The Mooreland Leader. (Mooreland, Okla.), Vol. 8, No. 3, Ed. 1 Friday, April 22, 1910 Page: 7 of 8
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oERIAL
■
Che
LAST VOYAGE
of the
DONNA ISABEL
By Randall Parrish
Author of
"Hob Hampton of Ylactr," ate.
Illustrations by Dearborn Meivill
Coi>>-rlulit a. t'. McCluru & Co., 1U08.
SYNOPSIS.
The story opens with the introduction
of John Stephens, adventurer, n Massa-
chusetts man marooned by authorities at
Valparaiso, Chile. Briny interested in
mining operations In Bolivia, he was fle-
nouneed by Chile as an insurrectionist
and as a consequence was hiding. At his
hotel his attention was attracted by an
Englishman and a young woman.
Stephens rescued the young woman from
a drunken officer. ITe was thanked l>y
her. Admiral of the Peruvian navy °on"
fronted Stephens, told him that war had
been declared between Chile and I erti
and offered him tho. office of captain, lie
desired that that night the Esmeralda, a
Chilean vessel, should be captured.
Stephens accepted the commission.
Stephens met a motley crew, to which no
was assigned. He gave them final In-
structions. They boarded the vessel. They
successfullv captured the vessel supposed
to be t lie Esmeralda, through Btrategy.
Capt. Stephens gave directions for the de-
parture of the craft. He entered the cab-
in and discovered the English woman
and her maid. Stephens quickly learned
the wrong vessel had been captured.
It was I.ord Darlington's private yacht,
the lord's wife and maid being aboard.
He explained the situation to her lady-
ship. Then First Mate Tuttle laid bare
the plot, saying that the Sea Queen had
been taken In order to go to the Antarc-
tic circle. Tuttle explained that on a
former voyage he had learned that the
Donna Isabel was lost in 1753. He una
found it frozen in a Inure case of Ice
on an island and contained much go''"-
Stephens consented to be the captain
of the expedition. lie told I.aay
Darllncrton. She was greatly alarmed,
but expressed confidence in him. I tie
Sea Queen encountered a vessel in tno
foff. Stephens attempted to communicate.
This caused a fierce struggle and he was
overcome. Tuttle finally squaring the sit-
uation. Then the Sea Queen headed south
again. Under Tuttle's guidance the ves-
sel made progress toward Its goal.
Be Nova, the mate, told Stephens that he
believed Tuttle, now acting as skipper,
insane because of his queer actions.
Stephens was awakened by crashing of
glass. He saw Tuttle in the grip of a
spasm of religious mania and overcame
him. The sailor upon regaining Ills senses
was taken ill. Tuttle committed suicide
by shooting. Upon vote of the crew
Stephens assumed the leadership and the
men decided to continue the treasure
hunt, the islands being supposed to be
onlv 200 miles distant. Tuttle was hurled
In the sea. kailv Darlington pronouncing
the service. Stephens awaking from
sleep saw the ghost, supposed to have
formed the basis for Tuttle s religious
mania.
1 table, as I recognised I.ady Darling-
ton.
"Good God! was that you?" I gasped,
the horror still possessing me.
"This certainly is," she answered,
swiftly. "But what do you mean?
What has occurred?"
"I hardly know," and I looked about
me, and tlien into her face, breathing
heavily. "I seem unable to separate
the real from the unreal. I am half
afraid I am losing my mind. Lady
Darlington, it is not only the crew for-
ward who are seeing ghosts on -board.
I laughed at my experience before, be-
lieving it a mere illusion that couM
never occur again. In that spirit I
told you about seeing a white, misty
figure iu this cabin the night after
Tuttle died. It vanished like a wreath
of smoke, and daylight made me be-
lieve the vision was born of a tired
brain. But I have seen it again now
—yonder, as plainly aa I can see you.
It was no dream, no Imagination; yet
when I sought to grasp the thing, my
lingers encountered nothing but air."
I saw her hands tremble, her white
face turned whither I pointed; but she
had not beheld what I had, and her
mind remained clear.
"What was it you saw?"
"A shapeless wbito figure, misty,
vanishing like a bubble."
"Yonder, you say? just where you
saw it before?"
I had not thought of that, yet it was
trUe—there, beside Tuttle's door. An
instant she stood motionless, her eyes
searching the dim corners of the cab-
in, as though tracing some suspicion
awakened within her mind. Suddenly
she clasped my arm.
"We do not believe in ghosts, Mr.
Stephens, you and I." her voice grow-
ing firmer with conviction. "Our edu-
CHAPTER XVIII.—Continued.
'Damn You, McKnight, Lie Sti 111"
I Panted.
f
By heaven, for her sake, if for no
other reason, I would play the man!
