noticing that several of the ship’s officers whom they passed eyed pep askance, the doctor singled out the most affable looking one and went straight to the point.
“what about dogs?” he asked. “my dog followed me to the very gangplank and i had to bring him along or miss the boat. he is a very valuable dog. i wouldn’t have anything happen to him for the world. he is a blue ribbon dog.”
the officer looked at the dog doubtfully. “if you really value him,” he said, “you had better not let the first mate see him. he is death on dogs. why, the last trip across he had four thrown overboard. they were pets of wounded soldiers, too. it made the[57] crew as mad as march hares. there wasn’t any sense in it, either.”
at this the doctor looked troubled, but he was a diplomat and a man of quick action. he knew there was many a way of circumventing unjust regulations like this.
“here is a five-dollar bill,” he said, slipping the greenback into the hand of the officer. “you introduce me to the official who is the most of a dog lover.”
“that’s the old man,” said the official doubtfully. “i wouldn’t dare to approach him, but you might appeal to him if the worst came. he is the captain of the ship, but we call him the old man. the head steward keeps a little dog in his cabin. perhaps he might accommodate you.”
so they went to the chief steward’s cabin, where they found that necessary official swearing at his associates.
“another dog,” he snorted, when the proposition had been put up to him. “well, i guess not. ginger worries me nearly to death.”
“he is a blue ribbon dog,” explained the doctor. “they would keep each other company.[58] take a look at him.” he held pep up for inspection.
the steward gave pep a hurried glance, then came nearer to get a better view. he stroked his sleek head and tweaked his ears fondly.
“the very picture of my old sally. why i sailed fifteen years with that dog. she was better company than half the folks. why, yes, i can make a place for him. here, ginger, come here and take a sniff at your shipmate.”
the doctor set pep down on the floor and the small black and tan dog approached gingerly as suited his name, but pep gave him just one disdainful glance then looked the other way.
“they’ll be all right when they get acquainted,” said the doctor. “you see pep is rather exclusive.”
finally the dogs touched noses and were friends. pep was given an old souwester to lie upon and the steward promised to keep an eye on him while the doctor went to look for his cabin.
although the doctor visited pep twice[59] that evening and he seemed snug and comfortable, yet he could not forget the horrible picture of the first mate’s having the pets of the wounded soldiers thrown overboard, so he determined to have it out with the old man as they called him the very next day.
all that night the great ship plowed her way through the darkness. her lights were all out, but half a mile to the north and half a mile to the south a long rakish torpedo boat ran parallel with her. these were her escort. no one knew at what moment a submarine might appear, so every precaution was taken against those devils of the deep.
the following morning was bright and beautiful, with a stiff wind blowing at the ship’s bow. every one was in the best of spirits and all danger was forgotten.
in the middle of the forenoon the doctor discovered the ship’s captain standing near the wheel. he had been talking with the man at the wheel, but he was not busy then. the moment seemed auspicious and the doctor approached him without delay.
“sir,” he said, saluting. “i understand you like dogs.”
[60]the captain was a man of sixty, but he looked much older. his face was wrinkled and weatherbeaten, but a smile shone through his weatherstained visage.
“who told you that?” he asked. “it wasn’t the first mate.”
“no, sir,” returned the doctor. “it wasn’t the first mate, but you do like dogs.”
“rather,” said the captain, looking off across the broad expanse of blue rolling sea.
“would you like to see the champion of the recent new york dog show? he is a gentleman. an english bull terrier.”
“there isn’t any such animal aboard,” returned the captain.
“yes, there is,” replied the doctor. “if you have a few minutes, come with me and i will show him to you.”
the captain followed, incredulous and excited. if there really was a blue ribbon english bull terrier aboard, he wanted to know it. it would never do to risk such a prize with his present mate, the dog hater.
they found pep waiting for them and straining at his leash. the doctor picked him up that the captain might better admire[61] him. for several seconds he looked him over in silence, then put out his hand and stroked his sleek head.
