THE STORIES: Bound East for Cardiff. On a "foggy night midway on the voyage between New York and Cardiff," Sailor Yank lies dying in his bunk while the others exchange yarns and reminiscences. Yank takes a turn for the worse and quietly rambles on, wishing he had never gone to sea. (11 men.)
'Ile. Captain Keeney, a New England whaler, is dominated by an unconquerable pride. At the end of the two years' period his crew has signed up for, he has only a small part of his quota of "ile." The crew are mutinous and the Captain's wife is distracted from loneliness and anxiety. Only the prospect of her breakdown alters the Captain's determination to push on for the "ile," and seeing her condition he consents to sail her home; but the instant whales are sighted, he reverses his decision. The woman breaks under the strain. (5 men, 1 woman.)
In the Zone. The scene, laid in the fo'c'sle, shows the sailors' bunks. Smitty, a sailor, is behaving suspiciously, and the others believe he is a spy. They take from his bunk a box, which they place in water, and open it. Smitty makes a desperate attempt to prevent them. He is lashed to his bunk and watches the men. The letters are read aloud, and we learn that they are from the girl to whom Smitty had once been engaged. She had broken the engagement because of Smitty's dissipated habits, and he had gone to sea. The sailors are ashamed and release Smitty. (9 men.)
The Long Voyage Home. Shows a group of sailors ashore in a waterfront dive. The crew have just been paid off. Olson, with savings in his pocket, refuses to drink. He has for years planned to go home, but every time he had money he squandered it. He is induced by a scheming couple to take a soft drink—which is drugged. He is then robbed, put ashore, then to another ship bound on a long voyage. (6 men, 3 women, 2 extras).
The Moon of the Caribbees. (17 men, 4 women.)
The Rope. (3 men, 2 women.)
Where the Cross is Made. An old sea captain, who had years before committed a crime in connection with a hunt for treasure, goes mad when shadows from the past come to haunt him. The atmosphere of mystery is admirably established and wholly convincing. (6 men, 1 woman.)
