Pennell Institute - Whirlpool Yearbook (Gray, ME)

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THE PENNELL WHIRLPOOL 5 Here the second mate stepped forward and reported, “Sir, the crew are in possession of the flour and bacon, which they took before we could prevent them.” The officers’ look of consternation was in- terrupted by a cry from the ship’s carpenter. “A storm is coming” shouted the Swede excitedly. The captain sprang to the porthole to assure himself of the truth of the ca-penter’s statement. Sure enough, the sky was fast filling with black clouds. His face lighted up with- relief as he exclaimed, “The calm is broken! Now we have a chance.” Turning to the first mate, he ordered, “Take the wheel and hold it to a southwest course.” The Nomad’s sails slowly filled and she came up into the wind in response to its helm. Meanwhile the crew became busy. There is no [ght punishment for mutiny on the high seas, so they did not intend to let the Nomad make port with the captain in charge. To stop the ship from sailing until they should obtain control of the helm they reefed sails. Then they descended to the hold and fell to sawing thru the supports under the forecastle floor, As they were occupied in this manner, they found some rifles in the hold, so they were confident of capturing the officers. The first intimation of their danger to the officers was the sound of sawing under the floor. Then the floor sagged down in one corner as a timber was severed. The captain was quick to meet the emer- gency. With his axe he chopped a hole large enough to shoot thru at the mutineers. As the crew could not now saw without endanger- ing their lives, they retired and nothing happene d for the rest of the day. As night drew on the captain called a conference of the officers in the chart-house, realizing the necessity of immediate action. During the discussion that followed, the captain turned to Mason and said, “T wish you would look at my foot. ['m afraid of blood poisoning. You used to be a doctor, didn’t you?” After examining it. Mason opened the doctor’s kit for an antiseptic. As he hunted thru he gave a start and announced, “Pere’s a drug that will put the whole crew to sleep. if we could get it into their water supply! At this the captain, his foot forgotten, beckoned him into the fore- castle and started to enlarge the opening in the floor. Mason saw his idea; he could go the way the crew had come. So that night with the drug in one hand and a revolver in the other, he stealthily crept aft. He succeeded without mishap in his project. The next day the officers captured the few that had not succumbed to the drug and, having tied up the others, they set sail. Being very short-handed, the captain divided the crew into twelve-hour watches and steered for Santos, the nearest port. As they dropped anchor there two days later, the weary captain said to Ma son, “I think we’ve earned a rest. Tlow would you like to visit the coffee plantations?” GEORGE NENT.

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4 THE PENNELL WHIRLPOOL Literary — THE MUTINY ON THE NOMAD. Flapping its sails idly, the tramp schooner “Nomad” rolled in a glassy sea. She was near the equator on her way from Boston to Buenos Avres with a cargo of textiles and had been overtaken by one of those calms that characterize the horse latitudes. The sun beat down, its heat accentuated by the absence of a single breath of mov- ing air. while the glistening, bright green water reflected its rays. Under an awning on the Nomad’s deck sat Charles Mason. His face showed the effects of the stinted diet foreed upon him by the depletion of the ship's provisions during the long calm. As the captain emerged from the forward companionway, Mason arose and started to follow him around the deck. Suddenly a pair of half-starved sailors flung themselves on the captain. He was taken by surprise and nearly thrown overboard before he could resist. So quick was their attack that Mason was stupefied, for a moment, but he quickly grasped a marlin spike and charged the ruffians. With one blow he crushed the larger’s skull, then whirled to the other, but the captain had choked him to death. In the meantime the crew had been arriving trom all directions, arm- ing themselves as best they could. The mutiny had begun---they were fighting for their lives! The captain emptied his revolver into the crew; then, picking up an axe from a dead sailor's hands, he and Mason fought their way toward the forecastle. The mutineers quickly scattered as the door burst open, and the other officers rushed out with drawn revolvers, escortung the two safely in, “They are after the provisions.” gasped the captain, as he stood panting on the threshold, “Cartes, vou and the second mate barricade the galley door.” f=) - (Juick as they were, the crew had beaten them to the galley and were looting the supplies when they arrived. “Phe mutineers were without firearms, while the galley was too narrow for close fighting. This being the case, the two officers soon drove them out and rein- forced the door. They now had the forward end of the ship, while the crew controlled the aft. There was a lull in the battle now as the officers bound up the captain’s wounds. That mariner remarked to the silent faces around him, “There are eight of us, men. We can starve them to submission, for we have the food.”

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6 THE PENNELL WHIRLPOOL ON THE MOON. The moon is round and a yellow hue, It smiles bright nights at me and you. Some day | plan to visit there, And see if I can discover air. It was a bright night. The moon was full and the sky was filled with stars. I was entranced by the beauty of the sky and the calm- ness of the summer air. My nurse arranged my chair so that I could take advantage of the beautiful garden and sky and still be comfortable. I then told her she could take a walk if she wished, because I believed myself well enough to be alone, and besides I wanted to think about the moon. I had been alone but a short time when from a rose bush beside my chair stepped a small elf. He glanced at me and then he walked to the other end of the garden. When he returned he was carrying a rubber outfit. “Jump into this,” he said, “if you wish to learn about the moon.” First I thought of my leg, but when I attempted to stand, my leg did not bother me at all, and I found to my surprise that I could move about very easily. I did not know what to say. so I kept quiet and put on the suit. When I was ready, the little person bade me follow him. We walked a short way and then I entered a round ball of yellow. It was very light and seemed to me like a cloud. When J turned, my little friend had disappeared. I was floating through the air! Many times I thought I was near the moon, but each time I was mistaken. Afer a very long time I seemed to float downward and soon I dis- covered I was standing on the moon. I did not know what to do next, but I was soon cheered by the sight of my little friend. I can never tell how he arrived at the moon because I am sure he did not come with me. He looked around, then turned his attention to me. “I have brought you up here so that you may discover why people see the face on the moon. When you have learned that, you will promptly return to your garden.” ‘This was all he said; he then disappeared, and I have never seen him again. I began fo walk around the moon. The slate surface was rather hard to walk on, Soon I came to a large crater and looking in I saw a very bright thing that resembled the pupil of a person’s eye. It kept crying out, “I am the left eye, I am the left eye.” I was be- wildered until 1 heard a voice coming from the crater opposite crying, “Iam the right eye, I am the right eye.” Then I remembered that the elf had told me to discover why we see the face on the moon. I walked down a path between the middle