I noticed when passing through the flat to the stoke-
hold, which was, of course, on a still lower level, was working away
pretty easily, the piston in the cylinder moving steadily up and down,
and the eccentric, which always appeared to me as a sort of bandy-legged
giant, executing its extraordinary double-shuffle in a more graceful
fashion than when we were going at full speed, as it performed its
allotted task of curvetting the up-and-down motion of the piston into a
circular one, thus making the shaft revolve; while Grummet, the third
engineer, who was still watching the throttle valve, hand on lever, had
a far easier job than previously, when we were running with full power
before wind and sea, and rolling and pitching at every angle every
minute.

But even in the fleeting glance I had passing by, the screw still went
round in a dangerous way when the stern of the vessel lifted, as some
big wave passed under her keel, in spite of all Grummet's precautions in
turning off steam and I could not help wondering how long the engines
would stand the strain, which was all the more perilous from being
intermittent.

On reaching my destination below, however, all thought of the machinery
and any possible damage to the ship was instantly banished from my mind
by the sight that met my gaze.

In the narrow stoke-hold, lit up by the ruddy glare of the furnace
fires, the light from which enabled me to see the brackish bilge water
washing about beneath the hole in the flooring and gurgling up through
the broken portplates there, I saw that a group of half-naked firemen,
and others, were bending over a pile of empty coal sacks heaped up
against the further bulkhead, dividing the occupied apartments from the
main hold, as far away as possible from the blazing fires, on which one
of the stokers on duty pitched occasionally a shovelful of fuel, or
smoothed the surface of the glowing embers with a long-toothed rake.

I couldn't distinguish at first any one in particular, the backs of all
being towards me as I came down the slippery steel ladder, carrying the
hammock, for I had taken the precaution of hoisting it on my shoulders
on leaving the engine-flat above, in order to prevent its getting wet,
while the noise of the machinery overhead and the roar of the furnaces,
coupled with the washing of the water, prevented my hearing any distant
sound.

Presently however, I recognised Garry O'Neil's voice above the general
din.

"Cle