He watched me as a cat watches a mouse
Date1909
Artist
Howard Pyle
(American illustrator, 1853–1911)
Illustration Citation"The Grain Ship," by Morgan Robertson, in Harper's Monthly Magazine, March 1909
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions26 1/2 x 17 1/4 in. (67.3 x 43.8 cm)
frame: 31 1/4 x 22 1/4 in. (79.4 x 56.5 cm)
frame: 31 1/4 x 22 1/4 in. (79.4 x 56.5 cm)
Credit LineMuseum Purchase, 1912
Object number1912-47
On View
On viewClassificationsPAINTING
Label TextIn this story, two seamen survive after other crew have died from rabies transmitted from dogs to the ship's rats. The only uninfected sailor (with gun) must protect himself from the other, who deliriously plots to kill him. Eventually, they struggle frantically, suspended from one of the ropes running along the ship's side. The narrator finally frees himself from his crazed attacker, falls to the sea, and is later rescued, surviving to tell the tale.
