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ENTERED AT flu: Post OFFICE AT NEW YORK. N. Y.. AT SECOND CLAsa MAIL RAsz.

Published Every QBeadZe gf- fldams, QDubZ L'shers, Ten Cents a. Copy. 
N 0‘ 5 84‘ wedneSdaY' 98 WILLIAM STREET, N. Y.. January 1. 1890. $590 a “9“  XL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Tale of the Caribbean Sea.

   

BY NED BUNTLINE,
AUTHOR on “THE SEA BANDIT,” ETC.

CHAPTER I.
THE FRIGATE AND THE CRUISER.

IT was, to a seaman’s eye, a lovely sight. A
frigate, under full sail, from royals down, close-
hanled by the wind, stood out from Key West.
with Sand Key Light close on her starboard
hand, heading westosouthwest, for Havana.

The frigate had scarcely entered the Gulf
when a sail was sighted and the lieutenant of
the watch, seizing the giass, scanned the craft
closely.

“ ll hat does she look like, Mr. McIntosh?”
asked a. voice close to the lieutenant, that of the
captain of the ship.

“ She is a schooner, sir, low in the hull, but
carrying an enormous spread of canvas. If we
luff a little, we will barely cross her bows, if she
keeps her course.”

“Very well, sir-do it, for in these days of
. 1 A- piracy, it is our dutyto take a close look at
VJ“; ‘3‘ "" ‘— — - 7 —— everything afloat. Let the crew go quietly to
FIRE FEATHER ON THE Looxom. quarters, and see the battery ready for use in

    

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
   
 

‘ schmner as he touched the sc

2 Fire Feather, the Buccaneer King.

 

case the stranger should try to haul his wind-
A half-hour will bring her in fair range of our
lower deck guns!”

These were long thirty-two-pounders—twelve
on a side, while on the upper deck the frigate
carried eight twenty-four—pound carronades—
and forward, as “ Chasers," two more long thirty-
twos. Her crew of three hundred and fifty
picked men, were as well oflicered as such men
could be.

“ Shall I not turn over the deck to Mr. Golds-
borough, and take my division, captain?” asked
Lieutenant McIntosh, as he saw the first lieu~
tenant approach.

“ Yes, sir. That schooner is very large, full
of men, and has a hard look!” said the captain,
who had taken the glass, and was closely exam-
ining the stranger.

The lieutenant handed his speaking-trumpet
to Mr. Goldsborough, and said:

“ The captain orders the crew to quarters
without noise, sir i”

“ All right, sir—have the guns of your di-
vision cast loose, and see all clear for action 1”

“Young gentlemen, ass the word quietly——
all hands to stations an quarters!”

The two midshipmen of the watch darted off
to obey the order, and within five minutes the
officers and crew were all at their stations, and
soon the noble ship was ready for action.

Meantime the strange schooner rose very rap-
idly, and with the naked eye those who were in
a position to look over the bulwarks of the fri-
gate, could see a wall of foam rolling to either
side of her sharp bows.

“She comes with ‘a rush’ for a breeze like
this!” said the ca tain, addressing his executive
officer. “ What 0 you think she can be!”

“ She must be a. man-of-war, sir—for she does
not change her course, though she can see our
ensign and pennant. and thus know what we are.
Her colors wouldn’t show with the wind aft and
all her canvas set till she is up with us!”

“That is true—but she must heave to. You
can get ready to board her and see that she is all
right. Fire a lee gun when she is pretty close
aboard!”

The captain, a noble-looking man of middle
age, now went into his cabin. He returned in a
few minutes with his sword belted on and a fine
silver speaking-trumpet in his hand.

In the mean time the third cutter, the first
lieutenant’s boat had been cleared away ready
for lowering and its crew of twelve men and a
coxswain, each wow a belted cutlass and a
pistol at his side, ready to enter it as soon
as it touched the water.

The schooner was now dead to windward,
scarce half a mile off.

“ Back our main-yards, and let her have the
lee guni” said the captain.

The instant the order wad given the yards
swung around—the vessel lost her headway, and
the heavy boom of a forecastle gun to leeward
rolled over the sea.

It was answered by the schooner in almost a
second’s time. Lufilng up, her sheet: were

~ drawn in, and, as she came broadside-to, the

new flag of the net-formed Republic of Mexico
was seen flutte ng at her main gaff.

Then it was seen that she carried two long,
brass pivot- uns of heav caliber—one on the
forecastle—t e other an the heaviest, amid-
ships. Her tall masts raked far backward, her
booms and gaffs were very lon , and her sharp
,bull lay so low in the water t at its immense
beam could onl be seen when the foresail was
brailed up out o the way.

“ What schooner is that?" cried Captain Ren-

shaw.

“ The Diablocito—‘Slittle deviD—bearing a com-
mission from Gener Guadalupe Victoria, Presi-
dent of the Republic of Mexico!” answered a tall
and noble-looking youn omcer in uniform, who
stood on the quarter eck, trumpet in hand.
“ What frigate is that?”

“ The United States frigate Macedonian—
Renshaw commanding, on a cruise. I will send
a boat on board!”

“ Thank you, sir!” said the ofiicer, courteously,
speaking in good English, though he wore avery
Spanish look.

His crew—full one hundred men, if not more,
was composed apparently of men of all nations
—a stalwart but desperate-looking set.

As the beautiful schooner came up in the
wind, with her head-sheets drawn to windward
and her helm aloe, she became almost stationary,
1 ng a short cable’s len h to windward of the

rigate. The frigate’s t was already in the
water, and, a minute later, with the first lieu-
tenant in full uniform, was on her way to the
schooner. ~

There—a short ladder was dropped over the
side, man-ropes were held by two seamen, and
the lieutenant was received b the captain of the
ner’s deck.

Captain Renshaw marked the politeness and
ease exhibited by the Mexican officer in receiv-
ing his lieutenant, and noticed that together they
went down into the cabin.

They were there for perhaps five or six min-
utes, and then the lieutenant came on deck, and,

shakin hands with the Mexican captain, de-
- sound into his boat, and pushing 03, was ,.

. quickly rowed back to the frigate.

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“ I find her all right, sir—a duly commissioned
Mexican privateer, sir—and her captain an
American, born of a Spanish mother and Yan-
kee father.”

“ Did ou tell him we were bound over to
Havana ’asked Renshaw.

“ Yes, sir—-and he said, laughing, that we
could report the Diablocito on a cruise, if we
liked, for he thought he had the heels of any
craft that Spain could send after him!”

“ I should think he had. She is as sharp fore
and aft as a wedge. And such spars 1 never
saw in a vessel of her_tonnage!”

“ She is deep, sir—very deep in the water.
She does not look it, but she registers three hun-
dred tons. She will play roughly with Spanish
commerce, and it has got to be a well—managed
man of—war that can successfully handle her!”

“ That is true. You can pipe down, sir, and
I‘ put the frigate on her course 1”

Then Captain Renshaw raised his trumpet.

“Schooner ahoy!” he shouted. “I wish on
a pleasant cruise and safe return to port. on
can fill away. sir.”

“ Thank you, sir.
and a healthy one!"

The next moment the head-sheets were drawn
on the schooner, her main-sheet let go by the
run, the helm put hard up and the schooner
gathering instant way shot ahead and clear of
the frigate and stood down the Gulf on her
former course before steerage—way had been
gathered on the frigate.

“ That fellow knows how to handle his craft i”
said tl.e captain. “ She is well named and will
giva S ain lots of trouble if not soon overhauled
and ta en in i”

“ Did you notice her figure-head, captain?”
asked the lieutenant.

:1,th specially—it was a human figure, was it
no

“ An infernal figure, I should call it, air. It
represented Satan, even to horns, cloven feet,
and forked tail l”

“ Well, it suits her name, and those whom she
overhauls will think it suits her calling. I am
glad Mexico is able to arm and man such a
craft. 1Siuain has had her tyrannic away but too
long in exico and South America!”

By this time the frigate was on her course,
and with the watch only on duty, the watch
lieutenant took the deck.

CHAPTER II.
ran nuccmnnn nmnn.

A sum: of' triumph lighted the face of the
pretended ca tain of the schooner. as the frigate
swept of! on er course, and he cried out:

“ Capitano—the Gringo is off, and we are
safe l”

Even as he spoke, a man who had been seated
in the shadow of the head—sails, forward of the
bow gun, rosc and came aft.

He was tall, of herculean build, armed with
sword sand pistol in his belt, and so marked in
feature and expression that once seen he would
never be forgotten. His dark face was scarred
byh sword-cut from the temple to the chin on
the right side-and as he wore no heard, the livid
scar was seen the more vividly. His eyes, in-
tensely black, seemed literally to burn with
Qwerty. His aquiline nose, his high cheek-

nes, his thin lips, close-drawn, every expres-
sion was almost savage.

Over his lon black hair he wore a broad-
rimmed Spanis sombrero, turned up in front
with a diamond buckle, in which a'plume was
based that extended over the crown of the hat
and fell back on his shoulders, mingling with his
long, coal-black hair.

This plume was a fiery red and made from
ostrich-feathers; it glittered in the blaze of the
closing sunlight as if touched with diamond-
dust; and from its intense color. had conferred
upon its wearer the title of Fire Feather.

“ You have done well, camaradol” he said, in
a harsh tone, with a foreign accent. “It is
brave to run under an enemy’s guns and go oi!
free! Thou art cool and ready. Marvel, and
we’ve fooled the Gringoes“ nicely !”

“ ,my ca itano—the lieutenant drank in
my tale as def y as he did some of our old Ma.-
deira down below. He seemed so much interest-
ed in Mexico and her freedom, that he never
looked be ond the forged commission which I
showed h m!”

“Good! They will hardly report us at Ha-
vana. If they do, what need we care? For a week
We’ll hug this coast and pick up what the saints
ma send us! Shorten sail as soon as night falls
an join me in the cabin, leaving Canovas in
charge of the watch.” .

Mr. Marvel, who was in reality the first officer
of the schooner bowed, and the red-plumed cap-
tain descended into his cabin.

Being relieved by the second officer, Canovas.
a full-blooded Spaniard, Mr. Marvel descended
into the after ca in.

This was a clone and elegantly-furnished
a meat, wit two large staterooms on either

de, having indeed more accommodation than
was needed by the two oflcers who each ied it,
for Canovas and Wilson, the other two ienten~

’ 'GrhqoatermofderlslonforYankee.

L

We wish you a jolly cruise

 

 

. I‘l- ‘. ’

 

 

ants, occupied the wardroom forward of the
cabin, the gunner, boatswain and sailmaster
messing with them.

The captain was reclining lazily on the cush-
ioned transom which extended across the after

art of the cabin, when Mr. Marvel came down,
ut he rose when his first officer entered the
cabin.

“ I have shortened sail, Captain Spirifortl”
said he. “ The packet on which we put our
passenger sought to be up with us by midnight,
and if he does his duty there will be no danger
of our missing her.”

“No fear but that Barth Will do his part !”
said the captain. “ We have tried him often,
and he has never failed. He’ll have the ship
ablaze within a minute after he makes us out,
and all other directions will be followed, you
may depend. The cargo of the ship, cotton, is
Only fit for the flames, but the passengers—they
Will yield jewels and gold! There were many of
them, you said?”

“ Ay, capitano—and if I err not, rich ones-—
men and woman who have spent their winter in
the sunny South, and would now go North to a
colder clime!”

“ Hal They may find a hotter clime yet be-
fore we have done with them. Ho—steward!
Jumbo, you black rascal!”

“Here is Jumbo—massa ca ’n.
black rascal ?—-him no do nu n’ he isn’t told !”
answered a tall, smart—looking black, neatly
dressed in trowsers and jacket of white duck.

“ Then do something you are told. Get sup-
per on the table in a hurry i” .

“ Yis, massa cap’n? Jumbo him hab gallina,
piscou, caviche, jawbone, everything cod!”

“ Put them on—be nick, and no ta kl”

"Ki! What Jumbo ab tongue for if no can
use him!” muttered the servant, as he hurried to
set out the table, loading it with silver plate,
wines, and all manner of delicacies.

While Spirifort and his chief ofilcer sup, we
Ivivillopen another chapter and go back a few

ours.

 

CHAPTER III.
A Piano’s woax.

Two or three hours before the. Diablocito had
been sighted by the frigate lookout, the clipper
schooner had overhauled a large ship bound from
New Orleans to New York, loaded below and on
deck with cotton. On her after deck were many
passen ers, and among them all there were
pallid ooks of apprehension, until the schooner
was announced as a Mexican man-of-rwar. They
had feared she was a pirate. and the captain of
the ship, without arms, and barely crew enough
to work his ship, had himself trembled for the
fate before him—though he strove to hide his
fears. °
But when the captain of the schooner asked
him if he would take a passenger North, whom
they had found on a prize and did not care to
keep, he ladly consented—he was so much
pleased to t ink that which he had feared was a
pirate, was only a Mexican veesel-of-war.

So a Mr. Barth, claiming to be an English.
man, was brought on board b a boat from the
schooner, with a small va ise for baggage,
and as he seemed to be a gentleman, the captain
magic room for him in his already crowded
ca n.

The moment that the new pamgel' was dis-
engaged frcm the attention of the ship’s cap-
tain, he was surrounded by sengers eager to
hear his story, for none don ted he had one to
tell. and he was the hero of the hour.

His tale was this: He had been spending the
winter in Havana, and had sailed for Mobile in
a Spanish trading~schooner, hopin thence to
get a passage North, whither he wis ed to go,

Just off the coast of Alabama the schooner
was fallen in with and captured by the Mexican

rivnteer, and with her crew sent as a prize tn

am ico. He boldly claiming his liberty as an
Eng ishman, had been kept on board the priva-
teei- avaiting an opportunity to be transferred
to an inward-bound vessel.

The story was not doubted on the packet—it
seemed so probable, and the narrator looked like
what he claimed to be—a traveled Englishman.

As the schooner sped sWiftly oi! down the Gulf
to continue her search of Spanish commence, the
packet captain dismissed all his fears and stood
steadily on his course without any doubts or
misfivings.

H new passenger moved about the vessel like
one used to the sea, and did his duty like a good
trencher at the supper-table.

The noble ship under all canvas stood up the
Gulf Stream, coming ust near enou h to the
Florida shore to sight nd Key and ey West
lights. both of which were passed long before
midnight.

The ship had made nice headwa all dam and
when the moon rose near the mid our of night,
and the watch was changed, her deck had been
long deserted by passengers, and all save the
men on duty were supposed to be slumbering in
their berths below.

But one man—I might better say aflend in
human shape, was wakefnl. It was the new pas-
senger. Crouched awa under the shade of a

lower sail be scanned t a water far and "near,

 

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Fire

and when the moon rose a muttered exclamation
gold that he saw what he had been looking
or.

Inshore, on the port bow of the packet he saw
the white gleam of canvas. Drawing a small
pocket spy-glass from inside his vest be scanned
the sail closely, and soon knew it was the craft
he wished to see.

Then commenced his work; the plan had been 

laid by his superiors before, and he had but to
follow it.

Close by the fore-rigging, then by the main, he
set fire alight in the cotton, and before any dis-
covery could be made he was away below, and
there another fire was made.

Thence he crept into the cabin, and when full
half an hour after the dread shouts of “ ire!
maxi” rung fore and aft, he came up wit the
rest of the furor-stricken ssengers—as inno-
cent in amiearance as any 0 them.

The sleepy watch had been so long in discover-
ing the tire that it had reached the tarral-rigging
and canvas before it was discovered, and when
all hands rushed to the deck the flames, beyond
control, were leaping high amid the shrouds and
masts and yards.

Now the new passenger seemed heroic in his
energy.

\V ile the captain and crew madly and yet
hoplessly sought to stay the flames he shouted:
‘Clear away the boats! Get the ladies and

helpless ssengers in jirsl! I see a sail to Ice-
ward. 'e may all be saved. To work, if ye
be mm nd hel the helpless!”

a

- And he rushm around among the passengers
and told them to get their money and valuables,
for it would be hopeless to try to save heavy bag-

ga e.

a’rought to a sense of duty by the apparent
coolness and heroism of this man, the captain
now lent his energies to the work, and soon the
two large uartor-boats were filled with passen-

gers from t e burning packet, each of whom, as ,

a matter of course, saved what they could carry
of their most precious property.

Meantime a vessel was seen under sail and
nearing them, and the captain of the packet,
willin to utilize Mr. Barth, cried out:

“T e charge of the two boats, sir, please,
and ut the passengers safely on that '
vesse . Then return for us, for if we canno
got the long-boat out we are helpless l”

\Vith a smile of assent, Barth leaped into one
of the boats, seized the tiller and cried out to
both crews to shove off.

The great ship, now all on fire aloft lighted up
the waters far and near, and more than one of

the ngers recognized the Vessel now so near
2: daMexican schooner seen before, earlier in
e . ’

Tha vessel hove to, waited for the boats, low-
erm none of her own, however, and when the
two is reached her side, Mr. Barth sung out:

“ I bring ou all the passengers from the New
Orleans pac et, sir!”

“ All i We’lilntagg care of then}. J unap
aboard came response rom t e
lips of  Marvel. rp
k Garaging eSpirifortii‘hséid withing, but with his

een yes wa eac n
she was helped on board. page get who or

“ Take the ladies into the ca tain's cabin—the
night air is chilly i” said Mr. arvel ad
Jumbo, who stood bare-headed by the compan-
ionway.

“ Yes, Massa Marbel! Dis way, ladies—dis
m to do salconl" said the negro, gl'innin .
“ e odder hatch to de wardroom-fimmm I’g

“Let the boats go back to the Bhi i” said
Spirlfort, in a low tone. to Marvel. “ on till
away under all sail and head for the east coast
of CXbal” m th

“ ,ay. sir. was or ,

An the boats, with only go crews helm ng
tothe placket, were told to hurry back. Then,
while t e rescued passengers were sent below in
the schooner, her sails wore all set and she stood
away swiftly, leaving the burning ship to her
fate—her captain wonderin at the heartlemnem
which such a course in the exican evinced.

Had be known, which in his ownmad struggle
for life he could not the real character of t
who now held his lpless passengers in their
power, he would' have sooner welcomed the
speedy death which seemed to await him and
his crew, ruther_than share their awful fate on
board of a merciless pirate.

For such indeed was the Dumwcrro, well
masked, as she thus'far has shown herself.

But once, after sail was made and the schooner
dashed away, did the pirate captain look taward
the burning ship. She was all a mass of flame
and two boats so loaded with men that it seemed
they could not float, were lyingi near her, appar-
ently waiting the end of the s p that had been
their home.

“ It will never do for those boats to reach the
shore and report us!” said Marvd, after a mo-
ment’s thong t.

“ They never will! Look there! In half an
hour We shall be scudding under shortened sail!”
said the ca ' .

_ to a dense wall of clouds which
was rising wondrous fast in the northern board.

“ It is true—the overcrowded boats could

. never live and meet a gale!" said Mr. Marvel.

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Feather, the Buccaneer

‘ “ \Vhat is next on the board? The disposition of

, the passen ers, I su ) .' i

l “ Ay! heir gold and jewels secured—the
plank for the men! We will consider tne fate
for the women!”

 

CHAPTER IV.
THE “'IND-BOUND FLEET.
A LITTLE after sunrise, under reefed sails, be-
: fore a gale which had stricken her just before
day, the allant frigate Macedonian stood in
i t the cm Castle and made her way up the
utiful harbor of Havana, to the usual man-
} of—war anchorage off the Arsenal.
There were several Spanish men-of—war at their
. moorinrs, one American man-of-war schooner,
and a s arp, saucy-looking English brig-of-war.
l The American schooner was at once recognized
as the Fire Fly belonging to the “'est India
squadron with the Macedonian, and hardly had
i the sails of the latter been furled before a boat
, from the schooner, with her young captain,
i Dahlgrecn, in it, was alongside.
i He was warmly welcomed by Mr. Golds-
t borough, who escorted him to the cabin to meet
i Captain Renshaw, who had just donned his full
‘ umform preparatory to a visit to the shore after
i the customary salute had been fired.
‘ I “ I am glad ou came before I sailed, sir,” said
, Dahlgreento ‘aptain Renshaw. “ If this norther
had not sprung up I should have gone to sea at
sunrise, and so would the Lark, that clipper
English brig over there.”
“Anything special to send you out of this
pleasant harbor?” asked the captain of the
rigate.

t

Yes, sir—a piratical schooner has been doing
fiendish work on the south side of the island.
She has captured and burned or sunk nearly a
dozen vessels—some American and some English,
French and Spanish. A r woman whose life
had been spared, after undergoing every horror,
was left at one of their rendezvous on the south
' side of the island, and creeping away, ot into a
canoe and was picked u b the Englis brig.

