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The Durant Weekly News
FRIDAY, MARCH ai .,.1
A Man To
His Mate
By
J. ALLEN DUNN
Illustrations by
Irwin Myers
Copyright Bofcbj Merrill Co.
SYNOPSIS.
CHAPTKIl l.-IxillcrlnK on the Pai.
ITbdcIico water fiunl, John Ualriey,
MWfpaper reporter. Is ttCcontnf by blli-i
a, a giant In slzr, whu ut-k- K.urie
lead him to the tenllng actiooner Kar
. The blind man Ulla Itiilney he It
old shipmate of Captain Birnnm of the
Karluk and deilrea to make his vlnlt a
atrpria. He aaka Ilalney to lead Mm
hoard, and Ralney doen no. In the
aftbln they And Captain Slmtne and a rniir.
uuo caruen. tfimma recugnues me
Kcd man, calling him Jim I.und Lund
cuaea mmma or aoanaomng mm, nuna
an ice not, and denounces him for
at he calls his Ingratitude. 81mm
ilea the charge, but Lund refuses to
Doclfltd. He declares hi Intention of
accompanying the Karluk on Its expedl'
Hon north, where It Is going In quest
I a goiu neia wnicn i,unu nan ainov
her father. Carlsen, who la
Peaarv. fUmma' daughter, la aboard.
Pa aetenua ner rauier. -i
physician, drugs Ilalney.
CHAPTER II. Awaking from his atu-
r, luiiner nnos nimsen at sea. (.arisen
orms him ha has bean kliinaned be
ast, having; learned the object of the
Maition, na mignt nave divulged it ana
strafed the Diane of the vovagers. He
Kara Ilalney a share of the gold, and
ussy, seeing nothing else 10 ue none,
Ures himself satisfied. Lund gives
a brief account of a former expedl
of the Karluk. tells blm he distrusts
laan. and aura-eats a "Dartnershlo."
ilney to act as Lund's "eyes."
CHAPTKIl III. Ratney, haliiK a "Hfht
knowledge of seamanship, I made ace
ed mate of the veesel Caplnln Minims
M In exceedingly poor health, and the
fiavlgatlnn of the hlp la entlnly In the
oandi of Doctor Carlsen. At the tatter's
suggestion a shooting matth Is urrariKnl
patween the "huntera" aboard, the vi-a-
?ri being oRtenethly on a pealliiK exptvll
on I.und, although hllml, lt nifinitritlPH
e CAn aliotil "liy sound " The huntT
avlng emptied their rp otters, C.irlm-n
telle tliem there are no more mIiiIIh on
board
"ITmv inticJi IcTtf nsheil Lund.
"Hnlf? Tetdi It up,"
A pill li lir fired mill nKfiln tlit bullet
found the murk, lenvliu; only tlic nerl;
of the liotllp still limmlng. I.uml
grinned.
"Tlict's nil." In snld. ".lost unntpil
to stum yo ulint ii lillntl limn hiii dn.
If he's put tii It."
There wns 111 lie npplmiH-. dirl-eii
took Ill's mm III vlleliee Mini mot eel for-
tvnnl ullli the liunlrrs nm! the nn
lookfTM, ilKnpiiejirln lielim
"filven 'em somellilni; tn (nil;
about," rlmrklpil I.uml. "Parlwn
Wnntort tn slmvv nil tils lniiej simmm.
Will, I've slinwii Vm I nlii't eiiilrely
wrt'okeil, if I ain't enrrjin' lights. An'
J llppeil iniire'ii nue over mi CiiiNmi
at Hint."
Itnlney did not enlrh Ills en'lle
memiliiK' mid Mild in.tlilim.
"Ild ,iu K''t ! tn tin- pl.iy tilxnii
Hip .shells?" usKed l.lllid. "A mii.iiI
trick, tlimiKli lieudnu nJiii"-l tmnliled
Cnrlsen K"t tliiis(. diinili fools of hunt
ers tn tlic mvn every shell tlu'.v hap
pened tu linve tnr'nnl. If the iiiiiki
zlne'.s empty, I'M lift ('arisen kntiws
where lliey's plenty mure shells, if ,.
ever needed 'em had. I'm now lline
rlllcs an' siiiitiiiis jln'i in. mure use
tlmn i-n miiti.v i lull- rut tn the limn
ers. An" lie's I'mnul oi.t tliej ain't cm
enny plsliils. lie's nt one, an' slums
'em linvv Mialulit lie slimits Jest in rasi
tlieie .should lie eliny itnulile lielun'ii
'em. I'liiys liotli ends to the middle,
tines CnrNfii. Sllels! Hut lie ain't
won the pot. The.v's a Joker In lids
Slime. Alelilie lie holds II, mehlie not."
