In peril on the sea

The chilling mist which has been gathering over the face of the still waters all the afternoon now thickens and banks up into a dense white fog as the short October evening clos...

But when the cruiser, gradually losing way, turns to port before finally stopping, a boat comes into view on the starboard bow and soon is right on the beam, still some little d...

At first he is somewhat unsuccessful, the girls, at least, are seemingly so frightened and collapsed that they can hardly get beyond a few disjointed sentences and much sobbing....

Captain Blake, driven from the wardroom by a woman's sobbing, has not allowed his sentimental nature to interfere with his proper duties. Had he been that sort of man he would n...

But no sooner has the door closed on the retreating pair than Netta Sheridan, reclining languid and half-dozed on the settee, astonishes the surgeon and Merritt by suddenly spri...

Having concluded their interview with the captain in his cabin and given him a full account of everything connected with their terrible misadventure, Patrick Sheridan and his co...

A high-spirited, deeply sensitive girl, caring nothing for such blows and buffetings as life may please to deal her so long as they touch herself alone, but very keenly alive to...

She sits with bowed head, her eyes fixed in a steady gaze yet seeing nothing; her arms, stretched put limply before her with the clasped hands lying in her lap would seem nervel...

As a general rule, life on board a man-of-war at sea passes without any incident worthy of remark; and this is true to a great degree in war time, just as much as in times of pe...

It is a pleasant little place to look at, with its shining green-lacquered corticene deck and the framed pictures against the white enamelled bulkheads. In one respect it is ver...

It is the afternoon of the following day. A brilliant clear afternoon without a cloud in the sky, and warm sunshine flooding the calm blue sea and making the distant cliffs and...

"Alick Stapleton is my nephew's name. He is the first lieutenant of the ship, so naturally you must have met him. What did you think of him? Isn't he a dear fellow?"

Besides all her other anxieties, there is still one further question that has been exercising Norah's mind--what has become of her cousin Patrick? For she has not seen him since...

Lieutenant-Commander Stapleton advances with smiling face and outstretched hand towards two very frightened girls. He is quite aware that they would have cause indeed to feel al...

"Now you are asking me to tell you naval secrets! What, do you imagine I am going to trust you with the knowledge of the movements of the fleet? It wouldn't be safe! But I can a...

Fate will not be mocked and defied, but demands quick retribution. Even now, while the lovers are wandering idly along the moorland paths and opening their hearts in the first e...

They say that even the most cunning criminals, even such astute experts as have learnt every clever device to cover up their tracks, usually neglect some simple precaution or co...

If he were alone, such a course, though desperate, might perhaps be attempted, even if the chances of its succeeding were small indeed. Still, with some hard lying and a brazen...

Oh, if he would only speak! If only he would hurl at her words of abuse, of condemnation. Anything would be more endurable than the speechless accusation of that grey face and t...

It is very trying, to say the least of it, to be overwhelmed by the waves and storms of one fierce emotion after another, and to be left finally stranded well-nigh lifeless on t...

This, also, Netta refuses. For the very good reason that she has no plan; that is, nothing definite. Only she has a vague idea that their sole hope--and a very faint hope, too--...

And yet Dick Baynes, in concluding his side of the bargain, has but gambled with fate quite blindly. To gain the love of this woman of his desires he will agree to anything--has...

Dick Baynes is a man of strong passions but few ideas. His friends sometimes described him as a man whose heart was stronger than his head, and he did not resent the description...

Although he is faced with no mean antagonist, Baynes, without question, is slightly the better man of the two with his fists, as he is also the more powerful and has the longer...

Secretary Dimsdale may be bashful enough in the presence of ladies. "They frighten me, and I lose my head at once," is his explanation of the fact--which perhaps accounts for th...

"Under ordinary circumstances," says the secretary to himself when he gets back to his private office, "I should describe it as the act of a dirty dog to open another man's lett...

"That's all right, old man; you just lie still as you are for a bit and we'll see what we can do about it." The fleet-surgeon bends over the cot in the sick bay where the patien...

Even the least of life's tragedies would be sufficient to unnerve us completely and throw us off our mental balance for the rest of our days if we could visualise it thoroughly...

"Well, it is rather different to that. As a matter of fact, it is just as harmless, as far as its outward profession goes, being merely an association for the promotion of the I...

The court of enquiry is assembled in the outer office in the admiral's house. It is a large room, formerly the dining-hall when the house was in the hands of its private owners....

To tell the truth, none of the officers constituting the court ever really expected much result from it. When a ship has gone down in such a manner, blown to pieces almost in a...

"Stapleton!" cries the admiral in astonishment, "what is the meaning of this, may I ask? Or rather," turning towards the fleet-surgeon, who has hung back a little after entering...

This time, the sensation amongst the assembled officers of the court is one of genuine consternation. The affair has taken a very serious turn indeed. The mystery of the _Marath...

Patrick Sheridan had a disquieting fear of this Court of Enquiry ever since he first heard that it was about to be held, and that he himself would be required to be present at i...

All eyes are directed towards the secretary, and his attempt to prolong the enquiry is greeted with no very good humour. In fact, he has made himself suddenly very unpopular wit...

Dimsdale brings his accusing words to a close in a silence that is almost painful in its intensity. All eyes are upon him. He remains calm and unperturbed as ever, and there is...