suppose it means a dose of prison, but -I don't mean to veer from the course I have charted. There isn't any -other way out of it. I would rather be dead along with Jerry Pringle -than to go on hating myself and living in a hell of my own making." - -"I reckon you are right," said Captain Jim after a long silence. "It -pays to go straight, and every man must work out his own salvation." - -"Anyhow, you would feel a heap worse if your ship had gone to pieces," -Dan ventured to suggest in his effort to find a ray of sunshine in the -cloud. - -"Right you are, my lad. It has been a great fight, and a man couldn't -work alongside this uncle of yours very long without wanting to live -straight and clean. You helped save the _Kenilworth_, Dan. I haven't -forgotten that." - -"But you can't square me with old man Prentice," sadly returned Dan. "I -think it's great of you to stand by Captain Jim, but it doesn't help -my case. I am still left high and dry as a liar." - -"Things will straighten themselves out now. Don't worry," smiled -Captain Bruce. "Mr. Prentice will be easier to handle after he knows -the facts in my case." - -"How about salvage? Don't I come in on that?" anxiously asked Dan who -was not old enough to appreciate the sacrifice involved in Captain -Bruce's confession. - -"I expect to be paid my towing and wrecking bill to cover my time and -expenses," said Captain Jim. "But I don't want any more salvage than -that. I won't take blood-money, not even from the pockets of those -scoundrelly owners of yours, Captain Bruce. They won't be able to -collect a cent of insurance after you make your statement, and the -repairs will cost them a small fortune. The underwriters will make it -hot enough for them. Trust Prentice for that." - -Dan raised his voice in most lugubrious accents: - -"But won't there be any salvage for me after all I went through in this -beastly ship? Why, I have been expecting to get rich from it, to go -North to school and college with Bart, and buy a bigger yacht, and give -mother a spree in New York and--and all I get is to be called a liar by -old man Prentice." - -Dan's disappointment was so keen that Captain Jim hastened to console -him. "I kind of overlooked your case. Sure enough, I've robbed you of -your rights, haven't I? I suppose if you could go North to school, you -and your mother would feel that you had your share of salvage, wouldn't -you?" - -"Yes, indeed. That would clear up the account in great shape," cried -Dan. "But where is the money coming from? You can't charge it up -against the _Kenilworth's_ owners, can you?" - -"Well, if those Bahama niggers had blown up the steamer, the owners' -bills might be a good deal bigger," smiled his uncle. "Just let your -salvage claim rest for a day or so. I promise you it will be worked out -somehow." - -Early in the morning the _Kenilworth_ moved slowly to an anchorage in -the inner harbor of Key West, at last in a friendly haven. Her escort -of victorious tugs whistled a glad alarm as they cast loose and steamed -toward their several wharves. Dan was on board the _Resolute_, and as -she neared the shore he saw his mother hastening down to the landing -place. - -"You will be all the salvage she wants out of this job," said Captain -Jim as Dan waved his cap for an answering signal to the fluttering -handkerchief. A little later mother and son walked homeward together -and she learned of Captain Bruce's manly decision to make atonement. -Her tender heart was moved with pity for his plight and she spoke up -impulsively: - -"I knew there was a great deal of good in him, Dan. And think how -forlorn and unhappy he must feel. He needs friends. Ask him up to see -us. I am very sorry for him." - -"All right, mother. He has shown himself to be a pretty good sort of a -man, after all. How is Bart Pringle? Is he all broken up? He's been on -my mind most of the time since I went back to the Reef." - -"It was a dreadful shock to Mary Pringle and her boy," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "But they will be happy again after a while. Jerry Pringle -was a hard man, Dan, and he never really knew his own family. He was -the richest man in Key West and of course they have no worries about -money. They fairly worship his memory because he died a hero's death. -But it is as if they were admiring some noble character in a book, not -a real, live man who was a part of their daily lives. They never knew -him well." - -"Perhaps it was all for the best," sighed Dan. "Bart will never know -anything else about his father and he has a memory to live up to that -is a better inheritance than all the money that was left behind. Oh, -but it was worth while fighting hard to keep the truth from Bart and -his mother." - -In the afternoon Dan went back to the _Resolute_ to invite the chief -engineer to supper. Mr. McKnight announced as he staggered the boy with -an affectionate blow between the shoulders: - -"Old Prentice was aboard looking for you not an hour ago, and said he'd -come back if he didn't find you at home. I told him that if he had a -notion of calling you a liar some more, I was your proxy and he could -say it to me. I began to roll up my sleeves and he plumb near backed -himself overboard." - -"I wish he had," returned Dan. "What on earth does he want now? The -_Kenilworth_ affair is all cleared up." - -"Well, he was dying to see you, Dan. Better wait aboard. The old -icicle will wander back after a while. I hear we are going to tow the -_Kenilworth_ to Jacksonville to be docked for repairs. Do you know -when?" - -"Captain Jim said in about a month," replied Dan. "As soon as she can -be patched up to stand the voyage. But maybe I won't be with you, then. -It depends on whether I win my salvage case." - -"Too much sun. Gone a bit queer in the head," murmured Mr. McKnight. -"We surrendered all claim to salvage--you know that. It's an outrage, -too. When I was wreckin' on the coast of-- Hello, here comes old -Prentice now." - -The underwriters' agent was advancing with almost undignified haste, -and as he came down the gang-plank he extended his hand to Dan and -exclaimed in most friendly fashion: - -"Delighted to find you, Mr. Frazier. You will be good enough to sit -down aft with me for a few minutes? I wish to show you a document -which has just reached me." - -Brushing past the glowering chief engineer, Mr. Prentice fumbled in his -breast pocket and brought forth a large, official-looking envelope. -His manner was really sheepish as he hemmed and hawed, flourished the -envelope, and said: - -"I wish to offer you an apology, Dan, which you are manly enough to -accept, I am sure. I find myself in--er--a rather painful position. The -fact of the matter is that I have been guilty of an error of judgment. -I have in my hands a letter sent to me in care of the British consul -in Key West. Attached to it is an affidavit which you may examine at -your leisure. To make a long story short, these documents come from -Nassau. While investigating the _Kenilworth_ disaster, it occurred to -me to make some inquiries concerning one Hurley, known as "Black Sam," -who had possession of the steamer when you were rescued from her. -Your story of preventing an explosion seemed improbable to me, partly -because I could find no proof, and also because I held certain other -suspicions, now removed, I am glad to say. I made an effort to locate -this Hurley person. There was not one chance in a thousand that he -would confirm the truth of your story, if found. But, by extraordinary -good luck, he was recently arrested for cracking the skull of one of -his crew. And while in jail he was visited by my agent in Nassau. -You will be surprised to learn that he readily consented to sign an -affidavit describing his attempt to blow up the _Kenilworth_, and your -part in the episode. The fellow has a rude sense of humor, it appears, -and had come to regard it as a good deal of a joke on him." - -"It is great news for me," exclaimed Dan. "I hated to have you think -what you did." - -"I have something more to say," resumed Mr. Prentice with a smile. -"Captain Bruce and Captain Wetherly came to see me to-day. It was a -strange interview, as you may perhaps guess. Captain Bruce confessed -that he had tried to lose his ship on the Reef. My suspicions were -wrong from start to finish, and I have apologized to Captain Wetherly. -In fact, I seem to be a walking apology. But the chapter is closed. -The steamer is to be made fit for sea by her owners, without a penny -of cost to the underwriters, and her master will go to England to face -the consequences of his confession. The owners will also have to settle -for damages to cargo. Under the circumstances, I am of the opinion that -the underwriters are deeply indebted to you for preventing the total -loss of the _Kenilworth_. They can well afford to do the handsome thing -by you, my boy, not as salvage, but as a gift, a reward for a heroic -deed. Such gifts have been bestowed on several ship-masters within my -recollection. Captain Wetherly informs me that you are ambitious to get -an education. I pledge you my personal word that you can count upon -receiving a sum of several thousand dollars to assist that praiseworthy -ambition. I expect to go to England shortly, and will look after the -matter myself." - -While Dan struggled between gratitude and amazement to find words -to fit the occasion, Mr. Prentice patted his shoulder with fatherly -affection and added: - -"I know the story of your loyalty to your friend, young Barton Pringle. -It seems right and proper that you should go away to school together, -without a shadow between you any longer." - -Mr. Prentice left the Nassau documents with Dan and took his departure, -leaving the lad to stammer the wonderful tale to Bill McKnight who -found an outlet for his own emotion by announcing: - -"I'm going to hustle right ashore, Dan, and hire the Key West brass -band to serenade old Prentice to-night. I've got money in the bank, -boy, and I'm going to turn it loose." - -While this rash declaration was being argued, Captain Wetherly came -aboard and added his congratulations to the tumultuous celebration. -When Mr. McKnight became quieter for lack of breath, Dan spoke up with -a sudden shock of unhappy recollection: - -"But how about Captain Bruce, Uncle Jim? It doesn't seem fair for him -to be left all alone to go back to England and be in disgrace among his -own people. Why, if he stands by his guns, he will be sent to prison." - -"I had a long talk with him an hour ago," replied Captain Wetherly. -"He can't be budged from his resolution to take all the blame for -the disaster. And of course his owners will try to shift it all onto -him and they may be able to clear themselves in court. I can't help -admiring his pluck. But he may come back here later, Dan. I have just -landed a big Government contract for towing and dredging work, to last -for several years. And I need more help with the business I have now. -I asked Captain Bruce to come back to Key West when he gets clear of -his troubles in England. I told him that he would be with friends here, -with folks who believed in him. I would trust him as a partner. He will -never go wrong again." - -"What did he say?" asked Dan and Bill McKnight in the same breath. - -"He was considerably touched. Said he would think it over, and thanked -me, and went off to tell Prentice about it. He will come back to work -with me some day, I am pretty sure." - -A few weeks later Dan Frazier and Barton Pringle were waving their -farewells to Key West from the deck of a mail steamer, northward bound -to enter a preparatory school. Their mothers were standing together -on the wharf and behind them towered the rugged figure of Captain -Jim Wetherly. As the steamer drew away and the last "good-byes" were -shouted across the water, Bart sighed and murmured to his friend: - -"Father ought to be there to see me off. I can't realize it yet, Dan. -But I must try to live up to the example he set for me. I am so glad -he and Captain Jim became good friends. It was the _Kenilworth_ that -brought them together. I reckon they were the same breed of men, only -it took them a long time to find it out." - -Dan looked across the harbor at the rusty _Kenilworth_ which was almost -ready to be towed away to a dry-dock. The sight of her thrilled him -with memories of the hardships, dangers, and tragedy of the weeks of -hard-fought battle on the Reef. It came over him that while he had won -his salvage and his fondest dreams were coming true, perhaps Barton -Pringle had won even richer and more enduring salvage in the bright -memory of his father's last deed, a memory and an inspiration unmarred -by the knowledge of anything less worthy. - -"I am proud of Uncle Jim," said Dan at length. "And you can always be -proud of your father, Bart." - -Presently the steamer passed the _Resolute_ which lay at her wharf -ready for sea. The chief engineer hurried into the wheel-house and -pulled the whistle cord for all he was worth. The tug roared a hoarse -farewell, and Dan gazed at her and the burly figure of Bill McKnight -with glad affection in his eyes. They stood for something worth while -to the boy who was leaving his shipmates to venture into strange waters -and chart a new career. He had toiled among men who were fitly called -"the Resolutes," and the lessons of duty he had learned afloat would -not be soon forgotten ashore. Dan was thinking aloud as he said while -he waved his cap at the powerful, seagoing tug in which he had played -his part as a humble deck-hand: - -"I don't know what this preparatory school up north is going to be -like, but I reckon if I can play the game so the _Resolute_ won't be -ashamed of me I'll come out all right." - - - - -BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE - - -"_Will be read with pleasure by the many boys to whom the sea speaks -with an inviting voice._" ---_New York Herald._ - - -_The Wrecking Master_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.25_ - -The business of saving ships wrecked on the reefs along the Florida -coast is one of the most dangerous and exciting in the world. The two -sons of rival wreckers, who are in a race to rescue a big steamer which -has gone ashore in a peculiar manner on a Florida reef, have adventures -as novel as they are exciting. There is a sharp contest of skill, -courage, and stratagems, and thrilling fights with men and with storms. - - -_A Cadet of the Black Star Line_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.25_ - -"The man of to-day being the boy of yesterday, there is never a lack of -interest in good manly boy stories, the kind that makes the red blood -flow faster and the heart beat truer. Such a story is 'A Cadet of the -Black Star Line.' ... - -"Mr. Paine's narrative of the experiences of a cadet on one of the big -ocean liners moves along with splendid spirit." ---_Philadelphia Press._ - -"A stirring tale of sea life, the breezes of the ocean blowing through -every chapter.... Clean, wholesome reading." ---_New York Observer._ - - -CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, NEW YORK - - - - -_COLLEGE SERIES_ - - -_Sandy Sawyer, Sophomore_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -Sandy Sawyer, a husky crew man, works during the summer to pay for his -college course. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: The Wrecking Master</div> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Ralph Delahaye Paine</div> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Illustrator: George Varian</div> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: May 19, 2020 [eBook #62176]<br /> -[Most recently updated: October 14, 2021]</div> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> -<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team</div> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER ***</div> - -<div class="center"><a name="cover.jpg" id="cover.jpg"></a><img src="images/cover.jpg" alt="cover" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_i" id="Page_i">[Pg i]</a></span></p> - -<div class="center"><img src="images/books.jpg" alt="BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_ii" id="Page_ii">[Pg ii]</a></span></p> - -<p class="bold2">THE WRECKING MASTER</p> - -<hr /> - -<div class="center"><a name="i006.jpg" id="i006.jpg"></a><img src="images/i006.jpg" alt="You're working for Jim Wetherly" /></div> - -<p class="bold">"You're working for Jim Wetherly"</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii">[Pg iii]</a></span></p> - -<h1>THE<br /> WRECKING MASTER</h1> - -<p class="bold space-above">By</p> - -<p class="bold2">RALPH D. PAINE</p> - -<p class="bold">Author of "A Cadet of the Black Star Line," "The Fugitive<br /> -Freshman," "The Head Coach," etc.</p> - -<p class="bold space-above">ILLUSTRATED BY<br />GEORGE VARIAN</p> - -<p class="bold space-above">NEW YORK<br />CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS<br />1911</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv">[Pg iv]</a></span></p> - -<p class="center">Copyright, 1911, by<br />Charles Scribner's Sons<br /> -——<br />Published September, 1911</p> - -<div class="center space-above"><img src="images/logo.jpg" alt="Logo" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v">[Pg v]</a></span></p> - -<h2>CONTENTS</h2> - -<table summary="CONTENTS"> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="left"><span class="smaller">Chapter</span></td> - <td><span class="smaller">Page</span></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>I. </td> - <td class="left">A Skipper in Bad Company</td> - <td><a href="#Page_3">3</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>II. </td> - <td class="left">The <i>Resolute</i> Fathoms the Plot</td> - <td><a href="#Page_21">21</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>III. </td> - <td class="left">The Race for the <i>Kenilworth</i></td> - <td><a href="#Page_40">40</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>IV. </td> - <td class="left">Wicked Mr. Pringle in Collision</td> - <td><a href="#Page_59">59</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>V. </td> - <td class="left">"All Hands Abandon Ship"</td> - <td><a href="#Page_75">75</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>VI. </td> - <td class="left">Dan Frazier's Predicament</td> - <td><a href="#Page_93">93</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>VII. </td> - <td class="left">A Fat Engineer to the Rescue</td> - <td><a href="#Page_110">110</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>VIII. </td> - <td class="left">A Fog of Suspicions</td> - <td><a href="#Page_128">128</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>IX. </td> - <td class="left">The Broken Hawser</td> - <td><a href="#Page_149">149</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td>X. </td> - <td class="left">Dan's Dreams Come True</td> - <td><a href="#Page_168">168</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[Pg vii]</a></span></p> - -<h2>ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> - -<table summary="ILLUSTRATIONS"> - <tr> - <td class="left">"You're working for Jim Wetherly"</td> - <td><a href="#i006.jpg"><i>Frontispiece</i></a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td></td> - <td>Facing<br /> page</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled<br /> -aboard like a large and dripping fish</td> - <td><a href="#i019.jpg">6</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">The <i>Sombrero</i> sailed like a witch in the race</td> - <td><a href="#i049.jpg">34</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared too much</td> - <td><a href="#i101.jpg">84</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm</td> - <td><a href="#i123.jpg">104</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic<br /> -twentieth century</td> - <td><a href="#i141.jpg">120</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't<br /> -get very far!"</td> - <td><a href="#i155.jpg">132</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for<br /> -good and all</td> - <td><a href="#i175.jpg">150</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></p> - -<p class="bold2">THE WRECKING MASTER </p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span></p> - -<p class="bold2">THE WRECKING MASTER </p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER I</span> <span class="smaller">A SKIPPER IN BAD COMPANY</span></h2> - -<p>"A thick night and no mistake, Dan. It's as black as the face of a -Nassau pilot. We ought to be nearing the coal wharf by now. Of course -they wouldn't have sense enough to leave a light on it to give us our -bearings."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim Wetherly was growling through the window of the darkened -wheel-house to his deck-hand, young Dan Frazier, as the oceangoing tug -<i>Resolute</i> felt her way up the harbor of Pensacola. She had towed a -dismasted bark into port after a long and stubborn tussle with wind and -sea, and her master was in haste to fill the empty bunkers and drive -her home to Key West, five hundred miles across the blue Gulf.</p> - -<p>The mate and several of the crew had gone ashore for the evening, the -fat and grizzled chief<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span> engineer was loafing on the deck below, and -Captain Wetherly was somewhat consoled to have a sympathetic listener -in his youngest deck-hand. This Dan Frazier was his nephew, not long -out of the Key West High School, and trying his hand at seafaring -in the <i>Resolute</i> as the first chance which had offered to ease his -mother's task of caring for him.</p> - -<p>In the presence of any of the vessel's company, discipline was observed -between the two with a respectful "aye, aye, sir," or "no, sir," on -Dan's part, but now when they were alone on deck Dan felt free to reply:</p> - -<p>"It's strange water to me, Uncle Jim. I shouldn't wonder if the old -<i>Resolute</i> felt timid about poking around a crowded harbor on a thick -night. What she likes best is plenty of sea-room with a wreck piled -hard and fast on the Florida Reef and a fighting chance to pull it off. -I wish I could have been on board when you were taking hold of that big -Italian steamer last spring. The men say they thought the <i>Resolute</i> -was going to yank the engines clean out of her before you let go on the -last haul that dragged the wreck clear of the Reef. Is it true that -Bill<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span> McKnight clamped the safety-valve down and said it was up to -Providence to see that his boilers didn't blow up?"</p> - -<p>Captain Wetherly chuckled. The flare of a match as he relighted his -pipe illumined a pair of steadfast gray eyes and a smooth-shaven chin -of such dogged squareness of outline that Dan's statements seemed to be -half-way answered even before his uncle said:</p> - -<p>"Pshaw, boy, Bill McKnight is a good chief engineer, but if his engines -didn't get any more rest than that tongue of his, they would have -been in the scrap-heap long ago. I suppose he has been filling you up -with yarns of the wonderful things he has done with this boat on the -Reef. Come to think of it, he <i>was</i> carrying some steam more than the -law allowed when we tackled that Italian wreck for the last time, but -we weren't there for our health. And wrecking isn't a business for -children, Dan. You'll find that out if you stick by me long enough -to get your mate's papers. Seems to me we must have run past that -confounded coal wharf by this time. I don't know whether that light -yonder is a lantern or a store up the street somewhere." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan went over to the side of the deck and peered into the shoreward -gloom while Captain Wetherly jerked a bell-pull. A mellow clang floated -from the engine-room, the <i>Resolute</i> slackened way to half-speed, and -began to swing in toward the puzzling light. Dan Frazier thought he -heard the click of rowlocks somewhere off in the darkness and cocked an -ear to listen. The sound ceased and then he fancied he saw a shadowy -patch moving on the water almost in front of the <i>Resolute's</i> bow. An -instant later Captain Wetherly shouted in alarm:</p> - -<p>"Boat ahoy. Do you want to be run under?"</p> - -<p>Angry, confused voices were raised from the blackness close ahead while -the tug quivered to the thrust of the engines as they strove to check -her headway. Panic-stricken profanity was volleyed from the water, -there was a slight shock and crash as of splintered planking, and the -tug slid over what remained of the blundering small boat.</p> - -<p>"Great Scott!" cried Captain Jim. "The poor fools must have done it -a-purpose. When they come up and yell, stand by to fish 'em out, Dan. -Tell Bill McKnight to man a boat and be ready to lower it. Of all -the——" </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span></p> - -<p>The horrified Dan had already scampered down to the main-deck and, -snatching up a coil of heaving line, he sprang upon the guard-rail and -waited for a call for help from the castaways. The chief engineer was -bawling commands to a fireman and the cook who were fumbling with the -falls of a boat swung aft. The galley boy came rushing along with a -lantern and Dan held it over the side just in time to see a head bob to -the foaming surface with a gurgling lament:</p> - -<p>"Aren't you going to haul me aboard your murderin' tow-boat?"</p> - -<p>Dan tossed him a bight of the line into which he wriggled his shoulders -and with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled aboard like -a large and dripping fish. They did not waste time in looking him over, -but asked in the same breath:</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i019.jpg" id="i019.jpg"></a><img src="images/i019.jpg" alt="And with Bill McKnight's assistance" /></div> - -<p class="bold">And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was -hauled<br /> aboard like a large and dripping fish</p> - -<p>"How many more of you?"</p> - -<p>"Only one, and he can't be far off," panted the victim of the -collision. "You'll hear him holler pretty soon unless you knocked his -brains out when you struck us."</p> - -<p>The boat was ready by this time, and Dan and the cook, letting it -down by the run, scrambled<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span> in and shoved clear of the tug. They had -paddled only a little way astern when the lantern threw its wavering -gleam athwart the missing man, who was groaning as if hurt, while he -tried with feeble splashing to keep himself afloat. With great exertion -he was dragged over the gunwale and taken to the <i>Resolute</i>. He was -unable to stand on deck and blood was oozing from a ragged gash on his -forehead. The engineer helped carry him into his own state-room a few -steps away on the lower deck, where the wet clothing was stripped from -him and the bunk made ready.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile, Captain Wetherly, relieved to learn that no lives were lost, -rang up speed and headed the tug for what he hoped might be the wharf -he was seeking. Presently Dan Frazier reported at the wheel-house door -and explained:</p> - -<p>"You won't be any more surprised than I was to find out that the first -man we picked up is Jerry Pringle. Yes, it's old Pringle himself sure -enough, Uncle Jim. I didn't get time for a sight of him until just now. -What in the world is he doing so far from Key West, and how did he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span> -happen to be run down in a boat at night in Pensacola harbor? It beats -me."</p> - -<p>"What has he got to say for himself?" snapped Captain Jim with a note -of hostility and suspicion in his voice. "Is he sober? And Jerry -Pringle let a tow-boat waltz right over him! Um-mm, he must have been -mighty busy thinking about something else. Who is the other fellow? -Ever see him before?"</p> - -<p>"No, sir. He's an Englishman, I think, a big, strong man with a brown -beard. He is pretty well knocked out and his wits were muddled by a -thump on the head. He talks flighty. Jerry Pringle is with him and says -he will fetch him around without our help and get him ashore as soon as -we land."</p> - -<p>"Well, there's the coal-pocket looming up ahead, and you'd better get -aft to make a line fast, Dan," observed the captain. "As soon as we -dock, I'll step down and see what I can do for our passengers. They're -welcome to stay aboard overnight. Jump lively."</p> - -<p>While the <i>Resolute</i> was deftly laid alongside the head of the wharf, -Dan made a flying leap to the string-piece and dragged the hawsers<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span> to -the nearest pilings, bow and stern. Then he hurried back to the chief -engineer's room in quest of more information about the strange and -unwilling visit of Mr. Jeremiah Pringle of Key West.</p> - -<p>Dan Frazier knew him as one of the most daring and successful wreckers -of the Florida Reef, that cruel, hidden rampart of coral which -stretches in the open sea for a hundred and fifty miles along the -Atlantic coast of southern Florida, on the edge of the great highway of -ocean traffic for Central and South America. Because the Gulf Stream -flows north along this crowded highway, the steamers and sailing craft -bound south skirt the Reef as close as they dare in order to avoid the -adverse current. Tall, spider-legged, steel light-houses rise from the -submerged Reef, but its ledges still take their yearly toll of costly -vessels, as they have done for centuries. When such disasters happen, -the wreckers flock seaward to try to save the ship and cargo.</p> - -<p>Jerry Pringle was one of the last of a famous race of native wrecking -masters of Key West. His father and grandfather were wreckers before -him, and they had been hard and godless<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> men, rejoicing in the tidings -of disaster on the Reef as a chance to plunder and destroy. Rumor had -said some curious things about this Jeremiah Pringle's methods as -a wrecking master, but Dan Frazier gave them careless heed, partly -because he had heard so many wicked tales of the by-gone wrecking days, -but more because young Barton Pringle, the only son of this man, was -his dearest chum and school-mate.</p> - -<p>With very lively curiosity Dan halted in the doorway of the little -state-room which Captain Jim Wetherly had entered just before him. -Jeremiah Pringle was sitting on the edge of the bunk as if to shield -his comrade of the small boat from observation, and was gruffly -cautioning him not to exert himself by trying to talk. Captain Wetherly -was eying them both with the keenest interest reflected in his -determined countenance. He was saying as Dan came within earshot:</p> - -<p>"Of course I am very sorry it happened, Pringle, but I don't see how -you can hold me responsible for the loss of your boat. My lights were -in order and the vessel was moving at half<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span> speed. I'm sure your -friend there, the master of the <i>Kenilworth</i>, lays it to your own -carelessness."</p> - -<p>"Who said he was master of the <i>Kenilworth</i>?" spoke up Jerry Pringle. -"You seem to be taking a whole lot of things for granted. He's in no -shape to deny it, so call him what you please."</p> - -<p>Mr. Pringle looked unhappy and not all at ease, nor had he any thanks -to spare for his rescue. Even Dan could perceive how thoroughly -disgusted he was over this unlucky meeting with Captain Wetherly who -replied:</p> - -<p>"Oh, yes, it <i>is</i> Captain Bruce of the <i>Kenilworth</i>, that big English -cargo steamer in the stream loaded with naval stores for London. He -was pointed out to me in the broker's office this afternoon. Were you -coming ashore from his ship when you ran under my bows?"</p> - -<p>Hearing his name spoken, the man with the bandaged head tried to raise -himself in the bunk and muttered, as if his senses were still confused:</p> - -<p>"Malcolm Bruce, if you please, bound home to London, then out to Vera -Cruz with a general cargo. Lost at sea, all stove up, and a black,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span> wet -night. But I get well paid for losing the rotten old ship. How much is -it worth, Pringle? Ha, ha!"</p> - -<p>Jerry Pringle's tanned cheek turned a shade or two paler and he forced -a hot drink between the other man's lips as if to shut off his speech. -The master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> subsided and put his hands to his head -while Pringle explained to Captain Wetherly with nervous haste:</p> - -<p>"He's jabbering about the loss of his boat that you made hash of. It -was nothing but a skiff. It was my fault, I guess. We were busy talking -and I kept no lookout. I'll pay him the cost of the boat, Captain -Wetherly. So forget it, won't you. If you'll send ashore for a hack I -can lug Captain Bruce up to a hotel right away."</p> - -<p>"No hurry, is there? Let him rest," said Captain Jim. "Dan here will -sit up with him if you want to turn in. Of course you know Dan Frazier, -your boy's chum."</p> - -<p>Mr. Pringle glanced up at the doorway and looked even more downcast -and sullen at recognizing Dan. He nodded at the interested lad and -returned: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span></p> - -<p>"So many of us sort of crowd this state-room. I'll look after Captain -Bruce by myself if you don't mind clearing out, Captain Wetherly."</p> - -<p>The dazed captain of the <i>Kenilworth</i> showed signs of trying to break -into the conversation and managed to sputter excitedly:</p> - -<p>"I get ten thousand dollars for this night's job."</p> - -<p>At this, Jerry Pringle fairly begged the kind-hearted skipper of the -<i>Resolute</i> to withdraw, and although the night was cool for September, -the rescued wrecking master wiped the perspiration from his face with -a wet shirt sleeve. Captain Wetherly gazed down at the man in the bunk -for a moment, nodded gravely, and tiptoed on deck with a parting remark:</p> - -<p>"Ten thousand dollars is a lot of money to pay for a splintered skiff, -Pringle."</p> - -<p>"Captain Bruce is ravin' crazy," grumbled Jerry Pringle as he shut the -state-room door.</p> - -<p>"Go fetch a hack, Dan," ordered Captain Jim, "and help Pringle lug him -ashore. I tried to be decent to them, but my patience is frazzled. I -don't want 'em aboard any longer than I can help." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span></p> - -<p>"But what are they doing together in Pensacola harbor?" asked Dan. -"There's something mighty queer about it all."</p> - -<p>"Keep your guesses to yourself, and don't think too hard about it, or -you may go off your noddle like the Britisher in yonder," said captain -Jim as he went forward toward his own room. Dan wandered far and wide -ashore before he found a cruising hack and was able to return to the -wharf. Going aboard, he delayed to coil and stow a heaving line which -tripped him as he passed along the lower deck. From a near-by window -came the voice of Captain Bruce of the <i>Kenilworth</i> in low-spoken -query, evidently addressed to his companion, Jeremiah Pringle:</p> - -<p>"Did I say anything silly? I was a bit muddled, I know. I didn't bring -you into it, did I? There was nothing said about the <i>Kenilworth's</i> -next voyage, was there?"</p> - -<p>"You said a heap sight too much," was the reply in a rumbling -undertone. "That Jim Wetherly is pretty keen when it comes to putting -two and two together. But he has a kind of mushy streak of sentiment in -him and he won't<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span> believe anything bad of a man till the evidence is -strong enough to hang him. It's been an unlucky night's work, and it's -time we were out of here."</p> - -<p>Dan knocked on the door and, without even a "thank you," Jerry Pringle -brushed him out of the way and half-dragged, half-carried Captain Bruce -toward the gang-plank. The master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> bade him halt, -however, and, grasping Dan by the hand, told him in a deep and pleasant -voice:</p> - -<p>"You saved my life, youngster, and I won't forget it. Come aboard my -ship before sailing and let me thank you, won't you? I'll be fit and -hearty in a day or so."</p> - -<p>Dan liked the looks and manner of the big, brown-bearded Englishman and -warmly replied:</p> - -<p>"Pulling you out of the wet was the least we could do. I hope your head -will mend all right. Captain Wetherly will be glad to see you on board -again, sir."</p> - -<p>Dan lent a hand as far as the hack and then sought Captain Wetherly's -room. The light was burning and the deck-hand dared to enter on the -chance of having a talk with "Uncle<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span> Jim," whom he found reading a -novel in his bunk. The boy had many questions to ask, but he was not -ready to go straight to the heart of the matter, and so began:</p> - -<p>"Jerry Pringle acted kind of ugly and uneasy, didn't you think? I -suppose he was mad at getting spilled into the harbor. You and he never -did seem to be very fond of each other."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim threw down his book and sat up in his bunk with a rather -grim smile as he replied:</p> - -<p>"You're no fool, Dan, though you aren't more than half as old as me. -And you have lived ten of your years in Key West. I know you think -the world of young Barton Pringle. He is a fine, clean lad, the son -of his mother through and through. But there's a different strain in -that dad of his, and you know it. You want to find out what I think of -to-night's business, don't you? Well, I think the big Englishman might -have picked better company."</p> - -<p>"But he said some things about getting ten thousand dollars for losing -his ship and so on, Uncle Jim, and I heard more than you did. He -was worried to death for fear he had talked<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span> too much. The wrecking -business in Key West is square and honest as far as I know, but ship -captains <i>have</i> put their vessels on the Reef on purpose in the old -days and the wreckers helped plan it beforehand. And I can't help -wondering if Jerry Pringle came to Pensacola to fix up a deal with this -captain of the <i>Kenilworth</i> to lose his ship on the next voyage out -from London to Vera Cruz. There would be rich salvage and loot in a -general cargo, wouldn't there? She's a mighty big steamer."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim stroked his chin and was so long silent that Dan began -to fidget. Then, as if rousing himself from some very interesting -reflections, the elder man drawled in a tone of mild reproof:</p> - -<p>"There isn't a bit of evidence that would hold water, Dan. I may have -my suspicions, but perhaps they are all wrong, and if we said a word -it might ruin a good ship-master with his owners. Jerry Pringle and he -must have been up to their ears in conversation when they let us run -'em under, and I wish the big Englishman could prove an alibi for the -time we had him, aboard. Better forget it." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan bit his lip and appeared so gloomy and forlorn that his uncle was -moved to ask what troubled him.</p> - -<p>"It's Bart Pringle," said Dan, and his voice was not quite steady. -"When I meet him in Key West I'll have a secret to hold back from him, -and it's about his own father. Oh, I can't believe there's anything to -it. And there's Bart's mother! Well, I think I'll turn in, Uncle Jim. -Good-night."</p> - -<p>Late in the next afternoon the <i>Resolute</i> cast off from the coal -wharf and swiftly picked up headway as her powerful engines began to -urge her, with tireless, throbbing cadence, toward her distant home -port of Key West. Presently she surged past a long, deep-laden cargo -steamer from whose stern rippled the flaming British ensign. It was -the <i>Kenilworth</i>, and Captain Jim and Dan Frazier stared at her with -curious interest.</p> - -<p>A tall, broad-shouldered, brown-bearded figure was leaning against the -railing of her bridge. A strip of bandage gleamed white beneath the -visor of his cap. He flourished an arm in farewell to the <i>Resolute</i> -whose deep-toned whistle returned a salute of three blasts. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan passed by the wheel-house door on an errand for the mate and could -not help saying aloud to himself:</p> - -<p>"It must have been a nightmare. That Captain Bruce looks like too fine -a man to think of such a dreadful thing!"</p> - -<p>Captain Jim Wetherly overheard the comment and seemed to echo this -verdict as he remarked in a reverent and sympathetic tone:</p> - -<p>"Lead Captain Malcolm Bruce not into temptation, for Jerry Pringle is a -hard customer to have any dealings with, on or off the Reef."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER II</span> <span class="smaller">THE "RESOLUTE" FATHOMS THE PLOT</span></h2> - -<p>As the <i>Resolute</i> steamed into Key West harbor, Dan Frazier was on the -lookout for his friend Barton Pringle who almost always ran down to the -wharf when the whistle of Captain Wetherly's tug bellowed the tidings -of her return from sea. This time, however, Dan felt that a shadow had -fallen over their close comradeship which had been wholly frank and -confiding through all their years together. Dan could not forget the -events of the night in which Barton's father had behaved like a man -caught in the act of planning something dark and evil.</p> - -<p>But the sight of Barton Pringle waiting on the end of the wharf to -catch the <i>Resolute's</i> heaving lines and welcome him home, made Dan -wonder afresh if he had not been too hasty and suspicious. Barton's -honest, beaming face was in itself a voucher for his bringing up amid<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span> -sweet and wholesome influences. Nor was Dan ready to believe that a bad -father could have such a straight and manly son. Before the boys were -within shouting range of each other, Captain Wetherly sent for Dan and -told him:</p> - -<p>"You can stay home until you get further orders. I don't expect to -leave port again for several days. Tell your mother that I will run in -for a little while after supper to-night."</p> - -<p>Dan thanked him with a grin of delight and ran below to yell to Barton -Pringle on the wharf:</p> - -<p>"Hello, Bart. Come aboard and help me scrub decks and get things -ship-shape and I'll be ready to jump ashore just so much sooner."</p> - -<p>Barton made a flying leap aboard as soon as the lines were made fast, -and asked as he picked up a pail and broom:</p> - -<p>"What kind of a voyage did you have, Dan? Anything exciting happen?"</p> - -<p>"Nothing to speak of," replied Dan, and he felt his face redden with a -guilty sense of secrecy. He was about to say that he had met Barton's -father in Pensacola, without mentioning how or where, when the other -lad spoke up: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span></p> - -<p>"I tried to get away for a little trip myself. Father went up the Gulf -on the mail steamer and I begged him to take me along. But he was going -only to Tampa to see about buying a couple of sponging schooners, and -he said he was in too much of a hurry to bother with me."</p> - -<p>"Going only to Tampa," echoed Dan with a foolish smile. "Oh, yes, only -as far as Tampa. Sorry you had to miss it, Bart. How's everything with -you? Have you bent the new main-sail on the <i>Sombrero</i>?"</p> - -<p>Barton plunged into an excited discussion about the fast little sloop -which the boys owned in partnership, while Dan tried to keep his wits -about him, for he was thrown into fresh doubt and uneasiness by the -news that Jeremiah Pringle had said he was going to Tampa instead of -Pensacola. Usually the two boys had so many important matters to talk -about that one could find a chance to break in only when the other -paused for lack of breath, but now Dan found it hard to avoid awkward -silences on his part. He was glad when old Bill McKnight, the chief -engineer of the <i>Resolute</i>, waddled up<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span> to them and announced with a -sweeping gesture toward the city streets:</p> - -<p>"Back again to the palm trees and the brave Cubanos and the excitements -of a metropolis smeared over a chunk of coral reef so blamed small -that I'm scared to be out after dark without a lantern for fear I'll -walk overboard. I'm due to start a revolution in Honduras, and to-day -I enlist a few hundred brave and desperate Key West cigar-makers, Dan. -I'm perishin' for a little war and tumult. Look out for my signal -rockets."</p> - -<p>With that Mr. McKnight jauntily twirled his grizzled moustache and -ambled up the wharf. He had been engineer of the <i>Resolute</i> when she -was running the Spanish blockade of Cuba, as a filibuster to carry arms -and ammunitions to the revolutionists, and his cool-headed courage -had fetched the tug out of some perilous places. The ponderous, -good-natured engineer was very fond of Dan and every little while -invited him, with all seriousness, to join some new and absurd scheme -for touching off a Spanish-American revolution, with dazzling promises -of loot and glory. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span></p> - -<p>The boys laughed as they gazed after him, and Barton said:</p> - -<p>"Filibustering must keep your hair standing on end, eh, Dan? I reckon -it beats wrecking, though you couldn't get an old Key Wester to admit -it. There hasn't been a wreck on the Reef for goodness knows how long. -Father promised to take me with him on the next wrecking job if it -isn't blowing too hard when the schooners go out to the Reef."</p> - -<p>"Well, you can count on seeing Captain Jim Wetherly and the <i>Resolute</i> -on the job no matter how hard she blows," smiled Dan with a spark of -the rivalry which flamed high between the tow-boat and the schooner -fleet. Willing hands made short work of Dan's tasks, and he hurried -into his shore-going clothes while Barton swung his legs from the bunk -and retailed the latest news about ships, and the sponge market, and -the High School base-ball team which had won a match from the soldiers -of the garrison. They parted a little later, Dan eager to run home and -see his mother, and Barton anxious to make the <i>Sombrero</i> ready for a -trial spin.</p> - -<p>As Dan sped toward the cottage on the other<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> side of the narrow island, -he said to himself with a puzzled frown:</p> - -<p>"Everything Bart talked about made me think of the other night in -Pensacola: his father's going away, and the next wreck on the Reef, and -all that. And he thinks his father is the strongest, bravest man that -ever went to sea. Maybe he is, but I wish he wasn't related to Bart."</p> - -<p>A slender, sweet-faced woman in black was waiting in a dooryard shaded -by tropical verdure as Dan rounded the corner. She had heard the -far-echoing, resonant whistle of the <i>Resolute</i>, and knew that her boy -was home again. Her husband, for many years employed in the Key West -Custom House, had died only two years before, and the love and yearning -in her eyes at sight of Dan would have told you that he was her only -child and her all-in-all if you had never seen them together before. He -was taller than she, and, as her sturdy son stooped to kiss her with -his arms about her neck, she said:</p> - -<p>"I wanted to be at the wharf to meet you, Danny boy, but I couldn't -leave home in time. Bart Pringle's mother ran in to talk to me about<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span> -sending him away to school. I told her I wanted to do as much for you, -but the way wasn't open yet. They can afford it, and Bart is too bright -and ambitious to settle down in a Key West rut."</p> - -<p>They walked to the wide veranda across which the cool trade-wind swept, -and Mrs. Frazier ordered Dan to take the biggest, easiest wicker chair, -after which she vanished indoors and almost instantly reappeared with a -plate laden with pie and doughnuts.</p> - -<p>"You had breakfast in that stuffy little galley, I suppose," laughed -she, "but I know you are always hungry. You can stow these trifles away -as a deck-load, can't you?"</p> - -<p>Dan confessed that he could carry any amount of cargo of this kind and -then, between bites of a home-made doughnut, spoke very earnestly:</p> - -<p>"Bart ought to go North to school, mother, and I will tell him so and -back you up for all I'm worth. It will do him good to break away from -home. And Uncle Jim Wetherly will put up the same line of argument to -Mrs. Pringle whenever you say the word."</p> - -<p>"Jim is my dearest brother, but I can't picture<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span> him as showing very -much excitement about Bart's education," she responded. "He thinks -there's no finer thing in the world than to be master and owner of a -sea-going tow-boat. Why do you think he will be interested, Dan?"</p> - -<p>Her son took her hand in his hard, sun-burned paw and with a stammering -effort began his confession of all that he had heard and seen after -Jerry Pringle and the English ship-master had been run down in their -small boat. The mother listened with wide-eyed astonishment, and then -with something like indignation she cried:</p> - -<p>"Why, Dan, you ought to be writing novels for a living! That poor -Captain Bruce of the <i>Kenilworth</i> was out of his head, and you know -that Jerry Pringle has a sour, gruff way with him even when he's on dry -land. I can't believe it of Mary Pringle's husband. It is a dreadful -thing to suspect him of, plotting to wreck a fine, big steamer."</p> - -<p>"That's just like a woman," declared Dan with a very grown-up air of -wisdom. "Mrs. Pringle hasn't anything to do with it. And you are like -Uncle Jim, always refusing to think<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span> other folks are a bit less square -and decent than you are. Ask him to-night what <i>he</i> thinks about it, -but don't breathe a word to anybody else, will you?"</p> - -<p>"I shall scold him for putting such silly ideas in your head," firmly -announced Mrs. Frazier. "You couldn't have pieced this plot together -all by yourself, even if you are as big and strong as a young tow-boat."</p> - -<p>"All right," said Dan good-humoredly. "Only I hope Barton will go away -to school before the explosion happens. For if I'm right, Jerry Pringle -may be in disgrace before he's a year older. Captain Jim will never let -up on him if the <i>Kenilworth</i> does happen to be stranded on the Reef."</p> - -<p>When Captain Wetherly strolled in after supper, his sister began at -once to cross-question him. He evaded her as far as possible and -finally declared:</p> - -<p>"I knew that Dan would tell you. I don't want him to keep anything from -his mother. But it must go no farther than this. I will say this much, -that when the <i>Kenilworth</i> is due in the Florida Straits on her next -voyage <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span>outward bound, the <i>Resolute</i> will be a good deal less than a -thousand miles away. And just for curiosity I have cabled to London to -find out if she is really chartered to Vera Cruz for her next voyage, -and what kind of a reputation her owners bear. They may be interested -in losing her, do you see?</p> - -<p>"Speaking of cables, Dan," he continued; "I got orders this afternoon -to go to Charleston at once and tow that big suction dredge to -Santiago. We shall be able to get away in a couple of days. You had -better come aboard to-morrow night."</p> - -<p>"Why, you'll be gone for weeks and weeks, Dan," sorrowfully cried his -mother.</p> - -<p>"I won't waste any time, nor try to save coal on this voyage," said -Captain Jim with a grim smile. "I want to be a good deal nearer the -Reef than Santiago, about two months from now."</p> - -<p>"It's a long, long while to have my boy away from me," Mrs. Frazier -murmured with a sigh. "But this tremendous conspiracy will be all blown -out of your heads before you come home again." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span></p> - -<p>After a luxurious night's slumber in a real bed, Dan felt as if the -cobwebs had been brushed from his busy brain and that the bright world -held better employment than brooding over what might happen to somebody -else. He set forth to find Barton and arrange a match race between the -<i>Sombrero</i> and a rival craft, to be sailed before Dan had to go to sea. -The challenge being accepted on the spot, there was much to be done -in a very few hours, and Dan heartily agreed with Barton's opinion -delivered from the cockpit of their rakish craft:</p> - -<p>"It is a pity we have anything to do but sail boats for the fun of it. -What a bully sou'west breeze we're going to have this afternoon, Dan! -Can you coax old Bill McKnight to come along for ballast?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, if we promise him to smuggle some rifles and dynamite in the -hold," laughed the other.</p> - -<p>After dinner, Dan sauntered along the water front in the hope of -finding the mighty bulk of the chief engineer to serve as two hundred -and seventy pounds of desirable live ballast. The south-bound mail -steamer, from Tampa for<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span> Havana, had just landed her passengers, and -foremost among them loomed the tail and lanky figure of Jeremiah -Pringle. The wrecking master spied Dan and hurried to meet him in the -narrow street. His manner was no longer hostile and sullen, and Dan -was amazed to have a greeting hand stretched toward him and to hear a -cordial voice:</p> - -<p>"How's the boy? You and Bart as busy as ever? I went up the Gulf to -buy a schooner or two, and I found a beauty. I need a mate for her, -Dan. You are young, but you know more about salt water than most men. -It means double the wages of a deck-hand on that sooty old tow-boat. I -want you to go to Tampa and help fetch her down right away, which is -why I spring the proposition on you kind of off-hand and sudden."</p> - -<p>It was a chance at which Dan would have jumped a week before. Something -held him back, however, and, although he did not take time to reason -it out, he vaguely felt that Jeremiah Pringle was trying to bribe him -to keep his mouth shut. But he had a natural fear of making an enemy -of such a man as this, and he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span> swiftly decided to make no mention of -the night in Pensacola. That was a matter for Captain Jim Wetherly to -handle. Dan was ready to stand by his guns, however, so far as his own -honesty was concerned, and he stoutly replied:</p> - -<p>"That is a big thing to have come my way, Captain Pringle, and I ought -to thank you. But I don't care to take it. My mother wants me to stick -by Captain Jim Wetherly if I'm going to stay afloat, and she knows -best."</p> - -<p>Jerry Pringle looked black, but forced a smile as he growled:</p> - -<p>"One thing you've got from your Uncle Jim is a swelled head. Well, -we'll say no more about it; <i>nothing at all about it, understand</i>?"</p> - -<p>The last words were spoken with a threatening earnestness, and Dan -understood what was meant. He nodded and went on his way, for once -anxious to get to sea, away from a situation in which he seemed to -become more and more befogged. He found Bart dancing jig-steps with -impatience, and trying to listen to a long-winded yarn delivered by Mr. -Bill McKnight who had been already kidnapped for the afternoon. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span></p> - -<p>The <i>Sombrero</i> sailed like a witch in the race, the live ballast -shifted himself with more agility than the boys had dreamed he could -display, and the match was won with the lee-rail under and the cockpit -awash. Mrs. Frazier watched the finish from a wharf and invited Bart -and the engineer to come home with Dan for a festive supper party in -celebration. There could be no long faces or heavy thoughts at such -a time, and Dan forgot the shadow and laughed himself into a state -of collapse along with his mother and Bart when Mr. McKnight, with a -wreath of scarlet ponciana blossoms on his bald head, danced Spanish -fandangos until the cottage shook from floor to rafters.</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i049.jpg" id="i049.jpg"></a><img src="images/i049.jpg" alt="The Sombrero sailed like a witch" /></div> - -<p class="bold">The <i>Sombrero</i> sailed like a witch in the race</p> - -<p>They all escorted Dan down to the <i>Resolute</i> in the starlit evening and -sat on the guard-rail while the chief engineer fished a guitar from -under his bunk and sang Cuban serenades, leading off with "La Paloma." -It was as merry as such a parting hour could be, but there were tears -in the mother's eyes when she kissed Dan good-night, and her voice was -not steady when she whispered, "God bless and keep you, my precious -boy." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span></p> - -<p>When it came to saying good-by to Bart, Dan was more serious than usual -and, he held fast to his comrade's hand for a moment while he looked -him in the eyes and said:</p> - -<p>"Blow high, blow low, you will find me standing by, Bart. Good luck and -lots of it."</p> - -<p>Shortly after daylight next morning the <i>Resolute</i> churned her way out -of the placid harbor and laid her coastwise course for Charleston. It -proved to be an uneventful run with pleasant weather and a favoring -sea. Captain Wetherly had nothing to say about the steamer <i>Kenilworth</i> -until they reached Charleston where he found a cablegram from London -waiting for him. He read it aloud to Dan as soon as they happened to be -alone.</p> - -<p>"<i>Unable to send required information until later. Will communicate -your next port.</i>"</p> - -<p>"It might have cleared up this <i>Kenilworth</i> business," said Captain -Jim. "However, we may get a message at Santiago."</p> - -<p>But the <i>Resolute</i> was not to see Santiago as soon as her master -expected. There was a week's delay in getting the great suction dredge -ready to begin the voyage. Then, when the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span> <i>Resolute</i> had taken hold of -the clumsy monster, for all the world like a bull-dog trying to drag a -dry-goods box, the captain of the dredge was hurt by a falling bolt and -there was more delay at anchor while a new skipper could be sent for.</p> - -<p>When, at last, the unwieldy tow was got to sea, strong head-winds -buffeted her day after day and urged the panting, sea-swept <i>Resolute</i> -to her best efforts to keep up steerage way. She crept southward like -a snail, eating up coal at a rate which compelled Captain Wetherly to -put into Nassau, and again into the harbor of Mole St. Nicolas at the -western end of Hayti.</p> - -<p>Twice the dredge snapped her hawsers and broke clean adrift. When -the weary tug and her tow crept in sight of the Morro Castle at the -mouth of Santiago harbor, Bill McKnight almost wept as he surveyed his -engines and boilers. Sorely racked and strained they were, and Captain -Jim tried to comfort him by declaring that no other fat engineer could -have patched and held them together to the end of the voyage. Making -temporary repairs was a costly and tedious undertaking, and the crew<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> -of the <i>Resolute</i> tired of the charms of Santiago and grew restless and -homesick for Key West.</p> - -<p>While Dan, the captain, and McKnight were eating lunch ashore one day, -a swarthy, dapper clerk from the cable office sought the Venus Café -with a message which he had tried to deliver on board the tug. It was -for Captain Wetherly who read it with an air of mingled surprise and -chagrin. With a glance at the engineer who was blissfully absorbed over -his third plate of alligator pear salad, Captain Jim remarked as he -handed the sheet to Dan:</p> - -<p>"It is from London. Well, the cat is out of the bag, and we might as -well let McKnight in. We are going to need him before we get through -with this job, and need him bad. I suppose I ought to have been more -suspicious, but it sounded too rotten to be true. Bill, you must have -that engine room in shape this week if it breaks your back. We are -going to make a record run home to Key West."</p> - -<p>Dan read in silence before handing the cablegram to Captain Wetherly.</p> - -<p>"<i>Kenilworth cleared for Vera Cruz. Heavily<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span> insured. General cargo. -Owners hard hit by recent losses. Will bear watching.</i>"</p> - -<p>Captain Jim hammered the table with his fist and tried to speak in an -undertone as he hotly exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"This confidential report makes my suspicions fit together like the -pieces of a puzzle. I couldn't for the life of me understand how the -master of a big steamer could afford to ram her ashore and lose her, -and his berth and his reputation with it, for ten thousand dollars. But -if he knew that his owners would shield him and stand in with him, why, -of course, he might be tempted to clean up ten thousand dollars for -himself when a man like Jerry Pringle crossed his bows and passed him -a few hints. A lot of good it would have done for me to cable Captain -Bruce's owners and give them warning of what we heard that night in -Pensacola harbor. They would have laughed at me as a meddlesome idiot. -Cleared for Vera Cruz, has she? She does her ten knots right along, I -picked up that bit of information at Pensacola. Allow her twenty days -to the Reef."</p> - -<p>Bill McKnight had dropped his fork and was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> purple with suppressed -excitement. When the captain fetched up for lack of breath, he blurted -in a hoarse whisper:</p> - -<p>"It doesn't take a axe to drive an idea into my noddle. As near as -I can make out, though your bearings are considerably overheated, -Captain, there is scheduled to be a large and expensive wreck on the -Reef, assisted by her skipper and one Jeremiah Pringle. It sounds -like the good old times before the light-houses crippled the wrecking -industry. And we <i>Resolutes</i> propose to be first on hand to pull her -off and disappoint certain enterprising persons?"</p> - -<p>"Disappoint 'em!" fairly shouted Captain Jim. "If the <i>Kenilworth</i> -does go ashore, I'll fetch that vessel off the Reef if it tears the -<i>Resolute</i> to kindling wood. I'll break their rotten hearts and show -them what honest wrecking is."</p> - -<p>"I didn't throw away that clamp I made to hold the safety-valve down, -Captain," chuckled Bill McKnight. "And I ain't afraid to use it again, -either."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER III</span> <span class="smaller">THE RACE FOR THE "KENILWORTH"</span></h2> - -<p>Chief Engineer Bill McKnight hoisted himself up the iron ladder that -led from the fire-room of the <i>Resolute</i> and tottered on deck gasping -for breath. He was begrimed from head to foot, the sweat had furrowed -little streaks in the mask of soot and grease which covered his ample -countenance, and his eyes were red with weariness and want of sleep. He -had shoved the tug back to Key West at her top speed, and now he was -toiling night and day to make her ready for whatever summons might come -for a tussle on the Reef. Captain Wetherly found him slumped against -the deck-house with his head in his hands and exhorted him cheerily:</p> - -<p>"Don't give up the ship, Bill. It is a great repair job that you've -done, and the worst is over. The new tubes are most all in, aren't -they?" </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span></p> - -<p>"The boilers will be as good as new," grunted McKnight, "but how about -my bronchial tubes, Captain? I can't plug them up and make steam same -as I plugged the boilers and fetched you back from Santiago. I'm so -full of cinders inside that I rattle when I walk. But give me another -week and the boat will be fit to hitch a hawser to this benighted -island of Key West and tow it out to sea. Anything new ashore?"</p> - -<p>Captain Jim sat down beside the engineer and made sure that they could -not be overheard as he began:</p> - -<p>"Dan has been watching Jerry Pringle's fleet of wrecking vessels for -me. Those two schooners he bought in the Gulf have come into port, and -it is mighty little sponging he intends to do with them at present, -Bill. They look fast and they can stow lots of cargo. And Pringle has -been overhauling his other schooners and has chartered three more in -Key West. He says he intends to send them out to join the mackerel -fleet."</p> - -<p>"Anything doing in the tow-boat line?" asked McKnight with a new gleam -of interest in his damaged eyes. "If Pringle aims to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span> tackle a certain -job that may be reported from the Reef pretty soon, he will have to -make a bluff at pulling the steamer off, won't he? There might be a -small fortune in salvage, besides looting the cargo out of her."</p> - -<p>"He is dickering for some kind of a time charter on the <i>Henry -Foster</i>," snapped Captain Jim. "She couldn't pull a feather-bed off the -Reef without breaking down. And I understand he has been cabling up the -Gulf about another tug or two."</p> - -<p>"Well, we can get all the tow-boats we need and good ones, can't we?" -beamed McKnight. "Maybe we can't handle most any kind of a wrecking job -ourselves! And there won't be any bluffs about it when <i>we</i> take hold."</p> - -<p>"I'm certainly sorry for Dan, poor boy," said Captain Jim with a sigh. -"He feels as if he were spying on Bart's father. And to make it worse, -Bart is going to sail with the old man for a while and the lad will -be mixed up in this nasty mess as sure as fate, and he will be on the -wrong side of it. Here comes our Dan now. Drop the subject, Bill. It -only makes the youngster more unhappy." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan Frazier had passed some restless nights since his return to Key -West, but his mind was too sunny and youthful to believe that things -were ever as bad as they might be. He found comfort in the hope that -Captain Wetherly would spoil the plot to lose the <i>Kenilworth</i>. He had -implicit confidence in his uncle's ability to win against any odds with -the stanch <i>Resolute</i>, and now that a fair and open battle against -Jerry Pringle was assured, Dan found himself eager for the fray. Barton -had told him that morning:</p> - -<p>"Father and mother are talking of sending me North to school, but I'm -going to rough it at sea with father for a month or so. He said he -tried to get you to work for him. I knew you wouldn't leave Captain -Jim, but maybe we might have been lucky enough to work on a wreck -together."</p> - -<p>"You can't tell, Bart. Perhaps we shall, but we may be working against -each other. I'll back Captain Jim Wetherly to be first man aboard the -next vessel that goes on the Reef."</p> - -<p>"Captain Jim is a good man," declared Bart,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> "but it will be a cold day -when he lays alongside a wreck ahead of that daddy of mine."</p> - -<p>The boys were busy with their unbeaten sloop <i>Sombrero</i>, and one day -slid into another while Dan employed much of his spare time in helping -his mother about the house and in painting the chicken-house, the -fences, and porch with great pride in the spick-and-span results. -Mrs. Frazier still professed to take no stock in the plot hatched by -"Barton's father and Mary Pringle's husband," but she was nervous and -absent-minded at times, and there was even more affection than usual in -her manner toward Bart.</p> - -<p>Dan tacked a calendar at the head of his bed and crossed off the days -one by one, saying to himself when he awoke and looked at it:</p> - -<p>"Twenty days out from London, as Uncle Jim figured it, and the -<i>Kenilworth</i> is one day nearer the Reef."</p> - -<p>Twenty-two days had been counted when Captain Jim called at the cottage -and told Dan to go aboard the <i>Resolute</i> and stay there until further -orders. When the deck-hand reported for duty, he found all hands of -the crew either<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span> at work on board or within call on the wharf. Bill -McKnight had steam in his boilers and, although the fires were banked, -he had just finished stowing below a generous supply of resinous pine -wood, oil-soaked cotton waste, and a barrel of turpentine for use as -emergency fuel.</p> - -<p>"I lost thirty-five pounds of weight in three weeks," snorted the -engineer, "but I mended the old hooker to stay mended. Ho, ho, there -goes the <i>Henry Foster</i> to sea, Captain. Wonder if there's anything -doing so soon? Her engines sound like a mowing-machine trying to cut a -path through a brick-yard."</p> - -<p>"Don't worry about her," muttered Captain Jim. "Pringle isn't aboard -her. We won't leave here until he gets uneasy. He is a good deal better -posted than I am about his infernal program and we——"</p> - -<p>Captain Jim stopped short, for Barton Pringle unexpectedly appeared on -deck and announced to Dan:</p> - -<p>"I'm going up the Hawk Channel with father at daylight to look for one -of our sponging vessels that's reported ashore near Bahia Honda Key. -Thought I'd say good-by." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan could not help glancing at Captain Jim as he replied with a quiver -of excitement in his voice:</p> - -<p>"We may be running up the outside channel before you get back, Bart. -Perhaps we shall sight you. Hope you have a good trip."</p> - -<p>Barton was in a hurry and jumped ashore with a wave of his hand to the -chief engineer. When he was out of ear-shot Dan observed with a long -face:</p> - -<p>"I would give six months' wages if I could make Bart stay home. Do you -suppose his father is really going to sea at daylight, or is he just -using Bart to fool us?"</p> - -<p>"I haven't been walking in my sleep," dryly responded Captain Jim. -"There's a hundred and fifty miles of the Reef between here and Miami -and I don't intend to follow any decoy ducks and fetch up at the wrong -end of it. I figure on getting a report of any disaster as soon as the -next man."</p> - -<p>The next day passed without tidings. Jeremiah Pringle had vanished from -his haunts in Key West, and four of his schooners were not to be found -at their moorings. Another day<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span> dragged by, Bill McKnight was stewing -with impatience and Dan Frazier was losing his appetite while Captain -Jim Wetherly remained cheerful and unruffled.</p> - -<p>He was like another man, however, when a message came to him at noon on -the fourth day of waiting. It was from the cable office and he had no -more than glanced at it before he darted on deck, ordered the mate to -get the crew aboard, shouted down a speaking-tube to Bill McKnight, and -took his station at the wheel. His keen-witted, masterful energy seemed -to thrill the <i>Resolute</i> with life and action. Black smoke gushed from -her funnel as her stokers toiled in front of the furnace doors. The -engines were turning over when the last deck-hand leaped aboard, and as -the dripping hawsers were hauled in, the tug was moving out into the -stream.</p> - -<p>Key West island was over her stern before Dan found time to run up to -the wheel-house. Captain Jim slipped a crumpled bit of paper into his -fist and motioned for him to keep it to himself. It was from the marine -observer at Jupiter Inlet, a hundred miles to the northward of the -Florida Reef: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span></p> - -<p>"<i>Steamer Kenilworth southbound passed seven this morning. Signalled -steering gear disabled by heavy weather but able to proceed.</i>"</p> - -<p>Dan's faith in human nature, as it had to do with the master of the -<i>Kenilworth</i>, had been so severely shocked that he wondered whether -the report of her mishap could be true. He was not shrewd enough to -perceive, however, what Captain Jim whispered as he went below to see -how things were moving in the engine-room.</p> - -<p>"Crippled steering gear, bosh. Her skipper has to fake up some excuse -for striking the Reef."</p> - -<p>Dan could scarcely believe that the curtain had really risen on this -seafaring melodrama in which he was to be an actor. A stately ship was -moving blindly toward an ambush which might be the death of her. And -racing to find and befriend her was this lone tug whose throbbing heart -of steel shook her stout hull from bow to stern as she tore through -the long head-seas on the edge of the Gulf Stream. The afternoon was -already waning and night would overtake the <i>Resolute</i> before she could -reach the upper stretches of the Reef. Captain Wetherly<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span> felt certain -that the <i>Kenilworth</i> would not be rammed on the coral ledges in broad -daylight, and he foresaw a desperate game of hide-and-seek between -darkness and dawn. But he held to the doctrine that with anything like -even chances an honest man will win against a rascal in the game of -life, afloat or ashore.</p> - -<p>The north-east wind was steadily freshening and the sky had become gray -with drifting clouds. As dusk crept over the uneasy sea a mist-like -rain began to drizzle. The master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> might reasonably -lose his bearings if the night grew much thicker. Bill McKnight emerged -from his sultry cavern long enough to grumble to Dan:</p> - -<p>"What's to hinder our running past that steamer before morning, I want -to know, hey, boy?"</p> - -<p>"You wouldn't worry if you could watch Captain Jim hug the Reef," -assured Dan. "It's like walking a tight-rope. I thought we were going -to climb right up into the American Shoal light-house."</p> - -<p>"Well, this old tug is doing her fifteen knots, Dan, which is faster -than she ever flew before,"<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span> chuckled the chief engineer, "and if we -touch bottom, you'll know it all right. Look up yonder at my fireworks."</p> - -<p>Dan stared at a banner of solid flame that streamed from the funnel -which glowed red hot for a dozen feet above the deck. With a cry of -alarm he ran to the upper deck-houses which were built just fore and -aft of the funnel and found the wood-work charred and smoking. He -shouted down to McKnight who replied with a laugh:</p> - -<p>"It isn't my affair if your superstructure burns up. My orders are to -make steam. Better mention it to the skipper."</p> - -<p>Dan rushed to the wheel-house but Captain Jim received the news -as if it were the merest trifle. He was sweeping the sea with his -night-glasses and exhorting the mate at the wheel to "hold her as she -is and keep your nerve." To Dan he replied airily:</p> - -<p>"Caught afire, has she? Good for Bill McKnight. He's delivering the -goods. Get some men with buckets and put the fire out. I've no steam to -waste in starting the pumps and putting the hose on it." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span></p> - -<p>The deck force was taking turns at shovelling coal to reinforce the -stifled stokers, and those off watch followed Dan with cheers. They -knew that a race was on, and it lightened their toil to know that the -<i>Resolute</i> was pounding toward her goal, wherever it was, with every -ounce of power in her. Captain Jim joined the fire-fighters long enough -to yell to them:</p> - -<p>"Look out for rockets ahead. The first man to sight distress signals -from the Reef gets ten dollars and a new hat."</p> - -<p>A brawny negro stoker wiped the sweat from his eyes as he bobbed on -deck and panted:</p> - -<p>"When Cap'n Jim smell a wreck she's sure gwine be where he say. If he -wants to find 'stress signals he better look amongst us poor niggers in -the fire-room."</p> - -<p>Midnight came and no one thought of sleep. The excitement had spread -even to the cook and the galley boy who thought they saw rockets every -time a match was lit up in the bows. Dan gazed out into the starless -night and listened to the clamor of the parting seas alongside with -frequent thoughts of Barton Pringle who was somewhere out here, proud -of his father's <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span>seamanship and daring, loyal to his interests, -trusting him as Dan trusted his Uncle Jim. Now like pawns on a chess -board, the two boys were to play their parts on the opposing sides of a -conflict which would be fought to the bitter end. Dan was aroused by a -hoarse shout from the bridge of the <i>Resolute</i>:</p> - -<p>"Red rocket two points off the port bow."</p> - -<p>Dan wheeled and looked forward while his breath seemed to choke him. A -second rocket soared skyward, like a crimson thread hung against the -curtain of night.</p> - -<p>"Hold her steady as she is," shouted Captain Jim from his post on the -bridge. "The weather has cleared a bit and that signal was a long way -off."</p> - -<p>There was an exultant ring to his strong voice as if he were glad to -have the climax in sight. He sent for Dan and told him to stay on the -bridge and look for answering signals.</p> - -<p>"It's the <i>Kenilworth</i>, a thousand to one," said the captain of the -<i>Resolute</i>. "And if Jerry Pringle's schemes haven't missed fire, his -tug or one of his schooners will just happen to be within signalling -distance. Ah, by Judas, there<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span> goes his answer, a rocket way out to -seaward. Pringle was afraid to hug the Reef on a thick night. He missed -the <i>Kenilworth</i> when she passed inside of him. It may possibly be a -merchantman that has seen the <i>Kenilworth's</i> signals, but we take no -chances."</p> - -<p>Captain Wetherly shouted the tidings down the tube to the engine-room -force, and the hard-driven tug tore her way through the heavy seas -in the last gallant burst of the home-stretch. Back through the -speaking-tube bellowed the voice of the chief engineer:</p> - -<p>"I've just put the clamp on the safety-valve, Captain. She's carrying -thirty pounds more steam than the law allows, and if she cracks she'll -crack wide open. Hooray! Give it to her!"</p> - -<p>As if the captain of the stranded steamer were content to know that -his message had been seen and answered, he sent up no more rockets, -nor did any more answering signals gleam out to seaward. It was a race -in the dark. The <i>Resolute</i> and her rival, if such it was, must run -down two sides of a triangle whose apex was the unseen vessel on the -Reef. Captain Jim had<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span> taken the compass bearings of the <i>Kenilworth's</i> -rockets and, regardless of the risk he ran in driving his steamer along -the very fangs of the Reef, he held her in a straight line for her goal -and prayed that her bottom would not be ripped off or her straining -boilers blow her sky high.