He nodded m.vMerloii.slY, vveJI
pleased with himself.
CHAPTER IV.
The Bowhead.
Oiptnln Siiiims aiearetl acnln In
thp caliln and on deek, hut lie was not
the Mime nun. Ills Illness seemed tn
linve rtilihed him periimiiently of what
wis left lilni of Hip pprliiK of man
hood. It was as If Ids Julrvs hail tiei-n
ftueked from his veins ami arterlpi
and tissues, leavinc til tn llnlihy. Ir
resolute, eompnred lo his former self:
Even ns I.uml slmdow oil Ilalney, "n
Siiiims sliudciweil ('arisen.
Sometimes the ulrl would come up
on deck In tier own wuterpmofs and
stand against the rail. And presently
Ciirlsen would eoine from helow or
forvvnrd nnd stiuid to talk with her
until she was tired of tKe deck.
Thpy did not seem much like lovers.
Itnlney fancied, They linked the llttlp
Intimacies that he, though he made
himself sompvvlint of nn nutomnton it
the wheel, could not lmve failed to
Bee. If the girl slipped, Ctjrhjefl'g
hand would eiitcli nnil steady Iipt by
the arm; never ko about her waist.
And there wus no especlnl look o
welcome In her fuce when the doctnr
copje to ner.
- Carlson seldom took over Hie wheeJ.
Hnlney did more tlmn his hnre from
sheer love of feellni; the control. Hut
one- day, at a word from the plrl, Carl
sen nnd she came up to lUilney as he
handled the spokes.
"I'll take the wheel a while,
Ilalney," said the doctor,
Ralney cave It up nnd went amid
ships. Out of the tall of his eye he
could see Hint the Rlrl wns pleading
to handle the ship, and Hint Carlgen
was golnt; to let her do so.
Hniney shrugged his shoulders. It
was Curlsen's risk. It wns no child's
play In that weather to steer prop
erly. It took not only strength, but
watchfulness and experience to hold
the course In the welter of cross-seas.
Lund and Ralney stood together by
HieweaHjer.rnn. It was still Ralnejr's
mud wlili fuir. s'triuiny out to "UTlie
purpcx, vive in help liimy himself.
Mliided li the IIvIil eud and broken
iTis-s. lialliey fill hll:ielf lipreared.
swiil lini n'ehtl) mi and slammi'd
aniii l the sllm.v hulk. Jllt elosi'
I'liini'.'li In .s'ni d tn t'r-isp him hj tin"
rnllur. lis the wlnile. tllllir h.V n kill
ers teuriii.' ut Its oily tnimtii'. tlalJed
with its tm and the two of them slid
down ils inii'v. dii'i miller water.
Itli.ll' lollL'ht iiL'alllst tin suirie'll
' on mid lie In r i di sire tn i-":i - mid
ii'lli-M M li'ilmi'il littles. The lad's
weight siemei! to he CilirylllK htm
down as If he was n tlilnu' of lead, hut
Italiii ,v would not relax his url)i. lie
could not. lie had centered all hi"
etier.v upon the desire to save Sandy,
and Ills nerve renters were still tene
to that Inst niiiM'luiiK demand.
The Karluk was Into the wind and
they were In whnt little lee there was,
drncsdht! aft at the end of the hal
yards, helm: fetched In toward the
mil by the mighty tugs of I.und, i
weird sight to Italney'R smarting eyes
BR he caught sight of the giant, with
red hair uncovered. Ids beard whip
ping In the wind, his black glasses
still tn place, tanking some sort of n
blessed monster out of him.
Ilalney hnd his left fist welded to
Hie line, his right wns set In Sandy's
collar, nnd Snndy'R death clutch had
twined itself Into Kalney's oilskins,
though the Ind wus limp, nnd Ids face,
seen through the watery film that
streamed over It, set nnd white.