“ She has ven a u description of the
schooner and or officers, and we intend joinvtlfi
to go id’search for her as soon as the wind '

rmit.

“Good! What kind of a vessel is the pirate?”

“ A very large, sharp-built schooner, with two
, long, heavy brass pivo ns carrying near one

hundred men, comman ed by a Spaniard, but
with an English or American first mate and a
des rate crew of all nations and colors!”

Captain Renshaw looked at Mr. Goldsborou h,
who was listening to the words of Comman er
Dahlgreen. '

“ Did the vessel have any name, or any pe-
culiarity by which you will know her apart from
this neral description?” asked the former.

“ es, sir—she was called the Diablocito—and
she has a Satan for a figure-head!”

“ Thunder and Mass! Not sixteen hours ago
we had this ve vemel close under our guns
and Goldsboroug here was on board of her! ’

“ Yes—and took a. glass of wine with the man
who claimed to be her commander, after he had
showed me his Mexican commission!” said Golds-
borough, almost white with vexation. “ It must
be the same craft, for she was armed with two

 

brass pivot- ns, besides some carronades, had a
hea mix crew, and she sailed like switch.
saw no Spanish captain. The man who

appeared to be her captain said he was American
born of a Spanish mother. But her name and
‘ her rrure—head settle the question. They are the
: sam'I'li’ou dfimflpshlfted h ground
“ en 8 e ‘ er cruising- .
; Most likely she found cruisers after her on the
‘ southern side of the island, and wishes to avoid
them!” said Dahlgreen.
“ We will both go to sea when the gale slack-
ens i” said Captain Renshaw. “ If I New her
i gader my”guns again, she will not be y to
away!
: A visit from the Captain of the Port now in-
! tempted the conversation, and Dahlgreen went
, down into the wardroom to greet some of his
1 old messmates, for he had been promoted out of
the Macedonian to, his resent command.

The Captain of the ort had but ’ust left the
fri to, when the commander of . B. M. gim-
b Iark was piped over the side.

r  his respects to Captain Renshaw,
the cap 0 the brig was greatly surprised
With the information that the piratical schooner
he intended to seek had been seen not more than
am or seven hours’ sail from Havana, anerhen
he  the course she steered he announced
his intention of putting out after her, no matter
how hard it blew.

“ I hardly think you’ll be able to carry sail in
a gale that made us reef down with a free wind 1”
and Captain Renshaw, “ We will go to sea as
soonas it slackens—I do not care to strain mg
V spars before. We’ll need them all to catch th
filing}. Sign sails liltie a cloughpetore a “org 1"

‘ e morea tocatc mnap‘ a
gale!” said the Englishman. “But I’ll this on
till you go out, an then we can cruise in a way
to meet once in awhile and com notes.
wretch cannot evadeall of us, he yet haunts
masses-as!" .. an... ..

0 es ' master _w one
carries, helps him i” said Wow.

i But

 

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King. 3

CHAPTER V.
THE PIRATE’s LAIR.

IN all the Southern or Caribbean sea, studded
as it is with islands, there are none so full of lit-
tle harbors, shelterin bays, creeks and lagunes
as is that of Cuba. he writer knows whereof
he speaks, for was he not in the Musquito fleet
and did he not spend many a hot, weary day and
night searching out piratical haunts?

It was the evening of the fourth day from that
on which our story opened.

Sheltered by a ofty island of bare rock, that
broke the force of the ocean waves which roarul
and thrashed against its outer base, a. vessel lay
in the mouth of a small, but deep laguue that
opened like an artificial canal into the high,
roclky coast near the east end of the island of
Cu in.

This lagune, fed by a creek which came rush-
ing down from among the mountains, could not
be seen by any one approaching from seaward,
so nearly was the r0337 island like the main
coast, from which ind it was only separated
by a channel barely wide enough for a. vessel to
enter, and this channel could be used at either
end, so that all winds were fair at one point or
the other for entrance or de rture.

A single glance at the tal , raking masts—the
long booms and gaifs of this schooner, even if
we did not see her demoniac figure-head, her
bright pivot-guns, and the daredevil-looking
men lounv in about her docks, would tell us that
she wast e iablocito.

A rt of her crew were on shore cutting wood,
for e cook’s use, others Were up the lagune tow-
in down a raft of newly-filled waterwasks.

e shore view, for that island and region was
wonderfully drear and desolate, no sign of hu-

man habitation oould be seen among the arid ;

rocks hea back from the shore. Only far in-
land did t e rank vegetation look tropical.

The second officer, Canovas, was on deck, the
third occupied a station or lookout on the rocky-
island, from which only could a view of the sea
be end he had.

wn in the cabin, where we last saw them,
were the irate chief and his executive—the first
looking i , bearing marks of dissipation in his
sunken eyes and pallid face. '

Empty bottles, overturned blets, and the
wreck of a feast on the table to as much as his

ngers, male and

own hag looks.

What become of the passe
female, who had been taken from the burning
packet? They had been received on board that
vessel—but now, €211; on? ctguldTlie seen},e Let the
imagina' tion pain air a . e ' ’s motto
is that “the dead tell no tales.” pm

And better is it that the vail be drawn, that our
eyes may not see how the suffered and how
t ey died; it is sad enou that we know no
mortal eye could ever see t more. '

“ Fill your glam, Marvel—fill up, I say i” cried
Fire Feather, fiercely. “ I want no puling,

sickish sensibility shown here. I’ve made on ‘

my first officer—you have obeyed my 0 era
well, and I want you to share my pleasures as
well as the harsher duties of your station.”

“ Capitano,” said Marvel,
cheerful, “ you know I am no at the wine
cask. I trytodo mydutyas I romisedeould
when you spared my life. Let t stifled You
and the rest can do the drinking—let me watch.
for your, safety while the others are blind to all

r

“  are right and I am wrong!”de the
ca tain,ashedrankotfabumperofeogniac.

trying to appear ~

v»

‘The gale is about over—I suppose we’ll take '

to blue water again,” said Marvel.

“ Ayl this is a dull hole to It by in—yet safe
—out of the way of passing an curious vemela
Even the coasters avoid the dangerous reefs that
fly off-shore. That brandy seems to put new

' 0 into your veins. The medicine is 00d.”

“ A signal hasbeen shown bythe 100 out, sir ”
said Canovas, comin to the cabin door. “lb
reads, ‘asail {71.8%}; I’”

“ Ah? Then we ve something to think of!"
cried the captain. “Marvel, see that no smoke
is made on board or ashore. Caution the men to

silence while they work. I will take my tele- '

scope and go look formyself u n the sail that is
reported. Let Canovas see t eve ‘ is
ttanreadytomakesail,shouldthiscraf ook

' 9 one worth overhauling i” \

These orders m, the ca. ' donning his
red~plumed com , went on eck, stepped
overtheside intoasmallboatthatwasfawened
alongside, and sculled overto the neighboring

Lenvmg‘ theboatonarockysl onwhich
drewit up,he took hisglam 

inner of the lofty rock bya path part1
hewnin solidproci co. Itwasaloftypemh
where the lookoutaaEi but screened fmm‘tho

sightof anyonoatsea bya thicket of thewth _.

Tgasghalamadeworo shownbalowthe inner
tothoseinoraboutthe

Afterhereachedthestaflonandeothis 

thopimtecaptainglancodatthesaflthe,
hadre

hepeak,andofcm1mwemonlyvidbb'.

v",

“A ship—a ,and alargeonelflie mama“
“A man-char!" Then turningangrilytoflm,‘

hecriodout:

 

 
 
  

 

» l  1. ,. ~ . . ,  v . M.
  - v h.‘ w z...
t

4 Fire Feather, the Buccaneer

King. M .

 

 

“ Where are your eyes? See you not two other
sails in sight? Look close in under the land—
there creeps a foretopsail schooner along as near
as she can sail to the reefs. She too is a. man-of-
war. And further out, between her and the
ship, is a brig—I’ll warrant she too is armed!
How came it you did not report sooner?”

“ There was a mist or fog out seaward which
hid them until the moment I reported the first
I saw. Even now you can see a trace of it,
as the breeze sweeps it out to seaward. It has
been almost cairn till within the hour,” said the
officer.

“ Well-what is must be! Hasten down and tell
Marvel in the utmost silence to have every man
on board and at his station; to see the s dou-
ble-shotted, the swivels set, and the saflnlloosed,
read to use should our refuge be discovered.

“ 'Fhese vessels will be on us, or past us, before
darkness can hide their movements. I will stay
here to the last moment to watch them. If they
sail by with unchanging course all for us is
well. it not, they’ll find the Diahtoct'to hard to
take. Go, Basil, and be in haste. But tell Mar-
vel not to let the men take alarm. It will be
enough for them to know what the danger is
when it reaches them. 7’

u J" ay, sir!”

An the officer hurried down from his post,
while the captain again turned his glass upon
the strangers.

Marvel received the message sent by the cap-

tain and instantly hurried to obey every order.
Direct' Canovas to watch for si from the
captain, e in person sawto go the vemel
read for action or flight, while Mr. , who

had 1) in charge of the watering- y, got
higlcasks in over the side as noiseless y as pos-
si e.

For a time the captain made no sign, and as
night was now close at hand, Marvel hoped the
danger was  on.

But, suddenly, e boom of a heavy gun came
thundering in upon theirears from seaward, and
the captain was seentoleave hispostandto
rush in mad haste down the hillside toward the
boat which Marvel sent to meet him.

CHAPTER VI.
THE msn’s BAKING.

“A MILLION curses! The gleam of sunlight
must have flashed on the diamond buckle of my
plum and some shrug-eyed lookout got sight of
me!” cried Captain Kirifort as he rung on
his vessel's deck. “ boat lowered mm the
man-of-war schooner is coming shoreward while
asi lshe made has drawn both friga and

t nearer to the shore. Wilson, take one

t with ten men and lay close to the channel

at the south end of Cover Island—Canovas do
the same at the north end. When that boat
comesin, if she finds the channel, secure her

. and her crew without giving them a chance to

make alarm, if it is 'ble. She has six men
and an officer. In t e mean time we will make
ready here to cut and run when darkness comes,
or to fight, if more boats follow the first. Barth
-—to the lookout—keep well hidden~but signal
eve motion of our enemies. ”

u g, ay’ ml”

An the Englishman sprung into the tiny
skiif and was off to the island in a second of
time.

In a few minutes two armed boats with muf-
fled oars pulled for the entrance of each channel
as directed by the pirate leader.

“ We’ll have he] from our friend and Master
soon ” said Marv

“What do on mean?” asked Spirifort.

“Look at t black cloud hanging over the
mountains. Five minutes since I saw but a tin
speck there. It is a hurricane rising, and swif
ly, too. No vessel will hug this coast an hour
hence, and if we are let alone till darkness falls,
we’ll not be troubled this night, nor again by
those armed wolves who are evidently after

7,

l

“Good—let it come! As you as —Satan
seems ever read to help his namesa 9! But
that beat, if it hagpgns to hit the channel, will
beinherebefore knemfalis or the stormcan

‘ reach us— Ahl—Barth signalsl”

“Yes—the boat is inside the reef and heads
for the northern channel. No other boat fol-
lows. She is sent to e lore. What her
crew discovers—will never made known to
those who sent them. Quick with another
boat, my good Marvell- 30in Wilson and let the
strange boat be the instant she rounds
the end ofthe island. She will then be out of
sight from seaward. Without noise let every
man perish—and then come back. 0 will slip
out to sea in the darkness, evenif we have t9
run under bare poles!”
Marvel, without reply hastened to obey or—
ders. In a short time with a lar r boat and‘a
dozen men to reinforce Wilson, was on his

wa .

1nd now, the red-plumed captain caused
every sail on his schooner to be loosed and close-
reefed, and then by a single cable fast to an
anchor the pirate vessel lay, ready tospread her
wings in ht, orif needbetobelchout death
on from her double-showed

and gigs.
. - ' Budding toand fro withhisscarred all
Inglowwi fierce excitement, the pirate leader

 

watched for the boat to round the point where
his own men in like hungered tigers in ambush.

Not long had, the sea fiend to wait for the re-
sult.

Suddenly, while the last rays of the setting
sun were gilding the mountain-tops in the west,
the strange boat shot around the point of the
island—not even an car’s length from those who
waited to grap le with her. And uick as
thought itself, rded from both sides, the
American crew were seized and overpowered.

One single pistol-shot, fired by the officer in
command of the boat, sending one irate to his
doom, was the only sound heard. he next in-
stant, officer and men—not one left—lay bleed-
ing and dying in the boat, stabbed to their
hearts by pirate knives.

Then leaving the boat and its ghastly cargo
adrift, Marvel and his comrades came dashing
back to the schooner.

“ Let their boat go adrift, the hurricane is
close aboard. U With our own boats and ready
for sea!” shouted) Spirifort. Then he signaled
for Barth to come in from the lookout.

The latter was on board by the time the boats
him at their davits.

“ e schooner is very c10se to the northern
reef, sir!” he re rted to Spirifort. “ They
were watching t eir boat as she rounded the
point of the island. The -brig and frigate
are hove to a couple of mi as to seawardl No
other boats have been lowered 1”

“Good! Wewillslip to sea on the wings of
this hurricane by the southern channel, when it
and darknem come upon usl”

Not long had them wait. While the Ameri-
can beat with its tly cargo was slowly drift-
ing out of the har r b the channel in which it
came the blackness o the fast-coming storm
overs adowed it as a pal]. Alreadya hoarse
sound like the of a monster in agony was
heard inland. t was the howl of the tempest,
and with only a close—reefed foresail set the
schooner lay read to cast 03 and yield herself
to the wild gale w on it came.

Even befOre night was on them—darkness—
the darkness of the storm shadowed everythin .

Marvel himself took the helm—his eye on t e
compass, with the binnacle lamp ali ht. Quick-
! —with a force which bent the na ed spars of
t e schooner, down swept the fierce black clouds
full of wind, and when the vessel was loosed
from her anchorage, even the shore, close as it
was, could not be seen until, while the vessel
shot away, a sulphlirirous lightnin -fiash revealed
it,anditsgrayc' sseemedto eunderthe
heavy thunder-peel that followed.

And away—awe like a scared bird flew the
phantom craft, ded by the hand of Marvel,
whose e 9 never eft the compass by which alone
he cou] kee the channel of esca .

Soon, wit the rushing win driving the
schooner madly on, the latter felt the heave of
the sea and even while she almost buried bows
under beneath her scant sail a flash of fire to
the northward and a dull, ut heavy boom,
spoke;1 of her discovery by the vigilant enemies on
watc .

But awa -—awa before the fearful gale, amid

lightning- h an thunder- 1, she dashed, and
her regdplumed chief laugh in sardonic glee as
he cri :

“ There floats no craft can catch the Diablocito
now; her wi are spread and her ocean home
is opening wi 8 before her!”

 

CHAPTER VII.
rim BAHLED sm-nouxns.

WHEN the fire Fly drawing the least water,
was cree ing along the Cuban coast in inside
of the eepdraughted brig and frigate, her
youn captain, spy-glass in hand, was constantly

the land in person though he had look-
outs alo t who were orde to re rt any sail,
or sign of life seen inshore or out, y them.

And it was Captain D n himself who
sawflrsta dazzling flash an then a head sur-
mounted b a red-plumed hat amid the bushes
which cree a lofty part of the shore to the
westward of his vessel, a little before sun-
set. Though it disap the instant it
caught his glance, the young captain felt sure
that his vessel was being watched by the head
he :had seen. To signal the vessels outside he
fired a gun, and then he ordered a boat lowered
and sent a young officer in her with an armed
crew to try and discover if there was any har-
bor, river, or hiding-place inshore where a vessel
mi ht have found re uge.

1y had the boat left the vessel’s side
when he saw the rising clouds over the land he—
tokenin a storm, but he hoped the heat would
bebackfiiefore the storm could break, and an-
choringBXith a light breeze just outside the reefs
he wai and watched her movements.

The boat was rowed in rapidliiand by sunset
was close to the shore in w ch, from the
schooner no break could be seen. But when
Captain l) n suddenly saw the boat shoot
in out of sig t he knew a river or lagune had
been discovered and he watched with feverish
im tience for the boat’s return and report.

eantime he sate» th alarm how swiftly the

storm-cloud roeein. ' Meat, knowing from ex-
perience what WW

~o 'l

were, and that

. course.

 

even close as he was to the land, he never could
hold anchorage there when the force of the storm
should break upon him.

Just as darkness was closing and the storm
was breaking, he got a glimpse of a boat leaving
the land—driven, it seemed, rather by the force
of the wind than by oars, and though he was
ready with close-reefed storm-sails for the hurri-
cane, he determined to hold on by his hawser till
the boat returned, if he could so hold, before
makin sail.

Quic 1y darkness and the storm shut the land

from sight—but he burned bluelights for his boat 1

and waited till the hurricane struck him in its
force. With no sail, his hawser at full scope,
the kedge held him a little while, the water yet
smooth, but now, when the wind rose higher, the
lightning flashed, and the thunder pealed, he be-
gan to fear the boat had put back, and when his
anchor began to drag he was forced to order sail
set for steerage—way.

At that instant a lookout forward shouted:

“A boat! close aboard!”

Instantly orderin blue lights burned, which
lighted up the sea 8. around them, young Dahl-
green, his officers and crew saw the boat, and a
horrible sight in it.

The crew dead, their white duck clothes
drenched in blood, were plainly seen as the boat
drifted by helplessly before the gale.

Instantly firin his signal— , the young com-
mander sought y steering to leeward of the
boat to recover his dead—but the furious hurri-
cane now drove boat and vessel alike of! the
coast, and they were parted in a few short mo-
ments to meet no more.

Now a new cause of excitement arose. The
lookout forward declared that in a flash of light-
ning far down the coast he had distinctl seen the

rsof avessel under one scantsail ' gdown
t ashore. Themanwasan old Seaman, sharp-e ed
and trusty, and the young commander, cou ' g
the bloody sight he had seen in his boat wit the
vessel reported, felt sure it was the pirate flying
in ltithe stoer this cloge waning-mu agreed

ring guns re. a 31

upon w th the other vegseg’in case of a dis-
covery at ni ht, Dahlgreen now crowded all the
sail he dar and bore away south in hopes he
might even, dark as it was, keep where he could
find the pirate when light once more came.

He had bright signal lights hung over the.
stern of his vessel, so that the bri and frigate
might see he was in chase and fo ow his ex—
ample.

Once, and once only, when a long zi g
streak of lightning ran along the sou ern
board did he get a lance in that direction.
And then he too saw t 9 tall spar and the single
sail which his lookout had r rted. She was
close in under the land, scud ' g southeast in
smooth water, the wind apparently on her beam
and oinfilvery fast.

“ t t e reefed mainsail on the schooner!”
shouted the young commander. “ I’ll drive her
undgr before the murderous pirate shall escape
mel

Trembling under her canvas the good schoon-
er plunged on—but all was darknem in her
Running by compass—every eye and
ear alert, for no one knew what moment the
roar of breakers might be heard the Fire Fly
fairly flew through t 6 water, and thus she ran
for hours and hours—no one aslee , all hands on
deck and at quarters praying for ght to come,
and that it might sh '
shot.

But when light came—they saw only the bold
wooded blufls at the east point of Cuba on their
weather bow no sail in si ht, exce t two very
far astern, whose uare am and lo ty rig were
too well known to mistaken—the brig and
the frigate.

b The  I13ml lessenfiwto a fair e ht-knigz
reeze an ahlgreen r reaching 0

of the island, have to, to await his consorts, or if

theh iratewas aheadof himshehadgonefrom

that terrible gale she had either driven
fast and far, found some new harbor or
hiding-place, or had been ed upon some
gluttmg' reef or hidden rock and gone from
umano ht forever.
r at

mander of the American sc ooner.

With the fresh breeze the frigate and b
closed rapidly and learned for the first time tha
the schooner been in luck so far as to have
sighted a vessel supposed to be the pirate—also
heard of the murder of her boat’s crew.

On consultation it was decided to have the
brig and schooner return to the part of the coast
they  left the night before to more closely
examme the sup inlet or harbor, and to
waita given time there, if they could enter it,
in he the pirate would return. Meantime
the f gate was to run around to the south side of
the island, cruise as far as the Isle of Pines, and
if no pirate was to be seen or heard of, return
and rejoin the schooner and brig where they
were to await her.

