nferno_, the scene might well be imagery for a stage of unholy rites.

Past her, we turned to the clean salt breeze again and stood on to the
open sea. The salvage officer, a Commander, R.N.R., joined us at the
rail. "What about that now? Sa--lubrious?" he said.

We wondered how men could be got to work in such an atmosphere, how it
was possible to handle such foul-smelling litter in the confined holds.

"Oh! We go through that all right. A bit inconvenient and troublesome,
perhaps, working in a restricting gas-rig; but now, the chemists have
come to our assistance and we can sweeten things up by a dose of
anti-stink. . . . But you won't see that to-day. Our 'bird' has got no
cargo, only clean stone ballast--a soft job."

The 'soft job' had had a rough time, a combination and chapter of sea
and war hazard. Inward bound from the United States with a big cargo, a
German torpedo had found a mark on her. She settled quickly by the
stern, but the undamaged engines worked her gallantly into a small
seaport where she brought up with her main deck awash. There she was
lightened of her precious load, temporary baulks and patches were
clamped and bolted to her riven shell-plate, and she set off again on a
short coastwise voyage to the nearest port where definite and
satisfactory repair could be effected. Off the Heads, the enemy again
got sights on her. Crippled, and steaming at slow speed to ease strain
on the bulkheads, she made a 'sitting' target for a second torpedo, that
shattered rudder and stern-post and sheared the propellor from the
shaft.

"We came on her just before dark," said the commander. . . . "Some of
the crew were in the boats, close by, but the captain and a Trinity
pilot and others were still aboard. She was down astern to the counter
and up forward like a ruddy unicorn. We got fast and started to tow.
Tow?--Might as well have taken on the Tower Bridge. There was no way of
steering her, and a strong breeze from the south'ard blew her head down
against all we could do. . . . Anyway, we hung on, and at daylight in
the morning the wind let up on us a bit, and we guided her drift--that's
about all we could do--inshore, till she took the bottom on good ground
a little north of the Westmark Shoal. We filled her up forrard as the
weather was looking bad--a good weight of water to steady her through a
gale. She's lain out there for two months now. We've had a turn or two
at her occasionally--shoring up the after b