</p> - -<p>Almost at the same instant that the excited deck force of the -<i>Resolute</i> glimpsed a red light winking far off to starboard, they saw -the mast-head light of the stranded vessel almost dead ahead.</p> - -<p>"That red light out yonder belongs to J. Pringle," muttered Captain -Wetherly, "And we must be pretty near the same distance from that -mast-head light on the Reef. It's going to be a whirlwind finish, all -right."</p> - -<p>The <i>Resolute</i> kept full speed ahead as if she intended to cut her -way through the stranded steamer. Not until a huge black shape dotted -with a row of cabin lights loomed a little to one side of her headlong -flight, did Captain Jim shift his course to round to in the deep water -beyond the Reef. His fists were clenched and his jaw was set hard as he -glared from the wheel-house door to find the oncoming boat which he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span> -had sworn to beat. Her lights were no more than a quarter of a mile -away as the <i>Resolute</i> crept under the quarter of the stranded cargo -steamer.</p> - -<p>"If that's you out yonder, Jerry Pringle," growled Captain Jim to -himself, "you've slowed up to find out who the dickens we are. No -wonder you're worried. Come on and have it out, you hatchet-faced -pirate."</p> - -<p>He seized the whistle cord and the <i>Resolute</i> roared a long, sonorous -blast of greeting and defiance. Then he caught up a megaphone and -shouted toward the steamer stranded on the Reef:</p> - -<p>"Ship ahoy! I'll stand by to put a line aboard at daylight. Are you -resting easy as you are?"</p> - -<p>"What steamer is that?" came the answering hail from the darkness.</p> - -<p>"The tow-boat <i>Resolute</i> of Key West, first vessel to come to your -assistance. Who are you?"</p> - -<p>"The deuce you are," and there was the most profound amazement in -the other voice. "This is the steamer <i>Kenilworth</i> of London. A -crosscurrent set me on here but I can work off with my own engines, -thank you." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span></p> - -<p>"You'll never work her off," yelled Captain Jim. "Your vessel will -break her back if it blows much harder. It's high-water two hours after -daylight. It's now or never to pull her clear."</p> - -<p>There was no reply. It was evident that Captain Malcolm Bruce was -shocked and bewildered by the unlooked for presence of the <i>Resolute</i> -and was sparring for time until he could hail the other craft which by -this time was feeling her way nearer.</p> - -<p>Captain Wetherly was in no temper for parleying. He moved the -<i>Resolute</i> up abreast of the <i>Kenilworth's</i> bridge and shouted sternly:</p> - -<p>"I know your voice, Captain Bruce. My name is Jim Wetherly. This is the -only tow-boat within five hundred miles that's got the power to drag -you clear. And I must take hold on this next tide, before you begin to -pound and settle. We'll arrange terms afterward."</p> - -<p>"I'll wait till daylight before taking any lines aboard," was the curt -response from Captain Bruce who had moved aft to hail the other tug -which had now dropped astern of the <i>Resolute</i>.</p> - -<p>"This is the <i>Henry Foster</i>, in command of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span> Jeremiah Pringle," came -back to him. "We answered your rockets. Shall we stand by?"</p> - -<p>"I will let you know when daylight comes," answered the master of the -<i>Kenilworth</i>.</p> - -<p>Captain Jim Wetherly stamped his foot and snarled at his puzzled mate:</p> - -<p>"They must think I'm seven kinds of a fool. I'll block their game right -now. Oh, Dan Frazier, come here, on the jump."</p> - -<p>He grasped Dan by the collar, dragged him into the chart-room, and -closed the door. With swift, emphatic utterance Captain Wetherly shot -these instructions into the boy's ear:</p> - -<p>"Dan, I'm going to put you aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i>. I can't spare -anybody else, and you will be my agent, understand? If Captain -Bruce refuses to take my line, this business will be put up to the -underwriters from start to finish. And the crooked owners won't be able -to collect one dollar of insurance, I'll see to that. And I'll have you -as a witness to prove that the <i>Resolute</i> was first on the spot. Come -along with me."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim pulled Dan by the arm toward the lower deck. A boat was -lowered in a <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span>twinkling and, while the excited lad waited for a chance -to jump, Captain Jim told him:</p> - -<p>"It's likely that Pringle has Barton with him on the tug, and they may -try the same trick. If they come aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i>, you remember -that you're working for Jim Wetherly, no matter if it means a scrap."</p> - -<p>As the yawl danced away from the side of the <i>Resolute</i>, Captain Jim -shouted to the <i>Kenilworth</i>:</p> - -<p>"Put a ladder overside, if you please, Captain Bruce. I'm sending my -nephew aboard to talk business with you."</p> - -<p>"I will talk no business before daylight," roared Captain Bruce. "Call -your boat back."</p> - -<p>"Oh, yes, you <i>will</i> take him aboard," stormed Captain Wetherly. "<i>If -you don't, the underwriters will know the reason why.</i> Shall I tell -<i>you</i> why?"</p> - -<p>"Hooray! but that was a shot below his water-line," chuckled Bill -McKnight from the engine-room door. "But I don't envy Dan his job when -Jerry Pringle climbs aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i>."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER IV</span> <span class="smaller">WICKED MR. PRINGLE IN COLLISION</span></h2> - -<p>In his cooler moments Captain Wetherly might not have ordered Dan -Frazier to board the stranded <i>Kenilworth</i> before daylight, for a heavy -sea was running along the Reef. But he knew there was smoother water in -the lee of the stranded steamer and he had reason for confidence in his -boat's crew. He had been foolhardy in bringing his tug so close, but he -was in no mood to weigh risks; and he was ready to back Dan to play a -man's part in this game for high stakes.</p> - -<p>Dan had learned to do as he was told without asking why, but as he -peered from his plunging yawl at the tall, black hulk of the helpless -<i>Kenilworth</i>, his hands were shaking and his lips were dry. Although -the seas did not break over the Reef because of the depth of water, -they threatened to smash the yawl against the steamer's side. Presently -a lantern crept down from the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span> deck above like a huge fire-fly. It -was tied to one of the lower rounds of a swaying rope ladder, at the -sight of which Dan gathered himself for the ordeal. As the yawl rose he -jumped headlong, got a grip on the ladder, and hung on for dear life -while a frothing sea washed over him. Gasping for breath, bruised and -dazed, he fought his way up the side and fell over the bulwark of the -after well-deck.</p> - -<p>Dan had not the slightest idea of what he was expected to do on board -the <i>Kenilworth</i>, but after two seamen had stood him on his feet he -limped forward in search of Captain Bruce. Oddly enough, he did not -feel in the least afraid of meeting the hostile ship-master whose -wicked plans had been spoiled by the coming of the <i>Resolute</i>. Dan -recalled the big, brown-bearded man with the deep voice and the kindly -eyes whom he had met in Pensacola harbor, and said to himself, as he -had said then: "He looks like too fine a man." But as Captain Jim's -agent, Dan braced himself to be stern and dignified while he clambered -to the bridge.</p> - -<p>He found Captain Bruce standing in the light that fell from the -chart-room door. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span></p> - -<p>"I am to stay aboard until further orders from Captain Wetherly, sir," -announced Dan in the heaviest voice he could muster.</p> - -<p>"Nobody asked you, so get away from my quarters," was the irritable -reply. Dan stepped forward into the light and Captain Bruce stared at -him with puzzled interest. Then his frown cleared and he exclaimed -heartily:</p> - -<p>"Why, it's the lad that fished me out of Pensacola harbor. I ought not -to forget you, had I? Pardon my rude manners, but a man with his ship -in peril is poor company. Come inside. Well, upon my word, this is a -most extraordinary reunion all round."</p> - -<p>The stalwart master mariner was trying hard to wear his usual manner, -but his words came out with jerky, nervous haste, his gaze shifted -uneasily, and he was twisting both hands in his beard. If his -conscience had been troubling him before, panic fear had now come to -torment him; fear of Captain Wetherly; fear even of this boy, for no -mere chance could have brought about this midnight meeting on the -Reef. In silence Dan followed him into the chart-room and waited while -Captain Bruce seemed to <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span>forget himself in gloomy reflection. With an -effort the master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> looked at the boy and began to -explain:</p> - -<p>"I hope Captain Wetherly did not take offence. I am responsible for -the safety of this ship, and until I can get in touch with my owners -my word is final. If I can get her off without help, it means saving -a whacking big salvage bill. She is making no water, and is in little -danger."</p> - -<p>Dan knew enough of the ways of seafaring men to be surprised that this -captain should stoop to explain matters to the deck-hand of a tug. But -the captain's word did not ring true. He was trying to play a part, and -Dan saw through it and was sorry for him.</p> - -<p>"You don't know the Reef," replied the boy. "You struck it in good -weather. And Captain Jim Wetherly is no robber. He would not stand by -if he thought you were not going to need him and need him bad. <i>We</i> -don't do any crooked business aboard the <i>Resolute</i>, sir."</p> - -<p>Dan had not meant to deal this last home-thrust. He was one lone-handed -boy in the enemy's camp. Captain Bruce flushed and looked hard at Dan, -not so much with anger as<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span> with unhappy doubt and anxiety. He did not -reply and appeared to be struggling with his thoughts. Dan was so worn -out with excitement and loss of sleep that he had to blink hard at -the swinging lamp to keep his eyes open, and after several minutes of -silence, Captain Bruce's face seemed to waver in a kind of haze. Dan -aroused himself with a start when the master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> spoke -the question that was uppermost in his thoughts:</p> - -<p>"How did your tow-boat happen to find me to-night? What were you doing -out here, boy?"</p> - -<p>Dan's drowsiness fled as if a gun had been fired in the room. What -could he say? If he told the truth he might be knocked on the head and -dropped overboard before daylight. Deeds as bad as this had been done -on the Reef, and he was the only witness to back up Captain Jim's story -of a plot to wreck the steamer. He could only stammer:</p> - -<p>"We were running to the north'ard and saw your signals. Captain -Wetherly commands the <i>Resolute</i>. You must ask him."</p> - -<p>"He threatened and bulldozed me to-night," exclaimed Captain Bruce. "I -let you come<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span> on board because he treated me kindly at Pensacola. I -will give him my answer at daylight."</p> - -<p>Dan leaned forward with his elbows on the table and looked up into the -captain's face. Mustering all his courage, he began to say what was in -his heart, as if he were talking to one of his own friends who had done -something to be sorry for:</p> - -<p>"Captain Wetherly is working for your interests, sir. He knows the -Reef better than any pilot out of Key West. If he says he can get your -steamer off, he'll do it. And—and—he wants to save you—your ship—no -matter what it costs him. It—it—isn't only to get ahead of Jerry -Pringle on a wrecking job, Captain. He likes you, and Barton Pringle is -my chum, and Mrs. Pringle is my mother's dearest friend, and Captain -Jim wants to get you clear and on your voyage again without—without -being forced to—to fight it out to a finish with you and Jerry -Pringle. It's for Bart and his mother, and for you, too, Captain Bruce."</p> - -<p>The ship-master walked to the doorway and stood gazing out into the -night. Then he replied gruffly with a hard laugh: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span></p> - -<p>"You are almost asleep, my boy. I can't make head or tail of what you -are driving at. I make my own bargains with tugs when I need them. -Lie down on the transom and take forty winks. I am going to start my -engines again and work my vessel off on this tide."</p> - -<p>Dan nodded and promptly curled up on the leather cushions. Daylight -showed through the port-holes when he awoke and stepped out on deck. -A few cable-lengths to seaward rolled the <i>Resolute</i>. Astern of her -was the <i>Henry Foster</i>. Beating up the Hawk Channel inside the Reef -came two schooners under clouds of canvas. Other sails flecked the sea -to the southward, all hastening toward the <i>Kenilworth</i>. From among -the low islets to the westward the smaller craft of the "Conchs," -or scattered dwellers on the Keys, were speeding toward the scene. -The <i>Kenilworth</i> lay with a list to port, her bow shoved high on the -invisible Reef, her stern still afloat. It would have been hard to -convince a landlubber that this great steamer was in danger of going to -pieces. No seas were breaking around her. She looked as if she had come -to a standstill in mid ocean. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan Frazier had the love of the sea in him. The sight of this helpless -ship as he saw her by daylight appealed to him as tremendously sad and -tragic. He picked up a sounding lead and let it fall over the side to -find the depth of water amidships, for a glance at the chart-room clock -had told him that the tide was almost at the flood. The sound of voices -made him look aft. Captain Bruce was coming forward with Jeremiah -Pringle, and behind them was Barton. A moment later, Captain Jim -Wetherly threw a leg over the steamer's rail and shouted to his men in -the yawl to wait for him. He ran forward to Dan without speaking to the -others as he passed them, and shoving his nephew toward Captain Bruce -he exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"Here's my man, aboard your ship hours ahead of Pringle. You'll have to -talk business with me first. And all I ask is a square deal."</p> - -<p>Barton hung back and acted as if he had caught the spirit of the -hostile rivalry that threatened an explosion of some kind. He was more -highly strung and impulsive than Dan, less used to knocking about among -men, and he felt that Dan was somehow taking sides against<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span> him. Before -Captain Bruce could speak, Jerry Pringle strode up with an ugly scowl -on his lean, dark face and said:</p> - -<p>"Let Wetherly talk terms. When he gets through, I will be ready to sign -a paper to take charge of the job for half the figure he names, I don't -care how low he goes."</p> - -<p>"That ought to settle it. You can't do as well as that, Captain -Wetherly," put in the master of the <i>Kenilworth</i>. "If you are so sure -my ship can be pulled off, I see no reason why Captain Pringle isn't -the man to do it."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim was trying to keep his temper under, but the fact that -these two men were trying to carry out their vile agreement right under -his nose was more than he could stand. He shook his heavy fist in Jerry -Pringle's face and declared:</p> - -<p>"The <i>Resolute</i> will make fast to this ship this morning. And if you -want the <i>Henry Foster</i> to get action, it will be under my orders, and -at my terms. By Judas, this play-acting ends right here. I mean you, -too, Captain Bruce. I have been hoping that I could keep my mouth shut. -I'd rather cut off my right hand than<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span> drag certain other people into -it. I know why you brought your boy along with you, Jerry Pringle. To -put a stopper on my tongue, wasn't it? Hide behind women and children, -eh? Well, I'm in charge of wrecking this steamer, understand? Get back -to your tug. I've a good mind to——"</p> - -<p>He felt a pull at his arm, and turned to look into Dan's imploring face -as the boy whispered:</p> - -<p>"Don't say any more, Uncle Jim. Wait till Bart is out of the way, -please, oh please do."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim rammed his hands in his breeches pockets and addressed -Captain Bruce:</p> - -<p>"I've said my last word. My hawser will come aboard at once."</p> - -<p>The master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> wavered and looked at Jerry Pringle as -if appealing to the stronger will which had tempted and entrapped him. -The hapless ship-master had gone too far with the plot to let it go by -the board. Pringle muttered with a sneer:</p> - -<p>"Who is master of this steamer, anyhow?"</p> - -<p>Captain Bruce echoed the remark:</p> - -<p>"I command this ship, Captain Wetherly, and the sooner you leave her -the better." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span></p> - -<p>Wasting no more words, Captain Jim called to his boat's crew to stand -by to take him off, and said to Dan:</p> - -<p>"Pringle is going back to his tug. You stay here. They won't dare to do -you any harm. Keep your eyes and ears open."</p> - -<p>Presently Bart followed his father on board the <i>Henry Foster</i>. Dan had -found no chance to talk with him and he was not sorry. He was afraid -Bart would ask him what Captain Jim's angry speech had meant. Already -the stranding of the <i>Kenilworth</i> had dragged the two lads into its -tangle of motives and events.</p> - -<p>Dan was too absorbed in wondering what Captain Jim could do next to -dwell long with his own troubles and perplexities. He watched the -<i>Resolute</i> steam nearer the <i>Kenilworth</i>, while Captain Wetherly's -deck-crew gathered around the huge coils of steel hawser on the -overhang. Soon the <i>Henry Foster</i> wallowed closer and her men were also -busy making ready to pay out a towing hawser. Dan could not understand -how Captain Jim was going to get his line aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i>, and -he breathlessly awaited the next move. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span></p> - -<p>On board the <i>Resolute</i>, Captain Wetherly was standing at the wheel and -watching the <i>Henry Foster</i> with the light of battle in his gray eyes. -Jerry Pringle's tug had forged ahead until she lay square in the path -of the <i>Resolute</i> which was thus prevented from getting into position -for taking hold of the steamer on the Reef.</p> - -<p>Captain Jim pulled the whistle cord and the <i>Resolute</i> clamored to the -other tug to move out of the way. But Mr. Pringle seemed determined to -remain exactly where he was. Again and again the <i>Resolute's</i> whistle -was sounded, but the <i>Henry Foster</i> refused to make room. Captain -Wetherly finally growled to the mate:</p> - -<p>"He doesn't seem to have very good manners, does he? Maybe he ought -to be taught a lesson. Take the wheel while I go below and have a few -words with Mr. McKnight."</p> - -<p>The chief engineer was leaning against a stanchion and muttering -insults at the balky <i>Henry Foster</i>, with special emphasis on the -shortcomings of Mr. J. Pringle.</p> - -<p>"Are you going to sit here all day and let those <i>Henry Fosters</i> laugh -at you, Captain?" asked McKnight. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span></p> - -<p>"Not if you have steam enough to do as I tell you, Bill. All I want you -to do is to jump her ahead for all she's worth when I ring the jingle -bell. Then hold on tight and say your prayers."</p> - -<p>"Going to push Pringle out of the way?" asked the engineer with a smile -of happy anticipation. "Well, there's steam enough to make the <i>Henry -Foster</i> know she's been bumped. It's about time something happened."</p> - -<p>The captain returned to the wheel-house and gave the signal to back -her. The <i>Resolute</i> slipped very slowly astern until she was in a -position for a "running start." As a final warning her whistle was -blown, without reply from the <i>Henry Foster</i>. Then, with one long -blast like a war-whoop, the <i>Resolute</i> moved straight ahead, gathering -headway until her rearing bow was flinging cascades of spray. The mate -gasped:</p> - -<p>"Keep her off, Captain, or you'll be in collision."</p> - -<p>Captain Wetherly grinned and nodded as he held his tug straight at -the after part of the <i>Henry Foster</i> on board of which there was much -shouting and running to and fro.</p> - -<p>Her crew had taken it for granted that the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span> <i>Resolute</i> would pass -astern of them until her tall cut-water loomed within a hundred feet -of their overhang. Then her engine-room bells ding-donged one frantic -signal after another, but she began to move too late. <i>Crash!</i> and she -heeled far over from the shock of the collision. Like a keen-edged axe -through a soft timber, the bow of the <i>Resolute</i>, with her weight and -momentum behind it, sheared through the overhang and sliced a dozen -feet off the stern of the luckless <i>Henry Foster</i>. It was done and over -within a twinkling. The <i>Resolute</i> ploughed on with headway almost -unchecked, and as her horrified mate rushed forward to see what damage -had been done to her own hull, Captain Jim Wetherly looked back and -remarked to himself:</p> - -<p>"As neat a job as I ever saw. Her after bulkhead will keep her afloat, -but the <i>Henry Foster</i> is surely shy her tail-feathers. I guess that -winds up her career as a tow-boat for some time. Jerry Pringle looks -kind of upset and agitated."</p> - -<p>Mr. Pringle had picked himself up from the deck, where he had been -hurled headlong, and was wildly shaking his fist at the <i>Resolute</i>. The -crippled tug was drifting off broadside and was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span> evidently helpless. -Presently a small boat put off from her and headed for the <i>Resolute</i>. -As soon as he was within shouting distance, Jerry Pringle rose in the -stern-sheets and yelled in a voice broken with rage:</p> - -<p>"You'll pay for my vessel, Jim Wetherly. You run her down on purpose. -She'll founder or drift on the Reef if you don't tow me to Key West."</p> - -<p>"You violated all the rules of the road," sung back Captain Jim. "And -you're so fond of wrecking other people's vessels, supposing you see -what kind of a job you can make of the <i>Henry Foster</i>. Tow you to Key -West? You're joking. I'm going to put my line aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i> -and I'll settle with you later."</p> - -<p>Dan was dancing up and down on the <i>Kenilworth's</i> deck as he stared at -this amazing collision. It might be a reckless and lawless thing to do, -but Dan saw that Jerry Pringle had brought the disaster upon himself, -and that it had given Captain Jim a clear field. Throwing his cap in -the air, Dan let out a series of shrill and joyous war-whoops. He had -forgotten all about Barton, but in the midst of his noisy<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span> jubilation -he caught sight of his chum standing aft on the <i>Henry Foster</i> and -peering down at the havoc made by the collision. Dan's voice must have -carried across the water, for Bart turned to look at the <i>Kenilworth</i> -and shook his fist with every sign of rage and resentment. Dan -subsided, but the mischief had been done. He had made an enemy of -Barton, and he muttered with a sorrowful face:</p> - -<p>"I can't blame him for getting mad as a hornet at me. I ought to have -kept still. I don't know how we can ever patch up this misunderstanding -either. He ought to hold his daddy responsible for thinking he could -monkey with Uncle Jim Wetherly and the <i>Resolute</i>."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER V</span> <span class="smaller">"ALL HANDS ABANDON SHIP!"</span></h2> - -<p>Nobody was more dumfounded by the ramming of the tug <i>Henry Foster</i> -than Captain Bruce of the steamer aground on the Reef. In a twinkling -his wicked partnership with Jeremiah Pringle had been smashed beyond -mending. He could no longer refuse to accept help from the victorious -<i>Resolute</i>. This meant that Captain Jim Wetherly would take charge of -the wrecking of the steamer and try to save her and her cargo by every -means in his power. Jerry Pringle had been driven from the scene. He -was on board his shattered tug which was drifting to the southward, -in no great danger of going ashore, while several schooners were -clustering around to give her aid.</p> - -<p>Dan Frazier paid no attention to Captain Bruce, but ran to the stern of -the <i>Kenilworth</i> to watch the <i>Resolute's</i> crew send its towing hawser -aboard. Captain Jim was at his best in such<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span> an undertaking as this, -and his men were obeying his shouted orders with disciplined skill and -haste. The hawser writhed after the yawl like a sea-serpent and was -dragged up the side of the stranded vessel by her own crew, who were -jubilant at seeing active operations under way. When the line was made -fast, Captain Jim bellowed through his megaphone:</p> - -<p>"We have wasted time and lost the best of the tide, Captain Bruce, but -I'm going to pull for an hour anyhow. Set your engines going full speed -astern and throw your helm to port."</p> - -<p>Captain Bruce obeyed with eager energy. He seemed to be coming to -himself and honestly anxious to get his ship afloat. His broad -shoulders were thrown back, and he held his head erect, while his deep -voice had a tone of masterful decision. If he had made a compact with -the Evil One, he acted like a man who regretted the bargain and wanted -to repair the damage already done. Fate had suddenly snatched him out -of the clutches of Jeremiah Pringle and perhaps he was glad of it. At -least, Dan Frazier was ready to look at it in this way, and as Captain -Bruce came aft to examine the hawser the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span> lad said to himself with a -wisdom born of his own experience:</p> - -<p>"Last night he kind of behaved like a boy that had done something he -was awful ashamed of, but was scared to own up to it. Now he looks as -if he felt the way I do when I've decided to tell mother all about it -and promise her I'll do the best I can to make things all square again."</p> - -<p>Dan found time to take an anxious look at the weather, and a sweeping -survey of sea and sky told him why Captain Jim did not want to wait for -the next flood tide before beginning work. The ocean had turned from -green and blue to a dull gray. The clouds were low and far-spread and -the wind was seesawing in fretful gusts, now from the north-east, again -from the north-west. The barometer had sought a lower level overnight, -and all these signs declared that a gale was brewing. If it came out of -the north-west, the charging seas would drive the <i>Kenilworth</i> farther -on the Reef and perhaps lift her clear across the coral barrier to -sink, with a broken back, in the deep water of the Hawk Channel. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span></p> - -<p>The <i>Resolute's</i> whistle signalled that she was ready to match her -power against the Reef. As she forged ahead, the sagging hawser -tautened and twanged like a huge banjo string, while the sea was -churned to froth in her wake. At the same time the <i>Kenilworth's</i> -engines lent their mighty strength to the task. Her hull vibrated as -if the rivets were being pulled from their steel plates, but the keel -did not move an inch. Dan's faith in Captain Jim's word was so implicit -that he expected to feel the steamer start seaward in the first ten -minutes. At the end of the hour, however, the <i>Resolute</i> was still -tugging away without result, like a man trying to lift himself by his -boot-straps. Then she slackened up on the hawser as if to get her -breath for the next tussle.</p> - -<p>The wind was blowing with more and more violence. It picked up the -white-topped seas and hurled them high against the <i>Kenilworth</i>, while -the tug rolled and plunged amid driving foam and spray. Gulls were -flying in from seaward to seek the shelter of the distant keys. But -it was not yet rough enough to daunt Captain Jim Wetherly and he was -evidently waiting<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span> to make a second attempt on the afternoon tide. -Dan had seen these northerly gales blow themselves out in a few hours -and he felt no uneasiness at being left in the <i>Kenilworth</i>, although -he muttered to himself as he felt the helpless steamer tremble to the -shock of the seas:</p> - -<p>"I don't see why Uncle Jim left me here now that Pringle is out of the -way. I guess he hasn't time to remember that he is shy one deck-hand."</p> - -<p>There was some truth in this surmise, for Captain Wetherly was having -all he could do to keep the <i>Resolute</i> at her station and her propeller -clear of the hawser which he refused to let go because he feared the -weather might make it impossible to lower the yawl for another trip to -the <i>Kenilworth</i>. He knew what Captain Bruce was not aware of, that -the steamer had been shoved on a shelving slope of the Reef where she -could withstand a terrific pounding without having the bottom torn out -of her, and that if she once started to move astern she would quickly -slide off into deep water. Therefore Captain Jim was ready to take long -chances with his tug before he would run to Key West for refuge from -wind and sea. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span></p> - -<p>In the afternoon, when the <i>Resolute</i> whistled that she was about to -go ahead again on the hawser, the green billows were breaking over her -bow and flooding aft in booming torrents. Her funnel was white with -sea-salt from the spindrift as she plunged and reared like a bucking -bronco. Dan was watching the laboring <i>Resolute</i> from the stranded -steamer's bridge when Captain Bruce put a hand on his shoulder and said -with hearty frankness:</p> - -<p>"That skipper of yours is plucky, and he is a first-class seaman. But -he will lose his vessel if he stays out here much longer."</p> - -<p>"He may have to give you a wider berth by dark," said Dan. "In ordinary -weather he could take the <i>Resolute</i> over the Reef along here, but now -the seas would pick her up and drop her on the ledges. I guess he will -have to leave me aboard here overnight, Captain. There's no getting a -boat over to me now. And he can't take the <i>Resolute</i> to leeward of -you, on the inside of the Reef, for there isn't a deep water passage -through, for miles and miles."</p> - -<p>"You are welcome to stay aboard with me, lad," replied Captain Bruce. -"We may have<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span> a tough time of it ourselves before morning, and I fancy -your uncle is sorry he did not take you off with him. But that can't be -helped."</p> - -<p>The <i>Resolute</i> had begun to pull. It was a thrilling battle to watch. -The seas were so heavy that her power was applied in a series of -tremendous lunges which threatened to snap the hawser every time her -stern rose skyward. Dan held his breath and gripped the rail with -both hands as the tug surged ahead again and again. Her mate and two -deck-hands were crouched far aft, ready to cast loose the hawser -whenever the captain dared to hold on no longer. After a while Dan saw -the chief engineer waddle back to the overhang to take a look at the -situation. There was something cheering in the sight of this bulky, -stout-hearted veteran of many a desperate venture at sea. Bill McKnight -plucked off his cap and waved it in greeting to Dan, as if signalling -him that all was well.</p> - -<p>"I guess he's clamped down his safety-valve long before this," said Dan -aloud as he flourished an arm at Bill McKnight.</p> - -<p>"My word but you are a desperate lot,"<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span> observed Captain Bruce, and a -smile lightened his anxious face and weary eyes. "I think we are safer -aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i>."</p> - -<p>He turned away to talk to his own chief engineer and his first officer. -They had come up from below to report that the crew were beginning to -talk of quitting the ship, and that it was hard to keep them at their -stations. The news aroused Captain Bruce like a bugle-call to action. -If he had been weak in an hour of temptation he was now once more the -able, resolute ship-master, trained by long years at sea to face such a -crisis as this.</p> - -<p>"Do the cowards want to abandon ship while we are trying to work her -off?" he thundered. "Look at that tug-boat out yonder. She isn't afraid -to stay by us in a bit of a breeze. Come along with me. I'll handle -them."</p> - -<p>He hurried after the first officer, and Dan was left alone to gaze -at the brave struggle of the <i>Resolute</i>. It seemed impossible that -she could hold on much longer. Her hull was buried by one sea after -another, but she shook herself free and plunged ahead with dogged, -unflinching power. The afternoon was nearly spent. A<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span> stormy dusk was -beginning to steal over the tossing sea.</p> - -<p>Dan perceived that Captain Jim was trying to stand to his task until -high water might help to lift the <i>Kenilworth</i>. But for once that -square-jawed uncle of his had dared too much. The <i>Resolute</i> had -endured more than steel and timber could be expected to endure. Dan -yelled with dismay as he saw the massive timber framework of the -towing-bitts fairly jump out of the deck, splintered and broken, and -vanish in the sea astern while the hawser slackened and buried itself -in the waves. The mate and deck-hands were hurled this way and that. An -instant later the wind bore a terrific crashing noise to Dan's ears. -A gaping hole showed in her after deck as the <i>Resolute</i> dove ahead, -suddenly released from her grip on the <i>Kenilworth</i>.</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i101.jpg" id="i101.jpg"></a><img src="images/i101.jpg" alt="that square-jawed uncle of his" /></div> - -<p class="bold">But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared -too much</p> - -<p>"Great Scott, she jerked the towing-bitts clean out of her," cried Dan. -"It was just like pulling the stem out of an apple. Now we <i>are</i> done -for. Is anybody killed?"</p> - -<p>His eyes filled with hot tears as he saw Bill McKnight rush aft and -help pick up the mate and deck-hands who lay sprawled in the <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span>scuppers. -The mate was huddled in a heap where he had been flung, and the -rescuers dragged him clear and carried him forward between them, his -legs and arms swaying limp.</p> - -<p>"He looks dead," moaned Dan. "And it leaves Uncle Jim single-handed. He -can't run home before this sea with a hole in his after deck like that. -She'd swamp in no time. He'll have to buck into it and try to fetch -Miami. And we can't get any help to him."</p> - -<p>The <i>Resolute</i> steamed very slowly away from the Reef, fighting for -her life. Three long blasts from her whistle came down the wind as she -spoke her farewell. Before long her reeling shape was lost to view on -the shadowy sea; then her mast-head light gleamed for a little longer -before she wholly vanished from Dan Frazier's yearning gaze.</p> - -<p>Captain Bruce had rushed on deck at the sound of her whistle and Dan -pointed to the dim outline of the beaten and crippled <i>Resolute</i> while -in a voice broken with grief and excitement he explained what had -happened to the tug.</p> - -<p>"Uncle Jim will have other tugs on the way as soon as he can wire for -them," added Dan.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span> "I think he ordered a schooner to run to Miami this -morning with orders for more help to be sent you."</p> - -<p>"They can't get out to us until this blow is over," said the captain. -"We are in for a bad night, my boy. I wish you were out of it. But -Captain Wetherly couldn't have taken you off to save his soul."</p> - -<p>"I wouldn't have been here if you had been square—" Dan began to say -with a sudden rush of anger. But it seemed as though Captain Bruce had -not heard him, for he went on to say:</p> - -<p>"If my boy had lived he would have been about your age now, Dan. He was -just your kind of a youngster, too. Go below and get some supper, and -some sleep if you can."</p> - -<p>There was to be little sleep aboard the <i>Kenilworth</i> through this -night. The gale had no more than begun to blow when the <i>Resolute</i> was -forced to retreat. Long before midnight it was lashing the shoal water -of the Reef into huge breakers which assailed the <i>Kenilworth</i> with -thundering fury. Her keel began to pound as she was lifted and driven -a little farther on the Reef by one shock after another. The decks<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span> -sloped more and more until it was not easy to keep a foothold. The -noise of the water breaking over her hull, the booming cry of the wind, -the groaning and grating and shrieking of her steel plates as the Reef -strove to pull them asunder, made it seem as if the steamer could not -hold together until daylight.</p> - -<p>The grimy men from the engine-room and stoke-hole had fled to the -shelter of the steel deck-houses where they huddled with the seamen, -shouting to each other in English, Norwegian, and Spanish. Captain -Bruce and his officers finally gathered in the chart-room and discussed -the chances of launching the boats if matters should grow much worse. -Dan Frazier was doubled up in a corner chair, half-dead for sleep, but -fighting hard to keep his wits about him and tell the others what he -knew of the Reef and the water that stretched to leeward of the ship.</p> - -<p>In answer to a question from Captain Bruce he said:</p> - -<p>"This is the narrowest part of the Reef, Captain Wetherly told me, and -if you can get your boats away in the lee of the ship and keep them<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span> -afloat through the breaking water you will be in the Hawk Channel, only -three miles from a string of keys. The channels between the islands are -deep enough for a ship's boat. You don't need any chart to find smooth -water in those lagoons, sir."</p> - -<p>"Her bottom plates are opening up," growled the chief engineer who had -just come up to report. "The sea is coming in fast. It has begun to -flood the fire-room, and I can't make steam to keep the pumps going -much longer."</p> - -<p>"The bulkheads forward are twisting like so much paper," added the -first officer. "They can't stand up if she racks herself any worse. -Then she will be flooded fore and aft."</p> - -<p>Captain Bruce jumped to his feet and gruffly broke into this dismal -kind of talk:</p> - -<p>"Get all the men you can and come below with me. Her after part is -still afloat and tight, and if we can brace the midship bulkheads with -enough timbers and cargo, they may hold for a while yet."</p> - -<p>It was a forlorn hope, but even the seamen and stokers were glad to -be doing something to save the ship, and most of them rallied to the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span> -call of the captain and mate and followed them down into the gloomy -hold. Dan went along to try to do what he could, and also because he -remembered that Captain Jim had told him to "keep his eyes and ears -open."</p> - -<p>"If we abandon the <i>Kenilworth</i>," thought Dan, "and I see Uncle Jim -again, the first thing he will ask me is what shape we left the steamer -in—had she begun to break in two, and how badly was she flooded, and -so on. I guess it's part of my job to find out all I can."</p> - -<p>He picked up a lantern which had been overlooked and crept after the -men, down one slippery iron ladder after another. It was a terrifying -trip below decks where the angry ocean sounded as if it were about -to tear its way through the vessel's side, amid an awful hubbub of -shifting cargo, and breaking beams and plates. Dan hesitated more than -once and tried to choke down his fear. He was in strange quarters and -the men ahead of him, used to finding their way all over the vessel, -moved much faster than he. They had reached the engine-room and were -moving forward while he was still clinging to the last ladder. Then<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span> a -lurch of the ship dashed his lantern against the hand-rail. The glass -globe was smashed and the light went out.</p> - -<p>The electric lighting plant had been disabled and the cavern of an -engine-room was in black darkness as Dan vainly searched his pockets -for matches. He heard faint shouts from somewhere forward and thought -he saw the gleam of lanterns. He tried to grope his way toward them, -but stumbled and fell against a steel column. With aching head he -staggered to his feet just as the whole hull of the ship seemed to be -raised bodily and let fall on the Reef with a deafening crash. Dan was -more frightened and confused than ever. A moment later his feet began -to splash in water. He thought the sea had broken into the engine-room, -and he tried, with frantic haste, to find his way back to the ladder -and regain the deck above. By this time he had completely lost his -bearings. He did not know whether he was going toward the bow or stern. -At length his trembling fingers clutched the rail of a ladder which -ran upward from a narrow passageway. It led him to another deck still -far down in the vessel's hold,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span> where he could find no more ladders to -climb. After what seemed to him hours of feeling his way this way and -that, he bumped against a solid steel wall. Dan knew it was a bulkhead -of some kind, but it must be far from the toiling crew of the ship, for -he had long since ceased to hear or see them. He had never been in such -utter darkness nor so hopelessly lost and bewildered.</p> - -<p>The frightened lad shouted for help, but his voice could not have been -heard a dozen feet away, so great was the din around him. He tried to -think, to get back his sense of direction, to feel his way along the -bulkhead in the hope of getting his hands on some object with whose -outline he was familiar, which might tell him into what part of the -ship he had wandered.</p> - -<p>He was leaning against the steel wall of the bulkhead when it buckled, -sprang back, and then quivered as if it had been a sheet of tin. -There was a tremendous noise of crackling, rending timber and steel -above Dan's head. He whirled about and tried to flee as he heard the -collapsing bulkhead give way.</p> - -<p>The boy could hear the cargo toppling toward<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span> him with the roar of a -landslide. He threw up his arms to shield his head, then something -struck him in the back and hurled him to one side. He fell across a -bulky box of some kind while other heavy boxes, a deluge of them, -thundered from above and crashed all round him. Dan cowered in a -frightened heap, expecting every instant to have his life crushed out. -But gradually the descent of the cargo ceased, and he was still alive.</p> - -<p>He tried to move his legs and found they had not been smashed. -Struggling to turn over on his back he put up his arms and discovered -that a huge packing case had so fallen as to make a bridge over him and -keep clear the little space in which he crouched. But he was walled in -by packing cases on all sides and he struggled in vain to move them. -Until his fingers were torn and bleeding and his strength worn out, Dan -tried to make an opening large enough to wriggle through and escape -from this appalling prison.</p> - -<p>When at length he lay still and panted aloud the prayers his mother had -taught him, there came the echo of hoarse shouts above the clamor of -the ship and the sea. Through a crevice<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span> between the boxes of freight -that penned him fast he glimpsed the gleam of moving lanterns. The -captain and crew were deserting the hold of the ship. Dan tried to call -to them but his cries were unheard.</p> - -<p>The shouts ceased, the gleams of light vanished one by one, and Dan -was left alone in the flooded and shattered hold of the <i>Kenilworth</i>. -Far above him Captain Bruce and his crew were making ready their -life-boats, preferring to trust themselves to the storm-swept sea than -to the steamer which they believed doomed to be torn to fragments -within the next few hours.</p> - -<p>"They must have given up the fight", moaned Dan between his sobs. "I -guess it means all hands abandon ship at daylight. And they will think -I've been washed overboard in the dark."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER VI</span> <span class="smaller">DAN FRAZIER'S PREDICAMENT</span></h2> - -<p>Imprisoned as he was in the hold of the <i>Kenilworth</i>, and feeling sure -that the steamer was to be abandoned by her crew as a hopeless wreck, -Dan Frazier became almost stupefied with terror and exhaustion. As long -as there was any strength in his athletic young body he had pushed -and tugged at the mass of freight which penned him in, shouting in -his frenzy until his voice failed him and died away in hoarse, broken -weeping.</p> - -<p>At length his benumbed senses lost themselves in heavy slumber. He -dreamed of being at home with his mother in the palm-shaded cottage and -she was holding him in her lap and stroking his forehead with her cool -hands. But nightmares came to drive away this sweet dream, and he awoke -with a choking cry for help.</p> - -<p>Dan thought he must have been asleep for<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span> hours and hours. More -torturing than the realization of his dreadful plight was his burning -thirst. But his brain was clearer and he listened to the medley of -noises around him with a glimmer of hope. The water had not reached the -deck on which he had been trapped, although he could hear it washing -to and fro in the bottom of the hold below. The hull of the ship had -ceased to pound on the Reef. The breakers beat against her steel sides -and fell solid on her upper decks with a sound like distant thunder, -but Dan began to feel confident that the gale was blowing itself out -and the steamer was going to live through it.</p> - -<p>He thanked God that he had not been drowned, at any rate, even -though he seemed likely to perish where he was for lack of food and -drink. Youth grasps at slender hopes and finds strength in dubious -consolations. Dan had expected to be overwhelmed by the sea without a -ghost of a chance to fight for his life. Now that this peril seemed -to be passing, his wits began to return, and he fished his strong -bladed sailor's clasp-knife from his trousers pocket. To hack away at -his prison walls was better<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span> than doing nothing. He twisted painfully -about until he had located the widest crevices between the sides of -the packing-cases and began to chip away at the stout planking. It -was a task tedious and wearisome beyond words. There was no light, -his nerves were unstrung, and he worked with unsteady, groping hand. -Rats scampered over him, or squealed in the darkness close by, and he -slashed at them savagely. They startled him so that more than once he -gave up the task and wept like a little child.</p> - -<p>At length Dan cut through the planking of a box which was wedged fast -between two larger ones and his knife clinked against tin. He managed -to break off a splintered end of board and pulled out a round can of -some kind of provisions. This was unexpected good fortune, and he -carefully cut into the lid with a muttered prayer of thanksgiving, -hoping to find enough liquid to wet his parched tongue. The can proved -to be full of French peas, packed in enough water to supply a long -drink of cool, refreshing soup. Dan scooped up the tiny peas with his -fingers, emptied the tin, and eagerly drove his knife into another of -them. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span> nourishment made him feel like a giant. He returned to his -task with genuine hope of being able to whittle a way out of his trap.</p> - -<p>But as the weary hours dragged by, and the strokes of the knife became -more and more feeble, the prisoner gave himself up to despair. His -strength had ebbed so fast that he slumped down and slept with his face -in his arms.</p> - -<p>A great noise awoke him. The cargo was shifting and tumbling with -fearful uproar. From below came the rumble of coal sliding across the -bunkers. The deck rolled violently and pitched Dan to the other end -of his pen. He expected to be crushed by the cargo, and thought the -ship must be turning over. But the commotion gradually ceased and, to -his great astonishment, he was alive and unhurt. The deck seemed to -have much less slant than before. He raised his arms and they touched -nothing over his head. Unable to realize the truth, he scrambled to -his feet and stood upright. The great package of freight which had -roofed him over had slid clear, carrying along the boxes piled above -it. Frantic with new hope of release, Dan clambered upward, tearing his -clothes<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span> to tatters, plunging headlong from one obstacle to another, -bruising his face, hands, and knees against sharp edges and corners. -Scrambling over the disordered cargo until he had to halt to get his -breath, Dan gasped to himself:</p> - -<p>"I can't get on deck through a freight compartment. The hatches will be -fastened down above. I must find out how I blundered in here as far as -the broken bulkhead."</p> - -<p>A moment later he fetched up against solid tiers of cargo which had -not been dislodged and knew he must be headed wrong. This gave him a -clue, however, and with fast-failing strength he stumbled back over -the way he had come. At last he saw a streak of daylight filter down -from a skylight far above. Yes, there was a road to the upper deck. -Dan glimpsed the shadowy outline of a ladder. It was all he could do -to muster courage to attempt the long and dizzy climb. But he set his -teeth and clung like a barnacle to one round after another until he -fell against the iron door of a deck-house, fumbled with the fastening, -and tottered out into daylight.</p> - -<p>Half-blinded and blinking like an owl, Dan<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span> Frazier covered his face -with his hands until his eyes could bear the dazzling reflection of -sea and sky which were flooded with glorious sunshine. The wind sang -through the shrouds and funnel-stays and the blue ocean upheaved -in swollen billows, but the gale had passed. Dan's bewildered gaze -fell upon the empty chocks, the dangling falls and the davits swung -outboard, where the steamer's life-boats had been. These signs were -enough to tell him that the ship had been abandoned. He was left alone -in her, and he went forward with a feeling of uncanny isolation. Water -to drink was what he wanted more than anything else, and before making -a survey of the ship he sought the tank in the chart-room and fairly -guzzled his fill. Then he made a ferocious onslaught on the cabin -pantry and carried on deck a kettle full of cold boiled potatoes, beef -and hard bread, and climbed to the battered bridge.</p> - -<p>Looking down at the steamer from this lofty perch, Dan understood what -had caused the violent roll and lunge that set him free from his prison -below decks. The storm had driven her, head-on, far up the outer slope -of the Reef,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span> where she had lain as if about to break in pieces, with -the seas washing clean over her. But while her forward compartments -had filled with water, her stern was still buoyant. When the gale had -subsided the ship was hanging over the deep water on the inner side of -the Reef, and the next high tide had lifted her stern so that she slid -bow-first, for half her length, down the opposite side of the shelf -which had held her keel fast. It looked like a miracle to Dan, but here -was the ship still solid under his feet. Gazing down from one end of -the bridge, he could see the inner edge of the Reef shimmering far down -through the clear water and the hull of the <i>Kenilworth</i>, hanging only -by the after part.</p> - -<p>"Where, oh where, is Uncle Jim?" he thought. "He might patch up her -bulkheads, lift the water out with his wrecking pumps, and pull her off -yet. And I'll bet he'd keep her afloat somehow."</p> - -<p>Then a stupendous thought flashed into Dan's mind. It was such a -dazzling, gorgeous idea that it made him dizzy with delight. Yes, -it was all true. The <i>Kenilworth</i> had been abandoned by her captain -and crew as a wreck.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span> She was like a derelict at sea. Whoever should -find and board her would have the right to claim heavy salvage on the -vessel and her cargo if they were saved and brought into port. It was -the unwritten law of the Reef that the first man to set foot on an -abandoned wreck was the wrecking master, to be obeyed as such, with -first claim on salvage.</p> - -<p>Dan tried to arrange his thoughts in some kind of order, and at length -he said to himself with an air of decision:</p> - -<p>"The wrecking master on this job is Daniel P. Frazier. I earned it all -right, and Key West will back me up whether Jerry Pringle likes it or -not. And I'm going to hold her down till Uncle Jim comes back. There -can't be any more question about who has the wrecking of her. General -cargo, too!—I'll bet it's worth several hundred thousand dollars!—and -a four thousand ton steel steamer. If we can save her, the owners will -have to give up fifty or a hundred thousand dollars in clean salvage -money."</p> - -<p>The weight of his responsibility soon tamed Dan's high spirits. He -could make no resistance if a crew of hostile wreckers should happen<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span> -along to dispute his title in the absence of Captain Jim Wetherly. The -morning sun was no more than three hours high. He must watch and wait -through a long, long day, any hour of which might bring in sight the -sails of a fleet of wrecking schooners. Dan reckoned that he had been -penned below for about thirty hours and that this was the morning of -the second day after the wreck. Captain Jim must have a tug on the way -by this time. But, on the other hand, if Captain Bruce and his men had -been picked up and carried to Key West, their tidings would send Jerry -Pringle and his horde of wreckers flying seaward by steam and sail.</p> - -<p>Every boy who plays foot-ball has dreamed of breaking through the line, -blocking a kick, scooping up the ball, and running down the field like -a whirlwind to score the winning touchdown with the other eleven vainly -pounding along in his wake. So most of us have dreamed of playing the -hero by stopping a runaway horse, saving the life of the prettiest girl -that ever was, and being splendidly rewarded by her millionaire father. -Dan Frazier's pet dream had a salt-water background. It was of being -the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span> first to find an abandoned ship with a rich cargo, triumphantly -bringing her into port, and winning a fortune in salvage. At last he -had found his ship, but the lone hero had an elephant on his hands.</p> - -<p>Dan was too weary in body and mind to roam about the steamer. He rigged -a bit of awning on the bridge, dragged a mattress up from below, and -lay gazing through the rents in the canvas weather screen until noon. -A mail steamer northward-bound passed close to the Reef, slowed down -to make sure the crew had left the wreck, and ploughed on her way. Dan -grew tired of looking to the southward for schooners beating up from -Key West and concluded that the head wind and heavy sea were holding -them in harbor. There was no black smudge of smoke to the northward to -show that Captain Jim was coming out from Miami in a tow-boat. Over -to seaward, however, in the east-north-east, three sails glinted like -flecks of cloud. They were close together, and Dan gazed at them idly, -thinking they might be coastwise merchant vessels hauling southward -before the piping wind. But as they lifted<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span> higher, he noticed that -they were shaping a straight course for the Reef instead of swinging -off to follow the track through the Florida Straits. They were -schooners coming with great speed and showing a reckless spread of -canvas.</p> - -<p>Soon the low hulls gleamed beneath the towering piles of sail and Dan -jumped to his feet as he scanned the beautiful sea picture they made.</p> - -<p>"Bahama schooners; I know their cut!" he exclaimed. "They've smelled a -wreck on the Reef as sure as guns. The news must have reached Nassau -by cable yesterday. And those pirates have got a clear field for once. -What <i>can</i> I do? They won't listen to my story, not for a minute. -They'll swarm aboard like rats and be ripping the cargo out of this -vessel in a jiffy."</p> - -<p>The youthful wrecking master was at his wits' end and his head began -to throb as if it would split, for he had little endurance left. He -remained in hiding on the bridge and tried to think out a plan of -action as the Bahama schooners swooped across the frothing sea, laying -their courses in a bee line for the <i>Kenilworth</i>. Dan's only hope was -that he might be able to stay<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span> aboard until Captain Jim should return -to enforce the law of the Reef with his crew of hard-fisted tow-boat -men to back him up. He thought of telling the wreckers that he was -a stowaway, left behind when the steamer's men deserted her, but, -although Dan Frazier was far from perfect, he hated the notion of lying -his way out of this tight corner. He was truthful by habit, for one -thing, and there was another reason which he muttered to himself:</p> - -<p>"There's been lying enough on this job. The poor old ship has been -rotten with lies ever since her skipper first ran afoul of Jerry -Pringle. Even her grounding on the Reef was a lie. And I don't believe -Uncle Jim would lie to save the ship, or his own skin either. No, this -poor old vessel has been good to me so far. I got out of her hold by -good luck and I'll trust to luck to pull me out of this scrape."</p> - -<p>Dan picked up a pair of glasses and looked at the nearest schooner -which had boldly crossed the Reef and was rounding to in the smoother -water of the Hawk Channel while a group of black-skinned, ragged -wreckers were shoving a boat over the side. Dan felt a new thrill of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span> -surprise and alarm as he scrutinized a burly figure poised at the -schooner's rail. It was "Black Sam" Hurley, a Bahama wrecker of such -evil repute that he had been pointed out to Dan in Nassau harbor as one -of the notorious characters of the islands.</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i123.jpg" id="i123.jpg"></a><img src="images/i123.jpg" alt="Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm" /></div> - -<p class="bold">Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm</p> - -<p>"There are plenty of honest wreckers in the Bahamas," said the lad to -himself, while his teeth chattered. "But they don't sail with 'Black -Sam.' And he was alongside the <i>Resolute</i> at Nassau, talking to the -cook. He'd know me again. It's a good thing I chucked up that idea of -lying out of this. It's time for me to get under cover, all right."</p> - -<p>Dan crept off the bridge along the windward side of the deck-house and -kept well out of sight of the schooners until he reached the shelter -of the funnel and the engine-room skylights. Then he slipped into the -nearest door and made his way to the flight of ladders up which he -had climbed in the morning. He had fled in a state of panic, but one -glance down into the black hold made him draw back and take measures -to provision himself against a long siege below. There was no need -for great haste, and Dan <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span>delayed to equip himself with a lantern, -matches, a jug of water, and a canvas bag, crammed with food, which he -slung about his neck. Then he made his way below with lighted lantern, -seeking to find as secure and comfortable a refuge as possible. The -Bahama wreckers would begin to loot the part of the cargo easiest -to get at and handle, he reasoned, and therefore he passed by the -uppermost cargo deck and explored the region below, slowly making his -way aft.</p> - -<p>It was a dangerous and desperate journey, but Dan was thinking only of -keeping out of the way of "Black Sam" until Captain Jim should come -back and retake the ship which belonged to him.</p> - -<p>"I'm what the lawyers call a vital document when they're arguing a -salvage case in the Key West Court," thought Dan with a half-hearted -grin. "And from all I've heard of 'Black Sam' Hurley, he'd chuck this -vital document overboard if he thought it might interfere with his -possession of the wreck."</p> - -<p>In this game of hide-and-seek the advantage was with the lad in the -hold, and fear of discovery by the wreckers did not greatly trouble<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span> -him. After a long time he heard clamorous voices somewhere above and -he doused his lantern. The wreckers seemed to be exploring the upper -cargo decks. Some kind of a dispute arose and the sides of the ship -flung back the echoes of it as from a great sounding board. Dan could -not make out what the quarrel was about, but at length the sounds grew -fainter as if the wreckers had returned to the outside world above.</p> - -<p>Dan had felt a gush of cool wind from somewhere over his head and -shifted his quarters to get beneath it and out of the reeking, stifling -atmosphere of the hold. He knew it must come from a pipe running to -one of the great bell-mouthed ventilators on deck and was glad that it -had been turned so as to face and catch the invigorating breeze. He -had not dreamed that the ventilator might serve as a speaking-tube. -While he waited, however, to learn what the wreckers intended to do -next, some one began to talk, and he heard every word distinctly. The -voice sounded so near his ears that he was as startled as if a ghost -had stepped out of the darkness. Dan jumped to his feet, his nerves -all of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span> a quiver. He would have fled anywhere to get away from this -uncanny voice, but a stronger gust of wind struck his upturned face and -the mysterious voice sounded even louder. He thought of the ventilator -pipe, got a grip on himself, and scarcely breathed as he listened -to the odd intonations of the Bahama negro speech. "Black Sam" was -talking. Dan remembered the peculiar guttural cadence of his voice as -he had heard it in Nassau harbor. He must have been standing directly -in front of the ventilator on deck, for every word carried down the -pipe to Dan:</p> - -<p>"Ah don't care nuffin' 'bout de ship. We ain't got no tow-boats to pull -her off. An' if we don't work quick an' soon them Key Westers'll be -a-scatterin' down an' run us back home—you heah me? Take a big bag o' -powdah an' blow de side outen her. Dat's what I say do. De cargo ports -is all jammed fas'. We can't open 'em nohow. An' we ain't got no steam -to hoist wid a donkey-engine. Blow de side outen her. She's hung fas' -on de Reef. She ain't gwine sink. When we'se done loaded our schooners -wid cargo we can strip the brasses in de <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>engine-room. Blow her up. -Ain't I wrecked plenty vessels? Don't I know?"</p> - -<p>Dan heard one of the other wreckers rumble: "Sam knows bes'. Cut de -fuse to burn ten minutes an' let us get back aboard our schooners. Hang -de sack o' powder 'g'inst the ship's plates inside an' let her go. -Reckon we'll blow a hole in her fit to run a tow-boat froo, Sam."</p> - -<p>To Dan Frazier these last words sounded faint and confused, as if -something was the matter with his hearing. He had only time to mutter -"They are going to blow her up and me with her." Then he felt so giddy -that he put out his arms to steady himself. His knees gave way and he -sank down in a heap.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER VII</span> <span class="smaller">A FAT ENGINEER TO THE RESCUE</span></h2> - -<p>Dan Frazier came to himself with the message from the ventilator pipe -surging in his confused brain. The Bahama wreckers were going to blow -up the ship. "A ten-minute fuse," he whispered as he began to crawl -forward to escape from the hold. How long had he been unconscious? The -explosion might come on the next instant. Dan was afraid to face "Black -Sam" Hurley and his lawless crew, but he was far more afraid to stay -below. His only thought was to gain the upper deck and jump overboard -in the hope that the wreckers might pick him up. Fear gave him strength -for the journey, fear such as he had never known before.</p> - -<p>Losing his bearings in his headlong panic, Dan turned toward the side -of the ship, for he had not delayed to relight his lantern. A little -way in front of him a red spark glowed and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span> sputtered. It burned a hole -in the gloom, and Dan stood stock-still and stared as if fascinated. It -was the fuse of the charge of powder. He wanted to run away from it but -his legs refused to carry him.</p> - -<p>When he moved, it was not in flight but straight toward the sputtering -slow-match. It was not in the least a conscious act of bravery. Dan -felt sure that he could not regain the upper deck before the explosion -tore him to pieces. He turned at bay to fight for his life with the -instinct of a hunted animal.</p> - -<p>Springing toward the terrible, winking spark with his fists doubled -as if to ward off an attack, Dan struck at it, tore the trailing fuse -free from its fastening, trampled it under his feet, and pulled it to -bits after the fire was dead. The explosive itself was also an enemy -which he must destroy. As if he were in a delirium, Dan whipped out his -knife, cut the lashing of the sack of powder, and dragged it after him -in his retreat. He came to a hatchway, let the sack drop, and heard it -splash in the water which flooded the lower hold. Then he clawed his -way toward daylight. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span></p> - -<p>Dan no longer cared whether the wreckers saw him or not. No danger -could have forced him down into the hold of the ship again. It was -a place filled with horrors. When he came out into the sunshine and -wind it was a kindly chance which made him lie down in a corner of the -deck that was screened from sight of the wreckers' schooners. Dan had -forgotten all about them. He had come to the end of his rope, and all -he could think of was, "I want to go home. I want to go home."</p> - -<p>"Black Sam" Hurley was impatiently awaiting the explosion which should -tear a gap in the <i>Kenilworth's</i> side and allow his greedy wreckers to -begin operations. Ten, fifteen, twenty minutes passed, and there was a -great hubbub on board the Bahama schooners tossing at a safe distance -from the steamer. At the end of half an hour "Black Sam" ordered a -boat away and the crew crowded in pell-mell. They boarded the lee side -of the <i>Kenilworth</i> with the agility of monkeys and their bare feet -slapped the deck as they ran to the hatch.</p> - -<p>Dan heard them and realized that he must try to find a resting-place -where they would not <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span>discover him upon their return from below. He -might perhaps be unseen if he took refuge on the bridge which the -wreckers were not likely to ransack until later. He managed to drag -his aching, weary body forward and laid down on the mattress behind -the canvas weather screen. After a few minutes he heard the wreckers -come boiling out of the hold with cries of amazement, anger, and fear. -They had expected to find a faulty fuse, but fuse, powder, and all -had vanished. Some of them swore the ship was haunted and refused to -have anything to do with fetching another sack of powder. Their leader -bellowed and threatened, but he could not quell the riot. At last he -yelled that he would lay the second charge himself and stay aboard if -he blew up with it. Scoffing at the idea of ghostly interference, he -ordered his men to search the ship.</p> - -<p>These plans were suddenly knocked all askew. Shouting arose on board -the schooners whose crews were waving their arms toward the north. The -wreckers on the steamer rushed to the side and discovered the cause -of alarm. The funnel and upper works of a tug were lifting from the -sea, beneath a trailing banner of smoke.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span> Dan had been watching the -scene on deck with absorbed attention, and as he looked seaward and -caught sight of the tug his heart stood still. He squinted through -the glasses. There were two white bands around the funnel. Could it -be the <i>Three Sisters</i> of Jacksonville, the big wrecking tug of which -Captain Jim's cousin was master? The streaked smoke-stack and the -stubby derrick-masts—the drab wheel-house—yes, these were things -which Dan remembered noticing when the tug was in Key West. And Captain -Jim must be in her. She was hurrying to find out what had become of the -<i>Kenilworth</i>. "Perhaps they are looking for me," thought Dan. "And I'm -still wrecking master if 'Black Sam' doesn't see me first."</p> - -<p>The Bahama wreckers were very busy with their own affairs. The sight -of the on-coming tug had altered their campaign in a twinkling. "Black -Sam" was now determined to keep possession of the wreck at all hazards, -acting on the theory that he was the wrecking master by the law of the -Reef. He told his men to stay where they were and slid down the side of -the steamer to pull off to the schooners and muster<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span> reinforcements. A -score of stalwart negroes rallied to his summons and tumbled into their -boats.</p> - -<p>A picturesque and piratical looking force they were as they scrambled -over the <i>Kenilworth's</i> bulwarks and scattered along her sea-scarred -decks. "Black Sam" showed his teeth in a snarl as he yelled to them:</p> - -<p>"Dey ain't gwine be no argifying 'bout dis yere wreck. We'se heah an' -we stay heah. If dem tow-boat folks tries to come aboard, keep 'em busy -wid dem belaying-pins yondah an' yo' knives—yo' heah me?"</p> - -<p>The <i>Three Sisters</i> was rapidly nearing the scene. From his ambush Dan -watched her with yearning, happy eyes. He was not yet out of trouble, -but Captain Jim would somehow rescue him in the nick of time. He saw -the powerful tug sweep around to leeward of the Bahama schooners -and slow down as if her people were trying to fathom the situation. -Captain Jim Wetherly was standing by the wheel-house door, shading his -eyes with his hand. Dan wanted to call to him, but he dared not show -himself. The tug crept nearer, and Dan<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span> rejoiced to discover that most -of the <i>Resolute's</i> crew were clustered along the lower deck, including -the portly chief engineer, Bill McKnight, who loomed like a whale among -minnows.</p> - -<p>Presently Captain Jim sung out:</p> - -<p>"What are you Bahama niggers doing aboard that steamer? She belongs to -me. I had hold of her once and am in charge of wrecking her. Clear out -before I put my men aboard."</p> - -<p>A row of black heads bobbed in violent agitation along the -<i>Kenilworth's</i> bulwarks, and "Black Sam" Hurley shouted back with a -loud laugh:</p> - -<p>"Go back home, white man. We foun' dis yere wreck 'bandoned. I'se -wreckin' marster—yo' heah me? If you all wants her, come aboard an' -take her."</p> - -<p>Dan saw Bill McKnight waddle aft in great haste, dive into his room, -and beckon to a <i>Resolute</i> deck-hand. Presently the two reappeared -dragging a long, heavy box which the engineer began to break open with -furious blows of a hatchet.</p> - -<p>"It's the case of Mauser rifles Bill stowed away from the last -filibustering cargo he ran<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span> over to Cuba," murmured Dan. "He said -he was saving 'em to start another revolution with. Hooray! hooray! -there'll be something doing."</p> - -<p>Bill McKnight was passing the rifles out to the eager crew of the -<i>Resolute</i> who looked as if they were about to earn their passage -aboard the <i>Three Sisters</i>. Captain Jim made one jump from the upper -deck, without delaying to find the stairway, and caught up a rifle and -a handful of cartridges. Once more he shouted to the wreckers on the -<i>Kenilworth</i>:</p> - -<p>"If you want trouble we'll give you plenty. Are you coming off?"</p> - -<p>"We ain't scared by dem guns," yelled "Black Sam." "You ain't got no -rights in dis vessel. You all don't dare to do no shootin'."</p> - -<p>"I've got the underwriter's agent aboard this tug, and he knows the -facts," returned Captain Jim. "You are pirates and I intend to have no -monkey-business. I know all about you, Sam Hurley."</p> - -<p>"Show yo' claim on dis wreck. We'se heah. You ain't," replied the negro.</p> - -<p>Dan could hold in no longer. He poked his head above the canvas screen -of the bridge,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span> waved both arms over his head, and yelled at the top of -his voice:</p> - -<p>"You bet we're here, Uncle Jim. And I'm wrecking master and it is your -job."</p> - -<p>The men on the <i>Three Sisters</i> dropped their rifles and stared in -silence, with mouths agape. It was a voice and a vision from the dead. -"Black Sam" and his wreckers stood poised in their various threatening -attitudes as if petrified. It was a strange tableau. If Dan had -hopped off a passing cloud he could not have caused a more breathless -sensation. The spell which his appearance cast on all who beheld him -was broken by the jubilant voice of Captain Jim:</p> - -<p>"It's Dan Frazier sure enough. Thank God you're alive and kicking, boy. -Captain Bruce reported you drowned, and nobody's dared to tell your -mother till I could get out to the wreck. Hold your nerve. We're coming -after you."</p> - -<p>The words awoke "Black Sam" Hurley to swift action. He was beside -himself with rage at the boy on the steamer's bridge who had spoiled -the explosion and then made a jest of his claims as wrecking-master. -The desperate<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span> negro had only one idea in his head—to square matters -by getting his hands on Dan. He ran toward the bridge with several of -his men at his heels, and Dan hastily climbed on the rail ready to jump -overboard as the only way of escape. But before the wreckers had gained -his refuge, he heard Captain Jim cry:</p> - -<p>"Hold on, Dan. Don't jump. Duck and lie flat where you are."</p> - -<p>The boy flopped full length on the bridge an instant before several -rifles barked on the <i>Three Sisters</i> and bullets came singing over the -<i>Kenilworth</i>. The wreckers halted, huddled in confusion, and ran for -the shelter of the nearest deck-house. "Black Sam" delayed to hurl an -iron belaying-pin at Dan's head and paid dearly for the act. It was -Bill McKnight who drove a bullet through his arm and made him fly for -cover with blood trickling from his fingers. Then the clarion tones of -the fat chief engineer sounded across the water as if he had taken full -command of the expedition:</p> - -<p>"Half a dozen of you men stay here to sweep the <i>Kenilworth's</i> bulwarks -with your guns and give us a chance to climb over. The rest follow<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span> me -to board her. <i>A la machete!</i> Out cutlasses. <i>Viva Cuba!</i> Hip, hip, -hooroo!"</p> - -<p>Two boats were fairly thrown into the water from the <i>Three Sisters</i> -and the cheering <i>Resolutes</i> fell into them, grabbing capstan bars -and coal shovels, or clubbing their rifles. The Bahama wreckers had -no intention of being driven from their prize without making a fight -for it. Several of them pulled revolvers from inside their shirts and -popped wildly away at the approaching boats while "Black Sam" led a -crowd of his followers behind the tall bulwark where they crouched, -sheltered from rifle fire, and ready to receive the boarders as they -came over the side. Captain Jim was in the bow of one boat, the chief -engineer in the other. The wreckers had been unable to cut away the -dangling boat ropes and bowlines by which they had climbed on board, -and the attacking party ascended like so many acrobats. Bill McKnight -was boosted and hauled part way, but as soon as he found a secure -purchase for his fingers and toes, he dove over the bulwark like a -landslide and pranced into action like a cyclone.</p> - -<p>It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span>boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century. The <i>Resolutes</i> suffered some cracked heads and -bloody faces before they gained foothold and swept forward. Try as -he would, Captain Jim could not keep the terrific pace set by Bill -McKnight who was swinging his rifle like a flail and clearing a wide -path while he grunted maledictions at the foe.</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i141.jpg" id="i141.jpg"></a><img src="images/i141.jpg" alt="a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding" /></div> - -<p class="bold">It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the -prosaic <br/>twentieth century</p> - -<p>"You're blockin' my way, you google-eyed thief. <i>Bing!</i> there's one on -the cocoanut," he panted with a cheerful grin as he smote a stalwart -wrecker and sent him spinning.</p> - -<p>"We're a-coming, Dan. Keep your reserved seat," he bellowed to the -bridge as he wiped the sweat from his eyes. "Black Sam's" men could not -withstand the determined and disciplined onslaught and began to leap -overboard, <i>plop! plop!