Ay, and I comprehended exactly what
such resolve would cost—realized ful-
ly what I hat mongrel crew would say
and do the moment their ghostly ter-
rors fled, and they knew I had given
up search for the treasure. I should
have to command by brute force, by
threat and blow. There would be
mutiny aboard for every league until
we made port. 1 knew the nature of
that sea-scum forward—how they
would whine and curse, how they
would hate me for failing to hold
them to their course in face of death!
Well, let them hate; my love was
worth by far the more, and the life
and honor of Lady Darlington out-
weighed all else on board—ay, and the
treasure of the Donna Isabel! "Im-
plicitly"— I saw her eyes again as she
said it. and sprang to the deck, fum-
bling in the darkness for the latch of
my door.
The main cabin was dimly lighted
and chill, the fire in the stove low. I
paused to rattle it, and add a few
lumps of coal from the scuttle stand-
ing near by. In spite of surrounding
comforts what a grim, inhospitable
place this was for any woman like
her! The very snugness of the cabin
served only to emphasize tho gloom
and peril without, the frightful polar
mystery which surrounded us, which
drives men mad amid its awful dis-
tances, its shrouded silence.
Suddenly, directly opposite where I
stood, I saw it again—that same
shapeless, white, gliding figure. An
instant only I stood rooted to the spot,
my blood like Ice, my eyes full of hor-
ror. Then the swift reaction came,
the reserve courage of a man ashamed
of such weakness, aud I leaped
straight toward the misty object, grap-
pling at it with my hands. I touched
nothing but air, falling headlong with
a violence jarring the entire cabin,
and overthrowing a chair crashing to
the deck. Dazed, confused, I stag
gered to my knees, staring about into
the dim shadows. A white-draped
figure was at my very elbow, and I
sprang to my feet, only to take a
Qiiick step backward, grasping at the
cation and training make such a con-
ception impossible. There is a natural
cause for ttiis, a reason, an actual
presence back of the shadow. There
must be, and we must find it. Where
did you stand when you saw this ap-
parition ?"
I stepped baric to the spot beside
the stove, realizing that she still clung
tightly to me.
"Here, and I lifted my eyes like
this."
She leaned eagerly forward, her
breath on my cheek, her fingers clutch-
ing my arm.
••Why—why that is a mirror you are
looking into! See! What is it re-
flected there? Turn up the light until
I locate the spot. Oh, I see now the
open pantry door. Mr. Stephens, there
is where your ghost stood—it was the
shadow of a man reflected in that
mirror."
Our eyes met. all my former terror
fled, shame and anger dominating me.
"Dade?"
"It might be—certainly some one
who sought in that way to terrorize
officers and crew, and thus compel*,
them to turn back. Whoever it was,
he killed Mr. Tuttle, and now seeks to
accomplish the same end with you.
What are you going to do?"
"Trace him down. The last time
the fellow went directly from here to
the forecastle. There must be a
passageway from stem to stern."
She caught me as I turned, her gray
eyes wide with apprehension.
"You will take me with you?"
"That will be impossible, Lady Dar-
lington. I know nothing regarding
this passage amidships, but it must
surely lead through the coal bunkers
and the engine room."
"But—but I cannot let you go
alone," utterly forgetting to conceal
her agitation. "Truly, I could not bear
to do it. Whoever this man may be
he will become desperate when cor-
nered. Your very life will be in dan-
ger."
"And you really care?" my hand
clasping hers, my eyes eagerly search-
ing the gray depths.
"Yes, I care," making no effort to
free herself; "why should I not?
Think what our condition would be if
you were not on board. Yet that is
not all; I care because I value your
life, your friendship. Little as I can
do, let me, at least, be near you."
"You are near me," said 1, utterly
forgetful of circumstances in the sud-
den rush of passion, "always near me,
because my thoughts are with you, my
iole purpose In life to serve you."
The gray eye* fell instantly; the
clasping hand was withdrawn and
pressed to her forehead.
"I—I will try to do as you wish,"
she faltered, "but are you armed?"
"Not now, but I will get a revolver
from my stateroom. First, let me
help you to your cabin."
She permitted my guidance without
a word of protest, only glancing once
up into my face as she put a question.
"You will return here? you will let
me know at once what you discover?
Promise me this."
"I promise; and more, I will pledge
myself to be cautious, so do not
worry."
I procured my revolver, turned the
light low once more In the main cabin,
and then stole silently into the narrow
passageway leading forward. There
was no light in the pantry, but the
faint reflection from the cabin enabled
me to distinguish the more prominent
outlines. A form lay outstretched on
a locker, and 1 bent over it silently.
