As it became more and more apparent that the Coldwater,
under my seamanship, was weathering the tempest and giving
promise of pulling through safely, I could have sworn that I
perceived a shade of annoyance and disappointment growing
upon his dark countenance. He left the bridge finally and
went below. I do not know that he is directly responsible
for what followed so shortly after; but I have always had my
suspicions, and Alvarez is even more prone to place the
blame upon him than I.

It was about six bells of the forenoon watch that Johnson
returned to the bridge after an absence of some thirty
minutes. He seemed nervous and ill at ease--a fact which
made little impression on me at the time, but which both
Alvarez and I recalled subsequently.

Not three minutes after his reappearance at my side the
Coldwater suddenly commenced to lose headway. I seized the
telephone at my elbow, pressing upon the button which would
call the chief engineer to the instrument in the bowels of
the ship, only to find him already at the receiver
attempting to reach me.

"Numbers one, two, and five engines have broken down, sir,"
he called. "Shall we force the remaining three?"

"We can do nothing else," I bellowed into the transmitter.

"They won't stand the gaff, sir," he returned.