</i> into the green sea over which the boats from -their schooners were racing to pick them up. Only their leader stayed -behind, sullenly nursing his wounded arm. Captain Jim halted long -enough to tell him:</p> - -<p>"My men will take you aboard the tug and patch you up from my medicine -chest. Then you'd better make sail for home. The Reef<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span> isn't healthy -for your breed of Nassau wreckers. Better pass the word among your -friends."</p> - -<p>Then Captain Jim ran to the bridge, but Bill McKnight was already -hugging Dan and fairly blubbering over him. The boy was too weak to -struggle out of this crushing embrace, but he waggled a free hand to -Captain Jim and stammered:</p> - -<p>"W-wow, ouch. Glad to see you aboard."</p> - -<p>"Glad to see us aboard, you rascal," laughed his uncle as he yanked the -engineer away and thumped Dan on the back. "<i>Well</i>, we're tickled to -death to see <i>you</i> aboard. How in the—, of all the— Whew, what are -you doing here anyhow, Dan?"</p> - -<p>His nephew made a brave attempt to answer him. Now was the time to play -the hero, to tell how he had stuck to the ship and saved her. But Dan -Frazier was no hero. He was just a stout-hearted lad who had weathered -one cruel ordeal after another with the Almighty's aid, and he had -hung on to himself as long as he could. Now there was no more call for -courage. He was safe and the ship had been restored to Uncle Jim. Tears -streamed down Dan's face<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span> and he swayed against Bill McKnight who put a -steadying arm around him.</p> - -<p>"I—I'm just tired out, I—I guess," he sobbed. "Please take me home, -Uncle Jim. I—I want my mother."</p> - -<p>Bill McKnight coughed and wiped his eyes as he lifted Dan's feet clear -of the deck, while Captain Jim lent his sturdy arms to the task of -carrying the boy to the ship's side and lowering him into a boat. -They got him aboard the <i>Three Sisters</i> without mishap, took off his -tattered, grimy clothing, and tucked him in the captain's bunk.</p> - -<p>"The boy is bruised and scratched from head to foot," said the master -of the tug, Captain Jim's cousin. "We'd better sponge him down with hot -water and arnica. He must have had a tougher time of it than most grown -men could live through, Jim. See here, these are fresh burns on his -hands. Now, where did he get those?"</p> - -<p>"The Lord only knows," said Captain Jim as he patted Dan's flushed -cheek. "Don't pester him with questions now. He's got some fever and -his eyes look bad to me. I'm going<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span> to leave McKnight on the wreck with -some of my men to stand off any other kinky-headed pirates that may -light on the Reef. And we're going to take this boy home to his mother -as fast as you can poke this old hooker of yours into Key West."</p> - -<p>Dan opened his eyes and smiled at Captain Jim who motioned him to be -quiet. But Dan was already restless with fever and he had a hundred -things to talk about if they would only stop whirling around in his -head long enough to be laid hold of. He looked at his scorched fingers -which were pecking at a corner of the blanket and said in a voice so -weak that it sounded foolish to him:</p> - -<p>"They tried to blow her up—to blow Jerry Pringle up—no, I don't mean -that. It was 'Black Sam' Hurley—he lit the fuse, Uncle Jim—and I put -it out—all alone down in the hold. You never saw such big rats—with -sacks of powder tied to their tails—and eyes like sparks."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim soothed Dan as best he could and whispered to his cousin:</p> - -<p>"Did you get that? It's all true, I reckon. That's an old trick of the -Bahama wrecking<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span> gangs. Ask Mr. Prentice to come in. The underwriters -ought to be interested in the boy."</p> - -<p>Mr. Prentice, the Florida agent of the English marine insurance -companies, was a sharp-featured, elderly gentleman of few words. He had -a great deal of confidence in Captain Wetherly's ability to handle such -a bad business as a costly steamer high and dry on the Reef, but he was -not prepared to hear such an astonishing tale as was whispered to him -in the doorway of the captain's state-room.</p> - -<p>"Mind you, we don't know a quarter of it yet," added Captain Jim. "But -it looks as if you'll have to thank Dan Frazier, not me, for saving the -steamer out yonder."</p> - -<p>"U-m-m. Bless me, but it's most extraordinary," murmured Mr. Prentice. -"I must go aboard at once and look for confirmation. It's a very -unusual wreck, Captain Wetherly," and the underwriter's agent shot a -keen glance from under his gray brows. "I shall be much interested in -getting Captain Bruce's version. Jeremiah Pringle was off here, also, -the night the <i>Kenilworth</i> went ashore, was he not? I understand you -were in collision with him next day." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mr. Prentice had slightly raised his voice. It carried to Dan's ears -and he raised himself on his elbow and cried out in excitement:</p> - -<p>"We'll pull her off, Uncle Jim, and Barton won't know. And his mother -won't know. Don't let them know. The captain is sorry. We can handle it -all by ourselves."</p> - -<p>"The lad is off his head, and no wonder," said Captain Jim, addressing -the keen-eyed underwriter's agent. "Come outside, if you please."</p> - -<p>"What are you holding back?" asked Mr. Prentice severely as they moved -away from the door. "I intend to get to the bottom of this, you know. -There is some mystery about it that is eating that lad's heart out."</p> - -<p>"I haven't time to talk," was the reply. "But I'm going to get that -ship off for you, thanks to the boy in there. And if we <i>are</i> holding -anything back, it will have to stay hid and hawsers couldn't pull it -out of me."</p> - -<p>He went aft to meet Bill McKnight who had come over from the -<i>Kenilworth</i> to get his orders.</p> - -<p>"How's the boy?" anxiously asked the engineer.</p> - -<p>"Pretty sick, I'm afraid, Bill. But home will<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span> cure him if anything -will. He's talking wild and saying too much."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim jerked his thumb over his shoulder at Mr. Prentice and -went on, "It's the mysterious ways of Providence, Bill. Captain Bruce -gave the dirty business away when he was queer in his head aboard the -<i>Resolute</i> at Pensacola, and Dan has put that gimlet-eyed agent on the -track by going daffy here. You can peek in at the boy, and then you -hustle your dunnage and pick your men and go to the <i>Kenilworth</i>. I'll -be back to-morrow, and more tugs and lighters will be on the way. Take -Mr. Prentice along with you. Good luck."</p> - -<p>The engineer tiptoed into Dan's room and laid his rough hand on the -pillow. He looked down in silence while his gray moustache quivered -as if strong emotion was held in check. Then he lumbered on deck and -prepared to quit the tug. A few minutes later the "jingle bell" rang -boisterously and its clamor was borne to Dan. He smiled at Captain Jim -and murmured:</p> - -<p>"Full speed ahead! And mother will come down to the wharf when she -hears our whistle off the red buoy."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER VIII</span> <span class="smaller">A FOG OF SUSPICIONS</span></h2> - -<p>It was not until a fortnight after Dan Frazier had been taken home to -Key West that he was allowed to leave his room and lounge in a wicker -chair on the cottage porch. His face and hands were thinner and the sea -tan could not hide the pallor caused by fever, but he looked at the -glad, green world with bright eyes and clamored for food like a young -cormorant. His mother, who fluttered about him with fond anxiety, had -tried to banish all mention of the <i>Kenilworth</i>, but now that he was -able to be outdoors he fairly bullied her with questions which had been -disturbing his days and nights of illness.</p> - -<p>"I am sure Barton is as fond of you as ever," said she. "He may have -been angry at first, but he has been here to ask about you almost every -day. He told me you had nothing to do with his father's tug being cut -in two by brother<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span> Jim, but he said you hooted at him when it happened. -That wasn't like my Dan."</p> - -<p>Her son tried to look repentant, but his eyes twinkled and he grinned -as he replied:</p> - -<p>"It wasn't nice of Bart to laugh at me while his cantankerous old -daddy's tug was keeping the <i>Resolute</i> away from the wreck. How did -Bart explain the smash-up?"</p> - -<p>"He as much as said that Jim Wetherly behaved like a pirate and a -lunatic, though of course Barton is too polite to put it in so many -words," confessed Mrs. Frazier with a sigh. "It has made a lot of talk -in Key West. Mr. Pringle swears he is going to take it into court. He -declares he had made a contract with the captain of the <i>Kenilworth</i> -when along came Jim and rammed him to get the job away from him."</p> - -<p>"Made a contract with the <i>Kenilworth</i>! I should say Jerry Pringle -did," snorted Dan with rising color. "He made his rotten contract in -Pensacola, months before the ship was wrecked. He didn't get half -what's coming to him. I wish Uncle Jim had sunk the <i>Henry Foster</i>. -What else has happened?"</p> - -<p>"Captain Bruce has called twice to see you.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span> And since meeting him I am -more skeptical than ever about your conspiracy story, Dan."</p> - -<p>"Captain Bruce been here? So you like him, too, do you?" exclaimed Dan. -"Were all hands saved from the wreck?"</p> - -<p>"They got away from the ship in their boats at daylight," answered Mrs. -Frazier. "Captain Bruce had some ribs broken by being dashed against -the side, and two boats were swamped. But they reached the keys with -all hands and were picked up a day later by a sponger and brought down -the Hawk Channel to Key West. Captain Bruce was broken-hearted over -losing you, and when he heard you were still alive he insisted on -leaving the hospital and coming up here, broken ribs and all. He seems -very moody and depressed. I suppose he is unhappy about losing his -ship."</p> - -<p>"He is thinking about several things, I reckon," said Dan. "That ship -has made everybody unhappy. She is loaded with trouble. Captain Bruce -is sorry he ever clapped eyes on Jerry Pringle for one thing. And he -hates himself even worse for not sticking to his vessel. And he quit -her and left me on board to come<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span> through the gale all right with the -ship still under me. What is he planning to do now?"</p> - -<p>"Wait, and take the <i>Kenilworth</i> again if she is floated," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "He is going up to the Reef as soon as the doctor will let -him."</p> - -<p>She walked to the end of the porch and brushed aside the tangle of -vines which partly screened her view of the street. Then she turned and -said to Dan:</p> - -<p>"Here comes Mr. Prentice and I think he intends to call here. What a -very stiff and formal looking person he is!"</p> - -<p>The underwriters' agent opened the gate with a courtly bow to Mrs. -Frazier. His greetings were most polite, but he lost no time in coming -to the point. Mrs. Frazier was about to withdraw, but Dan spoke up -sharply:</p> - -<p>"If it's about the <i>Kenilworth</i>, Mr. Prentice, I want my mother to -stay. I keep no secrets from her."</p> - -<p>Mr. Prentice bowed gravely and seated himself facing Dan, who could not -help feeling that this elderly gentleman was unfriendly to him. The -underwriters' agent opened fire without further warning: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span></p> - -<p>"I am pleased to note your rapid recovery from a very trying -experience, Mr. Frazier. As you may know, I represent English insurance -interests which wrote a total of a hundred thousand pounds sterling -on the <i>Kenilworth</i> and her cargo. If the efforts to float the vessel -prove successful, the loss may be comparatively small."</p> - -<p>Mr. Prentice adjusted his glasses, cleared his throat, and resumed with -emphatic earnestness:</p> - -<p>"You hinted at having prevented a disastrous explosion in the steamer's -hold, Mr. Frazier. You may not recall the words you used. It was after -you were taken on board the tug <i>Three Sisters</i>. I have made the most -thorough examination of the <i>Kenilworth</i> and failed to find any traces -of explosives."</p> - -<p>"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't get very -far," hotly cried Dan. "Do you think I cooked up that yarn to get -a reward out of the insurance companies? Did you fish in the water -amidships for a sack of powder? Wait till the ship is pumped out and -I'll find it for you fast enough."</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i155.jpg" id="i155.jpg"></a><img src="images/i155.jpg" alt="If you are going to call me a liar" /></div> - -<p class="bold">"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you -won't <br />get very far!"</p> - -<p>Mrs. Frazier laid her hand on the lad's<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span> shoulder, whispered in his -ear, and he sank sulkily back in his chair while the unruffled Mr. -Prentice asked:</p> - -<p>"Why did you dump the powder down the hatch instead of letting it stay -where it was as evidence of the dastardly attempt of the wreckers?"</p> - -<p>"I didn't know what I was doing," exclaimed Dan in a flare of -impatience. "I was scared clean out of my wits. I was afraid to turn my -back on that bag of powder. Maybe you wouldn't have been as cool as an -ice-chest, either, and thinking about <i>evidence</i>. What the dickens are -you driving at anyhow?"</p> - -<p>"I will drop this matter for the present," said Mr. Prentice, fishing -out a small note-book as if to confirm his recollection before he -declared:</p> - -<p>"I heard you say on board the <i>Three Sisters</i>, '<i>Don't let them know. -Keep it dark. We can handle it all by ourselves. The captain is sorry -he did it.</i>' What did you mean, Mr. Frazier? This wreck is to be -investigated. I am already convinced that certain persons on board -the tug <i>Resolute</i> had advance information of the intended loss of -the <i>Kenilworth</i>. Your tug had<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span> steam up and her crew on board for -several days before the disaster. Captain Wetherly started for sea in -a tremendous hurry after getting a cable message that the <i>Kenilworth</i> -had passed Jupiter Light. I have copies of the message he sent asking -for this information and the reply from the Government signal station. -Then, as if to prevent interference with a bargain made in advance, -Captain Wetherly deliberately cut down and disabled the tug <i>Henry -Foster</i>. I believe you know the truth. What did you mean by '<i>Don't let -them know? Keep it dark?</i>'"</p> - -<p>Dan looked bewildered for a moment and stared at Mr. Prentice who -seemed to be talking the sheerest nonsense. Then, as the meaning of -these suspicions filtered into the boy's mind, his face became red -with wrath and astonishment. His world was turning topsy-turvy. The -underwriters' agent was actually accusing Captain Jim Wetherly and the -<i>Resolute</i> of the wicked deed which they had been trying to mend—of -plotting to put the <i>Kenilworth</i> on the Reef! Why, this was like one of -the dreams of Dan's weeks of fever. At length he pulled himself to his -feet and fairly shouted: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span></p> - -<p>"I know who started this crazy story of yours, Mr. Prentice. Jerry -Pringle must be at the bottom of it. Do you mean to say you have -listened to such infernal lies about a man like Captain Jim Wetherly? -You didn't understand what I was talking about on board the <i>Three -Sisters</i>. And do you think <i>we</i> had anything to do with the stranding -of Captain Bruce's steamer? Do you want to know the truth? I'll tell -you the truth—No, I won't. Captain Jim is my skipper and I must take -my orders from him. He told me to keep my mouth shut, and I can't say -anything until he gives me the word."</p> - -<p>Mrs. Frazier was wringing her hands as she stood between Mr. Prentice -and Dan, as if trying to shield her boy from harm. "Dan must not talk -to you another minute," she exclaimed indignantly. "He is all of a -tremble now. It is cruel of you to torment and bully him, Mr. Prentice."</p> - -<p>The underwriters' agent apologized and tried to explain his errand in -more detail.</p> - -<p>"I like your boy, Mrs. Frazier. He is a manly fellow. I am inclined -to believe that he is prompted by good motives. He is loyal to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span> -Captain Wetherly and the <i>Resolute</i>, which is quite natural. But this -<i>Kenilworth</i> affair looks like a bad business from start to finish. -Something was in the wind before the steamer went ashore, and it is my -duty to get at the facts without sparing any one's feelings. I want Dan -to think it over and I shall have another talk with him when he feels a -bit stronger."</p> - -<p>"Why don't you tackle Captain Bruce and make him tell what he knows?" -burst out Dan. "What does he say about it?"</p> - -<p>"The case of Captain Bruce will be disposed of in London," answered Mr. -Prentice; "but the evidence must be gathered in Key West."</p> - -<p>He reluctantly took his departure and, as his tall, spare figure -moved down the street, Dan followed Mrs. Frazier into the cottage and -declared:</p> - -<p>"This notion of fighting to keep disgrace and exposure away from Bart -Pringle and his mother has gone about far enough. Do you suppose I am -going to have you dragged into it, all because Jerry Pringle is smart -enough to cover up his tracks and shift the suspicion to Uncle Jim? Not -in a thousand years. Uncle<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span> Jim will have to come to Key West and clear -himself somehow."</p> - -<p>A heavy footfall sounded on the porch and the spoon on Dan's medicine -glass jingled as the ponderous presence of Bill McKnight filled the -outside doorway while he raised his big voice in "Ship, ahoy? Is Dan -aboard?"</p> - -<p>"The very man I want to see. Come in," called Dan. "He won't excite me, -mother, he'll be just like a hogshead of soothing syrup."</p> - -<p>The chief engineer advanced cautiously, as if not quite certain how to -handle himself in a sickroom, and whispered hoarsely:</p> - -<p>"Keep perfectly cool and calm, my boy. We'll say nothing at all about -wrecks, riots, and revolutions, will we, Mrs. Frazier? Birds and -flowers and how's the weather, eh? They're the topics."</p> - -<p>"Oh, shucks," was Dan's rude comment. "I want to know all about -everything, don't I, mother? Where is the <i>Resolute</i>? What's the news -from Captain Jim?"</p> - -<p>Mr. McKnight turned to Dan's mother and waited for orders. She nodded -her assent, and the visitor set himself down in a chair which<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span> creaked -and groaned. Then he extracted a package from his white duck coat and -removed the paper wrapping. A glass jar was revealed which Mr. McKnight -placed on the table with the explanation:</p> - -<p>"Calf's-foot jelly, ma'am. I had to cable for it. There's a poor crop -of calves in Key West. I've never been sick myself, except when I got -my head busted, or broke an arm or leg, or got shot up. But we fished -a box of books out of an English wreck one time, and they were mostly -novels. We dried 'em out in the engine-room and all hands read 'em. And -whenever anybody in them yarns took sick, I'm blessed if the vicar's -wife, or the squire's daughter, or the young ladies next door, didn't -trot in with this here calf's-foot jelly. They used tons of it in every -novel, ma'am. I reckon it'll put Dan on his pins."</p> - -<p>The chief engineer wiped his face and fixed a pair of spectacles on his -ruddy nose, after which he gazed searchingly at Dan as if to satisfy -himself that the boy was all there. Bashfully waving his paw as if to -ward off Mrs. Frazier's laughing thanks, he went on to say: </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span></p> - -<p>"The <i>Resolute</i> is almost ready for sea and your berth is waiting for -you, Dan. Captain Jim jerked the life out of her when he fetched away -the towing-bitts. She was most as sad a sight as the <i>Henry Foster</i>. -I've just come down from the Reef to see that the repairs are all -ship-shape and run her to sea in three or four days."</p> - -<p>"Can't I go in her, mother?" begged Dan. "I won't do any work. Tell the -doctor the air will do me good. I've simply got to see the wreck. How -about it, Mr. McKnight? Is she really going to come off?"</p> - -<p>"You'd think so, if she brings a chunk of the Reef along with her," -chuckled the engineer. "Captain Jim has built two coffer-dams in her, -where her bottom was ripped out. He'll begin to pump 'em out next week. -That will lift the bulk of the water out of her. And the wrecking pumps -can handle the rest of the leaks. He's a terrible man is Captain Jim, -when he gets a full head of steam in his boilers. He's patching up -the bulkheads, lightering the cargo, got a force of mechanics in the -engine-room, and so on till she hums like a beehive. Good weather,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span> -Reef like a mill-pond, and two chartered tugs waiting to hook on to -her, not to mention the <i>Resolute</i>."</p> - -<p>"That beats doctors and calf's-foot jelly for putting me on my toes -again," was Dan's jubilant comment. "Have you heard anything ashore -here about her going on the Reef?"</p> - -<p>Mrs. Frazier tried to head off this agitating topic, but Mr. McKnight -failed to comprehend her manœuvres and briskly replied:</p> - -<p>"No, I just come away from the Reef and hustled straight up here from -looking over the <i>Resolute</i>. There's nothing leaked out, has there? I'd -like to see somebody punished, you understand, but Captain Jim told me -to shut up and stay shut up."</p> - -<p>"Well, <i>we</i> are accused of putting up the <i>Kenilworth</i> job," exclaimed -Dan. "Don't mind mother. She's one of us. If you're going to have a -fit, please go outside. This house isn't big enough."</p> - -<p>Mr. McKnight was too taken aback to display any violent emotion. He -wiped his spectacles with great care, as if they had something to do -with his hearing, and asked Dan to "say it<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span> again, and say it slower." -Dan told him all about the visit of the underwriters' agent, whereupon -Mr. McKnight raised both hands and exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"Hold on, boy. It all sounds plumb raving crazy to you, but there may -be a heap more in it than you think. Who knew Jerry Pringle was aboard -the <i>Resolute</i> that night in Pensacola harbor? You and me and Captain -Jim, and the cook and galley boy. The rest of the crew was ashore or -down below. Did you know that the cook and the galley boy quit the -<i>Resolute</i> last week and went up the Gulf to ship on a Central American -fruiter? They may be mighty hard to find if Jerry Pringle had anything -to do with getting them out of the way. Where are our witnesses, eh? -And you tell me old man Prentice has copies of the cable messages that -prove Captain Jim was waiting for the <i>Kenilworth</i>? They may be mighty -hard to explain."</p> - -<p>"How about Captain Bruce?" asked Dan with a very sober face. "He is the -only man that can clear it all up in a jiffy."</p> - -<p>"I can't quite fathom him, Dan. Sometimes I think he only needs a good -strong shove to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span> make him own up to it all and take his medicine like a -man. But supposing Pringle offers him the ten thousand dollars anyhow -to saddle the job on us <i>Resolutes</i>? It's worth that to Jerry to save -his own skin."</p> - -<p>"Captain Jim must get after Captain Bruce and make him tell the truth -if he has to choke it out of him," cried Dan in great excitement. "As -soon as we pull the <i>Kenilworth</i> off the Reef there is going to be a -fight to a finish."</p> - -<p>"You ain't quite fit for wrecking or fighting, and your mother will -scold me directly for getting your bearings hot," quoth Mr. McKnight. -"You just sit tight and maybe you can go up to the Reef in the -<i>Resolute</i> with me."</p> - -<p>With this the chief engineer departed under full steam, evidently -afraid of facing Dan's mother. The patient suffered no relapse, -however, and felt so much stronger next day that Mrs. Frazier suggested -a walk as far as the parade-ground of the artillery barracks, hoping -to give him a respite from any more disturbing visitors. They strolled -slowly through quaint crooked streets of the sea-girt town, into the -shaded plaza of the garrison which faced an<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span> expanse of green lagoon -and low mangrove-covered keys. A wharf ran out from the seawall in -front of them and they walked idly toward it to look at the schooners -beating up to the town.</p> - -<p>Dan delayed to watch a distant sail which was scudding in from one of -the near-by keys. Presently he called out:</p> - -<p>"Don't wait for me, mother. That's the <i>Sombrero</i> yonder, and she will -pass within hail of the wharf. I'm going out there and catch Bart -Pringle as he scoots by."</p> - -<p>The boys had not met since Dan's return from the Reef, and Dan was a -trifle surprised that Bart had let the last three days pass without -calling to see him. "I want to beg his pardon for laughing at him when -the <i>Henry Foster</i> was stood on her ear," reflected Dan as he walked -toward the end of the wharf. "We have a pack of things to talk about, -and I must be awful careful not to say a word against his father. But -there's due to be a rumpus before long."</p> - -<p>The <i>Sombrero</i> tore past with a free sheet, fluttered into the wind, -and slid gracefully up to the wharf. Dan jumped onto the bowsprit and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span> -footed it aft with a cheery greeting to Bart who was busy with sheets -and tiller.</p> - -<p>"Hello, Dan. Glad you feel so spry. Want to run down to the fort and -back?" said Bart without his usual smile. His manner was so glum, in -fact, that Dan spoke up rather sharply:</p> - -<p>"What in the world has happened to you? Has the <i>Sombrero</i> been beaten -while I was laid up? My goodness, I thought you'd be glad to see me."</p> - -<p>Bart rubbed his head, scowled at the main-sail, and sighed before he -responded with an effort:</p> - -<p>"I've got to tell you, Dan. Mind you, I don't take any stock in it, but -I hate myself for letting it worry me. It's about the <i>Kenilworth</i>. -It's too tough to repeat, really it is, but you ought to have a chance -to come out and nail it as a lie. They say Captain Jim Wetherly knew -she was going on the Reef, and that you knew it, too. I wish——"</p> - -<p>"And you listened to such stuff?" Dan fiercely broke in. "Who told it -to you?"</p> - -<p>"Mr. Prentice asked me a lot of questions and I couldn't help seeing -what he was trying to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span> prove, Dan. I asked my father about it and he -seemed to think things looked pretty black for Captain Jim. And father -is mighty seldom fooled about anything that goes on along the Reef. I -want to tell him that you say it's all foolishness. He would be mighty -glad to have it cleared up all right for Captain Jim Wetherly. And he -knows how chummy I am with you."</p> - -<p>"Y-you asked your f-father about it?" stuttered Dan and his eyes were -blazing. "Bart Pringle, you make my head dizzy. Look here, I'll tell -you one thing that's straight goods. I wouldn't believe <i>you</i> were -guilty of a murder, not if they had a million witnesses, unless I saw -you do it with my own two eyes. And as for the <i>Kenilworth</i>, whether -Captain Bruce meant to put her on the Reef or not, Captain Jim Wetherly -had nothing to do with it. And that's all I can tell you. Of course -that lets me out."</p> - -<p>Dan's heart was sore that his chum's loyalty should have been shaken in -the slightest degree, but he tried to be fair, and added in a milder -tone:</p> - -<p>"Mr. Prentice got things all snarled up somehow, but it's sure to come -out right. Maybe<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span> I ought not to blame you for being worried, Bart. -Things have been happening mighty fast for all hands concerned."</p> - -<p>By this time Barton was honestly ashamed of himself and could think -of nothing to say but a stammering apology which Dan accepted with a -rather gloomy nod. It was the nearest their friendship had ever come -to a break, and both boys would have preferred an open quarrel to this -cloud of aggrieved misunderstanding. There was little more talk between -them while the sloop crashed into the long seas of the outer roadstead. -After they had put her about and were heading homeward, Dan exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"There's the good old <i>Resolute</i> at her dock, and she is getting up -steam. She must be 'most ready to go to the Reef. Put me alongside, -Bart. I want to look her over. I'll walk home from there."</p> - -<p>As Dan sprang up the deck of the tug he was hailed by the chief -engineer. Leading the way to his state-room, Mr. McKnight picked Dan up -bodily, tossed him on the bunk, locked the door, and spoke as follows:</p> - -<p>"Things are a-popping red-hot, my boy.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span> Captain Jim landed from the -Reef an hour ago. I told him all I knew about his being suspected of -the crooked job, and what does our busy skipper do then? He promptly -lays for Jerry Pringle. Does he beat him to death, same as I figured -on doing sooner or later? No, Captain Jim, as usual, does what you -least expect. He tells Pringle that he needs help on the <i>Kenilworth</i> -wreck. Weather looks unsettled; must lighter more cargo out of her -quicker than blazes; needs all the schooners he can lay his hands on, -and is in a desperate hurry for another tug. Then he up and offers J. -Pringle a contract to take all his vessels up to the <i>Kenilworth</i> and -go along himself as assistant boss on the wreck. Jerry hems and haws, -but Captain Jim looks him square in the eye and tells him to have that -Tampa tug of his ready for sea at daylight to-morrow. And Jerry agrees -as meek as Moses and goes off to find the skipper of his vessels."</p> - -<p>"But why and what for?" exclaimed Dan. "Jerry Pringle working for -Captain Jim on the <i>Kenilworth</i>! It's too much for me to fathom."</p> - -<p>"For one thing, Captain Jim needs his help to get the steamer off," -returned Bill McKnight.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span> "There isn't a smarter wrecker on the coast -than this same Pringle. The love of wrecking is in his blood, and -it fairly kills him to be idle with a fine, big ship on the Reef. -Now that his plot to lose the <i>Kenilworth</i> is spoiled, why shouldn't -he win a nice pot of money by helping save her? Then, again, maybe -Captain Jim wants to heap coals on his head till he hollers for a -fire-extinguisher. There is going to be something doing on the Reef, -Dan. Better come along with us. You will be plenty strong enough if you -have eaten up all that calf's-foot jelly I lugged up to you."</p> - -<p>"Where does Captain Bruce come in?" asked Dan. "Will he be on the -<i>Kenilworth</i>, too?"</p> - -<p>"He goes up in the <i>Resolute</i> with us, but Jerry Pringle doesn't know -it," answered Mr. McKnight with a solemn wink. "Everybody that has -played a hand in this game is going to round to on the deck of that -unfortunate steamer in a couple of days from now, and I'm a poor -guesser if it don't turn out to be a lively reunion before she comes -off the Reef."</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER IX</span> <span class="smaller">THE BROKEN HAWSER</span></h2> - -<p>The battered <i>Kenilworth</i> lay heeled far over to one side, looming -forlornly from the Reef in the midst of a smooth and sparkling sea. -Her sides were gray with brine and streaked red with rust, her grimy -decks strewn with a chaotic litter of cargo, timbers, and rigging. -The once trim, seagoing steamer made a most distressful picture as -seen from the <i>Resolute</i> which was bearing down from the direction of -Key West. Captain Bruce was standing in the bows of the tug. Gazing -at his helpless ship, he found it very hard to realize that he had -deliberately placed the <i>Kenilworth</i> in this pitiful plight.</p> - -<p>She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for good and all, -but it was plain to see that the wreckers did not think so. Cargo -was tumbling from her ports into lighters strung alongside, tugs -hovered fussily near-by, and groups of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span> active men toiled at capstans, -derrick-booms, and donkey-engines.</p> - -<div class="center"><a name="i175.jpg" id="i175.jpg"></a><img src="images/i175.jpg" alt="She looked as if she had laid her bones" /></div> - -<p class="bold">She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all</p> - -<p>"It looks like trying to float her before long," Captain Wetherly sung -down from the wheel-house of the <i>Resolute</i>. "Come up here, Captain -Bruce. I want to show you something."</p> - -<p>The master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> mounted the ladder with an air of -reluctance, for it hurt him even to talk about the ship. He looked worn -and haggard and he could not rid himself of a great dread lest the -<i>Kenilworth</i> might not be floated after all.</p> - -<p>He was cheered, however, by the buoyant confidence of Captain Jim -Wetherly who exclaimed with a note of mirth in his voice:</p> - -<p>"There's a sight to make you rub your eyes, Captain Bruce. That is -Jerry Pringle's tug from Tampa on the port quarter of the <i>Kenilworth</i>. -And there he goes up the side. Hooray! see him chase that gang of his -down the hatch. He is surely shoving the job along for all he's worth. -That's his way when he once buckles down to it."</p> - -<p>"But you were fighting each other alongside my ship not long ago. I -don't understand it," commented Captain Bruce. </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span></p> - -<p>Captain Jim led the other man out of ear-shot of the wheel-house and -told him with a grim smile:</p> - -<p>"Jerry Pringle expected to work on this wreck. You know that even -better than I do. I upset some plans of his, and yours. Now he has to -do the job <i>my</i> way—understand? Do you know that I am suspected of -plotting with you to put this ship on the Reef, Captain Bruce? You -haven't heard it from Mr. Prentice? Um-m; well, you will hear a whole -lot more about it from me before this ship of yours slides off into -deep water."</p> - -<p>The master of the <i>Kenilworth</i> winced at the threatening tone of these -words, and his face was very red as he tried to bluster it out:</p> - -<p>"What rot! That Prentice is a doddering old fool. Talking behind my -back, is he? Of all the wicked, silly nonsense! Well, upon my word!"</p> - -<p>"That will do for you," was Captain Jim's curt reply. "<i>You</i> are going -to clear me. I kept my mouth shut to shield some innocent people, women -and children, friends and kinfolk of mine—do you see? I expect to -give<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span> your ship back to you. And you are going to do the square thing -by me. Think it over and think hard."</p> - -<p>Captain Wetherly faced about and left the other gazing with a troubled -frown at the <i>Kenilworth</i>. Presently Dan hailed his uncle:</p> - -<p>"Bart Pringle came along with his father, sir. I'd like to go aboard -the wreck and see him if you don't mind, sir."</p> - -<p>"Go ahead, Dan. Last time you two lads met on that deck you bristled -at each other like two terrier pups. But I don't expect to cut his -dad's tow-boat in two this trip, so I reckon you'll be glad to see each -other."</p> - -<p>Dan followed Captain Bruce up the steamer's side and found Barton -dangling his legs from a heap of hatch-covers.</p> - -<p>"Why don't you get busy? I want you to know that I am the real -wrecking master of this vessel," cried Dan as he thumped his friend on -the back with a generous impulse to forgive and forget their recent -misunderstanding. "I never saw a Pringle that was willing to loaf ten -seconds on a wreck. Gracious, look at your father. You can't see him -for dust." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mr. Jeremiah Pringle was, indeed, making good his surprising contract -with Captain Jim Wetherly. He viewed a difficult task of wrecking as a -personal battle between the Reef and himself; his brains, brawn, and -courage matched against the perils of the sea. While the boys watched -him drive his crew of hardy wreckers, Bart remarked:</p> - -<p>"I thought father and Captain Jim were red-hot at each other over -the <i>Henry Foster</i> business, didn't you? They must have patched it -up all right, and that's enough to show how silly those stories were -about—about the wreck and Captain Jim. Father wouldn't lend a hand in -a crooked job for any money. I have been feeling meaner than a yellow -pup for ever bothering my head about those rumors that lugged you into -the dirty work, Dan. Will you really forgive me?"</p> - -<p>"I was mean and nasty to you when the <i>Henry Foster</i> was split wide -open, so I reckon we are quits," confessed Dan. "Let's shake hands and -forget it."</p> - -<p>"I'd trust you as I would trust my own father," earnestly exclaimed -Bart. "Right down<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span> in my heart I would no more dream of your being -mixed up with a crooked wrecking job than I would think of suspecting -him. That's as strong as I can put it. You won't hold it out against me -any more, will you, honest?"</p> - -<p>Jeremiah Pringle had come out of a forward hold and was making his -way aft along the ship's side to release a fouled guy-rope. The boys -did not see him pass behind them, and as Bart waxed earnest his voice -carried to his father's ears. The stern-visaged wrecker halted and -listened with the most intense interest. He heard his own son say:</p> - -<p>"<i>I'd trust you as I'd trust my own father.... That's as strong as I -can put it.</i>"</p> - -<p>Jeremiah Pringle had been dealt a blow from a quarter so unexpected -that he was quite staggered. Moving stealthily out of sight of the two -lads, he went about his duty but his mind was painfully active with -emotions which were as novel as they were disturbing.</p> - -<p>It had never before occurred to him that his boy's life was anywhere -linked with his own. He did not intend to set him a bad example, nor -bring disgrace on the name he bore. But now<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span> Barton had accused and -condemned him, not by doubting but by believing in him. It was brought -home to him from a clear sky that his son was shaping his own course by -what he believed his father to be. As Jeremiah Pringle sweated through -the long day, he sullenly reflected:</p> - -<p>"I can't argue it out with the fool boy. And what gets under my skin, -too, is the way Dan Frazier has handled himself since that night in -Pensacola. He must have got wind of the <i>Kenilworth</i> job then. I hate -to be under obligations to anybody, and Jim Wetherly and that boy -have been keeping it all back from my boy. Why? So Barton wouldn't be -ashamed of his daddy. That's a cheerful notion to take to bed with me."</p> - -<p>He had begun to feel that it might be unfair to his son's faith in him -to engage in any more shady wrecking operations, and he was nearer -being ashamed of himself than he had been in many years. It seemed as -if Captain Jim Wetherly read his thoughts, for he halted him next day -long enough to say:</p> - -<p>"You have taken hold in great shape. It<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span> helps square matters, Jerry. -It is your duty to get this ship off the Reef; you know that. And you -will never be able to look that boy of yours in the eye until the -<i>Kenilworth</i> is towed into port and made ready for sea again."</p> - -<p>Mr. Pringle was in no mood to have his sins or his duty flung in his -teeth, and he retorted savagely:</p> - -<p>"Don't preach at me, Jim Wetherly. I break even with you by helping -you get this vessel afloat. And I won't make you pay for smashing the -<i>Henry Foster</i>. That squares all debts between us."</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Dan and Barton had explored the <i>Kenilworth</i> from end to -end, Dan telling at great length the story of his imprisonment among -the cargo in the hold. When he came to the chapter dealing with the -visit of the Bahama wreckers, he hurried Bart to the spot where he had -found the lighted fuse and sack of powder. Alas, even the fragments -of the fuse had been swept away in the task of lightering the cargo. -Dan headed for the nearest hatchway to search for the powder. The -compartment into which he had thrown it was cleared of water, the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span> -débris shovelled out, and the shattered bottom plates covered deep with -cement and timber bracing.</p> - -<p>"Our wreckers didn't find the powder bag, or Captain Jim would have -told me," mourned Dan. "The canvas may have ripped open or rotted where -it fell. You believe it all, don't you, Bart? But that hatchet-faced -old Prentice as much as called me a liar. And I won't be happy till I -can make him take it back. He thinks I was trying to pull his leg with -the explosion yarn. Why, I couldn't have made up a story like that in a -thousand years."</p> - -<p>"Don't you care. Of course it's true. And it was splendid. I am -certainly proud of you," declared Bart who was anxious to make amends -for the rift in their friendship. "You and I will back old Prentice -into a corner first chance we get and make him apologize—won't we?"</p> - -<p>The underwriters' agent came on board two days later and had a long -interview with Captain Jim behind the locked door of the chart-room, -after which Captain Bruce and Jeremiah Pringle were singly summoned for -more <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span>mysterious conferences. But no attention was paid to Dan who felt -that he moved in a cloud of suspicion and dismally reflected:</p> - -<p>"Old Prentice has set me down as a liar and won't even give me a -chance to deny it. I wish I could have kept that fuse to hitch to his -coat-tails. I won't save another ship for him,—that's one thing sure."</p> - -<p>At length the day came when Captain Jim Wetherly announced that he -intended pulling on the stranded steamer with all four tugs at high -water in the afternoon. They might not be able to start her, but it was -worth trying, for the spell of fair weather could not be expected to -last much longer. Dan was still grumbling to himself as he went off to -the <i>Resolute</i> which had signalled for all hands to return.</p> - -<p>One by one the tugs got into position for a "long pull, a strong pull, -and a pull all together." Captain Wetherly stayed in the <i>Kenilworth</i> -to direct operations and took his station up in the bows. To Jerry -Pringle was entrusted the important duty of properly making fast the -hawsers from the tugs. It amused Captain Jim to hear him fiercely -shouting orders to the crew of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span> the <i>Resolute</i> who glared at their -former foeman as if they would like to muster a boarding party and -attack him.</p> - -<p>The men in the yawls and on the rolling decks of the tugs worked with -more caution than usual. They did not mind falling overboard or being -upset by an obstreperous hawser as part of the day's work. But the -dumping overboard of damaged cargo, including smashed cases of salt -meats and other provisions, had lured scores of huge sharks which -hovered in the clear, green depths at the edge of the Reef or rushed to -the surface at the splash of box or barrel. All hands breathed easier -when the hawsers had been passed aboard without mishap.</p> - -<p>When all was in readiness to begin the tug-of-war between the tow-boats -and the Reef, Captain Wetherly's nerves were tingling with excitement. -The hour had come to put his faith and his works to the crucial test. -It meant more to him than salvage, for he was also seeking with might -and main to undo a wrong of which this ship had been the victim.</p> - -<p>"The old <i>Resolute</i> will pull her heart out before she quits," he -muttered. "I've given her<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span> the hardest berth, for she knows we can't -afford to lose this ship."</p> - -<p>Slowly the tugs forged ahead until they were straining at their -hawsers like a team of well-handled horses, each using every bit of -its strength to the best advantage. Then it was "full speed ahead," -and they buckled down to their task as if no odds were great enough to -daunt them,—<i>Resolute</i>, <i>Three Sisters</i>, <i>Fearless</i>, and <i>Hercules</i>. -Soon the rusty, high-sided <i>Kenilworth</i> was veiled in the black clouds -of smoke which drifted from their belching funnels. Captain Jim moved -to leeward to get a clearer view and observed that Jeremiah Pringle -was standing within a few feet of the vibrating steel hawser of the -<i>Resolute</i>, where it led in over the bows of the <i>Kenilworth</i>.</p> - -<p>"That is a brand-new line, but it isn't healthy to get so near it," he -called out. "That tow-boat of mine has busted them before this, Jerry."</p> - -<p>"Always bragging of those engines of yours. You are as bad as Bill -McKnight," Pringle shouted back.</p> - -<p>He looked down at the ponderous steel cable<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span> with a careless laugh. A -moment later Captain Jim forgot his own warning and ran to the side to -shout an urgent order to one of the tugs. He stood for a few seconds -almost on top of the hawser where it led inboard and was about to -retreat to his former station when the huge line twanged with a rasping -note as if its fibres were overstrained. He wasted a precious instant -in looking down to find out what the trouble might be, heard the steel -cable crack and give, tried to flee, and caught his toe in a ring-bolt -screwed to the deck.</p> - -<p>Just then Jerry Pringle lunged forward and knocked Captain Jim flat -with a sweep of his powerful right arm. This deed, done with lightning -speed and rare presence of mind, sufficed to put Captain Jim out of -harm's way, but it used the precious second of time in which Jeremiah -Pringle might have saved himself.</p> - -<p>Before Pringle could drop on deck or leap for shelter, the hawser -snapped in twain with a report like that of a cannon. The ragged -ends whizzed through the air with the speed and destructiveness of -projectiles. One of them crashed against a metal stanchion, cut it -clean<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span> in two, and knocked a pile of timber braces in all directions. -These obstacles saved Jerry Pringle from being sliced in twain, but he -was swept up in the flying debris and sent spinning overboard as if he -were a chip caught in a tornado.</p> - -<p>The accident happened with such incredible swiftness that Captain -Wetherly scrambled to his feet and stood blinking at the spot from -which Pringle had vanished as if he were blotted out of existence. -Then, pulling himself together, with a yell of horrified dismay he -rushed to the side of the ship and stared down into the sea which was -seething with the foamy wash from the screws of the nearest tugs. He -saw a black object rise to the surface, drift toward the stern, and -then slowly sink from sight. Running aft where the water was clear, he -caught a glimpse of the body of Jerry Pringle settling toward the white -coral bottom.</p> - -<p>Two of the tugs were hastily manning boats. Captain Jim glanced toward -them and knew their help would come too late. He thought of the sharks -which had been flocking around the ship. They could not have been -driven very<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span> far away by the tumult of the tugs. While he wavered, -Captain Jim said to himself:</p> - -<p>"He didn't figure on the odds when he bowled me out of danger before he -tried to save himself. Here goes."</p> - -<p>Springing upon the bulwark, he jumped clear and sped downward with feet -together and arms stretched above his head. It was a thirty-foot drop -to the water and he shot into it as straight and true as a dipsey lead. -His impetus carried him far down into the cool, green sea and, opening -his eyes, he dimly discerned the shadowy form of the man he sought -drifting above him. As Captain Jim rose he grasped the other by the -shirt and struck out with his free arm. Pringle might be dead for all -he knew, but he hung to him like a bull-dog, fighting his way upward to -reach the blessed air and ease his tortured lungs.</p> - -<p>A boat was pulling madly toward the scene, the crew yelling and -splashing to hold the sharks at bay. Most clamorous of the party was -the chief engineer of the <i>Resolute</i> who was roaring with tears in his -eyes:</p> - -<p>"Wow—wow—wow, keep a yellin', boys. It's<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span> Captain Jim they're after. -Jerry Pringle's too tough for 'em."</p> - -<p>A black fin skittered past the boat and Bill McKnight blazed away at it -with a rifle which he had caught up on the run. A few more desperate -strokes and they slackened speed and beat the water into foam with the -flat of their oars. A long, sinister shadow slid swiftly under the -boat and the men yelled as they saw it veer toward the stern of the -Kenilworth. But this hastening shark had overrun its prey. Captain Jim -and his burden rose within an oar's length of the yawl and were grasped -by a dozen eager hands before they could be attacked.</p> - -<p>Dan Frazier was not in the boat. He had not recovered his wits until -his comrades had shoved clear of the <i>Resolute</i>. He stood as if -paralyzed and watched the rescue. When the two dripping figures were -hauled into the yawl and he saw Captain Jim sit up and shake himself -like a retriever, a wordless prayer of thanksgiving welled from the -depths of his heart.</p> - -<p>Then he saw the boat move toward Jerry Pringle's tug which lay on the -other side of the <i>Kenilworth</i>, screened from view of the rescue.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span> Bart -had gone on board this tug earlier in the day, and Dan felt his knees -tremble as he saw the body of Jeremiah Pringle hoisted over the low -bulwark. It seemed an age before the yawl returned to the <i>Resolute</i> -and Captain Jim leaped on deck, followed by the chief engineer. Their -faces were very solemn and they spoke with evident effort:</p> - -<p>"Were—were you too late, Uncle Jim?" stammered Dan.</p> - -<p>"Yes, he must have been dead when he struck the water," slowly returned -Captain Wetherly. "But I'm glad I went after him. He made a brave man's -finish. It's awful tough on Bart, but he is standing up under it like a -thoroughbred. Jerry Pringle staked his life and lost it for me."</p> - -<p>Captain Jim wiped his eyes and coughed. Bill McKnight ventured to say -to Dan:</p> - -<p>"He'd have done the same trick to save one of his own deck-hands. Jerry -Pringle was a brave and ready man, we all know that. It was instinct. -He didn't have time to figure it out. But I reckon God Almighty will -give him plenty of credit and square accounts for <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span>whatever he did -wrong. Whew! I can't realize it a little bit."</p> - -<p>"The tug will take him down to Key West right away," said Captain Jim. -"I'm going along with Jerry Pringle on his last voyage. Want to come, -Dan? It will do Bart a whole lot of good to have you as a shipmate -and you can tell him that his father was a man to be proud of. We'll -forget everything that happened before to-day. You come aboard the -<i>Kenilworth</i> with me and I'll leave orders for my men. I'll have to be -back here to-morrow if this steamer is to come off the Reef. I have a -notion that Jerry Pringle was sorry he ever helped to put her on there. -And from watching him lately I believe we couldn't please him any -better than by getting the <i>Kenilworth</i> off and mending the wrong he -planned to do."</p> - -<p>As they boarded the <i>Kenilworth</i> Captain Bruce met them and asked in a -voice hoarse with emotion:</p> - -<p>"They tell me he has slipped his cable. If my ship had not stranded it -would not have happened."</p> - -<p>"What are you going to do about it? Let <i>me</i><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span> be accused of helping -to wreck your steamer?" sternly replied Captain Wetherly. "Jeremiah -Pringle has squared his accounts and made <i>his</i> record clean. But how -about you?"</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER X</span> <span class="smaller">DAN'S DREAMS COME TRUE</span></h2> - -<p>The first pull on the stranded steamer had been halted by the tragedy -of Jeremiah Pringle's heroic death. As soon as possible Captain Jim -Wetherly hastened back from Key West to the Reef and Dan rejoined his -shipmates in the <i>Resolute</i>. They were very loth to leave the widow -and the son of the wrecking-master who, with all his faults, had died -as he had lived, unflinching in the face of the perils of the sea. But -Duty sounded a trumpet-call to save the <i>Kenilworth</i>, and with flags at -half-mast the tireless tugs again hovered about her under the vigilant -direction of Captain Wetherly.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile the wreckers had been toiling in night and day shifts, taking -out more cargo. When at length the tugs were summoned for another -titanic tussle, every man felt that the supreme moment was at hand. It -was now or<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</a></span> never. Captain Wetherly voiced the feelings of all with -passionate energy:</p> - -<p>"She has <i>got</i> to go. That's all there is to it."</p> - -<p>The tugs had been pulling a scant hour when Captain Jim felt the keel -of the <i>Kenilworth</i> grind on the coral bottom. It was no more than a -slight shock which made the ship tremble as if she felt a thrill of -returning life and freedom. Then she hung fast for a long time, moved -again, and perceptibly righted herself. Another interval of futile -effort, and at last the steamer slid forward with a dull, harsh roar as -her broken keel ripped through the coral and ploughed slowly down the -sloping shelf into the deep water on the landward side of the Reef.</p> - -<p>The frantic tugs behaved as if they could not believe the <i>Kenilworth</i> -was actually afloat. They refused to stop pulling with might and main -until their prize was trailing after them down the fairway of the Hawk -Channel. Their whistles bellowed jubilation while Captain Jim signalled -the <i>Resolute</i>:</p> - -<p>"Keep her going for Key West."</p> - -<p>The panting tugs led the sluggish, battered steamer out through the -nearest gap in the Reef,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</a></span> and she rolled solemnly in the swells of -the open sea where she belonged. Captain Bruce was pacing the bridge -of his ship, nervous, absorbed in his own thoughts, and oblivious of -the general rejoicing. Above the stern of the <i>Kenilworth</i> the British -ensign still flew at half-mast and served to recall a tragedy which -Captain Bruce wanted to forget. His partnership with Jerry Pringle -had been ill-fated from the start. In a flash of splendid manliness -Pringle had given his life to save the man who had smashed the evil -partnership. And was he, Malcolm Bruce, ship-master, willing to let -this Jim Wetherly stand accused of the crime planned in Pensacola -harbor? No, he had not come to such depths of degradation as this. -He had fought it out with himself and he was ready to take the -consequences. Dan Frazier came on board the <i>Kenilworth</i> for orders -when the tugs slackened way to shift their hawsers, and Captain Bruce -beckoned him to a corner of the bridge where Captain Wetherly was -standing. The haggard ship-master placed his hand on the lad's shoulder -as he began to speak:</p> - -<p>"I want Dan to hear what I have to say, <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</a></span>Captain Wetherly. He came -aboard my ship when she went on the Reef and refused to believe the -worst of me, though he knew it all the time. I abandoned the ship and -left him on board instead of sticking by her as I honestly intended to -do. But I see now that my will had been undermined. There was a rotten -spot in my heart."</p> - -<p>"You didn't mean to abandon me, sir," spoke up Dan. "I never held that -against you."</p> - -<p>"I am glad you have a decent word for me," replied Captain Bruce with -the shadow of a smile. "The long and short of it is that I am going to -make a clean breast of it to the underwriters' agent, Mr. Prentice, -when we get to Key West. It seems to be the only way to clear you, -Captain Wetherly. Of course I never dreamed that circumstances could be -twisted about to fetch you into this miserable business. But Pringle -has gone, and I am not quite enough of a cur to dodge my share of -the punishment. I make no defence, but my record was fairly clean -until—well, you know when. My owners are shrewd, tricky, close-fisted -men who got me into their way of doing business a little at a time. -My ideas of right and wrong were warped by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</a></span> degrees. Men don't go bad -all at once, Dan. Don't ever forget that. A ship's timbers don't rot -overnight and let her founder in the gale that tests her strength. The -first speck of rot is almost too small to see, but it grows. At last -these people had me fit for their work, and three voyages ago they -put it at me that there would be no great sorrow if the <i>Kenilworth</i> -met disaster. I should have quit them on the spot, but I took the -temptation to sea with me. And in the next voyage I ran afoul of -Jeremiah Pringle in Pensacola. He found me willing to listen. Five -years ago I would have kicked him out of my cabin. You know the rest of -it. Ten thousand dollars was the price if he could have the vessel to -wreck. And my owners were ready to give me a bigger, newer ship if I -lost her for the insurance. But you spoiled all that, and I am glad you -did. I seem to have been a weak-kneed kind of a rascal."</p> - -<p>"Bully for you," cried Captain Jim. "Shake hands on it. Dan here was -sure you were sorry you ever got into this mess, the first time he met -you. But this is mighty serious business for you, Captain Bruce. The -underwriters will<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</a></span> make an example of you, as sure as guns. Are you -going back to England to face the music?"</p> - -<p>"It means that I am in disgrace and will command no more ships, I -suppose," was the reply. "And I suppose it means a dose of prison, but -I don't mean to veer from the course I have charted. There isn't any -other way out of it. I would rather be dead along with Jerry Pringle -than to go on hating myself and living in a hell of my own making."</p> - -<p>"I reckon you are right," said Captain Jim after a long silence. "It -pays to go straight, and every man must work out his own salvation."</p> - -<p>"Anyhow, you would feel a heap worse if your ship had gone to pieces," -Dan ventured to suggest in his effort to find a ray of sunshine in the -cloud.</p> - -<p>"Right you are, my lad. It has been a great fight, and a man couldn't -work alongside this uncle of yours very long without wanting to live -straight and clean. You helped save the <i>Kenilworth</i>, Dan. I haven't -forgotten that."</p> - -<p>"But you can't square me with old man Prentice," sadly returned Dan. "I -think it's great of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</a></span> you to stand by Captain Jim, but it doesn't help -my case. I am still left high and dry as a liar."</p> - -<p>"Things will straighten themselves out now. Don't worry," smiled -Captain Bruce. "Mr. Prentice will be easier to handle after he knows -the facts in my case."</p> - -<p>"How about salvage? Don't I come in on that?" anxiously asked Dan who -was not old enough to appreciate the sacrifice involved in Captain -Bruce's confession.</p> - -<p>"I expect to be paid my towing and wrecking bill to cover my time and -expenses," said Captain Jim. "But I don't want any more salvage than -that. I won't take blood-money, not even from the pockets of those -scoundrelly owners of yours, Captain Bruce. They won't be able to -collect a cent of insurance after you make your statement, and the -repairs will cost them a small fortune. The underwriters will make it -hot enough for them. Trust Prentice for that."</p> - -<p>Dan raised his voice in most lugubrious accents:</p> - -<p>"But won't there be any salvage for me after all I went through in this -beastly ship? Why, I have been expecting to get rich from it, to go<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</a></span> -North to school and college with Bart, and buy a bigger yacht, and give -mother a spree in New York and—and all I get is to be called a liar by -old man Prentice."</p> - -<p>Dan's disappointment was so keen that Captain Jim hastened to console -him. "I kind of overlooked your case. Sure enough, I've robbed you of -your rights, haven't I? I suppose if you could go North to school, you -and your mother would feel that you had your share of salvage, wouldn't -you?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, indeed. That would clear up the account in great shape," cried -Dan. "But where is the money coming from? You can't charge it up -against the <i>Kenilworth's</i> owners, can you?"</p> - -<p>"Well, if those Bahama niggers had blown up the steamer, the owners' -bills might be a good deal bigger," smiled his uncle. "Just let your -salvage claim rest for a day or so. I promise you it will be worked out -somehow."</p> - -<p>Early in the morning the <i>Kenilworth</i> moved slowly to an anchorage in -the inner harbor of Key West, at last in a friendly haven. Her escort -of victorious tugs whistled a glad alarm as they cast loose and steamed -toward their <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</a></span>several wharves. Dan was on board the <i>Resolute</i>, and as -she neared the shore he saw his mother hastening down to the landing -place.</p> - -<p>"You will be all the salvage she wants out of this job," said Captain -Jim as Dan waved his cap for an answering signal to the fluttering -handkerchief. A little later mother and son walked homeward together -and she learned of Captain Bruce's manly decision to make atonement. -Her tender heart was moved with pity for his plight and she spoke up -impulsively:</p> - -<p>"I knew there was a great deal of good in him, Dan. And think how -forlorn and unhappy he must feel. He needs friends. Ask him up to see -us. I am very sorry for him."</p> - -<p>"All right, mother. He has shown himself to be a pretty good sort of a -man, after all. How is Bart Pringle? Is he all broken up? He's been on -my mind most of the time since I went back to the Reef."</p> - -<p>"It was a dreadful shock to Mary Pringle and her boy," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "But they will be happy again after a while. Jerry Pringle -was a hard man, Dan, and he never really knew his own family. He was -the richest man in Key<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</a></span> West and of course they have no worries about -money. They fairly worship his memory because he died a hero's death. -But it is as if they were admiring some noble character in a book, not -a real, live man who was a part of their daily lives. They never knew -him well."</p> - -<p>"Perhaps it was all for the best," sighed Dan. "Bart will never know -anything else about his father and he has a memory to live up to that -is a better inheritance than all the money that was left behind. Oh, -but it was worth while fighting hard to keep the truth from Bart and -his mother."</p> - -<p>In the afternoon Dan went back to the <i>Resolute</i> to invite the chief -engineer to supper. Mr. McKnight announced as he staggered the boy with -an affectionate blow between the shoulders:</p> - -<p>"Old Prentice was aboard looking for you not an hour ago, and said he'd -come back if he didn't find you at home. I told him that if he had a -notion of calling you a liar some more, I was your proxy and he could -say it to me. I began to roll up my sleeves and he plumb near backed -himself overboard." </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</a></span></p> - -<p>"I wish he had," returned Dan. "What on earth does he want now? The -<i>Kenilworth</i> affair is all cleared up."</p> - -<p>"Well, he was dying to see you, Dan. Better wait aboard. The old -icicle will wander back after a while. I hear we are going to tow the -<i>Kenilworth</i> to Jacksonville to be docked for repairs. Do you know -when?"</p> - -<p>"Captain Jim said in about a month," replied Dan. "As soon as she can -be patched up to stand the voyage. But maybe I won't be with you, then. -It depends on whether I win my salvage case."</p> - -<p>"Too much sun. Gone a bit queer in the head," murmured Mr. McKnight. -"We surrendered all claim to salvage—you know that. It's an outrage, -too. When I was wreckin' on the coast of— Hello, here comes old -Prentice now."</p> - -<p>The underwriters' agent was advancing with almost undignified haste, -and as he came down the gang-plank he extended his hand to Dan and -exclaimed in most friendly fashion:</p> - -<p>"Delighted to find you, Mr. Frazier. You will be good enough to sit -down aft with me for<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</a></span> a few minutes? I wish to show you a document -which has just reached me."</p> - -<p>Brushing past the glowering chief engineer, Mr. Prentice fumbled in his -breast pocket and brought forth a large, official-looking envelope. -His manner was really sheepish as he hemmed and hawed, flourished the -envelope, and said:</p> - -<p>"I wish to offer you an apology, Dan, which you are manly enough to -accept, I am sure. I find myself in—er—a rather painful position. The -fact of the matter is that I have been guilty of an error of judgment. -I have in my hands a letter sent to me in care of the British consul -in Key West. Attached to it is an affidavit which you may examine at -your leisure. To make a long story short, these documents come from -Nassau. While investigating the <i>Kenilworth</i> disaster, it occurred to -me to make some inquiries concerning one Hurley, known as "Black Sam," -who had possession of the steamer when you were rescued from her. -Your story of preventing an explosion seemed improbable to me, partly -because I could find no proof, and also because I held certain other -suspicions, now <span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</a></span>removed, I am glad to say. I made an effort to locate -this Hurley person. There was not one chance in a thousand that he -would confirm the truth of your story, if found. But, by extraordinary -good luck, he was recently arrested for cracking the skull of one of -his crew. And while in jail he was visited by my agent in Nassau. -You will be surprised to learn that he readily consented to sign an -affidavit describing his attempt to blow up the <i>Kenilworth</i>, and your -part in the episode. The fellow has a rude sense of humor, it appears, -and had come to regard it as a good deal of a joke on him."</p> - -<p>"It is great news for me," exclaimed Dan. "I hated to have you think -what you did."</p> - -<p>"I have something more to say," resumed Mr. Prentice with a smile. -"Captain Bruce and Captain Wetherly came to see me to-day. It was a -strange interview, as you may perhaps guess. Captain Bruce confessed -that he had tried to lose his ship on the Reef. My suspicions were -wrong from start to finish, and I have apologized to Captain Wetherly. -In fact, I seem to be a walking apology. But the chapter is closed. -The steamer is to be made fit for sea by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</a></span> her owners, without a penny -of cost to the underwriters, and her master will go to England to face -the consequences of his confession. The owners will also have to settle -for damages to cargo. Under the circumstances, I am of the opinion that -the underwriters are deeply indebted to you for preventing the total -loss of the <i>Kenilworth</i>. They can well afford to do the handsome thing -by you, my boy, not as salvage, but as a gift, a reward for a heroic -deed. Such gifts have been bestowed on several ship-masters within my -recollection. Captain Wetherly informs me that you are ambitious to get -an education. I pledge you my personal word that you can count upon -receiving a sum of several thousand dollars to assist that praiseworthy -ambition. I expect to go to England shortly, and will look after the -matter myself."</p> - -<p>While Dan struggled between gratitude and amazement to find words -to fit the occasion, Mr. Prentice patted his shoulder with fatherly -affection and added:</p> - -<p>"I know the story of your loyalty to your friend, young Barton Pringle. -It seems right and proper that you should go away to school<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</a></span> together, -without a shadow between you any longer."</p> - -<p>Mr. Prentice left the Nassau documents with Dan and took his departure, -leaving the lad to stammer the wonderful tale to Bill McKnight who -found an outlet for his own emotion by announcing:</p> - -<p>"I'm going to hustle right ashore, Dan, and hire the Key West brass -band to serenade old Prentice to-night. I've got money in the bank, -boy, and I'm going to turn it loose."</p> - -<p>While this rash declaration was being argued, Captain Wetherly came -aboard and added his congratulations to the tumultuous celebration. -When Mr. McKnight became quieter for lack of breath, Dan spoke up with -a sudden shock of unhappy recollection:</p> - -<p>"But how about Captain Bruce, Uncle Jim? It doesn't seem fair for him -to be left all alone to go back to England and be in disgrace among his -own people. Why, if he stands by his guns, he will be sent to prison."</p> - -<p>"I had a long talk with him an hour ago," replied Captain Wetherly. -"He can't be budged from his resolution to take all the blame for -the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</a></span> disaster. And of course his owners will try to shift it all onto -him and they may be able to clear themselves in court. I can't help -admiring his pluck. But he may come back here later, Dan. I have just -landed a big Government contract for towing and dredging work, to last -for several years. And I need more help with the business I have now. -I asked Captain Bruce to come back to Key West when he gets clear of -his troubles in England. I told him that he would be with friends here, -with folks who believed in him. I would trust him as a partner. He will -never go wrong again."</p> - -<p>"What did he say?" asked Dan and Bill McKnight in the same breath.</p> - -<p>"He was considerably touched. Said he would think it over, and thanked -me, and went off to tell Prentice about it. He will come back to work -with me some day, I am pretty sure."</p> - -<p>A few weeks later Dan Frazier and Barton Pringle were waving their -farewells to Key West from the deck of a mail steamer, northward bound -to enter a preparatory school. Their mothers were standing together -on the wharf<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[Pg 184]</a></span> and behind them towered the rugged figure of Captain -Jim Wetherly. As the steamer drew away and the last "good-byes" were -shouted across the water, Bart sighed and murmured to his friend:</p> - -<p>"Father ought to be there to see me off. I can't realize it yet, Dan. -But I must try to live up to the example he set for me. I am so glad -he and Captain Jim became good friends. It was the <i>Kenilworth</i> that -brought them together. I reckon they were the same breed of men, only -it took them a long time to find it out."</p> - -<p>Dan looked across the harbor at the rusty <i>Kenilworth</i> which was almost -ready to be towed away to a dry-dock. The sight of her thrilled him -with memories of the hardships, dangers, and tragedy of the weeks of -hard-fought battle on the Reef. It came over him that while he had won -his salvage and his fondest dreams were coming true, perhaps Barton -Pringle had won even richer and more enduring salvage in the bright -memory of his father's last deed, a memory and an inspiration unmarred -by the knowledge of anything less worthy.</p> - -<p>"I am proud of Uncle Jim," said Dan at<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[Pg 185]</a></span> length. "And you can always be -proud of your father, Bart."</p> - -<p>Presently the steamer passed the <i>Resolute</i> which lay at her wharf -ready for sea. The chief engineer hurried into the wheel-house and -pulled the whistle cord for all he was worth. The tug roared a hoarse -farewell, and Dan gazed at her and the burly figure of Bill McKnight -with glad affection in his eyes. They stood for something worth while -to the boy who was leaving his shipmates to venture into strange waters -and chart a new career. He had toiled among men who were fitly called -"the Resolutes," and the lessons of duty he had learned afloat would -not be soon forgotten ashore. Dan was thinking aloud as he said while -he waved his cap at the powerful, seagoing tug in which he had played -his part as a humble deck-hand:</p> - -<p>"I don't know what this preparatory school up north is going to be -like, but I reckon if I can play the game so the <i>Resolute</i> won't be -ashamed of me I'll come out all right."</p> - -<hr /> - -<div class="center"><img src="images/ad1.jpg" alt="BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="center"><img src="images/ad2.jpg" alt="COLLEGE SERIES" /></div> - -<hr class="pgx" /> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -concept and trademark. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: The Wrecking Master - - -Author: Ralph Delahaye Paine - - - -Release Date: May 19, 2020 [eBook #62176] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER*** - - -E-text prepared by Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by -Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 62176-h.htm or 62176-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62176/62176-h/62176-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62176/62176-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/wreckingmaster00pain - - -Transccriber's note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - Text enclosed by plus signs is in bold face (+bold+). - - - - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - - * * * * * * - -BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE - -PUBLISHED BY CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS - - -+Sandy Sawyer, Sophomore.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Stroke Oar.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Fugitive Freshman.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Head Coach.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+College Years.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - - * * * * * - -+The Wrecking Master.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.25 - -+A Cadet of the Black Star Line.