LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2222, 11 April 1881, Page 3

LITERATURE.

I THE CAPTAIN'S PERIL; Or, A Promising Mate. Br Rtjfus Hale. The crimson light of the rising sun fell npon the tea as Mary Buriville, the Captain's pretty daughter, came up from the cabin of the merchant ship Cameron, becalmed off the coast of Pern. The girl had just completed her morning toilet, and there was one youthful Bailor aboard who fancied he had never seen a lovelier object than this young woman of seventeen, with her smooth black hair, braided in shining bands under her broad straw hat, her oval cheeks rosy with health, and her supple, gracefnl form—the latter arraved in a neatly fitting white dreßS with a blue sash. The sailor alluded to was Thomas Rollins —a fine-loiking, intelligent seaman of twenty, who now stood at the wheel. For an instant Mary had glanced toward him, and blushed as she bade him good morning; then she had walked to the rail and fixed her gaze npon an old whaloehip which was in plain sight, not a league off the quarter. Rollins had politely responded to her salutation; then a sad look had fallen on his manly face. In brief, the young fellow loved the Cuptain's daughter, but he could have entertained no hope of ever making her his wife, even had he known that his affection was returned.

The girl and he were born in the same village, where, for a while, they had been playmates in childhood. Then they were separated by the Captain's moving to a distant seaport town. A few years later the failure of his father in business had induced the boy to undertake a sea voyage. H e continued to pursue the calling of a sailor, and, finally, meeting Captain Buriville at Callao, he had shipped aboard his vessel, which was bound home to New York.

Buriville, however, had at once discouraged any renewal of the old friendship between his daughter and Rollins. 'I have nothing against yon, of course,' he said to the latter ; ' bnt as yon and she are now man and woman, it is better that yon should keep apart, as yon would never be more to each other than mere acquaintances.' When he gave his instrnctions to Mary, on the same subject she pouted and wept, for she had not failed to notice that he was now grown to be a sturdy, handsome ytung fellow, with frank, pleasant manners, that pleased her. 'I think you very unreasonable, papa,' she. sobbed. 'lt is because be is a foremast hand that you object to him.' 'An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure,' said Buriville. ~* I would not have you fall in love and marry any one less than a mate, or a captain, who would be able to provide for you better than a poor foremast hand.'

'Why not make Rollins a mate, then?' taid Mary, looking up shyly through her tears.

' Well, well, he may become an officer in time, but he has his way to * work np.' True, he is very clever as it is, and as he has a knowledge of navigation, he would, perhape, make a good mate.' ' Why don't you promote him, if that is the case ?'

*ln the first place, because there is no vacancy here. Then, again, I don't believe in lifting a young fellow up to a position all at once. Let him gradually 'work his way to it, as I have done. The best I can do is to recommend him to some shipowner.' ' But papa, yon own this ship. You could make him a mate of yours.' She co• xed him and pleaded with him so earnestly that at last he said he wonld think about it. If Rollins should prove himself more prompt and true in performing his duties than the other sailors, he (the captain) might take him for his mate in course of time.

Now, as the girl looked over the rail, on this bright morning, she thought of her father's promise. It was a pleasant thought in her. and her blooming cheeks were dimpled with smiles, while her dark eyes Bhone like stars

All at once, between the craft aboard of which she stood and the whaler, she noticed a number of forked jets or sprouts shooting up from the sea. ' There blows!' cried her father, who had just emerged from the cabin. ' The whaler will soon have her boats down. Upon my word, I should like to go near those oilhnnters and see the Bport.' ' I must see the fun,' said the skipper, * and I shall go. Lower away the dingey,' he Eaid. ' I want three good men to go with me.'

He selected the three who were to go, among them Kollins, who had just been relieved at the wheel.

The boat was soon down, with the slipper at the tiller and the oarsmen in their places * Give way !' cried the Captain. The boat made good progress toward the whales, which were now slowly heading seaward.

The sailors from the other ship were pulling with might and main after the huge fish, whose dark humps were occasionally lifted above the surface, as they moved along on their way. At last one of the sharp pointed boats of the whalers was within darting distance of a great monster which had lauged a little behind the rest of the school.

A tall, dark man, in a guernsey and blue trousers, rose in the bow of his boat, harponn in hand. For an instant the weapon was poised to be hurled, the next moment, with unerring aim.

It was buried to the socket in the whale whose flakes were seen whisking to and fro through the white sheets of spray that hid the boat.

■ They are fast,' remarked Captain Burlville, who, with his men—the latter now resting on their oars, about sixty fathoms from their ship—was an interested spectator of the scene.

From her father's craft Mary had also seen the man strike the whale.

