Page 126 - 1921 VES Meteor

8 THE METEOR
The soft, red glow.of the coals; the cheer and comfort of my room, a very heaven for old age; and the subdued mur- mur of my children's voices led my thoughts back to the hardships of my former seaman's life, and made me more thankful than ever that I could have my dear ones near me always. For the hardest part of a modern sea captain's life is that rule of the steamship companies which forbids that his wife or children be with him at sea. And so these medi- tations led me to unfold the following tale:
It was on an endless expanse of ocean, grim and forbid- ding, stretching out in a gTay monotony of rugged waves to meet the moist sky. The shrill notes of a single venturous gull, as he skimmed the water, gave the sign of land some- where--a few miles away perhaps, or a hundred.
In the midst of this picture there drifted a raft. It was of that crude sort which bespeaks of great difficulty in its building. A broken spar, four ragged boards and a wooden box, tied together by a rope, were of sufficient buoyancy to keep the two passengers almost clear of the waves. At one end crouched a man of forty, rough, half-clothed, with those hardened features, almost bestial, which are found so often among sailors. Sitting at the other end, gazing serenely into the distance, sat a boy of twelve. He was fair and slen- der with a face almost etherial in its beauty. In spite of the chilling wind, he was dragging his feet in the water. I
"You'll freeze," said the man gruffiy.
"It really doesn't matter much, you know, for we'll never be saved. And besides, I have always wanted to drag my feet in the water. Mother wouldn't allow it when-when she was with me. You see, Mother was on the boat, too."