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.25 - - * * * * * * - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - -[Illustration: "You're working for Jim Wetherly"] - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - -by - -RALPH D. PAINE - -Author of "A Cadet of the Black Star Line," "The Fugitive -Freshman," "The Head Coach," etc. - -Illustrated by George Varian - - - - - - -New York -Charles Scribner's Sons -1911 - -Copyright, 1911, by -Charles Scribner's Sons - -Published September, 1911 - - -[Illustration: Logo] - - - - -CONTENTS - -Chapter Page - I. A Skipper in Bad Company 3 - - II. The _Resolute_ Fathoms the Plo 21 - - III. The Race for the _Kenilworth_ 40 - - IV. Wicked Mr. Pringle in Collision 59 - - V. "All Hands Abandon Ship" 75 - - VI. Dan Frazier's Predicament 93 - - VII. A Fat Engineer to the Rescue 110 - -VIII. A Fog of Suspicions 128 - - IX. The Broken Hawser 149 - - X. Dan's Dreams Come True 168 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - -"You're working for Jim Wetherly" _Frontispiece_ - - Facing page -And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled -aboard like a large and dripping fish 6 - -The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race 34 - -But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared too -much 84 - -Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm 104 - -It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century 120 - -"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't -get very far!" 132 - -She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all 150 - - - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - - - -CHAPTER I - -A SKIPPER IN BAD COMPANY - - -"A thick night and no mistake, Dan. It's as black as the face of a -Nassau pilot. We ought to be nearing the coal wharf by now. Of course -they wouldn't have sense enough to leave a light on it to give us our -bearings." - -Captain Jim Wetherly was growling through the window of the darkened -wheel-house to his deck-hand, young Dan Frazier, as the oceangoing tug -_Resolute_ felt her way up the harbor of Pensacola. She had towed a -dismasted bark into port after a long and stubborn tussle with wind and -sea, and her master was in haste to fill the empty bunkers and drive -her home to Key West, five hundred miles across the blue Gulf. - -The mate and several of the crew had gone ashore for the evening, the -fat and grizzled chief engineer was loafing on the deck below, and -Captain Wetherly was somewhat consoled to have a sympathetic listener -in his youngest deck-hand. This Dan Frazier was his nephew, not long -out of the Key West High School, and trying his hand at seafaring -in the _Resolute_ as the first chance which had offered to ease his -mother's task of caring for him. - -In the presence of any of the vessel's company, discipline was observed -between the two with a respectful "aye, aye, sir," or "no, sir," on -Dan's part, but now when they were alone on deck Dan felt free to reply: - -"It's strange water to me, Uncle Jim. I shouldn't wonder if the old -_Resolute_ felt timid about poking around a crowded harbor on a thick -night. What she likes best is plenty of sea-room with a wreck piled -hard and fast on the Florida Reef and a fighting chance to pull it off. -I wish I could have been on board when you were taking hold of that big -Italian steamer last spring. The men say they thought the _Resolute_ -was going to yank the engines clean out of her before you let go on the -last haul that dragged the wreck clear of the Reef. Is it true that -Bill McKnight clamped the safety-valve down and said it was up to -Providence to see that his boilers didn't blow up?" - -Captain Wetherly chuckled. The flare of a match as he relighted his -pipe illumined a pair of steadfast gray eyes and a smooth-shaven chin -of such dogged squareness of outline that Dan's statements seemed to be -half-way answered even before his uncle said: - -"Pshaw, boy, Bill McKnight is a good chief engineer, but if his engines -didn't get any more rest than that tongue of his, they would have -been in the scrap-heap long ago. I suppose he has been filling you up -with yarns of the wonderful things he has done with this boat on the -Reef. Come to think of it, he _was_ carrying some steam more than the -law allowed when we tackled that Italian wreck for the last time, but -we weren't there for our health. And wrecking isn't a business for -children, Dan. You'll find that out if you stick by me long enough -to get your mate's papers. Seems to me we must have run past that -confounded coal wharf by this time. I don't know whether that light -yonder is a lantern or a store up the street somewhere." - -Dan went over to the side of the deck and peered into the shoreward -gloom while Captain Wetherly jerked a bell-pull. A mellow clang floated -from the engine-room, the _Resolute_ slackened way to half-speed, and -began to swing in toward the puzzling light. Dan Frazier thought he -heard the click of rowlocks somewhere off in the darkness and cocked an -ear to listen. The sound ceased and then he fancied he saw a shadowy -patch moving on the water almost in front of the _Resolute's_ bow. An -instant later Captain Wetherly shouted in alarm: - -"Boat ahoy. Do you want to be run under?" - -Angry, confused voices were raised from the blackness close ahead while -the tug quivered to the thrust of the engines as they strove to check -her headway. Panic-stricken profanity was volleyed from the water, -there was a slight shock and crash as of splintered planking, and the -tug slid over what remained of the blundering small boat. - -"Great Scott!" cried Captain Jim. "The poor fools must have done it -a-purpose. When they come up and yell, stand by to fish 'em out, Dan. -Tell Bill McKnight to man a boat and be ready to lower it. Of all -the----" - -The horrified Dan had already scampered down to the main-deck and, -snatching up a coil of heaving line, he sprang upon the guard-rail and -waited for a call for help from the castaways. The chief engineer was -bawling commands to a fireman and the cook who were fumbling with the -falls of a boat swung aft. The galley boy came rushing along with a -lantern and Dan held it over the side just in time to see a head bob to -the foaming surface with a gurgling lament: - -"Aren't you going to haul me aboard your murderin' tow-boat?" - -Dan tossed him a bight of the line into which he wriggled his shoulders -and with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled aboard like -a large and dripping fish. They did not waste time in looking him over, -but asked in the same breath: - -[Illustration: And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was -hauled aboard like a large and dripping fish] - -"How many more of you?" - -"Only one, and he can't be far off," panted the victim of the -collision. "You'll hear him holler pretty soon unless you knocked his -brains out when you struck us." - -The boat was ready by this time, and Dan and the cook, letting it -down by the run, scrambled in and shoved clear of the tug. They had -paddled only a little way astern when the lantern threw its wavering -gleam athwart the missing man, who was groaning as if hurt, while he -tried with feeble splashing to keep himself afloat. With great exertion -he was dragged over the gunwale and taken to the _Resolute_. He was -unable to stand on deck and blood was oozing from a ragged gash on his -forehead. The engineer helped carry him into his own state-room a few -steps away on the lower deck, where the wet clothing was stripped from -him and the bunk made ready. - -Meanwhile, Captain Wetherly, relieved to learn that no lives were lost, -rang up speed and headed the tug for what he hoped might be the wharf -he was seeking. Presently Dan Frazier reported at the wheel-house door -and explained: - -"You won't be any more surprised than I was to find out that the first -man we picked up is Jerry Pringle. Yes, it's old Pringle himself sure -enough, Uncle Jim. I didn't get time for a sight of him until just now. -What in the world is he doing so far from Key West, and how did he -happen to be run down in a boat at night in Pensacola harbor? It beats -me." - -"What has he got to say for himself?" snapped Captain Jim with a note -of hostility and suspicion in his voice. "Is he sober? And Jerry -Pringle let a tow-boat waltz right over him! Um-mm, he must have been -mighty busy thinking about something else. Who is the other fellow? -Ever see him before?" - -"No, sir. He's an Englishman, I think, a big, strong man with a brown -beard. He is pretty well knocked out and his wits were muddled by a -thump on the head. He talks flighty. Jerry Pringle is with him and says -he will fetch him around without our help and get him ashore as soon as -we land." - -"Well, there's the coal-pocket looming up ahead, and you'd better get -aft to make a line fast, Dan," observed the captain. "As soon as we -dock, I'll step down and see what I can do for our passengers. They're -welcome to stay aboard overnight. Jump lively." - -While the _Resolute_ was deftly laid alongside the head of the wharf, -Dan made a flying leap to the string-piece and dragged the hawsers to -the nearest pilings, bow and stern. Then he hurried back to the chief -engineer's room in quest of more information about the strange and -unwilling visit of Mr. Jeremiah Pringle of Key West. - -Dan Frazier knew him as one of the most daring and successful wreckers -of the Florida Reef, that cruel, hidden rampart of coral which -stretches in the open sea for a hundred and fifty miles along the -Atlantic coast of southern Florida, on the edge of the great highway of -ocean traffic for Central and South America. Because the Gulf Stream -flows north along this crowded highway, the steamers and sailing craft -bound south skirt the Reef as close as they dare in order to avoid the -adverse current. Tall, spider-legged, steel light-houses rise from the -submerged Reef, but its ledges still take their yearly toll of costly -vessels, as they have done for centuries. When such disasters happen, -the wreckers flock seaward to try to save the ship and cargo. - -Jerry Pringle was one of the last of a famous race of native wrecking -masters of Key West. His father and grandfather were wreckers before -him, and they had been hard and godless men, rejoicing in the tidings -of disaster on the Reef as a chance to plunder and destroy. Rumor had -said some curious things about this Jeremiah Pringle's methods as -a wrecking master, but Dan Frazier gave them careless heed, partly -because he had heard so many wicked tales of the by-gone wrecking days, -but more because young Barton Pringle, the only son of this man, was -his dearest chum and school-mate. - -With very lively curiosity Dan halted in the doorway of the little -state-room which Captain Jim Wetherly had entered just before him. -Jeremiah Pringle was sitting on the edge of the bunk as if to shield -his comrade of the small boat from observation, and was gruffly -cautioning him not to exert himself by trying to talk. Captain Wetherly -was eying them both with the keenest interest reflected in his -determined countenance. He was saying as Dan came within earshot: - -"Of course I am very sorry it happened, Pringle, but I don't see how -you can hold me responsible for the loss of your boat. My lights were -in order and the vessel was moving at half speed. I'm sure your -friend there, the master of the _Kenilworth_, lays it to your own -carelessness." - -"Who said he was master of the _Kenilworth_?" spoke up Jerry Pringle. -"You seem to be taking a whole lot of things for granted. He's in no -shape to deny it, so call him what you please." - -Mr. Pringle looked unhappy and not all at ease, nor had he any thanks -to spare for his rescue. Even Dan could perceive how thoroughly -disgusted he was over this unlucky meeting with Captain Wetherly who -replied: - -"Oh, yes, it _is_ Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_, that big English -cargo steamer in the stream loaded with naval stores for London. He -was pointed out to me in the broker's office this afternoon. Were you -coming ashore from his ship when you ran under my bows?" - -Hearing his name spoken, the man with the bandaged head tried to raise -himself in the bunk and muttered, as if his senses were still confused: - -"Malcolm Bruce, if you please, bound home to London, then out to Vera -Cruz with a general cargo. Lost at sea, all stove up, and a black, wet -night. But I get well paid for losing the rotten old ship. How much is -it worth, Pringle? Ha, ha!" - -Jerry Pringle's tanned cheek turned a shade or two paler and he forced -a hot drink between the other man's lips as if to shut off his speech. -The master of the _Kenilworth_ subsided and put his hands to his head -while Pringle explained to Captain Wetherly with nervous haste: - -"He's jabbering about the loss of his boat that you made hash of. It -was nothing but a skiff. It was my fault, I guess. We were busy talking -and I kept no lookout. I'll pay him the cost of the boat, Captain -Wetherly. So forget it, won't you. If you'll send ashore for a hack I -can lug Captain Bruce up to a hotel right away." - -"No hurry, is there? Let him rest," said Captain Jim. "Dan here will -sit up with him if you want to turn in. Of course you know Dan Frazier, -your boy's chum." - -Mr. Pringle glanced up at the doorway and looked even more downcast -and sullen at recognizing Dan. He nodded at the interested lad and -returned: - -"So many of us sort of crowd this state-room. I'll look after Captain -Bruce by myself if you don't mind clearing out, Captain Wetherly." - -The dazed captain of the _Kenilworth_ showed signs of trying to break -into the conversation and managed to sputter excitedly: - -"I get ten thousand dollars for this night's job." - -At this, Jerry Pringle fairly begged the kind-hearted skipper of the -_Resolute_ to withdraw, and although the night was cool for September, -the rescued wrecking master wiped the perspiration from his face with -a wet shirt sleeve. Captain Wetherly gazed down at the man in the bunk -for a moment, nodded gravely, and tiptoed on deck with a parting remark: - -"Ten thousand dollars is a lot of money to pay for a splintered skiff, -Pringle." - -"Captain Bruce is ravin' crazy," grumbled Jerry Pringle as he shut the -state-room door. - -"Go fetch a hack, Dan," ordered Captain Jim, "and help Pringle lug him -ashore. I tried to be decent to them, but my patience is frazzled. I -don't want 'em aboard any longer than I can help." - -"But what are they doing together in Pensacola harbor?" asked Dan. -"There's something mighty queer about it all." - -"Keep your guesses to yourself, and don't think too hard about it, or -you may go off your noddle like the Britisher in yonder," said captain -Jim as he went forward toward his own room. Dan wandered far and wide -ashore before he found a cruising hack and was able to return to the -wharf. Going aboard, he delayed to coil and stow a heaving line which -tripped him as he passed along the lower deck. From a near-by window -came the voice of Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_ in low-spoken -query, evidently addressed to his companion, Jeremiah Pringle: - -"Did I say anything silly? I was a bit muddled, I know. I didn't bring -you into it, did I? There was nothing said about the _Kenilworth's_ -next voyage, was there?" - -"You said a heap sight too much," was the reply in a rumbling -undertone. "That Jim Wetherly is pretty keen when it comes to putting -two and two together. But he has a kind of mushy streak of sentiment in -him and he won't believe anything bad of a man till the evidence is -strong enough to hang him. It's been an unlucky night's work, and it's -time we were out of here." - -Dan knocked on the door and, without even a "thank you," Jerry Pringle -brushed him out of the way and half-dragged, half-carried Captain Bruce -toward the gang-plank. The master of the _Kenilworth_ bade him halt, -however, and, grasping Dan by the hand, told him in a deep and pleasant -voice: - -"You saved my life, youngster, and I won't forget it. Come aboard my -ship before sailing and let me thank you, won't you? I'll be fit and -hearty in a day or so." - -Dan liked the looks and manner of the big, brown-bearded Englishman and -warmly replied: - -"Pulling you out of the wet was the least we could do. I hope your head -will mend all right. Captain Wetherly will be glad to see you on board -again, sir." - -Dan lent a hand as far as the hack and then sought Captain Wetherly's -room. The light was burning and the deck-hand dared to enter on the -chance of having a talk with "Uncle Jim," whom he found reading a -novel in his bunk. The boy had many questions to ask, but he was not -ready to go straight to the heart of the matter, and so began: - -"Jerry Pringle acted kind of ugly and uneasy, didn't you think? I -suppose he was mad at getting spilled into the harbor. You and he never -did seem to be very fond of each other." - -Captain Jim threw down his book and sat up in his bunk with a rather -grim smile as he replied: - -"You're no fool, Dan, though you aren't more than half as old as me. -And you have lived ten of your years in Key West. I know you think -the world of young Barton Pringle. He is a fine, clean lad, the son -of his mother through and through. But there's a different strain in -that dad of his, and you know it. You want to find out what I think of -to-night's business, don't you? Well, I think the big Englishman might -have picked better company." - -"But he said some things about getting ten thousand dollars for losing -his ship and so on, Uncle Jim, and I heard more than you did. He -was worried to death for fear he had talked too much. The wrecking -business in Key West is square and honest as far as I know, but ship -captains _have_ put their vessels on the Reef on purpose in the old -days and the wreckers helped plan it beforehand. And I can't help -wondering if Jerry Pringle came to Pensacola to fix up a deal with this -captain of the _Kenilworth_ to lose his ship on the next voyage out -from London to Vera Cruz. There would be rich salvage and loot in a -general cargo, wouldn't there? She's a mighty big steamer." - -Captain Jim stroked his chin and was so long silent that Dan began -to fidget. Then, as if rousing himself from some very interesting -reflections, the elder man drawled in a tone of mild reproof: - -"There isn't a bit of evidence that would hold water, Dan. I may have -my suspicions, but perhaps they are all wrong, and if we said a word -it might ruin a good ship-master with his owners. Jerry Pringle and he -must have been up to their ears in conversation when they let us run -'em under, and I wish the big Englishman could prove an alibi for the -time we had him, aboard. Better forget it." - -Dan bit his lip and appeared so gloomy and forlorn that his uncle was -moved to ask what troubled him. - -"It's Bart Pringle," said Dan, and his voice was not quite steady. -"When I meet him in Key West I'll have a secret to hold back from him, -and it's about his own father. Oh, I can't believe there's anything to -it. And there's Bart's mother! Well, I think I'll turn in, Uncle Jim. -Good-night." - -Late in the next afternoon the _Resolute_ cast off from the coal -wharf and swiftly picked up headway as her powerful engines began to -urge her, with tireless, throbbing cadence, toward her distant home -port of Key West. Presently she surged past a long, deep-laden cargo -steamer from whose stern rippled the flaming British ensign. It was -the _Kenilworth_, and Captain Jim and Dan Frazier stared at her with -curious interest. - -A tall, broad-shouldered, brown-bearded figure was leaning against the -railing of her bridge. A strip of bandage gleamed white beneath the -visor of his cap. He flourished an arm in farewell to the _Resolute_ -whose deep-toned whistle returned a salute of three blasts. - -Dan passed by the wheel-house door on an errand for the mate and could -not help saying aloud to himself: - -"It must have been a nightmare. That Captain Bruce looks like too fine -a man to think of such a dreadful thing!" - -Captain Jim Wetherly overheard the comment and seemed to echo this -verdict as he remarked in a reverent and sympathetic tone: - -"Lead Captain Malcolm Bruce not into temptation, for Jerry Pringle is a -hard customer to have any dealings with, on or off the Reef." - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE "RESOLUTE" FATHOMS THE PLOT - - -As the _Resolute_ steamed into Key West harbor, Dan Frazier was on the -lookout for his friend Barton Pringle who almost always ran down to the -wharf when the whistle of Captain Wetherly's tug bellowed the tidings -of her return from sea. This time, however, Dan felt that a shadow had -fallen over their close comradeship which had been wholly frank and -confiding through all their years together. Dan could not forget the -events of the night in which Barton's father had behaved like a man -caught in the act of planning something dark and evil. - -But the sight of Barton Pringle waiting on the end of the wharf to -catch the _Resolute's_ heaving lines and welcome him home, made Dan -wonder afresh if he had not been too hasty and suspicious. Barton's -honest, beaming face was in itself a voucher for his bringing up amid -sweet and wholesome influences. Nor was Dan ready to believe that a bad -father could have such a straight and manly son. Before the boys were -within shouting range of each other, Captain Wetherly sent for Dan and -told him: - -"You can stay home until you get further orders. I don't expect to -leave port again for several days. Tell your mother that I will run in -for a little while after supper to-night." - -Dan thanked him with a grin of delight and ran below to yell to Barton -Pringle on the wharf: - -"Hello, Bart. Come aboard and help me scrub decks and get things -ship-shape and I'll be ready to jump ashore just so much sooner." - -Barton made a flying leap aboard as soon as the lines were made fast, -and asked as he picked up a pail and broom: - -"What kind of a voyage did you have, Dan? Anything exciting happen?" - -"Nothing to speak of," replied Dan, and he felt his face redden with a -guilty sense of secrecy. He was about to say that he had met Barton's -father in Pensacola, without mentioning how or where, when the other -lad spoke up: - -"I tried to get away for a little trip myself. Father went up the Gulf -on the mail steamer and I begged him to take me along. But he was going -only to Tampa to see about buying a couple of sponging schooners, and -he said he was in too much of a hurry to bother with me." - -"Going only to Tampa," echoed Dan with a foolish smile. "Oh, yes, only -as far as Tampa. Sorry you had to miss it, Bart. How's everything with -you? Have you bent the new main-sail on the _Sombrero_?" - -Barton plunged into an excited discussion about the fast little sloop -which the boys owned in partnership, while Dan tried to keep his wits -about him, for he was thrown into fresh doubt and uneasiness by the -news that Jeremiah Pringle had said he was going to Tampa instead of -Pensacola. Usually the two boys had so many important matters to talk -about that one could find a chance to break in only when the other -paused for lack of breath, but now Dan found it hard to avoid awkward -silences on his part. He was glad when old Bill McKnight, the chief -engineer of the _Resolute_, waddled up to them and announced with a -sweeping gesture toward the city streets: - -"Back again to the palm trees and the brave Cubanos and the excitements -of a metropolis smeared over a chunk of coral reef so blamed small -that I'm scared to be out after dark without a lantern for fear I'll -walk overboard. I'm due to start a revolution in Honduras, and to-day -I enlist a few hundred brave and desperate Key West cigar-makers, Dan. -I'm perishin' for a little war and tumult. Look out for my signal -rockets." - -With that Mr. McKnight jauntily twirled his grizzled moustache and -ambled up the wharf. He had been engineer of the _Resolute_ when she -was running the Spanish blockade of Cuba, as a filibuster to carry arms -and ammunitions to the revolutionists, and his cool-headed courage -had fetched the tug out of some perilous places. The ponderous, -good-natured engineer was very fond of Dan and every little while -invited him, with all seriousness, to join some new and absurd scheme -for touching off a Spanish-American revolution, with dazzling promises -of loot and glory. - -The boys laughed as they gazed after him, and Barton said: - -"Filibustering must keep your hair standing on end, eh, Dan? I reckon -it beats wrecking, though you couldn't get an old Key Wester to admit -it. There hasn't been a wreck on the Reef for goodness knows how long. -Father promised to take me with him on the next wrecking job if it -isn't blowing too hard when the schooners go out to the Reef." - -"Well, you can count on seeing Captain Jim Wetherly and the _Resolute_ -on the job no matter how hard she blows," smiled Dan with a spark of -the rivalry which flamed high between the tow-boat and the schooner -fleet. Willing hands made short work of Dan's tasks, and he hurried -into his shore-going clothes while Barton swung his legs from the bunk -and retailed the latest news about ships, and the sponge market, and -the High School base-ball team which had won a match from the soldiers -of the garrison. They parted a little later, Dan eager to run home and -see his mother, and Barton anxious to make the _Sombrero_ ready for a -trial spin. - -As Dan sped toward the cottage on the other side of the narrow island, -he said to himself with a puzzled frown: - -"Everything Bart talked about made me think of the other night in -Pensacola: his father's going away, and the next wreck on the Reef, and -all that. And he thinks his father is the strongest, bravest man that -ever went to sea. Maybe he is, but I wish he wasn't related to Bart." - -A slender, sweet-faced woman in black was waiting in a dooryard shaded -by tropical verdure as Dan rounded the corner. She had heard the -far-echoing, resonant whistle of the _Resolute_, and knew that her boy -was home again. Her husband, for many years employed in the Key West -Custom House, had died only two years before, and the love and yearning -in her eyes at sight of Dan would have told you that he was her only -child and her all-in-all if you had never seen them together before. He -was taller than she, and, as her sturdy son stooped to kiss her with -his arms about her neck, she said: - -"I wanted to be at the wharf to meet you, Danny boy, but I couldn't -leave home in time. Bart Pringle's mother ran in to talk to me about -sending him away to school. I told her I wanted to do as much for you, -but the way wasn't open yet. They can afford it, and Bart is too bright -and ambitious to settle down in a Key West rut." - -They walked to the wide veranda across which the cool trade-wind swept, -and Mrs. Frazier ordered Dan to take the biggest, easiest wicker chair, -after which she vanished indoors and almost instantly reappeared with a -plate laden with pie and doughnuts. - -"You had breakfast in that stuffy little galley, I suppose," laughed -she, "but I know you are always hungry. You can stow these trifles away -as a deck-load, can't you?" - -Dan confessed that he could carry any amount of cargo of this kind and -then, between bites of a home-made doughnut, spoke very earnestly: - -"Bart ought to go North to school, mother, and I will tell him so and -back you up for all I'm worth. It will do him good to break away from -home. And Uncle Jim Wetherly will put up the same line of argument to -Mrs. Pringle whenever you say the word." - -"Jim is my dearest brother, but I can't picture him as showing very -much excitement about Bart's education," she responded. "He thinks -there's no finer thing in the world than to be master and owner of a -sea-going tow-boat. Why do you think he will be interested, Dan?" - -Her son took her hand in his hard, sun-burned paw and with a stammering -effort began his confession of all that he had heard and seen after -Jerry Pringle and the English ship-master had been run down in their -small boat. The mother listened with wide-eyed astonishment, and then -with something like indignation she cried: - -"Why, Dan, you ought to be writing novels for a living! That poor -Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_ was out of his head, and you know -that Jerry Pringle has a sour, gruff way with him even when he's on dry -land. I can't believe it of Mary Pringle's husband. It is a dreadful -thing to suspect him of, plotting to wreck a fine, big steamer." - -"That's just like a woman," declared Dan with a very grown-up air of -wisdom. "Mrs. Pringle hasn't anything to do with it. And you are like -Uncle Jim, always refusing to think other folks are a bit less square -and decent than you are. Ask him to-night what _he_ thinks about it, -but don't breathe a word to anybody else, will you?" - -"I shall scold him for putting such silly ideas in your head," firmly -announced Mrs. Frazier. "You couldn't have pieced this plot together -all by yourself, even if you are as big and strong as a young tow-boat." - -"All right," said Dan good-humoredly. "Only I hope Barton will go away -to school before the explosion happens. For if I'm right, Jerry Pringle -may be in disgrace before he's a year older. Captain Jim will never let -up on him if the _Kenilworth_ does happen to be stranded on the Reef." - -When Captain Wetherly strolled in after supper, his sister began at -once to cross-question him. He evaded her as far as possible and -finally declared: - -"I knew that Dan would tell you. I don't want him to keep anything from -his mother. But it must go no farther than this. I will say this much, -that when the _Kenilworth_ is due in the Florida Straits on her next -voyage outward bound, the _Resolute_ will be a good deal less than a -thousand miles away. And just for curiosity I have cabled to London to -find out if she is really chartered to Vera Cruz for her next voyage, -and what kind of a reputation her owners bear. They may be interested -in losing her, do you see? - -"Speaking of cables, Dan," he continued; "I got orders this afternoon -to go to Charleston at once and tow that big suction dredge to -Santiago. We shall be able to get away in a couple of days. You had -better come aboard to-morrow night." - -"Why, you'll be gone for weeks and weeks, Dan," sorrowfully cried his -mother. - -"I won't waste any time, nor try to save coal on this voyage," said -Captain Jim with a grim smile. "I want to be a good deal nearer the -Reef than Santiago, about two months from now." - -"It's a long, long while to have my boy away from me," Mrs. Frazier -murmured with a sigh. "But this tremendous conspiracy will be all blown -out of your heads before you come home again." - -After a luxurious night's slumber in a real bed, Dan felt as if the -cobwebs had been brushed from his busy brain and that the bright world -held better employment than brooding over what might happen to somebody -else. He set forth to find Barton and arrange a match race between the -_Sombrero_ and a rival craft, to be sailed before Dan had to go to sea. -The challenge being accepted on the spot, there was much to be done -in a very few hours, and Dan heartily agreed with Barton's opinion -delivered from the cockpit of their rakish craft: - -"It is a pity we have anything to do but sail boats for the fun of it. -What a bully sou'west breeze we're going to have this afternoon, Dan! -Can you coax old Bill McKnight to come along for ballast?" - -"Yes, if we promise him to smuggle some rifles and dynamite in the -hold," laughed the other. - -After dinner, Dan sauntered along the water front in the hope of -finding the mighty bulk of the chief engineer to serve as two hundred -and seventy pounds of desirable live ballast. The south-bound mail -steamer, from Tampa for Havana, had just landed her passengers, and -foremost among them loomed the tail and lanky figure of Jeremiah -Pringle. The wrecking master spied Dan and hurried to meet him in the -narrow street. His manner was no longer hostile and sullen, and Dan -was amazed to have a greeting hand stretched toward him and to hear a -cordial voice: - -"How's the boy? You and Bart as busy as ever? I went up the Gulf to -buy a schooner or two, and I found a beauty. I need a mate for her, -Dan. You are young, but you know more about salt water than most men. -It means double the wages of a deck-hand on that sooty old tow-boat. I -want you to go to Tampa and help fetch her down right away, which is -why I spring the proposition on you kind of off-hand and sudden." - -It was a chance at which Dan would have jumped a week before. Something -held him back, however, and, although he did not take time to reason -it out, he vaguely felt that Jeremiah Pringle was trying to bribe him -to keep his mouth shut. But he had a natural fear of making an enemy -of such a man as this, and he swiftly decided to make no mention of -the night in Pensacola. That was a matter for Captain Jim Wetherly to -handle. Dan was ready to stand by his guns, however, so far as his own -honesty was concerned, and he stoutly replied: - -"That is a big thing to have come my way, Captain Pringle, and I ought -to thank you. But I don't care to take it. My mother wants me to stick -by Captain Jim Wetherly if I'm going to stay afloat, and she knows -best." - -Jerry Pringle looked black, but forced a smile as he growled: - -"One thing you've got from your Uncle Jim is a swelled head. Well, -we'll say no more about it; _nothing at all about it, understand_?" - -The last words were spoken with a threatening earnestness, and Dan -understood what was meant. He nodded and went on his way, for once -anxious to get to sea, away from a situation in which he seemed to -become more and more befogged. He found Bart dancing jig-steps with -impatience, and trying to listen to a long-winded yarn delivered by Mr. -Bill McKnight who had been already kidnapped for the afternoon. - -The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race, the live ballast -shifted himself with more agility than the boys had dreamed he could -display, and the match was won with the lee-rail under and the cockpit -awash. Mrs. Frazier watched the finish from a wharf and invited Bart -and the engineer to come home with Dan for a festive supper party in -celebration. There could be no long faces or heavy thoughts at such -a time, and Dan forgot the shadow and laughed himself into a state -of collapse along with his mother and Bart when Mr. McKnight, with a -wreath of scarlet ponciana blossoms on his bald head, danced Spanish -fandangos until the cottage shook from floor to rafters. - -[Illustration: The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race] - -They all escorted Dan down to the _Resolute_ in the starlit evening and -sat on the guard-rail while the chief engineer fished a guitar from -under his bunk and sang Cuban serenades, leading off with "La Paloma." -It was as merry as such a parting hour could be, but there were tears -in the mother's eyes when she kissed Dan good-night, and her voice was -not steady when she whispered, "God bless and keep you, my precious -boy." - -When it came to saying good-by to Bart, Dan was more serious than usual -and, he held fast to his comrade's hand for a moment while he looked -him in the eyes and said: - -"Blow high, blow low, you will find me standing by, Bart. Good luck and -lots of it." - -Shortly after daylight next morning the _Resolute_ churned her way out -of the placid harbor and laid her coastwise course for Charleston. It -proved to be an uneventful run with pleasant weather and a favoring -sea. Captain Wetherly had nothing to say about the steamer _Kenilworth_ -until they reached Charleston where he found a cablegram from London -waiting for him. He read it aloud to Dan as soon as they happened to be -alone. - -"_Unable to send required information until later. Will communicate -your next port._" - -"It might have cleared up this _Kenilworth_ business," said Captain -Jim. "However, we may get a message at Santiago." - -But the _Resolute_ was not to see Santiago as soon as her master -expected. There was a week's delay in getting the great suction dredge -ready to begin the voyage. Then, when the _Resolute_ had taken hold of -the clumsy monster, for all the world like a bull-dog trying to drag a -dry-goods box, the captain of the dredge was hurt by a falling bolt and -there was more delay at anchor while a new skipper could be sent for. - -When, at last, the unwieldy tow was got to sea, strong head-winds -buffeted her day after day and urged the panting, sea-swept _Resolute_ -to her best efforts to keep up steerage way. She crept southward like -a snail, eating up coal at a rate which compelled Captain Wetherly to -put into Nassau, and again into the harbor of Mole St. Nicolas at the -western end of Hayti. - -Twice the dredge snapped her hawsers and broke clean adrift. When -the weary tug and her tow crept in sight of the Morro Castle at the -mouth of Santiago harbor, Bill McKnight almost wept as he surveyed his -engines and boilers. Sorely racked and strained they were, and Captain -Jim tried to comfort him by declaring that no other fat engineer could -have patched and held them together to the end of the voyage. Making -temporary repairs was a costly and tedious undertaking, and the crew -of the _Resolute_ tired of the charms of Santiago and grew restless and -homesick for Key West. - -While Dan, the captain, and McKnight were eating lunch ashore one day, -a swarthy, dapper clerk from the cable office sought the Venus Café -with a message which he had tried to deliver on board the tug. It was -for Captain Wetherly who read it with an air of mingled surprise and -chagrin. With a glance at the engineer who was blissfully absorbed over -his third plate of alligator pear salad, Captain Jim remarked as he -handed the sheet to Dan: - -"It is from London. Well, the cat is out of the bag, and we might as -well let McKnight in. We are going to need him before we get through -with this job, and need him bad. I suppose I ought to have been more -suspicious, but it sounded too rotten to be true. Bill, you must have -that engine room in shape this week if it breaks your back. We are -going to make a record run home to Key West." - -Dan read in silence before handing the cablegram to Captain Wetherly. - -"_Kenilworth cleared for Vera Cruz. Heavily insured. General cargo. -Owners hard hit by recent losses. Will bear watching._" - -Captain Jim hammered the table with his fist and tried to speak in an -undertone as he hotly exclaimed: - -"This confidential report makes my suspicions fit together like the -pieces of a puzzle. I couldn't for the life of me understand how the -master of a big steamer could afford to ram her ashore and lose her, -and his berth and his reputation with it, for ten thousand dollars. But -if he knew that his owners would shield him and stand in with him, why, -of course, he might be tempted to clean up ten thousand dollars for -himself when a man like Jerry Pringle crossed his bows and passed him -a few hints. A lot of good it would have done for me to cable Captain -Bruce's owners and give them warning of what we heard that night in -Pensacola harbor. They would have laughed at me as a meddlesome idiot. -Cleared for Vera Cruz, has she? She does her ten knots right along, I -picked up that bit of information at Pensacola. Allow her twenty days -to the Reef." - -Bill McKnight had dropped his fork and was purple with suppressed -excitement. When the captain fetched up for lack of breath, he blurted -in a hoarse whisper: - -"It doesn't take a axe to drive an idea into my noddle. As near as -I can make out, though your bearings are considerably overheated, -Captain, there is scheduled to be a large and expensive wreck on the -Reef, assisted by her skipper and one Jeremiah Pringle. It sounds -like the good old times before the light-houses crippled the wrecking -industry. And we _Resolutes_ propose to be first on hand to pull her -off and disappoint certain enterprising persons?" - -"Disappoint 'em!" fairly shouted Captain Jim. "If the _Kenilworth_ -does go ashore, I'll fetch that vessel off the Reef if it tears the -_Resolute_ to kindling wood. I'll break their rotten hearts and show -them what honest wrecking is." - -"I didn't throw away that clamp I made to hold the safety-valve down, -Captain," chuckled Bill McKnight. "And I ain't afraid to use it again, -either." - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE RACE FOR THE "KENILWORTH" - - -Chief Engineer Bill McKnight hoisted himself up the iron ladder that -led from the fire-room of the _Resolute_ and tottered on deck gasping -for breath. He was begrimed from head to foot, the sweat had furrowed -little streaks in the mask of soot and grease which covered his ample -countenance, and his eyes were red with weariness and want of sleep. He -had shoved the tug back to Key West at her top speed, and now he was -toiling night and day to make her ready for whatever summons might come -for a tussle on the Reef. Captain Wetherly found him slumped against -the deck-house with his head in his hands and exhorted him cheerily: - -"Don't give up the ship, Bill. It is a great repair job that you've -done, and the worst is over. The new tubes are most all in, aren't -they?" - -"The boilers will be as good as new," grunted McKnight, "but how about -my bronchial tubes, Captain? I can't plug them up and make steam same -as I plugged the boilers and fetched you back from Santiago. I'm so -full of cinders inside that I rattle when I walk. But give me another -week and the boat will be fit to hitch a hawser to this benighted -island of Key West and tow it out to sea. Anything new ashore?" - -Captain Jim sat down beside the engineer and made sure that they could -not be overheard as he began: - -"Dan has been watching Jerry Pringle's fleet of wrecking vessels for -me. Those two schooners he bought in the Gulf have come into port, and -it is mighty little sponging he intends to do with them at present, -Bill. They look fast and they can stow lots of cargo. And Pringle has -been overhauling his other schooners and has chartered three more in -Key West. He says he intends to send them out to join the mackerel -fleet." - -"Anything doing in the tow-boat line?" asked McKnight with a new gleam -of interest in his damaged eyes. "If Pringle aims to tackle a certain -job that may be reported from the Reef pretty soon, he will have to -make a bluff at pulling the steamer off, won't he? There might be a -small fortune in salvage, besides looting the cargo out of her." - -"He is dickering for some kind of a time charter on the _Henry -Foster_," snapped Captain Jim. "She couldn't pull a feather-bed off the -Reef without breaking down. And I understand he has been cabling up the -Gulf about another tug or two." - -"Well, we can get all the tow-boats we need and good ones, can't we?" -beamed McKnight. "Maybe we can't handle most any kind of a wrecking job -ourselves! And there won't be any bluffs about it when _we_ take hold." - -"I'm certainly sorry for Dan, poor boy," said Captain Jim with a sigh. -"He feels as if he were spying on Bart's father. And to make it worse, -Bart is going to sail with the old man for a while and the lad will -be mixed up in this nasty mess as sure as fate, and he will be on the -wrong side of it. Here comes our Dan now. Drop the subject, Bill. It -only makes the youngster more unhappy." - -Dan Frazier had passed some restless nights since his return to Key -West, but his mind was too sunny and youthful to believe that things -were ever as bad as they might be. He found comfort in the hope that -Captain Wetherly would spoil the plot to lose the _Kenilworth_. He had -implicit confidence in his uncle's ability to win against any odds with -the stanch _Resolute_, and now that a fair and open battle against -Jerry Pringle was assured, Dan found himself eager for the fray. Barton -had told him that morning: - -"Father and mother are talking of sending me North to school, but I'm -going to rough it at sea with father for a month or so. He said he -tried to get you to work for him. I knew you wouldn't leave Captain -Jim, but maybe we might have been lucky enough to work on a wreck -together." - -"You can't tell, Bart. Perhaps we shall, but we may be working against -each other. I'll back Captain Jim Wetherly to be first man aboard the -next vessel that goes on the Reef." - -"Captain Jim is a good man," declared Bart, "but it will be a cold day -when he lays alongside a wreck ahead of that daddy of mine." - -The boys were busy with their unbeaten sloop _Sombrero_, and one day -slid into another while Dan employed much of his spare time in helping -his mother about the house and in painting the chicken-house, the -fences, and porch with great pride in the spick-and-span results. -Mrs. Frazier still professed to take no stock in the plot hatched by -"Barton's father and Mary Pringle's husband," but she was nervous and -absent-minded at times, and there was even more affection than usual in -her manner toward Bart. - -Dan tacked a calendar at the head of his bed and crossed off the days -one by one, saying to himself when he awoke and looked at it: - -"Twenty days out from London, as Uncle Jim figured it, and the -_Kenilworth_ is one day nearer the Reef." - -Twenty-two days had been counted when Captain Jim called at the cottage -and told Dan to go aboard the _Resolute_ and stay there until further -orders. When the deck-hand reported for duty, he found all hands of -the crew either at work on board or within call on the wharf. Bill -McKnight had steam in his boilers and, although the fires were banked, -he had just finished stowing below a generous supply of resinous pine -wood, oil-soaked cotton waste, and a barrel of turpentine for use as -emergency fuel. - -"I lost thirty-five pounds of weight in three weeks," snorted the -engineer, "but I mended the old hooker to stay mended. Ho, ho, there -goes the _Henry Foster_ to sea, Captain. Wonder if there's anything -doing so soon? Her engines sound like a mowing-machine trying to cut a -path through a brick-yard." - -"Don't worry about her," muttered Captain Jim. "Pringle isn't aboard -her. We won't leave here until he gets uneasy. He is a good deal better -posted than I am about his infernal program and we----" - -Captain Jim stopped short, for Barton Pringle unexpectedly appeared on -deck and announced to Dan: - -"I'm going up the Hawk Channel with father at daylight to look for one -of our sponging vessels that's reported ashore near Bahia Honda Key. -Thought I'd say good-by." - -Dan could not help glancing at Captain Jim as he replied with a quiver -of excitement in his voice: - -"We may be running up the outside channel before you get back, Bart. -Perhaps we shall sight you. Hope you have a good trip." - -Barton was in a hurry and jumped ashore with a wave of his hand to the -chief engineer. When he was out of ear-shot Dan observed with a long -face: - -"I would give six months' wages if I could make Bart stay home. Do you -suppose his father is really going to sea at daylight, or is he just -using Bart to fool us?" - -"I haven't been walking in my sleep," dryly responded Captain Jim. -"There's a hundred and fifty miles of the Reef between here and Miami -and I don't intend to follow any decoy ducks and fetch up at the wrong -end of it. I figure on getting a report of any disaster as soon as the -next man." - -The next day passed without tidings. Jeremiah Pringle had vanished from -his haunts in Key West, and four of his schooners were not to be found -at their moorings. Another day dragged by, Bill McKnight was stewing -with impatience and Dan Frazier was losing his appetite while Captain -Jim Wetherly remained cheerful and unruffled. - -He was like another man, however, when a message came to him at noon on -the fourth day of waiting. It was from the cable office and he had no -more than glanced at it before he darted on deck, ordered the mate to -get the crew aboard, shouted down a speaking-tube to Bill McKnight, and -took his station at the wheel. His keen-witted, masterful energy seemed -to thrill the _Resolute_ with life and action. Black smoke gushed from -her funnel as her stokers toiled in front of the furnace doors. The -engines were turning over when the last deck-hand leaped aboard, and as -the dripping hawsers were hauled in, the tug was moving out into the -stream. - -Key West island was over her stern before Dan found time to run up to -the wheel-house. Captain Jim slipped a crumpled bit of paper into his -fist and motioned for him to keep it to himself. It was from the marine -observer at Jupiter Inlet, a hundred miles to the northward of the -Florida Reef: - -"_Steamer Kenilworth southbound passed seven this morning. Signalled -steering gear disabled by heavy weather but able to proceed._" - -Dan's faith in human nature, as it had to do with the master of the -_Kenilworth_, had been so severely shocked that he wondered whether -the report of her mishap could be true. He was not shrewd enough to -perceive, however, what Captain Jim whispered as he went below to see -how things were moving in the engine-room. - -"Crippled steering gear, bosh. Her skipper has to fake up some excuse -for striking the Reef." - -Dan could scarcely believe that the curtain had really risen on this -seafaring melodrama in which he was to be an actor. A stately ship was -moving blindly toward an ambush which might be the death of her. And -racing to find and befriend her was this lone tug whose throbbing heart -of steel shook her stout hull from bow to stern as she tore through -the long head-seas on the edge of the Gulf Stream. The afternoon was -already waning and night would overtake the _Resolute_ before she could -reach the upper stretches of the Reef. Captain Wetherly felt certain -that the _Kenilworth_ would not be rammed on the coral ledges in broad -daylight, and he foresaw a desperate game of hide-and-seek between -darkness and dawn. But he held to the doctrine that with anything like -even chances an honest man will win against a rascal in the game of -life, afloat or ashore. - -The north-east wind was steadily freshening and the sky had become gray -with drifting clouds. As dusk crept over the uneasy sea a mist-like -rain began to drizzle. The master of the _Kenilworth_ might reasonably -lose his bearings if the night grew much thicker. Bill McKnight emerged -from his sultry cavern long enough to grumble to Dan: - -"What's to hinder our running past that steamer before morning, I want -to know, hey, boy?" - -"You wouldn't worry if you could watch Captain Jim hug the Reef," -assured Dan. "It's like walking a tight-rope. I thought we were going -to climb right up into the American Shoal light-house." - -"Well, this old tug is doing her fifteen knots, Dan, which is faster -than she ever flew before," chuckled the chief engineer, "and if we -touch bottom, you'll know it all right. Look up yonder at my fireworks." - -Dan stared at a banner of solid flame that streamed from the funnel -which glowed red hot for a dozen feet above the deck. With a cry of -alarm he ran to the upper deck-houses which were built just fore and -aft of the funnel and found the wood-work charred and smoking. He -shouted down to McKnight who replied with a laugh: - -"It isn't my affair if your superstructure burns up. My orders are to -make steam. Better mention it to the skipper." - -Dan rushed to the wheel-house but Captain Jim received the news -as if it were the merest trifle. He was sweeping the sea with his -night-glasses and exhorting the mate at the wheel to "hold her as she -is and keep your nerve." To Dan he replied airily: - -"Caught afire, has she? Good for Bill McKnight. He's delivering the -goods. Get some men with buckets and put the fire out. I've no steam to -waste in starting the pumps and putting the hose on it." - -The deck force was taking turns at shovelling coal to reinforce the -stifled stokers, and those off watch followed Dan with cheers. They -knew that a race was on, and it lightened their toil to know that the -_Resolute_ was pounding toward her goal, wherever it was, with every -ounce of power in her. Captain Jim joined the fire-fighters long enough -to yell to them: - -"Look out for rockets ahead. The first man to sight distress signals -from the Reef gets ten dollars and a new hat." - -A brawny negro stoker wiped the sweat from his eyes as he bobbed on -deck and panted: - -"When Cap'n Jim smell a wreck she's sure gwine be where he say. If he -wants to find 'stress signals he better look amongst us poor niggers in -the fire-room." - -Midnight came and no one thought of sleep. The excitement had spread -even to the cook and the galley boy who thought they saw rockets every -time a match was lit up in the bows. Dan gazed out into the starless -night and listened to the clamor of the parting seas alongside with -frequent thoughts of Barton Pringle who was somewhere out here, proud -of his father's seamanship and daring, loyal to his interests, -trusting him as Dan trusted his Uncle Jim. Now like pawns on a chess -board, the two boys were to play their parts on the opposing sides of a -conflict which would be fought to the bitter end. Dan was aroused by a -hoarse shout from the bridge of the _Resolute_: - -"Red rocket two points off the port bow." - -Dan wheeled and looked forward while his breath seemed to choke him. A -second rocket soared skyward, like a crimson thread hung against the -curtain of night. - -"Hold her steady as she is," shouted Captain Jim from his post on the -bridge. "The weather has cleared a bit and that signal was a long way -off." - -There was an exultant ring to his strong voice as if he were glad to -have the climax in sight. He sent for Dan and told him to stay on the -bridge and look for answering signals. - -"It's the _Kenilworth_, a thousand to one," said the captain of the -_Resolute_. "And if Jerry Pringle's schemes haven't missed fire, his -tug or one of his schooners will just happen to be within signalling -distance. Ah, by Judas, there goes his answer, a rocket way out to -seaward. Pringle was afraid to hug the Reef on a thick night. He missed -the _Kenilworth_ when she passed inside of him. It may possibly be a -merchantman that has seen the _Kenilworth's_ signals, but we take no -chances." - -Captain Wetherly shouted the tidings down the tube to the engine-room -force, and the hard-driven tug tore her way through the heavy seas -in the last gallant burst of the home-stretch. Back through the -speaking-tube bellowed the voice of the chief engineer: - -"I've just put the clamp on the safety-valve, Captain. She's carrying -thirty pounds more steam than the law allows, and if she cracks she'll -crack wide open. Hooray! Give it to her!" - -As if the captain of the stranded steamer were content to know that -his message had been seen and answered, he sent up no more rockets, -nor did any more answering signals gleam out to seaward. It was a race -in the dark. The _Resolute_ and her rival, if such it was, must run -down two sides of a triangle whose apex was the unseen vessel on the -Reef. Captain Jim had taken the compass bearings of the _Kenilworth's_ -rockets and, regardless of the risk he ran in driving his steamer along -the very fangs of the Reef, he held her in a straight line for her goal -and prayed that her bottom would not be ripped off or her straining -boilers blow her sky high. - -Almost at the same instant that the excited deck force of the -_Resolute_ glimpsed a red light winking far off to starboard, they saw -the mast-head light of the stranded vessel almost dead ahead. - -"That red light out yonder belongs to J. Pringle," muttered Captain -Wetherly, "And we must be pretty near the same distance from that -mast-head light on the Reef. It's going to be a whirlwind finish, all -right." - -The _Resolute_ kept full speed ahead as if she intended to cut her -way through the stranded steamer. Not until a huge black shape dotted -with a row of cabin lights loomed a little to one side of her headlong -flight, did Captain Jim shift his course to round to in the deep water -beyond the Reef. His fists were clenched and his jaw was set hard as he -glared from the wheel-house door to find the oncoming boat which he -had sworn to beat. Her lights were no more than a quarter of a mile -away as the _Resolute_ crept under the quarter of the stranded cargo -steamer. - -"If that's you out yonder, Jerry Pringle," growled Captain Jim to -himself, "you've slowed up to find out who the dickens we are. No -wonder you're worried. Come on and have it out, you hatchet-faced -pirate." - -He seized the whistle cord and the _Resolute_ roared a long, sonorous -blast of greeting and defiance. Then he caught up a megaphone and -shouted toward the steamer stranded on the Reef: - -"Ship ahoy! I'll stand by to put a line aboard at daylight. Are you -resting easy as you are?" - -"What steamer is that?" came the answering hail from the darkness. - -"The tow-boat _Resolute_ of Key West, first vessel to come to your -assistance. Who are you?" - -"The deuce you are," and there was the most profound amazement in -the other voice. "This is the steamer _Kenilworth_ of London. A -crosscurrent set me on here but I can work off with my own engines, -thank you." - -"You'll never work her off," yelled Captain Jim. "Your vessel will -break her back if it blows much harder. It's high-water two hours after -daylight. It's now or never to pull her clear." - -There was no reply. It was evident that Captain Malcolm Bruce was -shocked and bewildered by the unlooked for presence of the _Resolute_ -and was sparring for time until he could hail the other craft which by -this time was feeling her way nearer. - -Captain Wetherly was in no temper for parleying. He moved the -_Resolute_ up abreast of the _Kenilworth's_ bridge and shouted sternly: - -"I know your voice, Captain Bruce. My name is Jim Wetherly. This is the -only tow-boat within five hundred miles that's got the power to drag -you clear. And I must take hold on this next tide, before you begin to -pound and settle. We'll arrange terms afterward." - -"I'll wait till daylight before taking any lines aboard," was the curt -response from Captain Bruce who had moved aft to hail the other tug -which had now dropped astern of the _Resolute_. - -"This is the _Henry Foster_, in command of Jeremiah Pringle," came -back to him. "We answered your rockets. Shall we stand by?" - -"I will let you know when daylight comes," answered the master of the -_Kenilworth_. - -Captain Jim Wetherly stamped his foot and snarled at his puzzled mate: - -"They must think I'm seven kinds of a fool. I'll block their game right -now. Oh, Dan Frazier, come here, on the jump." - -He grasped Dan by the collar, dragged him into the chart-room, and -closed the door. With swift, emphatic utterance Captain Wetherly shot -these instructions into the boy's ear: - -"Dan, I'm going to put you aboard the _Kenilworth_. I can't spare -anybody else, and you will be my agent, understand? If Captain -Bruce refuses to take my line, this business will be put up to the -underwriters from start to finish. And the crooked owners won't be able -to collect one dollar of insurance, I'll see to that. And I'll have you -as a witness to prove that the _Resolute_ was first on the spot. Come -along with me." - -Captain Jim pulled Dan by the arm toward the lower deck. A boat was -lowered in a twinkling and, while the excited lad waited for a chance -to jump, Captain Jim told him: - -"It's likely that Pringle has Barton with him on the tug, and they may -try the same trick. If they come aboard the _Kenilworth_, you remember -that you're working for Jim Wetherly, no matter if it means a scrap." - -As the yawl danced away from the side of the _Resolute_, Captain Jim -shouted to the _Kenilworth_: - -"Put a ladder overside, if you please, Captain Bruce. I'm sending my -nephew aboard to talk business with you." - -"I will talk no business before daylight," roared Captain Bruce. "Call -your boat back." - -"Oh, yes, you _will_ take him aboard," stormed Captain Wetherly. "_If -you don't, the underwriters will know the reason why._ Shall I tell -_you_ why?" - -"Hooray! but that was a shot below his water-line," chuckled Bill -McKnight from the engine-room door. "But I don't envy Dan his job when -Jerry Pringle climbs aboard the _Kenilworth_." - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -WICKED MR. PRINGLE IN COLLISION - - -In his cooler moments Captain Wetherly might not have ordered Dan -Frazier to board the stranded _Kenilworth_ before daylight, for a heavy -sea was running along the Reef. But he knew there was smoother water in -the lee of the stranded steamer and he had reason for confidence in his -boat's crew. He had been foolhardy in bringing his tug so close, but he -was in no mood to weigh risks; and he was ready to back Dan to play a -man's part in this game for high stakes. - -Dan had learned to do as he was told without asking why, but as he -peered from his plunging yawl at the tall, black hulk of the helpless -_Kenilworth_, his hands were shaking and his lips were dry. Although -the seas did not break over the Reef because of the depth of water, -they threatened to smash the yawl against the steamer's side. Presently -a lantern crept down from the deck above like a huge fire-fly. It -was tied to one of the lower rounds of a swaying rope ladder, at the -sight of which Dan gathered himself for the ordeal. As the yawl rose he -jumped headlong, got a grip on the ladder, and hung on for dear life -while a frothing sea washed over him. Gasping for breath, bruised and -dazed, he fought his way up the side and fell over the bulwark of the -after well-deck. - -Dan had not the slightest idea of what he was expected to do on board -the _Kenilworth_, but after two seamen had stood him on his feet he -limped forward in search of Captain Bruce. Oddly enough, he did not -feel in the least afraid of meeting the hostile ship-master whose -wicked plans had been spoiled by the coming of the _Resolute_. Dan -recalled the big, brown-bearded man with the deep voice and the kindly -eyes whom he had met in Pensacola harbor, and said to himself, as he -had said then: "He looks like too fine a man." But as Captain Jim's -agent, Dan braced himself to be stern and dignified while he clambered -to the bridge. - -He found Captain Bruce standing in the light that fell from the -chart-room door. - -"I am to stay aboard until further orders from Captain Wetherly, sir," -announced Dan in the heaviest voice he could muster. - -"Nobody asked you, so get away from my quarters," was the irritable -reply. Dan stepped forward into the light and Captain Bruce stared at -him with puzzled interest. Then his frown cleared and he exclaimed -heartily: - -"Why, it's the lad that fished me out of Pensacola harbor. I ought not -to forget you, had I? Pardon my rude manners, but a man with his ship -in peril is poor company. Come inside. Well, upon my word, this is a -most extraordinary reunion all round." - -The stalwart master mariner was trying hard to wear his usual manner, -but his words came out with jerky, nervous haste, his gaze shifted -uneasily, and he was twisting both hands in his beard. If his -conscience had been troubling him before, panic fear had now come to -torment him; fear of Captain Wetherly; fear even of this boy, for no -mere chance could have brought about this midnight meeting on the -Reef. In silence Dan followed him into the chart-room and waited while -Captain Bruce seemed to forget himself in gloomy reflection. With an -effort the master of the _Kenilworth_ looked at the boy and began to -explain: - -"I hope Captain Wetherly did not take offence. I am responsible for -the safety of this ship, and until I can get in touch with my owners -my word is final. If I can get her off without help, it means saving -a whacking big salvage bill. She is making no water, and is in little -danger." - -Dan knew enough of the ways of seafaring men to be surprised that this -captain should stoop to explain matters to the deck-hand of a tug. But -the captain's word did not ring true. He was trying to play a part, and -Dan saw through it and was sorry for him. - -"You don't know the Reef," replied the boy. "You struck it in good -weather. And Captain Jim Wetherly is no robber. He would not stand by -if he thought you were not going to need him and need him bad. _We_ -don't do any crooked business aboard the _Resolute_, sir." - -Dan had not meant to deal this last home-thrust. He was one lone-handed -boy in the enemy's camp. Captain Bruce flushed and looked hard at Dan, -not so much with anger as with unhappy doubt and anxiety. He did not -reply and appeared to be struggling with his thoughts. Dan was so worn -out with excitement and loss of sleep that he had to blink hard at -the swinging lamp to keep his eyes open, and after several minutes of -silence, Captain Bruce's face seemed to waver in a kind of haze. Dan -aroused himself with a start when the master of the _Kenilworth_ spoke -the question that was uppermost in his thoughts: - -"How did your tow-boat happen to find me to-night? What were you doing -out here, boy?" - -Dan's drowsiness fled as if a gun had been fired in the room. What -could he say? If he told the truth he might be knocked on the head and -dropped overboard before daylight. Deeds as bad as this had been done -on the Reef, and he was the only witness to back up Captain Jim's story -of a plot to wreck the steamer. He could only stammer: - -"We were running to the north'ard and saw your signals. Captain -Wetherly commands the _Resolute_. You must ask him." - -"He threatened and bulldozed me to-night," exclaimed Captain Bruce. "I -let you come on board because he treated me kindly at Pensacola. I -will give him my answer at daylight." - -Dan leaned forward with his elbows on the table and looked up into the -captain's face. Mustering all his courage, he began to say what was in -his heart, as if he were talking to one of his own friends who had done -something to be sorry for: - -"Captain Wetherly is working for your interests, sir. He knows the -Reef better than any pilot out of Key West. If he says he can get your -steamer off, he'll do it. And--and--he wants to save you--your ship--no -matter what it costs him. It--it--isn't only to get ahead of Jerry -Pringle on a wrecking job, Captain. He likes you, and Barton Pringle is -my chum, and Mrs. Pringle is my mother's dearest friend, and Captain -Jim wants to get you clear and on your voyage again without--without -being forced to--to fight it out to a finish with you and Jerry -Pringle. It's for Bart and his mother, and for you, too, Captain Bruce." - -The ship-master walked to the doorway and stood gazing out into the -night. Then he replied gruffly with a hard laugh: - -"You are almost asleep, my boy. I can't make head or tail of what you -are driving at. I make my own bargains with tugs when I need them. -Lie down on the transom and take forty winks. I am going to start my -engines again and work my vessel off on this tide." - -Dan nodded and promptly curled up on the leather cushions. Daylight -showed through the port-holes when he awoke and stepped out on deck. -A few cable-lengths to seaward rolled the _Resolute_. Astern of her -was the _Henry Foster_. Beating up the Hawk Channel inside the Reef -came two schooners under clouds of canvas. Other sails flecked the sea -to the southward, all hastening toward the _Kenilworth_. From among -the low islets to the westward the smaller craft of the "Conchs," -or scattered dwellers on the Keys, were speeding toward the scene. -The _Kenilworth_ lay with a list to port, her bow shoved high on the -invisible Reef, her stern still afloat. It would have been hard to -convince a landlubber that this great steamer was in danger of going to -pieces. No seas were breaking around her. She looked as if she had come -to a standstill in mid ocean. - -Dan Frazier had the love of the sea in him. The sight of this helpless -ship as he saw her by daylight appealed to him as tremendously sad and -tragic. He picked up a sounding lead and let it fall over the side to -find the depth of water amidships, for a glance at the chart-room clock -had told him that the tide was almost at the flood. The sound of voices -made him look aft. Captain Bruce was coming forward with Jeremiah -Pringle, and behind them was Barton. A moment later, Captain Jim -Wetherly threw a leg over the steamer's rail and shouted to his men in -the yawl to wait for him. He ran forward to Dan without speaking to the -others as he passed them, and shoving his nephew toward Captain Bruce -he exclaimed: - -"Here's my man, aboard your ship hours ahead of Pringle. You'll have to -talk business with me first. And all I ask is a square deal." - -Barton hung back and acted as if he had caught the spirit of the -hostile rivalry that threatened an explosion of some kind. He was more -highly strung and impulsive than Dan, less used to knocking about among -men, and he felt that Dan was somehow taking sides against him. Before -Captain Bruce could speak, Jerry Pringle strode up with an ugly scowl -on his lean, dark face and said: - -"Let Wetherly talk terms. When he gets through, I will be ready to sign -a paper to take charge of the job for half the figure he names, I don't -care how low he goes." - -"That ought to settle it. You can't do as well as that, Captain -Wetherly," put in the master of the _Kenilworth_. "If you are so sure -my ship can be pulled off, I see no reason why Captain Pringle isn't -the man to do it." - -Captain Jim was trying to keep his temper under, but the fact that -these two men were trying to carry out their vile agreement right under -his nose was more than he could stand. He shook his heavy fist in Jerry -Pringle's face and declared: - -"The _Resolute_ will make fast to this ship this morning. And if you -want the _Henry Foster_ to get action, it will be under my orders, and -at my terms. By Judas, this play-acting ends right here. I mean you, -too, Captain Bruce. I have been hoping that I could keep my mouth shut. -I'd rather cut off my right hand than drag certain other people into -it. I know why you brought your boy along with you, Jerry Pringle. To -put a stopper on my tongue, wasn't it? Hide behind women and children, -eh? Well, I'm in charge of wrecking this steamer, understand? Get back -to your tug. I've a good mind to----" - -He felt a pull at his arm, and turned to look into Dan's imploring face -as the boy whispered: - -"Don't say any more, Uncle Jim. Wait till Bart is out of the way, -please, oh please do." - -Captain Jim rammed his hands in his breeches pockets and addressed -Captain Bruce: - -"I've said my last word. My hawser will come aboard at once." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ wavered and looked at Jerry Pringle as -if appealing to the stronger will which had tempted and entrapped him. -The hapless ship-master had gone too far with the plot to let it go by -the board. Pringle muttered with a sneer: - -"Who is master of this steamer, anyhow?" - -Captain Bruce echoed the remark: - -"I command this ship, Captain Wetherly, and the sooner you leave her -the better." - -Wasting no more words, Captain Jim called to his boat's crew to stand -by to take him off, and said to Dan: - -"Pringle is going back to his tug. You stay here. They won't dare to do -you any harm. Keep your eyes and ears open." - -Presently Bart followed his father on board the _Henry Foster_. Dan had -found no chance to talk with him and he was not sorry. He was afraid -Bart would ask him what Captain Jim's angry speech had meant. Already -the stranding of the _Kenilworth_ had dragged the two lads into its -tangle of motives and events. - -Dan was too absorbed in wondering what Captain Jim could do next to -dwell long with his own troubles and perplexities. He watched the -_Resolute_ steam nearer the _Kenilworth_, while Captain Wetherly's -deck-crew gathered around the huge coils of steel hawser on the -overhang. Soon the _Henry Foster_ wallowed closer and her men were also -busy making ready to pay out a towing hawser. Dan could not understand -how Captain Jim was going to get his line aboard the _Kenilworth_, and -he breathlessly awaited the next move. - -On board the _Resolute_, Captain Wetherly was standing at the wheel and -watching the _Henry Foster_ with the light of battle in his gray eyes. -Jerry Pringle's tug had forged ahead until she lay square in the path -of the _Resolute_ which was thus prevented from getting into position -for taking hold of the steamer on the Reef. - -Captain Jim pulled the whistle cord and the _Resolute_ clamored to the -other tug to move out of the way. But Mr. Pringle seemed determined to -remain exactly where he was. Again and again the _Resolute's_ whistle -was sounded, but the _Henry Foster_ refused to make room. Captain -Wetherly finally growled to the mate: - -"He doesn't seem to have very good manners, does he? Maybe he ought -to be taught a lesson. Take the wheel while I go below and have a few -words with Mr. McKnight." - -The chief engineer was leaning against a stanchion and muttering -insults at the balky _Henry Foster_, with special emphasis on the -shortcomings of Mr. J. Pringle. - -"Are you going to sit here all day and let those _Henry Fosters_ laugh -at you, Captain?" asked McKnight. - -"Not if you have steam enough to do as I tell you, Bill. All I want you -to do is to jump her ahead for all she's worth when I ring the jingle -bell. Then hold on tight and say your prayers." - -"Going to push Pringle out of the way?" asked the engineer with a smile -of happy anticipation. "Well, there's steam enough to make the _Henry -Foster_ know she's been bumped. It's about time something happened." - -The captain returned to the wheel-house and gave the signal to back -her. The _Resolute_ slipped very slowly astern until she was in a -position for a "running start." As a final warning her whistle was -blown, without reply from the _Henry Foster_. Then, with one long -blast like a war-whoop, the _Resolute_ moved straight ahead, gathering -headway until her rearing bow was flinging cascades of spray. The mate -gasped: - -"Keep her off, Captain, or you'll be in collision." - -Captain Wetherly grinned and nodded as he held his tug straight at -the after part of the _Henry Foster_ on board of which there was much -shouting and running to and fro. - -Her crew had taken it for granted that the _Resolute_ would pass -astern of them until her tall cut-water loomed within a hundred feet -of their overhang. Then her engine-room bells ding-donged one frantic -signal after another, but she began to move too late. _Crash!