Motion Picture Story Magazine (Aug 1911-Jan 1912)

THE CHILD CRUSOE S 51 Quick of temper was the captain and harsh while the ugly mood was on him, but the right appeal never failed to restore him to a sense of fairness and kindness. And the one who possessed instinctively the knowledge of how to turn his rage into forbearance was his little daughter May. She was the captain 's motherless baby and his chief pride and joy, while for her the captain was a king among men and the dearest and best father in the world. The captain's wife had died while he was away on his last voyage, and the little girl had grieved and fretted so that the doctor had advised him not to leave her behind this time, and recommended a long voyage as the very thing to build her up. Thus it was that the child had been made one of the ship's company. As Jack heard her voice interceding for him, he struggled to his feet and faced the captain manfully. The latter was touched by the signs of suffering on the boy's face, and, all his resentment forgotten, he hailed the cook and ordered food for the starving youngster. His strength rapidly returning, Jack made himself a useful member of the crew. Everything interested him, and he proved himself very apt in learning the duties of a sailor. It was not long before he was swabbing the deck and splicing rope and mending sails like an old hand. Little May often joined him as he worked. He did not scorn her as he would an ordinary girl, for was she not the captain's daughter and favored of the gods, inasmuch as she was to accompany him on his cruises? Tho the boy's junior by a couple of years, she, too, had read "Swiss Family Robinson," "Robinson Crusoe" and a list of his favorites. So their little chats were flavored with the tang of adventure, and the captain had many a sly smile over the wise discussion of wild tales that he overheard as he paced the deck. ' Jack was enjoying himself so hugely that when the bark ran into a squall he exulted in a new experience. He was the only one aboard who seemed to take a favorable view of the situation. As the gale increased in fury and the racing seas struck the boat and melted into deluges of water that swirled across the deck, the face of every man wore a serious look. The Dauntless plunged and rolled and buried her bows in the foaming waves. Her topsails were torn away by the shrieking winds that seemed to come from every direction. When at last there was an abatement of the storm it was discovered that the boat had sprung a leak. All hands were ordered to the pumps. But it was useless — the water poured in faster than it could be pumped out. "Take to the boats!" called the captain. With the ship lurching druhkenly, the men had a task that tried every nerve and muscle in their bodies. The mate and his men had managed to scramble into the starboard lifeboat and get clear of the ship. But the crew manning the captain's boat bungled in their haste. The boat slipped from its fastenings and dropped into the water, the frantic crew clambering down the falls and leaping into it as a huge wave swept it away from the doomed ship. The captain looked after the disappearing boat in a frenzy of rage and consternation. Clinging to him, terror-stricken, May begged him to save her. Jack stood beside him, quiet but appealing, expecting him to suggest some method of escape. ' ' Hush, little girl ! Dont cry, dear ! Father must think!" The distracted man clasped the child in his arms and looked about him. "Couldn't we make a raft, sir?" asked Jack, recalling the like stress of the Swiss Family Robinson. "My boy, it seems the only thing left us to do," answered the captain. "We must hurry ! Bring me that ax ! " With feverish haste the man and the boy lashed together planks and beams torn up from the deck and planted an oar in the center to serve as a mast. Then, braving the peril of