CHAPTER XVll.—Continued.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18614, 16 November 1928, Page 16

CHAPTER XVll.—Continued.

Captain Harworth, seething with an anger which had reached boiling point, felt much inclined to seize this presumptuous wretch by the scruff of his long neck and fling him down the steps; was indeed much puzzled at his failure to do so. He saw the mistake of that first fatal step. Instead of compromising he should have had these fellows whipped before deportation. Both head and heart warned him that he was doing an unwise thing, one which, but for the presence of his daughter, would have been frankly inconceivable. She must know nothing of a detrimental past, no hint. of it. After all, he had done no more than others in the wild pursuit of fortune. Among men, especially among those who had failed in a like endeavour, his conduct might raise a sneer or two of envy, but the strenuous adventurer would know and understand. He, however, was not out to counter envy. One object, and one only, he had in view: to make some atonement for long neglect. Of course it was a mad scheme to bring her to the island. Even old Fred had sense enough to see that, and had been laughed at for his one burst of true vision. lie ought to have gone to her. Yet the call of a longneglected parental affection would not be denied. Moreover, as he drew near the end of the voyage, the memory of his dead wife grew more insistent. It i there was anything in this matter of the after-life, of which the preachers made so much, how could he look her in the face and admit his culpability? | Their daughter, remember; nothing i could change that overwhelming truth. There had been little thought of God among the pearlers, though his name was incessantly on their lips. If fortune came their way it was luck, which they proceeded to dissipate with their accustomed prodigality. But for the chance of meeting with a good woman he might have been no better than the worst of them. True, he had never known what it was to fear man or devil, while thought of the hereafter, if there was such a thing, had caused him neither misgiving for the future nor regret for the past. But in these days, when he knew that the end could not be far off, Chichester Cathedral loomed large in his imagination, and the psalms he had sung and the prayers he had said. It all meant nothing then, and since had appeared no more than an ancient and meaningless formula; impressive, if you like, yet in truth a cry to the void. But! was it? She had believed, she that beloved dead one, and in what way was he wiser? Somehow it had seemed natural that a woman should accept these unknown things without question, but a man needed convincing, anti how was he to be convinced?

Yet he remembered once, during a violent storm in the Arafura Sea, the ship being in the deadliest peril,«* he had crept below for a moment to comfort her, and found her on her knees; and, oddly enough, the comfort came from her instead. When he went on deck again the gale was blowing itself out, and the sun was actually trying to disperse the storm-clouds. He never understood it, but he felt awed, probably for the first time in his life.

CHAPTER XVIII. WAR. The shrewd keen eyes of Martin B Steevers marked the old man’s hesitation, from which that keen brain drew a favourable augury. Even he, daring as he was, was not oblivious of the danger of this enterprise. Possibilities of failure loomed large, causing him much serious apprehension, to be carefully hidden from his companion. In him Mulcready had a childlike and implicit faith, a faith which had bfeen most assiduously cultivated. Once let doubt enter that confused brain and the instrument of his pleasure or his wrath might be turned against him. He knew’, none so well, that beneath the apparent docility of the Chimp w*as a most execrable, savage nature. While matters went smoothly, with meat and drink at his elbow, Mulcready was lamb-like in his obedience to the superior mind; but when those amenities failed the beast began to snarl and show his teeth. Then was it that Uncle Martin had to stroke the creature’s back and soothe it with soft words. As a consequence he saw in failure, not alone the annihilation of hope, but the alienation of a most useful auxiliary. Yet, if he correctly diagnosed the symptoms, there was to be no failure in this instance. Captain Harworth was clearly worried. It was a magnificent piece of bluff, that taking to the easy chair, and it had not been called. Yet Steevers had a dreadful fear that it might be, and though outwardly he appeared cool and indifferent, in reality his heart was in his boots. This old man might set his back to the wall. What then? Insinuations, accusations, threats. But threats broke no bones, though the Chimp might. Thrice fortunate for him and his hopes was the opportune sailing of the schooner. Truly providence was a good servant if a hard taskmaster. “Let’s talk, cap,” he said. “There ain’t no use in a ruffin’ o’ feathers, though maybe yore inclined that way. Wall, there’s worse things. Fire ahead, sir; though I guess he's a fool fowl that plucks himself bare.” “ You’re an infernal, hypocritical scoundrel! ” fumed the old man. “ Maybe yore right. Certain it is that me an’ the Chimp here has lost our halos. But it don’t become you to tell us so, d'ya get that? See here, cap, not bein’ utterly devoid of intelligence, you guess that these here unfortunate manners is on their beamends, an’ you guess by the cards. Now’, though I’m free to admit you don’t look exactly like a saint, yet I know