_ and she -heeled far over from the shock of the collision. Like a keen-edged axe -through a soft timber, the bow of the _Resolute_, with her weight and -momentum behind it, sheared through the overhang and sliced a dozen -feet off the stern of the luckless _Henry Foster_. It was done and over -within a twinkling. The _Resolute_ ploughed on with headway almost -unchecked, and as her horrified mate rushed forward to see what damage -had been done to her own hull, Captain Jim Wetherly looked back and -remarked to himself: - -"As neat a job as I ever saw. Her after bulkhead will keep her afloat, -but the _Henry Foster_ is surely shy her tail-feathers. I guess that -winds up her career as a tow-boat for some time. Jerry Pringle looks -kind of upset and agitated." - -Mr. Pringle had picked himself up from the deck, where he had been -hurled headlong, and was wildly shaking his fist at the _Resolute_. The -crippled tug was drifting off broadside and was evidently helpless. -Presently a small boat put off from her and headed for the _Resolute_. -As soon as he was within shouting distance, Jerry Pringle rose in the -stern-sheets and yelled in a voice broken with rage: - -"You'll pay for my vessel, Jim Wetherly. You run her down on purpose. -She'll founder or drift on the Reef if you don't tow me to Key West." - -"You violated all the rules of the road," sung back Captain Jim. "And -you're so fond of wrecking other people's vessels, supposing you see -what kind of a job you can make of the _Henry Foster_. Tow you to Key -West? You're joking. I'm going to put my line aboard the _Kenilworth_ -and I'll settle with you later." - -Dan was dancing up and down on the _Kenilworth's_ deck as he stared at -this amazing collision. It might be a reckless and lawless thing to do, -but Dan saw that Jerry Pringle had brought the disaster upon himself, -and that it had given Captain Jim a clear field. Throwing his cap in -the air, Dan let out a series of shrill and joyous war-whoops. He had -forgotten all about Barton, but in the midst of his noisy jubilation -he caught sight of his chum standing aft on the _Henry Foster_ and -peering down at the havoc made by the collision. Dan's voice must have -carried across the water, for Bart turned to look at the _Kenilworth_ -and shook his fist with every sign of rage and resentment. Dan -subsided, but the mischief had been done. He had made an enemy of -Barton, and he muttered with a sorrowful face: - -"I can't blame him for getting mad as a hornet at me. I ought to have -kept still. I don't know how we can ever patch up this misunderstanding -either. He ought to hold his daddy responsible for thinking he could -monkey with Uncle Jim Wetherly and the _Resolute_." - - - - -CHAPTER V - -"ALL HANDS ABANDON SHIP!" - - -Nobody was more dumfounded by the ramming of the tug _Henry Foster_ -than Captain Bruce of the steamer aground on the Reef. In a twinkling -his wicked partnership with Jeremiah Pringle had been smashed beyond -mending. He could no longer refuse to accept help from the victorious -_Resolute_. This meant that Captain Jim Wetherly would take charge of -the wrecking of the steamer and try to save her and her cargo by every -means in his power. Jerry Pringle had been driven from the scene. He -was on board his shattered tug which was drifting to the southward, -in no great danger of going ashore, while several schooners were -clustering around to give her aid. - -Dan Frazier paid no attention to Captain Bruce, but ran to the stern of -the _Kenilworth_ to watch the _Resolute's_ crew send its towing hawser -aboard. Captain Jim was at his best in such an undertaking as this, -and his men were obeying his shouted orders with disciplined skill and -haste. The hawser writhed after the yawl like a sea-serpent and was -dragged up the side of the stranded vessel by her own crew, who were -jubilant at seeing active operations under way. When the line was made -fast, Captain Jim bellowed through his megaphone: - -"We have wasted time and lost the best of the tide, Captain Bruce, but -I'm going to pull for an hour anyhow. Set your engines going full speed -astern and throw your helm to port." - -Captain Bruce obeyed with eager energy. He seemed to be coming to -himself and honestly anxious to get his ship afloat. His broad -shoulders were thrown back, and he held his head erect, while his deep -voice had a tone of masterful decision. If he had made a compact with -the Evil One, he acted like a man who regretted the bargain and wanted -to repair the damage already done. Fate had suddenly snatched him out -of the clutches of Jeremiah Pringle and perhaps he was glad of it. At -least, Dan Frazier was ready to look at it in this way, and as Captain -Bruce came aft to examine the hawser the lad said to himself with a -wisdom born of his own experience: - -"Last night he kind of behaved like a boy that had done something he -was awful ashamed of, but was scared to own up to it. Now he looks as -if he felt the way I do when I've decided to tell mother all about it -and promise her I'll do the best I can to make things all square again." - -Dan found time to take an anxious look at the weather, and a sweeping -survey of sea and sky told him why Captain Jim did not want to wait for -the next flood tide before beginning work. The ocean had turned from -green and blue to a dull gray. The clouds were low and far-spread and -the wind was seesawing in fretful gusts, now from the north-east, again -from the north-west. The barometer had sought a lower level overnight, -and all these signs declared that a gale was brewing. If it came out of -the north-west, the charging seas would drive the _Kenilworth_ farther -on the Reef and perhaps lift her clear across the coral barrier to -sink, with a broken back, in the deep water of the Hawk Channel. - -The _Resolute's_ whistle signalled that she was ready to match her -power against the Reef. As she forged ahead, the sagging hawser -tautened and twanged like a huge banjo string, while the sea was -churned to froth in her wake. At the same time the _Kenilworth's_ -engines lent their mighty strength to the task. Her hull vibrated as -if the rivets were being pulled from their steel plates, but the keel -did not move an inch. Dan's faith in Captain Jim's word was so implicit -that he expected to feel the steamer start seaward in the first ten -minutes. At the end of the hour, however, the _Resolute_ was still -tugging away without result, like a man trying to lift himself by his -boot-straps. Then she slackened up on the hawser as if to get her -breath for the next tussle. - -The wind was blowing with more and more violence. It picked up the -white-topped seas and hurled them high against the _Kenilworth_, while -the tug rolled and plunged amid driving foam and spray. Gulls were -flying in from seaward to seek the shelter of the distant keys. But -it was not yet rough enough to daunt Captain Jim Wetherly and he was -evidently waiting to make a second attempt on the afternoon tide. -Dan had seen these northerly gales blow themselves out in a few hours -and he felt no uneasiness at being left in the _Kenilworth_, although -he muttered to himself as he felt the helpless steamer tremble to the -shock of the seas: - -"I don't see why Uncle Jim left me here now that Pringle is out of the -way. I guess he hasn't time to remember that he is shy one deck-hand." - -There was some truth in this surmise, for Captain Wetherly was having -all he could do to keep the _Resolute_ at her station and her propeller -clear of the hawser which he refused to let go because he feared the -weather might make it impossible to lower the yawl for another trip to -the _Kenilworth_. He knew what Captain Bruce was not aware of, that -the steamer had been shoved on a shelving slope of the Reef where she -could withstand a terrific pounding without having the bottom torn out -of her, and that if she once started to move astern she would quickly -slide off into deep water. Therefore Captain Jim was ready to take long -chances with his tug before he would run to Key West for refuge from -wind and sea. - -In the afternoon, when the _Resolute_ whistled that she was about to -go ahead again on the hawser, the green billows were breaking over her -bow and flooding aft in booming torrents. Her funnel was white with -sea-salt from the spindrift as she plunged and reared like a bucking -bronco. Dan was watching the laboring _Resolute_ from the stranded -steamer's bridge when Captain Bruce put a hand on his shoulder and said -with hearty frankness: - -"That skipper of yours is plucky, and he is a first-class seaman. But -he will lose his vessel if he stays out here much longer." - -"He may have to give you a wider berth by dark," said Dan. "In ordinary -weather he could take the _Resolute_ over the Reef along here, but now -the seas would pick her up and drop her on the ledges. I guess he will -have to leave me aboard here overnight, Captain. There's no getting a -boat over to me now. And he can't take the _Resolute_ to leeward of -you, on the inside of the Reef, for there isn't a deep water passage -through, for miles and miles." - -"You are welcome to stay aboard with me, lad," replied Captain Bruce. -"We may have a tough time of it ourselves before morning, and I fancy -your uncle is sorry he did not take you off with him. But that can't be -helped." - -The _Resolute_ had begun to pull. It was a thrilling battle to watch. -The seas were so heavy that her power was applied in a series of -tremendous lunges which threatened to snap the hawser every time her -stern rose skyward. Dan held his breath and gripped the rail with -both hands as the tug surged ahead again and again. Her mate and two -deck-hands were crouched far aft, ready to cast loose the hawser -whenever the captain dared to hold on no longer. After a while Dan saw -the chief engineer waddle back to the overhang to take a look at the -situation. There was something cheering in the sight of this bulky, -stout-hearted veteran of many a desperate venture at sea. Bill McKnight -plucked off his cap and waved it in greeting to Dan, as if signalling -him that all was well. - -"I guess he's clamped down his safety-valve long before this," said Dan -aloud as he flourished an arm at Bill McKnight. - -"My word but you are a desperate lot," observed Captain Bruce, and a -smile lightened his anxious face and weary eyes. "I think we are safer -aboard the _Kenilworth_." - -He turned away to talk to his own chief engineer and his first officer. -They had come up from below to report that the crew were beginning to -talk of quitting the ship, and that it was hard to keep them at their -stations. The news aroused Captain Bruce like a bugle-call to action. -If he had been weak in an hour of temptation he was now once more the -able, resolute ship-master, trained by long years at sea to face such a -crisis as this. - -"Do the cowards want to abandon ship while we are trying to work her -off?" he thundered. "Look at that tug-boat out yonder. She isn't afraid -to stay by us in a bit of a breeze. Come along with me. I'll handle -them." - -He hurried after the first officer, and Dan was left alone to gaze -at the brave struggle of the _Resolute_. It seemed impossible that -she could hold on much longer. Her hull was buried by one sea after -another, but she shook herself free and plunged ahead with dogged, -unflinching power. The afternoon was nearly spent. A stormy dusk was -beginning to steal over the tossing sea. - -Dan perceived that Captain Jim was trying to stand to his task until -high water might help to lift the _Kenilworth_. But for once that -square-jawed uncle of his had dared too much. The _Resolute_ had -endured more than steel and timber could be expected to endure. Dan -yelled with dismay as he saw the massive timber framework of the -towing-bitts fairly jump out of the deck, splintered and broken, and -vanish in the sea astern while the hawser slackened and buried itself -in the waves. The mate and deck-hands were hurled this way and that. An -instant later the wind bore a terrific crashing noise to Dan's ears. -A gaping hole showed in her after deck as the _Resolute_ dove ahead, -suddenly released from her grip on the _Kenilworth_. - -[Illustration: But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared -too much] - -"Great Scott, she jerked the towing-bitts clean out of her," cried Dan. -"It was just like pulling the stem out of an apple. Now we _are_ done -for. Is anybody killed?" - -His eyes filled with hot tears as he saw Bill McKnight rush aft and -help pick up the mate and deck-hands who lay sprawled in the scuppers. -The mate was huddled in a heap where he had been flung, and the -rescuers dragged him clear and carried him forward between them, his -legs and arms swaying limp. - -"He looks dead," moaned Dan. "And it leaves Uncle Jim single-handed. He -can't run home before this sea with a hole in his after deck like that. -She'd swamp in no time. He'll have to buck into it and try to fetch -Miami. And we can't get any help to him." - -The _Resolute_ steamed very slowly away from the Reef, fighting for -her life. Three long blasts from her whistle came down the wind as she -spoke her farewell. Before long her reeling shape was lost to view on -the shadowy sea; then her mast-head light gleamed for a little longer -before she wholly vanished from Dan Frazier's yearning gaze. - -Captain Bruce had rushed on deck at the sound of her whistle and Dan -pointed to the dim outline of the beaten and crippled _Resolute_ while -in a voice broken with grief and excitement he explained what had -happened to the tug. - -"Uncle Jim will have other tugs on the way as soon as he can wire for -them," added Dan. "I think he ordered a schooner to run to Miami this -morning with orders for more help to be sent you." - -"They can't get out to us until this blow is over," said the captain. -"We are in for a bad night, my boy. I wish you were out of it. But -Captain Wetherly couldn't have taken you off to save his soul." - -"I wouldn't have been here if you had been square--" Dan began to say -with a sudden rush of anger. But it seemed as though Captain Bruce had -not heard him, for he went on to say: - -"If my boy had lived he would have been about your age now, Dan. He was -just your kind of a youngster, too. Go below and get some supper, and -some sleep if you can." - -There was to be little sleep aboard the _Kenilworth_ through this -night. The gale had no more than begun to blow when the _Resolute_ was -forced to retreat. Long before midnight it was lashing the shoal water -of the Reef into huge breakers which assailed the _Kenilworth_ with -thundering fury. Her keel began to pound as she was lifted and driven -a little farther on the Reef by one shock after another. The decks -sloped more and more until it was not easy to keep a foothold. The -noise of the water breaking over her hull, the booming cry of the wind, -the groaning and grating and shrieking of her steel plates as the Reef -strove to pull them asunder, made it seem as if the steamer could not -hold together until daylight. - -The grimy men from the engine-room and stoke-hole had fled to the -shelter of the steel deck-houses where they huddled with the seamen, -shouting to each other in English, Norwegian, and Spanish. Captain -Bruce and his officers finally gathered in the chart-room and discussed -the chances of launching the boats if matters should grow much worse. -Dan Frazier was doubled up in a corner chair, half-dead for sleep, but -fighting hard to keep his wits about him and tell the others what he -knew of the Reef and the water that stretched to leeward of the ship. - -In answer to a question from Captain Bruce he said: - -"This is the narrowest part of the Reef, Captain Wetherly told me, and -if you can get your boats away in the lee of the ship and keep them -afloat through the breaking water you will be in the Hawk Channel, only -three miles from a string of keys. The channels between the islands are -deep enough for a ship's boat. You don't need any chart to find smooth -water in those lagoons, sir." - -"Her bottom plates are opening up," growled the chief engineer who had -just come up to report. "The sea is coming in fast. It has begun to -flood the fire-room, and I can't make steam to keep the pumps going -much longer." - -"The bulkheads forward are twisting like so much paper," added the -first officer. "They can't stand up if she racks herself any worse. -Then she will be flooded fore and aft." - -Captain Bruce jumped to his feet and gruffly broke into this dismal -kind of talk: - -"Get all the men you can and come below with me. Her after part is -still afloat and tight, and if we can brace the midship bulkheads with -enough timbers and cargo, they may hold for a while yet." - -It was a forlorn hope, but even the seamen and stokers were glad to -be doing something to save the ship, and most of them rallied to the -call of the captain and mate and followed them down into the gloomy -hold. Dan went along to try to do what he could, and also because he -remembered that Captain Jim had told him to "keep his eyes and ears -open." - -"If we abandon the _Kenilworth_," thought Dan, "and I see Uncle Jim -again, the first thing he will ask me is what shape we left the steamer -in--had she begun to break in two, and how badly was she flooded, and -so on. I guess it's part of my job to find out all I can." - -He picked up a lantern which had been overlooked and crept after the -men, down one slippery iron ladder after another. It was a terrifying -trip below decks where the angry ocean sounded as if it were about -to tear its way through the vessel's side, amid an awful hubbub of -shifting cargo, and breaking beams and plates. Dan hesitated more than -once and tried to choke down his fear. He was in strange quarters and -the men ahead of him, used to finding their way all over the vessel, -moved much faster than he. They had reached the engine-room and were -moving forward while he was still clinging to the last ladder. Then a -lurch of the ship dashed his lantern against the hand-rail. The glass -globe was smashed and the light went out. - -The electric lighting plant had been disabled and the cavern of an -engine-room was in black darkness as Dan vainly searched his pockets -for matches. He heard faint shouts from somewhere forward and thought -he saw the gleam of lanterns. He tried to grope his way toward them, -but stumbled and fell against a steel column. With aching head he -staggered to his feet just as the whole hull of the ship seemed to be -raised bodily and let fall on the Reef with a deafening crash. Dan was -more frightened and confused than ever. A moment later his feet began -to splash in water. He thought the sea had broken into the engine-room, -and he tried, with frantic haste, to find his way back to the ladder -and regain the deck above. By this time he had completely lost his -bearings. He did not know whether he was going toward the bow or stern. -At length his trembling fingers clutched the rail of a ladder which -ran upward from a narrow passageway. It led him to another deck still -far down in the vessel's hold, where he could find no more ladders to -climb. After what seemed to him hours of feeling his way this way and -that, he bumped against a solid steel wall. Dan knew it was a bulkhead -of some kind, but it must be far from the toiling crew of the ship, for -he had long since ceased to hear or see them. He had never been in such -utter darkness nor so hopelessly lost and bewildered. - -The frightened lad shouted for help, but his voice could not have been -heard a dozen feet away, so great was the din around him. He tried to -think, to get back his sense of direction, to feel his way along the -bulkhead in the hope of getting his hands on some object with whose -outline he was familiar, which might tell him into what part of the -ship he had wandered. - -He was leaning against the steel wall of the bulkhead when it buckled, -sprang back, and then quivered as if it had been a sheet of tin. -There was a tremendous noise of crackling, rending timber and steel -above Dan's head. He whirled about and tried to flee as he heard the -collapsing bulkhead give way. - -The boy could hear the cargo toppling toward him with the roar of a -landslide. He threw up his arms to shield his head, then something -struck him in the back and hurled him to one side. He fell across a -bulky box of some kind while other heavy boxes, a deluge of them, -thundered from above and crashed all round him. Dan cowered in a -frightened heap, expecting every instant to have his life crushed out. -But gradually the descent of the cargo ceased, and he was still alive. - -He tried to move his legs and found they had not been smashed. -Struggling to turn over on his back he put up his arms and discovered -that a huge packing case had so fallen as to make a bridge over him and -keep clear the little space in which he crouched. But he was walled in -by packing cases on all sides and he struggled in vain to move them. -Until his fingers were torn and bleeding and his strength worn out, Dan -tried to make an opening large enough to wriggle through and escape -from this appalling prison. - -When at length he lay still and panted aloud the prayers his mother had -taught him, there came the echo of hoarse shouts above the clamor of -the ship and the sea. Through a crevice between the boxes of freight -that penned him fast he glimpsed the gleam of moving lanterns. The -captain and crew were deserting the hold of the ship. Dan tried to call -to them but his cries were unheard. - -The shouts ceased, the gleams of light vanished one by one, and Dan -was left alone in the flooded and shattered hold of the _Kenilworth_. -Far above him Captain Bruce and his crew were making ready their -life-boats, preferring to trust themselves to the storm-swept sea than -to the steamer which they believed doomed to be torn to fragments -within the next few hours. - -"They must have given up the fight", moaned Dan between his sobs. "I -guess it means all hands abandon ship at daylight. And they will think -I've been washed overboard in the dark." - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -DAN FRAZIER'S PREDICAMENT - - -Imprisoned as he was in the hold of the _Kenilworth_, and feeling sure -that the steamer was to be abandoned by her crew as a hopeless wreck, -Dan Frazier became almost stupefied with terror and exhaustion. As long -as there was any strength in his athletic young body he had pushed -and tugged at the mass of freight which penned him in, shouting in -his frenzy until his voice failed him and died away in hoarse, broken -weeping. - -At length his benumbed senses lost themselves in heavy slumber. He -dreamed of being at home with his mother in the palm-shaded cottage and -she was holding him in her lap and stroking his forehead with her cool -hands. But nightmares came to drive away this sweet dream, and he awoke -with a choking cry for help. - -Dan thought he must have been asleep for hours and hours. More -torturing than the realization of his dreadful plight was his burning -thirst. But his brain was clearer and he listened to the medley of -noises around him with a glimmer of hope. The water had not reached the -deck on which he had been trapped, although he could hear it washing -to and fro in the bottom of the hold below. The hull of the ship had -ceased to pound on the Reef. The breakers beat against her steel sides -and fell solid on her upper decks with a sound like distant thunder, -but Dan began to feel confident that the gale was blowing itself out -and the steamer was going to live through it. - -He thanked God that he had not been drowned, at any rate, even -though he seemed likely to perish where he was for lack of food and -drink. Youth grasps at slender hopes and finds strength in dubious -consolations. Dan had expected to be overwhelmed by the sea without a -ghost of a chance to fight for his life. Now that this peril seemed -to be passing, his wits began to return, and he fished his strong -bladed sailor's clasp-knife from his trousers pocket. To hack away at -his prison walls was better than doing nothing. He twisted painfully -about until he had located the widest crevices between the sides of -the packing-cases and began to chip away at the stout planking. It -was a task tedious and wearisome beyond words. There was no light, -his nerves were unstrung, and he worked with unsteady, groping hand. -Rats scampered over him, or squealed in the darkness close by, and he -slashed at them savagely. They startled him so that more than once he -gave up the task and wept like a little child. - -At length Dan cut through the planking of a box which was wedged fast -between two larger ones and his knife clinked against tin. He managed -to break off a splintered end of board and pulled out a round can of -some kind of provisions. This was unexpected good fortune, and he -carefully cut into the lid with a muttered prayer of thanksgiving, -hoping to find enough liquid to wet his parched tongue. The can proved -to be full of French peas, packed in enough water to supply a long -drink of cool, refreshing soup. Dan scooped up the tiny peas with his -fingers, emptied the tin, and eagerly drove his knife into another of -them. The nourishment made him feel like a giant. He returned to his -task with genuine hope of being able to whittle a way out of his trap. - -But as the weary hours dragged by, and the strokes of the knife became -more and more feeble, the prisoner gave himself up to despair. His -strength had ebbed so fast that he slumped down and slept with his face -in his arms. - -A great noise awoke him. The cargo was shifting and tumbling with -fearful uproar. From below came the rumble of coal sliding across the -bunkers. The deck rolled violently and pitched Dan to the other end -of his pen. He expected to be crushed by the cargo, and thought the -ship must be turning over. But the commotion gradually ceased and, to -his great astonishment, he was alive and unhurt. The deck seemed to -have much less slant than before. He raised his arms and they touched -nothing over his head. Unable to realize the truth, he scrambled to -his feet and stood upright. The great package of freight which had -roofed him over had slid clear, carrying along the boxes piled above -it. Frantic with new hope of release, Dan clambered upward, tearing his -clothes to tatters, plunging headlong from one obstacle to another, -bruising his face, hands, and knees against sharp edges and corners. -Scrambling over the disordered cargo until he had to halt to get his -breath, Dan gasped to himself: - -"I can't get on deck through a freight compartment. The hatches will be -fastened down above. I must find out how I blundered in here as far as -the broken bulkhead." - -A moment later he fetched up against solid tiers of cargo which had -not been dislodged and knew he must be headed wrong. This gave him a -clue, however, and with fast-failing strength he stumbled back over -the way he had come. At last he saw a streak of daylight filter down -from a skylight far above. Yes, there was a road to the upper deck. -Dan glimpsed the shadowy outline of a ladder. It was all he could do -to muster courage to attempt the long and dizzy climb. But he set his -teeth and clung like a barnacle to one round after another until he -fell against the iron door of a deck-house, fumbled with the fastening, -and tottered out into daylight. - -Half-blinded and blinking like an owl, Dan Frazier covered his face -with his hands until his eyes could bear the dazzling reflection of -sea and sky which were flooded with glorious sunshine. The wind sang -through the shrouds and funnel-stays and the blue ocean upheaved -in swollen billows, but the gale had passed. Dan's bewildered gaze -fell upon the empty chocks, the dangling falls and the davits swung -outboard, where the steamer's life-boats had been. These signs were -enough to tell him that the ship had been abandoned. He was left alone -in her, and he went forward with a feeling of uncanny isolation. Water -to drink was what he wanted more than anything else, and before making -a survey of the ship he sought the tank in the chart-room and fairly -guzzled his fill. Then he made a ferocious onslaught on the cabin -pantry and carried on deck a kettle full of cold boiled potatoes, beef -and hard bread, and climbed to the battered bridge. - -Looking down at the steamer from this lofty perch, Dan understood what -had caused the violent roll and lunge that set him free from his prison -below decks. The storm had driven her, head-on, far up the outer slope -of the Reef, where she had lain as if about to break in pieces, with -the seas washing clean over her. But while her forward compartments -had filled with water, her stern was still buoyant. When the gale had -subsided the ship was hanging over the deep water on the inner side of -the Reef, and the next high tide had lifted her stern so that she slid -bow-first, for half her length, down the opposite side of the shelf -which had held her keel fast. It looked like a miracle to Dan, but here -was the ship still solid under his feet. Gazing down from one end of -the bridge, he could see the inner edge of the Reef shimmering far down -through the clear water and the hull of the _Kenilworth_, hanging only -by the after part. - -"Where, oh where, is Uncle Jim?" he thought. "He might patch up her -bulkheads, lift the water out with his wrecking pumps, and pull her off -yet. And I'll bet he'd keep her afloat somehow." - -Then a stupendous thought flashed into Dan's mind. It was such a -dazzling, gorgeous idea that it made him dizzy with delight. Yes, -it was all true. The _Kenilworth_ had been abandoned by her captain -and crew as a wreck. She was like a derelict at sea. Whoever should -find and board her would have the right to claim heavy salvage on the -vessel and her cargo if they were saved and brought into port. It was -the unwritten law of the Reef that the first man to set foot on an -abandoned wreck was the wrecking master, to be obeyed as such, with -first claim on salvage. - -Dan tried to arrange his thoughts in some kind of order, and at length -he said to himself with an air of decision: - -"The wrecking master on this job is Daniel P. Frazier. I earned it all -right, and Key West will back me up whether Jerry Pringle likes it or -not. And I'm going to hold her down till Uncle Jim comes back. There -can't be any more question about who has the wrecking of her. General -cargo, too!--I'll bet it's worth several hundred thousand dollars!--and -a four thousand ton steel steamer. If we can save her, the owners will -have to give up fifty or a hundred thousand dollars in clean salvage -money." - -The weight of his responsibility soon tamed Dan's high spirits. He -could make no resistance if a crew of hostile wreckers should happen -along to dispute his title in the absence of Captain Jim Wetherly. The -morning sun was no more than three hours high. He must watch and wait -through a long, long day, any hour of which might bring in sight the -sails of a fleet of wrecking schooners. Dan reckoned that he had been -penned below for about thirty hours and that this was the morning of -the second day after the wreck. Captain Jim must have a tug on the way -by this time. But, on the other hand, if Captain Bruce and his men had -been picked up and carried to Key West, their tidings would send Jerry -Pringle and his horde of wreckers flying seaward by steam and sail. - -Every boy who plays foot-ball has dreamed of breaking through the line, -blocking a kick, scooping up the ball, and running down the field like -a whirlwind to score the winning touchdown with the other eleven vainly -pounding along in his wake. So most of us have dreamed of playing the -hero by stopping a runaway horse, saving the life of the prettiest girl -that ever was, and being splendidly rewarded by her millionaire father. -Dan Frazier's pet dream had a salt-water background. It was of being -the first to find an abandoned ship with a rich cargo, triumphantly -bringing her into port, and winning a fortune in salvage. At last he -had found his ship, but the lone hero had an elephant on his hands. - -Dan was too weary in body and mind to roam about the steamer. He rigged -a bit of awning on the bridge, dragged a mattress up from below, and -lay gazing through the rents in the canvas weather screen until noon. -A mail steamer northward-bound passed close to the Reef, slowed down -to make sure the crew had left the wreck, and ploughed on her way. Dan -grew tired of looking to the southward for schooners beating up from -Key West and concluded that the head wind and heavy sea were holding -them in harbor. There was no black smudge of smoke to the northward to -show that Captain Jim was coming out from Miami in a tow-boat. Over -to seaward, however, in the east-north-east, three sails glinted like -flecks of cloud. They were close together, and Dan gazed at them idly, -thinking they might be coastwise merchant vessels hauling southward -before the piping wind. But as they lifted higher, he noticed that -they were shaping a straight course for the Reef instead of swinging -off to follow the track through the Florida Straits. They were -schooners coming with great speed and showing a reckless spread of -canvas. - -Soon the low hulls gleamed beneath the towering piles of sail and Dan -jumped to his feet as he scanned the beautiful sea picture they made. - -"Bahama schooners; I know their cut!" he exclaimed. "They've smelled a -wreck on the Reef as sure as guns. The news must have reached Nassau -by cable yesterday. And those pirates have got a clear field for once. -What _can_ I do? They won't listen to my story, not for a minute. -They'll swarm aboard like rats and be ripping the cargo out of this -vessel in a jiffy." - -The youthful wrecking master was at his wits' end and his head began -to throb as if it would split, for he had little endurance left. He -remained in hiding on the bridge and tried to think out a plan of -action as the Bahama schooners swooped across the frothing sea, laying -their courses in a bee line for the _Kenilworth_. Dan's only hope was -that he might be able to stay aboard until Captain Jim should return -to enforce the law of the Reef with his crew of hard-fisted tow-boat -men to back him up. He thought of telling the wreckers that he was -a stowaway, left behind when the steamer's men deserted her, but, -although Dan Frazier was far from perfect, he hated the notion of lying -his way out of this tight corner. He was truthful by habit, for one -thing, and there was another reason which he muttered to himself: - -"There's been lying enough on this job. The poor old ship has been -rotten with lies ever since her skipper first ran afoul of Jerry -Pringle. Even her grounding on the Reef was a lie. And I don't believe -Uncle Jim would lie to save the ship, or his own skin either. No, this -poor old vessel has been good to me so far. I got out of her hold by -good luck and I'll trust to luck to pull me out of this scrape." - -Dan picked up a pair of glasses and looked at the nearest schooner -which had boldly crossed the Reef and was rounding to in the smoother -water of the Hawk Channel while a group of black-skinned, ragged -wreckers were shoving a boat over the side. Dan felt a new thrill of -surprise and alarm as he scrutinized a burly figure poised at the -schooner's rail. It was "Black Sam" Hurley, a Bahama wrecker of such -evil repute that he had been pointed out to Dan in Nassau harbor as one -of the notorious characters of the islands. - -[Illustration: Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm] - -"There are plenty of honest wreckers in the Bahamas," said the lad to -himself, while his teeth chattered. "But they don't sail with 'Black -Sam.' And he was alongside the _Resolute_ at Nassau, talking to the -cook. He'd know me again. It's a good thing I chucked up that idea of -lying out of this. It's time for me to get under cover, all right." - -Dan crept off the bridge along the windward side of the deck-house and -kept well out of sight of the schooners until he reached the shelter -of the funnel and the engine-room skylights. Then he slipped into the -nearest door and made his way to the flight of ladders up which he -had climbed in the morning. He had fled in a state of panic, but one -glance down into the black hold made him draw back and take measures -to provision himself against a long siege below. There was no need -for great haste, and Dan delayed to equip himself with a lantern, -matches, a jug of water, and a canvas bag, crammed with food, which he -slung about his neck. Then he made his way below with lighted lantern, -seeking to find as secure and comfortable a refuge as possible. The -Bahama wreckers would begin to loot the part of the cargo easiest -to get at and handle, he reasoned, and therefore he passed by the -uppermost cargo deck and explored the region below, slowly making his -way aft. - -It was a dangerous and desperate journey, but Dan was thinking only of -keeping out of the way of "Black Sam" until Captain Jim should come -back and retake the ship which belonged to him. - -"I'm what the lawyers call a vital document when they're arguing a -salvage case in the Key West Court," thought Dan with a half-hearted -grin. "And from all I've heard of 'Black Sam' Hurley, he'd chuck this -vital document overboard if he thought it might interfere with his -possession of the wreck." - -In this game of hide-and-seek the advantage was with the lad in the -hold, and fear of discovery by the wreckers did not greatly trouble -him. After a long time he heard clamorous voices somewhere above and -he doused his lantern. The wreckers seemed to be exploring the upper -cargo decks. Some kind of a dispute arose and the sides of the ship -flung back the echoes of it as from a great sounding board. Dan could -not make out what the quarrel was about, but at length the sounds grew -fainter as if the wreckers had returned to the outside world above. - -Dan had felt a gush of cool wind from somewhere over his head and -shifted his quarters to get beneath it and out of the reeking, stifling -atmosphere of the hold. He knew it must come from a pipe running to -one of the great bell-mouthed ventilators on deck and was glad that it -had been turned so as to face and catch the invigorating breeze. He -had not dreamed that the ventilator might serve as a speaking-tube. -While he waited, however, to learn what the wreckers intended to do -next, some one began to talk, and he heard every word distinctly. The -voice sounded so near his ears that he was as startled as if a ghost -had stepped out of the darkness. Dan jumped to his feet, his nerves -all of a quiver. He would have fled anywhere to get away from this -uncanny voice, but a stronger gust of wind struck his upturned face and -the mysterious voice sounded even louder. He thought of the ventilator -pipe, got a grip on himself, and scarcely breathed as he listened -to the odd intonations of the Bahama negro speech. "Black Sam" was -talking. Dan remembered the peculiar guttural cadence of his voice as -he had heard it in Nassau harbor. He must have been standing directly -in front of the ventilator on deck, for every word carried down the -pipe to Dan: - -"Ah don't care nuffin' 'bout de ship. We ain't got no tow-boats to pull -her off. An' if we don't work quick an' soon them Key Westers'll be -a-scatterin' down an' run us back home--you heah me? Take a big bag o' -powdah an' blow de side outen her. Dat's what I say do. De cargo ports -is all jammed fas'. We can't open 'em nohow. An' we ain't got no steam -to hoist wid a donkey-engine. Blow de side outen her. She's hung fas' -on de Reef. She ain't gwine sink. When we'se done loaded our schooners -wid cargo we can strip the brasses in de engine-room. Blow her up. -Ain't I wrecked plenty vessels? Don't I know?" - -Dan heard one of the other wreckers rumble: "Sam knows bes'. Cut de -fuse to burn ten minutes an' let us get back aboard our schooners. Hang -de sack o' powder 'g'inst the ship's plates inside an' let her go. -Reckon we'll blow a hole in her fit to run a tow-boat froo, Sam." - -To Dan Frazier these last words sounded faint and confused, as if -something was the matter with his hearing. He had only time to mutter -"They are going to blow her up and me with her." Then he felt so giddy -that he put out his arms to steady himself. His knees gave way and he -sank down in a heap. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -A FAT ENGINEER TO THE RESCUE - - -Dan Frazier came to himself with the message from the ventilator pipe -surging in his confused brain. The Bahama wreckers were going to blow -up the ship. "A ten-minute fuse," he whispered as he began to crawl -forward to escape from the hold. How long had he been unconscious? The -explosion might come on the next instant. Dan was afraid to face "Black -Sam" Hurley and his lawless crew, but he was far more afraid to stay -below. His only thought was to gain the upper deck and jump overboard -in the hope that the wreckers might pick him up. Fear gave him strength -for the journey, fear such as he had never known before. - -Losing his bearings in his headlong panic, Dan turned toward the side -of the ship, for he had not delayed to relight his lantern. A little -way in front of him a red spark glowed and sputtered. It burned a hole -in the gloom, and Dan stood stock-still and stared as if fascinated. It -was the fuse of the charge of powder. He wanted to run away from it but -his legs refused to carry him. - -When he moved, it was not in flight but straight toward the sputtering -slow-match. It was not in the least a conscious act of bravery. Dan -felt sure that he could not regain the upper deck before the explosion -tore him to pieces. He turned at bay to fight for his life with the -instinct of a hunted animal. - -Springing toward the terrible, winking spark with his fists doubled -as if to ward off an attack, Dan struck at it, tore the trailing fuse -free from its fastening, trampled it under his feet, and pulled it to -bits after the fire was dead. The explosive itself was also an enemy -which he must destroy. As if he were in a delirium, Dan whipped out his -knife, cut the lashing of the sack of powder, and dragged it after him -in his retreat. He came to a hatchway, let the sack drop, and heard it -splash in the water which flooded the lower hold. Then he clawed his -way toward daylight. - -Dan no longer cared whether the wreckers saw him or not. No danger -could have forced him down into the hold of the ship again. It was -a place filled with horrors. When he came out into the sunshine and -wind it was a kindly chance which made him lie down in a corner of the -deck that was screened from sight of the wreckers' schooners. Dan had -forgotten all about them. He had come to the end of his rope, and all -he could think of was, "I want to go home. I want to go home." - -"Black Sam" Hurley was impatiently awaiting the explosion which should -tear a gap in the _Kenilworth's_ side and allow his greedy wreckers to -begin operations. Ten, fifteen, twenty minutes passed, and there was a -great hubbub on board the Bahama schooners tossing at a safe distance -from the steamer. At the end of half an hour "Black Sam" ordered a -boat away and the crew crowded in pell-mell. They boarded the lee side -of the _Kenilworth_ with the agility of monkeys and their bare feet -slapped the deck as they ran to the hatch. - -Dan heard them and realized that he must try to find a resting-place -where they would not discover him upon their return from below. He -might perhaps be unseen if he took refuge on the bridge which the -wreckers were not likely to ransack until later. He managed to drag -his aching, weary body forward and laid down on the mattress behind -the canvas weather screen. After a few minutes he heard the wreckers -come boiling out of the hold with cries of amazement, anger, and fear. -They had expected to find a faulty fuse, but fuse, powder, and all -had vanished. Some of them swore the ship was haunted and refused to -have anything to do with fetching another sack of powder. Their leader -bellowed and threatened, but he could not quell the riot. At last he -yelled that he would lay the second charge himself and stay aboard if -he blew up with it. Scoffing at the idea of ghostly interference, he -ordered his men to search the ship. - -These plans were suddenly knocked all askew. Shouting arose on board -the schooners whose crews were waving their arms toward the north. The -wreckers on the steamer rushed to the side and discovered the cause -of alarm. The funnel and upper works of a tug were lifting from the -sea, beneath a trailing banner of smoke. Dan had been watching the -scene on deck with absorbed attention, and as he looked seaward and -caught sight of the tug his heart stood still. He squinted through -the glasses. There were two white bands around the funnel. Could it -be the _Three Sisters_ of Jacksonville, the big wrecking tug of which -Captain Jim's cousin was master? The streaked smoke-stack and the -stubby derrick-masts--the drab wheel-house--yes, these were things -which Dan remembered noticing when the tug was in Key West. And Captain -Jim must be in her. She was hurrying to find out what had become of the -_Kenilworth_. "Perhaps they are looking for me," thought Dan. "And I'm -still wrecking master if 'Black Sam' doesn't see me first." - -The Bahama wreckers were very busy with their own affairs. The sight -of the on-coming tug had altered their campaign in a twinkling. "Black -Sam" was now determined to keep possession of the wreck at all hazards, -acting on the theory that he was the wrecking master by the law of the -Reef. He told his men to stay where they were and slid down the side of -the steamer to pull off to the schooners and muster reinforcements. A -score of stalwart negroes rallied to his summons and tumbled into their -boats. - -A picturesque and piratical looking force they were as they scrambled -over the _Kenilworth's_ bulwarks and scattered along her sea-scarred -decks. "Black Sam" showed his teeth in a snarl as he yelled to them: - -"Dey ain't gwine be no argifying 'bout dis yere wreck. We'se heah an' -we stay heah. If dem tow-boat folks tries to come aboard, keep 'em busy -wid dem belaying-pins yondah an' yo' knives--yo' heah me?" - -The _Three Sisters_ was rapidly nearing the scene. From his ambush Dan -watched her with yearning, happy eyes. He was not yet out of trouble, -but Captain Jim would somehow rescue him in the nick of time. He saw -the powerful tug sweep around to leeward of the Bahama schooners -and slow down as if her people were trying to fathom the situation. -Captain Jim Wetherly was standing by the wheel-house door, shading his -eyes with his hand. Dan wanted to call to him, but he dared not show -himself. The tug crept nearer, and Dan rejoiced to discover that most -of the _Resolute's_ crew were clustered along the lower deck, including -the portly chief engineer, Bill McKnight, who loomed like a whale among -minnows. - -Presently Captain Jim sung out: - -"What are you Bahama niggers doing aboard that steamer? She belongs to -me. I had hold of her once and am in charge of wrecking her. Clear out -before I put my men aboard." - -A row of black heads bobbed in violent agitation along the -_Kenilworth's_ bulwarks, and "Black Sam" Hurley shouted back with a -loud laugh: - -"Go back home, white man. We foun' dis yere wreck 'bandoned. I'se -wreckin' marster--yo' heah me? If you all wants her, come aboard an' -take her." - -Dan saw Bill McKnight waddle aft in great haste, dive into his room, -and beckon to a _Resolute_ deck-hand. Presently the two reappeared -dragging a long, heavy box which the engineer began to break open with -furious blows of a hatchet. - -"It's the case of Mauser rifles Bill stowed away from the last -filibustering cargo he ran over to Cuba," murmured Dan. "He said -he was saving 'em to start another revolution with. Hooray! hooray! -there'll be something doing." - -Bill McKnight was passing the rifles out to the eager crew of the -_Resolute_ who looked as if they were about to earn their passage -aboard the _Three Sisters_. Captain Jim made one jump from the upper -deck, without delaying to find the stairway, and caught up a rifle and -a handful of cartridges. Once more he shouted to the wreckers on the -_Kenilworth_: - -"If you want trouble we'll give you plenty. Are you coming off?" - -"We ain't scared by dem guns," yelled "Black Sam." "You ain't got no -rights in dis vessel. You all don't dare to do no shootin'." - -"I've got the underwriter's agent aboard this tug, and he knows the -facts," returned Captain Jim. "You are pirates and I intend to have no -monkey-business. I know all about you, Sam Hurley." - -"Show yo' claim on dis wreck. We'se heah. You ain't," replied the negro. - -Dan could hold in no longer. He poked his head above the canvas screen -of the bridge, waved both arms over his head, and yelled at the top of -his voice: - -"You bet we're here, Uncle Jim. And I'm wrecking master and it is your -job." - -The men on the _Three Sisters_ dropped their rifles and stared in -silence, with mouths agape. It was a voice and a vision from the dead. -"Black Sam" and his wreckers stood poised in their various threatening -attitudes as if petrified. It was a strange tableau. If Dan had -hopped off a passing cloud he could not have caused a more breathless -sensation. The spell which his appearance cast on all who beheld him -was broken by the jubilant voice of Captain Jim: - -"It's Dan Frazier sure enough. Thank God you're alive and kicking, boy. -Captain Bruce reported you drowned, and nobody's dared to tell your -mother till I could get out to the wreck. Hold your nerve. We're coming -after you." - -The words awoke "Black Sam" Hurley to swift action. He was beside -himself with rage at the boy on the steamer's bridge who had spoiled -the explosion and then made a jest of his claims as wrecking-master. -The desperate negro had only one idea in his head--to square matters -by getting his hands on Dan. He ran toward the bridge with several of -his men at his heels, and Dan hastily climbed on the rail ready to jump -overboard as the only way of escape. But before the wreckers had gained -his refuge, he heard Captain Jim cry: - -"Hold on, Dan. Don't jump. Duck and lie flat where you are." - -The boy flopped full length on the bridge an instant before several -rifles barked on the _Three Sisters_ and bullets came singing over the -_Kenilworth_. The wreckers halted, huddled in confusion, and ran for -the shelter of the nearest deck-house. "Black Sam" delayed to hurl an -iron belaying-pin at Dan's head and paid dearly for the act. It was -Bill McKnight who drove a bullet through his arm and made him fly for -cover with blood trickling from his fingers. Then the clarion tones of -the fat chief engineer sounded across the water as if he had taken full -command of the expedition: - -"Half a dozen of you men stay here to sweep the _Kenilworth's_ bulwarks -with your guns and give us a chance to climb over. The rest follow me -to board her. _A la machete!_ Out cutlasses. _Viva Cuba!_ Hip, hip, -hooroo!" - -Two boats were fairly thrown into the water from the _Three Sisters_ -and the cheering _Resolutes_ fell into them, grabbing capstan bars -and coal shovels, or clubbing their rifles. The Bahama wreckers had -no intention of being driven from their prize without making a fight -for it. Several of them pulled revolvers from inside their shirts and -popped wildly away at the approaching boats while "Black Sam" led a -crowd of his followers behind the tall bulwark where they crouched, -sheltered from rifle fire, and ready to receive the boarders as they -came over the side. Captain Jim was in the bow of one boat, the chief -engineer in the other. The wreckers had been unable to cut away the -dangling boat ropes and bowlines by which they had climbed on board, -and the attacking party ascended like so many acrobats. Bill McKnight -was boosted and hauled part way, but as soon as he found a secure -purchase for his fingers and toes, he dove over the bulwark like a -landslide and pranced into action like a cyclone. - -It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century. The _Resolutes_ suffered some cracked heads and -bloody faces before they gained foothold and swept forward. Try as -he would, Captain Jim could not keep the terrific pace set by Bill -McKnight who was swinging his rifle like a flail and clearing a wide -path while he grunted maledictions at the foe. - -[Illustration: It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the -prosaic twentieth century] - -"You're blockin' my way, you google-eyed thief. _Bing!_ there's one on -the cocoanut," he panted with a cheerful grin as he smote a stalwart -wrecker and sent him spinning. - -"We're a-coming, Dan. Keep your reserved seat," he bellowed to the -bridge as he wiped the sweat from his eyes. "Black Sam's" men could not -withstand the determined and disciplined onslaught and began to leap -overboard, _plop! plop!_ into the green sea over which the boats from -their schooners were racing to pick them up. Only their leader stayed -behind, sullenly nursing his wounded arm. Captain Jim halted long -enough to tell him: - -"My men will take you aboard the tug and patch you up from my medicine -chest. Then you'd better make sail for home. The Reef isn't healthy -for your breed of Nassau wreckers. Better pass the word among your -friends." - -Then Captain Jim ran to the bridge, but Bill McKnight was already -hugging Dan and fairly blubbering over him. The boy was too weak to -struggle out of this crushing embrace, but he waggled a free hand to -Captain Jim and stammered: - -"W-wow, ouch. Glad to see you aboard." - -"Glad to see us aboard, you rascal," laughed his uncle as he yanked the -engineer away and thumped Dan on the back. "_Well_, we're tickled to -death to see _you_ aboard. How in the--, of all the-- Whew, what are -you doing here anyhow, Dan?" - -His nephew made a brave attempt to answer him. Now was the time to play -the hero, to tell how he had stuck to the ship and saved her. But Dan -Frazier was no hero. He was just a stout-hearted lad who had weathered -one cruel ordeal after another with the Almighty's aid, and he had -hung on to himself as long as he could. Now there was no more call for -courage. He was safe and the ship had been restored to Uncle Jim. Tears -streamed down Dan's face and he swayed against Bill McKnight who put a -steadying arm around him. - -"I--I'm just tired out, I--I guess," he sobbed. "Please take me home, -Uncle Jim. I--I want my mother." - -Bill McKnight coughed and wiped his eyes as he lifted Dan's feet clear -of the deck, while Captain Jim lent his sturdy arms to the task of -carrying the boy to the ship's side and lowering him into a boat. -They got him aboard the _Three Sisters_ without mishap, took off his -tattered, grimy clothing, and tucked him in the captain's bunk. - -"The boy is bruised and scratched from head to foot," said the master -of the tug, Captain Jim's cousin. "We'd better sponge him down with hot -water and arnica. He must have had a tougher time of it than most grown -men could live through, Jim. See here, these are fresh burns on his -hands. Now, where did he get those?" - -"The Lord only knows," said Captain Jim as he patted Dan's flushed -cheek. "Don't pester him with questions now. He's got some fever and -his eyes look bad to me. I'm going to leave McKnight on the wreck with -some of my men to stand off any other kinky-headed pirates that may -light on the Reef. And we're going to take this boy home to his mother -as fast as you can poke this old hooker of yours into Key West." - -Dan opened his eyes and smiled at Captain Jim who motioned him to be -quiet. But Dan was already restless with fever and he had a hundred -things to talk about if they would only stop whirling around in his -head long enough to be laid hold of. He looked at his scorched fingers -which were pecking at a corner of the blanket and said in a voice so -weak that it sounded foolish to him: - -"They tried to blow her up--to blow Jerry Pringle up--no, I don't mean -that. It was 'Black Sam' Hurley--he lit the fuse, Uncle Jim--and I put -it out--all alone down in the hold. You never saw such big rats--with -sacks of powder tied to their tails--and eyes like sparks." - -Captain Jim soothed Dan as best he could and whispered to his cousin: - -"Did you get that? It's all true, I reckon. That's an old trick of the -Bahama wrecking gangs. Ask Mr. Prentice to come in. The underwriters -ought to be interested in the boy." - -Mr. Prentice, the Florida agent of the English marine insurance -companies, was a sharp-featured, elderly gentleman of few words. He had -a great deal of confidence in Captain Wetherly's ability to handle such -a bad business as a costly steamer high and dry on the Reef, but he was -not prepared to hear such an astonishing tale as was whispered to him -in the doorway of the captain's state-room. - -"Mind you, we don't know a quarter of it yet," added Captain Jim. "But -it looks as if you'll have to thank Dan Frazier, not me, for saving the -steamer out yonder." - -"U-m-m. Bless me, but it's most extraordinary," murmured Mr. Prentice. -"I must go aboard at once and look for confirmation. It's a very -unusual wreck, Captain Wetherly," and the underwriter's agent shot a -keen glance from under his gray brows. "I shall be much interested in -getting Captain Bruce's version. Jeremiah Pringle was off here, also, -the night the _Kenilworth_ went ashore, was he not? I understand you -were in collision with him next day." - -Mr. Prentice had slightly raised his voice. It carried to Dan's ears -and he raised himself on his elbow and cried out in excitement: - -"We'll pull her off, Uncle Jim, and Barton won't know. And his mother -won't know. Don't let them know. The captain is sorry. We can handle it -all by ourselves." - -"The lad is off his head, and no wonder," said Captain Jim, addressing -the keen-eyed underwriter's agent. "Come outside, if you please." - -"What are you holding back?" asked Mr. Prentice severely as they moved -away from the door. "I intend to get to the bottom of this, you know. -There is some mystery about it that is eating that lad's heart out." - -"I haven't time to talk," was the reply. "But I'm going to get that -ship off for you, thanks to the boy in there. And if we _are_ holding -anything back, it will have to stay hid and hawsers couldn't pull it -out of me." - -He went aft to meet Bill McKnight who had come over from the -_Kenilworth_ to get his orders. - -"How's the boy?" anxiously asked the engineer. - -"Pretty sick, I'm afraid, Bill. But home will cure him if anything -will. He's talking wild and saying too much." - -Captain Jim jerked his thumb over his shoulder at Mr. Prentice and -went on, "It's the mysterious ways of Providence, Bill. Captain Bruce -gave the dirty business away when he was queer in his head aboard the -_Resolute_ at Pensacola, and Dan has put that gimlet-eyed agent on the -track by going daffy here. You can peek in at the boy, and then you -hustle your dunnage and pick your men and go to the _Kenilworth_. I'll -be back to-morrow, and more tugs and lighters will be on the way. Take -Mr. Prentice along with you. Good luck." - -The engineer tiptoed into Dan's room and laid his rough hand on the -pillow. He looked down in silence while his gray moustache quivered -as if strong emotion was held in check. Then he lumbered on deck and -prepared to quit the tug. A few minutes later the "jingle bell" rang -boisterously and its clamor was borne to Dan. He smiled at Captain Jim -and murmured: - -"Full speed ahead! And mother will come down to the wharf when she -hears our whistle off the red buoy." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -A FOG OF SUSPICIONS - - -It was not until a fortnight after Dan Frazier had been taken home to -Key West that he was allowed to leave his room and lounge in a wicker -chair on the cottage porch. His face and hands were thinner and the sea -tan could not hide the pallor caused by fever, but he looked at the -glad, green world with bright eyes and clamored for food like a young -cormorant. His mother, who fluttered about him with fond anxiety, had -tried to banish all mention of the _Kenilworth_, but now that he was -able to be outdoors he fairly bullied her with questions which had been -disturbing his days and nights of illness. - -"I am sure Barton is as fond of you as ever," said she. "He may have -been angry at first, but he has been here to ask about you almost every -day. He told me you had nothing to do with his father's tug being cut -in two by brother Jim, but he said you hooted at him when it happened. -That wasn't like my Dan." - -Her son tried to look repentant, but his eyes twinkled and he grinned -as he replied: - -"It wasn't nice of Bart to laugh at me while his cantankerous old -daddy's tug was keeping the _Resolute_ away from the wreck. How did -Bart explain the smash-up?" - -"He as much as said that Jim Wetherly behaved like a pirate and a -lunatic, though of course Barton is too polite to put it in so many -words," confessed Mrs. Frazier with a sigh. "It has made a lot of talk -in Key West. Mr. Pringle swears he is going to take it into court. He -declares he had made a contract with the captain of the _Kenilworth_ -when along came Jim and rammed him to get the job away from him." - -"Made a contract with the _Kenilworth_! I should say Jerry Pringle -did," snorted Dan with rising color. "He made his rotten contract in -Pensacola, months before the ship was wrecked. He didn't get half -what's coming to him. I wish Uncle Jim had sunk the _Henry Foster_. -What else has happened?" - -"Captain Bruce has called twice to see you. And since meeting him I am -more skeptical than ever about your conspiracy story, Dan." - -"Captain Bruce been here? So you like him, too, do you?" exclaimed Dan. -"Were all hands saved from the wreck?" - -"They got away from the ship in their boats at daylight," answered Mrs. -Frazier. "Captain Bruce had some ribs broken by being dashed against -the side, and two boats were swamped. But they reached the keys with -all hands and were picked up a day later by a sponger and brought down -the Hawk Channel to Key West. Captain Bruce was broken-hearted over -losing you, and when he heard you were still alive he insisted on -leaving the hospital and coming up here, broken ribs and all. He seems -very moody and depressed. I suppose he is unhappy about losing his -ship." - -"He is thinking about several things, I reckon," said Dan. "That ship -has made everybody unhappy. She is loaded with trouble. Captain Bruce -is sorry he ever clapped eyes on Jerry Pringle for one thing. And he -hates himself even worse for not sticking to his vessel. And he quit -her and left me on board to come through the gale all right with the -ship still under me. What is he planning to do now?" - -"Wait, and take the _Kenilworth_ again if she is floated," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "He is going up to the Reef as soon as the doctor will let -him." - -She walked to the end of the porch and brushed aside the tangle of -vines which partly screened her view of the street. Then she turned and -said to Dan: - -"Here comes Mr. Prentice and I think he intends to call here. What a -very stiff and formal looking person he is!" - -The underwriters' agent opened the gate with a courtly bow to Mrs. -Frazier. His greetings were most polite, but he lost no time in coming -to the point. Mrs. Frazier was about to withdraw, but Dan spoke up -sharply: - -"If it's about the _Kenilworth_, Mr. Prentice, I want my mother to -stay. I keep no secrets from her." - -Mr. Prentice bowed gravely and seated himself facing Dan, who could not -help feeling that this elderly gentleman was unfriendly to him. The -underwriters' agent opened fire without further warning: - -"I am pleased to note your rapid recovery from a very trying -experience, Mr. Frazier. As you may know, I represent English insurance -interests which wrote a total of a hundred thousand pounds sterling -on the _Kenilworth_ and her cargo. If the efforts to float the vessel -prove successful, the loss may be comparatively small." - -Mr. Prentice adjusted his glasses, cleared his throat, and resumed with -emphatic earnestness: - -"You hinted at having prevented a disastrous explosion in the steamer's -hold, Mr. Frazier. You may not recall the words you used. It was after -you were taken on board the tug _Three Sisters_. I have made the most -thorough examination of the _Kenilworth_ and failed to find any traces -of explosives." - -"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't get very -far," hotly cried Dan. "Do you think I cooked up that yarn to get -a reward out of the insurance companies? Did you fish in the water -amidships for a sack of powder? Wait till the ship is pumped out and -I'll find it for you fast enough." - -[Illustration: "If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you -won't get very far!"] - -Mrs. Frazier laid her hand on the lad's shoulder, whispered in his -ear, and he sank sulkily back in his chair while the unruffled Mr. -Prentice asked: - -"Why did you dump the powder down the hatch instead of letting it stay -where it was as evidence of the dastardly attempt of the wreckers?" - -"I didn't know what I was doing," exclaimed Dan in a flare of -impatience. "I was scared clean out of my wits. I was afraid to turn my -back on that bag of powder. Maybe you wouldn't have been as cool as an -ice-chest, either, and thinking about _evidence_. What the dickens are -you driving at anyhow?" - -"I will drop this matter for the present," said Mr. Prentice, fishing -out a small note-book as if to confirm his recollection before he -declared: - -"I heard you say on board the _Three Sisters_, '_Don't let them know. -Keep it dark. We can handle it all by ourselves. The captain is sorry -he did it._' What did you mean, Mr. Frazier? This wreck is to be -investigated. I am already convinced that certain persons on board -the tug _Resolute_ had advance information of the intended loss of -the _Kenilworth_. Your tug had steam up and her crew on board for -several days before the disaster. Captain Wetherly started for sea in -a tremendous hurry after getting a cable message that the _Kenilworth_ -had passed Jupiter Light. I have copies of the message he sent asking -for this information and the reply from the Government signal station. -Then, as if to prevent interference with a bargain made in advance, -Captain Wetherly deliberately cut down and disabled the tug _Henry -Foster_. I believe you know the truth. What did you mean by '_Don't let -them know? Keep it dark?_'" - -Dan looked bewildered for a moment and stared at Mr. Prentice who -seemed to be talking the sheerest nonsense. Then, as the meaning of -these suspicions filtered into the boy's mind, his face became red -with wrath and astonishment. His world was turning topsy-turvy. The -underwriters' agent was actually accusing Captain Jim Wetherly and the -_Resolute_ of the wicked deed which they had been trying to mend--of -plotting to put the _Kenilworth_ on the Reef! Why, this was like one of -the dreams of Dan's weeks of fever. At length he pulled himself to his -feet and fairly shouted: - -"I know who started this crazy story of yours, Mr. Prentice. Jerry -Pringle mu st be at the bottom of it. Do you mean to say you have -listened to such infernal lies about a man like Captain Jim Wetherly? -You didn't understand what I was talking about on board the _Three -Sisters_. And do you think _we_ had anything to do with the stranding -of Captain Bruce's steamer? Do you want to know the truth? I'll tell -you the truth--No, I won't. Captain Jim is my skipper and I must take -my orders from him. He told me to keep my mouth shut, and I can't say -anything until he gives me the word." - -Mrs. Frazier was wringing her hands as she stood between Mr. Prentice -and Dan, as if trying to shield her boy from harm. "Dan must not talk -to you another minute," she exclaimed indignantly. "He is all of a -tremble now. It is cruel of you to torment and bully him, Mr. Prentice." - -The underwriters' agent apologized and tried to explain his errand in -more detail. - -"I like your boy, Mrs. Frazier. He is a manly fellow. I am inclined -to believe that he is prompted by good motives. He is loyal to -Captain Wetherly and the _Resolute_, which is quite natural. But this -_Kenilworth_ affair looks like a bad business from start to finish. -Something was in the wind before the steamer went ashore, and it is my -duty to get at the facts without sparing any one's feelings. I want Dan -to think it over and I shall have another talk with him when he feels a -bit stronger." - -"Why don't you tackle Captain Bruce and make him tell what he knows?" -burst out Dan. "What does he say about it?" - -"The case of Captain Bruce will be disposed of in London," answered Mr. -Prentice; "but the evidence must be gathered in Key West." - -He reluctantly took his departure and, as his tall, spare figure -moved down the street, Dan followed Mrs. Frazier into the cottage and -declared: - -"This notion of fighting to keep disgrace and exposure away from Bart -Pringle and his mother has gone about far enough. Do you suppose I am -going to have you dragged into it, all because Jerry Pringle is smart -enough to cover up his tracks and shift the suspicion to Uncle Jim? Not -in a thousand years. Uncle Jim will have to come to Key West and clear -himself somehow." - -A heavy footfall sounded on the porch and the spoon on Dan's medicine -glass jingled as the ponderous presence of Bill McKnight filled the -outside doorway while he raised his big voice in "Ship, ahoy? Is Dan -aboard?" - -"The very man I want to see. Come in," called Dan. "He won't excite me, -mother, he'll be just like a hogshead of soothing syrup." - -The chief engineer advanced cautiously, as if not quite certain how to -handle himself in a sickroom, and whispered hoarsely: - -"Keep perfectly cool and calm, my boy. We'll say nothing at all about -wrecks, riots, and revolutions, will we, Mrs. Frazier? Birds and -flowers and how's the weather, eh? They're the topics." - -"Oh, shucks," was Dan's rude comment. "I want to know all about -everything, don't I, mother? Where is the _Resolute_? What's the news -from Captain Jim?" - -Mr. McKnight turned to Dan's mother and waited for orders. She nodded -her assent, and the visitor set himself down in a chair which creaked -and groaned. Then he extracted a package from his white duck coat and -removed the paper wrapping. A glass jar was revealed which Mr. McKnight -placed on the table with the explanation: - -"Calf's-foot jelly, ma'am. I had to cable for it. There's a poor crop -of calves in Key West. I've never been sick myself, except when I got -my head busted, or broke an arm or leg, or got shot up. But we fished -a box of books out of an English wreck one time, and they were mostly -novels. We dried 'em out in the engine-room and all hands read 'em. And -whenever anybody in them yarns took sick, I'm blessed if the vicar's -wife, or the squire's daughter, or the young ladies next door, didn't -trot in with this here calf's-foot jelly. They used tons of it in every -novel, ma'am. I reckon it'll put Dan on his pins." - -The chief engineer wiped his face and fixed a pair of spectacles on his -ruddy nose, after which he gazed searchingly at Dan as if to satisfy -himself that the boy was all there. Bashfully waving his paw as if to -ward off Mrs. Frazier's laughing thanks, he went on to say: - -"The _Resolute_ is almost ready for sea and your berth is waiting for -you, Dan. Captain Jim jerked the life out of her when he fetched away -the towing-bitts. She was most as sad a sight as the _Henry Foster_. -I've just come down from the Reef to see that the repairs are all -ship-shape and run her to sea in three or four days." - -"Can't I go in her, mother?" begged Dan. "I won't do any work. Tell the -doctor the air will do me good. I've simply got to see the wreck. How -about it, Mr. McKnight? Is she really going to come off?" - -"You'd think so, if she brings a chunk of the Reef along with her," -chuckled the engineer. "Captain Jim has built two coffer-dams in her, -where her bottom was ripped out. He'll begin to pump 'em out next week. -That will lift the bulk of the water out of her. And the wrecking pumps -can handle the rest of the leaks. He's a terrible man is Captain Jim, -when he gets a full head of steam in his boilers. He's patching up -the bulkheads, lightering the cargo, got a force of mechanics in the -engine-room, and so on till she hums like a beehive. Good weather, -Reef like a mill-pond, and two chartered tugs waiting to hook on to -her, not to mention the _Resolute_." - -"That beats doctors and calf's-foot jelly for putting me on my toes -again," was Dan's jubilant comment. "Have you heard anything ashore -here about her going on the Reef?" - -Mrs. Frazier tried to head off this agitating topic, but Mr. McKnight -failed to comprehend her manoeuvres and briskly replied: - -"No, I just come away from the Reef and hustled straight up here from -looking over the _Resolute_. There's nothing leaked out, has there? I'd -like to see somebody punished, you understand, but Captain Jim told me -to shut up and stay shut up." - -"Well, _we_ are accused of putting up the _Kenilworth_ job," exclaimed -Dan. "Don't mind mother. She's one of us. If you're going to have a -fit, please go outside. This house isn't big enough." - -Mr. McKnight was too taken aback to display any violent emotion. He -wiped his spectacles with great care, as if they had something to do -with his hearing, and asked Dan to "say it again, and say it slower." -Dan told him all about the visit of the underwriters' agent, whereupon -Mr. McKnight raised both hands and exclaimed: - -"Hold on, boy. It all sounds plumb raving crazy to you, but there may -be a heap more in it than you think. Who knew Jerry Pringle was aboard -the _Resolute_ that night in Pensacola harbor? You and me and Captain -Jim, and the cook and galley boy. The rest of the crew was ashore or -down below. Did you know that the cook and the galley boy quit the -_Resolute_ last week and went up the Gulf to ship on a Central American -fruiter? They may be mighty hard to find if Jerry Pringle had anything -to do with getting them out of the way. Where are our witnesses, eh? -And you tell me old man Prentice has copies of the cable messages that -prove Captain Jim was waiting for the _Kenilworth_? They may be mighty -hard to explain." - -"How about Captain Bruce?" asked Dan with a very sober face. "He is the -only man that can clear it all up in a jiffy." - -"I can't quite fathom him, Dan. Sometimes I think he only needs a good -strong shove to make him own up to it all and take his medicine like a -man. But supposing Pringle offers him the ten thousand dollars anyhow -to saddle the job on us _Resolutes_? It's worth that to Jerry to save -his own skin." - -"Captain Jim must get after Captain Bruce and make him tell the truth -if he has to choke it out of him," cried Dan in great excitement. "As -soon as we pull the _Kenilworth_ off the Reef there is going to be a -fight to a finish." - -"You ain't quite fit for wrecking or fighting, and your mother will -scold me directly for getting your bearings hot," quoth Mr. McKnight. -"You just sit tight and maybe you can go up to the Reef in the -_Resolute_ with me." - -With this the chief engineer departed under full steam, evidently -afraid of facing Dan's mother. The patient suffered no relapse, -however, and felt so much stronger next day that Mrs. Frazier suggested -a walk as far as the parade-ground of the artillery barracks, hoping -to give him a respite from any more disturbing visitors. They strolled -slowly through quaint crooked streets of the sea-girt town, into the -shaded plaza of the garrison which faced an expanse of green lagoon -and low mangrove-covered keys. A wharf ran out from the seawall in -front of them and they walked idly toward it to look at the schooners -beating up to the town. - -Dan delayed to watch a distant sail which was scudding in from one of -the near-by keys. Presently he called out: - -"Don't wait for me, mother. That's the _Sombrero_ yonder, and she will -pass within hail of the wharf. I'm going out there and catch Bart -Pringle as he scoots by." - -The boys had not met since Dan's return from the Reef, and Dan was a -trifle surprised that Bart had let the last three days pass without -calling to see him. "I want to beg his pardon for laughing at him when -the _Henry Foster_ was stood on her ear," reflected Dan as he walked -toward the end of the wharf. "We have a pack of things to talk about, -and I must be awful careful not to say a word against his father. But -there's due to be a rumpus before long." - -The _Sombrero_ tore past with a free sheet, fluttered into the wind, -and slid gracefully up to the wharf. Dan jumped onto the bowsprit and -footed it aft with a cheery greeting to Bart who was busy with sheets -and tiller. - -"Hello, Dan. Glad you feel so spry. Want to run down to the fort and -back?" said Bart without his usual smile. His manner was so glum, in -fact, that Dan spoke up rather sharply: - -"What in the world has happened to you? Has the _Sombrero_ been beaten -while I was laid up? My goodness, I thought you'd be glad to see me." - -Bart rubbed his head, scowled at the main-sail, and sighed before he -responded with an effort: - -"I've got to tell you, Dan. Mind you, I don't take any stock in it, but -I hate myself for letting it worry me. It's about the _Kenilworth_. -It's too tough to repeat, really it is, but you ought to have a chance -to come out and nail it as a lie. They say Captain Jim Wetherly knew -she was going on the Reef, and that you knew it, too. I wish----" - -"And you listened to such stuff?" Dan fiercely broke in. "Who told it -to you?" - -"Mr. Prentice asked me a lot of questions and I couldn't help seeing -what he was trying to prove, Dan. I asked my father about it and he -seemed to think things looked pretty black for Captain Jim. And father -is mighty seldom fooled about anything that goes on along the Reef. I -want to tell him that you say it's all foolishness. He would be mighty -glad to have it cleared up all right for Captain Jim Wetherly. And he -knows how chummy I am with you." - -"Y-you asked your f-father about it?" stuttered Dan and his eyes were -blazing. "Bart Pringle, you make my head dizzy. Look here, I'll tell -you one thing that's straight goods. I wouldn't believe _you_ were -guilty of a murder, not if they had a million witnesses, unless I saw -you do it with my own two eyes. And as for the _Kenilworth_, whether -Captain Bruce meant to put her on the Reef or not, Captain Jim Wetherly -had nothing to do with it. And that's all I can tell you. Of course -that lets me out." - -Dan's heart was sore that his chum's loyalty should have been shaken in -the slightest degree, but he tried to be fair, and added in a milder -tone: - -"Mr. Prentice got things all snarled up somehow, but it's sure to come -out right. Maybe I ought not to blame you for being worried, Bart. -Things have been happening mighty fast for all hands concerned." - -By this time Barton was honestly ashamed of himself and could think -of nothing to say but a stammering apology which Dan accepted with a -rather gloomy nod. It was the nearest their friendship had ever come -to a break, and both boys would have preferred an open quarrel to this -cloud of aggrieved misunderstanding. There was little more talk between -them while the sloop crashed into the long seas of the outer roadstead. -After they had put her about and were heading homeward, Dan exclaimed: - -"There's the good old _Resolute_ at her dock, and she is getting up -steam. She must be 'most ready to go to the Reef. Put me alongside, -Bart. I want to look her over. I'll walk home from there." - -As Dan sprang up the deck of the tug he was hailed by the chief -engineer. Leading the way to his state-room, Mr. McKnight picked Dan up -bodily, tossed him on the bunk, locked the door, and spoke as follows: - -"Things are a-popping red-hot, my boy. Captain Jim landed from the -Reef an hour ago. I told him all I knew about his being suspected of -the crooked job, and what does our busy skipper do then? He promptly -lays for Jerry Pringle. Does he beat him to death, same as I figured -on doing sooner or later? No, Captain Jim, as usual, does what you -least expect. He tells Pringle that he needs help on the _Kenilworth_ -wreck. Weather looks unsettled; must lighter more cargo out of her -quicker than blazes; needs all the schooners he can lay his hands on, -and is in a desperate hurry for another tug. Then he up and offers J. -Pringle a contract to take all his vessels up to the _Kenilworth_ and -go along himself as assistant boss on the wreck. Jerry hems and haws, -but Captain Jim looks him square in the eye and tells him to have that -Tampa tug of his ready for sea at daylight to-morrow. And Jerry agrees -as meek as Moses and goes off to find the skipper of his vessels." - -"But why and what for?" exclaimed Dan. "Jerry Pringle working for -Captain Jim on the _Kenilworth_! It's too much for me to fathom." - -"For one thing, Captain Jim needs his help to get the steamer off," -returned Bill McKnight. "There isn't a smarter wrecker on the coast -than this same Pringle. The love of wrecking is in his blood, and -it fairly kills him to be idle with a fine, big ship on the Reef. -Now that his plot to lose the _Kenilworth_ is spoiled, why shouldn't -he win a nice pot of money by helping save her? Then, again, maybe -Captain Jim wants to heap coals on his head till he hollers for a -fire-extinguisher. There is going to be something doing on the Reef, -Dan. Better come along with us. You will be plenty strong enough if you -have eaten up all that calf's-foot jelly I lugged up to you." - -"Where does Captain Bruce come in?" asked Dan. "Will he be on the -_Kenilworth_, too?" - -"He goes up in the _Resolute_ with us, but Jerry Pringle doesn't know -it," answered Mr. McKnight with a solemn wink. "Everybody that has -played a hand in this game is going to round to on the deck of that -unfortunate steamer in a couple of days from now, and I'm a poor -guesser if it don't turn out to be a lively reunion before she comes -off the Reef." - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE BROKEN HAWSER - - -The battered _Kenilworth_ lay heeled far over to one side, looming -forlornly from the Reef in the midst of a smooth and sparkling sea. -Her sides were gray with brine and streaked red with rust, her grimy -decks strewn with a chaotic litter of cargo, timbers, and rigging. -The once trim, seagoing steamer made a most distressful picture as -seen from the _Resolute_ which was bearing down from the direction of -Key West. Captain Bruce was standing in the bows of the tug. Gazing -at his helpless ship, he found it very hard to realize that he had -deliberately placed the _Kenilworth_ in this pitiful plight. - -She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for good and all, -but it was plain to see that the wreckers did not think so. Cargo -was tumbling from her ports into lighters strung alongside, tugs -hovered fussily near-by, and groups of active men toiled at capstans, -derrick-booms, and donkey-engines. - -[Illustration: She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all] - -"It looks like trying to float her before long," Captain Wetherly sung -down from the wheel-house of the _Resolute_. "Come up here, Captain -Bruce. I want to show you something." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ mounted the ladder with an air of -reluctance, for it hurt him even to talk about the ship. He looked worn -and haggard and he could not rid himself of a great dread lest the -_Kenilworth_ might not be floated after all. - -He was cheered, however, by the buoyant confidence of Captain Jim -Wetherly who exclaimed with a note of mirth in his voice: - -"There's a sight to make you rub your eyes, Captain Bruce. That is -Jerry Pringle's tug from Tampa on the port quarter of the _Kenilworth_. -And there he goes up the side. Hooray! see him chase that gang of his -down the hatch. He is surely shoving the job along for all he's worth. -That's his way when he once buckles down to it." - -"But you were fighting each other alongside my ship not long ago. I -don't understand it," commented Captain Bruce. - -Captain Jim led the other man out of ear-shot of the wheel-house and -told him with a grim smile: - -"Jerry Pringle expected to work on this wreck. You know that even -better than I do. I upset some plans of his, and yours. Now he has to -do the job _my_ way--understand? Do you know that I am suspected of -plotting with you to put this ship on the Reef, Captain Bruce? You -haven't heard it from Mr. Prentice? Um-m; well, you will hear a whole -lot more about it from me before this ship of yours slides off into -deep water." