JERRY SMITH, QUARTERMASTER
"How's she coming? It's 'most noon, Mart."
"Huh? Oh, she's great. I can't find anything wrong, except a little
rust. I'll take a look at that transmitting jigger and send out a flash,
I guess."
"What's the transmitting jigger?"
"This--the oscillation transformer. It transfers the primary circuit
energy, which has low potential, to the aerial circuit, where it reaches
a mighty high potential at the free insulated end--"
"Hey! What d'you think I am--a walking 'cyclopaedia?" broke in Bob
indignantly. "Cut out that high-flown talk with me, Mart, and get down
to where I can collect on you. Going to send a message?"
"Golly, no!" returned Mart, busily, adjusting his current. "We'd have
the port officers down on us in a jiffy. It's all right to pick up
messages, but to do any private monkey-work by sendin' them is liable to
get a fellow in bad. No, I'm just going to see that the sparker's
workin' right--"
"Never mind a technical description," broke in Bob. "Just go ahead and
I'll be satisfied to watch. But when you get through, there's some stuff
down in the cabin that you might like to look over."
"All right," grunted the other, pressing down his key. The blue spark
leaped out for a long moment, but Mart was careful not to break it, and
with a satisfied nod he threw off the current. The _Seamew's_ wireless,
in spite of a year of disuse, was in splendid shape; like other merchant
ship stations of modern type, it was almost perfect in its conveniences.
The whole transmitting apparatus, from the generator to the aerial
tuning inductance, was in a special silence cabinet; this not only kept
the noise of the spark and generator down, but shut off all high-tension
apparatus from the operator. Mart explained this at some length to his
chum.
"It's strictly fool-proof, so I'll give you some lessons when we get out
in the ocean," he grinned. "We can send messages all we please there,
but not in port."
"Well, you come along down to the cabin," returned Bob ungraciously. He
had no knowledge of things mechanical, and no liking for them. His
tastes ran to athletics, and by careful cultivation of his body he had
made himself the physical equal, or nearly so, of Mart Judson, whose
strength and alertness were entirely natural.
Leaving the wireless house, which was on the upper bridge deck just
abaft the chart house and signal locker, the two boys slid down the
ladders to the lower deck. Cases of provisions and supplies were being
slung down the fore hold by the steam winch, and except for the two
mates and a couple of wharf hands, no one was in sight. The engine-room
crew was aboard, together with the Chinese steward, but the crew of a
dozen men would not come aboard until the next night.
Indeed, the principal use for a crew aboard the _Seamew_ was to keep the
brasswork polished and the decks holystoned, it seemed to Mart.
Everything was done by steam-power; while the wheel-house had a helm,
the steam steering-gear was used entirely, the anchor was worked by
steam, and the boats and launch carried on the bridge deck could be
swung out by the same power.
"What's waiting for us?" queried Mart as they turned to the after
companionway leading to the cabins.
"You come along and see," returned Bob Hollinger mysteriously. "Dad's
gone uptown, so we got the craft to ourselves right now."
Mart followed his friend down into the cabin, then stopped suddenly and
caught his breath. A big mahogany chest stood open at one side, and on
the table was laid out an astonishing array of hunting supplies. There
were guns of every conceivable size and shape, it seemed to him. He
picked up the first to hand and examined it, while Bob excitedly
explained.
"That's a Mannlicher-Schoener. It's dad's favorite for big game, Mart."
"Huh!" exclaimed Mart critically. "She ain't much bigger'n the old
twenty-two I used to have, Holly. I'll eat all the big game your dad
ever shoots with that gun!"
"Don't you believe it! That's the Austrian army gun--she's a
two-fifty-six caliber cordite, hasn't any kick to speak of, and they use
it on elephants in Africa. Why, she'll kill at a mile, Mart!"
"Mebbe," and Mart doubtfully laid the weapon down. "You'll have to show
me first, though. Whew! this looks like a regular hardware shop! That's
a beaut of a shotgun."
While it hardly seemed possible that the Austrian gun could be all Bob
said, Mart knew that his chum was well posted. However, there were guns
of all sizes and kinds, from target rifles to heavy twenty-gauge Parker
shotguns, as well as four ugly-looking automatic pistols. Besides these
there were half a dozen long hunting-knives, bandoliers, belts, and
other articles of equipment.
"Dad sent down his whole outfit," explained Bob gleefully. "We're likely
to get a chance for some fine shooting on the voyage. But say! Come in
here a minute! This'll make you sit up, sure!"
He hastily led his chum into the smoking-room beyond. A large
packing-case stood on the floor, and on the table was a small but
complete moving-picture machine, at sight of which Mart gave a yell of
delight.
"By golly!" he cried, examining it. "It's one o' those English things,
Holly--I was reading about it last week! You take 'em around with you
and--why, she's a wonder! No bigger'n a camera, either!"