“he’s a blue ribbon dog sure enough,” he said at last. “i’ll speak to the mate about him. we don’t want him swimming for his life in the atlantic. that mate is a strange man. there is something wrong about him, but he is a good officer. pep is to be a regular passenger with all the privileges of the ship, sir.”
pep became a prime favorite with several of the passengers, once he was permitted to come out of hiding. although the first mate glowered at him and muttered ominously, he did not dare lay hands on him since the old man had said he was a regular passenger, with all the privileges of the ship.
one little girl in particular, hilda converse, the daughter of an importer who was going across in the interests of his firm, fairly worshiped pep. hilda had just lost her mother and that was why her father was taking her with him under such dangerous circumstances.
hilda and pep were inseparable, once she[62] had found her way to his warm dog heart.
the morning of the fifth day out dawned dark and stormy. the wind had kicked up a great sea and the mighty swells rolled mountain high.
finally the wind increased to the dimensions of a hurricane, and all but the most hardy sought their cabins. the doctor, however, liked to stay out in the open where he could watch the storm. the winds fairly shrieked in the rigging and about the tall smokestacks. the sea hissed and seethed, and the winds whipped it and beat upon it, until the air was filled with flying spray. finally such a yeast was kicked up that one could gather hands full of the feathery foam from the air. sky and water seemed to meet, and the mighty ship and its human freight were at the very heart of this terrible storm. so far as they could see or feel this was all there was to the world—a world of wind and foam, all turbulence and frightfulness. one of the ship’s boats was broken loose by a mighty sea and swept away. it rose upon the top of a great swell, then sank into the trough and was seen no more.
[63]the doctor watched the ship’s crew narrowly as they worked. they worked like soldiers, each doing his part with dispatch and decision. the captain stood on the bridge, the master mind. the ship, the crew, all obeyed him implicitly. he was the will of the ship, and an iron will at that.
finally the fury of the storm spent itself and the skies cleared, but the effect of the hurricane was still manifest in the sea. great foam-covered swells rolled by, many of them breaking over the lower deck. but they were rhythmic and one always knew when to expect the next one. this was all right as long as the waves ran at the regulation height, but the combers were quite different. in them is an element of danger that no seamanship can guard against, no matter how skillful it may be.
a comber is a wave twice or three times as high as its fellows. it is the king of waves, riding head and shoulders above its fellows, and often carrying death and destruction in its wake. combers sixty feet high have been observed by trustworthy witnesses.
[64]the ship had experienced several combers about five o’clock, none of which did any damage, although they drenched the lower deck and sent hogsheads of water into the cabin. the sun had come out and many of the passengers had reappeared on deck. little hilda had gone down into the steerage to visit another girl with whom she had become acquainted. they were standing by the rail chattering away excitedly about the storm, when the father of all combers reared its foam-covered crest close to the ship. the ship’s officers had seen it coming, but had not appreciated how tall it was, because the seas were running so high. it struck the side of the ship with a noise like heaviest thunder and submerged the lower deck three feet deep with hissing water. it fairly covered the two little girls, but would have done no special harm had not the return impulse of the wave picked hilda up and carried her over the rail into the boiling sea.
the doctor and the second mate, who were standing on the hurricane deck, saw the frightful accident and gave the alarm. although the sea was still running mountains[65] high, and it was doubtful if a boat could live in it, yet a crew sprang to the nearest lifeboat and began slowly lowering it.
the doctor strained his eyes to see if hilda came up on the crest of the next wave, for she had immediately disappeared in the trough. to his great joy the red dress appeared on the very crest.
“my god!” cried the mate, “there she is.” if there was only something or somebody to keep her afloat until the boat could reach her, but no man could swim in that sea.
pep was whimpering at his master’s legs, trying to climb up that he might see over the rail. he knew instinctively that something terrible had happened, he read his master’s thought like an open book.
his sharp yelp of excitement called the doctor’s attention to him. the surgeon stooped down and lifted him to the rail and in that moment a sudden inspiration came to him. “pep, see hilda. bring hilda.”
one of the tricks the doctor had taught him was to retrieve and now the accomplishment stood them all in good stead.
could he reach the girl? should he send[66] him? the chance looked slim, but in his profession human life was always set above animal life. so he repeated, “look, pep. hilda, bring.” with these words, he raised the dog above the rail and pitched him into the raging sea.
it was a good fifty feet down to the water, but the dog landed right side up and did not seem to mind the plunge, for he began swimming directly towards the girl whom he had recognized from his perch on the rail.
the minute following was a tense one for all concerned. there was the raging sea on one hand, trying to suck up the little human life, and there was the brave dog and the boat battling for her life.
a great shout went up from the ship as pep reached his playmate and fastened his teeth firmly in her dress. the first part of the battle against the elements had been won. could the faithful dog hold on till the boat reached them?
