"There!" he whispered, pointing; "there's our chance!" I saw that, with
safety, the yawl could hold a third person, and as to who the third
passenger would be I had already made up my mind.
"Wait here!" I said.
On the _Patience_ there were many immigrants, only that afternoon
released from Ellis Island. They had swarmed into the life-boats even
before they were swung clear, and when the ship's officers drove them
off, the poor souls, not being able to understand, believed they were
being sacrificed for the safety of the other passengers. So each was
fighting, as he thought, for his life and for the lives of his wife and
children. At the edge of the scrimmage I dragged out two women who had
been knocked off their feet and who were in danger of being trampled.
But neither was the woman I sought. In the half-darkness I saw one of
the immigrants, a girl with a 'kerchief on her head, struggling with her
life-belt. A stoker, as he raced past, seized it and made for the rail.
In my turn I took it from him, and he fought for it, shouting: "It's
every man for himself now!"
"All right," I said, for I was excited and angry, "look out for
_yourself_ then!" I hit him on the chin, and he let go of the life-belt
and dropped.
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