The Voyage Of The Scarlet Queen: The Boston Geisha and Chesapeake Bay

Log entry, the catch-scallet queen. Position 33 degrees 14 minutes west, 32 degrees 6 minutes north.

Gyro compass course 257. Wind fresh sky fair. Remarks, departed Covid Japan with three crew confined to 6 Bay, due to mutinous axons of first officer. Reason for mutiny, the Boston Gaysha and Chesapeake Bay. It was mid-afternoon when the Scarlet Queen stood into the broad harbor of Kobe.

Last time I'd been married I'd been teeming with merchant men and busy with lighters, wallowing between anchored ships and the crowded docks. That was before the war. Now there was only a scattering of native craft, flying in and out of a few American liberties and victories, and the rusted hoes of sunken Japanese freighters breaking through the dirty water.

The industrial section of the city behind had been fire-bonded and was skeleton of lonely chimneys and portions of single walls. I cleared in through army occupation officials, and we found docket to the half-collapsed peer that somehow gave you a sense of the apathy of the whole nation, which it was connected.

After night fell, my chief mate Gallagher and the rest of the crew, except one sad-eyed gangway watch, headed up a path through the ruined warehouses toward town. I settled down in my cabin. The night was stuffing and hot.

The whole picture was helped by the sampan that splashed our anchor on my winwood. The faint breeze sweeping across her came to me full of the stink of rotting fish, rancid soybean sauce and souring rice.

A couple of hours went by, and I heard the clatter of feet across our gangway. I hit my head out of the cabin door just to three of my crew stumbled aboard. They weren't drunk, they were hurt.

Their clothes were ragged and their faces were torn and bleeding. I called one of them over. Yes, sir. What the hell happened, Nielsen? You guys pick a sumo wrestler or something? It was a chief, sir.

Gallagher? Where is he? He's at the Rose Bar. He's roaring, sir. He's off his nut. I don't know. Three of us were at the bar and the chief come in from someplace and just started in on this like he was off his nut.

But he couldn't bring Fred in that, sir. I'm sorry, Nielsen. I haven't tangled up before, but the guppy had to give us along with it. Says Captain Carney can look for a new chief, mate. He ain't going any farther.

He what? That's right sir. To these jumping ships here in Kobe of all places. I shouldn't have left the ship but I knew what Nielsen meant. Kobe's no place to be in Gallagher's condition. In my log Kobe was about number three in the tough ports of the world.

And so mutual continues the voyage of the Scarlet Queen, written by Gildau and Bob Tolman, and starring Elliot Lewis. The Scarlet Queen, proudest ship to plow the seas, bound for uncharted adventure. Every week a complete entry in the log, and every week a league further in the strange voyage of the Scarlet Queen.

I left instructions with my gangway watch, dropped Nielsen and the other two at an army first aid station from some stitches and anti-tetna shots, and headed for the Rose Bar myself. I shouldn't have gone.

I was under contract to a Shanghai firm called Kang and Sun. And their contact here in Kobe was to meet me on the ship to supply me with more instructions for my voyage after a $10 million prize somewhere in the South Pacific.

So far on the trip wherever there had been Kang men, there had also been others working for Konstantino and bribing, stealing and murdering to stop the voyage of the Scarlet Queen. This sticky Japanese knight held a lot of potential.

I fought my way along Kobe Street, started with smells, sounds and humanity. Elbowed past street urchins, beggars, professional riff-raff. Finally found the garish front of the rose bar, a block or so down from Motomachi Street.

Gallagher wasn't in sight. The squat bar tended to grin when I walked up to him. I put a greasy glass in front of him. What do you think? What do you think? Nothing. I looked the man. Big red hair.

He fights three other men here. You see him? I see him, alright. You know where he is? Oh, yes, I know. Where is he? Why, you wanted him. He's my chief mate. I wanted to go back to the ship.

Oh, yes. Very good. Oh, it thinks very high now in Japan. In the freshen. Okay, how much? Oh, it thinks very high. Uh, chief mate, the costume. Uh, once a hundred dollar mix. Yeah, you're a real comedian, Charlie.