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ winced at the threatening tone of these -words, and his face was very red as he tried to bluster it out: - -"What rot! That Prentice is a doddering old fool. Talking behind my -back, is he? Of all the wicked, silly nonsense! Well, upon my word!" - -"That will do for you," was Captain Jim's curt reply. "_You_ are going -to clear me. I kept my mouth shut to shield some innocent people, women -and children, friends and kinfolk of mine--do you see? I expect to -give your ship back to you. And you are going to do the square thing -by me. Think it over and think hard." - -Captain Wetherly faced about and left the other gazing with a troubled -frown at the _Kenilworth_. Presently Dan hailed his uncle: - -"Bart Pringle came along with his father, sir. I'd like to go aboard -the wreck and see him if you don't mind, sir." - -"Go ahead, Dan. Last time you two lads met on that deck you bristled -at each other like two terrier pups. But I don't expect to cut his -dad's tow-boat in two this trip, so I reckon you'll be glad to see each -other." - -Dan followed Captain Bruce up the steamer's side and found Barton -dangling his legs from a heap of hatch-covers. - -"Why don't you get busy? I want you to know that I am the real -wrecking master of this vessel," cried Dan as he thumped his friend on -the back with a generous impulse to forgive and forget their recent -misunderstanding. "I never saw a Pringle that was willing to loaf ten -seconds on a wreck. Gracious, look at your father. You can't see him -for dust." - -Mr. Jeremiah Pringle was, indeed, making good his surprising contract -with Captain Jim Wetherly. He viewed a difficult task of wrecking as a -personal battle between the Reef and himself; his brains, brawn, and -courage matched against the perils of the sea. While the boys watched -him drive his crew of hardy wreckers, Bart remarked: - -"I thought father and Captain Jim were red-hot at each other over -the _Henry Foster_ business, didn't you? They must have patched it -up all right, and that's enough to show how silly those stories were -about--about the wreck and Captain Jim. Father wouldn't lend a hand in -a crooked job for any money. I have been feeling meaner than a yellow -pup for ever bothering my head about those rumors that lugged you into -the dirty work, Dan. Will you really forgive me?" - -"I was mean and nasty to you when the _Henry Foster_ was split wide -open, so I reckon we are quits," confessed Dan. "Let's shake hands and -forget it." - -"I'd trust you as I would trust my own father," earnestly exclaimed -Bart. "Right down in my heart I would no more dream of your being -mixed up with a crooked wrecking job than I would think of suspecting -him. That's as strong as I can put it. You won't hold it out against me -any more, will you, honest?" - -Jeremiah Pringle had come out of a forward hold and was making his -way aft along the ship's side to release a fouled guy-rope. The boys -did not see him pass behind them, and as Bart waxed earnest his voice -carried to his father's ears. The stern-visaged wrecker halted and -listened with the most intense interest. He heard his own son say: - -"_I'd trust you as I'd trust my own father.... That's as strong as I -can put it._" - -Jeremiah Pringle had been dealt a blow from a quarter so unexpected -that he was quite staggered. Moving stealthily out of sight of the two -lads, he went about his duty but his mind was painfully active with -emotions which were as novel as they were disturbing. - -It had never before occurred to him that his boy's life was anywhere -linked with his own. He did not intend to set him a bad example, nor -bring disgrace on the name he bore. But now Barton had accused and -condemned him, not by doubting but by believing in him. It was brought -home to him from a clear sky that his son was shaping his own course by -what he believed his father to be. As Jeremiah Pringle sweated through -the long day, he sullenly reflected: - -"I can't argue it out with the fool boy. And what gets under my skin, -too, is the way Dan Frazier has handled himself since that night in -Pensacola. He must have got wind of the _Kenilworth_ job then. I hate -to be under obligations to anybody, and Jim Wetherly and that boy -have been keeping it all back from my boy. Why? So Barton wouldn't be -ashamed of his daddy. That's a cheerful notion to take to bed with me." - -He had begun to feel that it might be unfair to his son's faith in him -to engage in any more shady wrecking operations, and he was nearer -being ashamed of himself than he had been in many years. It seemed as -if Captain Jim Wetherly read his thoughts, for he halted him next day -long enough to say: - -"You have taken hold in great shape. It helps square matters, Jerry. -It is your duty to get this ship off the Reef; you know that. And you -will never be able to look that boy of yours in the eye until the -_Kenilworth_ is towed into port and made ready for sea again." - -Mr. Pringle was in no mood to have his sins or his duty flung in his -teeth, and he retorted savagely: - -"Don't preach at me, Jim Wetherly. I break even with you by helping -you get this vessel afloat. And I won't make you pay for smashing the -_Henry Foster_. That squares all debts between us." - -Meanwhile Dan and Barton had explored the _Kenilworth_ from end to -end, Dan telling at great length the story of his imprisonment among -the cargo in the hold. When he came to the chapter dealing with the -visit of the Bahama wreckers, he hurried Bart to the spot where he had -found the lighted fuse and sack of powder. Alas, even the fragments -of the fuse had been swept away in the task of lightering the cargo. -Dan headed for the nearest hatchway to search for the powder. The -compartment into which he had thrown it was cleared of water, the -débris shovelled out, and the shattered bottom plates covered deep with -cement and timber bracing. - -"Our wreckers didn't find the powder bag, or Captain Jim would have -told me," mourned Dan. "The canvas may have ripped open or rotted where -it fell. You believe it all, don't you, Bart? But that hatchet-faced -old Prentice as much as called me a liar. And I won't be happy till I -can make him take it back. He thinks I was trying to pull his leg with -the explosion yarn. Why, I couldn't have made up a story like that in a -thousand years." - -"Don't you care. Of course it's true. And it was splendid. I am -certainly proud of you," declared Bart who was anxious to make amends -for the rift in their friendship. "You and I will back old Prentice -into a corner first chance we get and make him apologize--won't we?" - -The underwriters' agent came on board two days later and had a long -interview with Captain Jim behind the locked door of the chart-room, -after which Captain Bruce and Jeremiah Pringle were singly summoned for -more mysterious conferences. But no attention was paid to Dan who felt -that he moved in a cloud of suspicion and dismally reflected: - -"Old Prentice has set me down as a liar and won't even give me a -chance to deny it. I wish I could have kept that fuse to hitch to his -coat-tails. I won't save another ship for him,--that's one thing sure." - -At length the day came when Captain Jim Wetherly announced that he -intended pulling on the stranded steamer with all four tugs at high -water in the afternoon. They might not be able to start her, but it was -worth trying, for the spell of fair weather could not be expected to -last much longer. Dan was still grumbling to himself as he went off to -the _Resolute_ which had signalled for all hands to return. - -One by one the tugs got into position for a "long pull, a strong pull, -and a pull all together." Captain Wetherly stayed in the _Kenilworth_ -to direct operations and took his station up in the bows. To Jerry -Pringle was entrusted the important duty of properly making fast the -hawsers from the tugs. It amused Captain Jim to hear him fiercely -shouting orders to the crew of the _Resolute_ who glared at their -former foeman as if they would like to muster a boarding party and -attack him. - -The men in the yawls and on the rolling decks of the tugs worked with -more caution than usual. They did not mind falling overboard or being -upset by an obstreperous hawser as part of the day's work. But the -dumping overboard of damaged cargo, including smashed cases of salt -meats and other provisions, had lured scores of huge sharks which -hovered in the clear, green depths at the edge of the Reef or rushed to -the surface at the splash of box or barrel. All hands breathed easier -when the hawsers had been passed aboard without mishap. - -When all was in readiness to begin the tug-of-war between the tow-boats -and the Reef, Captain Wetherly's nerves were tingling with excitement. -The hour had come to put his faith and his works to the crucial test. -It meant more to him than salvage, for he was also seeking with might -and main to undo a wrong of which this ship had been the victim. - -"The old _Resolute_ will pull her heart out before she quits," he -muttered. "I've given her the hardest berth, for she knows we can't -afford to lose this ship." - -Slowly the tugs forged ahead until they were straining at their -hawsers like a team of well-handled horses, each using every bit of -its strength to the best advantage. Then it was "full speed ahead," -and they buckled down to their task as if no odds were great enough to -daunt them,--_Resolute_, _Three Sisters_, _Fearless_, and _Hercules_. -Soon the rusty, high-sided _Kenilworth_ was veiled in the black clouds -of smoke which drifted from their belching funnels. Captain Jim moved -to leeward to get a clearer view and observed that Jeremiah Pringle -was standing within a few feet of the vibrating steel hawser of the -_Resolute_, where it led in over the bows of the _Kenilworth_. - -"That is a brand-new line, but it isn't healthy to get so near it," he -called out. "That tow-boat of mine has busted them before this, Jerry." - -"Always bragging of those engines of yours. You are as bad as Bill -McKnight," Pringle shouted back. - -He looked down at the ponderous steel cable with a careless laugh. A -moment later Captain Jim forgot his own warning and ran to the side to -shout an urgent order to one of the tugs. He stood for a few seconds -almost on top of the hawser where it led inboard and was about to -retreat to his former station when the huge line twanged with a rasping -note as if its fibres were overstrained. He wasted a precious instant -in looking down to find out what the trouble might be, heard the steel -cable crack and give, tried to flee, and caught his toe in a ring-bolt -screwed to the deck. - -Just then Jerry Pringle lunged forward and knocked Captain Jim flat -with a sweep of his powerful right arm. This deed, done with lightning -speed and rare presence of mind, sufficed to put Captain Jim out of -harm's way, but it used the precious second of time in which Jeremiah -Pringle might have saved himself. - -Before Pringle could drop on deck or leap for shelter, the hawser -snapped in twain with a report like that of a cannon. The ragged -ends whizzed through the air with the speed and destructiveness of -projectiles. One of them crashed against a metal stanchion, cut it -clean in two, and knocked a pile of timber braces in all directions. -These obstacles saved Jerry Pringle from being sliced in twain, but he -was swept up in the flying debris and sent spinning overboard as if he -were a chip caught in a tornado. - -The accident happened with such incredible swiftness that Captain -Wetherly scrambled to his feet and stood blinking at the spot from -which Pringle had vanished as if he were blotted out of existence. -Then, pulling himself together, with a yell of horrified dismay he -rushed to the side of the ship and stared down into the sea which was -seething with the foamy wash from the screws of the nearest tugs. He -saw a black object rise to the surface, drift toward the stern, and -then slowly sink from sight. Running aft where the water was clear, he -caught a glimpse of the body of Jerry Pringle settling toward the white -coral bottom. - -Two of the tugs were hastily manning boats. Captain Jim glanced toward -them and knew their help would come too late. He thought of the sharks -which had been flocking around the ship. They could not have been -driven very far away by the tumult of the tugs. While he wavered, -Captain Jim said to himself: - -"He didn't figure on the odds when he bowled me out of danger before he -tried to save himself. Here goes." - -Springing upon the bulwark, he jumped clear and sped downward with feet -together and arms stretched above his head. It was a thirty-foot drop -to the water and he shot into it as straight and true as a dipsey lead. -His impetus carried him far down into the cool, green sea and, opening -his eyes, he dimly discerned the shadowy form of the man he sought -drifting above him. As Captain Jim rose he grasped the other by the -shirt and struck out with his free arm. Pringle might be dead for all -he knew, but he hung to him like a bull-dog, fighting his way upward to -reach the blessed air and ease his tortured lungs. - -A boat was pulling madly toward the scene, the crew yelling and -splashing to hold the sharks at bay. Most clamorous of the party was -the chief engineer of the _Resolute_ who was roaring with tears in his -eyes: - -"Wow--wow--wow, keep a yellin', boys. It's Captain Jim they're after. -Jerry Pringle's too tough for 'em." - -A black fin skittered past the boat and Bill McKnight blazed away at it -with a rifle which he had caught up on the run. A few more desperate -strokes and they slackened speed and beat the water into foam with the -flat of their oars. A long, sinister shadow slid swiftly under the -boat and the men yelled as they saw it veer toward the stern of the -Kenilworth. But this hastening shark had overrun its prey. Captain Jim -and his burden rose within an oar's length of the yawl and were grasped -by a dozen eager hands before they could be attacked. - -Dan Frazier was not in the boat. He had not recovered his wits until -his comrades had shoved clear of the _Resolute_. He stood as if -paralyzed and watched the rescue. When the two dripping figures were -hauled into the yawl and he saw Captain Jim sit up and shake himself -like a retriever, a wordless prayer of thanksgiving welled from the -depths of his heart. - -Then he saw the boat move toward Jerry Pringle's tug which lay on the -other side of the _Kenilworth_, screened from view of the rescue. Bart -had gone on board this tug earlier in the day, and Dan felt his knees -tremble as he saw the body of Jeremiah Pringle hoisted over the low -bulwark. It seemed an age before the yawl returned to the _Resolute_ -and Captain Jim leaped on deck, followed by the chief engineer. Their -faces were very solemn and they spoke with evident effort: - -"Were--were you too late, Uncle Jim?" stammered Dan. - -"Yes, he must have been dead when he struck the water," slowly returned -Captain Wetherly. "But I'm glad I went after him. He made a brave man's -finish. It's awful tough on Bart, but he is standing up under it like a -thoroughbred. Jerry Pringle staked his life and lost it for me." - -Captain Jim wiped his eyes and coughed. Bill McKnight ventured to say -to Dan: - -"He'd have done the same trick to save one of his own deck-hands. Jerry -Pringle was a brave and ready man, we all know that. It was instinct. -He didn't have time to figure it out. But I reckon God Almighty will -give him plenty of credit and square accounts for whatever he did -wrong. Whew! I can't realize it a little bit." - -"The tug will take him down to Key West right away," said Captain Jim. -"I'm going along with Jerry Pringle on his last voyage. Want to come, -Dan? It will do Bart a whole lot of good to have you as a shipmate -and you can tell him that his father was a man to be proud of. We'll -forget everything that happened before to-day. You come aboard the -_Kenilworth_ with me and I'll leave orders for my men. I'll have to be -back here to-morrow if this steamer is to come off the Reef. I have a -notion that Jerry Pringle was sorry he ever helped to put her on there. -And from watching him lately I believe we couldn't please him any -better than by getting the _Kenilworth_ off and mending the wrong he -planned to do." - -As they boarded the _Kenilworth_ Captain Bruce met them and asked in a -voice hoarse with emotion: - -"They tell me he has slipped his cable. If my ship had not stranded it -would not have happened." - -"What are you going to do about it? Let _me_ be accused of helping -to wreck your steamer?" sternly replied Captain Wetherly. "Jeremiah -Pringle has squared his accounts and made _his_ record clean. But how -about you?" - - - - -CHAPTER X - -DAN'S DREAMS COME TRUE - - -The first pull on the stranded steamer had been halted by the tragedy -of Jeremiah Pringle's heroic death. As soon as possible Captain Jim -Wetherly hastened back from Key West to the Reef and Dan rejoined his -shipmates in the _Resolute_. They were very loth to leave the widow -and the son of the wrecking-master who, with all his faults, had died -as he had lived, unflinching in the face of the perils of the sea. But -Duty sounded a trumpet-call to save the _Kenilworth_, and with flags at -half-mast the tireless tugs again hovered about her under the vigilant -direction of Captain Wetherly. - -Meanwhile the wreckers had been toiling in night and day shifts, taking -out more cargo. When at length the tugs were summoned for another -titanic tussle, every man felt that the supreme moment was at hand. It -was now or never. Captain Wetherly voiced the feelings of all with -passionate energy: - -"She has _got_ to go. That's all there is to it." - -The tugs had been pulling a scant hour when Captain Jim felt the keel -of the _Kenilworth_ grind on the coral bottom. It was no more than a -slight shock which made the ship tremble as if she felt a thrill of -returning life and freedom. Then she hung fast for a long time, moved -again, and perceptibly righted herself. Another interval of futile -effort, and at last the steamer slid forward with a dull, harsh roar as -her broken keel ripped through the coral and ploughed slowly down the -sloping shelf into the deep water on the landward side of the Reef. - -The frantic tugs behaved as if they could not believe the _Kenilworth_ -was actually afloat. They refused to stop pulling with might and main -until their prize was trailing after them down the fairway of the Hawk -Channel. Their whistles bellowed jubilation while Captain Jim signalled -the _Resolute_: - -"Keep her going for Key West." - -The panting tugs led the sluggish, battered steamer out through the -nearest gap in the Reef, and she rolled solemnly in the swells of -the open sea where she belonged. Captain Bruce was pacing the bridge -of his ship, nervous, absorbed in his own thoughts, and oblivious of -the general rejoicing. Above the stern of the _Kenilworth_ the British -ensign still flew at half-mast and served to recall a tragedy which -Captain Bruce wanted to forget. His partnership with Jerry Pringle -had been ill-fated from the start. In a flash of splendid manliness -Pringle had given his life to save the man who had smashed the evil -partnership. And was he, Malcolm Bruce, ship-master, willing to let -this Jim Wetherly stand accused of the crime planned in Pensacola -harbor? No, he had not come to such depths of degradation as this. -He had fought it out with himself and he was ready to take the -consequences. Dan Frazier came on board the _Kenilworth_ for orders -when the tugs slackened way to shift their hawsers, and Captain Bruce -beckoned him to a corner of the bridge where Captain Wetherly was -standing. The haggard ship-master placed his hand on the lad's shoulder -as he began to speak: - -"I want Dan to hear what I have to say, Captain Wetherly. He came -aboard my ship when she went on the Reef and refused to believe the -worst of me, though he knew it all the time. I abandoned the ship and -left him on board instead of sticking by her as I honestly intended to -do. But I see now that my will had been undermined. There was a rotten -spot in my heart." - -"You didn't mean to abandon me, sir," spoke up Dan. "I never held that -against you." - -"I am glad you have a decent word for me," replied Captain Bruce with -the shadow of a smile. "The long and short of it is that I am going to -make a clean breast of it to the underwriters' agent, Mr. Prentice, -when we get to Key West. It seems to be the only way to clear you, -Captain Wetherly. Of course I never dreamed that circumstances could be -twisted about to fetch you into this miserable business. But Pringle -has gone, and I am not quite enough of a cur to dodge my share of -the punishment. I make no defence, but my record was fairly clean -until--well, you know when. My owners are shrewd, tricky, close-fisted -men who got me into their way of doing business a little at a time. -My ideas of right and wrong were warped by degrees. Men don't go bad -all at once, Dan. Don't ever forget that. A ship's timbers don't rot -overnight and let her founder in the gale that tests her strength. The -first speck of rot is almost too small to see, but it grows. At last -these people had me fit for their work, and three voyages ago they -put it at me that there would be no great sorrow if the _Kenilworth_ -met disaster. I should have quit them on the spot, but I took the -temptation to sea with me. And in the next voyage I ran afoul of -Jeremiah Pringle in Pensacola. He found me willing to listen. Five -years ago I would have kicked him out of my cabin. You know the rest of -it. Ten thousand dollars was the price if he could have the vessel to -wreck. And my owners were ready to give me a bigger, newer ship if I -lost her for the insurance. But you spoiled all that, and I am glad you -did. I seem to have been a weak-kneed kind of a rascal." - -"Bully for you," cried Captain Jim. "Shake hands on it. Dan here was -sure you were sorry you ever got into this mess, the first time he met -you. But this is mighty serious business for you, Captain Bruce. The -underwriters will make an example of you, as sure as guns. Are you -going back to England to face the music?" - -"It means that I am in disgrace and will command no more ships, I -suppose," was the reply. "And I suppose it means a dose of prison, but -I don't mean to veer from the course I have charted. There isn't any -other way out of it. I would rather be dead along with Jerry Pringle -than to go on hating myself and living in a hell of my own making." - -"I reckon you are right," said Captain Jim after a long silence. "It -pays to go straight, and every man must work out his own salvation." - -"Anyhow, you would feel a heap worse if your ship had gone to pieces," -Dan ventured to suggest in his effort to find a ray of sunshine in the -cloud. - -"Right you are, my lad. It has been a great fight, and a man couldn't -work alongside this uncle of yours very long without wanting to live -straight and clean. You helped save the _Kenilworth_, Dan. I haven't -forgotten that." - -"But you can't square me with old man Prentice," sadly returned Dan. "I -think it's great of you to stand by Captain Jim, but it doesn't help -my case. I am still left high and dry as a liar." - -"Things will straighten themselves out now. Don't worry," smiled -Captain Bruce. "Mr. Prentice will be easier to handle after he knows -the facts in my case." - -"How about salvage? Don't I come in on that?" anxiously asked Dan who -was not old enough to appreciate the sacrifice involved in Captain -Bruce's confession. - -"I expect to be paid my towing and wrecking bill to cover my time and -expenses," said Captain Jim. "But I don't want any more salvage than -that. I won't take blood-money, not even from the pockets of those -scoundrelly owners of yours, Captain Bruce. They won't be able to -collect a cent of insurance after you make your statement, and the -repairs will cost them a small fortune. The underwriters will make it -hot enough for them. Trust Prentice for that." - -Dan raised his voice in most lugubrious accents: - -"But won't there be any salvage for me after all I went through in this -beastly ship? Why, I have been expecting to get rich from it, to go -North to school and college with Bart, and buy a bigger yacht, and give -mother a spree in New York and--and all I get is to be called a liar by -old man Prentice." - -Dan's disappointment was so keen that Captain Jim hastened to console -him. "I kind of overlooked your case. Sure enough, I've robbed you of -your rights, haven't I? I suppose if you could go North to school, you -and your mother would feel that you had your share of salvage, wouldn't -you?" - -"Yes, indeed. That would clear up the account in great shape," cried -Dan. "But where is the money coming from? You can't charge it up -against the _Kenilworth's_ owners, can you?" - -"Well, if those Bahama niggers had blown up the steamer, the owners' -bills might be a good deal bigger," smiled his uncle. "Just let your -salvage claim rest for a day or so. I promise you it will be worked out -somehow." - -Early in the morning the _Kenilworth_ moved slowly to an anchorage in -the inner harbor of Key West, at last in a friendly haven. Her escort -of victorious tugs whistled a glad alarm as they cast loose and steamed -toward their several wharves. Dan was on board the _Resolute_, and as -she neared the shore he saw his mother hastening down to the landing -place. - -"You will be all the salvage she wants out of this job," said Captain -Jim as Dan waved his cap for an answering signal to the fluttering -handkerchief. A little later mother and son walked homeward together -and she learned of Captain Bruce's manly decision to make atonement. -Her tender heart was moved with pity for his plight and she spoke up -impulsively: - -"I knew there was a great deal of good in him, Dan. And think how -forlorn and unhappy he must feel. He needs friends. Ask him up to see -us. I am very sorry for him." - -"All right, mother. He has shown himself to be a pretty good sort of a -man, after all. How is Bart Pringle? Is he all broken up? He's been on -my mind most of the time since I went back to the Reef." - -"It was a dreadful shock to Mary Pringle and her boy," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "But they will be happy again after a while. Jerry Pringle -was a hard man, Dan, and he never really knew his own family. He was -the richest man in Key West and of course they have no worries about -money. They fairly worship his memory because he died a hero's death. -But it is as if they were admiring some noble character in a book, not -a real, live man who was a part of their daily lives. They never knew -him well." - -"Perhaps it was all for the best," sighed Dan. "Bart will never know -anything else about his father and he has a memory to live up to that -is a better inheritance than all the money that was left behind. Oh, -but it was worth while fighting hard to keep the truth from Bart and -his mother." - -In the afternoon Dan went back to the _Resolute_ to invite the chief -engineer to supper. Mr. McKnight announced as he staggered the boy with -an affectionate blow between the shoulders: - -"Old Prentice was aboard looking for you not an hour ago, and said he'd -come back if he didn't find you at home. I told him that if he had a -notion of calling you a liar some more, I was your proxy and he could -say it to me. I began to roll up my sleeves and he plumb near backed -himself overboard." - -"I wish he had," returned Dan. "What on earth does he want now? The -_Kenilworth_ affair is all cleared up." - -"Well, he was dying to see you, Dan. Better wait aboard. The old -icicle will wander back after a while. I hear we are going to tow the -_Kenilworth_ to Jacksonville to be docked for repairs. Do you know -when?" - -"Captain Jim said in about a month," replied Dan. "As soon as she can -be patched up to stand the voyage. But maybe I won't be with you, then. -It depends on whether I win my salvage case." - -"Too much sun. Gone a bit queer in the head," murmured Mr. McKnight. -"We surrendered all claim to salvage--you know that. It's an outrage, -too. When I was wreckin' on the coast of-- Hello, here comes old -Prentice now." - -The underwriters' agent was advancing with almost undignified haste, -and as he came down the gang-plank he extended his hand to Dan and -exclaimed in most friendly fashion: - -"Delighted to find you, Mr. Frazier. You will be good enough to sit -down aft with me for a few minutes? I wish to show you a document -which has just reached me." - -Brushing past the glowering chief engineer, Mr. Prentice fumbled in his -breast pocket and brought forth a large, official-looking envelope. -His manner was really sheepish as he hemmed and hawed, flourished the -envelope, and said: - -"I wish to offer you an apology, Dan, which you are manly enough to -accept, I am sure. I find myself in--er--a rather painful position. The -fact of the matter is that I have been guilty of an error of judgment. -I have in my hands a letter sent to me in care of the British consul -in Key West. Attached to it is an affidavit which you may examine at -your leisure. To make a long story short, these documents come from -Nassau. While investigating the _Kenilworth_ disaster, it occurred to -me to make some inquiries concerning one Hurley, known as "Black Sam," -who had possession of the steamer when you were rescued from her. -Your story of preventing an explosion seemed improbable to me, partly -because I could find no proof, and also because I held certain other -suspicions, now removed, I am glad to say. I made an effort to locate -this Hurley person. There was not one chance in a thousand that he -would confirm the truth of your story, if found. But, by extraordinary -good luck, he was recently arrested for cracking the skull of one of -his crew. And while in jail he was visited by my agent in Nassau. -You will be surprised to learn that he readily consented to sign an -affidavit describing his attempt to blow up the _Kenilworth_, and your -part in the episode. The fellow has a rude sense of humor, it appears, -and had come to regard it as a good deal of a joke on him." - -"It is great news for me," exclaimed Dan. "I hated to have you think -what you did." - -"I have something more to say," resumed Mr. Prentice with a smile. -"Captain Bruce and Captain Wetherly came to see me to-day. It was a -strange interview, as you may perhaps guess. Captain Bruce confessed -that he had tried to lose his ship on the Reef. My suspicions were -wrong from start to finish, and I have apologized to Captain Wetherly. -In fact, I seem to be a walking apology. But the chapter is closed. -The steamer is to be made fit for sea by her owners, without a penny -of cost to the underwriters, and her master will go to England to face -the consequences of his confession. The owners will also have to settle -for damages to cargo. Under the circumstances, I am of the opinion that -the underwriters are deeply indebted to you for preventing the total -loss of the _Kenilworth_. They can well afford to do the handsome thing -by you, my boy, not as salvage, but as a gift, a reward for a heroic -deed. Such gifts have been bestowed on several ship-masters within my -recollection. Captain Wetherly informs me that you are ambitious to get -an education. I pledge you my personal word that you can count upon -receiving a sum of several thousand dollars to assist that praiseworthy -ambition. I expect to go to England shortly, and will look after the -matter myself." - -While Dan struggled between gratitude and amazement to find words -to fit the occasion, Mr. Prentice patted his shoulder with fatherly -affection and added: - -"I know the story of your loyalty to your friend, young Barton Pringle. -It seems right and proper that you should go away to school together, -without a shadow between you any longer." - -Mr. Prentice left the Nassau documents with Dan and took his departure, -leaving the lad to stammer the wonderful tale to Bill McKnight who -found an outlet for his own emotion by announcing: - -"I'm going to hustle right ashore, Dan, and hire the Key West brass -band to serenade old Prentice to-night. I've got money in the bank, -boy, and I'm going to turn it loose." - -While this rash declaration was being argued, Captain Wetherly came -aboard and added his congratulations to the tumultuous celebration. -When Mr. McKnight became quieter for lack of breath, Dan spoke up with -a sudden shock of unhappy recollection: - -"But how about Captain Bruce, Uncle Jim? It doesn't seem fair for him -to be left all alone to go back to England and be in disgrace among his -own people. Why, if he stands by his guns, he will be sent to prison." - -"I had a long talk with him an hour ago," replied Captain Wetherly. -"He can't be budged from his resolution to take all the blame for -the disaster. And of course his owners will try to shift it all onto -him and they may be able to clear themselves in court. I can't help -admiring his pluck. But he may come back here later, Dan. I have just -landed a big Government contract for towing and dredging work, to last -for several years. And I need more help with the business I have now. -I asked Captain Bruce to come back to Key West when he gets clear of -his troubles in England. I told him that he would be with friends here, -with folks who believed in him. I would trust him as a partner. He will -never go wrong again." - -"What did he say?" asked Dan and Bill McKnight in the same breath. - -"He was considerably touched. Said he would think it over, and thanked -me, and went off to tell Prentice about it. He will come back to work -with me some day, I am pretty sure." - -A few weeks later Dan Frazier and Barton Pringle were waving their -farewells to Key West from the deck of a mail steamer, northward bound -to enter a preparatory school. Their mothers were standing together -on the wharf and behind them towered the rugged figure of Captain -Jim Wetherly. As the steamer drew away and the last "good-byes" were -shouted across the water, Bart sighed and murmured to his friend: - -"Father ought to be there to see me off. I can't realize it yet, Dan. -But I must try to live up to the example he set for me. I am so glad -he and Captain Jim became good friends. It was the _Kenilworth_ that -brought them together. I reckon they were the same breed of men, only -it took them a long time to find it out." - -Dan looked across the harbor at the rusty _Kenilworth_ which was almost -ready to be towed away to a dry-dock. The sight of her thrilled him -with memories of the hardships, dangers, and tragedy of the weeks of -hard-fought battle on the Reef. It came over him that while he had won -his salvage and his fondest dreams were coming true, perhaps Barton -Pringle had won even richer and more enduring salvage in the bright -memory of his father's last deed, a memory and an inspiration unmarred -by the knowledge of anything less worthy. - -"I am proud of Uncle Jim," said Dan at length. "And you can always be -proud of your father, Bart." - -Presently the steamer passed the _Resolute_ which lay at her wharf -ready for sea. The chief engineer hurried into the wheel-house and -pulled the whistle cord for all he was worth. The tug roared a hoarse -farewell, and Dan gazed at her and the burly figure of Bill McKnight -with glad affection in his eyes. They stood for something worth while -to the boy who was leaving his shipmates to venture into strange waters -and chart a new career. He had toiled among men who were fitly called -"the Resolutes," and the lessons of duty he had learned afloat would -not be soon forgotten ashore. Dan was thinking aloud as he said while -he waved his cap at the powerful, seagoing tug in which he had played -his part as a humble deck-hand: - -"I don't know what this preparatory school up north is going to be -like, but I reckon if I can play the game so the _Resolute_ won't be -ashamed of me I'll come out all right." - - - - -BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE - - -"_Will be read with pleasure by the many boys to whom the sea speaks -with an inviting voice._" ---_New York Herald._ - - -_The Wrecking Master_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.25_ - -The business of saving ships wrecked on the reefs along the Florida -coast is one of the most dangerous and exciting in the world. The two -sons of rival wreckers, who are in a race to rescue a big steamer which -has gone ashore in a peculiar manner on a Florida reef, have adventures -as novel as they are exciting. There is a sharp contest of skill, -courage, and stratagems, and thrilling fights with men and with storms. - - -_A Cadet of the Black Star Line_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.25_ - -"The man of to-day being the boy of yesterday, there is never a lack of -interest in good manly boy stories, the kind that makes the red blood -flow faster and the heart beat truer. Such a story is 'A Cadet of the -Black Star Line.' ... - -"Mr. Paine's narrative of the experiences of a cadet on one of the big -ocean liners moves along with splendid spirit." ---_Philadelphia Press._ - -"A stirring tale of sea life, the breezes of the ocean blowing through -every chapter.... Clean, wholesome reading." ---_New York Observer._ - - -CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, NEW YORK - - - - -_COLLEGE SERIES_ - - -_Sandy Sawyer, Sophomore_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -Sandy Sawyer, a husky crew man, works during the summer to pay for his -college course. His adventures in the country, where he strokes a crew -of his own against one of summer boarders, makes interesting reading. - - -_The Stroke Oar_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -The stroke of the "'Varsity" crew shanghaied in the middle of the -college year through an accident goes through some remarkable -adventures that end with his rowing in the great boat race at New -London. - - -_The Fugitive Freshman_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -"A mysterious disappearance, a wreck, the real thing in a game of -baseball are but a few of the excitements the book contains." -_--Philadelphia Ledger._ - - -_The Head Coach_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -"The book is so compact of healthy young manliness and depicts so many -sound-hearted characters in so winning a way that it deserves unusual -success."--_Chicago Inter-Ocean._ - - -_College Years_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -"Extremely life-like and accurate pictures of the campus.... Every boy -who intends to go to college will want to read these stories." -_--Yale Alumni Weekly._ - - -CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, NEW YORK - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER*** - - -******* This file should be named 62176-8.txt or 62176-8.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/6/2/1/7/62176 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - diff --git a/old/old/62176-8.zip b/old/old/62176-8.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index c286860..0000000 --- a/old/old/62176-8.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/old/62176.txt b/old/old/62176.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 853f0ce..0000000 --- a/old/old/62176.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4382 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Wrecking Master, by Ralph Delahaye Paine, -Illustrated by George Varian - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: The Wrecking Master - - -Author: Ralph Delahaye Paine - - - -Release Date: May 19, 2020 [eBook #62176] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER*** - - -E-text prepared by Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by -Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 62176-h.htm or 62176-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62176/62176-h/62176-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62176/62176-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/wreckingmaster00pain - - -Transccriber's note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - Text enclosed by plus signs is in bold face (+bold+). - - - - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - - * * * * * * - -BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE - -PUBLISHED BY CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS - - -+Sandy Sawyer, Sophomore.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Stroke Oar.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Fugitive Freshman.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+The Head Coach.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - -+College Years.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.50 - - * * * * * - -+The Wrecking Master.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.25 - -+A Cadet of the Black Star Line.+ Illustrated, 12mo $1.25 - - * * * * * * - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - -[Illustration: "You're working for Jim Wetherly"] - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - -by - -RALPH D. PAINE - -Author of "A Cadet of the Black Star Line," "The Fugitive -Freshman," "The Head Coach," etc. - -Illustrated by George Varian - - - - - - -New York -Charles Scribner's Sons -1911 - -Copyright, 1911, by -Charles Scribner's Sons - -Published September, 1911 - - -[Illustration: Logo] - - - - -CONTENTS - -Chapter Page - I. A Skipper in Bad Company 3 - - II. The _Resolute_ Fathoms the Plo 21 - - III. The Race for the _Kenilworth_ 40 - - IV. Wicked Mr. Pringle in Collision 59 - - V. "All Hands Abandon Ship" 75 - - VI. Dan Frazier's Predicament 93 - - VII. A Fat Engineer to the Rescue 110 - -VIII. A Fog of Suspicions 128 - - IX. The Broken Hawser 149 - - X. Dan's Dreams Come True 168 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - -"You're working for Jim Wetherly" _Frontispiece_ - - Facing page -And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled -aboard like a large and dripping fish 6 - -The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race 34 - -But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared too -much 84 - -Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm 104 - -It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century 120 - -"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't -get very far!" 132 - -She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all 150 - - - - -THE WRECKING MASTER - - - - -CHAPTER I - -A SKIPPER IN BAD COMPANY - - -"A thick night and no mistake, Dan. It's as black as the face of a -Nassau pilot. We ought to be nearing the coal wharf by now. Of course -they wouldn't have sense enough to leave a light on it to give us our -bearings." - -Captain Jim Wetherly was growling through the window of the darkened -wheel-house to his deck-hand, young Dan Frazier, as the oceangoing tug -_Resolute_ felt her way up the harbor of Pensacola. She had towed a -dismasted bark into port after a long and stubborn tussle with wind and -sea, and her master was in haste to fill the empty bunkers and drive -her home to Key West, five hundred miles across the blue Gulf. - -The mate and several of the crew had gone ashore for the evening, the -fat and grizzled chief engineer was loafing on the deck below, and -Captain Wetherly was somewhat consoled to have a sympathetic listener -in his youngest deck-hand. This Dan Frazier was his nephew, not long -out of the Key West High School, and trying his hand at seafaring -in the _Resolute_ as the first chance which had offered to ease his -mother's task of caring for him. - -In the presence of any of the vessel's company, discipline was observed -between the two with a respectful "aye, aye, sir," or "no, sir," on -Dan's part, but now when they were alone on deck Dan felt free to reply: - -"It's strange water to me, Uncle Jim. I shouldn't wonder if the old -_Resolute_ felt timid about poking around a crowded harbor on a thick -night. What she likes best is plenty of sea-room with a wreck piled -hard and fast on the Florida Reef and a fighting chance to pull it off. -I wish I could have been on board when you were taking hold of that big -Italian steamer last spring. The men say they thought the _Resolute_ -was going to yank the engines clean out of her before you let go on the -last haul that dragged the wreck clear of the Reef. Is it true that -Bill McKnight clamped the safety-valve down and said it was up to -Providence to see that his boilers didn't blow up?" - -Captain Wetherly chuckled. The flare of a match as he relighted his -pipe illumined a pair of steadfast gray eyes and a smooth-shaven chin -of such dogged squareness of outline that Dan's statements seemed to be -half-way answered even before his uncle said: - -"Pshaw, boy, Bill McKnight is a good chief engineer, but if his engines -didn't get any more rest than that tongue of his, they would have -been in the scrap-heap long ago. I suppose he has been filling you up -with yarns of the wonderful things he has done with this boat on the -Reef. Come to think of it, he _was_ carrying some steam more than the -law allowed when we tackled that Italian wreck for the last time, but -we weren't there for our health. And wrecking isn't a business for -children, Dan. You'll find that out if you stick by me long enough -to get your mate's papers. Seems to me we must have run past that -confounded coal wharf by this time. I don't know whether that light -yonder is a lantern or a store up the street somewhere." - -Dan went over to the side of the deck and peered into the shoreward -gloom while Captain Wetherly jerked a bell-pull. A mellow clang floated -from the engine-room, the _Resolute_ slackened way to half-speed, and -began to swing in toward the puzzling light. Dan Frazier thought he -heard the click of rowlocks somewhere off in the darkness and cocked an -ear to listen. The sound ceased and then he fancied he saw a shadowy -patch moving on the water almost in front of the _Resolute's_ bow. An -instant later Captain Wetherly shouted in alarm: - -"Boat ahoy. Do you want to be run under?" - -Angry, confused voices were raised from the blackness close ahead while -the tug quivered to the thrust of the engines as they strove to check -her headway. Panic-stricken profanity was volleyed from the water, -there was a slight shock and crash as of splintered planking, and the -tug slid over what remained of the blundering small boat. - -"Great Scott!" cried Captain Jim. "The poor fools must have done it -a-purpose. When they come up and yell, stand by to fish 'em out, Dan. -Tell Bill McKnight to man a boat and be ready to lower it. Of all -the----" - -The horrified Dan had already scampered down to the main-deck and, -snatching up a coil of heaving line, he sprang upon the guard-rail and -waited for a call for help from the castaways. The chief engineer was -bawling commands to a fireman and the cook who were fumbling with the -falls of a boat swung aft. The galley boy came rushing along with a -lantern and Dan held it over the side just in time to see a head bob to -the foaming surface with a gurgling lament: - -"Aren't you going to haul me aboard your murderin' tow-boat?" - -Dan tossed him a bight of the line into which he wriggled his shoulders -and with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was hauled aboard like -a large and dripping fish. They did not waste time in looking him over, -but asked in the same breath: - -[Illustration: And with Bill McKnight's assistance the derelict was -hauled aboard like a large and dripping fish] - -"How many more of you?" - -"Only one, and he can't be far off," panted the victim of the -collision. "You'll hear him holler pretty soon unless you knocked his -brains out when you struck us." - -The boat was ready by this time, and Dan and the cook, letting it -down by the run, scrambled in and shoved clear of the tug. They had -paddled only a little way astern when the lantern threw its wavering -gleam athwart the missing man, who was groaning as if hurt, while he -tried with feeble splashing to keep himself afloat. With great exertion -he was dragged over the gunwale and taken to the _Resolute_. He was -unable to stand on deck and blood was oozing from a ragged gash on his -forehead. The engineer helped carry him into his own state-room a few -steps away on the lower deck, where the wet clothing was stripped from -him and the bunk made ready. - -Meanwhile, Captain Wetherly, relieved to learn that no lives were lost, -rang up speed and headed the tug for what he hoped might be the wharf -he was seeking. Presently Dan Frazier reported at the wheel-house door -and explained: - -"You won't be any more surprised than I was to find out that the first -man we picked up is Jerry Pringle. Yes, it's old Pringle himself sure -enough, Uncle Jim. I didn't get time for a sight of him until just now. -What in the world is he doing so far from Key West, and how did he -happen to be run down in a boat at night in Pensacola harbor? It beats -me." - -"What has he got to say for himself?" snapped Captain Jim with a note -of hostility and suspicion in his voice. "Is he sober? And Jerry -Pringle let a tow-boat waltz right over him! Um-mm, he must have been -mighty busy thinking about something else. Who is the other fellow? -Ever see him before?" - -"No, sir. He's an Englishman, I think, a big, strong man with a brown -beard. He is pretty well knocked out and his wits were muddled by a -thump on the head. He talks flighty. Jerry Pringle is with him and says -he will fetch him around without our help and get him ashore as soon as -we land." - -"Well, there's the coal-pocket looming up ahead, and you'd better get -aft to make a line fast, Dan," observed the captain. "As soon as we -dock, I'll step down and see what I can do for our passengers. They're -welcome to stay aboard overnight. Jump lively." - -While the _Resolute_ was deftly laid alongside the head of the wharf, -Dan made a flying leap to the string-piece and dragged the hawsers to -the nearest pilings, bow and stern. Then he hurried back to the chief -engineer's room in quest of more information about the strange and -unwilling visit of Mr. Jeremiah Pringle of Key West. - -Dan Frazier knew him as one of the most daring and successful wreckers -of the Florida Reef, that cruel, hidden rampart of coral which -stretches in the open sea for a hundred and fifty miles along the -Atlantic coast of southern Florida, on the edge of the great highway of -ocean traffic for Central and South America. Because the Gulf Stream -flows north along this crowded highway, the steamers and sailing craft -bound south skirt the Reef as close as they dare in order to avoid the -adverse current. Tall, spider-legged, steel light-houses rise from the -submerged Reef, but its ledges still take their yearly toll of costly -vessels, as they have done for centuries. When such disasters happen, -the wreckers flock seaward to try to save the ship and cargo. - -Jerry Pringle was one of the last of a famous race of native wrecking -masters of Key West. His father and grandfather were wreckers before -him, and they had been hard and godless men, rejoicing in the tidings -of disaster on the Reef as a chance to plunder and destroy. Rumor had -said some curious things about this Jeremiah Pringle's methods as -a wrecking master, but Dan Frazier gave them careless heed, partly -because he had heard so many wicked tales of the by-gone wrecking days, -but more because young Barton Pringle, the only son of this man, was -his dearest chum and school-mate. - -With very lively curiosity Dan halted in the doorway of the little -state-room which Captain Jim Wetherly had entered just before him. -Jeremiah Pringle was sitting on the edge of the bunk as if to shield -his comrade of the small boat from observation, and was gruffly -cautioning him not to exert himself by trying to talk. Captain Wetherly -was eying them both with the keenest interest reflected in his -determined countenance. He was saying as Dan came within earshot: - -"Of course I am very sorry it happened, Pringle, but I don't see how -you can hold me responsible for the loss of your boat. My lights were -in order and the vessel was moving at half speed. I'm sure your -friend there, the master of the _Kenilworth_, lays it to your own -carelessness." - -"Who said he was master of the _Kenilworth_?" spoke up Jerry Pringle. -"You seem to be taking a whole lot of things for granted. He's in no -shape to deny it, so call him what you please." - -Mr. Pringle looked unhappy and not all at ease, nor had he any thanks -to spare for his rescue. Even Dan could perceive how thoroughly -disgusted he was over this unlucky meeting with Captain Wetherly who -replied: - -"Oh, yes, it _is_ Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_, that big English -cargo steamer in the stream loaded with naval stores for London. He -was pointed out to me in the broker's office this afternoon. Were you -coming ashore from his ship when you ran under my bows?" - -Hearing his name spoken, the man with the bandaged head tried to raise -himself in the bunk and muttered, as if his senses were still confused: - -"Malcolm Bruce, if you please, bound home to London, then out to Vera -Cruz with a general cargo. Lost at sea, all stove up, and a black, wet -night. But I get well paid for losing the rotten old ship. How much is -it worth, Pringle? Ha, ha!" - -Jerry Pringle's tanned cheek turned a shade or two paler and he forced -a hot drink between the other man's lips as if to shut off his speech. -The master of the _Kenilworth_ subsided and put his hands to his head -while Pringle explained to Captain Wetherly with nervous haste: - -"He's jabbering about the loss of his boat that you made hash of. It -was nothing but a skiff. It was my fault, I guess. We were busy talking -and I kept no lookout. I'll pay him the cost of the boat, Captain -Wetherly. So forget it, won't you. If you'll send ashore for a hack I -can lug Captain Bruce up to a hotel right away." - -"No hurry, is there? Let him rest," said Captain Jim. "Dan here will -sit up with him if you want to turn in. Of course you know Dan Frazier, -your boy's chum." - -Mr. Pringle glanced up at the doorway and looked even more downcast -and sullen at recognizing Dan. He nodded at the interested lad and -returned: - -"So many of us sort of crowd this state-room. I'll look after Captain -Bruce by myself if you don't mind clearing out, Captain Wetherly." - -The dazed captain of the _Kenilworth_ showed signs of trying to break -into the conversation and managed to sputter excitedly: - -"I get ten thousand dollars for this night's job." - -At this, Jerry Pringle fairly begged the kind-hearted skipper of the -_Resolute_ to withdraw, and although the night was cool for September, -the rescued wrecking master wiped the perspiration from his face with -a wet shirt sleeve. Captain Wetherly gazed down at the man in the bunk -for a moment, nodded gravely, and tiptoed on deck with a parting remark: - -"Ten thousand dollars is a lot of money to pay for a splintered skiff, -Pringle." - -"Captain Bruce is ravin' crazy," grumbled Jerry Pringle as he shut the -state-room door. - -"Go fetch a hack, Dan," ordered Captain Jim, "and help Pringle lug him -ashore. I tried to be decent to them, but my patience is frazzled. I -don't want 'em aboard any longer than I can help." - -"But what are they doing together in Pensacola harbor?" asked Dan. -"There's something mighty queer about it all." - -"Keep your guesses to yourself, and don't think too hard about it, or -you may go off your noddle like the Britisher in yonder," said captain -Jim as he went forward toward his own room. Dan wandered far and wide -ashore before he found a cruising hack and was able to return to the -wharf. Going aboard, he delayed to coil and stow a heaving line which -tripped him as he passed along the lower deck. From a near-by window -came the voice of Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_ in low-spoken -query, evidently addressed to his companion, Jeremiah Pringle: - -"Did I say anything silly? I was a bit muddled, I know. I didn't bring -you into it, did I? There was nothing said about the _Kenilworth's_ -next voyage, was there?" - -"You said a heap sight too much," was the reply in a rumbling -undertone. "That Jim Wetherly is pretty keen when it comes to putting -two and two together. But he has a kind of mushy streak of sentiment in -him and he won't believe anything bad of a man till the evidence is -strong enough to hang him. It's been an unlucky night's work, and it's -time we were out of here." - -Dan knocked on the door and, without even a "thank you," Jerry Pringle -brushed him out of the way and half-dragged, half-carried Captain Bruce -toward the gang-plank. The master of the _Kenilworth_ bade him halt, -however, and, grasping Dan by the hand, told him in a deep and pleasant -voice: - -"You saved my life, youngster, and I won't forget it. Come aboard my -ship before sailing and let me thank you, won't you? I'll be fit and -hearty in a day or so." - -Dan liked the looks and manner of the big, brown-bearded Englishman and -warmly replied: - -"Pulling you out of the wet was the least we could do. I hope your head -will mend all right. Captain Wetherly will be glad to see you on board -again, sir." - -Dan lent a hand as far as the hack and then sought Captain Wetherly's -room. The light was burning and the deck-hand dared to enter on the -chance of having a talk with "Uncle Jim," whom he found reading a -novel in his bunk. The boy had many questions to ask, but he was not -ready to go straight to the heart of the matter, and so began: - -"Jerry Pringle acted kind of ugly and uneasy, didn't you think? I -suppose he was mad at getting spilled into the harbor. You and he never -did seem to be very fond of each other." - -Captain Jim threw down his book and sat up in his bunk with a rather -grim smile as he replied: - -"You're no fool, Dan, though you aren't more than half as old as me. -And you have lived ten of your years in Key West. I know you think -the world of young Barton Pringle. He is a fine, clean lad, the son -of his mother through and through. But there's a different strain in -that dad of his, and you know it. You want to find out what I think of -to-night's business, don't you? Well, I think the big Englishman might -have picked better company." - -"But he said some things about getting ten thousand dollars for losing -his ship and so on, Uncle Jim, and I heard more than you did. He -was worried to death for fear he had talked too much. The wrecking -business in Key West is square and honest as far as I know, but ship -captains _have_ put their vessels on the Reef on purpose in the old -days and the wreckers helped plan it beforehand. And I can't help -wondering if Jerry Pringle came to Pensacola to fix up a deal with this -captain of the _Kenilworth_ to lose his ship on the next voyage out -from London to Vera Cruz. There would be rich salvage and loot in a -general cargo, wouldn't there? She's a mighty big steamer." - -Captain Jim stroked his chin and was so long silent that Dan began -to fidget. Then, as if rousing himself from some very interesting -reflections, the elder man drawled in a tone of mild reproof: - -"There isn't a bit of evidence that would hold water, Dan. I may have -my suspicions, but perhaps they are all wrong, and if we said a word -it might ruin a good ship-master with his owners. Jerry Pringle and he -must have been up to their ears in conversation when they let us run -'em under, and I wish the big Englishman could prove an alibi for the -time we had him, aboard. Better forget it." - -Dan bit his lip and appeared so gloomy and forlorn that his uncle was -moved to ask what troubled him. - -"It's Bart Pringle," said Dan, and his voice was not quite steady. -"When I meet him in Key West I'll have a secret to hold back from him, -and it's about his own father. Oh, I can't believe there's anything to -it. And there's Bart's mother! Well, I think I'll turn in, Uncle Jim. -Good-night." - -Late in the next afternoon the _Resolute_ cast off from the coal -wharf and swiftly picked up headway as her powerful engines began to -urge her, with tireless, throbbing cadence, toward her distant home -port of Key West. Presently she surged past a long, deep-laden cargo -steamer from whose stern rippled the flaming British ensign. It was -the _Kenilworth_, and Captain Jim and Dan Frazier stared at her with -curious interest. - -A tall, broad-shouldered, brown-bearded figure was leaning against the -railing of her bridge. A strip of bandage gleamed white beneath the -visor of his cap. He flourished an arm in farewell to the _Resolute_ -whose deep-toned whistle returned a salute of three blasts. - -Dan passed by the wheel-house door on an errand for the mate and could -not help saying aloud to himself: - -"It must have been a nightmare. That Captain Bruce looks like too fine -a man to think of such a dreadful thing!" - -Captain Jim Wetherly overheard the comment and seemed to echo this -verdict as he remarked in a reverent and sympathetic tone: - -"Lead Captain Malcolm Bruce not into temptation, for Jerry Pringle is a -hard customer to have any dealings with, on or off the Reef." - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE "RESOLUTE" FATHOMS THE PLOT - - -As the _Resolute_ steamed into Key West harbor, Dan Frazier was on the -lookout for his friend Barton Pringle who almost always ran down to the -wharf when the whistle of Captain Wetherly's tug bellowed the tidings -of her return from sea. This time, however, Dan felt that a shadow had -fallen over their close comradeship which had been wholly frank and -confiding through all their years together. Dan could not forget the -events of the night in which Barton's father had behaved like a man -caught in the act of planning something dark and evil. - -But the sight of Barton Pringle waiting on the end of the wharf to -catch the _Resolute's_ heaving lines and welcome him home, made Dan -wonder afresh if he had not been too hasty and suspicious. Barton's -honest, beaming face was in itself a voucher for his bringing up amid -sweet and wholesome influences. Nor was Dan ready to believe that a bad -father could have such a straight and manly son. Before the boys were -within shouting range of each other, Captain Wetherly sent for Dan and -told him: - -"You can stay home until you get further orders. I don't expect to -leave port again for several days. Tell your mother that I will run in -for a little while after supper to-night." - -Dan thanked him with a grin of delight and ran below to yell to Barton -Pringle on the wharf: - -"Hello, Bart. Come aboard and help me scrub decks and get things -ship-shape and I'll be ready to jump ashore just so much sooner." - -Barton made a flying leap aboard as soon as the lines were made fast, -and asked as he picked up a pail and broom: - -"What kind of a voyage did you have, Dan? Anything exciting happen?" - -"Nothing to speak of," replied Dan, and he felt his face redden with a -guilty sense of secrecy. He was about to say that he had met Barton's -father in Pensacola, without mentioning how or where, when the other -lad spoke up: - -"I tried to get away for a little trip myself. Father went up the Gulf -on the mail steamer and I begged him to take me along. But he was going -only to Tampa to see about buying a couple of sponging schooners, and -he said he was in too much of a hurry to bother with me." - -"Going only to Tampa," echoed Dan with a foolish smile. "Oh, yes, only -as far as Tampa. Sorry you had to miss it, Bart. How's everything with -you? Have you bent the new main-sail on the _Sombrero_?" - -Barton plunged into an excited discussion about the fast little sloop -which the boys owned in partnership, while Dan tried to keep his wits -about him, for he was thrown into fresh doubt and uneasiness by the -news that Jeremiah Pringle had said he was going to Tampa instead of -Pensacola. Usually the two boys had so many important matters to talk -about that one could find a chance to break in only when the other -paused for lack of breath, but now Dan found it hard to avoid awkward -silences on his part. He was glad when old Bill McKnight, the chief -engineer of the _Resolute_, waddled up to them and announced with a -sweeping gesture toward the city streets: - -"Back again to the palm trees and the brave Cubanos and the excitements -of a metropolis smeared over a chunk of coral reef so blamed small -that I'm scared to be out after dark without a lantern for fear I'll -walk overboard. I'm due to start a revolution in Honduras, and to-day -I enlist a few hundred brave and desperate Key West cigar-makers, Dan. -I'm perishin' for a little war and tumult. Look out for my signal -rockets." - -With that Mr. McKnight jauntily twirled his grizzled moustache and -ambled up the wharf. He had been engineer of the _Resolute_ when she -was running the Spanish blockade of Cuba, as a filibuster to carry arms -and ammunitions to the revolutionists, and his cool-headed courage -had fetched the tug out of some perilous places. The ponderous, -good-natured engineer was very fond of Dan and every little while -invited him, with all seriousness, to join some new and absurd scheme -for touching off a Spanish-American revolution, with dazzling promises -of loot and glory. - -The boys laughed as they gazed after him, and Barton said: - -"Filibustering must keep your hair standing on end, eh, Dan? I reckon -it beats wrecking, though you couldn't get an old Key Wester to admit -it. There hasn't been a wreck on the Reef for goodness knows how long. -Father promised to take me with him on the next wrecking job if it -isn't blowing too hard when the schooners go out to the Reef." - -"Well, you can count on seeing Captain Jim Wetherly and the _Resolute_ -on the job no matter how hard she blows," smiled Dan with a spark of -the rivalry which flamed high between the tow-boat and the schooner -fleet. Willing hands made short work of Dan's tasks, and he hurried -into his shore-going clothes while Barton swung his legs from the bunk -and retailed the latest news about ships, and the sponge market, and -the High School base-ball team which had won a match from the soldiers -of the garrison. They parted a little later, Dan eager to run home and -see his mother, and Barton anxious to make the _Sombrero_ ready for a -trial spin. - -As Dan sped toward the cottage on the other side of the narrow island, -he said to himself with a puzzled frown: - -"Everything Bart talked about made me think of the other night in -Pensacola: his father's going away, and the next wreck on the Reef, and -all that. And he thinks his father is the strongest, bravest man that -ever went to sea. Maybe he is, but I wish he wasn't related to Bart." - -A slender, sweet-faced woman in black was waiting in a dooryard shaded -by tropical verdure as Dan rounded the corner. She had heard the -far-echoing, resonant whistle of the _Resolute_, and knew that her boy -was home again. Her husband, for many years employed in the Key West -Custom House, had died only two years before, and the love and yearning -in her eyes at sight of Dan would have told you that he was her only -child and her all-in-all if you had never seen them together before. He -was taller than she, and, as her sturdy son stooped to kiss her with -his arms about her neck, she said: - -"I wanted to be at the wharf to meet you, Danny boy, but I couldn't -leave home in time. Bart Pringle's mother ran in to talk to me about -sending him away to school. I told her I wanted to do as much for you, -but the way wasn't open yet. They can afford it, and Bart is too bright -and ambitious to settle down in a Key West rut." - -They walked to the wide veranda across which the cool trade-wind swept, -and Mrs. Frazier ordered Dan to take the biggest, easiest wicker chair, -after which she vanished indoors and almost instantly reappeared with a -plate laden with pie and doughnuts. - -"You had breakfast in that stuffy little galley, I suppose," laughed -she, "but I know you are always hungry. You can stow these trifles away -as a deck-load, can't you?" - -Dan confessed that he could carry any amount of cargo of this kind and -then, between bites of a home-made doughnut, spoke very earnestly: - -"Bart ought to go North to school, mother, and I will tell him so and -back you up for all I'm worth. It will do him good to break away from -home. And Uncle Jim Wetherly will put up the same line of argument to -Mrs. Pringle whenever you say the word." - -"Jim is my dearest brother, but I can't picture him as showing very -much excitement about Bart's education," she responded. "He thinks -there's no finer thing in the world than to be master and owner of a -sea-going tow-boat. Why do you think he will be interested, Dan?" - -Her son took her hand in his hard, sun-burned paw and with a stammering -effort began his confession of all that he had heard and seen after -Jerry Pringle and the English ship-master had been run down in their -small boat. The mother listened with wide-eyed astonishment, and then -with something like indignation she cried: - -"Why, Dan, you ought to be writing novels for a living! That poor -Captain Bruce of the _Kenilworth_ was out of his head, and you know -that Jerry Pringle has a sour, gruff way with him even when he's on dry -land. I can't believe it of Mary Pringle's husband. It is a dreadful -thing to suspect him of, plotting to wreck a fine, big steamer." - -"That's just like a woman," declared Dan with a very grown-up air of -wisdom. "Mrs. Pringle hasn't anything to do with it. And you are like -Uncle Jim, always refusing to think other folks are a bit less square -and decent than you are. Ask him to-night what _he_ thinks about it, -but don't breathe a word to anybody else, will you?" - -"I shall scold him for putting such silly ideas in your head," firmly -announced Mrs. Frazier. "You couldn't have pieced this plot together -all by yourself, even if you are as big and strong as a young tow-boat." - -"All right," said Dan good-humoredly. "Only I hope Barton will go away -to school before the explosion happens. For if I'm right, Jerry Pringle -may be in disgrace before he's a year older. Captain Jim will never let -up on him if the _Kenilworth_ does happen to be stranded on the Reef." - -When Captain Wetherly strolled in after supper, his sister began at -once to cross-question him. He evaded her as far as possible and -finally declared: - -"I knew that Dan would tell you. I don't want him to keep anything from -his mother. But it must go no farther than this. I will say this much, -that when the _Kenilworth_ is due in the Florida Straits on her next -voyage outward bound, the _Resolute_ will be a good deal less than a -thousand miles away. And just for curiosity I have cabled to London to -find out if she is really chartered to Vera Cruz for her next voyage, -and what kind of a reputation her owners bear. They may be interested -in losing her, do you see? - -"Speaking of cables, Dan," he continued; "I got orders this afternoon -to go to Charleston at once and tow that big suction dredge to -Santiago. We shall be able to get away in a couple of days. You had -better come aboard to-morrow night." - -"Why, you'll be gone for weeks and weeks, Dan," sorrowfully cried his -mother. - -"I won't waste any time, nor try to save coal on this voyage," said -Captain Jim with a grim smile. "I want to be a good deal nearer the -Reef than Santiago, about two months from now." - -"It's a long, long while to have my boy away from me," Mrs. Frazier -murmured with a sigh. "But this tremendous conspiracy will be all blown -out of your heads before you come home again." - -After a luxurious night's slumber in a real bed, Dan felt as if the -cobwebs had been brushed from his busy brain and that the bright world -held better employment than brooding over what might happen to somebody -else. He set forth to find Barton and arrange a match race between the -_Sombrero_ and a rival craft, to be sailed before Dan had to go to sea. -The challenge being accepted on the spot, there was much to be done -in a very few hours, and Dan heartily agreed with Barton's opinion -delivered from the cockpit of their rakish craft: - -"It is a pity we have anything to do but sail boats for the fun of it. -What a bully sou'west breeze we're going to have this afternoon, Dan! -Can you coax old Bill McKnight to come along for ballast?" - -"Yes, if we promise him to smuggle some rifles and dynamite in the -hold," laughed the other. - -After dinner, Dan sauntered along the water front in the hope of -finding the mighty bulk of the chief engineer to serve as two hundred -and seventy pounds of desirable live ballast. The south-bound mail -steamer, from Tampa for Havana, had just landed her passengers, and -foremost among them loomed the tail and lanky figure of Jeremiah -Pringle. The wrecking master spied Dan and hurried to meet him in the -narrow street. His manner was no longer hostile and sullen, and Dan -was amazed to have a greeting hand stretched toward him and to hear a -cordial voice: - -"How's the boy? You and Bart as busy as ever? I went up the Gulf to -buy a schooner or two, and I found a beauty. I need a mate for her, -Dan. You are young, but you know more about salt water than most men. -It means double the wages of a deck-hand on that sooty old tow-boat. I -want you to go to Tampa and help fetch her down right away, which is -why I spring the proposition on you kind of off-hand and sudden." - -It was a chance at which Dan would have jumped a week before. Something -held him back, however, and, although he did not take time to reason -it out, he vaguely felt that Jeremiah Pringle was trying to bribe him -to keep his mouth shut. But he had a natural fear of making an enemy -of such a man as this, and he swiftly decided to make no mention of -the night in Pensacola. That was a matter for Captain Jim Wetherly to -handle. Dan was ready to stand by his guns, however, so far as his own -honesty was concerned, and he stoutly replied: - -"That is a big thing to have come my way, Captain Pringle, and I ought -to thank you. But I don't care to take it. My mother wants me to stick -by Captain Jim Wetherly if I'm going to stay afloat, and she knows -best." - -Jerry Pringle looked black, but forced a smile as he growled: - -"One thing you've got from your Uncle Jim is a swelled head. Well, -we'll say no more about it; _nothing at all about it, understand_?" - -The last words were spoken with a threatening earnestness, and Dan -understood what was meant. He nodded and went on his way, for once -anxious to get to sea, away from a situation in which he seemed to -become more and more befogged. He found Bart dancing jig-steps with -impatience, and trying to listen to a long-winded yarn delivered by Mr. -Bill McKnight who had been already kidnapped for the afternoon. - -The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race, the live ballast -shifted himself with more agility than the boys had dreamed he could -display, and the match was won with the lee-rail under and the cockpit -awash. Mrs. Frazier watched the finish from a wharf and invited Bart -and the engineer to come home with Dan for a festive supper party in -celebration. There could be no long faces or heavy thoughts at such -a time, and Dan forgot the shadow and laughed himself into a state -of collapse along with his mother and Bart when Mr. McKnight, with a -wreath of scarlet ponciana blossoms on his bald head, danced Spanish -fandangos until the cottage shook from floor to rafters. - -[Illustration: The _Sombrero_ sailed like a witch in the race] - -They all escorted Dan down to the _Resolute_ in the starlit evening and -sat on the guard-rail while the chief engineer fished a guitar from -under his bunk and sang Cuban serenades, leading off with "La Paloma." -It was as merry as such a parting hour could be, but there were tears -in the mother's eyes when she kissed Dan good-night, and her voice was -not steady when she whispered, "God bless and keep you, my precious -boy." - -When it came to saying good-by to Bart, Dan was more serious than usual -and, he held fast to his comrade's hand for a moment while he looked -him in the eyes and said: - -"Blow high, blow low, you will find me standing by, Bart. Good luck and -lots of it." - -Shortly after daylight next morning the _Resolute_ churned her way out -of the placid harbor and laid her coastwise course for Charleston. It -proved to be an uneventful run with pleasant weather and a favoring -sea. Captain Wetherly had nothing to say about the steamer _Kenilworth_ -until they reached Charleston where he found a cablegram from London -waiting for him. He read it aloud to Dan as soon as they happened to be -alone. - -"_Unable to send required information until later. Will communicate -your next port._" - -"It might have cleared up this _Kenilworth_ business," said Captain -Jim. "However, we may get a message at Santiago." - -But the _Resolute_ was not to see Santiago as soon as her master -expected. There was a week's delay in getting the great suction dredge -ready to begin the voyage. Then, when the _Resolute_ had taken hold of -the clumsy monster, for all the world like a bull-dog trying to drag a -dry-goods box, the captain of the dredge was hurt by a falling bolt and -there was more delay at anchor while a new skipper could be sent for. - -When, at last, the unwieldy tow was got to sea, strong head-winds -buffeted her day after day and urged the panting, sea-swept _Resolute_ -to her best efforts to keep up steerage way. She crept southward like -a snail, eating up coal at a rate which compelled Captain Wetherly to -put into Nassau, and again into the harbor of Mole St. Nicolas at the -western end of Hayti. - -Twice the dredge snapped her hawsers and broke clean adrift. When -the weary tug and her tow crept in sight of the Morro Castle at the -mouth of Santiago harbor, Bill McKnight almost wept as he surveyed his -engines and boilers. Sorely racked and strained they were, and Captain -Jim tried to comfort him by declaring that no other fat engineer could -have patched and held them together to the end of the voyage. Making -temporary repairs was a costly and tedious undertaking, and the crew -of the _Resolute_ tired of the charms of Santiago and grew restless and -homesick for Key West. - -While Dan, the captain, and McKnight were eating lunch ashore one day, -a swarthy, dapper clerk from the cable office sought the Venus Cafe -with a message which he had tried to deliver on board the tug. It was -for Captain Wetherly who read it with an air of mingled surprise and -chagrin. With a glance at the engineer who was blissfully absorbed over -his third plate of alligator pear salad, Captain Jim remarked as he -handed the sheet to Dan: - -"It is from London. Well, the cat is out of the bag, and we might as -well let McKnight in. We are going to need him before we get through -with this job, and need him bad. I suppose I ought to have been more -suspicious, but it sounded too rotten to be true. Bill, you must have -that engine room in shape this week if it breaks your back. We are -going to make a record run home to Key West." - -Dan read in silence before handing the cablegram to Captain Wetherly. - -"_Kenilworth cleared for Vera Cruz. Heavily insured. General cargo. -Owners hard hit by recent losses. Will bear watching._" - -Captain Jim hammered the table with his fist and tried to speak in an -undertone as he hotly exclaimed: - -"This confidential report makes my suspicions fit together like the -pieces of a puzzle. I couldn't for the life of me understand how the -master of a big steamer could afford to ram her ashore and lose her, -and his berth and his reputation with it, for ten thousand dollars. But -if he knew that his owners would shield him and stand in with him, why, -of course, he might be tempted to clean up ten thousand dollars for -himself when a man like Jerry Pringle crossed his bows and passed him -a few hints. A lot of good it would have done for me to cable Captain -Bruce's owners and give them warning of what we heard that night in -Pensacola harbor. They would have laughed at me as a meddlesome idiot. -Cleared for Vera Cruz, has she? She does her ten knots right along, I -picked up that bit of information at Pensacola. Allow her twenty days -to the Reef." - -Bill McKnight had dropped his fork and was purple with suppressed -excitement. When the captain fetched up for lack of breath, he blurted -in a hoarse whisper: - -"It doesn't take a axe to drive an idea into my noddle. As near as -I can make out, though your bearings are considerably overheated, -Captain, there is scheduled to be a large and expensive wreck on the -Reef, assisted by her skipper and one Jeremiah Pringle. It sounds -like the good old times before the light-houses crippled the wrecking -industry. And we _Resolutes_ propose to be first on hand to pull her -off and disappoint certain enterprising persons?" - -"Disappoint 'em!" fairly shouted Captain Jim. "If the _Kenilworth_ -does go ashore, I'll fetch that vessel off the Reef if it tears the -_Resolute_ to kindling wood. I'll break their rotten hearts and show -them what