A dozen nrms shot down to grasp
him. He felt Hie Iron grip of Lund
npon his left forearm, almost wrench
Idb his arm from Its socket as
he was Inhauled, caught nt by body
nnd legs nnd deposited on the deck of
the schooner, that almost Instnntly
commenced to go about upon Its for
mer course.
Lund bent over htm, asking him
with n note that Itnlney, for nil his
exhaustion, Interpreted ns one of real
anxiety :
"How 1r It with you, matey? Did
ye git lunged up?"
Itnlney managed to shnke his head
nnd, with Lund's boughlike arm for
support, got to his feet, winded,
shaken, nihlng from his pounding nnd
the crash against the whale.
Sandy was lying face down, one
hunter kneeling ncross him, kneading
his ribs to bellows action, lifting his
upper bod.v In time to the pressure,
while another worked Ids sJaek anus
up and down.
"That was' splendid, Mr. Itnlney I
Wonderful: It was brave of yon!"
Peggy SIiiiiiis siniiil before Itnlney,
clinging to the mainstays, a different
girl lo thi' one that he had known.
Her red lips were apart, showing the
clenn shine of her teeth, above hpr
u ' j.a ' , . m I i
"That Was Splendid, Mr. Ralneyl
Wonderful 1 It was Brave of You I"
plowhig cheeks i, iy pjp spantipii
with lileiidl) .. inn, one sinder
wet hand was In i., .nit eagerly toward
him.
"Why." said Itsi' ey, In Hint emliar
rassmeiit that oiiiii's when one knows
he lias done well, yet Instinctively
seeks to dlsi'lulm honors, "any one
would lmve done Hint. I huppeued to
he Hip only one to see It."
"I'm not so sure of thnt," replied the
girl, nnd Ilalney thought her lip
curled contemptuously us she glanced
toward Carlsen at the wheel. Yet Carl
sen, he fancied, hud full excuse for
not having made the attempt, busied
as he had been adding needed strength
to.H.ie wjieei. vr t ,- .
"Oh", It WSs not whnt he did, or
fnlled to do," said the girl, and this
time there was no mistaking the fact
that she emphnslzed her voice with
contempt and made sure that Jt would
entry to Carlsen, "He said It wasn't
worth while."
Her eyes Hashed and then she made
a visible effort to control herself. "Hut
It wni very- brave of you, and I want
to nsk your pardon," she concluded,
with the crimson of her cheeks flood
ing nil her fuce before she turned
away, and made abruptly for the com
panion. A little bewildered, the touch of her
Urn but strong fingers still sensible
to bis own, Kalnoy went to the wheel.
"Bhall I take It over, Mr. Carlsen?"
he asked. "It's my watch."
Carlsen wurveyed him coolly. Either
at pretended not to have heurd th
girl's Innuendo or It failed to get un
der his skin.
"You'd bevttr get Into some dry
ten, Ralney," h said. And riLST-
scr'ibe a stirr Jorum or grog-lint. Take
your time about It." Itnlney, cm.
scions of a w rem lied feeling In hi
side, a growing iiuii-ia and weakness
thanked him and took the advice. Half
nn hour Inter, save for a general sort
lless, he fell too vigorous to stay be
low, iiinl went on deck again. Kami,
had been taki'ii forward. I. mid luel
dlsaiiai'ed, but he found the glaiit
lu the tiliiiigular forecastle by Sal.
dj's bunk.
"That you, Ilalney V" I.und asked it
lie heard the other's tread. Then In
dropped Ids voiie to u wblsier:
"The lad's grate! ill. Make the nm-'
of It. If he wants lo spill eunythliv
git all of It. llot day's work you've
done In a long while, matey. I'litnj
thet Sand.v. rump him dry. lle'ii
know almost as minli as Tanindn, 1111
he'll come through with it easier."
"J11M what are you afraid ofV" asked
Ralney,
"Sen," said Lund, simply, "I'm
ufruld of nothing. Hut they're primed
for somethln', under Carlsen. We'll
be inn kin' L'nalaska tennorrer or the
next day. Here's hopln' H'h the next.
An' we've got to know what to ex
jiect. Here's somethln' for you to
chew on: Inside of forty-eight hours
there's goin' to be an upset aboard
tills hooker an' It's up to me an' you
to see we come out on top. If not "
He spread out his arms with the
great, gorilla-like hands nt the end
of them, In u gesture Hint supplanted
words, lleyond any doubt Lund ex
pected trouble. And Itnlney, for the
first time, begun to sense It ns some
thing approaching, sinister, almost
tangible.
