AND THE FAIR

As Dan seized the strip with its gilt letters and was about to reply,
the yacht slung sideways, and a wave arising amidships smote the
deck-house a lusty, full-bodied blow. It suddenly occurred to the
tugboat captain that the craft, all the time he had been aboard trying
to collect his bewildered senses, had acted strangely. He turned to
Mr. Howland.

"What's the matter with your yacht?"

Howland was a good deal of a thoroughbred, and yet he could not conceal
his eagerness as he spoke.

"The yacht was just what I wanted to speak to you about, Captain," he
said. "I know I have no right to ask anything more of you, but if you
have pulled together, I think we seem to need your assistance. Our
Captain was washed off the bridge, and the first mate is below with a
broken leg. The situation, I am afraid, is beyond young Terry, the
second mate; I--"

As the import of what Mr. Howland was trying to say flashed across
Dan's mind, he turned abruptly, without waiting for the completion of
the sentence, and ran for the bridge.

Without a glance at the second officer, who seemed on the verge of a
complete funk, he shouldered the two sailors from the wheel and hauled
on the spokes with all the strength of his long arms. As the yacht
began to respond he seized the indicator crank and called for full
speed ahead. The whistle of the bridge speaking-tube sounded
viciously, and Dan, placing his ear to the receiver, caught the words
of the old chief engineer as they flowed up in profane vehemence.

"Say, do you know what you want up there? If I had a man down here who
knew an engine from a plate of fruit, I'd 'a' been up there and snaked
you off the bridge long ago. I've been on my back under that triply
damned shaft for twelve hours and now--" the rest of the sentence was
an assortment of well-chosen oaths.

The outburst greeted Dan's ears sweetly. Evidently Howland had a man
down below the water line, anyway. He grinned as he clapped his lips
to the tube.

"I've just come aboard to take charge of this craft," he yelled; "now
you do as I say and do it quick. See!"

A great relieved, blasphemous roar came up the tube, and the next
instant the engines were laying down to their work.

The bow began to cut nicely into the waves, and Dan turned to the two
sailors.

"Here, you boys, tail on here and steer as I tell you." Whereupon,
fingering a pocket compass, he called the course, after which he
faste