honest wrecking is." - -"I didn't throw away that clamp I made to hold the safety-valve down, -Captain," chuckled Bill McKnight. "And I ain't afraid to use it again, -either." - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE RACE FOR THE "KENILWORTH" - - -Chief Engineer Bill McKnight hoisted himself up the iron ladder that -led from the fire-room of the _Resolute_ and tottered on deck gasping -for breath. He was begrimed from head to foot, the sweat had furrowed -little streaks in the mask of soot and grease which covered his ample -countenance, and his eyes were red with weariness and want of sleep. He -had shoved the tug back to Key West at her top speed, and now he was -toiling night and day to make her ready for whatever summons might come -for a tussle on the Reef. Captain Wetherly found him slumped against -the deck-house with his head in his hands and exhorted him cheerily: - -"Don't give up the ship, Bill. It is a great repair job that you've -done, and the worst is over. The new tubes are most all in, aren't -they?" - -"The boilers will be as good as new," grunted McKnight, "but how about -my bronchial tubes, Captain? I can't plug them up and make steam same -as I plugged the boilers and fetched you back from Santiago. I'm so -full of cinders inside that I rattle when I walk. But give me another -week and the boat will be fit to hitch a hawser to this benighted -island of Key West and tow it out to sea. Anything new ashore?" - -Captain Jim sat down beside the engineer and made sure that they could -not be overheard as he began: - -"Dan has been watching Jerry Pringle's fleet of wrecking vessels for -me. Those two schooners he bought in the Gulf have come into port, and -it is mighty little sponging he intends to do with them at present, -Bill. They look fast and they can stow lots of cargo. And Pringle has -been overhauling his other schooners and has chartered three more in -Key West. He says he intends to send them out to join the mackerel -fleet." - -"Anything doing in the tow-boat line?" asked McKnight with a new gleam -of interest in his damaged eyes. "If Pringle aims to tackle a certain -job that may be reported from the Reef pretty soon, he will have to -make a bluff at pulling the steamer off, won't he? There might be a -small fortune in salvage, besides looting the cargo out of her." - -"He is dickering for some kind of a time charter on the _Henry -Foster_," snapped Captain Jim. "She couldn't pull a feather-bed off the -Reef without breaking down. And I understand he has been cabling up the -Gulf about another tug or two." - -"Well, we can get all the tow-boats we need and good ones, can't we?" -beamed McKnight. "Maybe we can't handle most any kind of a wrecking job -ourselves! And there won't be any bluffs about it when _we_ take hold." - -"I'm certainly sorry for Dan, poor boy," said Captain Jim with a sigh. -"He feels as if he were spying on Bart's father. And to make it worse, -Bart is going to sail with the old man for a while and the lad will -be mixed up in this nasty mess as sure as fate, and he will be on the -wrong side of it. Here comes our Dan now. Drop the subject, Bill. It -only makes the youngster more unhappy." - -Dan Frazier had passed some restless nights since his return to Key -West, but his mind was too sunny and youthful to believe that things -were ever as bad as they might be. He found comfort in the hope that -Captain Wetherly would spoil the plot to lose the _Kenilworth_. He had -implicit confidence in his uncle's ability to win against any odds with -the stanch _Resolute_, and now that a fair and open battle against -Jerry Pringle was assured, Dan found himself eager for the fray. Barton -had told him that morning: - -"Father and mother are talking of sending me North to school, but I'm -going to rough it at sea with father for a month or so. He said he -tried to get you to work for him. I knew you wouldn't leave Captain -Jim, but maybe we might have been lucky enough to work on a wreck -together." - -"You can't tell, Bart. Perhaps we shall, but we may be working against -each other. I'll back Captain Jim Wetherly to be first man aboard the -next vessel that goes on the Reef." - -"Captain Jim is a good man," declared Bart, "but it will be a cold day -when he lays alongside a wreck ahead of that daddy of mine." - -The boys were busy with their unbeaten sloop _Sombrero_, and one day -slid into another while Dan employed much of his spare time in helping -his mother about the house and in painting the chicken-house, the -fences, and porch with great pride in the spick-and-span results. -Mrs. Frazier still professed to take no stock in the plot hatched by -"Barton's father and Mary Pringle's husband," but she was nervous and -absent-minded at times, and there was even more affection than usual in -her manner toward Bart. - -Dan tacked a calendar at the head of his bed and crossed off the days -one by one, saying to himself when he awoke and looked at it: - -"Twenty days out from London, as Uncle Jim figured it, and the -_Kenilworth_ is one day nearer the Reef." - -Twenty-two days had been counted when Captain Jim called at the cottage -and told Dan to go aboard the _Resolute_ and stay there until further -orders. When the deck-hand reported for duty, he found all hands of -the crew either at work on board or within call on the wharf. Bill -McKnight had steam in his boilers and, although the fires were banked, -he had just finished stowing below a generous supply of resinous pine -wood, oil-soaked cotton waste, and a barrel of turpentine for use as -emergency fuel. - -"I lost thirty-five pounds of weight in three weeks," snorted the -engineer, "but I mended the old hooker to stay mended. Ho, ho, there -goes the _Henry Foster_ to sea, Captain. Wonder if there's anything -doing so soon? Her engines sound like a mowing-machine trying to cut a -path through a brick-yard." - -"Don't worry about her," muttered Captain Jim. "Pringle isn't aboard -her. We won't leave here until he gets uneasy. He is a good deal better -posted than I am about his infernal program and we----" - -Captain Jim stopped short, for Barton Pringle unexpectedly appeared on -deck and announced to Dan: - -"I'm going up the Hawk Channel with father at daylight to look for one -of our sponging vessels that's reported ashore near Bahia Honda Key. -Thought I'd say good-by." - -Dan could not help glancing at Captain Jim as he replied with a quiver -of excitement in his voice: - -"We may be running up the outside channel before you get back, Bart. -Perhaps we shall sight you. Hope you have a good trip." - -Barton was in a hurry and jumped ashore with a wave of his hand to the -chief engineer. When he was out of ear-shot Dan observed with a long -face: - -"I would give six months' wages if I could make Bart stay home. Do you -suppose his father is really going to sea at daylight, or is he just -using Bart to fool us?" - -"I haven't been walking in my sleep," dryly responded Captain Jim. -"There's a hundred and fifty miles of the Reef between here and Miami -and I don't intend to follow any decoy ducks and fetch up at the wrong -end of it. I figure on getting a report of any disaster as soon as the -next man." - -The next day passed without tidings. Jeremiah Pringle had vanished from -his haunts in Key West, and four of his schooners were not to be found -at their moorings. Another day dragged by, Bill McKnight was stewing -with impatience and Dan Frazier was losing his appetite while Captain -Jim Wetherly remained cheerful and unruffled. - -He was like another man, however, when a message came to him at noon on -the fourth day of waiting. It was from the cable office and he had no -more than glanced at it before he darted on deck, ordered the mate to -get the crew aboard, shouted down a speaking-tube to Bill McKnight, and -took his station at the wheel. His keen-witted, masterful energy seemed -to thrill the _Resolute_ with life and action. Black smoke gushed from -her funnel as her stokers toiled in front of the furnace doors. The -engines were turning over when the last deck-hand leaped aboard, and as -the dripping hawsers were hauled in, the tug was moving out into the -stream. - -Key West island was over her stern before Dan found time to run up to -the wheel-house. Captain Jim slipped a crumpled bit of paper into his -fist and motioned for him to keep it to himself. It was from the marine -observer at Jupiter Inlet, a hundred miles to the northward of the -Florida Reef: - -"_Steamer Kenilworth southbound passed seven this morning. Signalled -steering gear disabled by heavy weather but able to proceed._" - -Dan's faith in human nature, as it had to do with the master of the -_Kenilworth_, had been so severely shocked that he wondered whether -the report of her mishap could be true. He was not shrewd enough to -perceive, however, what Captain Jim whispered as he went below to see -how things were moving in the engine-room. - -"Crippled steering gear, bosh. Her skipper has to fake up some excuse -for striking the Reef." - -Dan could scarcely believe that the curtain had really risen on this -seafaring melodrama in which he was to be an actor. A stately ship was -moving blindly toward an ambush which might be the death of her. And -racing to find and befriend her was this lone tug whose throbbing heart -of steel shook her stout hull from bow to stern as she tore through -the long head-seas on the edge of the Gulf Stream. The afternoon was -already waning and night would overtake the _Resolute_ before she could -reach the upper stretches of the Reef. Captain Wetherly felt certain -that the _Kenilworth_ would not be rammed on the coral ledges in broad -daylight, and he foresaw a desperate game of hide-and-seek between -darkness and dawn. But he held to the doctrine that with anything like -even chances an honest man will win against a rascal in the game of -life, afloat or ashore. - -The north-east wind was steadily freshening and the sky had become gray -with drifting clouds. As dusk crept over the uneasy sea a mist-like -rain began to drizzle. The master of the _Kenilworth_ might reasonably -lose his bearings if the night grew much thicker. Bill McKnight emerged -from his sultry cavern long enough to grumble to Dan: - -"What's to hinder our running past that steamer before morning, I want -to know, hey, boy?" - -"You wouldn't worry if you could watch Captain Jim hug the Reef," -assured Dan. "It's like walking a tight-rope. I thought we were going -to climb right up into the American Shoal light-house." - -"Well, this old tug is doing her fifteen knots, Dan, which is faster -than she ever flew before," chuckled the chief engineer, "and if we -touch bottom, you'll know it all right. Look up yonder at my fireworks." - -Dan stared at a banner of solid flame that streamed from the funnel -which glowed red hot for a dozen feet above the deck. With a cry of -alarm he ran to the upper deck-houses which were built just fore and -aft of the funnel and found the wood-work charred and smoking. He -shouted down to McKnight who replied with a laugh: - -"It isn't my affair if your superstructure burns up. My orders are to -make steam. Better mention it to the skipper." - -Dan rushed to the wheel-house but Captain Jim received the news -as if it were the merest trifle. He was sweeping the sea with his -night-glasses and exhorting the mate at the wheel to "hold her as she -is and keep your nerve." To Dan he replied airily: - -"Caught afire, has she? Good for Bill McKnight. He's delivering the -goods. Get some men with buckets and put the fire out. I've no steam to -waste in starting the pumps and putting the hose on it." - -The deck force was taking turns at shovelling coal to reinforce the -stifled stokers, and those off watch followed Dan with cheers. They -knew that a race was on, and it lightened their toil to know that the -_Resolute_ was pounding toward her goal, wherever it was, with every -ounce of power in her. Captain Jim joined the fire-fighters long enough -to yell to them: - -"Look out for rockets ahead. The first man to sight distress signals -from the Reef gets ten dollars and a new hat." - -A brawny negro stoker wiped the sweat from his eyes as he bobbed on -deck and panted: - -"When Cap'n Jim smell a wreck she's sure gwine be where he say. If he -wants to find 'stress signals he better look amongst us poor niggers in -the fire-room." - -Midnight came and no one thought of sleep. The excitement had spread -even to the cook and the galley boy who thought they saw rockets every -time a match was lit up in the bows. Dan gazed out into the starless -night and listened to the clamor of the parting seas alongside with -frequent thoughts of Barton Pringle who was somewhere out here, proud -of his father's seamanship and daring, loyal to his interests, -trusting him as Dan trusted his Uncle Jim. Now like pawns on a chess -board, the two boys were to play their parts on the opposing sides of a -conflict which would be fought to the bitter end. Dan was aroused by a -hoarse shout from the bridge of the _Resolute_: - -"Red rocket two points off the port bow." - -Dan wheeled and looked forward while his breath seemed to choke him. A -second rocket soared skyward, like a crimson thread hung against the -curtain of night. - -"Hold her steady as she is," shouted Captain Jim from his post on the -bridge. "The weather has cleared a bit and that signal was a long way -off." - -There was an exultant ring to his strong voice as if he were glad to -have the climax in sight. He sent for Dan and told him to stay on the -bridge and look for answering signals. - -"It's the _Kenilworth_, a thousand to one," said the captain of the -_Resolute_. "And if Jerry Pringle's schemes haven't missed fire, his -tug or one of his schooners will just happen to be within signalling -distance. Ah, by Judas, there goes his answer, a rocket way out to -seaward. Pringle was afraid to hug the Reef on a thick night. He missed -the _Kenilworth_ when she passed inside of him. It may possibly be a -merchantman that has seen the _Kenilworth's_ signals, but we take no -chances." - -Captain Wetherly shouted the tidings down the tube to the engine-room -force, and the hard-driven tug tore her way through the heavy seas -in the last gallant burst of the home-stretch. Back through the -speaking-tube bellowed the voice of the chief engineer: - -"I've just put the clamp on the safety-valve, Captain. She's carrying -thirty pounds more steam than the law allows, and if she cracks she'll -crack wide open. Hooray! Give it to her!" - -As if the captain of the stranded steamer were content to know that -his message had been seen and answered, he sent up no more rockets, -nor did any more answering signals gleam out to seaward. It was a race -in the dark. The _Resolute_ and her rival, if such it was, must run -down two sides of a triangle whose apex was the unseen vessel on the -Reef. Captain Jim had taken the compass bearings of the _Kenilworth's_ -rockets and, regardless of the risk he ran in driving his steamer along -the very fangs of the Reef, he held her in a straight line for her goal -and prayed that her bottom would not be ripped off or her straining -boilers blow her sky high. - -Almost at the same instant that the excited deck force of the -_Resolute_ glimpsed a red light winking far off to starboard, they saw -the mast-head light of the stranded vessel almost dead ahead. - -"That red light out yonder belongs to J. Pringle," muttered Captain -Wetherly, "And we must be pretty near the same distance from that -mast-head light on the Reef. It's going to be a whirlwind finish, all -right." - -The _Resolute_ kept full speed ahead as if she intended to cut her -way through the stranded steamer. Not until a huge black shape dotted -with a row of cabin lights loomed a little to one side of her headlong -flight, did Captain Jim shift his course to round to in the deep water -beyond the Reef. His fists were clenched and his jaw was set hard as he -glared from the wheel-house door to find the oncoming boat which he -had sworn to beat. Her lights were no more than a quarter of a mile -away as the _Resolute_ crept under the quarter of the stranded cargo -steamer. - -"If that's you out yonder, Jerry Pringle," growled Captain Jim to -himself, "you've slowed up to find out who the dickens we are. No -wonder you're worried. Come on and have it out, you hatchet-faced -pirate." - -He seized the whistle cord and the _Resolute_ roared a long, sonorous -blast of greeting and defiance. Then he caught up a megaphone and -shouted toward the steamer stranded on the Reef: - -"Ship ahoy! I'll stand by to put a line aboard at daylight. Are you -resting easy as you are?" - -"What steamer is that?" came the answering hail from the darkness. - -"The tow-boat _Resolute_ of Key West, first vessel to come to your -assistance. Who are you?" - -"The deuce you are," and there was the most profound amazement in -the other voice. "This is the steamer _Kenilworth_ of London. A -crosscurrent set me on here but I can work off with my own engines, -thank you." - -"You'll never work her off," yelled Captain Jim. "Your vessel will -break her back if it blows much harder. It's high-water two hours after -daylight. It's now or never to pull her clear." - -There was no reply. It was evident that Captain Malcolm Bruce was -shocked and bewildered by the unlooked for presence of the _Resolute_ -and was sparring for time until he could hail the other craft which by -this time was feeling her way nearer. - -Captain Wetherly was in no temper for parleying. He moved the -_Resolute_ up abreast of the _Kenilworth's_ bridge and shouted sternly: - -"I know your voice, Captain Bruce. My name is Jim Wetherly. This is the -only tow-boat within five hundred miles that's got the power to drag -you clear. And I must take hold on this next tide, before you begin to -pound and settle. We'll arrange terms afterward." - -"I'll wait till daylight before taking any lines aboard," was the curt -response from Captain Bruce who had moved aft to hail the other tug -which had now dropped astern of the _Resolute_. - -"This is the _Henry Foster_, in command of Jeremiah Pringle," came -back to him. "We answered your rockets. Shall we stand by?" - -"I will let you know when daylight comes," answered the master of the -_Kenilworth_. - -Captain Jim Wetherly stamped his foot and snarled at his puzzled mate: - -"They must think I'm seven kinds of a fool. I'll block their game right -now. Oh, Dan Frazier, come here, on the jump." - -He grasped Dan by the collar, dragged him into the chart-room, and -closed the door. With swift, emphatic utterance Captain Wetherly shot -these instructions into the boy's ear: - -"Dan, I'm going to put you aboard the _Kenilworth_. I can't spare -anybody else, and you will be my agent, understand? If Captain -Bruce refuses to take my line, this business will be put up to the -underwriters from start to finish. And the crooked owners won't be able -to collect one dollar of insurance, I'll see to that. And I'll have you -as a witness to prove that the _Resolute_ was first on the spot. Come -along with me." - -Captain Jim pulled Dan by the arm toward the lower deck. A boat was -lowered in a twinkling and, while the excited lad waited for a chance -to jump, Captain Jim told him: - -"It's likely that Pringle has Barton with him on the tug, and they may -try the same trick. If they come aboard the _Kenilworth_, you remember -that you're working for Jim Wetherly, no matter if it means a scrap." - -As the yawl danced away from the side of the _Resolute_, Captain Jim -shouted to the _Kenilworth_: - -"Put a ladder overside, if you please, Captain Bruce. I'm sending my -nephew aboard to talk business with you." - -"I will talk no business before daylight," roared Captain Bruce. "Call -your boat back." - -"Oh, yes, you _will_ take him aboard," stormed Captain Wetherly. "_If -you don't, the underwriters will know the reason why._ Shall I tell -_you_ why?" - -"Hooray! but that was a shot below his water-line," chuckled Bill -McKnight from the engine-room door. "But I don't envy Dan his job when -Jerry Pringle climbs aboard the _Kenilworth_." - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -WICKED MR. PRINGLE IN COLLISION - - -In his cooler moments Captain Wetherly might not have ordered Dan -Frazier to board the stranded _Kenilworth_ before daylight, for a heavy -sea was running along the Reef. But he knew there was smoother water in -the lee of the stranded steamer and he had reason for confidence in his -boat's crew. He had been foolhardy in bringing his tug so close, but he -was in no mood to weigh risks; and he was ready to back Dan to play a -man's part in this game for high stakes. - -Dan had learned to do as he was told without asking why, but as he -peered from his plunging yawl at the tall, black hulk of the helpless -_Kenilworth_, his hands were shaking and his lips were dry. Although -the seas did not break over the Reef because of the depth of water, -they threatened to smash the yawl against the steamer's side. Presently -a lantern crept down from the deck above like a huge fire-fly. It -was tied to one of the lower rounds of a swaying rope ladder, at the -sight of which Dan gathered himself for the ordeal. As the yawl rose he -jumped headlong, got a grip on the ladder, and hung on for dear life -while a frothing sea washed over him. Gasping for breath, bruised and -dazed, he fought his way up the side and fell over the bulwark of the -after well-deck. - -Dan had not the slightest idea of what he was expected to do on board -the _Kenilworth_, but after two seamen had stood him on his feet he -limped forward in search of Captain Bruce. Oddly enough, he did not -feel in the least afraid of meeting the hostile ship-master whose -wicked plans had been spoiled by the coming of the _Resolute_. Dan -recalled the big, brown-bearded man with the deep voice and the kindly -eyes whom he had met in Pensacola harbor, and said to himself, as he -had said then: "He looks like too fine a man." But as Captain Jim's -agent, Dan braced himself to be stern and dignified while he clambered -to the bridge. - -He found Captain Bruce standing in the light that fell from the -chart-room door. - -"I am to stay aboard until further orders from Captain Wetherly, sir," -announced Dan in the heaviest voice he could muster. - -"Nobody asked you, so get away from my quarters," was the irritable -reply. Dan stepped forward into the light and Captain Bruce stared at -him with puzzled interest. Then his frown cleared and he exclaimed -heartily: - -"Why, it's the lad that fished me out of Pensacola harbor. I ought not -to forget you, had I? Pardon my rude manners, but a man with his ship -in peril is poor company. Come inside. Well, upon my word, this is a -most extraordinary reunion all round." - -The stalwart master mariner was trying hard to wear his usual manner, -but his words came out with jerky, nervous haste, his gaze shifted -uneasily, and he was twisting both hands in his beard. If his -conscience had been troubling him before, panic fear had now come to -torment him; fear of Captain Wetherly; fear even of this boy, for no -mere chance could have brought about this midnight meeting on the -Reef. In silence Dan followed him into the chart-room and waited while -Captain Bruce seemed to forget himself in gloomy reflection. With an -effort the master of the _Kenilworth_ looked at the boy and began to -explain: - -"I hope Captain Wetherly did not take offence. I am responsible for -the safety of this ship, and until I can get in touch with my owners -my word is final. If I can get her off without help, it means saving -a whacking big salvage bill. She is making no water, and is in little -danger." - -Dan knew enough of the ways of seafaring men to be surprised that this -captain should stoop to explain matters to the deck-hand of a tug. But -the captain's word did not ring true. He was trying to play a part, and -Dan saw through it and was sorry for him. - -"You don't know the Reef," replied the boy. "You struck it in good -weather. And Captain Jim Wetherly is no robber. He would not stand by -if he thought you were not going to need him and need him bad. _We_ -don't do any crooked business aboard the _Resolute_, sir." - -Dan had not meant to deal this last home-thrust. He was one lone-handed -boy in the enemy's camp. Captain Bruce flushed and looked hard at Dan, -not so much with anger as with unhappy doubt and anxiety. He did not -reply and appeared to be struggling with his thoughts. Dan was so worn -out with excitement and loss of sleep that he had to blink hard at -the swinging lamp to keep his eyes open, and after several minutes of -silence, Captain Bruce's face seemed to waver in a kind of haze. Dan -aroused himself with a start when the master of the _Kenilworth_ spoke -the question that was uppermost in his thoughts: - -"How did your tow-boat happen to find me to-night? What were you doing -out here, boy?" - -Dan's drowsiness fled as if a gun had been fired in the room. What -could he say? If he told the truth he might be knocked on the head and -dropped overboard before daylight. Deeds as bad as this had been done -on the Reef, and he was the only witness to back up Captain Jim's story -of a plot to wreck the steamer. He could only stammer: - -"We were running to the north'ard and saw your signals. Captain -Wetherly commands the _Resolute_. You must ask him." - -"He threatened and bulldozed me to-night," exclaimed Captain Bruce. "I -let you come on board because he treated me kindly at Pensacola. I -will give him my answer at daylight." - -Dan leaned forward with his elbows on the table and looked up into the -captain's face. Mustering all his courage, he began to say what was in -his heart, as if he were talking to one of his own friends who had done -something to be sorry for: - -"Captain Wetherly is working for your interests, sir. He knows the -Reef better than any pilot out of Key West. If he says he can get your -steamer off, he'll do it. And--and--he wants to save you--your ship--no -matter what it costs him. It--it--isn't only to get ahead of Jerry -Pringle on a wrecking job, Captain. He likes you, and Barton Pringle is -my chum, and Mrs. Pringle is my mother's dearest friend, and Captain -Jim wants to get you clear and on your voyage again without--without -being forced to--to fight it out to a finish with you and Jerry -Pringle. It's for Bart and his mother, and for you, too, Captain Bruce." - -The ship-master walked to the doorway and stood gazing out into the -night. Then he replied gruffly with a hard laugh: - -"You are almost asleep, my boy. I can't make head or tail of what you -are driving at. I make my own bargains with tugs when I need them. -Lie down on the transom and take forty winks. I am going to start my -engines again and work my vessel off on this tide." - -Dan nodded and promptly curled up on the leather cushions. Daylight -showed through the port-holes when he awoke and stepped out on deck. -A few cable-lengths to seaward rolled the _Resolute_. Astern of her -was the _Henry Foster_. Beating up the Hawk Channel inside the Reef -came two schooners under clouds of canvas. Other sails flecked the sea -to the southward, all hastening toward the _Kenilworth_. From among -the low islets to the westward the smaller craft of the "Conchs," -or scattered dwellers on the Keys, were speeding toward the scene. -The _Kenilworth_ lay with a list to port, her bow shoved high on the -invisible Reef, her stern still afloat. It would have been hard to -convince a landlubber that this great steamer was in danger of going to -pieces. No seas were breaking around her. She looked as if she had come -to a standstill in mid ocean. - -Dan Frazier had the love of the sea in him. The sight of this helpless -ship as he saw her by daylight appealed to him as tremendously sad and -tragic. He picked up a sounding lead and let it fall over the side to -find the depth of water amidships, for a glance at the chart-room clock -had told him that the tide was almost at the flood. The sound of voices -made him look aft. Captain Bruce was coming forward with Jeremiah -Pringle, and behind them was Barton. A moment later, Captain Jim -Wetherly threw a leg over the steamer's rail and shouted to his men in -the yawl to wait for him. He ran forward to Dan without speaking to the -others as he passed them, and shoving his nephew toward Captain Bruce -he exclaimed: - -"Here's my man, aboard your ship hours ahead of Pringle. You'll have to -talk business with me first. And all I ask is a square deal." - -Barton hung back and acted as if he had caught the spirit of the -hostile rivalry that threatened an explosion of some kind. He was more -highly strung and impulsive than Dan, less used to knocking about among -men, and he felt that Dan was somehow taking sides against him. Before -Captain Bruce could speak, Jerry Pringle strode up with an ugly scowl -on his lean, dark face and said: - -"Let Wetherly talk terms. When he gets through, I will be ready to sign -a paper to take charge of the job for half the figure he names, I don't -care how low he goes." - -"That ought to settle it. You can't do as well as that, Captain -Wetherly," put in the master of the _Kenilworth_. "If you are so sure -my ship can be pulled off, I see no reason why Captain Pringle isn't -the man to do it." - -Captain Jim was trying to keep his temper under, but the fact that -these two men were trying to carry out their vile agreement right under -his nose was more than he could stand. He shook his heavy fist in Jerry -Pringle's face and declared: - -"The _Resolute_ will make fast to this ship this morning. And if you -want the _Henry Foster_ to get action, it will be under my orders, and -at my terms. By Judas, this play-acting ends right here. I mean you, -too, Captain Bruce. I have been hoping that I could keep my mouth shut. -I'd rather cut off my right hand than drag certain other people into -it. I know why you brought your boy along with you, Jerry Pringle. To -put a stopper on my tongue, wasn't it? Hide behind women and children, -eh? Well, I'm in charge of wrecking this steamer, understand? Get back -to your tug. I've a good mind to----" - -He felt a pull at his arm, and turned to look into Dan's imploring face -as the boy whispered: - -"Don't say any more, Uncle Jim. Wait till Bart is out of the way, -please, oh please do." - -Captain Jim rammed his hands in his breeches pockets and addressed -Captain Bruce: - -"I've said my last word. My hawser will come aboard at once." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ wavered and looked at Jerry Pringle as -if appealing to the stronger will which had tempted and entrapped him. -The hapless ship-master had gone too far with the plot to let it go by -the board. Pringle muttered with a sneer: - -"Who is master of this steamer, anyhow?" - -Captain Bruce echoed the remark: - -"I command this ship, Captain Wetherly, and the sooner you leave her -the better." - -Wasting no more words, Captain Jim called to his boat's crew to stand -by to take him off, and said to Dan: - -"Pringle is going back to his tug. You stay here. They won't dare to do -you any harm. Keep your eyes and ears open." - -Presently Bart followed his father on board the _Henry Foster_. Dan had -found no chance to talk with him and he was not sorry. He was afraid -Bart would ask him what Captain Jim's angry speech had meant. Already -the stranding of the _Kenilworth_ had dragged the two lads into its -tangle of motives and events. - -Dan was too absorbed in wondering what Captain Jim could do next to -dwell long with his own troubles and perplexities. He watched the -_Resolute_ steam nearer the _Kenilworth_, while Captain Wetherly's -deck-crew gathered around the huge coils of steel hawser on the -overhang. Soon the _Henry Foster_ wallowed closer and her men were also -busy making ready to pay out a towing hawser. Dan could not understand -how Captain Jim was going to get his line aboard the _Kenilworth_, and -he breathlessly awaited the next move. - -On board the _Resolute_, Captain Wetherly was standing at the wheel and -watching the _Henry Foster_ with the light of battle in his gray eyes. -Jerry Pringle's tug had forged ahead until she lay square in the path -of the _Resolute_ which was thus prevented from getting into position -for taking hold of the steamer on the Reef. - -Captain Jim pulled the whistle cord and the _Resolute_ clamored to the -other tug to move out of the way. But Mr. Pringle seemed determined to -remain exactly where he was. Again and again the _Resolute's_ whistle -was sounded, but the _Henry Foster_ refused to make room. Captain -Wetherly finally growled to the mate: - -"He doesn't seem to have very good manners, does he? Maybe he ought -to be taught a lesson. Take the wheel while I go below and have a few -words with Mr. McKnight." - -The chief engineer was leaning against a stanchion and muttering -insults at the balky _Henry Foster_, with special emphasis on the -shortcomings of Mr. J. Pringle. - -"Are you going to sit here all day and let those _Henry Fosters_ laugh -at you, Captain?" asked McKnight. - -"Not if you have steam enough to do as I tell you, Bill. All I want you -to do is to jump her ahead for all she's worth when I ring the jingle -bell. Then hold on tight and say your prayers." - -"Going to push Pringle out of the way?" asked the engineer with a smile -of happy anticipation. "Well, there's steam enough to make the _Henry -Foster_ know she's been bumped. It's about time something happened." - -The captain returned to the wheel-house and gave the signal to back -her. The _Resolute_ slipped very slowly astern until she was in a -position for a "running start." As a final warning her whistle was -blown, without reply from the _Henry Foster_. Then, with one long -blast like a war-whoop, the _Resolute_ moved straight ahead, gathering -headway until her rearing bow was flinging cascades of spray. The mate -gasped: - -"Keep her off, Captain, or you'll be in collision." - -Captain Wetherly grinned and nodded as he held his tug straight at -the after part of the _Henry Foster_ on board of which there was much -shouting and running to and fro. - -Her crew had taken it for granted that the _Resolute_ would pass -astern of them until her tall cut-water loomed within a hundred feet -of their overhang. Then her engine-room bells ding-donged one frantic -signal after another, but she began to move too late. _Crash!_ and she -heeled far over from the shock of the collision. Like a keen-edged axe -through a soft timber, the bow of the _Resolute_, with her weight and -momentum behind it, sheared through the overhang and sliced a dozen -feet off the stern of the luckless _Henry Foster_. It was done and over -within a twinkling. The _Resolute_ ploughed on with headway almost -unchecked, and as her horrified mate rushed forward to see what damage -had been done to her own hull, Captain Jim Wetherly looked back and -remarked to himself: - -"As neat a job as I ever saw. Her after bulkhead will keep her afloat, -but the _Henry Foster_ is surely shy her tail-feathers. I guess that -winds up her career as a tow-boat for some time. Jerry Pringle looks -kind of upset and agitated." - -Mr. Pringle had picked himself up from the deck, where he had been -hurled headlong, and was wildly shaking his fist at the _Resolute_. The -crippled tug was drifting off broadside and was evidently helpless. -Presently a small boat put off from her and headed for the _Resolute_. -As soon as he was within shouting distance, Jerry Pringle rose in the -stern-sheets and yelled in a voice broken with rage: - -"You'll pay for my vessel, Jim Wetherly. You run her down on purpose. -She'll founder or drift on the Reef if you don't tow me to Key West." - -"You violated all the rules of the road," sung back Captain Jim. "And -you're so fond of wrecking other people's vessels, supposing you see -what kind of a job you can make of the _Henry Foster_. Tow you to Key -West? You're joking. I'm going to put my line aboard the _Kenilworth_ -and I'll settle with you later." - -Dan was dancing up and down on the _Kenilworth's_ deck as he stared at -this amazing collision. It might be a reckless and lawless thing to do, -but Dan saw that Jerry Pringle had brought the disaster upon himself, -and that it had given Captain Jim a clear field. Throwing his cap in -the air, Dan let out a series of shrill and joyous war-whoops. He had -forgotten all about Barton, but in the midst of his noisy jubilation -he caught sight of his chum standing aft on the _Henry Foster_ and -peering down at the havoc made by the collision. Dan's voice must have -carried across the water, for Bart turned to look at the _Kenilworth_ -and shook his fist with every sign of rage and resentment. Dan -subsided, but the mischief had been done. He had made an enemy of -Barton, and he muttered with a sorrowful face: - -"I can't blame him for getting mad as a hornet at me. I ought to have -kept still. I don't know how we can ever patch up this misunderstanding -either. He ought to hold his daddy responsible for thinking he could -monkey with Uncle Jim Wetherly and the _Resolute_." - - - - -CHAPTER V - -"ALL HANDS ABANDON SHIP!" - - -Nobody was more dumfounded by the ramming of the tug _Henry Foster_ -than Captain Bruce of the steamer aground on the Reef. In a twinkling -his wicked partnership with Jeremiah Pringle had been smashed beyond -mending. He could no longer refuse to accept help from the victorious -_Resolute_. This meant that Captain Jim Wetherly would take charge of -the wrecking of the steamer and try to save her and her cargo by every -means in his power. Jerry Pringle had been driven from the scene. He -was on board his shattered tug which was drifting to the southward, -in no great danger of going ashore, while several schooners were -clustering around to give her aid. - -Dan Frazier paid no attention to Captain Bruce, but ran to the stern of -the _Kenilworth_ to watch the _Resolute's_ crew send its towing hawser -aboard. Captain Jim was at his best in such an undertaking as this, -and his men were obeying his shouted orders with disciplined skill and -haste. The hawser writhed after the yawl like a sea-serpent and was -dragged up the side of the stranded vessel by her own crew, who were -jubilant at seeing active operations under way. When the line was made -fast, Captain Jim bellowed through his megaphone: - -"We have wasted time and lost the best of the tide, Captain Bruce, but -I'm going to pull for an hour anyhow. Set your engines going full speed -astern and throw your helm to port." - -Captain Bruce obeyed with eager energy. He seemed to be coming to -himself and honestly anxious to get his ship afloat. His broad -shoulders were thrown back, and he held his head erect, while his deep -voice had a tone of masterful decision. If he had made a compact with -the Evil One, he acted like a man who regretted the bargain and wanted -to repair the damage already done. Fate had suddenly snatched him out -of the clutches of Jeremiah Pringle and perhaps he was glad of it. At -least, Dan Frazier was ready to look at it in this way, and as Captain -Bruce came aft to examine the hawser the lad said to himself with a -wisdom born of his own experience: - -"Last night he kind of behaved like a boy that had done something he -was awful ashamed of, but was scared to own up to it. Now he looks as -if he felt the way I do when I've decided to tell mother all about it -and promise her I'll do the best I can to make things all square again." - -Dan found time to take an anxious look at the weather, and a sweeping -survey of sea and sky told him why Captain Jim did not want to wait for -the next flood tide before beginning work. The ocean had turned from -green and blue to a dull gray. The clouds were low and far-spread and -the wind was seesawing in fretful gusts, now from the north-east, again -from the north-west. The barometer had sought a lower level overnight, -and all these signs declared that a gale was brewing. If it came out of -the north-west, the charging seas would drive the _Kenilworth_ farther -on the Reef and perhaps lift her clear across the coral barrier to -sink, with a broken back, in the deep water of the Hawk Channel. - -The _Resolute's_ whistle signalled that she was ready to match her -power against the Reef. As she forged ahead, the sagging hawser -tautened and twanged like a huge banjo string, while the sea was -churned to froth in her wake. At the same time the _Kenilworth's_ -engines lent their mighty strength to the task. Her hull vibrated as -if the rivets were being pulled from their steel plates, but the keel -did not move an inch. Dan's faith in Captain Jim's word was so implicit -that he expected to feel the steamer start seaward in the first ten -minutes. At the end of the hour, however, the _Resolute_ was still -tugging away without result, like a man trying to lift himself by his -boot-straps. Then she slackened up on the hawser as if to get her -breath for the next tussle. - -The wind was blowing with more and more violence. It picked up the -white-topped seas and hurled them high against the _Kenilworth_, while -the tug rolled and plunged amid driving foam and spray. Gulls were -flying in from seaward to seek the shelter of the distant keys. But -it was not yet rough enough to daunt Captain Jim Wetherly and he was -evidently waiting to make a second attempt on the afternoon tide. -Dan had seen these northerly gales blow themselves out in a few hours -and he felt no uneasiness at being left in the _Kenilworth_, although -he muttered to himself as he felt the helpless steamer tremble to the -shock of the seas: - -"I don't see why Uncle Jim left me here now that Pringle is out of the -way. I guess he hasn't time to remember that he is shy one deck-hand." - -There was some truth in this surmise, for Captain Wetherly was having -all he could do to keep the _Resolute_ at her station and her propeller -clear of the hawser which he refused to let go because he feared the -weather might make it impossible to lower the yawl for another trip to -the _Kenilworth_. He knew what Captain Bruce was not aware of, that -the steamer had been shoved on a shelving slope of the Reef where she -could withstand a terrific pounding without having the bottom torn out -of her, and that if she once started to move astern she would quickly -slide off into deep water. Therefore Captain Jim was ready to take long -chances with his tug before he would run to Key West for refuge from -wind and sea. - -In the afternoon, when the _Resolute_ whistled that she was about to -go ahead again on the hawser, the green billows were breaking over her -bow and flooding aft in booming torrents. Her funnel was white with -sea-salt from the spindrift as she plunged and reared like a bucking -bronco. Dan was watching the laboring _Resolute_ from the stranded -steamer's bridge when Captain Bruce put a hand on his shoulder and said -with hearty frankness: - -"That skipper of yours is plucky, and he is a first-class seaman. But -he will lose his vessel if he stays out here much longer." - -"He may have to give you a wider berth by dark," said Dan. "In ordinary -weather he could take the _Resolute_ over the Reef along here, but now -the seas would pick her up and drop her on the ledges. I guess he will -have to leave me aboard here overnight, Captain. There's no getting a -boat over to me now. And he can't take the _Resolute_ to leeward of -you, on the inside of the Reef, for there isn't a deep water passage -through, for miles and miles." - -"You are welcome to stay aboard with me, lad," replied Captain Bruce. -"We may have a tough time of it ourselves before morning, and I fancy -your uncle is sorry he did not take you off with him. But that can't be -helped." - -The _Resolute_ had begun to pull. It was a thrilling battle to watch. -The seas were so heavy that her power was applied in a series of -tremendous lunges which threatened to snap the hawser every time her -stern rose skyward. Dan held his breath and gripped the rail with -both hands as the tug surged ahead again and again. Her mate and two -deck-hands were crouched far aft, ready to cast loose the hawser -whenever the captain dared to hold on no longer. After a while Dan saw -the chief engineer waddle back to the overhang to take a look at the -situation. There was something cheering in the sight of this bulky, -stout-hearted veteran of many a desperate venture at sea. Bill McKnight -plucked off his cap and waved it in greeting to Dan, as if signalling -him that all was well. - -"I guess he's clamped down his safety-valve long before this," said Dan -aloud as he flourished an arm at Bill McKnight. - -"My word but you are a desperate lot," observed Captain Bruce, and a -smile lightened his anxious face and weary eyes. "I think we are safer -aboard the _Kenilworth_." - -He turned away to talk to his own chief engineer and his first officer. -They had come up from below to report that the crew were beginning to -talk of quitting the ship, and that it was hard to keep them at their -stations. The news aroused Captain Bruce like a bugle-call to action. -If he had been weak in an hour of temptation he was now once more the -able, resolute ship-master, trained by long years at sea to face such a -crisis as this. - -"Do the cowards want to abandon ship while we are trying to work her -off?" he thundered. "Look at that tug-boat out yonder. She isn't afraid -to stay by us in a bit of a breeze. Come along with me. I'll handle -them." - -He hurried after the first officer, and Dan was left alone to gaze -at the brave struggle of the _Resolute_. It seemed impossible that -she could hold on much longer. Her hull was buried by one sea after -another, but she shook herself free and plunged ahead with dogged, -unflinching power. The afternoon was nearly spent. A stormy dusk was -beginning to steal over the tossing sea. - -Dan perceived that Captain Jim was trying to stand to his task until -high water might help to lift the _Kenilworth_. But for once that -square-jawed uncle of his had dared too much. The _Resolute_ had -endured more than steel and timber could be expected to endure. Dan -yelled with dismay as he saw the massive timber framework of the -towing-bitts fairly jump out of the deck, splintered and broken, and -vanish in the sea astern while the hawser slackened and buried itself -in the waves. The mate and deck-hands were hurled this way and that. An -instant later the wind bore a terrific crashing noise to Dan's ears. -A gaping hole showed in her after deck as the _Resolute_ dove ahead, -suddenly released from her grip on the _Kenilworth_. - -[Illustration: But for once that square-jawed uncle of his had dared -too much] - -"Great Scott, she jerked the towing-bitts clean out of her," cried Dan. -"It was just like pulling the stem out of an apple. Now we _are_ done -for. Is anybody killed?" - -His eyes filled with hot tears as he saw Bill McKnight rush aft and -help pick up the mate and deck-hands who lay sprawled in the scuppers. -The mate was huddled in a heap where he had been flung, and the -rescuers dragged him clear and carried him forward between them, his -legs and arms swaying limp. - -"He looks dead," moaned Dan. "And it leaves Uncle Jim single-handed. He -can't run home before this sea with a hole in his after deck like that. -She'd swamp in no time. He'll have to buck into it and try to fetch -Miami. And we can't get any help to him." - -The _Resolute_ steamed very slowly away from the Reef, fighting for -her life. Three long blasts from her whistle came down the wind as she -spoke her farewell. Before long her reeling shape was lost to view on -the shadowy sea; then her mast-head light gleamed for a little longer -before she wholly vanished from Dan Frazier's yearning gaze. - -Captain Bruce had rushed on deck at the sound of her whistle and Dan -pointed to the dim outline of the beaten and crippled _Resolute_ while -in a voice broken with grief and excitement he explained what had -happened to the tug. - -"Uncle Jim will have other tugs on the way as soon as he can wire for -them," added Dan. "I think he ordered a schooner to run to Miami this -morning with orders for more help to be sent you." - -"They can't get out to us until this blow is over," said the captain. -"We are in for a bad night, my boy. I wish you were out of it. But -Captain Wetherly couldn't have taken you off to save his soul." - -"I wouldn't have been here if you had been square--" Dan began to say -with a sudden rush of anger. But it seemed as though Captain Bruce had -not heard him, for he went on to say: - -"If my boy had lived he would have been about your age now, Dan. He was -just your kind of a youngster, too. Go below and get some supper, and -some sleep if you can." - -There was to be little sleep aboard the _Kenilworth_ through this -night. The gale had no more than begun to blow when the _Resolute_ was -forced to retreat. Long before midnight it was lashing the shoal water -of the Reef into huge breakers which assailed the _Kenilworth_ with -thundering fury. Her keel began to pound as she was lifted and driven -a little farther on the Reef by one shock after another. The decks -sloped more and more until it was not easy to keep a foothold. The -noise of the water breaking over her hull, the booming cry of the wind, -the groaning and grating and shrieking of her steel plates as the Reef -strove to pull them asunder, made it seem as if the steamer could not -hold together until daylight. - -The grimy men from the engine-room and stoke-hole had fled to the -shelter of the steel deck-houses where they huddled with the seamen, -shouting to each other in English, Norwegian, and Spanish. Captain -Bruce and his officers finally gathered in the chart-room and discussed -the chances of launching the boats if matters should grow much worse. -Dan Frazier was doubled up in a corner chair, half-dead for sleep, but -fighting hard to keep his wits about him and tell the others what he -knew of the Reef and the water that stretched to leeward of the ship. - -In answer to a question from Captain Bruce he said: - -"This is the narrowest part of the Reef, Captain Wetherly told me, and -if you can get your boats away in the lee of the ship and keep them -afloat through the breaking water you will be in the Hawk Channel, only -three miles from a string of keys. The channels between the islands are -deep enough for a ship's boat. You don't need any chart to find smooth -water in those lagoons, sir." - -"Her bottom plates are opening up," growled the chief engineer who had -just come up to report. "The sea is coming in fast. It has begun to -flood the fire-room, and I can't make steam to keep the pumps going -much longer." - -"The bulkheads forward are twisting like so much paper," added the -first officer. "They can't stand up if she racks herself any worse. -Then she will be flooded fore and aft." - -Captain Bruce jumped to his feet and gruffly broke into this dismal -kind of talk: - -"Get all the men you can and come below with me. Her after part is -still afloat and tight, and if we can brace the midship bulkheads with -enough timbers and cargo, they may hold for a while yet." - -It was a forlorn hope, but even the seamen and stokers were glad to -be doing something to save the ship, and most of them rallied to the -call of the captain and mate and followed them down into the gloomy -hold. Dan went along to try to do what he could, and also because he -remembered that Captain Jim had told him to "keep his eyes and ears -open." - -"If we abandon the _Kenilworth_," thought Dan, "and I see Uncle Jim -again, the first thing he will ask me is what shape we left the steamer -in--had she begun to break in two, and how badly was she flooded, and -so on. I guess it's part of my job to find out all I can." - -He picked up a lantern which had been overlooked and crept after the -men, down one slippery iron ladder after another. It was a terrifying -trip below decks where the angry ocean sounded as if it were about -to tear its way through the vessel's side, amid an awful hubbub of -shifting cargo, and breaking beams and plates. Dan hesitated more than -once and tried to choke down his fear. He was in strange quarters and -the men ahead of him, used to finding their way all over the vessel, -moved much faster than he. They had reached the engine-room and were -moving forward while he was still clinging to the last ladder. Then a -lurch of the ship dashed his lantern against the hand-rail. The glass -globe was smashed and the light went out. - -The electric lighting plant had been disabled and the cavern of an -engine-room was in black darkness as Dan vainly searched his pockets -for matches. He heard faint shouts from somewhere forward and thought -he saw the gleam of lanterns. He tried to grope his way toward them, -but stumbled and fell against a steel column. With aching head he -staggered to his feet just as the whole hull of the ship seemed to be -raised bodily and let fall on the Reef with a deafening crash. Dan was -more frightened and confused than ever. A moment later his feet began -to splash in water. He thought the sea had broken into the engine-room, -and he tried, with frantic haste, to find his way back to the ladder -and regain the deck above. By this time he had completely lost his -bearings. He did not know whether he was going toward the bow or stern. -At length his trembling fingers clutched the rail of a ladder which -ran upward from a narrow passageway. It led him to another deck still -far down in the vessel's hold, where he could find no more ladders to -climb. After what seemed to him hours of feeling his way this way and -that, he bumped against a solid steel wall. Dan knew it was a bulkhead -of some kind, but it must be far from the toiling crew of the ship, for -he had long since ceased to hear or see them. He had never been in such -utter darkness nor so hopelessly lost and bewildered. - -The frightened lad shouted for help, but his voice could not have been -heard a dozen feet away, so great was the din around him. He tried to -think, to get back his sense of direction, to feel his way along the -bulkhead in the hope of getting his hands on some object with whose -outline he was familiar, which might tell him into what part of the -ship he had wandered. - -He was leaning against the steel wall of the bulkhead when it buckled, -sprang back, and then quivered as if it had been a sheet of tin. -There was a tremendous noise of crackling, rending timber and steel -above Dan's head. He whirled about and tried to flee as he heard the -collapsing bulkhead give way. - -The boy could hear the cargo toppling toward him with the roar of a -landslide. He threw up his arms to shield his head, then something -struck him in the back and hurled him to one side. He fell across a -bulky box of some kind while other heavy boxes, a deluge of them, -thundered from above and crashed all round him. Dan cowered in a -frightened heap, expecting every instant to have his life crushed out. -But gradually the descent of the cargo ceased, and he was still alive. - -He tried to move his legs and found they had not been smashed. -Struggling to turn over on his back he put up his arms and discovered -that a huge packing case had so fallen as to make a bridge over him and -keep clear the little space in which he crouched. But he was walled in -by packing cases on all sides and he struggled in vain to move them. -Until his fingers were torn and bleeding and his strength worn out, Dan -tried to make an opening large enough to wriggle through and escape -from this appalling prison. - -When at length he lay still and panted aloud the prayers his mother had -taught him, there came the echo of hoarse shouts above the clamor of -the ship and the sea. Through a crevice between the boxes of freight -that penned him fast he glimpsed the gleam of moving lanterns. The -captain and crew were deserting the hold of the ship. Dan tried to call -to them but his cries were unheard. - -The shouts ceased, the gleams of light vanished one by one, and Dan -was left alone in the flooded and shattered hold of the _Kenilworth_. -Far above him Captain Bruce and his crew were making ready their -life-boats, preferring to trust themselves to the storm-swept sea than -to the steamer which they believed doomed to be torn to fragments -within the next few hours. - -"They must have given up the fight", moaned Dan between his sobs. "I -guess it means all hands abandon ship at daylight. And they will think -I've been washed overboard in the dark." - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -DAN FRAZIER'S PREDICAMENT - - -Imprisoned as he was in the hold of the _Kenilworth_, and feeling sure -that the steamer was to be abandoned by her crew as a hopeless wreck, -Dan Frazier became almost stupefied with terror and exhaustion. As long -as there was any strength in his athletic young body he had pushed -and tugged at the mass of freight which penned him in, shouting in -his frenzy until his voice failed him and died away in hoarse, broken -weeping. - -At length his benumbed senses lost themselves in heavy slumber. He -dreamed of being at home with his mother in the palm-shaded cottage and -she was holding him in her lap and stroking his forehead with her cool -hands. But nightmares came to drive away this sweet dream, and he awoke -with a choking cry for help. - -Dan thought he must have been asleep for hours and hours. More -torturing than the realization of his dreadful plight was his burning -thirst. But his brain was clearer and he listened to the medley of -noises around him with a glimmer of hope. The water had not reached the -deck on which he had been trapped, although he could hear it washing -to and fro in the bottom of the hold below. The hull of the ship had -ceased to pound on the Reef. The breakers beat against her steel sides -and fell solid on her upper decks with a sound like distant thunder, -but Dan began to feel confident that the gale was blowing itself out -and the steamer was going to live through it. - -He thanked God that he had not been drowned, at any rate, even -though he seemed likely to perish where he was for lack of food and -drink. Youth grasps at slender hopes and finds strength in dubious -consolations. Dan had expected to be overwhelmed by the sea without a -ghost of a chance to fight for his life. Now that this peril seemed -to be passing, his wits began to return, and he fished his strong -bladed sailor's clasp-knife from his trousers pocket. To hack away at -his prison walls was better than doing nothing. He twisted painfully -about until he had located the widest crevices between the sides of -the packing-cases and began to chip away at the stout planking. It -was a task tedious and wearisome beyond words. There was no light, -his nerves were unstrung, and he worked with unsteady, groping hand. -Rats scampered over him, or squealed in the darkness close by, and he -slashed at them savagely. They startled him so that more than once he -gave up the task and wept like a little child. - -At length Dan cut through the planking of a box which was wedged fast -between two larger ones and his knife clinked against tin. He managed -to break off a splintered end of board and pulled out a round can of -some kind of provisions. This was unexpected good fortune, and he -carefully cut into the lid with a muttered prayer of thanksgiving, -hoping to find enough liquid to wet his parched tongue. The can proved -to be full of French peas, packed in enough water to supply a long -drink of cool, refreshing soup. Dan scooped up the tiny peas with his -fingers, emptied the tin, and eagerly drove his knife into another of -them. The nourishment made him feel like a giant. He returned to his -task with genuine hope of being able to whittle a way out of his trap. - -But as the weary hours dragged by, and the strokes of the knife became -more and more feeble, the prisoner gave himself up to despair. His -strength had ebbed so fast that he slumped down and slept with his face -in his arms. - -A great noise awoke him. The cargo was shifting and tumbling with -fearful uproar. From below came the rumble of coal sliding across the -bunkers. The deck rolled violently and pitched Dan to the other end -of his pen. He expected to be crushed by the cargo, and thought the -ship must be turning over. But the commotion gradually ceased and, to -his great astonishment, he was alive and unhurt. The deck seemed to -have much less slant than before. He raised his arms and they touched -nothing over his head. Unable to realize the truth, he scrambled to -his feet and stood upright. The great package of freight which had -roofed him over had slid clear, carrying along the boxes piled above -it. Frantic with new hope of release, Dan clambered upward, tearing his -clothes to tatters, plunging headlong from one obstacle to another, -bruising his face, hands, and knees against sharp edges and corners. -Scrambling over the disordered cargo until he had to halt to get his -breath, Dan gasped to himself: - -"I can't get on deck through a freight compartment. The hatches will be -fastened down above. I must find out how I blundered in here as far as -the broken bulkhead." - -A moment later he fetched up against solid tiers of cargo which had -not been dislodged and knew he must be headed wrong. This gave him a -clue, however, and with fast-failing strength he stumbled back over -the way he had come. At last he saw a streak of daylight filter down -from a skylight far above. Yes, there was a road to the upper deck. -Dan glimpsed the shadowy outline of a ladder. It was all he could do -to muster courage to attempt the long and dizzy climb. But he set his -teeth and clung like a barnacle to one round after another until he -fell against the iron door of a deck-house, fumbled with the fastening, -and tottered out into daylight. - -Half-blinded and blinking like an owl, Dan Frazier covered his face -with his hands until his eyes could bear the dazzling reflection of -sea and sky which were flooded with glorious sunshine. The wind sang -through the shrouds and funnel-stays and the blue ocean upheaved -in swollen billows, but the gale had passed. Dan's bewildered gaze -fell upon the empty chocks, the dangling falls and the davits swung -outboard, where the steamer's life-boats had been. These signs were -enough to tell him that the ship had been abandoned. He was left alone -in her, and he went forward with a feeling of uncanny isolation. Water -to drink was what he wanted more than anything else, and before making -a survey of the ship he sought the tank in the chart-room and fairly -guzzled his fill. Then he made a ferocious onslaught on the cabin -pantry and carried on deck a kettle full of cold boiled potatoes, beef -and hard bread, and climbed to the battered bridge. - -Looking down at the steamer from this lofty perch, Dan understood what -had caused the violent roll and lunge that set him free from his prison -below decks. The storm had driven her, head-on, far up the outer slope -of the Reef, where she had lain as if about to break in pieces, with -the seas washing clean over her. But while her forward compartments -had filled with water, her stern was still buoyant. When the gale had -subsided the ship was hanging over the deep water on the inner side of -the Reef, and the next high tide had lifted her stern so that she slid -bow-first, for half her length, down the opposite side of the shelf -which had held her keel fast. It looked like a miracle to Dan, but here -was the ship still solid under his feet. Gazing down from one end of -the bridge, he could see the inner edge of the Reef shimmering far down -through the clear water and the hull of the _Kenilworth_, hanging only -by the after part. - -"Where, oh where, is Uncle Jim?" he thought. "He might patch up her -bulkheads, lift the water out with his wrecking pumps, and pull her off -yet. And I'll bet he'd keep her afloat somehow." - -Then a stupendous thought flashed into Dan's mind. It was such a -dazzling, gorgeous idea that it made him dizzy with delight. Yes, -it was all true. The _Kenilworth_ had been abandoned by her captain -and crew as a wreck. She was like a derelict at sea. Whoever should -find and board her would have the right to claim heavy salvage on the -vessel and her cargo if they were saved and brought into port. It was -the unwritten law of the Reef that the first man to set foot on an -abandoned wreck was the wrecking master, to be obeyed as such, with -first claim on salvage. - -Dan tried to arrange his thoughts in some kind of order, and at length -he said to himself with an air of decision: - -"The wrecking master on this job is Daniel P. Frazier. I earned it all -right, and Key West will back me up whether Jerry Pringle likes it or -not. And I'm going to hold her down till Uncle Jim comes back. There -can't be any more question about who has the wrecking of her. General -cargo, too!--I'll bet it's worth several hundred thousand dollars!--and -a four thousand ton steel steamer. If we can save her, the owners will -have to give up fifty or a hundred thousand dollars in clean salvage -money." - -The weight of his responsibility soon tamed Dan's high spirits. He -could make no resistance if a crew of hostile wreckers should happen -along to dispute his title in the absence of Captain Jim Wetherly. The -morning sun was no more than three hours high. He must watch and wait -through a long, long day, any hour of which might bring in sight the -sails of a fleet of wrecking schooners. Dan reckoned that he had been -penned below for about thirty hours and that this was the morning of -the second day after the wreck. Captain Jim must have a tug on the way -by this time. But, on the other hand, if Captain Bruce and his men had -been picked up and carried to Key West, their tidings would send Jerry -Pringle and his horde of wreckers flying seaward by steam and sail. - -Every boy who plays foot-ball has dreamed of breaking through the line, -blocking a kick, scooping up the ball, and running down the field like -a whirlwind to score the winning touchdown with the other eleven vainly -pounding along in his wake. So most of us have dreamed of playing the -hero by stopping a runaway horse, saving the life of the prettiest girl -that ever was, and being splendidly rewarded by her millionaire father. -Dan Frazier's pet dream had a salt-water background. It was of being -the first to find an abandoned ship with a rich cargo, triumphantly -bringing her into port, and winning a fortune in salvage. At last he -had found his ship, but the lone hero had an elephant on his hands. - -Dan was too weary in body and mind to roam about the steamer. He rigged -a bit of awning on the bridge, dragged a mattress up from below, and -lay gazing through the rents in the canvas weather screen until noon. -A mail steamer northward-bound passed close to the Reef, slowed down -to make sure the crew had left the wreck, and ploughed on her way. Dan -grew tired of looking to the southward for schooners beating up from -Key West and concluded that the head wind and heavy sea were holding -them in harbor. There was no black smudge of smoke to the northward to -show that Captain Jim was coming out from Miami in a tow-boat. Over -to seaward, however, in the east-north-east, three sails glinted like -flecks of cloud. They were close together, and Dan gazed at them idly, -thinking they might be coastwise merchant vessels hauling southward -before the piping wind. But as they lifted higher, he noticed that -they were shaping a straight course for the Reef instead of swinging -off to follow the track through the Florida Straits. They were -schooners coming with great speed and showing a reckless spread of -canvas. - -Soon the low hulls gleamed beneath the towering piles of sail and Dan -jumped to his feet as he scanned the beautiful sea picture they made. - -"Bahama schooners; I know their cut!" he exclaimed. "They've smelled a -wreck on the Reef as sure as guns. The news must have reached Nassau -by cable yesterday. And those pirates have got a clear field for once. -What _can_ I do? They won't listen to my story, not for a minute. -They'll swarm aboard like rats and be ripping the cargo out of this -vessel in a jiffy." - -The youthful wrecking master was at his wits' end and his head began -to throb as if it would split, for he had little endurance left. He -remained in hiding on the bridge and tried to think out a plan of -action as the Bahama schooners swooped across the frothing sea, laying -their courses in a bee line for the _Kenilworth_. Dan's only hope was -that he might be able to stay aboard until Captain Jim should return -to enforce the law of the Reef with his crew of hard-fisted tow-boat -men to back him up. He thought of telling the wreckers that he was -a stowaway, left behind when the steamer's men deserted her, but, -although Dan Frazier was far from perfect, he hated the notion of lying -his way out of this tight corner. He was truthful by habit, for one -thing, and there was another reason which he muttered to himself: - -"There's been lying enough on this job. The poor old ship has been -rotten with lies ever since her skipper first ran afoul of Jerry -Pringle. Even her grounding on the Reef was a lie. And I don't believe -Uncle Jim would lie to save the ship, or his own skin either. No, this -poor old vessel has been good to me so far. I got out of her hold by -good luck and I'll trust to luck to pull me out of this scrape." - -Dan picked up a pair of glasses and looked at the nearest schooner -which had boldly crossed the Reef and was rounding to in the smoother -water of the Hawk Channel while a group of black-skinned, ragged -wreckers were shoving a boat over the side. Dan felt a new thrill of -surprise and alarm as he scrutinized a burly figure poised at the -schooner's rail. It was "Black Sam" Hurley, a Bahama wrecker of such -evil repute that he had been pointed out to Dan in Nassau harbor as one -of the notorious characters of the islands. - -[Illustration: Dan felt a new thrill of surprise and alarm] - -"There are plenty of honest wreckers in the Bahamas," said the lad to -himself, while his teeth chattered. "But they don't sail with 'Black -Sam.' And he was alongside the _Resolute_ at Nassau, talking to the -cook. He'd know me again. It's a good thing I chucked up that idea of -lying out of this. It's time for me to get under cover, all right." - -Dan crept off the bridge along the windward side of the deck-house and -kept well out of sight of the schooners until he reached the shelter -of the funnel and the engine-room skylights. Then he slipped into the -nearest door and made his way to the flight of ladders up which he -had climbed in the morning. He had fled in a state of panic, but one -glance down into the black hold made him draw back and take measures -to provision himself against a long siege below. There was no need -for great haste, and Dan delayed to equip himself with a lantern, -matches, a jug of water, and a canvas bag, crammed with food, which he -slung about his neck. Then he made his way below with lighted lantern, -seeking to find as secure and comfortable a refuge as possible. The -Bahama wreckers would begin to loot the part of the cargo easiest -to get at and handle, he reasoned, and therefore he passed by the -uppermost cargo deck and explored the region below, slowly making his -way aft. - -It was a dangerous and desperate journey, but Dan was thinking only of -keeping out of the way of "Black Sam" until Captain Jim should come -back and retake the ship which belonged to him. - -"I'm what the lawyers call a vital document when they're arguing a -salvage case in the Key West Court," thought Dan with a half-hearted -grin. "And from all I've heard of 'Black Sam' Hurley, he'd chuck this -vital document overboard if he thought it might interfere with his -possession of the wreck." - -In this game of hide-and-seek the advantage was with the lad in the -hold, and fear of discovery by the wreckers did not greatly trouble -him. After a long time he heard clamorous voices somewhere above and -he doused his lantern. The wreckers seemed to be exploring the upper -cargo decks. Some kind of a dispute arose and the sides of the ship -flung back the echoes of it as from a great sounding board. Dan could -not make out what the quarrel was about, but at length the sounds grew -fainter as if the wreckers had returned to the outside world above. - -Dan had felt a gush of cool wind from somewhere over his head and -shifted his quarters to get beneath it and out of the reeking, stifling -atmosphere of the hold. He knew it must come from a pipe running to -one of the great bell-mouthed ventilators on deck and was glad that it -had been turned so as to face and catch the invigorating breeze. He -had not dreamed that the ventilator might serve as a speaking-tube. -While he waited, however, to learn what the wreckers intended to do -next, some one began to talk, and he heard every word distinctly. The -voice sounded so near his ears that he was as startled as if a ghost -had stepped out of the darkness. Dan jumped to his feet, his nerves -all of a quiver. He would have fled anywhere to get away from this -uncanny voice, but a stronger gust of wind struck his upturned face and -the mysterious voice sounded even louder. He thought of the ventilator -pipe, got a grip on himself, and scarcely breathed as he listened -to the odd intonations of the Bahama negro speech. "Black Sam" was -talking. Dan remembered the peculiar guttural cadence of his voice as -he had heard it in Nassau harbor. He must have been standing directly -in front of the ventilator on deck, for every word carried down the -pipe to Dan: - -"Ah don't care nuffin' 'bout de ship. We ain't got no tow-boats to pull -her off. An' if we don't work quick an' soon them Key Westers'll be -a-scatterin' down an' run us back home--you heah me? Take a big bag o' -powdah an' blow de side outen her. Dat's what I say do. De cargo ports -is all jammed fas'. We can't open 'em nohow. An' we ain't got no steam -to hoist wid a donkey-engine. Blow de side outen her. She's hung fas' -on de Reef. She ain't gwine sink. When we'se done loaded our schooners -wid cargo we can strip the brasses in de engine-room. Blow her up. -Ain't I wrecked plenty vessels? Don't I know?" - -Dan heard one of the other wreckers rumble: "Sam knows bes'. Cut de -fuse to burn ten minutes an' let us get back aboard our schooners. Hang -de sack o' powder 'g'inst the ship's plates inside an' let her go. -Reckon we'll blow a hole in her fit to run a tow-boat froo, Sam." - -To Dan Frazier these last words sounded faint and confused, as if -something was the matter with his hearing. He had only time to mutter -"They are going to blow her up and me with her." Then he felt so giddy -that he put out his arms to steady himself. His knees gave way and he -sank down in a heap. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -A FAT ENGINEER TO THE RESCUE - - -Dan Frazier came to himself with the message from the ventilator pipe -surging in his confused brain. The Bahama wreckers were going to blow -up the ship. "A ten-minute fuse," he whispered as he began to crawl -forward to escape from the hold. How long had he been unconscious? The -explosion might come on the next instant. Dan was afraid to face "Black -Sam" Hurley and his lawless crew, but he was far more afraid to stay -below. His only thought was to gain the upper deck and jump overboard -in the hope that the wreckers might pick him up. Fear gave him strength -for the journey, fear such as he had never known before. - -Losing his bearings in his headlong panic, Dan turned toward the side -of the ship, for he had not delayed to relight his lantern. A little -way in front of him a red spark glowed and sputtered. It burned a hole -in the gloom, and Dan stood stock-still and stared as if fascinated. It -was the fuse of the charge of powder. He wanted to run away from it but -his legs refused to carry him. - -When he moved, it was not in flight but straight toward the sputtering -slow-match. It was not in the least a conscious act of bravery. Dan -felt sure that he could not regain the upper deck before the explosion -tore him to pieces. He turned at bay to fight for his life with the -instinct of a hunted animal. - -Springing toward the terrible, winking spark with his fists doubled -as if to ward off an attack, Dan struck at it, tore the trailing fuse -free from its fastening, trampled it under his feet, and pulled it to -bits after the fire was dead. The explosive itself was also an enemy -which he must destroy. As if he were in a delirium, Dan whipped out his -knife, cut the lashing of the sack of powder, and dragged it after him -in his retreat. He came to a hatchway, let the sack drop, and heard it -splash in the water which flooded the lower hold. Then he clawed his -way toward daylight. - -Dan no longer cared whether the wreckers saw him or not. No danger -could have forced him down into the hold of the ship again. It was -a place filled with horrors. When he came out into the sunshine and -wind it was a kindly chance which made him lie down in a corner of the -deck that was screened from sight of the wreckers' schooners. Dan had -forgotten all about them. He had come to the end of his rope, and all -he could think of was, "I want to go home. I want to go home." - -"Black Sam" Hurley was impatiently awaiting the explosion which should -tear a gap in the _Kenilworth's_ side and allow his greedy wreckers to -begin operations. Ten, fifteen, twenty minutes passed, and there was a -great hubbub on board the Bahama schooners tossing at a safe distance -from the steamer. At the end of half an hour "Black Sam" ordered a -boat away and the crew crowded in pell-mell. They boarded the lee side -of the _Kenilworth_ with the agility of monkeys and their bare feet -slapped the deck as they ran to the hatch. - -Dan heard them and realized that he must try to find a resting-place -where they would not discover him upon their return from below. He -might perhaps be unseen if he took refuge on the bridge which the -wreckers were not likely to ransack until later. He managed to drag -his aching, weary body forward and laid down on the mattress behind -the canvas weather screen. After a few minutes he heard the wreckers -come boiling out of the hold with cries of amazement, anger, and fear. -They had expected to find a faulty fuse, but fuse, powder, and all -had vanished. Some of them swore the ship was haunted and refused to -have anything to do with fetching another sack of powder. Their leader -bellowed and threatened, but he could not quell the riot. At last he -yelled that he would lay the second charge himself and stay aboard if -he blew up with it. Scoffing at the idea of ghostly interference, he -ordered his men to search the ship. - -These plans were suddenly knocked all askew. Shouting arose on board -the schooners whose crews were waving their arms toward the north. The -wreckers on the steamer rushed to the side and discovered the cause -of alarm. The funnel and upper works of a tug were lifting from the -sea, beneath a trailing banner of smoke. Dan had been watching the -scene on deck with absorbed attention, and as he looked seaward and -caught sight of the tug his heart stood still. He squinted through -the glasses. There were two white bands around the funnel. Could it -be the _Three Sisters_ of Jacksonville, the big wrecking tug of which -Captain Jim's cousin was master? The streaked smoke-stack and the -stubby derrick-masts--the drab wheel-house--yes, these were things -which Dan remembered noticing when the tug was in Key West. And Captain -Jim must be in her. She was hurrying to find out what had become of the -_Kenilworth_. "Perhaps they are looking for me," thought Dan. "And I'm -still wrecking master if 'Black Sam' doesn't see me first." - -The Bahama wreckers were very busy with their own affairs. The sight -of the on-coming tug had altered their campaign in a twinkling. "Black -Sam" was now determined to keep possession of the wreck at all hazards, -acting on the theory that he was the wrecking master by the law of the -Reef. He told his men to stay where they were and slid down the side of -the steamer to pull off to the schooners and muster reinforcements. A -score of stalwart negroes rallied to his summons and tumbled into their -boats. - -A picturesque and piratical looking force they were as they scrambled -over the _Kenilworth's_ bulwarks and scattered along her sea-scarred -decks. "Black Sam" showed his teeth in a snarl as he yelled to them: - -"Dey ain't gwine be no argifying 'bout dis yere wreck. We'se heah an' -we stay heah. If dem tow-boat folks tries to come aboard, keep 'em busy -wid dem belaying-pins yondah an' yo' knives--yo' heah me?" - -The _Three Sisters_ was rapidly nearing the scene. From his ambush Dan -watched her with yearning, happy eyes. He was not yet out of trouble, -but Captain Jim would somehow rescue him in the nick of time. He saw -the powerful tug sweep around to leeward of the Bahama schooners -and slow down as if her people were trying to fathom the situation. -Captain Jim Wetherly was standing by the wheel-house door, shading his -eyes with his hand. Dan wanted to call to him, but he dared not show -himself. The tug crept nearer, and Dan rejoiced to discover that most -of the _Resolute's_ crew were clustered along the lower deck, including -the portly chief engineer, Bill McKnight, who loomed like a whale among -minnows. - -Presently Captain Jim sung out: - -"What are you Bahama niggers doing aboard that steamer? She belongs to -me. I had hold of her once and am in charge of wrecking her. Clear out -before I put my men aboard." - -A row of black heads bobbed in violent agitation along the -_Kenilworth's_ bulwarks, and "Black Sam" Hurley shouted back with a -loud laugh: - -"Go back home, white man. We foun' dis yere wreck 'bandoned. I'se -wreckin' marster--yo' heah me? If you all wants her, come aboard an' -take her." - -Dan saw Bill McKnight waddle aft in great haste, dive into his room, -and beckon to a _Resolute_ deck-hand. Presently the two reappeared -dragging a long, heavy box which the engineer began to break open with -furious blows of a hatchet. - -"It's the case of Mauser rifles Bill stowed away from the last -filibustering cargo he ran over to Cuba," murmured Dan. "He said -he was saving 'em to start another revolution with. Hooray! hooray! -there'll be something doing." - -Bill McKnight was passing the rifles out to the eager crew of the -_Resolute_ who looked as if they were about to earn their passage -aboard the _Three Sisters_. Captain Jim made one jump from the upper -deck, without delaying to find the stairway, and caught up a rifle and -a handful of cartridges. Once more he shouted to the wreckers on the -_Kenilworth_: - -"If you want trouble we'll give you plenty. Are you coming off?" - -"We ain't scared by dem guns," yelled "Black Sam." "You ain't got no -rights in dis vessel. You all don't dare to do no shootin'." - -"I've got the underwriter's agent aboard this tug, and he knows the -facts," returned Captain Jim. "You are pirates and I intend to have no -monkey-business. I know all about you, Sam Hurley." - -"Show yo' claim on dis wreck. We'se heah. You ain't," replied the negro. - -Dan could hold in no longer. He poked his head above the canvas screen -of the bridge, waved both arms over his head, and yelled at the top of -his voice: - -"You bet we're here, Uncle Jim. And I'm wrecking master and it is your -job." - -The men on the _Three Sisters_ dropped their rifles and stared in -silence, with mouths agape. It was a voice and a vision from the dead. -"Black Sam" and his wreckers stood poised in their various threatening -attitudes as if petrified. It was a strange tableau. If Dan had -hopped off a passing cloud he could not have caused a more breathless -sensation. The spell which his appearance cast on all who beheld him -was broken by the jubilant voice of Captain Jim: - -"It's Dan Frazier sure enough. Thank God you're alive and kicking, boy. -Captain Bruce reported you drowned, and nobody's dared to tell your -mother till I could get out to the wreck. Hold your nerve. We're coming -after you." - -The words awoke "Black Sam" Hurley to swift action. He was beside -himself with rage at the boy on the steamer's bridge who had spoiled -the explosion and then made a jest of his claims as wrecking-master. -The desperate negro had only one idea in his head--to square matters -by getting his hands on Dan. He ran toward the bridge with several of -his men at his heels, and Dan hastily climbed on the rail ready to jump -overboard as the only way of escape. But before the wreckers had gained -his refuge, he heard Captain Jim cry: - -"Hold on, Dan. Don't jump. Duck and lie flat where you are." - -The boy flopped full length on the bridge an instant before several -rifles barked on the _Three Sisters_ and bullets came singing over the -_Kenilworth_. The wreckers halted, huddled in confusion, and ran for -the shelter of the nearest deck-house. "Black Sam" delayed to hurl an -iron belaying-pin at Dan's head and paid dearly for the act. It was -Bill McKnight who drove a bullet through his arm and made him fly for -cover with blood trickling from his fingers. Then the clarion tones of -the fat chief engineer sounded across the water as if he had taken full -command of the expedition: - -"Half a dozen of you men stay here to sweep the _Kenilworth's_ bulwarks -with your guns and give us a chance to climb over. The rest follow me -to board her. _A la machete!_ Out cutlasses. _Viva Cuba!_ Hip, hip, -hooroo!" - -Two boats were fairly thrown into the water from the _Three Sisters_ -and the cheering _Resolutes_ fell into them, grabbing capstan bars -and coal shovels, or clubbing their rifles. The Bahama wreckers had -no intention of being driven from their prize without making a fight -for it. Several of them pulled revolvers from inside their shirts and -popped wildly away at the approaching boats while "Black Sam" led a -crowd of his followers behind the tall bulwark where they crouched, -sheltered from rifle fire, and ready to receive the boarders as they -came over the side. Captain Jim was in the bow of one boat, the chief -engineer in the other. The wreckers had been unable to cut away the -dangling boat ropes and bowlines by which they had climbed on board, -and the attacking party ascended like so many acrobats. Bill McKnight -was boosted and hauled part way, but as soon as he found a secure -purchase for his fingers and toes, he dove over the bulwark like a -landslide and pranced into action like a cyclone. - -It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the prosaic -twentieth century. The _Resolutes_ suffered some cracked heads and -bloody faces before they gained foothold and swept forward. Try as -he would, Captain Jim could not keep the terrific pace set by Bill -McKnight who was swinging his rifle like a flail and clearing a wide -path while he grunted maledictions at the foe. - -[Illustration: It was a pretty bit of old-fashioned boarding for the -prosaic twentieth century] - -"You're blockin' my way, you google-eyed thief. _Bing!_ there's one on -the cocoanut," he panted with a cheerful grin as he smote a stalwart -wrecker and sent him spinning. - -"We're a-coming, Dan. Keep your reserved seat," he bellowed to the -bridge as he wiped the sweat from his eyes. "Black Sam's" men could not -withstand the determined and disciplined onslaught and began to leap -overboard, _plop! plop!_ into the green sea over which the boats from -their schooners were racing to pick them up. Only their leader stayed -behind, sullenly nursing his wounded arm. Captain Jim halted long -enough to tell him: - -"My men will take you aboard the tug and patch you up from my medicine -chest. Then you'd better make sail for home. The Reef isn't healthy -for your breed of Nassau wreckers. Better pass the word among your -friends." - -Then Captain Jim ran to the bridge, but Bill McKnight was already -hugging Dan and fairly blubbering over him. The boy was too weak to -struggle out of this crushing embrace, but he waggled a free hand to -Captain Jim and stammered: - -"W-wow, ouch. Glad to see you aboard." - -"Glad to see us aboard, you rascal," laughed his uncle as he yanked the -engineer away and thumped Dan on the back. "_Well_, we're tickled to -death to see _you_ aboard. How in the--, of all the-- Whew, what are -you doing here anyhow, Dan?" - -His nephew made a brave attempt to answer him. Now was the time to play -the hero, to tell how he had stuck to the ship and saved her. But Dan -Frazier was no hero. He was just a stout-hearted lad who had weathered -one cruel ordeal after another with the Almighty's aid, and he had -hung on to himself as long as he could. Now there was no more call for -courage. He was safe and the ship had been restored to Uncle Jim. Tears -streamed down Dan's face and he swayed against Bill McKnight who put a -steadying arm around him. - -"I--I'm just tired out, I--I guess," he sobbed. "Please take me home, -Uncle Jim. I--I want my mother." - -Bill McKnight coughed and wiped his eyes as he lifted Dan's feet clear -of the deck, while Captain Jim lent his sturdy arms to the task of -carrying the boy to the ship's side and lowering him into a boat. -They got him aboard the _Three Sisters_ without mishap, took off his -tattered, grimy clothing, and tucked him in the captain's bunk. - -"The boy is bruised and scratched from head to foot," said the master -of the tug, Captain Jim's cousin. "We'd better sponge him down with hot -water and arnica. He must have had a tougher time of it than most grown -men could live through, Jim. See here, these are fresh burns on his -hands. Now, where did he get those?" - -"The Lord only knows," said Captain Jim as he patted Dan's flushed -cheek. "Don't pester him with questions now. He's got some fever and -his eyes look bad to me. I'm going to leave McKnight on the wreck with -some of my men to stand off any other kinky-headed pirates that may -light on the Reef. And we're going to take this boy home to his mother -as fast as you can poke this old hooker of yours into Key West." - -Dan opened his eyes and smiled at Captain Jim who motioned him to be -quiet. But Dan was already restless with fever and he had a hundred -things to talk about if they would only stop whirling around in his -head long enough to be laid hold of. He looked at his scorched fingers -which were pecking at a corner of the blanket and said in a voice so -weak that it sounded foolish to him: - -"They tried to blow her up--to blow Jerry Pringle up--no, I don't mean -that. It was 'Black Sam' Hurley--he lit the fuse, Uncle Jim--and I put -it out--all alone down in the hold. You never saw such big rats--with -sacks of powder tied to their tails--and eyes like sparks." - -Captain Jim soothed Dan as best he could and whispered to his cousin: - -"Did you get that? It's all true, I reckon. That's an old trick of the -Bahama wrecking gangs. Ask Mr. Prentice to come in. The underwriters -ought to be interested in the boy." - -Mr. Prentice, the Florida agent of the English marine insurance -companies, was a sharp-featured, elderly gentleman of few words. He had -a great deal of confidence in Captain Wetherly's ability to handle such -a bad business as a costly steamer high and dry on the Reef, but he was -not prepared to hear such an astonishing tale as was whispered to him -in the doorway of the captain's state-room. - -"Mind you, we don't know a quarter of it yet," added Captain Jim. "But -it looks as if you'll have to thank Dan Frazier, not me, for saving the -steamer out yonder." - -"U-m-m. Bless me, but it's most extraordinary," murmured Mr. Prentice. -"I must go aboard at once and look for confirmation. It's a very -unusual wreck, Captain Wetherly," and the underwriter's agent shot a -keen glance from under his gray brows. "I shall be much interested in -getting Captain Bruce's version. Jeremiah Pringle was off here, also, -the night the _Kenilworth_ went ashore, was he not? I understand you -were in collision with him next day." - -Mr. Prentice had slightly raised his voice. It carried to Dan's ears -and he raised himself on his elbow and cried out in excitement: - -"We'll pull her off, Uncle Jim, and Barton won't know. And his mother -won't know. Don't let them know. The captain is sorry. We can handle it -all by ourselves." - -"The lad is off his head, and no wonder," said Captain Jim, addressing -the keen-eyed underwriter's agent. "Come outside, if you please." - -"What are you holding back?" asked Mr. Prentice severely as they moved -away from the door. "I intend to get to the bottom of this, you know. -There is some mystery about it that is eating that lad's heart out." - -"I haven't time to talk," was the reply. "But I'm going to get that -ship off for you, thanks to the boy in there. And if we _are_ holding -anything back, it will have to stay hid and hawsers couldn't pull it -out of me." - -He went aft to meet Bill McKnight who had come over from the -_Kenilworth_ to get his orders. - -"How's the boy?" anxiously asked the engineer. - -"Pretty sick, I'm afraid, Bill. But home will cure him if anything -will. He's talking wild and saying too much." - -Captain Jim jerked his thumb over his shoulder at Mr. Prentice and -went on, "It's the mysterious ways of Providence, Bill. Captain Bruce -gave the dirty business away when he was queer in his head aboard the -_Resolute_ at Pensacola, and Dan has put that gimlet-eyed agent on the -track by going daffy here. You can peek in at the boy, and then you -hustle your dunnage and pick your men and go to the _Kenilworth_. I'll -be back to-morrow, and more tugs and lighters will be on the way. Take -Mr. Prentice along with you. Good luck." - -The engineer tiptoed into Dan's room and laid his rough hand on the -pillow. He looked down in silence while his gray moustache quivered -as if strong emotion was held in check. Then he lumbered on deck and -prepared to quit the tug. A few minutes later the "jingle bell" rang -boisterously and its clamor was borne to Dan. He smiled at Captain Jim -and murmured: - -"Full speed ahead! And mother will come down to the wharf when she -hears our whistle off the red buoy." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -A FOG OF SUSPICIONS - - -It was not until a fortnight after Dan Frazier had been taken home to -Key West that he was allowed to leave his room and lounge in a wicker -chair on the cottage porch. His face and hands were thinner and the sea -tan could not hide the pallor caused by fever, but he looked at the -glad, green world with bright eyes and clamored for food like a young -cormorant. His mother, who fluttered about him with fond anxiety, had -tried to banish all mention of the _Kenilworth_, but now that he was -able to be outdoors he fairly bullied her with questions which had been -disturbing his days and nights of illness. - -"I am sure Barton is as fond of you as ever," said she. "He may have -been angry at first, but he has been here to ask about you almost every -day. He told me you had nothing to do with his father's tug being cut -in two by brother Jim, but he said you hooted at him when it happened. -That wasn't like my Dan." - -Her son tried to look repentant, but his eyes twinkled and he grinned -as he replied: - -"It wasn't nice of Bart to laugh at me while his cantankerous old -daddy's tug was keeping the _Resolute_ away from the wreck. How did -Bart explain the smash-up?" - -"He as much as said that Jim Wetherly behaved like a pirate and a -lunatic, though of course Barton is too polite to put it in so many -words," confessed Mrs. Frazier with a sigh. "It has made a lot of talk -in Key West. Mr. Pringle swears he is going to take it into court. He -declares he had made a contract with the captain of the _Kenilworth_ -when along came Jim and rammed him to get the job away from him." - -"Made a contract with the _Kenilworth_! I should say Jerry Pringle -did," snorted Dan with rising color. "He made his rotten contract in -Pensacola, months before the ship was wrecked. He didn't get half -what's coming to him. I wish Uncle Jim had sunk the _Henry Foster_. -What else has happened?" - -"Captain Bruce has called twice to see you. And since meeting him I am -more skeptical than ever about your conspiracy story, Dan." - -"Captain Bruce been here? So you like him, too, do you?" exclaimed Dan. -"Were all hands saved from the wreck?" - -"They got away from the ship in their boats at daylight," answered Mrs. -Frazier. "Captain Bruce had some ribs broken by being dashed against -the side, and two boats were swamped. But they reached the keys with -all hands and were picked up a day later by a sponger and brought down -the Hawk Channel to Key West. Captain Bruce was broken-hearted over -losing you, and when he heard you were still alive he insisted on -leaving the hospital and coming up here, broken ribs and all. He seems -very moody and depressed. I suppose he is unhappy about losing his -ship." - -"He is thinking about several things, I reckon," said Dan. "That ship -has made everybody unhappy. She is loaded with trouble. Captain Bruce -is sorry he ever clapped eyes on Jerry Pringle for one thing. And he -hates himself even worse for not sticking to his vessel. And he quit -her and left me on board to come through the gale all right with the -ship still under me. What is he planning to do now?" - -"Wait, and take the _Kenilworth_ again if she is floated," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "He is going up to the Reef as soon as the doctor will let -him." - -She walked to the end of the porch and brushed aside the tangle of -vines which partly screened her view of the street. Then she turned and -said to Dan: - -"Here comes Mr. Prentice and I think he intends to call here. What a -very stiff and formal looking person he is!" - -The underwriters' agent opened the gate with a courtly bow to Mrs. -Frazier. His greetings were most polite, but he lost no time in coming -to the point. Mrs. Frazier was about to withdraw, but Dan spoke up -sharply: - -"If it's about the _Kenilworth_, Mr. Prentice, I want my mother to -stay. I keep no secrets from her." - -Mr. Prentice bowed gravely and seated himself facing Dan, who could not -help feeling that this elderly gentleman was unfriendly to him. The -underwriters' agent opened fire without further warning: - -"I am pleased to note your rapid recovery from a very trying -experience, Mr. Frazier. As you may know, I represent English insurance -interests which wrote a total of a hundred thousand pounds sterling -on the _Kenilworth_ and her cargo. If the efforts to float the vessel -prove successful, the loss may be comparatively small." - -Mr. Prentice adjusted his glasses, cleared his throat, and resumed with -emphatic earnestness: - -"You hinted at having prevented a disastrous explosion in the steamer's -hold, Mr. Frazier. You may not recall the words you used. It was after -you were taken on board the tug _Three Sisters_. I have made the most -thorough examination of the _Kenilworth_ and failed to find any traces -of explosives." - -"If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you won't get very -far," hotly cried Dan. "Do you think I cooked up that yarn to get -a reward out of the insurance companies? Did you fish in the water -amidships for a sack of powder? Wait till the ship is pumped out and -I'll find it for you fast enough." - -[Illustration: "If you are going to call me a liar at the start, you -won't get very far!"] - -Mrs. Frazier laid her hand on the lad's shoulder, whispered in his -ear, and he sank sulkily back in his chair while the unruffled Mr. -Prentice asked: - -"Why did you dump the powder down the hatch instead of letting it stay -where it was as evidence of the dastardly attempt of the wreckers?" - -"I didn't know what I was doing," exclaimed Dan in a flare of -impatience. "I was scared clean out of my wits. I was afraid to turn my -back on that bag of powder. Maybe you wouldn't have been as cool as an -ice-chest, either, and thinking about _evidence_. What the dickens are -you driving at anyhow?" - -"I will drop this matter for the present," said Mr. Prentice, fishing -out a small note-book as if to confirm his recollection before he -declared: - -"I heard you say on board the _Three Sisters_, '_Don't let them know. -Keep it dark. We can handle it all by ourselves. The captain is sorry -he did it._' What did you mean, Mr. Frazier? This wreck is to be -investigated. I am already convinced that certain persons on board -the tug _Resolute_ had advance information of the intended loss of -the _Kenilworth_. Your tug had steam up and her crew on board for -several days before the disaster. Captain Wetherly started for sea in -a tremendous hurry after getting a cable message that the _Kenilworth_ -had passed Jupiter Light. I have copies of the message he sent asking -for this information and the reply from the Government signal station. -Then, as if to prevent interference with a bargain made in advance, -Captain Wetherly deliberately cut down and disabled the tug _Henry -Foster_. I believe you know the truth. What did you mean by '_Don't let -them know? Keep it dark?_'" - -Dan looked bewildered for a moment and stared at Mr. Prentice who -seemed to be talking the sheerest nonsense. Then, as the meaning of -these suspicions filtered into the boy's mind, his face became red -with wrath and astonishment. His world was turning topsy-turvy. The -underwriters' agent was actually accusing Captain Jim Wetherly and the -_Resolute_ of the wicked deed which they had been trying to mend--of -plotting to put the _Kenilworth_ on the Reef! Why, this was like one of -the dreams of Dan's weeks of fever. At length he pulled himself to his -feet and fairly shouted: - -"I know who started this crazy story of yours, Mr. Prentice. Jerry -Pringle mu st be at the bottom of it. Do you mean to say you have -listened to such infernal lies about a man like Captain Jim Wetherly? -You didn't understand what I was talking about on board the _Three -Sisters_. And do you think _we_ had anything to do with the stranding -of Captain Bruce's steamer? Do you want to know the truth? I'll tell -you the truth--No, I won't. Captain Jim is my skipper and I must take -my orders from him. He told me to keep my mouth shut, and I can't say -anything until he gives me the word." - -Mrs. Frazier was wringing her hands as she stood between Mr. Prentice -and Dan, as if trying to shield her boy from harm. "Dan must not talk -to you another minute," she exclaimed indignantly. "He is all of a -tremble now. It is cruel of you to torment and bully him, Mr. Prentice." - -The underwriters' agent apologized and tried to explain his errand in -more detail. - -"I like your boy, Mrs. Frazier. He is a manly fellow. I am inclined -to believe that he is prompted by good motives. He is loyal to -Captain Wetherly and the _Resolute_, which is quite natural. But this -_Kenilworth_ affair looks like a bad business from start to finish. -Something was in the wind before the steamer went ashore, and it is my -duty to get at the facts without sparing any one's feelings. I want Dan -to think it over and I shall have another talk with him when he feels a -bit stronger." - -"Why don't you tackle Captain Bruce and make him tell what he knows?" -burst out Dan. "What does he say about it?" - -"The case of Captain Bruce will be disposed of in London," answered Mr. -Prentice; "but the evidence must be gathered in Key West." - -He reluctantly took his departure and, as his tall, spare figure -moved down the street, Dan followed Mrs. Frazier into the cottage and -declared: - -"This notion of fighting to keep disgrace and exposure away from Bart -Pringle and his mother has gone about far enough. Do you suppose I am -going to have you dragged into it, all because Jerry Pringle is smart -enough to cover up his tracks and shift the suspicion to Uncle Jim? Not -in a thousand years. Uncle Jim will have to come to Key West and clear -himself somehow." - -A heavy footfall sounded on the porch and the spoon on Dan's medicine -glass jingled as the ponderous presence of Bill McKnight filled the -outside doorway while he raised his big voice in "Ship, ahoy? Is Dan -aboard?" - -"The very man I want to see. Come in," called Dan. "He won't excite me, -mother, he'll be just like a hogshead of soothing syrup." - -The chief engineer advanced cautiously, as if not quite certain how to -handle himself in a sickroom, and whispered hoarsely: - -"Keep perfectly cool and calm, my boy. We'll say nothing at all about -wrecks, riots, and revolutions, will we, Mrs. Frazier? Birds and -flowers and how's the weather, eh? They're the topics." - -"Oh, shucks," was Dan's rude comment. "I want to know all about -everything, don't I, mother? Where is the _Resolute_? What's the news -from Captain Jim?" - -Mr. McKnight turned to Dan's mother and waited for orders. She nodded -her assent, and the visitor set himself down in a chair which creaked -and groaned. Then he extracted a package from his white duck coat and -removed the paper wrapping. A glass jar was revealed which Mr. McKnight -placed on the table with the explanation: - -"Calf's-foot jelly, ma'am. I had to cable for it. There's a poor crop -of calves in Key West. I've never been sick myself, except when I got -my head busted, or broke an arm or leg, or got shot up. But we fished -a box of books out of an English wreck one time, and they were mostly -novels. We dried 'em out in the engine-room and all hands read 'em. And -whenever anybody in them yarns took sick, I'm blessed if the vicar's -wife, or the squire's daughter, or the young ladies next door, didn't -trot in with this here calf's-foot jelly. They used tons of it in every -novel, ma'am. I reckon it'll put Dan on his pins." - -The chief engineer wiped his face and fixed a pair of spectacles on his -ruddy nose, after which he gazed searchingly at Dan as if to satisfy -himself that the boy was all there. Bashfully waving his paw as if to -ward off Mrs. Frazier's laughing thanks, he went on to say: - -"The _Resolute_ is almost ready for sea and your berth is waiting for -you, Dan. Captain Jim jerked the life out of her when he fetched away -the towing-bitts. She was most as sad a sight as the _Henry Foster_. -I've just come down from the Reef to see that the repairs are all -ship-shape and run her to sea in three or four days." - -"Can't I go in her, mother?" begged Dan. "I won't do any work. Tell the -doctor the air will do me good. I've simply got to see the wreck. How -about it, Mr. McKnight? Is she really going to come off?" - -"You'd think so, if she brings a chunk of the Reef along with her," -chuckled the engineer. "Captain Jim has built two coffer-dams in her, -where her bottom was ripped out. He'll begin to pump 'em out next week. -That will lift the bulk of the water out of her. And the wrecking pumps -can handle the rest of the leaks. He's a terrible man is Captain Jim, -when he gets a full head of steam in his boilers. He's patching up -the bulkheads, lightering the cargo, got a force of mechanics in the -engine-room, and so on till she hums like a beehive. Good weather, -Reef like a mill-pond, and two chartered tugs waiting to hook on to -her, not to mention the _Resolute_." - -"That beats doctors and calf's-foot jelly for putting me on my toes -again," was Dan's jubilant comment. "Have you heard anything ashore -here about her going on the Reef?" - -Mrs. Frazier tried to head off this agitating topic, but Mr. McKnight -failed to comprehend her manoeuvres and briskly replied: - -"No, I just come away from the Reef and hustled straight up here from -looking over the _Resolute_. There's nothing leaked out, has there? I'd -like to see somebody punished, you understand, but Captain Jim told me -to shut up and stay shut up." - -"Well, _we_ are accused of putting up the _Kenilworth_ job," exclaimed -Dan. "Don't mind mother. She's one of us. If you're going to have a -fit, please go outside. This house isn't big enough." - -Mr. McKnight was too taken aback to display any violent emotion. He -wiped his spectacles with great care, as if they had something to do -with his hearing, and asked Dan to "say it again, and say it slower." -Dan told him all about the visit of the underwriters' agent, whereupon -Mr. McKnight raised both hands and exclaimed: - -"Hold on, boy. It all sounds plumb raving crazy to you, but there may -be a heap more in it than you think. Who knew Jerry Pringle was aboard -the _Resolute_ that night in Pensacola harbor? You and me and Captain -Jim, and the cook and galley boy. The rest of the crew was ashore or -down below. Did you know that the cook and the galley boy quit the -_Resolute_ last week and went up the Gulf to ship on a Central American -fruiter? They may be mighty hard to find if Jerry Pringle had anything -to do with getting them out of the way. Where are our witnesses, eh? -And you tell me old man Prentice has copies of the cable messages that -prove Captain Jim was waiting for the _Kenilworth_? They may be mighty -hard to explain." - -"How about Captain Bruce?" asked Dan with a very sober face. "He is the -only man that can clear it all up in a jiffy." - -"I can't quite fathom him, Dan. Sometimes I think he only needs a good -strong shove to make him own up to it all and take his medicine like a -man. But supposing Pringle offers him the ten thousand dollars anyhow -to saddle the job on us _Resolutes_? It's worth that to Jerry to save -his own skin." - -"Captain Jim must get after Captain Bruce and make him tell the truth -if he has to choke it out of him," cried Dan in great excitement. "As -soon as we pull the _Kenilworth_ off the Reef there is going to be a -fight to a finish." - -"You ain't quite fit for wrecking or fighting, and your mother will -scold me directly for getting your bearings hot," quoth Mr. McKnight. -"You just sit tight and maybe you can go up to the Reef in the -_Resolute_ with me." - -With this the chief engineer departed under full steam, evidently -afraid of facing Dan's mother. The patient suffered no relapse, -however, and felt so much stronger next day that Mrs. Frazier suggested -a walk as far as the parade-ground of the artillery barracks, hoping -to give him a respite from any more disturbing visitors. They strolled -slowly through quaint crooked streets of the sea-girt town, into the -shaded plaza of the garrison which faced an expanse of green lagoon -and low mangrove-covered keys. A wharf ran out from the seawall in -front of them and they walked idly toward it to look at the schooners -beating up to the town. - -Dan delayed to watch a distant sail which was scudding in from one of -the near-by keys. Presently he called out: - -"Don't wait for me, mother. That's the _Sombrero_ yonder, and she will -pass within hail of the wharf. I'm going out there and catch Bart -Pringle as he scoots by." - -The boys had not met since Dan's return from the Reef, and Dan was a -trifle surprised that Bart had let the last three days pass without -calling to see him. "I want to beg his pardon for laughing at him when -the _Henry Foster_ was stood on her ear," reflected Dan as he walked -toward the end of the wharf. "We have a pack of things to talk about, -and I must be awful careful not to say a word against his father. But -there's due to be a rumpus before long." - -The _Sombrero_ tore past with a free sheet, fluttered into the wind, -and slid gracefully up to the wharf. Dan jumped onto the bowsprit and -footed it aft with a cheery greeting to Bart who was busy with sheets -and tiller. - -"Hello, Dan. Glad you feel so spry. Want to run down to the fort and -back?" said Bart without his usual smile. His manner was so glum, in -fact, that Dan spoke up rather sharply: - -"What in the world has happened to you? Has the _Sombrero_ been beaten -while I was laid up? My goodness, I thought you'd be glad to see me." - -Bart rubbed his head, scowled at the main-sail, and sighed before he -responded with an effort: - -"I've got to tell you, Dan. Mind you, I don't take any stock in it, but -I hate myself for letting it worry me. It's about the _Kenilworth_. -It's too tough to repeat, really it is, but you ought to have a chance -to come out and nail it as a lie. They say Captain Jim Wetherly knew -she was going on the Reef, and that you knew it, too. I wish----" - -"And you listened to such stuff?" Dan fiercely broke in. "Who told it -to you?" - -"Mr. Prentice asked me a lot of questions and I couldn't help seeing -what he was trying to prove, Dan. I asked my father about it and he -seemed to think things looked pretty black for Captain Jim. And father -is mighty seldom fooled about anything that goes on along the Reef. I -want to tell him that you say it's all foolishness. He would be mighty -glad to have it cleared up all right for Captain Jim Wetherly. And he -knows how chummy I am with you." - -"Y-you asked your f-father about it?" stuttered Dan and his eyes were -blazing. "Bart Pringle, you make my head dizzy. Look here, I'll tell -you one thing that's straight goods. I wouldn't believe _you_ were -guilty of a murder, not if they had a million witnesses, unless I saw -you do it with my own two eyes. And as for the _Kenilworth_, whether -Captain Bruce meant to put her on the Reef or not, Captain Jim Wetherly -had nothing to do with it. And that's all I can tell you. Of course -that lets me out." - -Dan's heart was sore that his chum's loyalty should have been shaken in -the slightest degree, but he tried to be fair, and added in a milder -tone: - -"Mr. Prentice got things all snarled up somehow, but it's sure to come -out right. Maybe I ought not to blame you for being worried, Bart. -Things have been happening mighty fast for all hands concerned." - -By this time Barton was honestly ashamed of himself and could think -of nothing to say but a stammering apology which Dan accepted with a -rather gloomy nod. It was the nearest their friendship had ever come -to a break, and both boys would have preferred an open quarrel to this -cloud of aggrieved misunderstanding. There was little more talk between -them while the sloop crashed into the long seas of the outer roadstead. -After they had put her about and were heading homeward, Dan exclaimed: - -"There's the good old _Resolute_ at her dock, and she is getting up -steam. She must be 'most ready to go to the Reef. Put me alongside, -Bart. I want to look her over. I'll walk home from there." - -As Dan sprang up the deck of the tug he was hailed by the chief -engineer. Leading the way to his state-room, Mr. McKnight picked Dan up -bodily, tossed him on the bunk, locked the door, and spoke as follows: - -"Things are a-popping red-hot, my boy. Captain Jim landed from the -Reef an hour ago. I told him all I knew about his being suspected of -the crooked job, and what does our busy skipper do then? He promptly -lays for Jerry Pringle. Does he beat him to death, same as I figured -on doing sooner or later? No, Captain Jim, as usual, does what you -least expect. He tells Pringle that he needs help on the _Kenilworth_ -wreck. Weather looks unsettled; must lighter more cargo out of her -quicker than blazes; needs all the schooners he can lay his hands on, -and is in a desperate hurry for another tug. Then he up and offers J. -Pringle a contract to take all his vessels up to the _Kenilworth_ and -go along himself as assistant boss on the wreck. Jerry hems and haws, -but Captain Jim looks him square in the eye and tells him to have that -Tampa tug of his ready for sea at daylight to-morrow. And Jerry agrees -as meek as Moses and goes off to find the skipper of his vessels." - -"But why and what for?" exclaimed Dan. "Jerry Pringle working for -Captain Jim on the _Kenilworth_! It's too much for me to fathom." - -"For one thing, Captain Jim needs his help to get the steamer off," -returned Bill McKnight. "There isn't a smarter wrecker on the coast -than this same Pringle. The love of wrecking is in his blood, and -it fairly kills him to be idle with a fine, big ship on the Reef. -Now that his plot to lose the _Kenilworth_ is spoiled, why shouldn't -he win a nice pot of money by helping save her? Then, again, maybe -Captain Jim wants to heap coals on his head till he hollers for a -fire-extinguisher. There is going to be something doing on the Reef, -Dan. Better come along with us. You will be plenty strong enough if you -have eaten up all that calf's-foot jelly I lugged up to you." - -"Where does Captain Bruce come in?" asked Dan. "Will he be on the -_Kenilworth_, too?" - -"He goes up in the _Resolute_ with us, but Jerry Pringle doesn't know -it," answered Mr. McKnight with a solemn wink. "Everybody that has -played a hand in this game is going to round to on the deck of that -unfortunate steamer in a couple of days from now, and I'm a poor -guesser if it don't turn out to be a lively reunion before she comes -off the Reef." - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE BROKEN HAWSER - - -The battered _Kenilworth_ lay heeled far over to one side, looming -forlornly from the Reef in the midst of a smooth and sparkling sea. -Her sides were gray with brine and streaked red with rust, her grimy -decks strewn with a chaotic litter of cargo, timbers, and rigging. -The once trim, seagoing steamer made a most distressful picture as -seen from the _Resolute_ which was bearing down from the direction of -Key West. Captain Bruce was standing in the bows of the tug. Gazing -at his helpless ship, he found it very hard to realize that he had -deliberately placed the _Kenilworth_ in this pitiful plight. - -She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for good and all, -but it was plain to see that the wreckers did not think so. Cargo -was tumbling from her ports into lighters strung alongside, tugs -hovered fussily near-by, and groups of active men toiled at capstans, -derrick-booms, and donkey-engines. - -[Illustration: She looked as if she had laid her bones on the Reef for -good and all] - -"It looks like trying to float her before long," Captain Wetherly sung -down from the wheel-house of the _Resolute_. "Come up here, Captain -Bruce. I want to show you something." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ mounted the ladder with an air of -reluctance, for it hurt him even to talk about the ship. He looked worn -and haggard and he could not rid himself of a great dread lest the -_Kenilworth_ might not be floated after all. - -He was cheered, however, by the buoyant confidence of Captain Jim -Wetherly who exclaimed with a note of mirth in his voice: - -"There's a sight to make you rub your eyes, Captain Bruce. That is -Jerry Pringle's tug from Tampa on the port quarter of the _Kenilworth_. -And there he goes up the side. Hooray! see him chase that gang of his -down the hatch. He is surely shoving the job along for all he's worth. -That's his way when he once buckles down to it." - -"But you were fighting each other alongside my ship not long ago. I -don't understand it," commented Captain Bruce. - -Captain Jim led the other man out of ear-shot of the wheel-house and -told him with a grim smile: - -"Jerry Pringle expected to work on this wreck. You know that even -better than I do. I upset some plans of his, and yours. Now he has to -do the job _my_ way--understand? Do you know that I am suspected of -plotting with you to put this ship on the Reef, Captain Bruce? You -haven't heard it from Mr. Prentice? Um-m; well, you will hear a whole -lot more about it from me before this ship of yours slides off into -deep water." - -The master of the _Kenilworth_ winced at the threatening tone of these -words, and his face was very red as he tried to bluster it out: - -"What rot! That Prentice is a doddering old fool. Talking behind my -back, is he? Of all the wicked, silly nonsense! Well, upon my word!" - -"That will do for you," was Captain Jim's curt reply. "_You_ are going -to clear me. I kept my mouth shut to shield some innocent people, women -and children, friends and kinfolk of mine--do you see? I expect to -give your ship back to you. And you are going to do the square thing -by me. Think it over and think hard." - -Captain Wetherly faced about and left the other gazing with a troubled -frown at the _Kenilworth_. Presently Dan hailed his uncle: - -"Bart Pringle came along with his father, sir. I'd like to go aboard -the wreck and see him if you don't mind, sir." - -"Go ahead, Dan. Last time you two lads met on that deck you bristled -at each other like two terrier pups. But I don't expect to cut his -dad's tow-boat in two this trip, so I reckon you'll be glad to see each -other." - -Dan followed Captain Bruce up the steamer's side and found Barton -dangling his legs from a heap of hatch-covers. - -"Why don't you get busy? I want you to know that I am the real -wrecking master of this vessel," cried Dan as he thumped his friend on -the back with a generous impulse to forgive and forget their recent -misunderstanding. "I never saw a Pringle that was willing to loaf ten -seconds on a wreck. Gracious, look at your father. You can't see him -for dust." - -Mr. Jeremiah Pringle was, indeed, making good his surprising contract -with Captain Jim Wetherly. He viewed a difficult task of wrecking as a -personal battle between the Reef and himself; his brains, brawn, and -courage matched against the perils of the sea. While the boys watched -him drive his crew of hardy wreckers, Bart remarked: - -"I thought father and Captain Jim were red-hot at each other over -the _Henry Foster_ business, didn't you? They must have patched it -up all right, and that's enough to show how silly those stories were -about--about the wreck and Captain Jim. Father wouldn't lend a hand in -a crooked job for any money. I have been feeling meaner than a yellow -pup for ever bothering my head about those rumors that lugged you into -the dirty work, Dan. Will you really forgive me?" - -"I was mean and nasty to you when the _Henry Foster_ was split wide -open, so I reckon we are quits," confessed Dan. "Let's shake hands and -forget it." - -"I'd trust you as I would trust my own father," earnestly exclaimed -Bart. "Right down in my heart I would no more dream of your being -mixed up with a crooked wrecking job than I would think of suspecting -him. That's as strong as I can put it. You won't hold it out against me -any more, will you, honest?" - -Jeremiah Pringle had come out of a forward hold and was making his -way aft along the ship's side to release a fouled guy-rope. The boys -did not see him pass behind them, and as Bart waxed earnest his voice -carried to his father's ears. The stern-visaged wrecker halted and -listened with the most intense interest. He heard his own son say: - -"_I'd trust you as I'd trust my own father.... That's as strong as I -can put it._" - -Jeremiah Pringle had been dealt a blow from a quarter so unexpected -that he was quite staggered. Moving stealthily out of sight of the two -lads, he went about his duty but his mind was painfully active with -emotions which were as novel as they were disturbing. - -It had never before occurred to him that his boy's life was anywhere -linked with his own. He did not intend to set him a bad example, nor -bring disgrace on the name he bore. But now Barton had accused and -condemned him, not by doubting but by believing in him. It was brought -home to him from a clear sky that his son was shaping his own course by -what he believed his father to be. As Jeremiah Pringle sweated through -the long day, he sullenly reflected: - -"I can't argue it out with the fool boy. And what gets under my skin, -too, is the way Dan Frazier has handled himself since that night in -Pensacola. He must have got wind of the _Kenilworth_ job then. I hate -to be under obligations to anybody, and Jim Wetherly and that boy -have been keeping it all back from my boy. Why? So Barton wouldn't be -ashamed of his daddy. That's a cheerful notion to take to bed with me." - -He had begun to feel that it might be unfair to his son's faith in him -to engage in any more shady wrecking operations, and he was nearer -being ashamed of himself than he had been in many years. It seemed as -if Captain Jim Wetherly read his thoughts, for he halted him next day -long enough to say: - -"You have taken hold in great shape. It helps square matters, Jerry. -It is your duty to get this ship off the Reef; you know that. And you -will never be able to look that boy of yours in the eye until the -_Kenilworth_ is towed into port and made ready for sea again." - -Mr. Pringle was in no mood to have his sins or his duty flung in his -teeth, and he retorted savagely: - -"Don't preach at me, Jim Wetherly. I break even with you by helping -you get this vessel afloat. And I won't make you pay for smashing the -_Henry Foster_. That squares all debts between us." - -Meanwhile Dan and Barton had explored the _Kenilworth_ from end to -end, Dan telling at great length the story of his imprisonment among -the cargo in the hold. When he came to the chapter dealing with the -visit of the Bahama wreckers, he hurried Bart to the spot where he had -found the lighted fuse and sack of powder. Alas, even the fragments -of the fuse had been swept away in the task of lightering the cargo. -Dan headed for the nearest hatchway to search for the powder. The -compartment into which he had thrown it was cleared of water, the -debris shovelled out, and the shattered bottom plates covered deep with -cement and timber bracing. - -"Our wreckers didn't find the powder bag, or Captain Jim would have -told me," mourned Dan. "The canvas may have ripped open or rotted where -it fell. You believe it all, don't you, Bart? But that hatchet-faced -old Prentice as much as called me a liar. And I won't be happy till I -can make him take it back. He thinks I was trying to pull his leg with -the explosion yarn. Why, I couldn't have made up a story like that in a -thousand years." - -"Don't you care. Of course it's true. And it was splendid. I am -certainly proud of you," declared Bart who was anxious to make amends -for the rift in their friendship. "You and I will back old Prentice -into a corner first chance we get and make him apologize--won't we?" - -The underwriters' agent came on board two days later and had a long -interview with Captain Jim behind the locked door of the chart-room, -after which Captain Bruce and Jeremiah Pringle were singly summoned for -more mysterious conferences. But no attention was paid to Dan who felt -that he moved in a cloud of suspicion and dismally reflected: - -"Old Prentice has set me down as a liar and won't even give me a -chance to deny it. I wish I could have kept that fuse to hitch to his -coat-tails. I won't save another ship for him,--that's one thing sure." - -At length the day came when Captain Jim Wetherly announced that he -intended pulling on the stranded steamer with all four tugs at high -water in the afternoon. They might not be able to start her, but it was -worth trying, for the spell of fair weather could not be expected to -last much longer. Dan was still grumbling to himself as he went off to -the _Resolute_ which had signalled for all hands to return. - -One by one the tugs got into position for a "long pull, a strong pull, -and a pull all together." Captain Wetherly stayed in the _Kenilworth_ -to direct operations and took his station up in the bows. To Jerry -Pringle was entrusted the important duty of properly making fast the -hawsers from the tugs. It amused Captain Jim to hear him fiercely -shouting orders to the crew of the _Resolute_ who glared at their -former foeman as if they would like to muster a boarding party and -attack him. - -The men in the yawls and on the rolling decks of the tugs worked with -more caution than usual. They did not mind falling overboard or being -upset by an obstreperous hawser as part of the day's work. But the -dumping overboard of damaged cargo, including smashed cases of salt -meats and other provisions, had lured scores of huge sharks which -hovered in the clear, green depths at the edge of the Reef or rushed to -the surface at the splash of box or barrel. All hands breathed easier -when the hawsers had been passed aboard without mishap. - -When all was in readiness to begin the tug-of-war between the tow-boats -and the Reef, Captain Wetherly's nerves were tingling with excitement. -The hour had come to put his faith and his works to the crucial test. -It meant more to him than salvage, for he was also seeking with might -and main to undo a wrong of which this ship had been the victim. - -"The old _Resolute_ will pull her heart out before she quits," he -muttered. "I've given her the hardest berth, for she knows we can't -afford to lose this ship." - -Slowly the tugs forged ahead until they were straining at their -hawsers like a team of well-handled horses, each using every bit of -its strength to the best advantage. Then it was "full speed ahead," -and they buckled down to their task as if no odds were great enough to -daunt them,--_Resolute_, _Three Sisters_, _Fearless_, and _Hercules_. -Soon the rusty, high-sided _Kenilworth_ was veiled in the black clouds -of smoke which drifted from their belching funnels. Captain Jim moved -to leeward to get a clearer view and observed that Jeremiah Pringle -was standing within a few feet of the vibrating steel hawser of the -_Resolute_, where it led in over the bows of the _Kenilworth_. - -"That is a brand-new line, but it isn't healthy to get so near it," he -called out. "That tow-boat of mine has busted them before this, Jerry." - -"Always bragging of those engines of yours. You are as bad as Bill -McKnight," Pringle shouted back. - -He looked down at the ponderous steel cable with a careless laugh. A -moment later Captain Jim forgot his own warning and ran to the side to -shout an urgent order to one of the tugs. He stood for a few seconds -almost on top of the hawser where it led inboard and was about to -retreat to his former station when the huge line twanged with a rasping -note as if its fibres were overstrained. He wasted a precious instant -in looking down to find out what the trouble might be, heard the steel -cable crack and give, tried to flee, and caught his toe in a ring-bolt -screwed to the deck. - -Just then Jerry Pringle lunged forward and knocked Captain Jim flat -with a sweep of his powerful right arm. This deed, done with lightning -speed and rare presence of mind, sufficed to put Captain Jim out of -harm's way, but it used the precious second of time in which Jeremiah -Pringle might have saved himself. - -Before Pringle could drop on deck or leap for shelter, the hawser -snapped in twain with a report like that of a cannon. The ragged -ends whizzed through the air with the speed and destructiveness of -projectiles. One of them crashed against a metal stanchion, cut it -clean in two, and knocked a pile of timber braces in all directions. -These obstacles saved Jerry Pringle from being sliced in twain, but he -was swept up in the flying debris and sent spinning overboard as if he -were a chip caught in a tornado. - -The accident happened with such incredible swiftness that Captain -Wetherly scrambled to his feet and stood blinking at the spot from -which Pringle had vanished as if he were blotted out of existence. -Then, pulling himself together, with a yell of horrified dismay he -rushed to the side of the ship and stared down into the sea which was -seething with the foamy wash from the screws of the nearest tugs. He -saw a black object rise to the surface, drift toward the stern, and -then slowly sink from sight. Running aft where the water was clear, he -caught a glimpse of the body of Jerry Pringle settling toward the white -coral bottom. - -Two of the tugs were hastily manning boats. Captain Jim glanced toward -them and knew their help would come too late. He thought of the sharks -which had been flocking around the ship. They could not have been -driven very far away by the tumult of the tugs. While he wavered, -Captain Jim said to himself: - -"He didn't figure on the odds when he bowled me out of danger before he -tried to save himself. Here goes." - -Springing upon the bulwark, he jumped clear and sped downward with feet -together and arms stretched above his head. It was a thirty-foot drop -to the water and he shot into it as straight and true as a dipsey lead. -His impetus carried him far down into the cool, green sea and, opening -his eyes, he dimly discerned the shadowy form of the man he sought -drifting above him. As Captain Jim rose he grasped the other by the -shirt and struck out with his free arm. Pringle might be dead for all -he knew, but he hung to him like a bull-dog, fighting his way upward to -reach the blessed air and ease his tortured lungs. - -A boat was pulling madly toward the scene, the crew yelling and -splashing to hold the sharks at bay. Most clamorous of the party was -the chief engineer of the _Resolute_ who was roaring with tears in his -eyes: - -"Wow--wow--wow, keep a yellin', boys. It's Captain Jim they're after. -Jerry Pringle's too tough for 'em." - -A black fin skittered past the boat and Bill McKnight blazed away at it -with a rifle which he had caught up on the run. A few more desperate -strokes and they slackened speed and beat the water into foam with the -flat of their oars. A long, sinister shadow slid swiftly under the -boat and the men yelled as they saw it veer toward the stern of the -Kenilworth. But this hastening shark had overrun its prey. Captain Jim -and his burden rose within an oar's length of the yawl and were grasped -by a dozen eager hands before they could be attacked. - -Dan Frazier was not in the boat. He had not recovered his wits until -his comrades had shoved clear of the _Resolute_. He stood as if -paralyzed and watched the rescue. When the two dripping figures were -hauled into the yawl and he saw Captain Jim sit up and shake himself -like a retriever, a wordless prayer of thanksgiving welled from the -depths of his heart. - -Then he saw the boat move toward Jerry Pringle's tug which lay on the -other side of the _Kenilworth_, screened from view of the rescue. Bart -had gone on board this tug earlier in the day, and Dan felt his knees -tremble as he saw the body of Jeremiah Pringle hoisted over the low -bulwark. It seemed an age before the yawl returned to the _Resolute_ -and Captain Jim leaped on deck, followed by the chief engineer. Their -faces were very solemn and they spoke with evident effort: - -"Were--were you too late, Uncle Jim?" stammered Dan. - -"Yes, he must have been dead when he struck the water," slowly returned -Captain Wetherly. "But I'm glad I went after him. He made a brave man's -finish. It's awful tough on Bart, but he is standing up under it like a -thoroughbred. Jerry Pringle staked his life and lost it for me." - -Captain Jim wiped his eyes and coughed. Bill McKnight ventured to say -to Dan: - -"He'd have done the same trick to save one of his own deck-hands. Jerry -Pringle was a brave and ready man, we all know that. It was instinct. -He didn't have time to figure it out. But I reckon God Almighty will -give him plenty of credit and square accounts for whatever he did -wrong. Whew! I can't realize it a little bit." - -"The tug will take him down to Key West right away," said Captain Jim. -"I'm going along with Jerry Pringle on his last voyage. Want to come, -Dan? It will do Bart a whole lot of good to have you as a shipmate -and you can tell him that his father was a man to be proud of. We'll -forget everything that happened before to-day. You come aboard the -_Kenilworth_ with me and I'll leave orders for my men. I'll have to be -back here to-morrow if this steamer is to come off the Reef. I have a -notion that Jerry Pringle was sorry he ever helped to put her on there. -And from watching him lately I believe we couldn't please him any -better than by getting the _Kenilworth_ off and mending the wrong he -planned to do." - -As they boarded the _Kenilworth_ Captain Bruce met them and asked in a -voice hoarse with emotion: - -"They tell me he has slipped his cable. If my ship had not stranded it -would not have happened." - -"What are you going to do about it? Let _me_ be accused of helping -to wreck your steamer?" sternly replied Captain Wetherly. "Jeremiah -Pringle has squared his accounts and made _his_ record clean. But how -about you?" - - - - -CHAPTER X - -DAN'S DREAMS COME TRUE - - -The first pull on the stranded steamer had been halted by the tragedy -of Jeremiah Pringle's heroic death. As soon as possible Captain Jim -Wetherly hastened back from Key West to the Reef and Dan rejoined his -shipmates in the _Resolute_. They were very loth to leave the widow -and the son of the wrecking-master who, with all his faults, had died -as he had lived, unflinching in the face of the perils of the sea. But -Duty sounded a trumpet-call to save the _Kenilworth_, and with flags at -half-mast the tireless tugs again hovered about her under the vigilant -direction of Captain Wetherly. - -Meanwhile the wreckers had been toiling in night and day shifts, taking -out more cargo. When at length the tugs were summoned for another -titanic tussle, every man felt that the supreme moment was at hand. It -was now or never. Captain Wetherly voiced the feelings of all with -passionate energy: - -"She has _got_ to go. That's all there is to it." - -The tugs had been pulling a scant hour when Captain Jim felt the keel -of the _Kenilworth_ grind on the coral bottom. It was no more than a -slight shock which made the ship tremble as if she felt a thrill of -returning life and freedom. Then she hung fast for a long time, moved -again, and perceptibly righted herself. Another interval of futile -effort, and at last the steamer slid forward with a dull, harsh roar as -her broken keel ripped through the coral and ploughed slowly down the -sloping shelf into the deep water on the landward side of the Reef. - -The frantic tugs behaved as if they could not believe the _Kenilworth_ -was actually afloat. They refused to stop pulling with might and main -until their prize was trailing after them down the fairway of the Hawk -Channel. Their whistles bellowed jubilation while Captain Jim signalled -the _Resolute_: - -"Keep her going for Key West." - -The panting tugs led the sluggish, battered steamer out through the -nearest gap in the Reef, and she rolled solemnly in the swells of -the open sea where she belonged. Captain Bruce was pacing the bridge -of his ship, nervous, absorbed in his own thoughts, and oblivious of -the general rejoicing. Above the stern of the _Kenilworth_ the British -ensign still flew at half-mast and served to recall a tragedy which -Captain Bruce wanted to forget. His partnership with Jerry Pringle -had been ill-fated from the start. In a flash of splendid manliness -Pringle had given his life to save the man who had smashed the evil -partnership. And was he, Malcolm Bruce, ship-master, willing to let -this Jim Wetherly stand accused of the crime planned in Pensacola -harbor? No, he had not come to such depths of degradation as this. -He had fought it out with himself and he was ready to take the -consequences. Dan Frazier came on board the _Kenilworth_ for orders -when the tugs slackened way to shift their hawsers, and Captain Bruce -beckoned him to a corner of the bridge where Captain Wetherly was -standing. The haggard ship-master placed his hand on the lad's shoulder -as he began to speak: - -"I want Dan to hear what I have to say, Captain Wetherly. He came -aboard my ship when she went on the Reef and refused to believe the -worst of me, though he knew it all the time. I abandoned the ship and -left him on board instead of sticking by her as I honestly intended to -do. But I see now that my will had been undermined. There was a rotten -spot in my heart." - -"You didn't mean to abandon me, sir," spoke up Dan. "I never held that -against you." - -"I am glad you have a decent word for me," replied Captain Bruce with -the shadow of a smile. "The long and short of it is that I am going to -make a clean breast of it to the underwriters' agent, Mr. Prentice, -when we get to Key West. It seems to be the only way to clear you, -Captain Wetherly. Of course I never dreamed that circumstances could be -twisted about to fetch you into this miserable business. But Pringle -has gone, and I am not quite enough of a cur to dodge my share of -the punishment. I make no defence, but my record was fairly clean -until--well, you know when. My owners are shrewd, tricky, close-fisted -men who got me into their way of doing business a little at a time. -My ideas of right and wrong were warped by degrees. Men don't go bad -all at once, Dan. Don't ever forget that. A ship's timbers don't rot -overnight and let her founder in the gale that tests her strength. The -first speck of rot is almost too small to see, but it grows. At last -these people had me fit for their work, and three voyages ago they -put it at me that there would be no great sorrow if the _Kenilworth_ -met disaster. I should have quit them on the spot, but I took the -temptation to sea with me. And in the next voyage I ran afoul of -Jeremiah Pringle in Pensacola. He found me willing to listen. Five -years ago I would have kicked him out of my cabin. You know the rest of -it. Ten thousand dollars was the price if he could have the vessel to -wreck. And my owners were ready to give me a bigger, newer ship if I -lost her for the insurance. But you spoiled all that, and I am glad you -did. I seem to have been a weak-kneed kind of a rascal." - -"Bully for you," cried Captain Jim. "Shake hands on it. Dan here was -sure you were sorry you ever got into this mess, the first time he met -you. But this is mighty serious business for you, Captain Bruce. The -underwriters will make an example of you, as sure as guns. Are you -going back to England to face the music?" - -"It means that I am in disgrace and will command no more ships, I -suppose," was the reply. "And I suppose it means a dose of prison, but -I don't mean to veer from the course I have charted. There isn't any -other way out of it. I would rather be dead along with Jerry Pringle -than to go on hating myself and living in a hell of my own making." - -"I reckon you are right," said Captain Jim after a long silence. "It -pays to go straight, and every man must work out his own salvation." - -"Anyhow, you would feel a heap worse if your ship had gone to pieces," -Dan ventured to suggest in his effort to find a ray of sunshine in the -cloud. - -"Right you are, my lad. It has been a great fight, and a man couldn't -work alongside this uncle of yours very long without wanting to live -straight and clean. You helped save the _Kenilworth_, Dan. I haven't -forgotten that." - -"But you can't square me with old man Prentice," sadly returned Dan. "I -think it's great of you to stand by Captain Jim, but it doesn't help -my case. I am still left high and dry as a liar." - -"Things will straighten themselves out now. Don't worry," smiled -Captain Bruce. "Mr. Prentice will be easier to handle after he knows -the facts in my case." - -"How about salvage? Don't I come in on that?" anxiously asked Dan who -was not old enough to appreciate the sacrifice involved in Captain -Bruce's confession. - -"I expect to be paid my towing and wrecking bill to cover my time and -expenses," said Captain Jim. "But I don't want any more salvage than -that. I won't take blood-money, not even from the pockets of those -scoundrelly owners of yours, Captain Bruce. They won't be able to -collect a cent of insurance after you make your statement, and the -repairs will cost them a small fortune. The underwriters will make it -hot enough for them. Trust Prentice for that." - -Dan raised his voice in most lugubrious accents: - -"But won't there be any salvage for me after all I went through in this -beastly ship? Why, I have been expecting to get rich from it, to go -North to school and college with Bart, and buy a bigger yacht, and give -mother a spree in New York and--and all I get is to be called a liar by -old man Prentice." - -Dan's disappointment was so keen that Captain Jim hastened to console -him. "I kind of overlooked your case. Sure enough, I've robbed you of -your rights, haven't I? I suppose if you could go North to school, you -and your mother would feel that you had your share of salvage, wouldn't -you?" - -"Yes, indeed. That would clear up the account in great shape," cried -Dan. "But where is the money coming from? You can't charge it up -against the _Kenilworth's_ owners, can you?" - -"Well, if those Bahama niggers had blown up the steamer, the owners' -bills might be a good deal bigger," smiled his uncle. "Just let your -salvage claim rest for a day or so. I promise you it will be worked out -somehow." - -Early in the morning the _Kenilworth_ moved slowly to an anchorage in -the inner harbor of Key West, at last in a friendly haven. Her escort -of victorious tugs whistled a glad alarm as they cast loose and steamed -toward their several wharves. Dan was on board the _Resolute_, and as -she neared the shore he saw his mother hastening down to the landing -place. - -"You will be all the salvage she wants out of this job," said Captain -Jim as Dan waved his cap for an answering signal to the fluttering -handkerchief. A little later mother and son walked homeward together -and she learned of Captain Bruce's manly decision to make atonement. -Her tender heart was moved with pity for his plight and she spoke up -impulsively: - -"I knew there was a great deal of good in him, Dan. And think how -forlorn and unhappy he must feel. He needs friends. Ask him up to see -us. I am very sorry for him." - -"All right, mother. He has shown himself to be a pretty good sort of a -man, after all. How is Bart Pringle? Is he all broken up? He's been on -my mind most of the time since I went back to the Reef." - -"It was a dreadful shock to Mary Pringle and her boy," replied Mrs. -Frazier. "But they will be happy again after a while. Jerry Pringle -was a hard man, Dan, and he never really knew his own family. He was -the richest man in Key West and of course they have no worries about -money. They fairly worship his memory because he died a hero's death. -But it is as if they were admiring some noble character in a book, not -a real, live man who was a part of their daily lives. They never knew -him well." - -"Perhaps it was all for the best," sighed Dan. "Bart will never know -anything else about his father and he has a memory to live up to that -is a better inheritance than all the money that was left behind. Oh, -but it was worth while fighting hard to keep the truth from Bart and -his mother." - -In the afternoon Dan went back to the _Resolute_ to invite the chief -engineer to supper. Mr. McKnight announced as he staggered the boy with -an affectionate blow between the shoulders: - -"Old Prentice was aboard looking for you not an hour ago, and said he'd -come back if he didn't find you at home. I told him that if he had a -notion of calling you a liar some more, I was your proxy and he could -say it to me. I began to roll up my sleeves and he plumb near backed -himself overboard." - -"I wish he had," returned Dan. "What on earth does he want now? The -_Kenilworth_ affair is all cleared up." - -"Well, he was dying to see you, Dan. Better wait aboard. The old -icicle will wander back after a while. I hear we are going to tow the -_Kenilworth_ to Jacksonville to be docked for repairs. Do you know -when?" - -"Captain Jim said in about a month," replied Dan. "As soon as she can -be patched up to stand the voyage. But maybe I won't be with you, then. -It depends on whether I win my salvage case." - -"Too much sun. Gone a bit queer in the head," murmured Mr. McKnight. -"We surrendered all claim to salvage--you know that. It's an outrage, -too. When I was wreckin' on the coast of-- Hello, here comes old -Prentice now." - -The underwriters' agent was advancing with almost undignified haste, -and as he came down the gang-plank he extended his hand to Dan and -exclaimed in most friendly fashion: - -"Delighted to find you, Mr. Frazier. You will be good enough to sit -down aft with me for a few minutes? I wish to show you a document -which has just reached me." - -Brushing past the glowering chief engineer, Mr. Prentice fumbled in his -breast pocket and brought forth a large, official-looking envelope. -His manner was really sheepish as he hemmed and hawed, flourished the -envelope, and said: - -"I wish to offer you an apology, Dan, which you are manly enough to -accept, I am sure. I find myself in--er--a rather painful position. The -fact of the matter is that I have been guilty of an error of judgment. -I have in my hands a letter sent to me in care of the British consul -in Key West. Attached to it is an affidavit which you may examine at -your leisure. To make a long story short, these documents come from -Nassau. While investigating the _Kenilworth_ disaster, it occurred to -me to make some inquiries concerning one Hurley, known as "Black Sam," -who had possession of the steamer when you were rescued from her. -Your story of preventing an explosion seemed improbable to me, partly -because I could find no proof, and also because I held certain other -suspicions, now removed, I am glad to say. I made an effort to locate -this Hurley person. There was not one chance in a thousand that he -would confirm the truth of your story, if found. But, by extraordinary -good luck, he was recently arrested for cracking the skull of one of -his crew. And while in jail he was visited by my agent in Nassau. -You will be surprised to learn that he readily consented to sign an -affidavit describing his attempt to blow up the _Kenilworth_, and your -part in the episode. The fellow has a rude sense of humor, it appears, -and had come to regard it as a good deal of a joke on him." - -"It is great news for me," exclaimed Dan. "I hated to have you think -what you did." - -"I have something more to say," resumed Mr. Prentice with a smile. -"Captain Bruce and Captain Wetherly came to see me to-day. It was a -strange interview, as you may perhaps guess. Captain Bruce confessed -that he had tried to lose his ship on the Reef. My suspicions were -wrong from start to finish, and I have apologized to Captain Wetherly. -In fact, I seem to be a walking apology. But the chapter is closed. -The steamer is to be made fit for sea by her owners, without a penny -of cost to the underwriters, and her master will go to England to face -the consequences of his confession. The owners will also have to settle -for damages to cargo. Under the circumstances, I am of the opinion that -the underwriters are deeply indebted to you for preventing the total -loss of the _Kenilworth_. They can well afford to do the handsome thing -by you, my boy, not as salvage, but as a gift, a reward for a heroic -deed. Such gifts have been bestowed on several ship-masters within my -recollection. Captain Wetherly informs me that you are ambitious to get -an education. I pledge you my personal word that you can count upon -receiving a sum of several thousand dollars to assist that praiseworthy -ambition. I expect to go to England shortly, and will look after the -matter myself." - -While Dan struggled between gratitude and amazement to find words -to fit the occasion, Mr. Prentice patted his shoulder with fatherly -affection and added: - -"I know the story of your loyalty to your friend, young Barton Pringle. -It seems right and proper that you should go away to school together, -without a shadow between you any longer." - -Mr. Prentice left the Nassau documents with Dan and took his departure, -leaving the lad to stammer the wonderful tale to Bill McKnight who -found an outlet for his own emotion by announcing: - -"I'm going to hustle right ashore, Dan, and hire the Key West brass -band to serenade old Prentice to-night. I've got money in the bank, -boy, and I'm going to turn it loose." - -While this rash declaration was being argued, Captain Wetherly came -aboard and added his congratulations to the tumultuous celebration. -When Mr. McKnight became quieter for lack of breath, Dan spoke up with -a sudden shock of unhappy recollection: - -"But how about Captain Bruce, Uncle Jim? It doesn't seem fair for him -to be left all alone to go back to England and be in disgrace among his -own people. Why, if he stands by his guns, he will be sent to prison." - -"I had a long talk with him an hour ago," replied Captain Wetherly. -"He can't be budged from his resolution to take all the blame for -the disaster. And of course his owners will try to shift it all onto -him and they may be able to clear themselves in court. I can't help -admiring his pluck. But he may come back here later, Dan. I have just -landed a big Government contract for towing and dredging work, to last -for several years. And I need more help with the business I have now. -I asked Captain Bruce to come back to Key West when he gets clear of -his troubles in England. I told him that he would be with friends here, -with folks who believed in him. I would trust him as a partner. He will -never go wrong again." - -"What did he say?" asked Dan and Bill McKnight in the same breath. - -"He was considerably touched. Said he would think it over, and thanked -me, and went off to tell Prentice about it. He will come back to work -with me some day, I am pretty sure." - -A few weeks later Dan Frazier and Barton Pringle were waving their -farewells to Key West from the deck of a mail steamer, northward bound -to enter a preparatory school. Their mothers were standing together -on the wharf and behind them towered the rugged figure of Captain -Jim Wetherly. As the steamer drew away and the last "good-byes" were -shouted across the water, Bart sighed and murmured to his friend: - -"Father ought to be there to see me off. I can't realize it yet, Dan. -But I must try to live up to the example he set for me. I am so glad -he and Captain Jim became good friends. It was the _Kenilworth_ that -brought them together. I reckon they were the same breed of men, only -it took them a long time to find it out." - -Dan looked across the harbor at the rusty _Kenilworth_ which was almost -ready to be towed away to a dry-dock. The sight of her thrilled him -with memories of the hardships, dangers, and tragedy of the weeks of -hard-fought battle on the Reef. It came over him that while he had won -his salvage and his fondest dreams were coming true, perhaps Barton -Pringle had won even richer and more enduring salvage in the bright -memory of his father's last deed, a memory and an inspiration unmarred -by the knowledge of anything less worthy. - -"I am proud of Uncle Jim," said Dan at length. "And you can always be -proud of your father, Bart." - -Presently the steamer passed the _Resolute_ which lay at her wharf -ready for sea. The chief engineer hurried into the wheel-house and -pulled the whistle cord for all he was worth. The tug roared a hoarse -farewell, and Dan gazed at her and the burly figure of Bill McKnight -with glad affection in his eyes. They stood for something worth while -to the boy who was leaving his shipmates to venture into strange waters -and chart a new career. He had toiled among men who were fitly called -"the Resolutes," and the lessons of duty he had learned afloat would -not be soon forgotten ashore. Dan was thinking aloud as he said while -he waved his cap at the powerful, seagoing tug in which he had played -his part as a humble deck-hand: - -"I don't know what this preparatory school up north is going to be -like, but I reckon if I can play the game so the _Resolute_ won't be -ashamed of me I'll come out all right." - - - - -BOOKS BY RALPH D. PAINE - - -"_Will be read with pleasure by the many boys to whom the sea speaks -with an inviting voice._" ---_New York Herald._ - - -_The Wrecking Master_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.25_ - -The business of saving ships wrecked on the reefs along the Florida -coast is one of the most dangerous and exciting in the world. The two -sons of rival wreckers, who are in a race to rescue a big steamer which -has gone ashore in a peculiar manner on a Florida reef, have adventures -as novel as they are exciting. There is a sharp contest of skill, -courage, and stratagems, and thrilling fights with men and with storms. - - -_A Cadet of the Black Star Line_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.25_ - -"The man of to-day being the boy of yesterday, there is never a lack of -interest in good manly boy stories, the kind that makes the red blood -flow faster and the heart beat truer. Such a story is 'A Cadet of the -Black Star Line.' ... - -"Mr. Paine's narrative of the experiences of a cadet on one of the big -ocean liners moves along with splendid spirit." ---_Philadelphia Press._ - -"A stirring tale of sea life, the breezes of the ocean blowing through -every chapter.... Clean, wholesome reading." ---_New York Observer._ - - -CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, NEW YORK - - - - -_COLLEGE SERIES_ - - -_Sandy Sawyer, Sophomore_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -Sandy Sawyer, a husky crew man, works during the summer to pay for his -college course. His adventures in the country, where he strokes a crew -of his own against one of summer boarders, makes interesting reading. - - -_The Stroke Oar_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -The stroke of the "'Varsity" crew shanghaied in the middle of the -college year through an accident goes through some remarkable -adventures that end with his rowing in the great boat race at New -London. - - -_The Fugitive Freshman_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -"A mysterious disappearance, a wreck, the real thing in a game of -baseball are but a few of the excitements the book contains." -_--Philadelphia Ledger._ - - -_The Head Coach_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -"The book is so compact of healthy young manliness and depicts so many -sound-hearted characters in so winning a way that it deserves unusual -success."--_Chicago Inter-Ocean._ - - -_College Years_ - -_Illustrated. 12mo. $1.50_ - -"Extremely life-like and accurate pictures of the campus.... Every boy -who intends to go to college will want to read these stories." -_--Yale Alumni Weekly._ - - -CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, NEW YORK - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WRECKING MASTER*** - - -******* This file should be named 62176.txt or 62176.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/6/2/1/7/62176 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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