This lan originating with Lieutenant McIn-
tosh, w 0 having been active in Porter’s Mos-
quito fleet in search of pirates, seemed to lay the

most feasible plan of several thought of, and it

was therefore adopted.

ow the enemy within gun-‘

east thus thou ht the heroic com-

 

 

 

  

k... "

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer King.

.V “‘2. _,..'..k. .  I. , u
v alt..." H  «3):;

5

 

 

 

CHAPTER VII.
A DARI‘NG RUSE. '

GOD is gracious! And grateful to Him was
the ca tain of the burning cotton-ship in the
hour 0 terrible peril, when he and his crew in
two boats, loaded to the gunwale, and on the
point of sinking in the rough sea caused by the
risin ale, were rescued by a wrecking-schooner,
the ale, which had run of! on sight of the
burning ship, to help if help would be avail-
able.

The Whale, belonging in Ke West, stood
into that port under close-reef sail, and the
survivors from the burned shi were treated
with the kindness and hospita ‘ty seamen in
their condition ever meet in an American (port.
With nothing saved but their lives an the
clothes they stood in, they were in need of all
the kindness shown.

And now the ca tain, his officers and men had
time to confer u )out the origin of the fire.
Breaking out as it did in three different places
with violence, it was evident that an incendiary
hand had caused it. As the ship was not insur-
ed, for insurance could hardly be had on vessels
sailing in those waters then, and the captain
was half-owner of the ship, there was no incen-
tive to her destruction by any one on board.

The desertion of the ship in her distress b the
Mexican man-of-war which had taken 0 her
passengers was commented on very severely—

ut not till three days later when news came from
Havana describing that vessel as a pirate, and
announcing that several men—of-war were after
her, did matters assume a shape which the cap-
tain of the lost shi could understand.

Then he remem red how officious the man
Barth had been in inducing the passengers to
take all their money and jewelry in the boats
with them when they were transferred to the
schooner. And he argued, correctly, too, that
Barth was one of the pirates had been put on
board as a assenger urpOsel to fire the ship,
and then t at the so ooner uying in waiting

had taken the passengers to plunder, and most

likely destroy, while he and his crew were
left to perish with the ship, or in an overloaded
boat in the gale which was rising while the ship
burned. The cargo of cotton was too bulky to
be of value to the pirates, and thus was left to
destruction.

The fate of the passengers was sadly discussed
—-it was scarce] to be e :ted that their lives
were saved, an nameless orrors were thought
of for the most helpless of them all.

News was sent by lacket to Charleston, to be
transferred back to ew Orleans and on to New
York where most of the passengers belonged,
and a description of the pirate sent to every
port within reach of correspondence, to put mer-
chantmen on their guard and to expedite armed
searchers after the miscreant who thus roamed
the seas defiant of all laws, human and divine.

 

With the mysterious power which guides
Fancy’s wings the writer will now carry the
gender Egck to the poinbtévhereutlhe Etc hidden

y mg sped awa ore e k-wmged'
storm on the,Cuban )c'oast. '

Plainly, by the aid of the blue lights, could Cap-
tain Spirifort and his crew see the armed schooner
that had so nearly reached their late hiding-place,
and they knew when the saw the drifting boat
so close alongside that ac ooner that their mur-
derous work with its crew was most likely dis-
covered.

Little cared they for this. Inshore, in water
almost irpooth, wfilt’hin all thetsamy fut?
carryteywent gone. a w c -
l oubled any their pursuers could make.

owing this, and that long before day dawned
they would leave them out of sight, one watch
of the crew was sent below to rest, and of the
officers only Spirifort and his lieutenant Marvel
remained on deck—the watch emcers being sent
below with the watch to sleep:

“ Capitano miol What Will our course be
when we have left the war behind us of!
our scent i” asked Marvel, 0 Spirifort, who
stalked moodily to and fro on the after deck by

his side.
“That is what I amthinkin of!” answered
the Spaniard. “The waters 0 the Caribbean

Seawfil aoonbe too warm for our comfort. I
think the frigate now in chase of us is the same
we fooled so nicely ofl Key West. If so, she got
news of our real character in Havana I have
feared it ever since that woman escaped from
the Isle of Pines in a boat!" He added:

“She should not have lived to escape. For
once I was too merciful !”

“ It is not flzften‘ the casel’gadid Marvel, with a
ghastly 3m - W8 00 Change our r
and fl head, we mi ht rim safely into pong
in timore, where was born and "used,
have a pleasant time, spend some of our money
and let these men-of-war down here chase sha-
dows for awhile.”

“Good! The thought strikes me well. We
can detach the figure-head and stow it below—
run up square yards forward from our stock of
spam, cross a main and topsail-yard and nnke
our craft a brigantine. ’Tis but the work of a

few busy hours to do that!” ‘
“ Yes—but our guns and heavy crew—how
account for them?”

 

“ Hoist Spanish colors. We can as easily lay
Spanish man-of-war for a little while, as exi-
can. Our errand in from a cruise will be to
rest our crew, get fresh revisions and water
ship. Also to give our 0 cars a little pastime
on a friendl shore!”

“ Splendi ! It is so lon since I have been in
Baltimore, I would dear y love to walk her
streets again. There are those whom I remem-
ber-but who will scarce remember me, since I
was but a boy when in a clipper bound for the
Southern trade, I left.”

“ Well—we will change our course as the gale
lulls, and when day dawns it will find us many
a lea e north of the Cuban coast! We will not
call t e other watch till the new course is laid!”

And thus it was that the schooner Fire Fly
lost all trace of the pirate when day dawned for
her on the Cuban coast.

CHAPTER VIII.
THE SHORE CRUISE.
TEE harbor of Baltimore is not quite so ca-
pfiious as that of many of our Northern sea-
rd cities, but quite a fleet may lie moored in
its pretty basin and in the stretch of deeper wa-

 

ter fronting on old Fort McHenry. But it is ,

seldom that the harbor contains any of our men-
of-war, or those of foreign nations.

Norfolk, with its magnificent roadstead at
Hampton, or Annapolis below, are nearer the
ocean, easily get in and out of, and therefore
more attractive. A single small sloop-of-war
was lying below the city, bearing the American
flag, when a stately brigantine—of—war, flying the
Spanish flag, came booming up the bay with a
free wind, and anchoring between the American
sloopof-war and the city, fired a national salute
from her two pivotrguns, while the United States
colors fluttered at her fore-truck.

The vessel saluted while her crew were furling
sail in s lendid style, drawing looks and re-
marks 0 admiration from the officers of the
sloo f-war and many a one on shore.

T1220 harbor, too, was full of merchantmen,
and many a skilled sailor looked with wonder on
the prettily-handled craft as she rounded to and
dro ped her anchor.

aptain S irifort had doffed his red-plumed
hat for the e, and with the rest of his officers

apw in neat naval uniform.

. 11 after anchoring he sent his first lieuten-
anttopa his ofiicial respects to the American
comman er, and went on shore himself to call
on the mayor of the city and report the arrival
of the Spanish brig—of—war Guerrero.

All of this was done in such regular manner
that no one on shore or afloat for an instant
deemed the stran er other than what she was re-
ported. She taken a ilot at sea, in the
usual manner—paid him 0 when the anchor
dropped, and he was engaged to take her to sea
when her stay was ended.

Lieutenant Marbello, as Marvel now styled
himself, made a profound sensation on board of
the sloop-of-war y speakin such good English,
though his accent was so oreign, and he was
treated with that courtesy which our naval offi-
cers are ever noted for. '

He announced that his captain had gone on
shore to confer with the authorities in re to

rocurin supplies, and would in due time do
himself t e honor to meet the American com-
mander.

The stay of Lieutenant Marbello was not
lon though decidedly pleasant and scarcely

' boat cleared the ran a of or when
the sloop-of—war with the panish at her
fore returned the salute of the brigantine.

These salutes fairly mused the town, and soon
from one end of the great city to the other the
news read that a Spanish man-of-war had an-
cho in the harbor.

And when it was known that her commander,
a scarred and war-worn Veteran, wearing the
insirJnia of noble orders on his breast, had al-

y called on the mayor officially and in-
tended to stay and revictual his vessel and re-
fresh his crew and officers there, many a fair
face brightened in anticipation of balls and
fétes to be given, as is usual on such occasions.

The arrival occurred so early in the day that
the eyening papers were full of it, though inter-
mewmghad not then been reduced to an art
and the new-comers were not led to the torture.

Spirifort made his stay on shore as shortas
the rules of courtesy would permit, for he was
in haste to return to compare notes with his
first officer. He brought. th him a late file of
City papers and when in the cabin alone with
Marve,pointedwith his grim smile toapara-
graph headed:

“Fraser IN rim GULF or Manon.”

It contained an exaggerated account of terri-
ble work done by the crew of a piratical schoon-
er called the Diablocito, whose crew of mur-
derous d radoes were led by a g' tic
mulatto w 0 always wore a red plume n his
hat and was known among his class as theKing
of the Buccaneers.

Marvel read 'it over line by line, and laughed
lon and loud when he thnewlit down.

“ e are bad enough, but. they paint us worse
than we are!” he sai . “This calling you a
mulatto is an insult, which must be avenged

r «r.

   
 

., "r
49 ' ‘ : Marne“

 

 

  

 

We’ll get on an even keel with the no
men before we leave them. Have you
out if there is any Spanish consul here?
“ Oh, yes I He is an American acti
and does not even speak Spanish.

per
ound

as such
ou must

call on ' , Marvel—invite him on board and
we will 00] him as nicely as we have the
others!”

“ Thanks!” said Marvel. “I’d like to takea
stroll on shore to see if there is anything left I
can remember.” I

His lips trembled and his face blanched when
he spoke, but he did not tell Spirifort that he
had left a mother and a baby Sister there when
he went to sea, whom he had tried in vain in all
his wild ears of adventure and lawless crime to
for et. e had indeed more than one secret yet
wit eld from his lawless leader, and this was
the choicest of them all.

If they lived, he would see them,
meet them unknown. If they were , 6
would find their aves, and there let one holy
ltlhought for a brief moment find place in his

cart.

So—still attired in his neat uniform of blue
and gold, he entered his boat, was rowed ashore,
and inquiring his wa found the office of the
Spanish consul in a 'ngy provision store near
the wharf where he land .

On informing the consul of the arrival of the
Guerrero and her business in port, the consul re-
ceived him with great and offered at the
lowest rates to see to revictualing the brigantine
and supplyin all stores needed.

Marvel co d make no ment until he had
consulted the ca tain, but 6 had no doubt his
country’s co would be the first called on for
supplies The consul romised to visit the brig
next day, and he ho to have the honor of the
lieutenant’s company at his own house, where
he could receive him in a manner befitting his

rank.

Marvel with gracious thanks promised to avail
himself of the invitation and tobring his cap—
tain when he came again, and then as soon as
pOSSible turned away, for his heart throbbed

wild] when he the ht of his once happy home
fandtosehehadle theresomanyyearsbe-
ore.

Thoughallthese years had , he remem-
bered well the stately brick mansion he had left
on Calvert street where his widowed mother had

' lived, and now, hardened as he was to almost

all human feelings, he trembled as he turned his
ste toward the spot.

treet after street he , all much chang-
ed, yet with some old ndmarks left, until he
turned a corner and came to the block where he
had his hours of youthful joy and inno-
cence! New houses had gone up where old ones
had been torn down—he shock with excitement
as he hurried on—soon he stopped, as if rooted
to the ground. ‘

The old house—its roof mossy with age, the

y granite steps worn smooth as marble

y time and use, was there. Trembling he went

on, passing slowly to see what time was on the

door-plate. His eye grew dim with mist, for he

read a name—not that which he wore now, but

a name that had known no dishonor while his
father lived. ‘

“ She must be living yet,” he murmured in a
low tone, looking at an open window in the
front parlor. He started back—as if a bullet
had struck his heart. A lady, young, but won-
drously beautiful, stood near the casement, toy-
fignth a white rose which she held in her

Shesawthewildeager ofastmnger
 ulpton her and w bag mstan‘ tly beyond
in .

“ lghocanshe be? It cannot be my sister—
those eyes seemed dark as t, while if mem-
ory serves, the baby eyes I oved so well were
blue! I must and will find out. But how keep-
ing myself unknown? is the question. lhave
da before me—I will be cautious. ”

he strode back to'thewharf where his
Elboatlaywaiting and returned to the brigan—

e.

CHAPTER IX.
m uron’s 30mm: mammrrox.

Tnfirstdayclosedintheharborforthc

irate and when the Spanish colors were hauled
ownatsunaet,CatainSgJiriforthadevery
man of his crew m at .

“ Men!” said he. “Listen in silence and give
heedtoalllaay. Yourpleasureand your
safety will alone be insured by obedience to
what I direct. You know me well and know no
mancandiaohe meandlive! Youare here as
Efianish men-o -war’s-men. I shall allow an

a day and night on shore, a quarter-watc at

a time with lenty of money for ymen
but none for igad and reckless folly. ou knovt;
thatadrimkenmanhasnosensel fore

letnomanofallthiscrewgetdrunk. Ifho
does andIknowit—he knowshisdoom!

stilltonguesin ourheads—speakonly '
and keep well tvogether. If you barman
inasmany minutes—come at onceon ;it
will;beoursignalfordanger or ready forsail-
' l

mThe crew listened in silence and when the
stemspeakerceased,all bowed their headsin

 
  
  

 

 

6 Fire

Feather, the Buccaneer King.”

 

 

token of obedience. They had found him a
stern but kind master, when obedient, but the
least bit of mutiny, a rash word or look would
brin death to the offender from his merciless
flan ere scarce a word of warning left his
pTeurnin to his officers he said: “Two officers
will go as ore with each quarter-watc and see
to the conduct and safety of the men. Each
man before he goes on shore will draw four
doubloons from the common treasury. Now

pipe down!”

he shrill pipe of the boatswain’s mates sound-
ed the signal and in a moment the deck was
pleared and soon all hands were at supper be-
ow.

Spirifort and his first officer now descended to
their cabin where Jumbo had the elegant table
set and fresh delicacies from shore upon it.

“ Dere, capitano, is de best set-out dis African
entleman ever ut before do lip of man!” said
umbo, as the o cers entered the cabin.

“ Dere’s de canvas-back duck cold—do soft-
shell crab hot—de wild turkey boned and de
tame turkey fricassee! Dere’s quail on toast and
dere’s oysters in every style. Jumbo has done
all he knowed—he can do no more!”

“ It is enough! You shall have a day’s liber-
ty ashore for this!” said the captain, smiling in
his usual way.

“ I doesn’t want it, capitano. Colored folks is
awful common dere ashore. doesn’t associate
wid do like of dem! No, sah! Jumbo is your
steward. Dat's lory enough for me. One ob
dese days when fis rich enough I’ll go back to
Africa and bea king in Ashantee! I’ve dreamed
of dat all my life and it’s gwine to come true!”

“ How marfiawives do the Ashantee kings
have?” asked rvel, quietly.

“ I doesn’t ’zactl remember—I wasn’t more’n
sixteen years old w on de slavers stoled me away
——but I reckon about a thousan’! That many
would do for me anyway, Massa Marvel 1”

“ One is too many for some men!” said the of-
ficer, with a laugh.

And then he and the ca tain sat down ,to en-
jo the tempting supper umbo had laid out.

The next day the bri antine was thronged
with visitors most of the . The Spanish con-
ml and mayor came off an were received with
all the honors. The officers of the American
corvette came on board and Were received with
every courtesy. Spirifort and Marbello exerted
themselves to please, and succeeded. Jumbo
made a marvelous success with his refreshment
table in the cabin.

The mayor and consul brought a 'oint invita-
tion toa public ball ot up at the ouse of the
formerin honor of t eir Visitors—it was to oc-
cur that night, so that the Spanish officers could
most speedily get acquainted with the elite of
Baltimore society.

Spirifort accepted in the name of all his offl-
oers,who could be from duty, much to the
joy of the omc” named. They said their
preparations were necessarily brief, but they
would do their best to make the night a happy

one.
The oflcers of the American corvette were to
be resent, and the fairest belles of Baltimore
her bravest cavaliers were to be there to do
honor to the guests of the city.
When the visits were over and S irifort and
his lieutenant sat down to a late er, they
were almost wearied out with this new and

strange busmess.

“ A day’s fighting would not tire meso much!”
said the captain. “ But we’ll make these
worthies pay us for our trouble et. I’ll make

cost out of the town before save it!”
rvel wondered how he meant to do it, but
he did not ask. ,

When night came on, Spirifort, his breast
ablaze With stars and jewe accompanied by
Marvel, dressed almost as ric y, with Canovas
only in company, went on shore at the desig-
nated hour and were met at the wharf by the

x . mfir’s carriage

were soon driven tehis elegant residence,
near nument uare, which was all ablaze
with light and fill almost too densely with the
guests of e evonin .

The scene was ' and as Spirifort
looked on fairy forms, love yofaces and Jeweled
ears and arms, he muttered Marvel, in tones
too low for other cars:

“What a prize if all these were ours! By all
the saints ’tis an inspiritin sight!”

Marvel smiled and in panish bade his chief
he cool—o word or look once misconstrued mi ht
give them trouble. The oung bloods of ti-
more though courteous guests, are quick to
resent even the shadow of a wrong.

Soon, while the bandit struck up a grand
march, the mayor, with the consul at hi side
received his guests and presented them, as fast
as they could ap roach, to his visitors.

Spirifort, speahing only in Spanish aided 13;
Marvel and Canons, contented himself wi
bowing low at each fresh introduction, though
once ina while he commented aside to Marvel
'on the.beautyof some fair ladyas she passed
on

Thus matters‘were pass! when an elderly

' ns
slad,dressedinel t,but lain le,a
-'   having on Er Ed m erg

emu arming

 

y“

of more exquisite beauty than any of the lovely
ones yet presented.

A shiver came upon the form of Marvel, for
at a glance he recognized that face!

The next second, the elderly lady advancing,
met his aze, gave one wild, startled look at 1113
face an form and with a wild cry of wonder
breaking from her lips, fell fainting to the floor!

 

CHAPTER X.
THE PIRATES FAIRY.

IN an instant all was confusion in the vicinity
of the mayor and his guests. The lady who had
fainted was one of the most honored dames in
the city, a widow of wealth, and of the highest
standing. The young lady who had rested on
her arm was her daughter—the acknowledged
su reme beauty of Baltimore—the Belle.

arvel, or Lieutenant Marbello, as then known
there, knew in an instant who that lady was, for
he heard her name murmured on every side.
And he had to choke down the feelings which al—
most unnerved him and to conceal the emotions
he dared not exhibit. He knew that the lady
was his mother. Also—that the lovely girl he
had seen once before that da was his sister.
With his reddened hands an crimedarkened
soul he dared not make himself known to them
and, though he yearned to do it and tebe clas
in lovin arms he pleaded sudden illness on is
part an left the company.

The lady who had fainted, borne to a cham-
ber soon revived and insisted, against the wishes
of Sadie, her daughter, on returning to the re-
ce tion-room.

nce there her eyes roved over every face in
hopes to see again that dear resemblance—for,
as she whispered to Sadie, she had seen a face so
like that 0 her dead husband, (Sadie’s father,)
that it seemed to her as if he had risen from the
grave to meet her.

She was now (presented to Captain Spirifort
and Lieutenant anovas, with her daughter and
the captain seemed so struck with the won us
beauty of the latter that he begged her hand for
the first dance.

“You had another officer with you when I
was taken ill?” said the mother, addressing Spi-
rif rt

0 .

“ Yes, good lady—my flrst lieutenant; he, too,
has been taken suddenly ill and has retired!” re—
plied the ca tain.

“Is he, li e yourself, a. S niardl” she asked.

“We are all 8 ' w o serve his Catholic
Majesty on the Guerrero!” was his reply.

“ I am sorry he is ill. He will lose much en—
joyment. The best society in this city is repre-
sented here to-night!”

“ The ladies of your city are wondroust beau-
tiful ” said S irifort.

“ ore so t those of Spain?” asked the lady,

arch] .

Sheyhad sppken in Spanish all the time, and so
purely that e knew her nativity.

“It were scarcely gallant to say so in your

resence, senora—but your daughter, I was told
By the ma or, was born here!”

“ True, ut she has Spanish blood in her veins
for all that!” replied the lady.

“Yes—for I recognized you, fair lady, as an
Andalusian, by your accent when you first ad-

me!