It was Dade, curled up on his side and
sound asleep. There was no doubt
about the reality of his slumber; the
fellow was not shamming, and I drew
back, leaving him undisturbed. The
alley-way leading forward was ex-
tremely narrow, yet of a height suffi-
cient to afford comparatively easy
passage had it only been lighted. Sud-
denly a faint glow appeared ahead,
and a moment later I slipped cau-
tiously through a small bulkhead door
standing ajar, into a low, Bquare room,
containing six bunks arranged in tiers
of two. A slush lamp swung from a
blackened beam, and various articles
of wearing apparel dangled from
hooks. I peered into the bunks, dis-
covering three occupied, the uncon-
scious sleepers being Cooky, the
smooth-faced Chilean, and the gunner,
a Swede named Gustafson. None
awoke under my scrutiny, although
the Chilean was talking in his Bleep
and threshing his arms about as if in
nightmare. I bent down, looking at
him more closely, attracted by some-
thing oddly familiar in the upturned
features. By all the gods, the fellow
wds Lieut. Juan Sanchez, his
long mustaches shaven, and look-
ing ten years younger! It was so odd
a thing, this sudden renewal of a con-
troversy originating thousands of
leagues away, that I nearly laughed
outright, forgetting for the instant the
serious purpose bringing me there.
Yet this surprising discovery of
Sanchez aboard seemed of compara-
tively little importance, and was as
quickly dismissed. The narrow bulk-
head door leading forward was tight-
ly closed, and in that dim light I had
to hunt for it, so perfectly was it fitted
into place. When discovered, how-
ever, it proved to be unfastened, and 1
stepped forth into an emptied coal
bunker, whence I could look straight
forward along the glowing boilers into
the engine room. I advanced carefully
along the slight open space until I
came upon the squad of firemen and
big Bill Anderson. The latter shaded
his eyes, staring at ine as though he
mistook me for another ghost, but I
took the initiative.
"I have been investigating the ar-
rangement of things below, Anderson,"
I said, in explanation; "rather odd
way in which the yacht is cut up. Did
you know there was a passage leading
all the way aft?"
The boatswain shook his head, too
surly naturally to answer.
"Well, possibly you know whether
or not a similar passage leads forward
into the forecastle?"
"There's a bulkhead door over
there," he returned, indicating by
a gesture a spot concealed by the
donkey pump, "but I don't know
where it goes, only it's dark as hell."
"It comes out under the forecastle,
uir," broke in a coal heaver named
Davis. "Leastwise there's a trap in
the deck there, with a ladder leadin'
down."
"I'll finish the trip through, then,
for I like to know what is under my
Ket when I command a vessel. Where
is the engineer. Anderson?"
He waved big halrv hand In th«
direction of the boilers.
"Went to his bunk to lie down foi
an hour; he was about all in."
"Are you capable of standing watcb
alone in an engine room?"
The fellow grinned, his bulldog jaw
protruding.
"Well, I've had to do it on this trip
whether I'm capable or not. That
fellow can't Btand it in here night an'
day without no rest. I know how to
start an' stop her, an' watch the wa-
ter gauge. If anything else goes
wrong he's easy enough called."
So it was McKnight who was play-
ing the antics of a ghost on board;
McKnight who had discovered that
unusual passageway through the bulk-
heads; McKnight who had conceived
the Idea that in this manner he could
frighten us into turning back. Well,
truly, I did not altogether blame the
man, and, now that my own fear of
the aupernatural was allayed, did not
feel any desire to punish him severely.
Still, his masquerade must stop be-
fore he thoroughly demoralized the
crew, frightening them beyond all
my power of coutrol.
I discovered the door concealed be-
hind the donkey engine, left It slight ly
ajar behind me, and stepped forward
into the black passage. I had groped
along to the very foot of the ladder,
feeling nothing but bare walls, and
hearing no sound except the slush of
bilge water, when suddenly an inar-
ticulate cry sounded almost directly
above; something, a hatch cover pos-
sibly, seemed to settle into place, and
the ladder shook under my hand. I
drew back a step, permitting the fel-
low to come down until he reached
the floor. My eyes, accustomed to the
gloom, enabled me to dimly perceive
his shape. It was no more than a
formless smudge he made, but 1
struck straight for what seemed to be
the head, and landed with a force that
dropped him like a log. In an instant
I was on top, clasping the canvas
sheet he wore tightly about his. arms,
and throttling him against the deck.
He fought like a wild bull for a mo-
ment, thoroughly frightened and
whimpering, dazed by the suddenness
of attack, yet following the animal
instinct of a struggle for life.
"Damn you, McKnight, lie still!" I
panted. "I've got you, and you might
just as well take your medicine, my
man. Yes. that's a gun you feel, and
I know how to use it. So you're the
ghost of the Sea Queen, are you? I
guess you know what this means if I
turn you over to those fellows, don't
you?"
He groaned, and I ventured to re-
lease my grip on his throat, flinging
back the canvas from his head.
"Sit up. Well, I'll tell you, McKnight
—you would probably go overboard to
feed the fishes. Do you recognize
me?"
