LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 1833, 7 January 1880, Page 3

LITERATURE.

THE FATE OF THE SCHELDE.

[Abridged from the German of Rosenthal Bonin.] (Continued.')

Full of curiosity as I was to get a plainer sight of her, still I couldn't help noticing the captain. With his hatred of women how was he going to take this incident 7 To my astonishment, although he swore about the lost half hoar and the plague of all mankind, still he must have been In extra good humor, for he ordered the cook and cabin-boy to take the unconscious burden into his own cabin, and rub her well with ram—the sailor's universal recipe for health and comfort. After a few minutes, when the sai's had filled again and the helm was amidships, he called me, as the only person used to anything but sea life, and commissioned me to look after the poor stranger. He himself paced up and down the deck. I could hear his steps from below, where I was busy restoring the benumbed body. She was not dead, but her life hung upon a thread. As I now saw, she was a delicately made, finely dressed young lady, with long gold blonde hair, high forehead, and strongly-marked arched brows meeting over an aquiline nose. Our efforts were successful. After » while the breath came ; it grew stronger ; a sort of tremor ran through the delicate frame; the eyelids quivered and a pair of great, dusky blue eyes opened and looked vacantly about. A few teaspoonfuls of hot coffee theu did good service. A faint red began to color the face, the eyes gained life and expression, and a voice, weak but clear, asked with a North German accent:

' Am I in Norderney ?' ' No, lady,' I answered ; * you're on board the Sahelde, commanded by Captain Koltherm.'

' Where's my brother ?' Before I could evade this dangerous question the attendant had rashly asked, ' Was he in tho boat, too ?' and the sobs and tears of our rescued passenger cut off all farther conversation.

I went therefrom to the captain and re ported what I had heard below. Koltherm muttered something about 'stupid good-nature,' and 'the devil take it ail,' and then, faming, continued his walking. I had to attend to my work. The wind was heavier, the sky covered with jagged clouds ; dashes of rain began to fall, and the hailstones struck the water - here and there with a sharp splash. We had to keep a keen lookout. The wind had shifted and blew dead against us. The sails were close reefed, and we were working along slowly by steam alone. The captain had at last gone below to see our waif. I thought he'd spit fire and flame when he appeared on deck again, bnt instead he was quiet and almost thoughtful. Once only he grumbled something about ' land - lubbers and counter jumpers that venture on the water in cockleshells, and get served just right if they're food for the fishes.'

I called the cabin-boy, and from him I learned the young lady's history. She was the wife of a Jewish banker in B. She lived, however, apart from her husband, and had been passing some time in Norderney, with her brother, for the sea baths. This brother, a very zealous member of the boat club of 8., had at last pesuaded her, as it was a dead calm, to go out sailing with him, and he would take care to keep near shore and go all round the little ovalshaped island. Without noticing they got into a current, and before they could realise it, were far from land.

Then her brother had lowered the sail, that was only a hindrance, and tried to row ashore. They got on very slowly ; the sea began to roughen, the rudder wouldn't work, and the waves struck the frail wood so heavily that they had to unship it. Whilst they were making these exertions, they were driven off an entirely uninhabited part of the island, and in spite of all their work, got further and further out. At first they were not uneasy; the sun shone bright, and the water was bo green and limpid and cool; but when her brother grew deadly pale, as land was entirely out of sight, she began to be afraid. At sundown the tide rose and the waves ran higher. Sbe was wet and cold and deathly ill from the rocking motion. Courage and thought were gone. She only faintly remembered that her brother had tried to run up the sail, and, in doing so, got overboard. She felt something cold upon her heart, and then fell into a long, dreadful swoon, from which she at last came to in the cabin. This was the substance of what she told the captain, but the story was all broken with convulsive sobs.

The wind acted as if it would dispute our lovely capture ; for it came up so fresh that we had to make everything on deck fast, and the rain streamed in torrents.

