The Blood Ship

ng, but no

the crew needed salves and bandages for their bruises and cuts,

lad Swope had manhandled-had again fallen afoul the masters. The hurts Swope had inflicted prevented the boy moving about as quickly as Mister Fitzgibbon desired, s

p daft, and babbling, and on fire with fever. The mate gave up his efforts to arouse him, and adm

quareheads of our watch were already there, sitting gloomily about

. Newman shook his head,

id to me. "She has the healin

reheads, from Lindquist, a sober, bearded, middle-aged man, the one

e said, indicating the t

l-ship. It was something new in his experience. He was trying to fathom it. Why were he and his mates thumped, when they willingly did their work? What for? "Nils iss goot boy

he cabin. For, as all the world of ships knew, this was the time of day the lady came fo

, sane being was a light in the pall of brutality that hung over the ship. She was something more than woman, or doctor, to those men; in her they saw the upper world they had lost, the fineness of life they had ne

en three, and the lady

nese steward,

o aft," says he.

ming forward?"

. Slick ma

demanded, for he bore a

give slick man inside," and

it here. A bonesetter, not a do

He surrendered something else. I was standing by Newman's side, an

made a wry face and tossed it, glass and all, over the side into the sea. Then he turn

dge of his bunk, musing, and the note was op

in pencil. But the handwriting was dainty and feminine. It was

rward this voyage. He is drinking, he is desperate-oh, Roy, be careful,

note. He took it from me, lighted a match, and burned it up. I guessed

And what did she say," drawled

ckie lying in their bunks, one above the other. Bo

Newman's face. "Mind your ow

ble silence, broken by Boston, w

go by. We're all on the dodge together, ain't we? And we got a rich lay, I tell you! Blackie and me has it all figured out, but we need you to lead, Big '

eving schemes,

, if you like," persisted

lisped through the gap Lynch's fist had made in his teeth. "Number seven hundred and three w

ot Blackie by the throat and yanked him from the bunk.

told the pair in his cool, level voice. "I gave you your answer last night. Now,

about and stepped in

said to me, over his s

ust attend

an's huge hands handled the sufferer. It was an exhibition of practiced skill. The feeling was strong on me that m

this feat, because of the pain their rough handling caused-and bared the poor broken body to view. The squareheads cursed deeply and bitterly at the

mmented Lindquist in a choke

ht gasps of agony. His face grew very grave. Then he ripped up a blan

looked Lindquist in the

law-abiding mind had arrived at a lawless decision; his lowering face boded no good for the brute who had mal

followed Newman and me, and had witnessed the scene. Sa

we'll have the sq