“Yes, I was born in Andalusia. My child,
like her father, who died here, was born in Bal-
timore!”

“No fairer flower ever graced the halls of
beauty!” said the captain. “You should be
proud of your treasure, senora!”

“ I am proud of her purity, her goodness of
heart, her nobili .of soul, captain. In those
qualities even her uty is excelled.”

“Ha ywill be the man who can win her
love!” econtinued.

“Sad to me will be the hour when she knows
another love than that which binds her now to
me!”

The captain had now to yield to some new in-
troductions, but soon the music sounded for
dancing to commence and he hurried toclaim
the fairest girl in all the company as his part-

ner.

hidden in a curtained alcove stood one whose
face poled and flushed by turns, as in agon he
behe d that lovely form whirled alo in a giddy
waltz by one whom he knew: as the oulest fiend

'that ever wore the name of man. He saw that

scarred face bend down to speak low-toned
words of compliment to one too pure for such
foul contact. And he knew when he saw the
black eyes of his chief burning with fiery pas-
sion, that he who never lov but to destrgy
was looking with insatiate eyes on one he wo d
if possible make his victim.

‘It shall not be! She and—my mother, too,
shall be warned, if he does not turn his attention
from her to others. I know the peril which en-
virons all whom he approaches. A be
my’folly in ever thinking of bringing him hith-
er

And Marvel fairly writhed in ny, though
he dared not risk a second mee with his
mother. If she should ‘ , as he

feared, from what he was certain must be a
close resemblance to this father—how could it):

 

 

account for his years ofyahsence and

1

 

sence from those whom he was in all honor
bound to love and protect.

It was almost maddening for him to be so
near to them—to : -.~ them, know them, and yet
not dare to spec“ the better then hts which
their presence gave birth to—to see 1: e peril of
the 00d and beautiful .j;irl whom the pirate
chie seemed so determined to please, and ct
not dare tosnatch her from his polluting touch.

Yet until the fate broke up, he remained near
enough to watch his relatives, and not until he
had seen them enter their carriage to be taken
home, did he show himself to his chief, who was
now ready enough to return to the brigantine,
since the charms of the night, for him, had
passed away.

“ Ah, camarado miol You know not what

ou have missed! I have had a glorious time.

y eyes have rcvelcd on brighter charms than
they ever saw before!” cried Spirifort, as Mar-
yel rode gloomily by his side toward the land-

m .

fidarvel made no re 1y. Ho hardly dared
trust himself to speak. ut Geneva; now put his
car in.

“Our captain, ever a conquesor, has been con-
uered himself, I think,” ho. said. “One fairy
orm seemed to chain him all the eveuin . One

fair face ave him all the light he van .”

“ Diab 0/ yes! She is an angel!”

“Have egou nothing to talk about but wo—
men?” cri Marvel, petulantly. “ I saw more
in the jewels they were, of what would profit.
usz than the beauty you both rave about!”

‘ True, there were jewels enough for a king’s
ransom,” said Sggifort. “Before we leave we
may win both uty and wealth as well! It
would be rare to swoop down with fifty of our
braves on such a bevy and let each bear away a
decorated beauty in his arms. The diamonds
would make one of our richest ocean prizes look
small!”

Marvel made no reply to this idea—so like to
Spirifort. He only felt that no such action
3 orglfibetakentherefif itcost his life to pre-
ven .

It was near morning when they all returned
on board the brigantine, and Spirifort and his
lieutenant, Canovas, retired to rest, wearied
with pleasure.

But till day dawned, and long after, Marvel
strode toand fro on deck, trying to think out
some plan of action to save those over whom his
heart thrilled with an affection which had long
been cold, for he knew how soullem, how utterly
callous to honor or feeling S irifort was and to
tell his stor and plead for t ose he wo (1 save,
might onl ten the doom he sought to save
his sister rom.

He could form but two plans. One, to warn
them by letter to fly the city for a certain time,
from a fearful irn ding and overshadowing
peril. But howto othis, preserve his own se-
cret of relationship and induce belief which
would make them leave the city and fly their
danger, his mind, so long used to evil, co d not

com .
Timber, full of peril to himself as well as to
his comrades, was secretly to inform the au—
thorities of the real character of the pretended
man-of-War' and thus force S irifort‘te fly or re-
main to be overwhelmed by t 9 guns of a power-
ful fort and the force yet nearer at hand, in the

sloo f-war.

He determined at least to try the first plan be—
fore risking the last alternative.

Carefully disguising his style—for his hand-
writing was we known to Spirifort, should the
latter ever see the letter—he wrote as follows:
“To Mmm lam Rmoswoonz—

“ All unknown to you. a fearful peril. worse than
death, hovers over you and your pure daughter
Sadie. There is but one way 0 escape. Leave the
city at once and go far from the coast for at least
one month. Thilis no false alarm. Every hour is
danger—if you delay. The eye of lawless passion
has fallen on your peerless child, and one who
shrinks at no obstacle has sworn to possess her.

“ Gain the name of your dead husband—co and
save your daughter‘s honor and her life!

“ One who know and (mm you gull-but dares not
reveal his name or position now.

Marvel wrote this in his own state-room and
at an early hour next morning went on shore in
the market-boat and posted it:

He made as an excuse for his trip a purchase
of some underclothmg, and returned with the
boat in time to breakfast with his captain.

S irifortrose late, but sleep had taken away
all flitigue. He was in hi h spirits and talked

incessantly of their gran reception and the

pleasurehehad en'o ed at theball. Itwas so .

new, so fresh._80 i erent from the coarse de
baucheries which he had indulged in te satiation.

After breakfast he'asked Marvel to go ashore
with him.

“Madame, or she should be called Senora
Ridgewood whose daughter was the crowning
beauty of the ball, ve me hercard and as a
S from An usia said I would ever be
welcome with my officers at her house i"

“ But you are not from Andalusia ; you have
often told me you were born at Tortuga, in the
Caribbean Sea!” , '

“ True—but she was born in Andalusia, and I
claimed to be her countryman, and it set me

ahead wonderfully in her good graces. And it

 

  
 

 

far

~"

21%?
7’
O

 "boom “

  
   
   

- «»~.~.(:»' "
., «: 

mg. '7

 

is a good plan to stand well with the mother
when you would woo the daughter. Ah Mar-
vel—she is a beauty. The only woman ever
saw that I think could hold my faith for a week.
Come—go ashore with me and see for ourself.
Your sudden and strange illness last nig t threw
'ou off from pleasure’s course; but it rs not too

te yet. I have half a dozen calls to make if
time admits.”

“ Captain ml. or I should remain on board
all the time. ho’ all looks fair now, and safe,

there is no hour for us without danger. Some of
our men may drink too deeply and make idle
boasts that would ut us all in peril!”

“ Ay—they ' t, but well they know death
would repay the Olly!”

“ What were one or a dozen deaths to the dan-
ger that would rise the instant our true charac-
ter is known? I repeat—the schooner should
never be left without some one able to put her in
instant order for battle or for fli ht. ”

“ You are ri ht, e], and am wrong and
careless. I ' go on shore alone, and PI si
your praises to my charmer, so you’ll be receiv
graciously when in our turn you visit her. Ah
—if we could stay gore a year I would not be-
grudge the time. But we must make a short
stay or the crew will w restless. This life
will be too tame for them, though it rests us I”

Spirifort dressed himself with exceeding ele-
glance, and having his boat manned went on
s ore.

And Marvel, knowing whither he was going
had only to wait with tremulous use to
learn how higlan to save the pure and mnocent
should succ .

For bad as he was, the ties of blood had not
been broken, and the sight of his mother and
sister had brou ht out in full force all that was
left of good in ' nature.

Walking the quarter-deck, occupied in thought,
he had not noticed a sea-going steamer coming
up the bay until its close approach caused him
to raise hrs eyes.

Then he saw on its bridge a man among three
who stood there who seemed strangely excited.
He was pointin to the disguised pirate and ges-
trculating; wh' 0 he spoke loudly—so loudly that
Marvel p inly heard him say:

“ It is the same vessel—I can swear it is! Her
rig is altered, but I would know her sharp hull
among ten thousand, even though her figure-head
is one and she is brigantine-rigged!”

e man who spoke had the weather-brewed
face of a seaman, and his dress was that usually
worn by officers of merchantmen.

The steamer swept by, steering for the inner
habor next the ci , w ile Marvel, not for an
instant doubtin t t the man who seemed to
have rec ' the schooner was one of those
who had been saved from the ship burned off the
Florida coast, knew what a deadly peril they
would be laced in if the man gave the alarm on
r shore, be ore they could get out from under the
guns of the fort and sloop-of-war.

Hurriedly writin a note to recall the ca
tain,hesent iton s orebya trustymanin e
fastest boat, bid him recall every man on
shore as quickly as could be done.

Then—quietly, avoiding all excitement, he got

the crew sstir, and made every possible arrange-

ment for under we quickly.
Hehadsailsoosed,as toairand' them;
he saw to the mooring of the vessel, and the

cable run in as short as the vessel could lie with
and had a shackle in the chain unriveted

made ready for slipp' at a second’s notice.
His note to Spirifort been brief, but full of
meaning.

“ You are wanted on board imtanlly, on a matter
that is life or death to us all. Delay not one mo-
mum ~ Mm"

CHAPTER XI.
ran sonnsrt sacrum.

Dassssn in his elegant uniform, his breast
b with jeweled insignia, Splrifort, as a
S noble and the captainof a S ' man-
0 -war, attracted much attention as e passed up
the street: of Baltimore after landing. It was
flatte to the vanity of the (it . pirate,
forhe,11 allofhumankind,h vanr ,to be
so noticed, but he hadan object mongerthan
the 91mm popular notice. He burned on
un‘ hereac thestreet and numberonthe

which he had received from Mrs. Ri ,

, and soon was seated in her ele ant or

in the presence of that lady and er ovely
dau hter.

rs uniform sat well on his an, almost gigan-

tic figure, and the orders which blazed over his

ample chest added to his distinguished appear-

ance.
Even the scar that would have looked repul-
sive on the face of a civilian, seemed but a mark
of heroism to one in uniform, whose profession

was warlike and full of danger.
All his plans

The captain was in high spirits.
seemed working well. widow appeared to
be rejoiced to meet a cmmtrymsn rem her
native land, as she believed the captain to be,
'and though her beautiful daughter did not imi.

tuto her in enthusiasm she was cordially polite.
And to the wonder oi Spirifort, in the plain

 

 

morning robe of sno muslin which she wore,
she seemed even more utiful than she had ap-
peared at the ball, elegantly dressed for that oc-
casron.

His compliments were
ish warmth, and, unused t ough she was to such
open admiration, the fair ' 1 could but be flat-

world over, and who came, as she and her
mother believed, from a land where beauty is a
heritage, should declare with blunt honesty he

had never before in all his life seen so fair a face i
I was Marvel’s reply.
heads for the fort, another for the sloop-of~war,

or a form so peerless.

Wishing to change the theme, Mrs. Ridgewood
asked how the officer was doing who had been
taken ill at the ball.

“ He is better—much better!” said the captain.
“On my next visit to your delightful home, I
will surely bring him With me!”

“ Do, kind captain!” said Mrs. Ridgewood.
“ It seems strange, but there was a look in his
face and form that reminded me of one who was
very dear to me, who has long since passed to
the better world!”

A servant entered at this moment and handed

the lady a letter which he said had just been
brought by the cietg' postman.
The lady glanc at the su rscri tion, saw it

was addresaed to herself, and mstant y opened it.

Her cheek aled when she read its contents,
and, without t inking that one almost a stranger
was resent, she exclaimed:

“ warmng of danger! What can it mean?”

“ Danger, dear mamma ger from whence?
Surely you, who are so good and kind, cannot
have an enem in the world!” ,

“ Cielo! I she has, it will be my delight to

' of him!” cried the captain. “Pray, se-
fiora, tell me what is the dangeryou are warned
of, so that I can serve you if it be in the power
of man!”

“Alas! the danger, if there be truth in this
warning, is the most fearful I could dread—but
no names are given; I do not know the writer,
or whom he can allude to. My daughter knows
but few men and those are high-toned and hon-
orable—the first in society!”

“ Does the letter concern me, my dear mother?”
asken Sadie.

“ Yes—child—I will read it aloud and the
brave captain can judge for himself if it is not
calculated to give us both alarm and mistrust!”

And she read the startling mimive.

“ Let me see it, please!” said the ca tain, mas-
tering a sudden tremor for he fel that the
writer meant a thrust at himself.

His real reason was to see if he could recog-
nize the handwriting. But Marvel had foreseen
thishdanger and had disg'msed' his usual chrrog' -
ra . ,

R Kn anonymous letter is never to be trusted—
much less should it createalarm! A true friend
would name not only the peril, but the source
from which it shoul come!” he said, calm] as
he refolded the letter and handed it back to .
Ridgewood “You surely must know all who
have approached your lovely child, and if there
are any who hear evil names, why, it is easy to
be on your guard l”

“ Ah, Senor Ca itano, I have said that we as-
sociate with none ut people of the highest char-
acter. I cannot, for my life, understand the
meaning of this s' letter. As to leaving
the city, where we ve friends to watch over
and protect us—that is not to be thought of in
connection with a merely anonymous w ‘ I”

This conversation was broken in upon by e
in“ “32° ° “13% we: émwcsmih “mi “'1”

rougtaeror p' 'ortss
that the bearer, a sailor from its vedsel,yviv:gs
at the door, and an immediate ansWer was

wanted.
The captain tore the letter 0 and his face
poled and flushed with we er, not unmixed

an anger.

“ It is a do. of annoymg' mysteries!” he cried.
“ M first ligitenant the same who was taken
ill a the Mayor’s , has sent for me on board.
I fear the crew are giving him trouble. They
wanted liberty to come on shore in a body to en-

oy themselves, and I only allowed a few to

cave at a time. His note is so at that I

must go at once and the happiness was enjoy-
ing in this delightful company must end. But I
hegemonteseeyouagaimTfll ,dear
es, I_shall be in darkness.”

And rrsm‘g, he kimed their hands in true Span-

bo , left the house.
s the matter!” he asked, as
he hurried down Calvert street with the sailor——
one of his most trusty men.

“ I do not knew, ca tain. The lieutenant has

talarrned since a or came in from the

nth, us close aboard.

“ ore.I got ashore, the signal was at the
fore recang all our men, and four guns were
flredtocalli totheir notice. I met the boat-
swain and told him to hurry them up. ”

“ Diablo I Can our true character have been
discovered? If so—every plan I’ve made is 11
set! But to sea I’ll never, never go without 0
prize I’ve laid my plans to capture !”

Hastening to the wharf, he found two boats in
waiting, one for himself and the other for such
of the crew as were on shore and l of! saw
his vessel with her sails all loose and ready for

'ven with true Span- i
1 other boat, and rapidly they dashed toward their
i v
tered by the fact that he W 0 had sailed the wide

1 loose? Are you crazy i” was Spirifort’s cry, when
‘ he reached his deck.

 

hoisting, while the well-knewn signal of recall
was fl g from the fore-truck.

Sprrnging into his gig with Andrea at the til-
ler and six good men at the oars, he pushed off
just as the absentees came hurrying into the

essel. .
“What is the matter? Why are our sails

“ Do you see three boats leaving the Govern-
ment wharf, near the Custom House landing?”
“ I will stake my life one

and the third for us! Some cursed busybody
has recognized us in . ite of our disguise, and
the sooner we are un er wa and out of gun—
shot of our natural enemies t e better for us!”

“ Diablo! I believe you are right. Those are
revenue men in uniform!” said Spirifort, looking
at the three boats through a spy- lass. “But
am not ready to go to sea yet. it was only
night, I could yet carry out my wishes!”

‘ Look!—-one boat heads for the fort, as I fear-
ed it would!” cried Marvel. “ If we delay ten
minutes we will be sunk by the huge guns on
yonder ramparts.”

“ You are right. Hook on the boats and run
them uEl Sheet home and hoist away eve
sail. S 'p the cable as the sails till! It is we
we have a fresh breeze from the west!"

Never before had that pirate crew worked
more earnestly or used more haste. The canvas
already flapping in the wind rose swifty on the
masts and was sheeted home 'below and aloft.
The lash of the iron chain as the shackle-bolt
was wn told that the vessel was free from
hemmrin . th t _ th

w e e hree barges carrying e
Revenue flag were dashing down the harbor at
their best speed, the sharp] bows of the brigan-
tine turned seaward and s e darted away with a
wall of foam under her prow.

CHAPTER XII.
IN FULL FLIGHT.

“ MY mother, the same hand which wrote
that letter of warning though us‘ disguise,
wrote this note which the Spanis captain
dro pad in his haste as he went out!”

Thus cried Sadie Ridgewood as she compared
the two letters.

“ They are written on paper that is just alike,
the ink 18 the same shade. And he—the captain
——said the last note was written by his first lieu-
tenant—the very officer whom you saw at the
ball and who was taken so sudden] and strange
1y ill! It is very mysterious!” s 9 continued.
‘ Can it be possible he has warned us of danger
frog:V captain, whom he must certainly know
we .

“ Heaven knows. Surely he seemed to speak
and act like a friend—this captain, and ' he
were a bad man he could not have attained rank
and high honors!” said the mother.

“ I know not. Time will tell. At any rate
wecannow beonour guard,and if he returns

 

watch closely for his motives in visi ' us so
earl after an introduction. He said t ' was
his riendly visit on shore since the hall,

where he was introduced to so many 1”

While Sadie was speaking she was closely ex-.
llamining and comparing the writing in the two

otters. -

“Mother, dear,” she said at last, “have you
not in your escritm' re the last letter written by
my brother when he went to sea in the ship that
was never heard of afterward i”

“Yes, dear child; I have treasured it as a
memento of my brave boy lost to us forever!”

“Let me see it, lease. I have a strange ,
fancy that the ban writing here, especially in 1
the last note, is such as I have seen be ore!”

The widow hurried to her chamber and
brought to her daughter a letter browned by
age and worn by many a perusal.

Carefully, laying the three letters side by side
on a table near the window, mother and daugh-
ter compared them. And with expressions of
wonder they fmmd them so \much alike that
both exclaimed: _ _

“The were written by the same hand—all
three. 11 the capital letters especially the re-.
semblance was traced!”

The widow trembled from head to foot.

“It was no illusion!” she cried. “When I
fainted attheballitwas because I thoughtI
saw the face and form of your dear dead far
ther before me. The oflicer I saw was so like
him that for a moment I felt as if your father
hadreturnedtoearthandstood before me. The
otlicer too seemed so confused, and when I tried
tospeak I lost all consciousness. WhenI was,
restoredhe was gone, and theysaid hehad re-
turned to his ship—fill: He has avoided us since.
Sadie—I behave that officer to be your brother-
Kereserved, we know not how, for in childhood

bore a marked resemblance to his father.”

“If itwashe, mymother, wh should henot
make himself known and return us?”

“Icannot mhend it, child. But! most

seehim! Hehsswritten thisletterof warning
—in ithesays: _
“‘Onewhobmusndloouyou well.butdsresnot
reveal his name or position now.’ "
“It-is mangaand now I thinkofit,I ro-

 

wig»  ' ‘ . ' ' . r .' 'y’:

“1-,, I
I. '
.

Fire Feather. the Buccaneer King. '

 

 

member a young man in uniform ing our
house slowly the very day the Spamsh man-of-
war arrived, and looking at me so earnestly that
I turned away angry at what seemed to be im-
pertinence.”

“Was he very tall and dark, a heavy mus-
‘tache on his lips?”

“ Yes, mother.”

“ It was he—it was your brother and my son,
and he is enveloped in some strange mystery.
\Ve must penetrate it! Order out our carriage.
I am going to the wharf nearest the anchorage.
I cannot rest until I see that officer, him w o
si ns his name Marvel—but whom the captain
(filed Marbello. Order the carriage and we will
go at once!”

In a little while the lady and her dau hter
were being driven toward the wharf whic she
 hgd named to her driver. While on the way
'. t 6 re

rt of cannon was heard. seeming to
T”; come rom the direction of Fort McHenry and
.' from vessels in the bay. And great excitement
; . was observed in the faces of people hurrying to-

ward the water-front of the city.
At last, observing a merchant among the
throng whom she knew, Mrs. Ridgewood caused
. her carriage to sto , and calling to the gentle-
);g man, asked him w t all the excitement was
.1 about.
 To her horror she received this reply:
“ The vessel supposed to be a Spanish man-of-
_ war has turned out to be a notorious irate from
.. Southern seas. She was recognized y the cap-
 tain and officers of a ship on which they were
left to perish by flre—the assengers and mono
having been carried off y the pirate. She is
trying to eScape now and is being fired upon by
V , the fort and pursued by the sloo f-war whic
if was fortunately in our harbor. Ve have been
1" feting pirates, it seems, instead of Spanish naval
 .. officers, and it serves us right, for our people are
‘* ‘ ever ready to go wild after any foreign celebrity
while they pay little attention to the officers of
their own nation I”

The lady sunk back in her carraige, almost
fainting
ltA

all.

