THE YOUNG ADVENTURERS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 177, 27 July 1940, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE YOUNG ADVENTURERS

"Poor thing. Just lie down and try not to think about it. I'll put your things away," said Mrs. McLellan when, apologetically, Miss Smith's face began to turn white, then green. "Selina and I are both lucky. Nothing upsets us." "D'you remember going round the Isle of Man?" piped up Selina. "Hush. You go to sleep," reproved her mother. "And you try to do the same, Miss Smith.

"I feel as if I shouldn't speak or move for days and days," murmured Miss Smith, and drew the curtains across her bunk.

"I know what it is," said Selina to herself after what seemed an age of wakefulness. "I know why 'I can't get off. It's my tune. I can't sing my tune." Sure enough, as toon as the engines roused themselves and started again she began her rhyme, "On-and-on, Am-a-zon."

"It's heart's beating properly now," ■he said comfortably, and was asleep in s moment.

The next morning she was up early. The.re were no other children on board, only a baby or two safely tucked away in their cabins. She made her way to the saloon and watched the stewards getting breakfast ready. Fascinating to see the way the plates and cups and saucers fitted into little wooden holders; fascinating the easy way the stewards ran about the sliding floor; not at all like poor Miss Smith, whom she had left lying in he.r bunk saying she would never move again. By now John would have eaten his porridge and gone to school, and there she was on a ship racing along to Jamaica and, what •ounded so delicious, a sugar plantation.

The nice, aloof Mr. Nielson with the long brown beard came in, gave her a nod and sat down.

As he did so the throb of the engines again missed a beat, petered out, stopped. "Curious," thought Selina. "You'd think all their hearts had stopped too. The Princess must have pricked her finger." Everyone, all the stewards and Mr. Nielson, stood suddenly transfixed, startled into swaying statues. Curious, too, the way they looked at each other. The head steward leant over Mr. Nielson, who sat down and broke his roll thoughtfully. "There, sir, now what do you think about it?"

Mr. Nielson shook his head, helped himself to butter, and began his breakfast.

"The third engineer, he told me himself they'd have to use the pumps on 'em. Red hot he'says they'll be before we get through the Bay " Mrs. McLelian came in at the moment and Selina saw Mr. Nielson signal to the steward to be quiet. The man hurried off and Selina took her place at the table.

Her mother seemed perplexed and perturbed.

"But, Mr. Nielson, if wo keep on having these stoppages how can we possibly reach Jamaica in a month? My husband told me distinctly that the great thing about engines wm the way that the.y never stopped, but went on and on through the worst weather, and that was what made steamships so «af«." „ .. "On-and-on, Am-a-zon," sang Selina to herself, but the eong wouldn't churn round nicely in her head in the stillness. She hated the stoppage, too, though she couldn't aay why; however, she had toast for breakfast —a thing she was never allowed at home —and the lovely crunch made the voices of the grown-ups sound very distant. "That so," said Mr. Nielson. "But these engines are new. New engines are inclined to heat more easily." Before he had time to say more the captain came in, hearty, capable, full of confidence. Ho apologised for the delay, explained something about new bearings that Selina did not understand, and said that in a day or two they would be lightened of coal, then they'd get along akeljL

Mr. Parker, who had joined them for breakfast, said he supposed they ought to be satisfied. "But," he added, "are we? Are we?"

And Mrs. McLellan, looking at Mr. Nielson's face, wondered.

"We have a first-class seaman in Captain Symonds," he said, in answer to her look. "A man with quite an exceptional record. He ought to know."

But as the day wore on Mrs. McLellan became more and more conscious of anxiety. The cre.w no longer went about with smiling faces; they were inclined to whisper to each other whenever they got the chance, whisper in a scared, furtive sort of way. Mr. Nielson did what he could to reassure her; he tucked her up in the sheltered place on deck, lending her a huge fur rug, a rug he said he had used in Russia driving an a sleigh behind a fast pair of horses. "Pair of horses!" cried Selina, tucked under the rug, too, with her mother's arm cosily round her. "What's a good pair of horses! We've, got eight hundred. Eight hundred horses prancing along." She listened to the paddles splashing. "Like oars," she thought sleepily. "Eight hundred rowers rowing us to Jamaica. Like eight hundred galley slaves. On-and-on, Am-a-zon . . . " She could hardly keep awake in the strong air.

Mrs McLellan, with Selina warm and happy crooning away beside her, lulled by the sound of the sea and wind and the regular beat of the engines, thought to herself how delightful a sea voyage might be provided one is a good sailor —and she remembered poor Miss Smith in the cabin—still more, provided one has no anxieties. She told herself a dozen times not to be nervous; it was ridiculous on a magnificent ship like the Amazon. She reminded herself how delighted she had been when she heard her husband had secured berths on her; even the cautious old General had said a voyage was robbed of all its fears on such a boat.

But her heart sank when twice again they stopped to cool the bearings. "Always this cooling the bearings," cried young Mrs. Pnrker, who had staggered up on deck for a breath of air. "Geoffrey says it's all wrong. And what on earth are bearings ? Can't we throw them overboard ?"

By twelve o'clock, when they were passing the Scilly Islands and the third stop had taken place, the passengers were meeting in groups and openly discussing the matter. "Aren't we going to put back to Southampton?" Selina heard someone say; but the splashing paddles answered the question. On they went. The wind freshened and the. swell of the ocean met them. P. egret-

SHIR A IS SHIPWRECKED

fully Mrs. McLellan unpacked herself and Selina out of the fur rugs and hot water tins, and they went below. She felt happier in the open air with the paddles churning, when she could see for herself that the ship was making splendid progress. The captain must be right, she said firmly to herself, he knows far more than anyone; and with that she drove the fears out of her mind and determined to have as good a night as poor Miss Smith would allow. (Continued Next Week.)