' Poor fish!' with a shudder, as she placed both little hands over her eyes. All at once she heard wild shouts.

Looking in the direction of the noise, she perceived that the fast boat, dragged by the whale, which had sounded (gone down), was heading straight toward the dingey in which were her parent and the three oarsmen.

The whaleboat, Its crew cheering and yelling like madmen, seemed to cleave the water with the swiftness of an arrow, and it was soon not more than forty fathoms from the skipper and his companions. ' Oh! papa, you will be run into I' soreamed Mary, in alarm. The captain looked toward her, smiled, shook his head, and in a minute he had the dingey pulled out of the track of the coming boat. Scarcely was this done, however, when there wan a cry of terror from the young girl, who now beheld the water parted by the huge body of the whale, as the monßter shot up from the Burfaoe, with the iron protruding from its hump, and the attached to the weapon whisking in many bights and colls around it.

The creature was close to the dingey, beating the sea -with its flukes and churning the foam with his jaw. ' Pull ahead I' shouted Burlvllle, aware of his danger. He directed the small craft away from the whale, his three oarsmen pulling vigorously. But before he was six fathoms from the animal the latter suddenly made utraight for the little boat, his jaws wide open, his sharp, saw like fangs viciously revealed.

' Take care, there !' came warmly from the whalemen, Btill more than a hundred feet distant. Burlville did his best to escape his infuriated pursuer, hut the leviathan gained rapidly upon him; and now to avoid the great jaw, which was abont to close npon the fragile stern of the light vessel, he sheered to one side.

In an instant the enormous flakes, almost alongside of which this movement of the Bkipper had brought him, were raised high in air and whirled directly over tho dingey, upon which it appeared they were about to descend with a force which would havo crushed the light planks to fragments. Seeing theße fearful weapons of the mighty fish fanning the air above their heads, two of the oarsmen at once sprang into the ses, leaving Rollins and the captain still in the boat. . ' My father ! Oh, poor papa 1' cried Mary who now, very pale, leaned far over the rail

I of the ship, her hands clasped, her gaze I riveted npon her parent. The latter was In a peculiarly perilous situation. A bight of the line whisking' from the whale had caught about his waist, and having no knife with him he was unable to clear himself from the rope, which had tightened about his body, hole ing him down between two thwarts, as the ilukeia, with, a cr.sh, struck the sea, just missing the dingey. Rollins, who had been inclined to follow the example of his two shipmates when they jumped overboard, had controlled himself when he perceived the situation of his captain.

With a quick movement of his oar he had caneod the boat to shoot ahead, thus barely getting it out of reach of thoeo ponderous flukes as they descended. Now he quickly drew the sheath-knife he wore in his belt at his side, and, springing to the skipper's side, he witu one blow Revered the line that had caught about the waist of the imperilled man, and which had, by this time, pulled bim half way over the gunnel.

There was a roaring, gargiing sound, s hissing mass of foam and spray, then a. crunching, snapping noise, as the boat w»a crushed in the jaw of the whale. Rollins and the Captain had rolled over into the se on that side of the dingey opposite the deadly fangs. For several moments they were hidden in the sheets of flying spray from the gaze of Mary Buriville, who had witnessed with joy and pride the gallant conduct of the young; man whom she already secretly loved.

.Again she feared that, after all, they might be lost —be killed by the monster whose flukes were beating the ocean.

Soon these fears were set at rest. The great fish went down under the foaming waters, and there were her father and Rollins, now striking out for the whalers' boat, which was close at h\nd. The swimmers were picked up a minnte later, to find the two who had previously juu.ped from the dingey already taken in. Buriville did not reprimand them, for he knew that, had he not been caught by the line, which at the time held him fast to the boat, he too would have sprung overboard. He was, of course, very earnest in his praire of Rollins for rescuing him from % terrible fate.

Had not the young man so bravely re* mained in the biat and cut the rope by which the captain was caught, that person, even bad he escaped the whale's jaws, must have been dragged down with the monster when it dove!

So grateful was the skipper, that, when he arrived aboard and had embraced his daughter, he told hie preserver that he might in future take up his quarters in the cabin, where he would employ him as his clerk, and that Mary and he might hereafter he as friendly with each other as they pleased. When, at last, the thip arrived at New fork, the captain said to his daughter : • I premised you I would promote Hollies. Well, I suppose you would like to have me make him my first mate ?' ' Yes, papa,' said Mary, as she laid her noft cheek against his arm, ' and—and as he has proposed it, I would like to have him for my mate, too." Ah the on.pti.in had lately concluded not to object to any such proposition, he readily gave his consent.