. The voice in the rice . oles of , ,my feet; let go my right hand—and/^),Heaven alone knows exactly what hap-^ ,^^pened. I have thought, however, that -^^^^as the ship was staggering up from thelong roll to leeward, she was suddenly-/beaten down, and back—as a fighter,rising from a knockdown blow, gets tohis knees and is once more felled by anadversary who has momentarily passedbeyond the restraint of the rules. ButI know that while my right hand washolding to nothing, the strangersweight came suddenly full force againstmy chest, and tore loose the grip thatI had of the line with my left hand
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. The voice in the rice . oles of , ,my feet; let go my right hand—and/^),Heaven alone knows exactly what hap-^ ,^^pened. I have thought, however, that -^^^^as the ship was staggering up from thelong roll to leeward, she was suddenly-/beaten down, and back—as a fighter,rising from a knockdown blow, gets tohis knees and is once more felled by anadversary who has momentarily passedbeyond the restraint of the rules. ButI know that while my right hand washolding to nothing, the strangersweight came suddenly full force againstmy chest, and tore loose the grip thatI had of the line with my left hand—that he turned and clutched me, andthat, locked like a pair of dancers, weslipped and revolved in a kind of lugu-brious waltzing, upright, without cryor comment, down the slant of slipperydeck, through the long gash in the portrail, and into the sea. The heavy im-pact separated us, and I have neverseen that cheery, twinkling face fromthat day to this, nor known who he was,nor who mourned for him. WM l! [4] -i&. i A TRAINED journalist will fall over-board (for pay) and describe you cer-j^ tain phases with such excellent judgmentW and selection as to give you a proper no-tion of the whole. I am not a trainedjournalist, and, furthermore, my chutecame with unfair suddenness, and I didnot enter the sea with a mind focussedto selection before description. Whatthere was left of my mind was whollytaken up with the fact that the waterwas very much warmer than the air;and it must have been instinct, set towork by this, that started me strippingoff my coat, and clutching, as I wasrolled and tossed and smothered, aftermy bootlaces. Not for many seconds,I am sure, did it enter my head to lookfor the ship or to call for help. Fromthe top of a wave to which I had madea sudden and involuntary ascent Icaught a glimpse of the Major Pickinslights in the windward smother; and, asI shot downward from the eminence, achoice of cries struggled in my mouth,I had an insane hesitation betweenHelp