"Yes, sir," managing to find his
voice for the first time. "You're Mr.
Stephens^"
"Right you are, and you can bless
your lucky stars that I am the one
who caught you. What started you at
this trick?"
"It was the Chilean, sir, Sanchez;
he said we, could scare the whole out-
fit,"
"Did he do any of the ghost play-
ing?"
"No, sir; he didn't, have the nerve,
but—but he rigged me up, and found
out about these passageways."
What was I to do with the man? In
truth there was little I dared to do
under the circumstances.
"Now see here, McKnight," I
soberly, "you quit this thing for good
and all; if there is any more ghost
walking done on the Sea Queen I'll
turn you and Sanchez over to th*
men. Besides, there's no use resort-
ing again to that sort of trick, for
we're about at the end of our cruise."
"You mean we're going to turn
north?"
"Yes. Now if I let you go will you
behave yourself?"
(TO Bfc CONTINUED.)
COLDS AFFECT
THE KIDNEYS.
,,'E-RU
|jPTARRHOFKlPHE]j[
SURE.
Bingo—What does a man have to b«
to be buried with Masonic honors?
Jingo—Dead.
HIS HANDS CRACKED OPEN
"I am a man seventy years old. My
hands were very sore and cracked
open on the insldes for over a year
with large sores. They would crack
open and bleed, itch, burn and ache
so that I could not sleep and could do
but little work. They were so bad
that I could not dress myself in the
morning. They would bleed and the
blood dropped on the floor. I called
on two doctors, but they did me no
good. I could get nothing to do any
good till I got the Cuticura Soap and
Cuticura Ointment. About a year
ago my daughter got a cake of Cuti-
cura Soap and one box of Cuticura
Ointment and in one week from the
time I began to use them my hands
were all healed up and they have not
been a mite, sore 6lnce. I would not
be without the Cuticura Remedies.
"They also cured a bad sore on the
hand of one of my neighbor's children,
and they think very highly of the Cuti-
cura Remedies. John W. Hasty, So. Ef-
fingham, N. H., Mar. 5 and Apr. 11, '09."
The Flippancy of John.
Mrs. Mott—What is a sympathetic
strike, John?
Mott—A sypmathetic strike, my
dear, is being touched for a quarter
by a beggar with a hard-luck story.
See End of Man's Dominion
VVhote Matter Settled by Four Women
Over the Tea Table.
The women, taking their tea by the
club window, talked.
"They have a girl prompter at the
Garrick theater," said one. "The man-
ager told me last night that he'll have
none but women prompters after this.
Their fine, clear voice* carry bo beau-
tifully across the stage, while at the
same time they are quite inaudible in
the auditorium."
"Of course," said another. "In teach-
ing living languages, too, a woman is
incomparably better than a man. A
man has a thick guttural voice. His
words are all mumbled and jumbled.
But a woman's clear delivery—her
open voice—gives every syllable its
just value. In studying French or Ger-
man or Italian, choose a woman, and
your progress will be easier and
faster."
"Norwegian horses," said a third
woman, "are at once spirited and gen-
tle. Do you know why? Because it is
the women, the farm women, who
break them. They make pets of them
first; the colts feed from their hands
and follow them abont like dogs. After
that their breaking Is easy. It is only
done by kindness. And the result is
that Norwegian horses have the best
dispositions in the world."
A fourth woman settled the whole
matter.
"As mental power ousts muscular
power," she said, "woman, save in such
irremediably brutal* vocations as sur
gery or pig-sticking, will supersede
man all along the line."
Origin of "Living on Tick."
The phrase, "living on tick," dates
back to the seventeenth century, when
a tradesman's bill was known as a
ticket.
iiniii
Guar 1
Biliousness
"I have used your valuable Cascareta
and I find them perfect. Couldn't do
without them. I have used them for
some time for indigestion and biliousness
and am now completely cured. Recom-
mend them to everyone. Once tried, you
•will never be without them in the
family "—Edward A. Marx, Albany, N.Y.
Pleasant. Palatable, Potent. Taste Good.
Do Good. Never Sicken.Weaken or Gripe.
10c.25c. 50c. Never sold in bulk. The geit
nine tablet stamped C C C. Guaranteed to
cure or your money back.
Hay's Hair-Health
Never Fails to Restore Gray H* r to Its
Natural Color and Beauty. Stops its falling
out and positive1? removes Dandruff. Is not a
Dye. Kefuie all substitutes. Ii.oo jnd sj
Bottles by Mail or at Druggists. FHCC
Send ioo for large sample Bottle
Pbilo Hay Soec. Co- Newark. N. J
U. S.
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The Mooreland Leader. (Mooreland, Okla.), Vol. 8, No. 3, Ed. 1 Friday, April 22, 1910, newspaper, April 22, 1910; Mooreland, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc157835/m1/7/: accessed April 18, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.