Sandy yelled on:
“I don’t believe in ’em, but I’d like him handy now. If we’re a-goin’
to drown, I’d like to be drownded close beside him.”
Lennie threw himself upon the wheel, and when it was steady, tugged at
the cord communicating with the engineer. By his doing so it occurred
to me that our speed was excessive, despite the wind. The engines did
not respond to the order.
A great shout came from Sandy, and the glass of his lantern shivered
against the wheel. He put out his hand, and the captain’s face went
ghastly, and his eyes half closed with a shudder.
To the left of us, bathed in floods of electric light, I saw a ragged
outline of rocks, with black trees battling above, and a great bed of
snow-white surf raging beneath.
“Petrie,” wailed the mate, out of that tumult, “we’ll meet maybe in
another world, though I hold to me doubts. Get below anyhow, an’ chain
up Dave and Pete afore they get any crazier.”
I went for the hatchway, and dived down, Akshelah always following.
Where was MacCaskill?
The darkness swallowed me. The lanterns had never been lighted. As I
set foot below, there came to me out of the darkness, and the blended
noises of storm and machinery, furious laughter as of men revelling.
“Muchumeneto is here to-night,” said Akshelah, and the girl was right.
The Evil Spirit was indeed aboard.
The gong in the engine-room pealed incessantly, but the engineer took
no heed. A dark figure controlled the life of the ship, and a long
white hand held the lever at full pressure. Pete was not there, Dave
was not there. Redpath was engineer, and Olaffson was his fireman!