I'll give you a 10. Oh, no. I give you 10. You give me 90. 10. He's a low-type chief mate. Oh, then why you want to find him, huh? I'll see you later, Charlie. You're too funny for me.

Oh, don't, don't, please. Wait a minute, yank. Make me offer. I thought that's what we were talking about. I said 10, that night $10 max. Wait a minute. What more? Rick, 20. 10 now and 10 of these were you say?

Here. I got to get to his diamond. I got to go upstairs in the back. First room on that side. If you throw your down, I still get to my other tent. The stairway led to the dim whispering second floor of the building.

I knocked on the first door of the right. I heard another door closed softly inside the room someplace. Then I knocked again. There's no answer, so I went in. Gallagher sat slouched at the table and held two glasses and a half-ampeath bottle.

Let's go to the front of these bottles. What are you, uh... You're depending on a pretty good one, aren't you, Red? Come on, it's time you went back to the ship. Give that a hick, Connie.

I'm not going with you. Yeah, yeah. Well, we'll talk it over in the morning after you slip this off. I don't like the food. I don't like the work. I don't like the whole stinking thing.

Come on, Red. Get out of here! Connie, you're a brainer with a... Quit acting like a teenage punk, yeah, like... Yeah, like I said, don't believe me, Ethan. Like, you know, get out of here.

Get on your feature, rumhound. Go of me. I'm telling you, Connie. Let go of her. I'll show her the window, right, Red? Now get on. We're going back to the ship. I'm not going with you.

Then here you are. You pull around and lick your red. I'm fed up with you. Oh yeah, I'll pay it up. Take it easy red, that's enough. I haven't even... Die it! Alright, Gallagher, sleep it off here then.

That's the idea. And the queen sails the dawn. With you a border without you. I started back to the ship trying to figure this thing out. There were two things wrong in the rose bar outside of Charlie the bartender.

Gallagher's eyes didn't look as drunk as he acted. And he could hit harder than he hit me. But from there on it was his story and I couldn't see any payoff coming from on knocking each other around that room for the rest of the night.

I stumbled down the path toward the warehouses and onto our collapsing pier. I picked up the friendly sound of water, smoking the sides of the wooden crow. The lights of the queen gave me a feeling of warmth after the trouble and the subdued uneasiness of the Colby Knight.

It felt like I was coming home as I walked up to it. Then I stopped. Part of coming home was seeing the gangway watch standing at the after-stobbered corner of the main house and ready with a smile as I came aboard.

But he wasn't there. I started running. I was in the middle of the gang fight. When I heard the shots by instinct, I went into a crouching hunk of plank. The first set of footsteps came fast. He jumped in the rail with a key side fastened and I could draw and aim my automatic.

Two slugs were all I wasted in the darkness. I had to see what he'd left aboard. Part of it was in sight when I looked up. A man in a white jacket with one red sleeve staggered out of my cabin.

Pardon the informality skipper. You are conny aren't you? Yeah who are you? I'm Chalmers. That mean anything to you? That depends on the story that goes with it. Here come on in I'll take a look at that arm. Oh no wait I went there.

I don't know how dead he is. Oh there were two of them. Stopped one in there with the other one. Well twist the handkerchief around it. What's the matter with you? Look at that deck. Pardon me if I bleed to death.

Forget it. Who he is? Yeah. His name is McAllister. Okay. Let me see that arm. All right, hold it. Does it work for me? Yeah, brighter than that, Connie. How do you think he picked me?

Not Centino. Don't answer that. All right, hold still. Is it? Yeah. 25 caliber. Scotch your coat. Where were you? Told you there were two of them. I was there after the one who grabbed my briefcase.

You brought it in a briefcase? That's great. Why didn't you wear a Chinese flag? Look, don't tell Kang how it happened. I've been trying to save up enough to get back to the state, Shao.

Never get another job out here if this gets back to Kang. That's right, I'll never get the Kang. Over the instructions, you know? Instructions? I don't know. They gave me a package wrapped in oil skin. I just threw it in.