As he crossed the main cabin to go
to his own room, Ciirlsen came out
of the skipper's. He did not see
Ilalney nt first utid was humming a
little air under his breath as he slipped
a small article Into his pocket HI"
fnce held a sneer. Then he snw
Ilalney, and It changed to u mask that
revealed nothing. His tune stopped.
"I henr the captain's sick again."
snld Itnlney. "Not serious, I hope."
Cnrlsen stood there gazing at him
with his look of a sphinx, his eyes
half-closed, the scoffing light showing
faintly.
"Serious? I'm afraid ft Is serlou
this time, Ilalney. Yes," he ended
slowly. "I am Inclined to think It is
really serious-." He turned away nnd
nipped at the door of the girl's state
room. In answer to 11 low reply he
turned the handle and went In, lenvlng
Ilalney nlone.
Ills feet were swipt from mmei
till., fur 11 inomi nt he seemed to swim;
In.rl. tifil In tl.e stream, clutrhlng 'it
thi h.ihurdi. 'I lie sea strutk the op
;... iti nil with a mar that tlireat
ened to tear It away, piling up nnd
then s, eililng overboard.
With it went ii llgure. Itnlney
iiii.'ht sight of a gliusll.v face, 11
mouth that shouted validy I'or help In
the pandemonium, and was liiMiiiitl
st. .j. piled with strangling briho. pop-
jis appealing In awful trlgbt a
s'.iiii! wits washed away In the ens
Mile. 'I lie halyards were held on the
pin with a turn and twist that Itnlnev
swiftly loosened, lifting the coll free,
making 11 fast loop, and thrusting
head and arms through It as he Hung
himself after the roustabout.
A great bulk wallowed Jut befoie
him. the helpless body of the bowhead
whale, the killers darting In n mad
melee for Its head. Then 11 figure was
literally hurled upon the slippery
mass of the mammal, Its gray belly
plain In Hip welter, a living raft
against which the w-nves broke nnd
tossed their spray.
Clawing frnnrtcnlly, Sandy clutched
at the bue of the enormous pectornl
fin, cJltnlng with ctnnlnral strrfigH',
m the iiiiiiliii'litvmelit of the foreiium
ivntili, found I.und In the bows us he
ivalkid forward, waiting for the bell
lo l.e st 1 ink. Lightly ns be trod, the
riant Iieiiid him nnd Instantly iccog-
Ifilzed him. "Seen Sandy yet?"
i huufi't had a chance. I 1m
H.Mned It would be the best not to
ie s,.i 11 talking to Mm."
, "Wight. Matey, things nre comln'
'to 11 head. There's Ice In the air. I
an smell It. l'eel the difference In
lunieratme? Ice, all right. An' that
means two things. We're nigh one
nf the Aleutians, an" llerlng btrnlt is
full of lie. Karly, n bit, but there's
, tiutlilii' reg'lar 'limit the way Ice
jrorms. I've got a strong hunch some
thlng'll break before we make the
I strait.
, "There's one thine In our favor. Yore
savin' Sandy has set you solid with
the hunters. They won't be so keen
to maroon you. An' they'll think
I twice nhout pul'ln' me n1fnre ml,
I used to git nlong fine win, ti1B7
,...., Ill u.,1.1 ..' .1 .. "ftt
"' " " "" "voe, they're
in ii. hi. mi. -mi uieir nearis m,Mi
ed right now. lint-" "mit
He seetned obsessed wlln t .A
11. Ill nn- nm, Willi vnrispu a, Mi
Instigator, hud determined to iJl
II ...I...,,.!,,,! l0 llll
mi 111 ".....I 1111 nuiiit- VllHatllC Inn
i. nun 111 isn-i. nullify j
what actual foundations Iie'had
nun ini'oi,v,
lie found no chance tn tnit.
Sandy. He noticed the hnr 1
at him otit'P or twice, wl,ifulI, ,
thought, nnd yet furtlvelv. Curl
did not appear during the m2
neither did the hunters. Xnr.i,.-
At noon Cnrlsen came up to tS
ins oosi-rviiiion. ue said in thine h
Ilalney, but the latter noticed the a!
tors nice seeuicu more sardonic t
usual as ne tucuea nis sextant '
hiR.nxnj,
(Continued next week)
I WATCH FOK IT
CHAPTER V.