, , That
A ' ' stroyed—forced into the com
stroyers and isnow laced where he dare not try
to extricate li'iinse f. The warning from him
proves that while he loves us, he could not see

 

 

 

irate!” she moaned. “Sadie—I see it
ours has indeed been a narrow esca .
poor boy has been rescued from a ship e-

 the eyes of lawless passion fall on your pure
 form and that he did what he could to save you
 ere i was too late. A PIRATE! Heaven help
" him! What can we do?”

 The carriage had by this time reached the
f * ' wharf, which was crowded by excited citizens.
Two sailors in uniform had been ca tured who
belonged to the pirate, and had been eft in con-

uence of her do are.

error-stricken at their arrest they had al-
ready confessed to the officers who held them
that the belo to the brigantine, whose
white ' could seen far down the bay, and
that she was a pirate.

Beyond reach of the guns from the fort, which
had not opened in time to check her flight, but
still pursued by the sloop-of-war under all the
sail she could set, the brigantine was rush'
down the bay at her best speed, a fair and f
wind on her quarter driving her fast away
from the peril which had so lately environed

“ We have been fearqu deceived!” said the
mayor of the city, ap mac gland speaking to
Mrs. Ridgewood, as e sat wit her dau hter in
their carriage near the water-side. “ ' 9 man
whom we received and honored as a Spanish no-

. bleman, turns out to be a pirate—one of the
most daring and notorious that ever sailed upon
the ocean. Finding his vessel , by

nick and skillful action he hasescaped from un-

r the guns of our fort and a man-of-war, but
we hope the latter will yet overtake him, as she
is in hot chase now! It is wonderful—how they
ma to deceive the consul, our naval officers
and myself. It has taught us all a lesson—one

. which we will never for t.”

The lady hardulfi trust herself with

plgshe was so f of agitation.
at her daughter asked the mayor how the re-
cognition came about, and the deception discov-

“ The captain of a vase] which had been first
deceived b her as a Mexitmlpi vateer, and who
had segiéd e vessel closet:n h , when she pugha

reten passenger on 's s ip, e
Bessel when he came in on a Southern steamer.
He informed the collector of the rt, and
measures were bein taken to cut of! t e escape
of the pirate when or officers took the alarm.
Almost as quick as thought she was seen getting
under way, and before 0 fort and sloop-of-war
received the news, she was under canvas and
making her escape. That settled all doubt as to
her character, and the capture of two of her
crew left on shore confirms every suspicion, and
the statement of the ca tain who kn. w her the
moment his 6 es glan at her hull!”

“ Do you t ink she will escape to 5d)?” asked
Mrs. Ridgewood at last. . ‘

,n barely see her

“ It looks so now. You
f-war is distinctly in view.

sails, while the 31
The latter must losing ground. She has

\

8 1‘8-

 

y of the do»

ceased firing her cannon most likely because the
other is out of nshot!”

The widow sighed, and bade the driver turn
the carriage liomeward. It was a relief to her
to feel that the pirate had escaped, for if the
lieutenant was really her son as she supposed,
she e(('iould not bear the thought of his being cap-
tur .

Again when they ot home did they scan those
letters clomly, and he more they thought the
more sure] were they convinced that a son and
a brother written all three, and that by
some dread mystery he was held to a life the
most dreadful that imagination could depict.
His middle name, was there—Edward “ Marvel”
Ridgewood.

 

CHAPTER XIII.
DANGER AHEAD AND ASTERN!

OWING main] to the rapid preparations made
by Marvel whi e waiting for Spirifort and the
crew, the pirate captain had scarcely got a

lance at the revenue boats throu 11 his glass be-
ore his own vessel was under be way.

He had time to recognize the collector of the
I port and the Spanish consul in one of the boats,
' and the others were full of men, undoubtedly
bent on learning his true character.

Not knowin if all the crew were on board, all
that could be one was to crowd sail and get be-
, yond the reach of the heavy rifled guns on the
‘ fort and the heavy batteries of the sloop-of-war
‘, as soon as possible before they could be alarmed
5 gasin or direct conmiunication with the
‘ ts

: With a tenzknot breeze, well aft, the pirate
l headed down the ba , still carrying the S ish
'1 flag aloft and her 0 cers and crew in uniform.
But her guns were cast loose loaded and double-
! shotted—her magazine an arm-chests were
opened, everything got ready for action for if
‘ escape should be cut off the pirate well knew
I

 

that death was their only alternative beyond
victort'y

Lit e else was said than giving orders to sail-
triinmers and the helmsman until fire was
opened, first from the sloop-of-war and next
from the fort upon the swift-recedin fu itive.

Spirifort laughed when the first s ot mm the
sloop-of-war dropped in the water almost half a
mile astern, but when a huge shell came shriek-
! ing from the fort and dropped in the water al—
i most under the bow of his vessel, his face wore
. a graver, uglier look. ‘
| ‘A league—if it is a fathom l” he muttered.

“ ‘ar away three points at the helm, there; we
I must have luck or they’ll hit us yet before we
’ are out of range!”

Even as he spoke another huge shell struck the
water just astern—so close that its spray actual-
ly flew on board.

But every second told in favor of the pirate,
I as she almost flow under all the canvas her spars
, could hold, and the next shot from the fort
fell almost a cable’s length short of the mark.

By this time the sloop—of-war was under can-
vas, firing uselessly from her bow-Chasers, but
crowding sail in chase. What her speed would
be com with the Diablocito was et to be
seen—but Spirifort had little fear on t at head.
He had never yet found a match for his craft
when she had clear water and a stiff breeze.

For the next half-hour he was silent and
watchful, but at the end of that time he saw
that he was leav' the sloop-of-war hand over
hand and the fort ad ceased firing for he was
far out of range of the best guns there.

N ow the crew were mustered and it was found
that two were absent.

“ If they are discovered in uniform and ca
tured, they will tell all they know if they thifi'
theycan save their lives by it!” muttered the
pirate chief to Marvel.

“ If they are not under the influence of drink
they may t other clothi‘pifi and escape detec-
tion.‘ As: is, this coast be too hot for us
now

“ Yet I will not leave it until I have taught
these hau ht citizensa lesson!” said Spirifort,
sullenlal. ‘ e surely can find some hiding-place
along 0 coast where we can remain unseen for
a time till the excitement blows over and then-‘
then in some other sha we can go back and

therin some of the ric es they haveso lavishly
fiplayed. And, more than that—there is a
treasurethere which I have worn shall be m
own—the fair girl in whose bri ht presean
was basking when your note w g me of dan—
ger came !”

“ Not a harbor on the coast will serve to con-
ceal our craft now I” said Marvel, almost fiercely.
“ Would you risk all our lives and treasures for
a woman s smile? This bold act of ours will be
blazened over all the land almost with the speed
of light, and every war-hound in their navy will
be ut on our track. Rather let us seek some re-
mo sea where we have not yet been heard of.
There we can safely win new victories find
new pleasures and a safety we can never know
in these latitudes !”

“Are you etting cowardly, Mr. Marvel?”

“ If on t _ ink so, Captain S irifort, heave
your sc ooneru in the Wind and at that sloop-
of-war close wit us. I will not object!”

“ She carries double our crew and thrice our
weight of metal!"

 

 

 

 

“ Courage does not count odds, Captain Spiri
fort. You seem to doubt mine—-—I am willing tel
have it tested! Shall I shorten sail?”

“ No, Marvel, no—I did but jest! I know thou
art brave as the bravest! Stand on, and when
we are at sea, out of sight of enemies we will
lay our plans. I have much to speak 0 . Short
time as we were in that cit I made at least one
fealous enemy. Senora idgewood received a
etter in my presence warning her of dan er to
her fair daughter’s honor. And the sha t was
flown at me. She did not so understand it. But
I did, and had not this new danger come upon
us I would have sou ht out the author of the
warning and written is doom with the point of
my dag er!”

“ On eck, there! Ahoy! Two large, square-
rigged craft comin up the bay; look like men-
of-war!” shouted t 0 second officer, who had
gone up to the fore-cross-trees on the lookout.

“ Keep the crew at quarters! Mayhap signals
have been flashed down the bay to bring enemies
in our way. If so, we have no choice but to
fight our way to sea or rish here !”

Spirifort said this With his old natural fire.
Danger seemed to strengthen the manhood in his-
nature.

Marvel made no reply. With a glance through
his glass astern he saw that the sloop-of-war was
yet in chase, but now almost hull down—too far
astern to show a signal to the incoming craft—
let them be what they might.

Then he Went forward and took a long and
careful look at the vessels that were coming up
the bay. Both were close-hauled, and on a
course which would take them but a little way
to the starboard of the Diablocito, if she held

mi

 

her course. They were hull up, and in less than
ten minutes Marvel reported to his ca tain a
frigate with two tiers of guns on broadSJde and
a heavy brig-of-war.

“ Can you see their colors?” asked Spirifort.

“ Yes—one flag at least is plain. It is that of

the United States. The other—that of the fri rate
—is French or Spanish. I cannot tell w ich
yet.”

“ Lower away our colors. We will not show
any till we know which is best to use. They
cannot make ours out tifi they are astern of us
anyway!” cried Spirifort. Then, raising his voice
for all to hear, he shouted:

“ Men—stand to your guns, and be ready for
(fight or flight. If these crafthave been signal-

, in any way they may make hot work for us.

 

 

But if they hold no suspicion, we soon will
spread our wing: on a clear sea, and head for
safer ’waters. steady—our luck may yet be

Swiftly now the Diablocito and the stran e,
craft closed in. The latter two were not 8. ha f-

mile aparti1 the American brig-of-war leadin ; ,

the frigate ending a little more to leeward. 6
decks of both showed large crews, and as they
rose and fell on the long, rollin waves, the muz-
zlcs of their heavy fguns coul be seen outside
their port-holes, as i ready for instant use.

The Diablocito was kept on her course, head—
ing straight down the bay, seeming not to seek
or avoid the in-bound cruisers.

Yet every man on her deck, from Spirifort
down, knew his ril. The straggers would
pass—if they , within muske ot of their
vessel. .

Nearer and nearer, until Spirifort saw plainly
that the frigate fiéw the royal flag of Spain and
carried an admiral’s nuant at her main.

“ Hoist the Englis flag!” he cried. “ Ho—
Marvel—you take command' the brig is heaving
about, and will us! You must answer the
hail! Stand my man to his quarters !”

CHAPTER XIV.
o N A N E w 'r A c K .
ernmss with excitement used as they
were to peril the pirates to arms, and
waiting), watched the swift-c ' g scene.

The -of-war, a heavy, we armed vessel,
hove abou swiftly and was handled in masterly
style, her yards and sheets trimmed on the other
tack with marvelous quickness.

Her course as she fell away would bring her
ustacross the wake of the fiiablocito, in easy
ailing distance. The frigate kept on her

cgurse, but that was in half-gunshot at the fur-
t est.

“Cool, now! Not a word from any one but
me!" said Marvel sternly, as he took a trumpet
in his hand, ready to answer the hail that he
knew was comin from an emcer who stood on
the lee quarter 0 the bri .

“Bri tine aho ! tname where from
and w ther bound shouted the American offi-
cer, his brig 1 up to lessen her headwa .

“His Britannic jesty's brfltine S i ,
last from Baltimore; bound to ads join
the fleet. What bri is that?”

“ United States br g’Enterprise, bound to An—
narpolis from a cruise! came the reply, and the
b filled away on her course.

‘ Safe! Old Nick favors his children!” mut-
tered Marvel, drawing an easy breath as he
threw down his trumpet. “ If these fools s k
the s100p-of-war which still holds in c ,
they’ll be madder than hornets to think we‘ve
given them all the slip!”

The crew were now called from quarters and

 

1.." r

l

i

 

 

MM.M4—. _ -A. .

tain Spin}

  

nw .« z- m in, »
.' \Q, 

.A   .3  r km S “,4 Z; T.  _  ‘ g  /
Fire Feather, the Buccaneer

 

 

willing to,‘

t
know thou ;
and when“

as We will
0 . Short
least one
received a
danger to
shaft was ‘
[1 it. But 4
ome upon ‘
or of the!
3 point of i

{, sqnare- '
ike men- ,\
who had
)kout.
P Signals
‘ enemies
0 but to

i
y
I

 

iral fire.
)d in his. !

through
war was
-too far
craft——

0):: and I
llllg‘ up
. on a
tle way
‘lC held i

as than
)tain a
g
l

 

lo and
‘ort.
hat of

:‘rigato
Which .

show
They
of .us }
veice I

ly for ,f
lgiial- I
or us.
will
(1 for I
et be j

 

'ange
lialf—
mg;
The
they
nuz-
>side

ead-
seek (

fort I
)uld e
heir i
lily :
1nd !
.0— 
ing 5
the ;

5

the regular watch set so as to give one watch a
chance for rest. But a bright lookout was still
kept below and aloft, for well Fire Feather knew
he was never out of peril.

Had telegraphy then been known as now, he
would have found his way to sea barred by ev—
ery man-of—war in the fleet which almOst always
lay at Norfolk or in Hampton Roads. But no
such system was then in existence. '

“'ith the wind freshening until the topsailsl
were reef'ed down, the pirate swept out to sea, 3
steering by chart until the capes at the mouth of f
the Chesa ieake were astern, and not till then 1
did either arch or Spirif‘ort suggest a point of
destination.

As the brig swept out for a good offing, both
the captain and Marvel went below to look
over their charts and think of a course to steer.

“ “'hat say you to a run on the English coast.
or that of France and England combined?”
asked M arn ll, most anxious to get out of Ameri-
can waters speedily.

” An ocean three thousand miles to cross be—
fore we can make a port if we want to? Our
provisions are too short for that. We had to
cave before we filled up as we intended!” said
Spirifort. . “\Ve might sail to the far northern
coast of this country, beyond their large har-
bors, and at some of the islands lay in meat,
bread and water, or on our way capture some
vessels from which to revision!‘

“ True! Then we” stretch out to the Gulf
Stream and once in it head to the northward till
we are beyond the rule of the sharp-eyed deni—
zens of the States. U on the Canadian coast
there are ports where hing—fleets are fitted out
that men-of—war never look into, and if we do
not find what we want sooner, we’ll take it
there!"

Marvel was satisfied if he could keep his lead-
er away from the coast below until some new
fancy entered his always fickle mind. For, bad
as he was, he had renewed the love of his child-
hood for those so near to him by blood, and hard
as the thought was that he might never see
them more, it would have been far more terrible
to have them imperiled by one whose nature he
knew to be fiendish in eve sense.

Not heading in the leastfie coasters and pilots
who were comin and going off the mouth of the
great bay, Fire eather shaped his course north-
nerth-east as soon as he of; his desu‘ed offing.
Marvel, as navigator, too distance and depart-
ure from the nearest cape, and then under easy
sail they moved along swiftly and smoothly.

And now, all uniforms laid aside, the crew
dressed as before and once more S irifort as-
sumed his plumed hat and looked t e dashing

irate that he was. A lookout, ever aloft b

y and forward on deck at night, kept the o —
ficers warned of every sail when seen, and many
a craft might have been overhauled and taken
had they chosen, but the plan was to let the
commerce of the coast wisely alone until they
get far away from the scene of their last ex-
ploits and dangers.

en the pirate left the bay, sails were in
sight in every direction, but next morning only
here and there a. white speck in the far distance
five: sign that other than the Diablocito were
on .

Soon after day dawned the we yards were
sent down from aloft, the huge ug foresail W88
bent, and the schooner was restored to her old
rig—a fore and after, with a huge uaresail to
hoist when running before the Wind. Their
coursenow brought them u on a. wind sheets
nearly cIOse-hauled. And his was their best
point of sailing. The crew unused to ' g so
many vessels without overhauling any would
have shown signs of discontent had not Marvel,
their most popular officer, told them of the hot
search that was being made for them b men-
of-war of all nations and the necessity 0 keep-
ing quiet until the search was lean izorous. This
contented most of them, but among so many
lawless, desperate mmans there were some who
were neVer satisfied except in either carousel or
carnage. '

Keeping outside the track of coasters, and
merely crossing the great routes to Europe, the
schooner was not thrown in the immediate
Vicini of any great temptation, though they
sigh_ many of the huge line ships that then
carried the bulk of freight and passengers. The
sea was not then as now almost covered with
hu 6 steamshi

y once £8 irifort lifpmh land before
he passed the hfiglde of alfax. This was on
the coast of Maine when the schooner was so
nearly out of water that the impatient crew had
been reduced to short allowance.

He then headed for a. high wooded cape,where
a stream of water entemd the sea, and

spent half a day. in ' in wood and water.
While the ma part 0 the crew were thus en-
gaged, Marvel too a halfdozen trusty men and

-wentinlandamile or two whe h cam u
a flock of fine shoe that fed m 0 ed ?)n 5%:
wild grasses whi grew rank and rich inthe

salt air of tlfifiicafistt

Killing a e at oneforeachmantocarry
the animals were dressed and takenon board:
making a glorious feast for men long used to

sighted some fishing craft along the coast the
pirates held no communication with them nor
offered any injury.
CHAPTER XV.
Minimums MARVEL.
WHEN the Unian States man-of—War brig was

‘ met in the bay by the sloop-of—war, and her cap—

tain learned that he had been deceivedby the.
audacious pirate under English colors a brief con-

sultation was held between the officers. to which 3

the, Spanish admiral was invited, his frigate be-
ing hove to on seeing a signal from the sloop-of—
war.

The frigate, a fine double—banked craft of sixf _v
guns, was one of the fastest in the Spanish navy.
and it was at once settled that all three Vessels
should go in chase of the pirate, following her it'
it was possible to learn her course.

Meantime, in Baltimore there was a tremen-
dous feeling of indignation. The munici )al an—
thorities, as well as the officers of the nitcd
States, had been duped into honoring pirates-

dance and flirt with them, and the dailv press al-
most inaddened them with jccrs and taunts.
Nothing on earth could have added to their hu—
miliation and mortiflcation.

In the home of Mrs. Ridgewood there were
many tearful consultations between mother and
daughter. Convinced in their own minds that
by some strange fatuity the son and brother
was an officer on the piratical vessel, they dared
not speak of it to another, and yet they wished,
if it were within the bounds of human possin-
ities, to rescue him from his terrible situation.

Inashort time the news reached town by a
Eilot-boat that the escaping irate, flying the

nglish flag, had actually spo on an incoming
American inaii-of-war, and run within musket—

broadside, if opened, could have sunk her ere
she sailed twice her length.

This audacity seemed to be beyond belief, but
it was too well attested to be doubted. I

There was some hope that the vessel would yet
be overhauled and captured, for all three of the
men-of-war named had gone after her learning
the course she steered when leaving the Capes
and the authorities at Norfolk, where sev
men—of-war were in port, had been notified.

Standing up the coast, hailing every vesel
which they could si ht and overhaul for news,
the men~of~war ed on in their unavailing
search.

Where—where was the famed Diablocito now?

Well supplied once more with wood and water,
the crew refreshed and more contented, Spirifort
bore away for the coast of Labrador.

It was new in the hight of summer, so that
his men could endure and enjo the colder yet
pleasant climate of that coast urin the brief
stay which he meant to make there. ith Mar-
vel he had decided to lay the vessel on a con-
venient beach where the tides were so light she
could be beached at half-tide, left at low
water, and floated again when the ood-tide
made. She had been so long out of deck that
her bottom needed lookin to and cleaning, for
her bad evidently essened within a few
mont from its old rate.

One lovely day, with the white sails of a. large
fleet of fishing-s oops and schooners visible along
the banks, the pirate schooner headed into the
great inlet of Irucfoke on the coast of Labrador.

‘0 men to the palmy and flowery foliage of

the South, 9 cedar, birch and spruce of the
northern forest looked strange
mild and
have all 1: exercise and relaxation on shore
they wanted for a change.