In your briefcase. Here, use your good arm. Hold this light on them. I'm gonna frisk them. Name's McCallister, that's Shag. Yeah, I've seen them around. Three yen, fifteen, ten, ten. If...the key ring. Oh, maybe those keys will lead us somewhere.

We're already there. Huh? This one unlocks my cabin. This one's the food stores, paint stores, sale locker, boson's chest. I don't get it. Those are your keys? No, but I gotta set just like them.

I had these made for my first officer, Mr. Gallagher. After that key ring hit me, I tore into that stiff like a grave robber. I ripped out his pockets, coatlining shoes, trying to find something to follow.

The only thing with an address on it was a folded up square of rice paper. paper printed in English black letters. It said, the new Chicago Palace of Joyful Dancing, your welcome management Madame Tallulah Nashimoto, home cooking.

The new Chicago Palace of Joyful Dancing was a sagging, bomb-storched, frame-and-paper building on Motomachi Street. In front of the building was draped in red, white, and blue-plunting, and under a star-spangled slant-eyed imperial likeness of General MacArthur was a sign that said, Please to come in and dance with beautiful democratic geisha, Mr. Yank,

the music of Leroy Suzuki and his hot jumper. Below that, with fewer words but more meaning was another sign. Out of bounds to military personnel. At the door, a blast of stale air had a sickening with rice, beer, sakki, poisonous whiskey and cheap perfume.

A square-built porcelain-faced nipanese dog who might have looked might have looked at track of the native hairdressant kimonae and put on a cheap western style rayon dress and crimp her hair into a bad permanent wave to entertain the conqueror with a song she was never born you think.

Chalmers and I were supplied with a marble top table and two giggling gazes. By the brilliant conversation I found time to look to join over for a face that looked intelligent enough to answer some of my questions. None of them, slant eyed or straight even looked Then behind a porter of Eucalyptus beads that partitioned off the bar, I caught a glimpse of what I was looking for.

She was at least two head taller than any other Japanese girl in the place. The way she fit her western clothes, you could tell she hadn't suffered from any vitamin deficiencies of the child. I guess that this was the welcome management Madame Calula Nashimoto.

I left charmers in the clutches of Rose Brassam and Red Hot Mama, who went into the bar. Hello Mr. Yang. Are they treating you right? Um, I not come to dance. I come look for a man, friend, other man named McAllister.

You can stop the pony pigeon talk. I'm a Boston girl, myself. Yeah. I should have known you didn't get this wansky-ki. You like it? Well, I wasn't up to pity the poor G.I. that's out of bounds for him.

We got a back door. What's the password? Constantino? I wouldn't know. What does that mean in Japanese? An English? It means a dead man on my ship. Why are you telling me this? Because he had an ad from this place in his wallet. Is that good enough?

Now you are disturbed again. I so often can confuse between friend and enemy. Do you agree? San from Sisco and Honolulu? When are you giving me? San Francisco and Honolulu? He's made. No, places he was not to dishonor when you thought him to be.

And here in Kobe, at the Rose Bar, he was not as drunk as you thought. I know that. But I don't know why. You will. I think he better explain it himself. You're telling me he's here?

I'll tell you nothing. I'll only ask you to look. Come. Uh-huh. What brought him here? There are men who hang around here to do all kinds of little things for a few years. One of them was named Chalmers.

I recommended him for the job. Why? He was tired living and I wanted to help him out. Kind of missed on that one, didn't he? Not at all. A dead man on your boat. That is Thomas.

The man who killed him. A man who brought you here. Don't tell me, he's my callister, a constantino man, and I let him pull a switch on me. You see? I told you you were confused between friend and enemy.

and an enemy. Yeah. I'm so confused about you. You won't be. This is the room. Come on in, Connie. The gallerpant. I'll put on the surprise that, Kallola. I half way expected it. Thanks for the lift, Hylola.

You give good service in this joint. Don't thank me, St. Mr. Gallagher. Nothing, Novice. But it's going to cost you, Mac. You'll pay as you go out. I'll be waiting in the bar. All right, boys, put them in the chair.