In fact, the whole machine was no larger than a good-sized camera, and
Mart decided on the spot that he would be moving-picture operator. It
was Captain Hollinger's intention to take pictures of Kuala Besut, of
his prospective gold-concession, of the whole vicinity, and of his tiger
hunts if possible, and the two boys were wild over the prospect.
Suddenly Mart turned as a quiet voice broke in from behind.
"Hm--hm--beg pardon, gentlemen!"
A stoop-shouldered, gentle-faced old man stood in the doorway, cap in
hand. He had very watery blue eyes, his expression was mild in the
extreme, and long white hair fell on his shoulders; but for his tanned,
leathery skin, Mart would have taken him for an old clerk in a bank.
"Yes?" inquired Bob. "You wanted someone here?"
"Why, I was looking for the cap'n," said the old man. His voice was
soft, but carried far. "My name's Smith, Jerry Smith, quartermaster."
"Oh, you're the Jerry Smith that's to sail with us!" Bob spoke in no
little astonishment, for the old man looked anything but a tarry sailor.
"Why, dad's gone uptown for the afternoon, Mr. Smith. I'm Bob Hollinger,
and this is Mart Judson, who goes with us."
"Pleased, gentlemen," and the other jerked his head slightly, gazing
around with mild interest. "That's a sight o' hardware, here in the main
cabin. My stars! Is the cap'n going to shoot all those weapons, young
sir?"
"Well, he hopes to," grinned Mart easily, shoving back the mop of black
hair from his brow. "Going to take moving pictures, too. I'm the
wireless operator."
"Eh?" Jerry Smith looked astonished. "Why, young sir, that is
surprising! I did not know we--we were going to have a wireless
operator!" His watery eyes blinked a little, and his soft voice dropped
to a deeper tone. "Well, well! And I was just about your age, I imagine,
when I first put to sea!"
Mart hoped for a moment that the old man was going to spin a yarn, but
instead he only heaved a sigh and mopped at his nose with a huge
bandanna.
"Well," he said to Bob, "I'm sorry to miss your father, young sir. And
would you please to tell him that the crew'll come aboard to-morrow
night, and that I'll be aboard afore then with the papers? I'll have to
sign on as quartermaster, you know, and the cap'n--"
"Eh?" Bob struck in with a frown. "Why, you're going as a guest, Mr.
Smith! Dad doesn't want you to sign on at all."
"Just Jerry, if you please!" the old man smiled quietly. "Jerry is my
handle, young sirs, just Jerry. About signing on, now. I've never put to
sea yet, young sirs, but what I've been entered shipshape and Bristol
fashion, and I'm not going to start wrong at this time o' life. I want
to be on the ship's articles as quartermaster, that's all--that's all. I
got my discharges all proper, and if we should lose an officer, I've got
a first officer's ticket. I don't want any wages, young sirs, but I want
to be signed on all shipshape. It'll make me feel a sight better. You'll
tell the cap'n that?"
"Why, sure!" returned Bob heartily. "And I'm glad to meet you, Jerry.
You'd better keep in mind that I'm Bob, or Holly--either one hits the
right spot--and I don't like that 'young sir' business."
"Nor me," put in the gray-eyed boy, stepping forward with his hand out.
"I'm plain Mart, without any Mister either, Jerry, and I'm glad to meet
up with you."
The three shook hands. Mart noted that old Jerry had a very strong chin
and a tight-lipped mouth, for all his gentle appearance, and his hands
were very gnarled and knotted. His dress was old and weatherstained, but
had nothing of the sailor in it. Mart had seen enough of sailors along
the waterfront, however, to know that clothes do not count in such
cases.
With a final duck of his head, Jerry Smith turned and shuffled away.
"Well, what d'you think o' that!" Bob stared at his chum as the
stoop-shouldered figure vanished up the companion. "Pirate! Say, do you
reckon he ever saw a pirate ship? I guess dad has things twisted about
him, eh?"
"I'm not so sure," returned Mart slowly, thinking of that firm chin and
knotted hand. "I'm not so sure, Holly. You can't go by what you read in
books, always. Sure, I know he's a nice old fellow, but he's a queer
fish just the same. And as for bein' a pirate, there's that man Morris,
who's workin' on the _Tribune_ now as city editor. He's as quiet and
nice as you ever see 'em, but they say he's been all kinds of things.
That shows you, Holly, that you can't go by looks."
"Anyhow, I guess he's reformed by now," stated Bob decisively. "And
pirating is out of date these days. He's only an interesting character,
as the books say."
"He sure is," agreed Mart promptly. "Say, Holly, we're going to have a
whopper of a time in the next month or so, ain't we?"
Bob grinned happily. "You're dead right, old boy! Say, it's noon--"
"By golly, that's right! When do we eat? I'm some empty."
"Right now. Ah Sing has the grub ready, I guess. Hike along, you
pirate!"
And Mart hiked with a wide grin.