A small hamlet of houses owned by le en-
gaged in fishing and sailing, and a few res, was
all that met the eye in the shape of civilization.
Indians in their rude wigwams, or darting over
the waters in their canoes of birch bark were
plentiful, and the pirates were as much taken
with them as anything else they saw. They
brought venison, fish and wild berries to the
vesse , angulplenty reigned where scarcity had
been the 6.

Here there were no officials to scrutinize the
papers of the strange vowel or to ask annoying
questions, and for once the pirates felt safe om

annoyance.

Landing theshw and  down his
uperspars], p o beg-an ' preparations
fdi' a comp etc overhauling of his craft below
and aloft. He had run into the inlet under Mex-
ican colors, and the officers and crew were di-
rected to re resent the craft as a. Mexican pri-
vateer, g a northern cruise to rest and re-
cuperate a crew worn down by Southern heat
and hard service.

As the tide had a rise and fall of nearly forty
feet the schooner, shared u byaher spars, could
be laid high and dry on 6 rd beach when
the tide was out, so to clean and repair her cop—
peredbottomwasaseasyasif shehadbeen laid
up in a. d dock.

And to ' work all hands were kept until .
vessel was once more as good as new aloft and
below, in hull

 

salted meats and only the fresh fish they ht
by trolling with lines aster-n. Though y

spans and ' .
Lieutenant Marvel supeflrlgggnfied all this work,

and murderers, feasting and féting them at great ,
expense, allowmg their wives and daughters to ,

shot of a heavy Spanish two-decker, whose single I

, but the air was ;'
ure, and they we're told they could ,

  

for Captain Spirifort had been morose and
gloomy ever sincethey left Baltimore, only keep-
ing his spirits up by pouring spirits down—
scarcely ever leaving his cabin and making no
t1t'Qll:lllll:lllt‘z*H Ul] Sllffl‘f‘.

After the schooner. completely refitted. was
ready for sea. Marvel, with Spirif'oi't‘s consent.
engaged from the Indians a large supply of
; smoked Venison hams, and from the Canadian
inhabi‘nms of the hanileta supply at salted and
dried fish.

Learning that the priest who officiated in the
neat chapel back of the hamlet. lived with a
brother. who came from France, where he owned
l large estates. Marvel made a visit to the mansion
attached to the chapel on the hill.

tlcre he met Father Dupret, the Priest of the
Mi «ion, and by him was introduced toliis brother
Alphonse. the elder of the two, who, out of love
for his brother, shared his almost re liisc life cn
that bleak coast which \vasinacct >~ib"e for near—
ly eight menths in the year—an ivy barrier lin~
in}; the ' nest and deep snows lilakllii traVel
overland almost impossible exceptto e agile
and handy natives on their snow-shoes.

During the summer, every two weeks a small
‘ mail-packet arrived from the St. Lawrence.

brin‘riiigr {goods iice'letl at the little stores in the

hamlet and other supplies for the long and ,
' dreary winter which lay before the few people _ :‘a'
i that wintcred there. i-

Alphonse was a refined and intelligent gentle-
man, speaking Eiiglisli almost as well as his
native language, and MarVel was delighted to
meet such an intelligent man amid such wild
and lonely surroundings. But a new surprise
was in store for the young officer.

After he had been seated in the parlor of the
mansc a few moments, the priest having gone
out to see a visitor in the Confessional, Alphonse
Dupret rung a small silver bell which called a.
servant in. I.

“ Bring cake and wine. and tell my daughter
] I wish to see her ” said the old gentleman, as the V 
5 servant up a . .
i In a few moments Marvel heard the rustle of -.:-_.'
, feminine garments and looking up as Monsieur '2»
‘ Duprét raid:  '
“ Lieutenant, be
. child, Ma’mselle Me

a vision of' loveliness as never had crossed
vision before. 
Tall, with a form of exquisite grace, large ex-' --
, pressive eyes, their tint a blue softly tendin to -’ '
" gray, features of a Grecian cast and a 100 of, ,
unspeakable purity and modesty, it was no won '
der that Marvel could hardly find words to ut-
ter when he found himself so suddenly in the
presence of one so angelic in person. ,.
a He bowed low and felt that he blushed, while .f 
; be thanked Monsieur Duprét for the honor of ‘ '5"
the introduction. '
1 “ I am but a rude sailor and all unused to the
‘ presence of ladies fair and gentle!” he said when
E the wine and cake were tendered to him y ha
1 fair hands. “Once in the presence of a deck
. mother and a lovely sister, I knew what true
happiness was, but now, inured to foil and .
. dim er those joys are only sweet me. ries.” '
! “glen must tell me all about our
: sister!” said the lovely girl. “ am very I.—
' here, for I have no companions. The few -
l le we see are very dull and ignorant, and w l
I in books and my pretty garden do I find on ‘
ment, except in t e company of my dear ~ ’
and my ood father. Tbumust see my 1: n
—it is 8. its loveliest now. Soon the an «
frosts will come, and then until another : - n
. arrives it will be drear and desolate.” : ,_

Thus, while Marvel and her father sipped 'v ' 
choice wine, the sweet girl filled the room with
rich harmony of her voice, and though his d
called him back to his vessel, the young lieu
ant felt as if he oeuld stayin her companya
time and never feel weary.

“Ihen at last he felt that he had prolonged
call more than a proper time for a , ;
left, promising to renew his visit, urged to do 
by both father and daughter, who shamed ' v. _
tolliave ipetdhim. t Ins  

arve di not 0 ' new main i ,
when he went on rd. He did not want j 
lawless gaze of Spirifort to fall on that fair, '
—the emblem of purity and modest beauty. ,
almost felt as if it wereasacrilege for him to "f
tersopurea resence. And bad as he a 
knew that Spirifort was worse—a demon in

man guise.
Being ready for sea, Spirifort began to -
wmortls morosehand uglyéiwhepa
y,  t e neeeai of ‘
themmmmsfishw 'chthelndianswene-
b ' ' in—the being stores thatcouldhd,
now no else an much prized by the crew,T M
had never before enjoyed such food. I , '3,
Thus a week and more went by, and t - ' ‘
day in which Marvel did not vii
new- ound friends, and each visit grew to
and more and more pleasant, until for him ;”
was no light or joy except in the presenco' ' ' I
lovely blonds whose tresses of golden
were to him chains of living beauty. -

    
   
    
  
  
   
  
    
 
 
     
  
   
   
    
  
 
 
 
   
  
   
     
     
   
     
   
 
  
   
   
   
  
 
  
   
  
  
  
    
  
  
   
    
 
    
  
   
   
   
 
 
 
 
     
   
   
 
 
  
    
 
   
   
 
  
    
   
  

[pleased to know my onl
isse,” his eyes fell upon 

a

‘
,4»

 

fro'm’whom he had been drawn by the .2?“
adventure, and she hadwoven over  ‘ -

  

*10

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer King.

 

   

 

turn a spell of a nature so strong that he felt as
if he could never part from her.

How she felt, he could but guess and hope.
She had left France to lead this drear and deso-
late life while yet a mere child, and the compan-
ionship of a oung man of fine talents, whose ad-
venturous lite was to her a romance, was calcu—
lated to arouse all the woman that there was in
her ardent and im iulsive nature. For he never
had hinted at the ker side of his life; she did
not dream that one who seemed to her to be the
soul of manhood and chivalry could have a soul
I darkened with crime, a heart full of sin.

It was a new life to her and she gave herself
u to a full enjoyment of it, not dreaming of a
c nge to come, and to come dark and swift
upon her.

3? CHAPTER XVI.

5 THE PmArn’s THREAT.

‘ “ J UMBo—you sable inm ot' blaclmess—where
ti 1 is Lieutenant Marvel? have
since he left the breakfast-table.
on deck .4”

“ Reckon not sah! He done went ashore
airly dis inorninz an’ hasn’t come back, I reckon,
. Mars‘ Cap’n !”

’. 4‘ ' “On share 7’ It seems to me he spends a great
’  deal of his time there!”

“ He jess does Mars’ Ca i’n!”

 “ Where does t attraction can he
find there i”

‘1’ “ He goes u to do big house (lat belongs to do

' Chapel. An‘ 1I reckon de ’traction, sah, am a

urty Fl‘l‘ll’h gal—so I hear one ob de men say

t carried up a basket 0’ books from Mars’
Marbel’s room!”

“ A pretty French girl? He never told me he
had any acquaintances on shore!” said the car»
tain, his face darkening with an angry frown.
“ I’ll see to this! Have my] manned! Up at
the big house on the hill, e ’11 soon take the
hearings there and see what is up.”

Dressed in uniform, wearing 8. ca instead of
his redoplumed hat, Ca tain Spi '_ ort landed
and leaving his crew at he waterside to await
his return to the boat he strode swiftl forward
in the direction of the house on the hi .

, As he approached it his eye noted the orna-
mental grounds, and he was striding toward the
front entrance of the house, when his observant
lance fell on two figures walking side by side

a lovely fiower~garden to the right of the

building.

One he instantlyrecognized as his lieutenant—
the other was a female and he got but a limpse
of her as both passed into a bower of c imbmg
roses where they were hidden from his view.
> A low wall se ted the garden from the
' path he was w ' g in. Over this the chief

step d lightly and cautiously advanced toward

the ower. Little  a spy was so near,

Marvel was speaking to the ovely girl in a Voice
which was expressive of deep emotion.

, “ Soon, ver soon, my dear Melissa,” he said,
“ I shall be orced to leave you. Already my
captain is impatient to go to sea, and I have in-
. Vented every excuse in in power to prolong our
‘ ‘ stay. Do not weep, my arling)—I Will not be
absent lon . As soon as I can reak away from
my pressing e ement, I will return to you'
' cod line 8 s unite us in marria e, an
i I will ar you awa to the sunny home in Bal-
timore, where m ear mother and sister Will
welcome you with loving hearts and clinging
arms as one to be cherished tenderly forever!”
' “ Baltimore! His mother and sister?” mut-
tered the pirate chief, while his face grew dark
with passmn. “Ha! I see it all. The secret is
out! The mother fainted when she met her son
in the ball-room and he knowing the danger of
3 further tion, wou d not goon shore. again.
’4'  He it was w o wrote that letter of warning! I
 ' am the ‘flcnd ’ whose c‘ e of ‘ lawless passion ’
" had fallen on the form 0 the lovely Belle of Bal-
timore. So—ho! And now, even now this up-
" start whom I have made almost equal to myself,
plans to leave my service—to quit these with

 

 

not seen him
Where is he—

he go?

 
   
  
  
  
    
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  
  
    
  
   
  
   
 
  
     
   
   
  
  
 
    
   
  
    
  
   
   
   
   
    
   
    
  
   
   
 
     
  
    
 
   
    
  
    
  

V011?

dawlessness!
may, but it will be to find bottom in deep-sea
soundings!”

.. Again he listened. He heard a voice soft and
 .low and musical:

' ' “Oh, it will be hard, very hard dear Edward,
topart with you—but the thought of your re-
turnwill lessen the 'n. I have never known
such hap ness as I ve found in your love.”

 . “It lbe short-lived!” muttered the pirate,
 and now he boldly advanced to the mm: of the
bower, where his eyes fierce with anger, rested
 his lieutenant and the fairest face and form
e had seen for years.
“ 0/ You have a m gicusemsir,
:n'e lectin our duty on p! e c
tg'uly, ag {Iarvel rose to his feet and partly
concealed the shrinking form of the beautiful
lfrom the lawless gaze of the unprincipled cap-
. “ I ive you just a half-hour to report on
board, “(I then we sail for Baltimore—for Bal-
stzidmre, you understand “Irl’iere your lovely sister
i awaits my com ii
» #3me You havegeen playing the eaves-
‘, r r—the part of a base d cowardly spy!”
7 Marvel, so wild withargler that he cared
_ what he said. ‘

 

1.

H 
tentant arvel, from instant p ent. Re-
port on board in half an hour, or an armed
guard will be sent for you. I give you time for
a tender and a last farewell!”

Spirifort uttered these words with a bitter
sterliness that boded ill for the future of his sub-
ordinate.

“ A last farewell? What does he mean?” cried
Melisse Duprét, clinging to her lover, pale and
trembling.

“ To frighten me—but it is a failure!” said
Marvel, trying to be calm, though his anger was
terribly excited. “I know him too well. He
dares not try to injure me. But one thing I ask
of you! Write instantly, when our mail-packet
arrives to my dear mother antIvsister, inclosing
a few lines which I will iencil now. It is to
warn them of his threat. have long been ab-
sent from my mother; the lines I give you to
forward will partly explain my prolonged ab-
sence, and as soon as I can break loose from the
service I am in, which shall be at the next port
we enter, I will rejoin them, and then, my sweet
angel I will come for you i”

‘ Why not resi i and break from him here
and now ?" she as ed.

“ It would be impossible. Here he can use
force that I could not resist. But in a port
where there is law and authority, I can defy his

wer!

“ Alas, dear love—until I see or hear from
you again, I shall be in an ony of suspense !”

“ I fibeseech you not to ear for In safety,
precious Melissa. My whole life has , 11 one
continued peril; I am Used to it and shall over
come all danger and trouble for your sake! Do
as I ask you and fear not!”

Saying this, he tore a leaf from a blank-book
in his -ket and told his mother and sister that
he been forced into a most ' able ser-
vice from which he intended shortly to free him—
self- also, that when he had done so he would go
to them without fail. He also spoke of his new-
found love whom he he in the near future to
present to them as his c erished bride. ,

This written and handed to her, he spoke a
few tender and cheering words and then escorted
her into the house where he said adieu to Mon-
sieur and Pere Iluprét, her father and uncle,
sim ly saying his captain had decided to leave
the arbor in a. very short time.

Then he went to the boat which waited for
him, for he knew that Spirifort had not trifled
in his threat.

CHAPTER XVII.
A NOVEL DEVICE.

Warm once aroused, Spirifort was a very de-
mon to think and prompt to act on his thou hts.
When he threatened that he would sail for al-
timore, he meant it, but how he could go there
without deadly peril to himself, vessel and crew,
had to be an afterthou ht.

And, quick as his dgcovery of Marvel’s rela-
tionship to Sadie Ridgewood, came up a plan in
his active mind.

And he saw close at hand the material and the
means to carry out that plan.

Before he went on board his schooner he went
to the on] ship-yard, if such it might be called,
in the se lemon .

It was owned by an auto risinglmhman,
who, having learned his t e in t 9 old coun-
try, made a fair living here by builde small
boats and repair-in flshlng-sloops and ac ooners
which got dam as they of u did at sea.

He had lenty of timber, a ew good and re-
liable han s, and was skillful and industrious.

To him S irifort went, and b his first ques-
tion arou his mtive greed an interest.

“ Would you like to make a thousand pounds
steng in gold b a few days of shiny? work and
the use of a few hers and plank asked the
ca tain of the supposed Mexican privateer.

‘lVould a duck swim if open water wax-{be- l
fore it? What would ye have done? If the work '
is honest, I’m the man to earn athousand pounds
if I can!”

“ I wish you to dismiss my schoonen There
was a. large Spanish ileet after me when I came i
up the coast, and it will behardto work my way
back to Mexico without I can put my craft in
some new shape.”

“ Gude captain—that would be easy. Take
one mast out and make a sloop of her, or cram
yards and turn her into a brig.”

“ Neither would di ise that long sharp hull.
M1 plan is to build a also how and stem on her
hu 1. The first bluff and full, the other flat and
square then raise her bulwarks, so the hull will
look like a lumbering drogher on the coast.
Then I can stay her masts forward and so alter
her looks that my own crew would not know her
if they were not on board while the work was

!
resence of a lady protects you Lieu-
l  i '

“But, listen to me; This work of disguise.’
i must not be done where everybcd .' can see it, or"
. the news would soon get abroad and defeat the
i very object I wish to gain. Is there not some
sly nook, river or inlet twenty or thirty miles
away from the settlement where we can slip in I
j and do this work unknown to anybody but our- ;
I selves !” 3
fr “There’s a bay about forty miles south, in-
land of an island, that would suit, for there’s no
settlement nearer than this!”
“ Could 'ou not select your timbers and planks
and put t em on board my craft

 

the spot? “’hen the work is over I can land will
here again in the night and your gold wil be,
well earned!” é

“ That’s true, captain. I‘ll‘ see _',my men, look ‘

 

- over my timber, and be ready this. night if it is !

your will!”
“It is! And, as a token, I hand you apurse a

McDevitt, the builder, carefully weighed the 2

counted the pieces of gold. ,

“ It is all right, captain, and I- dinna doubt
we’ll niakea good job of it.. If you’ll let your
schooner slip down to the end of my wharf after
night sets in I’ll have all ready, and we’ll be off
and at the other bay by the time another day-
light’s up!” '

at the wharf after ni
seems quiet in the hamlet l"‘
“So far, my plan works well !” muttered the.
)irate chief, as he left the boat-yard and turned .
ward the landing-place where his gig waited.
for his return. ‘

Marvel was walking down slowly from the us ,
on the hill, his head bent forward as if the ‘
Weight of sad thoughts hung heavily upon him. 5
1y Spirifort slackened his own ace so i
that arvelshould be‘flrst on board. I hen ho~
saw him go over the schooner’s side he entered
his own boat and bade the crew “ give wa ."

In a few minutes he was on board. arvel,
pale, but silent, stood on the uarter—deck, as if .
waiting the next move of his endish chief.

Ignoring the presence of his first officer in his ‘
orders, S irifort turned to the second officer and
said lou enough to be heard by all hands:

“ ' one and hoist the recall signal at
the fore-tru Some of the men are yet on
shore. And heave up to a short mooring. See
all clear for-making sail. Have all the boats but
one hoisted in. And, mark you, sir, no one has
leave to go on shore again except the crew of the
boat that brings oil.’ the absent men 2”

The officer glanced at Marvel as he replied '
“ Ay, ay, sir!” He knew that the lieutenant and
captain were at loggerheads or the former would
have received the orders he had listened to.

Marvel said. nothing. His face was turned to—
ward the shore. His heart, his every thou ht
was with the lovely girl whom hehad just eft
in tears in the house on the hill.

Spirifort seemed to divine this and would
not Even give him the comfort of looking shore-
war .

‘ “Traitor!” he cried sternly, “ to your room,

under arrest. Do not dare to leave the cabin

gum? my permission, or I shall put you in
us!

“Captain Splrifort, I am not a traitor, and
you know it. No more faithful oflicer ever
served under you. If you can dispense with my
' discharge me and let me go on shore at

go on shore to betray us? I am not
such a fool. You have been on shore too lon
already. But if you specially desire it, I wi
send and have your lady-love brought oil to keep 1
you company.’ i
“No—no, sir! Anything but that!” groanedi
Marvel, almost crushed at the thought. ‘,
“Thento your room, and be thankful I sim-'9
ply place you under arrest. If I did‘ you justice
—— ours would be a short shrift.”
‘ rvel made no reply. He went below and
soon heard the rapid tread of the crew as they-1
roused in the slack of the cable on deck. ,
“ He means to sail at once,” he muttered. "
“ But he will not dare, fiend though he is, to at-;
tem t to enter Baltimore. Capture and death
won d be the result. Better that than wron tol
those I love. Life has but one ending. ut i
there are wrongs which live forever! Fool—foolj
that I was to come on board here at his bidding. 3
Once in onder forest I could have remained?
conceal until he was gone—but he mi ht have;
aven himself on her who is dearer ar than;

 

 

lifetoine! Itisbetterasitis. I will soon es~
cape from here. Then a life of evil I will no,
lo r live. Well, J umbo—what do you want?"

9 black steward approached him—a sorrow

 

being done!” \
“ he plan is gude. I dinna see but it could

ime just now. A thousand pounds ye said for
the % ii” - .
“ cs—-in gold, paid down when the work is
finished!” ‘
“ I‘m your man. gude captain—I‘m your man

 

XV. .3ij, ugly;

i

T");

  

gilt}, ready for the work as soon as ye’ll haul

 

be done, and done in less than a week Were I to ‘
at all my handsto the Work. An’ it’s a slack 3

.- .. . -
- ‘1’  _‘ ‘1 l, I I. . ’ .
- "um .i.. !. ~- J, -»

ful look on his face, for the lieutenant had eve '

treated him kin . ' .
“You is in tron 16, I’m a‘feard, Mam’ Marbel,

said the servant, in a low tone. “ Is dere any

‘ t’in Jumbo can do for on, sah?”