Sandy Speaks.
The i:et tnoinliig Itnlney, going nn
deck to relieve I Inn-en at eight bells,
dei k wiitelt, and at any moment Cntl
sell might leliliiiilsh the wheel lull iv
lo 1 1 i tn as sin. n as the ghl gut tired.
Suddenly shuns s,,mi,,.. troni fcr
waul, a mc'lley of them, liullst'nrt
against the ipiarlering wind. Sandy,
the 101. stain. ut. entile dashing ,ift
along the sloping deck, rat, him:
clumsily at rail and rope to steady
himself, tlu-'icil with excitement, ah
lliosl hjstelir.il with his news.
"A Low In ail. sir'" he cried when ho
saw U.iiue.v "fd killers ufti r bun!
Itlownr diad ah. .id I"
Iteyotul the Lews linluey i. spc
liothln of Hie whale, that mils' have
soiilnlid in I'eal of the kill. 'Is. t,nt he
saw halt a doen s,..tln.ke black
Hits eiilthrr the water In stie.iks of
folia, all .dueast. their high dorsals
waving, Holies of the sea, hunting
for the gr.iy bowhead whale, to force
Its mouth open and feast on the deJI
iiiej of Its living tongue. So Lund
told him In swift sentences while
they waited for the whale to broach.
Ilalney glanced aft. Sandy had
cairled Ids warning to Carlsen and
the girl, and now was craning over
the lee rail, kheedeep In the wash,
trying to see snaiethlng of the eom
bat. l'eggy Shams' lithe llgure was
leaning to one side as she, too, gazed
ahead, though she still paid attention
to her steering and held the sihi.oner
well up, her face bright with evlte
inent, wet with Hying brine, wisps of
yellow hnlr streaming free In the
wind from beneath the ejus,, grip of
her woolen rpd tnm-n'-shauter.
"Itl-isims!" started the deep voice
of a lookout, from wliere sailors and
hunters had grouped in the bows to
witness this gladiatorial combat be
tween sea monsters, staged fittingly
In a sea that was running wild.
"Ill-o-ows!" The deep vol ilmost
leaped an octave In n sudden shi-m 0f
apprehension. Others voices mingled
with his In 11 clamor of dismay.
"Look out! oh, look out! Head
nheail !"
The enormous hulk of the whale
had appeared, not to spout, but to lie
belly tip, rocking on the surfacp with
fins outspread, paralyzed with terror,
directly In the course of the Karluk,
while toward It, Intent only on their
blood lust, leaped the killers, thrust
ing at Its iiend ns the schooner surged
down. In that tremendous sen the
Impact would he certain treati the
staving In of something forward, per
haps the springing of n butt.
"Hard n lee!" yelled Ilalney. "Up
with her! Up"'
Porward. the men Jumped to handle
the hendsnlls. The Karluk stnrted to
spin about on its keel, Instinct to the
changing plnne of the rudder, nut
the waves were running tremendously
high, and the wind blowing with great
force, the water rolling In great moan
tains of sickly greenish gray, topped
with foam that blew In a level scuA.
As the schooner hung In a deep
trough, the wind struck at her, bows
on.
Itnlney saw one huge billow rising,
curving, high ns the gaff of thp main,
It seemed to him, ns he grasped at Hie
coll of Hie main halyards. Down came
the tons of water, booming on Hie
deck, that bent under the, blow - ""
Plenty of New Merchandise
We have succeeded in buying plenty of new
merchandise for Spring, so we can make some
Very Low Prices
We carry everything in
CLOTHING
SHOES
FURNISHING GOODS
PIECE GOODS
READY-TO-WEAR
If you get our prices, YOU'LL BUY.
qspgflMefrre
If Iff X;
1 J ",
M
. V.
i '
The Four Chassis
Standard Buick All Through
From tire carrier to radiator, the Buick four
chassis is of the same powerful construction
as the Buick six.
Buick cars for twenty years have been
built for dependability and the Buick four
embodies standard units which have proved
themselves through years of service.
Compare 'he Buick four chassis part by part
with any other four cylinder car.
Ask us to tell yon more about Buick
Mhoon & Spring Buick Co.
Opposite Postoffice
Phone 133 Durant, Okla.
WHEN BETTER AUT03I0MLES AltE
BUILT BUICK WILL BUILD THEM
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