We worked along very cautiously, continually casting the lead, and by morning had made little headway. * We'll hardly get further than Bremen ta-day, mate,' he call d out to me. ' Perhaps we'll have to put in there,' I answered, looking at the wall of clouds arcund us. ' That would be the devil and all,' said the captain, apparently annoyed, and gave the extraordinary order to take a course stil further north, and out of the way of harbors. He {avoided the astonished glance that I gave him. The captain's conduct set me thinking. This woman-hater hurries down to the lady in the cabin, and in such doubtful weather he avoids the neighbourhood of a port, and why does he particularly shun Bremen ? However, I had to obey orders, and we were soon battling with wind and wave further out on the waste of waters. Chapteb lIT. With the next flood tide the wind shifted, lulled, and grew steady, and the sea went down. We could use the c*nvas again and were running nnder topsails The sun peeped through the parted clouds that were sweeping by us heaped in great masses, while a beautiful blue sky opened overhead. The clearer the sky grew, the more gloomy and ill-natured Captain Koltherm showed himself. Our lovely passenger appeared on deck and gazed thoughtfully, but it seemed to me, quite calmly, down into the waves.

I had a chance to admire the elasticity and grace of her movements, and was struck by the beauty of her face—a rare beauty, which now for the first time I fully reoognised. This beauty, so strangely born to us by the waves, munt have made a similar impression udou my iron-heart r d captain. Ha visib'y struggled with himself. _ He turned his face with defiant steadiness toward the offing, but he was continually drawn back to the lady, who was looking to larboaid. It was rilmost comical to see this hardened man fighting against the enchantment, and it wou'd certainly have amused me if I had not felt stirring in my own heart a sentiment, hitherto unknown, of envy and hatred against my employer My suspicious eye noted that our pretty passenger,' although she avoided looking at us or the crew, or letting us have a good look at her, thrdw at the captain, from time to time, stolen glance", in which there was an unmiatakeable expression of shy tenderness. I was angry at this melancholy LoreKe that she should feel any interest in such an ungoverned and passionate man as Koltherm. I felt it argu-d a certain coarseness of mind to be accessible to such feelings hardly three days after the shocking event that hat? "overtaken her. I did not know, however, that the poor child, hardly out of her teens, had been sold to a man who waß a mere money machine ; whom, after three years of insupportable married life, she had left in detestation. Being condemned, of course, by society, she was leading a life of blasted hopes, abandonment, and longing after a truly feeling heart Had I known all this I would have found her, und b r those circumstances, perhap* riot excusable, yet certainly guiltless. Captain Koltherm had, with ail his wild character, strong and deep fe"lini?B, a«d \va:: at bottom a kkd hearted fellow. Women are sharp-si*ht.:sd; and what it took me two years to find out this young strainer had saen in a few days. I saw through the captain's plan to avoid the German coast, to let himself be driven into a Danish port, to plead damage to his ship and pa«B over the oargo to another vessel, and then nail with us to Japan or China. So all trace of the young lady would be lost, and no rumour of her rescue ever *aach her home. I saw, too, the most obvious reasons for staying to long at sea. i The crafty Hollander, who, with all his \ rscklcssnes?, had a great knowledge of human nature, evidently feared lest, too soon on

land again, and out of theee exceptional circumstances, his charmer's feeling toward him might be frightened sway by such a bold plan as that of passing a lifetime on shipboard. Chapter IV. «PP» My suspicion did not remain long unconfirmed. The cabin boy, who was always spying about, had caught various remarks from the captain to the lady, and serious responses on her side, whioh ho inimediatoly confided to me, whose interest in orar passenger the sly rascal had long ago discovered. One day when I was off duty my oor.jecture was confirmed. The pretty creature met me on the companion way. I bowed low, and she timidly ventured the question, ' Is Lsurwig a large city ? Is it far off ? ' 'Laurwig, lady, is a little harbour.' I answered, 'but what makes you think of Laurwig ? That's in Norway, you know, and we are going to Hamburg.' A deep colour overspread her cheek?, and after this she avoided my eyes more industriously than ever. On returning to my post, and receiving Eloltherm's next sn-der my notion' became a fixed certainty. 'North-north-east, mate,' he called out, suddenly, without any nautical reason. (To be continued.')