“filo, Jumbo—no. e captain and I on

: some words and he has ut me under arrest. H

| will need me when ea weather or ha -

lknocksareat hand and o ybe too gladtore

‘ store me to duty. You know his hot teuuier. ’j

'I  . ~.  2w. ' -‘--i'

' m‘etly a»! ‘
nlght and then sail with your men With me to ' .

of fifty golden sovereigns to bind our bargain !” l J
purse which Spirifort handed him, and tlicn.‘ '
i

“ All right!” was S irifort’s reply, “ we’ll be, ;
t has fairly set in and all g 3

He saw, without pretending to notice it thug, ‘

yin—an

Ann.

1

.‘i

A—LJ‘AHAH

 
 

rm or

.-
v

in? C55

3’0

5

A'Ffldfin

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer

King. 11

 

“I ought to, Mars’ Marbel. If I hadn’t a l
skull thicker dan a bull’s, I’d have been dead I
afore now wid de knocks he has gibben me. If i
dere is anyt’in r I can de for you, Mars Marbel,
you know dat umbo ‘11 do it. ’

“ Yes, Jumbo. You are a good lad. Do not I
worry about me. I’ll come out all right in I
time. ’ !

“ I ho so, sah. Dar—(1e cap’n’s callin’ me. i
He’s aw 111 short to-day, cross as a she b’ar wid ,
cubs a-teasiii’ lier.” ‘

Not until after night set in did Marvel hear
any further preparation for leavin the harbor. ,
But about ten o‘clock—or just a ter four bells I
had struck, and he had turned into the berth in 4,
his stateroom. he heard the crew at work. The }
anchor was run up to the bows and the vessel *
seemed to be moving down—stream. I

He was glad she was oing out in the night. i
The eyes of Melisse would not be strained to get
a )arting glance at the form she loved so well.

Vhen the schooner touched the wharf at the ;
boat-yard, Marvel felt the jar. He could not 1
account for this landing, and rising be dressed 1
himself to be ready to learn what was goin on.
He did not know but Spirifort meant to rai the 2
little hamlet, )oor as it was, though nothing
could be gained by such violence.

Soon he heard the tramp of many feet and the

 

 

! crash of planks and timbers as they Were carried

3‘?

saw-c

P-QOTC'“-

@MHGDR 531?]: J“

9- 9-3—

‘i’i-‘u "c'e'FrT

5 wanted.

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E‘flifi-

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5th

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‘ learn what mischief

. Visit Baltimore. With the schooner transformed
‘ so as to completely resemble a slow and clumsy

‘ Was hear on doc , and Marvel’s heart leaped

inboard from the yard. He went to the com- !
pamonway of the cabin and listened. He heard
strange voices—new to his ears—giving orders.
What could it all mean? It was be 0nd his I
comprehension! The bringing on board of lum- ,
her as if the were taking in car 0. 1
_ The b Scotch dialect of t e boat—builder I
is he gave orders to lay timbers here and plank

here, and the stern command of Spirifort from i
time to time to h up the work, confused

him. I‘Vhat new dev' try was the pirate chief |
concocting? ,
Afteratime the tramp of hurrying feet and ,

the crash of timber ceased, and the lieutenant ‘
heard the sharp stern voice of S )irifort ordering ‘
sails hoisted, fasts cast off, an soon knew by i
sound and motion that the schooner was under i
canvas and standing out to sea. .
At the same time Jumbo came down and be- I
an to set a cold lunch in the cabin, by order of

; t eca tain.

“ at is oin on above, Jumbo? Are they i
making a lum‘lier-grogher of the schooner?” asked E
the officer. |

“It looks dat way, Mars’ Marbel. De deck
am all cobbered with timbers an' planks, and 1
dere’s a lot 0’ ship-carpenters on deck dat's goin’ '
Wid us I heard 8 cap’n say. Him de boss car- !
peuter is comin’ down to eat jem as scan as de
course is shaped outside, I hear him say. And ,
he tole me put on plenty ob grub an’ grog, he
was as hungry as a shark an dry as a leaky
water-butt !”

Marvel could on] wait now in patience to

Spirifort had in view.

Soon the captain was heard at the companion-
Way and Marvel retired to his state-room as
the t place for gaining the knowledge he

Spirifort and the Scotch nter were soon
at table, and while the ate an drank the plans
for putting on a false w and stern were fully
discussed.

And now, to his horror, Marvel saw that
Spirifort really meant to carry out his threat to

merchantman, and a cargo picked up from some
out-of-theway port, the main part of the crew
hidden away—what was to prevent his doing so
successfully?

In agon Marvel sat and pondered over the
future. ow could he escape from the infernal
craft in time to warn and save his loved ones
from the fiend who lotted a ruin worse than
death ten thousand, thousand times?

Sudden] ' the er of “ Sail ho—close aboard!” '

high. a second later, to hear a sharp, stern voice
Shput through a trum t:
‘ Schooner ahoy ! %Vhat vessel is that f”
It sounded like the hail from a manof—war,
and Splnfort rushed on deck.

 

CHAPTER XVIII.
THE sALLY ANN AND A CARGO.

‘_‘ El Goleta. Mes-team Capricio I” shouted
Silurifort in Spanish, as he saw the white sails of
a .lttle cutter sloop which had luffed up close to
Windward.

‘f It’s the mail cutter, that runs to the inlet
twice a month—nothing Worth stopping fori”
said McDevitt, recognizm the vessel which they
were alread passi sw' tly.

' “ Thank eaven!’ murmured Marvel to him-
self. “ She stays but a single day in port, and
on her return she will carry a. warning from my
sweet Melissa to those Whom I et love in spite
of our long estrangement! They will be on
their guard, if indeed they do not leave the city
With no trace that he could follow. Now I can
feevlvtilasier. " ,

en S irifort and the head ca nter re-
turned to t e cabin to finish their lunc Marvel

.‘ other plans ’ are

 

had again returned to his berth where e, for a

time, listened to their talk and then dropped
aslee .

When he woke in the morning the vessel had
reached the bay or cove where the work of trans-
formation was to be carried out. It was a lone-
ly spot—a mere little cove, backed by high cliffs
and in the rear of a forest-covered island which
cut off the view seaward and broke the ocean
swell, leaving the little basin as smooth as an in-
land pool. Here, shored up as before, with spars,
the ca nters could work without hindrance
except when the tide was at its highest; and
Marvel, though not allowed on deck, knew well
what was going on by the sounds of saws and
hammers which filled his ears.

Four days this work was going on, the planks
getting a coat of paint as fast as they were in
place, to assimilate the false with the real part
of the hull.

Meantime, the second officer, With a good
part of the crew, slackened up all the back-
stays and after-shrouds in the rigging, and set
taut on the stays leading forward, so that the
masts were soon brought over from the pretty

; rake they had held until they were perpendicu-

lar—or if an thin stayed forward so as to give
them the st' an clumsy look of a merchant-
man.

W'hen the carpenters were nearly done, Spiri-
fort caused the ainters to paint two eat un-
ainlfi stripes 0 light yellow around t e entire
engt of the hull, bow and stem, making her
100 as coarse and common as any craft could
be made to appear. a

When all was done to his satisfaction, Spiri—
fort paid off the carpenter and his men, all that
he had agreed to pay and even added a gratuity,
when, as the weather was fine and the water
smooth, they agreed to return home in alar e
boat which he could spare, and thus save the
schooner from again visiting the inlet.

And now, before going to sea, to satisfy his
own malice and to let Marvel see the wonderful
change in the looks of the vessel, which would

! defy recognition with those who had seen her in

her beauty of spars, canvas and bull, Spirifort
called the lieutenant out and took him on shore
where he could scan the vessel below and aloft
as she lay swinging to a single anchor at short
range.

In the bluff bows—the square, low stem, the
wretched int, with her straight masts up and
down, an an old patched suit of sails on her, the
schooner resembled an old, worthless drogher
just fit to car cargo on the coast where a port
cogld be reac ed easily if the weather looked
ug y.

“ What do you think of the Diablocito now?”
asked Spirifort, keenly watching the face of his
subordinate.

“ For once she wears what her commander
cannot—an honest look!” was the uiet reply.

“ For all her honesty of look s 0 yet carries
her teeth I ” said Spirifort, alluding to her guns,
which were yet visible on deck.

“Ay, and she’ll need them had enough with

her sailing qualities all destroyed!” was the re-
joinder.
“ he’ll need no guns when she enters Balti-
more as a peaceful trader and waits for the mar-
ket; prices to rise till my other plans are carried
on .

“May I ask, gaptain Spirifort, what those

“ You may ask, but I, not having yet fully de-
cided upon them it Will not be likely you can

et an answer. Suffice it for on that when the

iablocito leaves that port 3 e will carry out
more treasure than she takes in and what I
most covet there will be on board when I seek
Southern waters once more.”

Marvel made no answer. He hoped to be re-
stored to duty when the vessel sailed now, as it
would make his intended escape ii the future
more feasible, and he did not want to anger

l Spirifort an more, if he could avoid it.

He knew t t the second oflicer, though a good
seaman, was no navigator and that Spirifort
had always depended upon ' as such.

His conjectures were right, for the next day,
before weighing anchor to o to sea, Spirifort
said, in as pleasant a tone as 6 could assume:

“ You had best return to duty, Mr. Marvel. I
was an ill-humor when I put you under ar-
rest!

Marvel merely bowed; he would not trust
himself with an answer. He knew it was but a
hollow truce at best, but be deemed it better to
avail himself of it as far as he could.

So, when they got under way, he was at his
station, and when the sun neared its meridian as
they plunged along through the bulky seas, he

ot up his sextant, took the latitude and entered
it on the log.

The orders were to run down the coast until
they could si ht some lumber rt, where a
cargo of  r or staves coul be taken on
board to hide the guns and carry out the charac-
ter the captain meant to assume.

He had had a name painted on the broad,
awkward stern of the craft:

“ THE SALLY ANN, or Gmnocx.”

Hailing from abroad, with for forei
pers, he thought he could do bettgred in 
ports than he could under a home hail and colors

 

-so far as kee ing up his disguise went. He
had caused the alse bow and stern to be so put
on that he could very soon have them displaced,
and when the spars were once more in their old
place, could make his craft as swift and rakish
as she had been before.

The crew not having much work to do now on
the rough, lumbering old craft, took things easy,
lived high and enjoyed themselves, knowing well
from the past that this lazy kind of life would
not last long, but that Spirifort would soon be
in some. mad enterprise again. They had sailed
too long with him to expect an extended season
of quiet.

After leaving the fishing-banks. where fleets
of sloops and schooners were engaged in taking
cod and halibut, too busy to mind any business
but their own, or to notice any craft that crossed
their hawse or wake, sails were seen few and far
between. Too far northward for commercial
routes they were in no danger of meeting any
craft whose officers would give them a second
look. ~

 

CHAPTER XIX.
A BRAVE GmL’s DECISION.

HALF her night had been passed in tears by

sweet Melisse Duprét. It seemed to her as if her
inning with Edward Marvel would be eternal.

’hen she rose early and glanced from the win-
dow out upon the glittering waters of the ba ,
as th y danced merrily in the early sunlight, s e
saw the spot vacant where the Mexican man-of-
war had been anchored. The vessel was no-
wherein sight; she had made sail and gone to
sea amid the darkness of night.

The poor girl sobbed bitterly, for she felt from
the dark, threatening look on that face, as well
as the harsh words he uttered, that Spirifort was
a deadly enemy to the man she loved, and she
feared that the life so dear to her was in peril,
dark and imminent.

While she wasdressin she lanced again out
on the bay and saw 6 w 'te-winged mail-
packet running in to the pier it always occupied.

Hurrying down to the salon, where her father
and uncle waited her resence at breakfast, Me—
lisse sadly alarmed em by the deathly pallor
of her cheeks, her red and swollen eyes.

She was too good and pure to conceal her feel-
ings or use any subterfuge. She told them both
of what had occurred in the afternoon of. the
previous day when the captain of the Mexican

schooner rised his lieutenant in her
compan in the rden, and of the quarrel be—
tween em whic resultedin his being ordered

on board immediately, on pain of arrest if he
hesitated to obey.

Then she told of the threat which alarmed her
lover in re to the safety of his mother and
sister in Ba timore, and the letter of warning she
had romised to write to them.

“ ut,” said she, “ instead of writing to them,
I will go myself to warn them. A letter might
be lost or  while 1—1 would surely
reach them and be ere to receive my Edward

when he ts free from his present entangle-
ment,”as 0 will at the earliest possible mo-
ment!

“ But, child, the distance, the danger of
travel!” cried her uncle, the priest.

“ Your God and the holy saints will watch
over me!” she replied. “ I do not fear danger
when duty is before me i”

“ If you go, my dear daughter, I shall go also.
You are too yo , and have been too tenderly
reared, to 0 out into the wicked world alone! ’
said the fat er.

“ I know, my brother,” he added, “that you
will be lonesome without us, but we will return,
Heaven rospering us, right speedily!”

“ My uties never permit me to be lonesome!”
answered the priest  “ But I shall miss
your kind words and the right face of my dear
niece. But go, if you think it wise and right,
and m prayers will go with you. I, too, was

pl with this manly stran , and if you can
avert denier from those he oves, no word of
mine shall eep you back!”

“ Then, dear father, it is settled; we will go in
the mail packet when she sails.”

“ As you will, child, so be it. A look into the
brighter outer world will do you no harm, and
when you have seen both sides of life there, you
may [feel more contented in our peaceful home

And that was all. Within the hour fair Me-
lisse began her preparations for the journey.
And her heart grew lighter as she did so, be-
cause, she said to herse

“ I shall see his dear ones and soon, oh, I pray
it may be very soon, clasp ' in my true and
loving” embrace, meet him to part never, never

more.’
day inthe house upon the hill,
ardrobeto

It was a bug
for Monsieur uprét had his own w
look over, a trunk to pack and money to take
from the strong vault where his old famil’ y sil—
ver and such funds as he and his brother owned

were kept.
he would have to be

He knew not how longl
absent neither how muc money he might need,

but, a vised b his brother, be resolved to
enough in. 01 and paper to support him mm
handsomely while gone, should it be

dearchild

 

 

 
 

13

 

in] year or more, instead of only a month as both
0 )cd.

‘or but six weeks, or eight at best would
elapse ere navigation in that extreme latitude
Would be. closed for the winter. Then a long and
dreary lapse of six or seven months would ensue,
when all intcrcoul‘se with the Southern world
would be closed and no possible means of cor-
respondence open, except by Indian couriers,
who could, and sometimes did, on snow-slums,
traverse the icy wastes to the settlements far
below.

The en tain of the swift little mail packet was
surpriset , but not disagreeably, when Monsieur
Dupret and his lovely daughter came on board
to take passage with him to Quebec. For, long
as he had sailed to and from the inlet, they had
never before put foot on his deck, though he had
made many purchases and executed man com—
missions for them in his many voyages. c. had
always been a welcome guest at the house, and
though a Protestant and an Englishman, he was
a great favorite with the good priest, who had
many commissions to intrust him with.

In truth, nearly all the supplies for the hamlet
were brought 1) the packet, and its master,
good John Odel , had a very profitable trade
with the Indians, taking their furs and bringing
back powder; lead, fish-hooks, blankets and
other things which they needed.

Through the influence of the good father they
were fast becoming civilized, and that, too,
without learning to use “ tire-water ”—one of
the curses of civilization too often introduced to
their race.

The sun was just setting behind the forest
trees in a bank of dark clouds when Monsieur
Duprét and his daughter were welcomed on
board the packet by Captain Odell.

He always gave the English termination to
her name when he spoke to iss Duprét, calling
her Miss Melissa, instead of Melissa, as pronounc-
ed b her father.

“ ou’re ri ht welcome aboard the Osprey,
mounseer, an you, too, Miss Melissa,” he said,
as they stepped on board, their baggage follow-
ing, borne on the shoulders of two stout seamen,
W cm the captain had sent after it.

“ The sun sets rather ugly, but the wind will
be off-shore if it is fresh!” he said, as he ushered
them down into his snug little cabin. “We can
hug‘the land and kee in smooth water, so you’ll
bot have a good nig t’s rest!”

“ I hope it will not storm, for I am a great
coward on the water!” confessed Melisse.

“It may blow some, but the sloop is stanch
and weatherly—have no fear. The steward will
have supper before we strike the swell outside!”
was the old captain’s assurance as he went on

deck.

“Up with the canvas fore and aft!” was his
next order. \

The sails were up in a few seconds, for they.
were light and the tackle for hoisting handy.
Then came the order:

“Cast off!” and, loosened from the pier, the

’ little packet sped awa on her return voyage.

' coffee, before the

The steward, a b'the Frenchman, set the
table as soon as the vessel started, and aided by
the Canadian cook had a most appetizin meal
-venison fish and wild ducks, with de 'cious
ngers.

Havingl given 0 helmsman the course, Cap-
tain Ode oft the deck in charge of the mate,
and came down to sup with his guests.

“Did you meet any strange vessel in your
voyage up!” asked Miss Duprét, after the cap-
tain was seated.

“Yes, Miss Melissa—we met a very large,

I swift-going schooner running down the coast.

I hailed her, and got some answer in an out-

, landish to e I couldn’t understand, and then

she was on of sight, for it was in the ni ht
before I nyde the light at the mouth of he
inlet.”

“ It was the vatcer; they answered your
bail in Spanish,’ said Miss Du rét.

_ “Spanish or Dutch would all the same to
me, ma’am—just like Greek. I can get over some
French, because I hear so much of that—the
cook and steward are eternally jabbering in it.
What was a Privateer doing away up here out
cfthe wayo shipsandpeop e?” .

“ The came here to not and get fish and ven-
ison an to refit their schooner, they said.”

“ Where did she hail from i”

“ She was from Mexico so they stated.”

“Ah,yes-S inandM’exicoareatwar I re-
member. We ,shcwasacli rto . lhove
my craft up in the Wind’- eye her—butt
it was a. swash and she was no!’

Supper was all over, Melissa, with her
father, was on deck, when the packet rounded
the int on which the light-house stood that
mar ed the entrance to the inlet. The western
sky usually crowned with a rosy hue so early
in the mornin , was dark now—overlaid wi
black, swift-fl ng clouds.

The 0] captain~no better seamen ever

'troda. -calledouttothe watchtctakca

  

singler in the mainsail andorderedthebon—
takenoflthc jib. Thiadonc the sheets were
trimmcdforthcwindabeam,and keeping well
inwiththelnnd the-loopwentdown thecout
,pttenknoutothohoureufly. I

'Asthcywmincmoothwator thillpcod

 

 

  

 

 

 

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer King.

delightful to all hands, for it promised a short
return—trip, as well as a safe one.

Melissc, having her dear father with her, was
happy, for she was used to the water, and felt as
if she was hastening to those who were dear to
her betrothed lover, and would also be likely
very soon to meet him.

TWo hours later, close to the land as they were,
they had to close-reef all the sails, and soon af—
ter only the mainsail, rcefed down, was kept on
the craft, for the wind had risen to a gale—such
a tempest as would have been dangerous to the
stanch little craft had she been a. few miles fur-
ther out.

Mclisse and her father lingered 1011 on deck—
not that they feared danger, for the captain
told them that he could enter safe harbors every
few leagues if hedesircd, but it seemed sostrange
to hear the wild surges leaving and dashing
in the offing, and yet to bowl along so fast in
smooth water under such scanty canvas.

Only men who know every fathom of the
coast line would have dared to run within a
cable’s length of the shore, as Captain Odell did,
but he was on a bold coast, and had no cause to
fear reefs or rocks or shoals until a long way
further south.

At midnight the watch was changed, but the
captain still remained on deck, thou h his pas-
sengers had retired to their berths. e was a.
man to keep double watch when he deemed it
was necessary, and he would not.trust to others
the duty he believed to be his own.

CHAPTER XX.
THE DOOM OF THE COASTER.

LUMBERIN’G along on a southerly course the
Diablocitc in her new rig had nearly reached the
latitude of Halifax, and was not more than sixty
or seventy miles east of the coast, when, just as
day dawned, her captain found his craft nearly
alongside a huge brig with a hull full as blunt
and ugly as his own.

Lieutenant Marvel had the watch, and he
hailed her just as Spirifort came on deck.

“ Brig ahoy!” he cried, “ where from and
where bound!’

“The bri Tomboy, from Halifax, bound to
the West Int ies for a. market—car o staves and
puncheons!” was the answer. “ at schooner
Is that?”

“ The Sally Ann, from Greenock, in ballast,
bound in for a cargo!” replied Marvel, directed
by S irifort. “If you have late pa rs, heave
toa it, so we can get the news, an we’ll give
you a keg of ‘mountain dew ’ that never saw a
gauger’s stamp.”