I'm tired of you not going to talk with his hands. I guess we're ready to get down to business, Connie. Watch his eyes, Mac. You want him to be able to see that thing, don't you?

I can see. I'm seeing plenty. You'll get it down to dollars and cents, Connie, so you can talk, huh? I got the stuff from King and now you're gonna tell me what it means. I am.

You better tell him Skipper, it won't cost you much. Sure, I can believe that. I hope you can, Connie. You will start over the map. I look at it. Go on, look at it, Skipper, you got nothing to lose.

Much funny. What is it? Looks like a lousy chart of a body of water between a penital and a mainland, doesn't it? I know that. Where is it? No position on the thing. No latitude or longitude.

Don't be smart, Connie. You know where it is. Come on. Okay, put down the club, McAllister. You can have it. And I hope you get a lot of good out of it. That's a chart of Chesapeake Bay.

Where are you? I knew you'd like. It looks like it was traced out of a Rand McNally Atlas if that'll help. Leave him alone, McAllister. It's not his fault that Kang has a sense of humor.

Alright, Gallagher. You put the finger on Chalmers. You knew where he was going, when he'd arrived. Yeah, but I didn't know the map was blooming. But you knew where Chalmers came from, didn't you? Yeah.

That's where we're going in. Where is it? Between here and Osaka, about 20 miles up. You got a car? I can get one. Woods? Yeah. You stay here with Connie. Leave him in the chair the way he is, but stay here till we get back, okay?

Yeah. Okay, nice. Goodbye, skipper. We might have made quite a team if we've been born on the same side of the dalasign. I sat there, lashed to the straight back chair, and watched Wood for a half an hour waiting for a glimmer of something beside gunmen to show through his eyes.

But he didn't have it. The court around my wrist started to dig into circulation was cut. My arms began to swell. I tried to cover up the pain with thought, but they didn't help because I couldn't skirt the fact that I'd been suckered in by my Callister with a simple switch of identities.

And the rest of it didn't make sense, especially that pencil chart of Chesapeake Bay. I finally got around asking Wood for a drink of water. When he refused, I shut up. Spent another 20 minutes watching the mozz whispering in to die in the flame of an oil lamp.

I didn't hear the door that was cracked open but Wood did. It was not a stick with a belly gun cut in his hand and all the fight went out of him. I didn't blame it.

A new kimono walked in, wrapped very neatly around welcome management. Am I intruding? Depends on what you want a little, huh? About to drink and a phone message. Oh, Max says everything is under control but to stay here till he gets back.

Good. Thanks for the drink. I hope you like it. Got them singing. I don't know whether I like it or not with me so busy. You stay where you are. You die, you drink. Hey, what's fast?

Where did that come on? Take this time. Drink, Scott. Come here. That was the first time I'd ever watched the Boston Gacial work. The girls on Beacon Hill should have picked up a few pointers while she was there.

In 20 seconds he'd melted from Puff Gunman. Two sides and a murmur after that he'd forgotten I was in the room. By the time she'd finished with him he didn't know he was there either.

He still had a slightly surprised look on his face but something new had been added. Was made of ivory and had fancy carving on it. It was a knife hilt jutting out at an angle from just over his heart.

The maddick has been turning until he enjoyed the new Chicago Palace of the Royal Dancing. After that performance sister I got nothing but respect. What good wasn't it? Don't tell her I'm tired. Maybe some time in a letter or something you tell me what the devil's going on.

There. Move them. You didn't hear me didn't you? That all the yanks aren't like you. But no time for anything but business. My hands hurt. But I can listen. You noticed that about you. Nothing to worry about me more.

You brought me here didn't you? And they got you out of it? Yeah that's a good part of the way, but McAllister and the others are headed for what I need. In such and soon, Kang? No, they aren't.

We heard different stories now. There are many different stories in COVID. Shall I hear your version? I think you'd like it. I think it would make you feel better. From here I can stand there.

Your information from Kang is in good hands. Who's? At least, Meg, Gallagher. You're calling that good? that good yes I am you are scared of confused between friend and enemy what's your payoff in this deal I don't need to pay off and some pay me very good salary you're my kind contact her and Kobe what did you expect pot salad office worker

well I don't believe me I don't blame you after what has happened let me explain I was to meet you on your ship. That's right. I put my callister and the others of constant, you know, I could not move.

