FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138  
139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   >>   >|  
ch, ran the _Bandolier_ upon a reef, and all hands perished but himself and six others. One boat was saved, and then followed long days of hunger and thirst and bitter agony upon the sea under a blazing sun, but Proctor brought the boat and crew safely to the Queensland coast. A month later he was in Sydney penniless, and again "looking for a ship." But no one would have him now; his story was too well known. And so for weeks past he had slept in the park at night, and wandered down about the wharves during the day. Sometimes he earned a few shillings, most of which went in cheap rum. ***** Half an hour's walk through the long shady avenue of Moreton Bay figs, and then he emerged suddenly into the noise and rattle of the city. Four coppers was all the money he possessed, and unless he could earn a shilling or two during the day on the wharves he would have to starve on the morrow. He stopped outside the _Herald_ office presently, and pushing his way through a number of half-starved outcasts like himself, he read down the "Wanted" column of the paper. And suddenly hope sprang up in his heart as he saw this-- WANTED, for the Solomon Islands Labour trade, four able Seamen used to the work. High wages to competent men. Apply to Harkniss & Co., George Street. Ten minutes later he was at Harkness & Company's office waiting to see the manager. Ten o'clock, the clerks said, would be time enough to come. Proctor said he would wait. He feared that there would be other applicants, and was determined to see the manager before any one else. But he need not have been so anxious. Men such as Harkness & Company wanted were hard to get, and the firm were not disposed to be particular as to their character or antecedents, so long as they could do the "work" and hold their tongues afterward. Ten o'clock came, and at half-past ten Proctor and two other men went out of the office each with a L1 note in his pocket, and with orders to proceed to Melbourne by steamer, and there join the barque _Kate Rennie_. Before the steamer left for Melbourne, Proctor had parted with half of his pound for another man's discharge. He did not want to be known as Proctor of the _Bandolier_ if he could help it. So he was now Peter Jensen; and Peter Jensen, a hard-up Norwegian A.B., was promoted--on paper--to John Proctor, master. At Melbourne they found the barque ready for sea, and they were at once taken to the shipping office to
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138  
139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Proctor
 

office

 

Melbourne

 

suddenly

 

wharves

 
steamer
 
Bandolier
 

manager

 
Harkness
 

Jensen


Company

 

barque

 
competent
 

Street

 
anxious
 

Harkniss

 
George
 
minutes
 

clerks

 

waiting


feared

 

determined

 

applicants

 

discharge

 

parted

 

Norwegian

 

shipping

 

promoted

 

master

 

Before


Rennie

 
antecedents
 

tongues

 

character

 

wanted

 
disposed
 

afterward

 
proceed
 

orders

 
pocket

pushing
 

penniless

 
shillings
 
wandered
 

Sometimes

 

earned

 
Sydney
 

perished

 
hunger
 

thirst