“pep reached his playmate and fastened his teeth firmly in her dress.”
all held their breath as the dog struggled to keep his place above the wave while the lifeboat fought its way toward them. could they hold out? would the boat be able to[67] reach them? these were the questions on all lips. the minute seemed like an hour, so tense it was. but all minutes come to an end, and this one did, with glorious victory.
not victory for the sea, but victory for the dog and the boat. for at last the watchers saw the boat reach them and the strong arm of a sailor reach out and drag them both to safety. then they fought their way back to the ship while the passengers cheered themselves hoarse.
hilda was unconscious when they placed her in her father’s arms, and pep was so weak he could hardly stand, but his eye was full of fight and he could still wag his tail in appreciation of the petting he received.
a warm bed and a restorative soon set hilda right, and pep only needed rest. but he had gained his place among the crew and the passengers as a hero. if he had not been a sensible dog, they would have spoiled him with petting during the remainder of the trip.
four days later the ship came close to the irish coast and precautions were redoubled. this was the submarine zone and no one[68] knew at what moment those devils of the deep might appear.
it was nearly midnight. the ship was creeping along through the darkness with all lights out, closely guarded by two torpedo boats. the doctor was sleeping soundly in his bunk and pep was dreaming of home in the cook’s cabin, when there came a mighty explosion which shook the great ship from bow to stern. there had been no warning. it had come like a sudden clap of thunder, but every one knew instinctively that they had been struck by a torpedo.
immediately all was confusion. passengers came hurriedly on deck, dressing as they came. for a few seconds two powerful searchlights played upon the water about the ship to discover the submarine if possible, and the guns at the bow and the stern were made ready for instant action, but the murderous devilfish had departed as suddenly as it had appeared.
the ship was listing badly and the hole was fast filling, so the boats were made ready. the doctor did not know whether he would be allowed to take pep with him or[69] not, but he went to the cook’s cabin for the dog.
the crew worked silently and like soldiers. so rapidly they performed their tasks that when the doctor reappeared with pep the first boat load was pulling away from the ship. soon the doctor’s unit was called and he went around to the other side of the ship where a boat was already nearly loaded.
“can i take the dog with me?” asked the doctor doubtfully as he reached the rail. a ship’s officer stood at the rail with drawn revolver.
“not by a damnsight,” he growled. “look at that boat.”
the doctor looked. the lifeboat was crowded to the gunwale.
“hurry,” commanded the officer. “the boat is waiting.”
“but what shall i do with my dog?” pleaded the doctor, though he saw that pep’s case was hopeless.
“hurry, i tell you. it’s no time to be haggling about the life of a dog. get in or i will give the signal for the boat to pull off.”
[70]“all right,” said the doctor. “give it. i can’t leave pep.”
“here, here, doctor,” growled a stern visaged colonel coming up behind them. “you are under military orders. get into that boat. give the dog to me.” he snatched the growling dog from his master’s arms and threw him upon the deck and then fairly shoved the doctor over the rail and down into the boat.
the doctor heard a dismal howl from pep as he was left behind and then he felt the boat lowering towards the water.
“officer,” he called to the man at the rail, “shoot the dog. i can’t leave him in that way.” but instead of shooting him, the officer kicked at pep who was trying desperately to climb over the rail.
the doctor sat huddled in the corner of the lifeboat, his head in his hands as they pulled away from the ship.
it seemed strange to the other passengers that with death all around them a strong man should feel so deeply the loss of a dog, but only dog lovers understand these things. no one but a dog lover knows the comfort of[71] that soft tongue on your cheek, or the muzzle in your hand.
presently the doctor was aroused from his grief by a wild yelp. he looked back towards the ship and in the darkness he could just see pep balancing himself on the rail, and a second later he sprang into the sea.
at the sight, hope welled up in the physician’s heart. if it was not more than five miles to the shore, perhaps the dog could swim. soon the white head appeared close to the boat and the dog whimpered to be taken aboard, but his master could not even do that much for him. the law of the ship was like the laws of the persians, irrevocable, but he talked to pep and encouraged him as he swam behind.
half an hour passed and the dog swam steadily. they must have covered two miles. another half hour went by and pep began to weaken and to lag behind. occasionally he stopped to tread water.
the doctor’s heart sank within him, it was going to be a losing fight for brave pep after all. but at this point the boat stopped to determine if possible their direction and by[72] a mighty effort pep regained the gunwale. then a bright idea came to the doctor and he cursed his stupidity for not having thought of it before. he unlaced his shoes and tied the strings together. then he coaxed pep close to the boat and tied the shoestring in his collar. with that done he breathed a great sigh of relief. the dog was now as safe as the rest of them. if the boat made shore, he would.
two hours later the lifeboat grounded on the beach and the physician dragged his nearly senseless bull terrier after him to the shore.
he was quite spent, but could still wag his tail and lick his master’s hands, and the doctor knew that rest was all he needed.
“good stuff, old pal,” he said, tweaking the dog’s ears as he set him down on the beach. “it takes more than a submarine to put you and me out of commission. we will get even with the boche for this.”
to which pep responded with a sigh of deep satisfaction.