So? So with a messenger I contacted Gallagher when he came ashore tonight. Oh. Chalmers was my idea. But your Gallagher was a genius who drew the map of Chesapeake Bay. What? Which they so cleverly stole from Chalmers on the Scarlet Queen.

Yeah. Where's Gallagher now? out wasting enough time so that I could make fatal love to Mr. Wood. You know, I believe all this when I wake up on the Scarlet Queen tomorrow morning well into the Inland Sea.

Do you think it's a dream? I think it's a nightmare. To wake up, you were awake in your chair with your arms behind like before, only here. This time, you have Mr. Wood's gun in your hand.

And the last conversation I had with Tallulah and Nashimoto was in regard to the safety catch on the 25 caliber samba automatic. We tugged Wood's body out of sight. And she left as quietly as she ended.

I sat there, more comfortable this time with my finger curled over a trigger. And I winked. Right, Connie, you were smart. Now let's talk a sense about that shot, children. I don't know, Mack, things have changed and Chesapeake Bay.

What do you mean? Hey, where's Wood's... Hey, Red, watch them! I'm Skipper! Gallagher, come in, Mack. in last. He's plugged a man behind my callister when I shouted and I brought my son move forward and got to my feet. My callister made it to the door and out toward the entrance. I sent three shots after him. I wasn't sure my aim in the

dimness but I thought I heard a body crash down the stairs. I went back into the room and time to see Gallagher pick up the other guy for the last time. Well give her a you're proud of me. Proud of you. What for putting on that drunk act?

Beating up three of my crewmen for sending that poor Chalmers jerk to the a pigeon on the queen for planting your cheese on him so I'd follow them into this trap I had a given those keys so he could get into the cabin what's it got us a bunch of busted heads and another black mark against Americans in a foreign

party oh stop it skip and for what are you not here here's what our telling orders out of here yeah your instructions from kang you may have been carrying these things around you hip pocket all right that's another thing the risks you take and listen I'm not forgetting you hit me according to maritime law that's

mutiny by dawn the next morning gangs instructions were safely memorized and the scholar clean left her collapsing birth and headed toward the clean sea outside the rubble filled harbor the bowstostobbered and we headed into the inland sea that splits the island group that is Japan a good breeze swept up across she The cocoa on our point. I cut the motors.

The main sheet climbed Skyward. Cuffed the wind. Swelled out with it. The ship changed! The ship snapped out. The mists and Phil. Scholar Queen healed over.

Phil with life and mists again. How's the rig, give her enough canvas? We got the narrows to do. We'll see how she moves with Jim and Mists. Just so we get through them into someplace else.

I didn't like those people. Listen, Rat, speaking of people, I'm gonna ask you about that second glass on the table at the Rose Bar. Oh, for that. Yeah. Are you saying you had a friend or more to Mashi's, didn't you?

Well, you went ashore. All right. And since then you stay aboard. I'll go ashore. Yeah, I guess that's even, Steven. Drink, Gipper. After you, mate. After you. Log entry. Catch, Scarlet Queen.

5.30 pm. Miles traveled 5,591. Wind, brisk. Sky, Hagen. Seize smooth with high cross swell. Mainsville and Misen Reef. Ship secured by night. Signed. Philip Carney. Master. Mutual invites you to sail into a further adventure on the voyage of the Scarlet Queen next week at the same time.

Porto Call, Jinsen Coria. Voyage of the Scarlet Queen stars Elliot Lewis as Phil Carney with Ed Max as Gallagher. Bob Bruce was heard as McAllister, Jack Prushen was Charlie the Bartender, Nielsen was Frank Gerstle, and Madame Tallulah was paid by Virginia Gregg.

Music scored and conducted by Richard O'Ronk. The Scarlet Queen, a command radio production directed by James Burton, is written by Gil Dowd and Bob Talman. Charles Arlington speaking this is the mutual broadcasting system.