thers were pulling at hose. The
captain was rushing here and there, giving orders. I did not hear
anything he said. No one said anything to us. Rectus asked one of the
men something, as he ran past him, but the man did not stop to answer.

But there is no need to ask any questions. There was the smoke coming
up, thicker and blacker, from the edges of the hatch.

"Come!" said I, clutching Rectus by the arm. "Let's wake them up."

"Don't you think they can put it out?" he asked, as we ran back.

"Can't tell," I answered. "But we must get ready,--that's what we've got
to do."

I am sure I did not know how we were to get ready, or what we were to
do, but my main idea was that no time was to be lost in doing something.
The first thing was to awaken our friends.

We found the steward in the saloon. There was only one lamp burning
there, and the place looked dismal, but there was light enough to see
that he was very pale.

"Don't you intend to wake up the people?" I said to him.

"What's the good?" he said. "They'll put it out."

"They may, and they mayn't," I answered, "and it wont hurt the
passengers to be awake."

With this I hurried to the Chippertons' state-room--they had a double
room in the centre of the vessel--and knocked loudly on the door. I saw
the steward going to other doors, knocking at some and opening others
and speaking to the people inside.

Mr. Chipperton jumped right up and opened the door. When he saw Rectus
and me standing there, he must have seen in our faces that something was
the matter, for he instantly asked:

"What is it? A wreck?"

I told him of the fire, and said that it might not be much, but that we
thought we'd better waken him.

"That's right," he said; "we'll be with you directly. Keep perfectly
cool. Remain just where you are. You'll see us all in five minutes," and
he shut the door.

[Illustration: "'KEEP PERFECTLY COOL,' SAID MR. CHIPPERTON."]

But I did not intend to stand there. A good many men were already
rushing from their rooms and hurrying up the steep stairs that led from
the rear of the saloon to the deck, and I could hear ladies calling out
from their rooms as if they were hurrying to get ready to come out. The
stewardess, a tall colored woman, was just going to one of these ladies,
who had her head out of the door. I told Rectus to run up on deck, see
how things were going on, and then to come back to the Chippertons'
door. Then I ran to our room, jerked the