that you can behave like one. An’, after all, it’s actions more’n words that counts. I says to my handsome friend here, ‘Cap’n Harworth is a man - with a heart as big as his body. Let us make a final appeal to his approved generosity?’ That was after we’d been robbed over in Tonga. \ es, sir, we was set upon by a party of Australian skunks who come ashore from a dirty little tramp an’ cleaned us out of every cent. You smile, cap. Wall, I ain’t stressin’ the proposition; but nobody ought to know better’ll you how dead easy it is to cheat the simple sailor.” Once more Captain Harworth’s blood seethed. All the young strength that had long since deserted him seemed to thrill in his veins. Ominously he advanced upon the mocker, and was as ominously intercepted by Mulcready’s vast bulk.

“Aisv, old man,” he said, “ an' talk fair to the gintleman, or it’s hurtin’ ya I may be after.” “ Good boy,” murmured Mr Steevers approvingly. Very like a gorilla was Michael Mulcready just then with his face, chest, and arms covered with thick black hair. And he grinned like one as he contemptuously squirted a mouthful of tobacco juice on the white boards of the verandah. It was a challenge, extremely provocative, which doubtless would have been resented had Mr Steevers not risen swiftly and pushed his yellow face between them. “ We don’t want .no fightin’,” he said. “ We’re three friends who’re just goin’ to- talk over things amiable an’ in a sensible manner. At the same time I must warn you, cap, not to play no monkey tricks with Alike Mulcready, who was born with the sluggin’ spirit of his race. You may ha’ noticed that all sluggers who is worth their salt has a strain o’ Irish in ’em? As I’ve often told Mike, if his chin and forehead could only change places I’d make a world's champion of him.” Mulcready, evidently delighted with the doubtful compliment, retreated to his former position, where he squared his shoulders, stuck out his chin, and with his huge fists clenched went through the process of battering an imaginary enemv. Captain Tom Harworth, now conscious of the infirmity of years, regarded these villainous evolutions with a feeling which turned him sick and faint. Oh, for twenty years of that splendid, vanished youth ! t “ Now listen here, cap,” Steevers was

drawling in that most exasperating manner of his, “even I’m growin’ tired of negotiations that don't seem to lead nowhere; an’ what I’m tryin’ to figger out is this: is it peace or war? You can have whichever you fancy. Only for Gawd’s sake give it a name an’ let us get on with it.” “ War,” said the old man, “ every time, with skunks like you.” “ In that case,” Mr Steevers replied, though with some loss of confidence, never dreaming of this defiance, or of it as a mere dream, “it will be the painful dooty of this chicken to lay the egg of information in the right nest as sure as his name is Martin Belisarius Steevers.” And then, w’ith a singular meaning in his tone, and a particularly wicked smile, he asked, “ liver heard of old Abe Rosenberg? No? Wall now, that’s strange. Thought 3*oll would ha.' knowed him for certain. He w r as a bu\’er of pearls up Thursday Island way, of pearls that hadn’t alius been come by honestly—like a few’ others one could name. Some expert was Abe in that pleasant pastime, cultivated vurry scrupulously bv* his compatriots since the da3’s of Moses, of spoilin' the Egyptians. An' then he was spoiled in turn, to the toon of twenty thousand good Australian banknotes. Or so he said, but bein’ a bit of a liar we’ll call it ten. It was pearls, cap, w’hich old Abe had gathered together. Gawd knows how, though most of us guessed. The3* disappeared, sir, like salt in water, gji’ the pleece was never able to find no trace of 'em.” He stopped to mark the effect of his words. But his listener, betraydng no other sign than that of boredom, rather ostentatiously } r aw 7 ned. Steevers smiled. “ You ain’t interested, cap?” “ I want to know’ if you’re going before I have you kicked out?” (To Be Continued.)