“ All right! Round in head braces! Hard
a-lee !” came the prompt answer.

As the brig came up in the wind, Spirifort
said in a low tone:

“La him aboard! All hands on deck! This
follow the very cargo we want. It is easy
to handle, good for a Southern market, and ' 1
hide our guns till we want to use them!”

If ever men were suddenly astonished, it was
the officers and crew of the brig—only about a
dozen all told—when they saw the schooner
thrown directly alongside, to windward, while
her crew of near one hun men came pouring
up from below and instantly sprung on the
bri ’s deck.

‘ hat does this mean?” shouted the captain
of the brig, angrily, as Spirifort called to his
men to has the two crafts together.

“ It means that I want a part of your cargo !"
answered the chief, coolly. I

“You can have it al , if you’ll pay for it!"
said the Halifax man, turning pale when he saw
that the men who boarded him were all armed.

“I’ll pay you in my own wa. I" was the sneer-
ing answer. - “Men, seize an bind every man
and officer belonging to the brig and pitch them
here in the lee gangway. Then carry this deck-
load aboard our own craft, fast as you can. Mr.
Marvel, see to the stow on our deck, while
the second mate looks out low!” ‘

“This is an outrage! ” yelled the captain of

the br .

“I alfimit it; but don’t ble yet! We have
only commenced our war I’ll look over your
papers and see what else you have on t

want!” announced Spirifort, starting to enter
the cabin.

“Great Heaven! Are you pirates?"

“ That is what imprudent people call pa"

“ Mercy! Spare our lives! such a cargo
as thirds any good to you, take it, and then at

us go!

‘ Itisaca ital cargo for disguise,light and
easy to t rid of. But the other thingbiwsn't so
sensible If we let you of! you’d acud k to
Halifax and start every mn-o’-war on the coast!
after us. Our mottcis ‘ Deadnumteu no label’s
A secret buried at the bottom of the sea is sure
to be well-k t.”

The ca and crew of the brig had been
seized an bound the instant Spirifort gave the
order; so they wore powerless in every sense.
Not a call was in sight on the ocean. An in the
stern, almost savage, faces around them they saw

no i .
Thety’wcre silent—all but their captain, and it
wafthuilencoofdespair. .
We will-oleme swear not to divulge how
wcloctourcargo—nottosaycnewordthatwill

 

  

endanger you!” cried the captain. “Spare our
lives and you will not regret it. I can even )ut
you in the way of finding ten thousand dol rs
1n specie.”

“ Fool I We have treasure enough in yonder
craft to sink every soul of you a thousand fath-
oms (lee ) without our feeling the loss. \Ve are
ballaste( with gold and silver. Think over
your prayers—for you’ll soon be past saying
thcml’

The captain groaned, but made no further an—
swer.

Meantime, while the pirate crew were busy
transferring cargo to their own craft, Spirifort
went into the cabin of the brig to get her papers
and anything else he saw worth having. He
knew by what his prisoner had said that there
must be a small amount of s )ccie hidden some-
where on board, and perc ancc, little as it
was, he thought of adding it to the pirate treas-

111V.

Rapidly the decks of the transmogrifial Diab.
locito began to assume the appearance of a lum-
ber-drog er.

Stav es, puncheons and boards were piled high
above her guns, and enough taken in below to
make the appearance of a full hold, though in
reality the quarters of the crew were not short—
ened to their discomfort. \

All this work occupied even that large crew
nearly half that day, and in all this time though
several sails of vessels were sighted a long dis-
ltlaulllfe off, none came near enough to show their

9.
When the cargo was in, Spirifort turned to
the unhappy crew of the stripped brig.

“ What 15 your choice, men, to die by water
or fire?” he as ed, in a matter-of—fact way. “If
you choose water, you will take one plunge and
all is over. If on say fire—with no e cc of
escape you wil roast, for I shall flre thi brig
fore and aft, above and below, and lay by her.
till the last spar and lank is gone.”

“ Do your accu work at once, and may the
curse of widows and fatherless children fol—
low you down to eternal perdition!” shrieked the
captain, who saw no hope in the sneering, fiend-
ish face of the pirate leader—none in the crew,
eggept perhaps in one who dared not inter—
c 0.

“Bring u a piece of kentledge" from the run-—

Twent of) the pirates rushed below—some for-
ward, o ers into the cabin.

While the men who went into the hold for-
ward found the heavy iron they went to seek,
those who went into the run under the cabin
found something better. '

With a about of 0y they returned bringing
four canvas-bags 0 silver dollars, which they
laid before the captain.

“ So ho! This 1s your tcn thousand-dollar spe-
cie offer?” said Spirifort to the unhappy ca tive
captain. “ You see we have found it wi
your assistance!”

“ Curse you, yes! But it will do you no good.
wy help to sink you deeper than ever we will

' !

“We’ll see! Boys—get the lank ready—bal-
last them down and overboard with every man.
Save the braggart to the last!”

The instant Sp ' ort gave the order, ready
hands began to work. I.

While some of the sailors moved theirli in
silent rayer, others begged for life; still 0 ers
filled t e air with bitter curses.

But soon all was over. Man after man with
a piece of heavy iron mum bound to his body,
was placed on a plank which extended out over
the bulwarks of the vessel. The inner end was
raised and the helpless victim was dum over
into the ocean. A sullen plunge, an he was
gone forever—death and burial but a single act.

Last of all—no one went to his fate more
bravely than the merchant captain His last
words were a bitter and scathing pra er for God
to send down his heaviest curses on 0 heads of
his inhuman murderers.

The instant the last of the brig’s crew was out
of sight Spirifort, with fiendish glee, shouted:

“ All ready now to cast of! the schooner and
make sail !"

Seeing his order attended to, with his own
hand he set the brig on fire both forward and
aft, startingl the fires below where they would
sp'I‘h swusprx-i'nygin to hi d k h th

en in own cc , 9 gave a
order to cast 05, and soon the schooner was
again standing on a southern course, leaving the
brig a mass of flame which, before they were
out of si ht, had finished her destruction.

Aided a man who was a skillful pcnman,
though ore the mast, Spil'ifort now had the
papers of the brig so altered as to suit the
schooner in name and rig, so that he could enter
any rthechoaeonthecoast andshoware -
lar c earance and manifést. With his guns d-_,

den and his decks heaped with stoves, puncheons, ‘

and other lumber, no ordinary official would suc—
pect him to be other than what he professed, es.
ially as gagigtcnded, if overhauled, its; ($331:
0 crew as rs go u
to 33:1: and c own“ limatc.
t night, after a crew were all settled
downtothenew stateof things, and had goth

~Kaqua—im  can-iron pigs.

out. ’

\

 

    

' and heartless nature.

 

 

little used to a deck-load, the captain approached
Marvel, who had just been relieved on watch by
the second officer, and said:

“Mr. Marvel—I’d like to see you in the cabin.
It is time that you and I had a full and complete
understanding !”

“ All right, sir: I am ready!” responded Mar-
vel, coolly, leading the way toward the cabin.

 

CHAPTER XXI.
WHAT SPIRIFORT DARES TO DO.

“ MARVEL, we have been friends too long to
become enemies now I” was Spirifort’s first re-
mark after they reached the cabin. “And you
are aware, too, that I do not long allow an
enemy of mine to stand in my way.”

“ I understand what your last remark implies
Captain Spirit'ort, and feel asmred that, were I
not necessary to you as a skilled navigator, I
would not be long-lived under any circum-
stances.”

“ I don’t think in past treatment of you 'usti-
fies that remark, r. Marvel. But I call (you
down to try and smooth over matters, an to
get back on the same footing we were on before
you ot me angry the other day.”

“ ow did I get you angry? We had had no
words, that I am aware of, until on broke in
upon me when I was talking wit one of the
best of human beings!”

“Yes, and in that conversation, which I acci-
dentally overh-ard, you were revealin secrets
before unknown to me—in fact, telling er that
you had a mother and sister in Baltimore, and
revealing to me, by your words, that you was
the author of a letter which gave to me the
character of a devil rather than a man—the
letter of warning to Mrs. Ridgewood and her
daughter Sadie. Was not that discovery
enog’gh to anger me—hot—tempered as I naturally
am.

“Perhaps sol But now, answer me! Have
you ever spared a woman who fell into your
power—no,matter how pure or lovely, how good
and innocent?”

“ I cannot say that l have. But must a man
always be a fiend? Is there not a time when he
can reform—when, influenced by a love such as he
has never known before in all his wild life he can
become changed—plan to quit a career of crime,
become virtuous, and, fairly and honorably
wooing a worthy maiden, as fairly and as honor-
ably wedding her?”

S )irifort had replied in a tone so earnest, and
with a look that seemed to second every word he
uttered, that he mi ht have deceived any one
who did not thoroug 1y understand his depraved
But he spoke to one who
had known him long and had never seen but one
good trait—perha manly is a better word than

ood there—and at was bravery in his nature.
irifort was recklessly brave, and never flinch-

, ,no matter how a battle was going. This
alone drew his followers to him, and they both
admired and feared him.

Marvel smiled while he shook his head in
doubt.

“ Captain!” he said, “ you have often told me ‘
you were born in a pirate’s cabin on the old

ortuga, and never knew or cared to know a
better life. Am I to believe what you have
always said, rather than what you now utter? I
have read that a death-bed repentance was of no
avail, and this sudden chan , after so many
years, looks dubious, to use t e ' expres-
.Sion.

“Well well—I will hold no argument with
you on that point now. I want a phin answer
to two plain questions. Is not he Madame
Ri wood, whom I met in Baltimore, your
mo er?”

“ Yes!” replied Marvel, coldly;

“Then of course her lovely ughter is your
sister!”

“ YES!” answered Marvel, growing more
stern.

“If on love them, as I should judge you do,
from the way Iyou spoke of them to that fair-
faced ' lon t e coast of Labrador, would you
notra :- your sister should bathe wife of an
honest man, who could place every comfort and
luxury of life before her, than to live as now
without a protector in the world beyond a mo-
ther in delicate health?”

“ I do not know what right you have to thus
question me.”

“ I assume the right. I love your sister, and
for her sake I _ to become an st man
—to leave this 0 forever and with the wealth I
own individually in our common tr to
purchase an estate and perhapsa title in I y or

pain, where I can live a new life!”

“ The icture is ve pretty—but you seem to
assumet t you can ve my sister’s love and
hand for the asking. Do you think my sister 01'
mother would touch your hand if they knew
that it had been reddened by the blood of more
than a thousand victims?” .

‘ When they know their son and brother is a
pirate, but wishes to reform. they will not be
very apt to hesitate. And I flatter myself that
your mother was well pleased with me, and the
da hter surely evinced no dislike!”

 

“ use they believed you a brave and noble

officer in an honorable service. It is no use, Cap—
tain Spirifort—you had better give up that
chase and stick to your old and natural life!”

“ And give you a «lieu-barge, or let you desert
and go back and wed that Lily of Labrador and
live the life I covet while it is denied to me?
You must think I am losing my wits. Either I
mar your sister, or you will remain a pirate,

and t e fair girl in Labrador will pine in vain

for another sight of her lover!”

This was spoken in a tone too serious and ear-
nest for Marvel todoubt that Spirifort did not
mean all he said. He paused before replying.
He wanted time to think. He would dissimulate.

“ I will think it all over,” he said to Spirifort.

“It would help me, perhaps, if I knew your 

present plans.’

“ To a certain extent you shall know them!
intend to test my disguise by running the
schooner boldly into some Atlantic port, Boston
or New York, ostensibly to lay in some more
provisions for a West India voyage. I will lay
off at anchor and see how our papers work, if
they are inspected at all. While there I will run
down in person to Baltimore to see how the land
lays, and if the ladies are still there. Of course
I shall 0 in disguise, and what I learn on that
visit wi determme my future course. Alone I
could do' no wrong, even if I wished to, without
exposing myself to ruin and all my plans to fail-
ure!

Marvel drew a long breath. He was r-
plexed. He knew not what to say or do. I he
0 lg opposed the rejects of Spirifort he knew
t e latter would eit er ut him out of the way,
or  confine him that  opposition would not
avai .

“ Your plans seem feasible!” he said. “Of
course you would not object to my going to Bal-
timore with ty;u—disguised so no one would re-

'ze me t t had ever before seen me.”

‘ Most decidedly I should object, for there is
no one else on board whom I could safely leave
in command !”

“ As you will.”

Marvel spoke as if he was resigned to the
course the chief meant to take; but from that
instant be resolved to escape from the vessel on
the very first opportunity, and to devote his life
to the rotection of those whom he had almost
{0 n in the wild life he had so long been

And here—a brief narrative of how he came
to lead it is opportune.

Choosing a mariner’s life even in his boyhood,
he went to sea with an old riend of his parents,
while both were living. Before he had finished
his third voya e be had become so proficient in
navigation an seamanshi that he came home
a second mate, appointed in place of a man who
was not fit for the duty.

He went to sea on his fourth voyage in a clip-
per ship bound to New Orleans from Baltimore,
with a rich general cargo. That ship was spoken
once, south of Abaco on the Bahama Banks, but
never again was heard from. It was supposed
she had no down with all on board.

She did go down—but she was scuttled and
sunk by the red-plumed pirate after her crew
had made a d rate resistance. Brave as the
bravest, youn idgewood hadfou ht the pirates
until stretch senseless on the decgk.

Such courage in amere be pleased Spirifort,
and when the others were sla and left to sink
with their dismantled ship, the pirate had the
youth carried into his own cabin, where be ten-
derly nursed him back to life.

It was long before he was able to stand on a
deck in, and when he came back to a knowl—
edge 0 things about him, the pirate 8100 which
Spigort then commanded lay in a love y little
bar r in the Island of Tortu ,where cocoanut
and lofty r'otyal palms spr their broad leaves
over a swa of soft and flowers.

There, on the islan , in ele nt quarters, with
fair women to serve and wait upon him, every
luxur around him, the youth was gradually
broug t back to strength and health.

Then Spirifort told him of the utter destruc-
tion of the ship in which he had sailed, with all
on board but him—not a vesti left, so that
henceforth he would be sup lost with her,
like the rest.

Gradually he worked upon the b0 ’8 mind, by
exhibitions of immense wealth, un ' the lad con-
sented to sail with him. .For the other choice
was death, for the pirates neither saved nor kept
prisoners.

And, at the same time, the boy who had pur-

ly given his name as Edward Marvel—leav-
ing 03 the name of Ridgew00d, made up his
mind to escape from such a dreadful life the mo-
ment it was made possible.

Ioarning soon that young Marvel was a len-
did navi tor, as well as a seaman, piri-
fort 0 him his first officer, much to the anger
of the man whom be en rseded—a pirate in
ever sense. The latter t toned vengeance,
but did not live lon enough to injure his
rival, for Spirifort hea his bitter words and
put a bullet thro hhis head. A mutineer never
met any more at is hands. ~

Gradually rvel had grown into the life thus
forced u n him. feelin as if he was dead to
those be ad left behind 'm, and knowing that
by the law of nationshis life was forfeit from the

I ,

 

association in which he would be found should he
ever be captured.

    
 
 
 
  
 
 
   
   
 
  
  
  
 
 
  
  
  
 
   
    
  
 
  
 
  
   
  
  
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
    
 
  
 
  
  
 
   
 
  
   
  
  
    
  
  
   
  
 
 
  
 
  
  
 
   
  
  
 
    
 
  
 
 
   
  
  
   
   
 
   
   
   
      
     
 
    
   
   
  
  
  
 

“We are off Montank Point; the northern en-
trance to Long Island Sound is o n under our
lee !" said Marvel to Spirifort, w en they had.
been out from Labrador about two weeks.

Both were in the cabin, and a chart of the
coast was spread out before them.

“ If you want to go into New York quietly,
the way coasters from the North usually go, we
should enter the Sound here and run down to the
city inland.”

‘ Good! Can you run by chart without a.
pilot? Pilots have sharp eyes and would endan-
ger our safety!”

“ I can run by chart. The Sound is wide and
deep and easil ' navigated. Only when we near
the city does t e channel narrow.”

“ Then heave away: we will enter the Sound.”

Marvel went on deck, had sheets trimmed and
the course altered so as to mm in. Then he re—
turned to the cabin, leaving Spirifort on deck.
His purpose was to examine the chart more care-
fully to note the position and bearing of light-
houses and beacons and the location of shoals.

He had still another purpose. In the run un-
der that cabin was the magazine which held the
powder for the great guns as well as all the fixed
ammunition for small-arms on board the vessel.
In this run, in bags, vast amounts of treasure in
silver and gold coin were stored—the common

roperty of officers and crew—or so understood.
n the magizine was a box in which lay loose
eat num rs of diamond rings, bracelets
grrooches, etc., the richest and choicest part of
the treasure. To this magazine both Marvel and
Spirifort held duplicate keys.

And now, in all haste, Marvel went down to
the magazine and filled a large money-belt with
the largest and choicest of these gems. Hurry-
ing 11 to his state-room after closing the ma -
zine, e adjusted this belt about his waist un

his clothing).

He had ut just finished this work and re-
turned toan apparent inspection of the chart,
when Spirifort called out to him from the com-
panionway:

“Come on deck QUICKLY. Two American
men-of—war are just ahead, in the channel!”

CHAPTER XXII.
rm: TRICK WELL PLAYED.

WITH three bounds Marvel was on deck. A
wild hope entered his breast. He had not one
association of tender feeling for any on board
that hated craft—doubly. trebl hated since a
wish for a nobler, better life been born with -
his love for sweet Melissa Duprét. If the pirate r
could becaptured, and he convince the captors
that he was nota willing irate—had been forced,
as he truly had been, to ome one of the blood-
stained band, he would soon be a free man, free
to join her whom he loved, and free to lead
thereafter a pure and honest life. On his person
he had a fort-ltune, safely concealed from any or-

searc .
Reaching the deck, he saw on their weather
how two square-rig vessels—one a brig, the
other a ship—evidently by her one tier of guns n .
sloo f-war. ,,

To snatch the glam from its beckets on the '
binnacle and draw the focus of sight on the last- .
“A”? 1‘.’ midfiifitmik °‘ “ flihe .100,» ‘

n is e as e reoogn ‘ -
of-war to be the same which had chased them
when they left Baltimore.

“ Keep out of sight, if you value r safety
and ours, Ca tain Spirifort!” he ed. “ The
scar on your aoeisa mark ofreeognition noono
will forget that has seen it before!

“ Curse it, man—what do you mean?” .

“That every odioerfin that shiptwould know

ouataglance, thong, you are no in This]: :,~
aniformnowandwealllookeoame and ouchy
That ship is the sloopof—war
whoseoffioersextended somany com'tesioltonl 
in Baltimore!” "

“ Thunder] ” .

“ LigMningtoo, if she should heave us to and
sendan officeron board who wouldreoogni.“

.“Thatmustnotbe! Steersoastobolnilodé ' “
showing no wish to avoid it. I will gobelow.
Only half a demon of our commonest-looking.
menshallstayondeck. Havethepapenin
your ket, so he’ll not have to. into the"
cabin an officer is sent on on do not
look as you did in Baltimore—you have let your»
whiskers grow and your hair also.” ‘ .-

Spirifort spoke calmly, though he seemed to;
feel the situation and its peril.

Marvel at once held the schooner u on a
°°“’ 8°... ‘t‘if‘l "mimtimm t to i...“
vesse , c , now you
must pass almost within a pistol-shot of her.

The deck of the a parent lub ' lumhu',
drogher was almost eserted—only mt,“
crew usual to a coasterme in sight. Nata.
signof arms—nets look to owherreal char;
acter. ,

As they drew near, the sloop-of-war lufled '*
inthewindandlaidherheadyardsaback“?k
sign that shejwanted to speak the Mb .

craft. 
Marvel, trembling, not from fear, but from a

.
~._‘ ’

  

g, e

 

,

uncertainty how to act, headed so as to reach
'ust to windward of the sloop-of-war where he 1
intended to luff 11 also in easy hail and so close !
thata broadside rom the sloop would sink the
schooner in a single minute.
‘ Just at that instant S irifort put his head up
" the cabin hatch and sai :
'. ' “ Do your best, Marvel, to satisfy them with-
out bein boarded. You know I have sworn
 never to captured, and a match is lit below
if and the magazine open. If the worst comes—-
 we’ll all go to perdition together!”
 Marvel was “struck all aback,” to use a nau-
' tical phrase, and a plan he had formed was dis-
 He knew, from Spirifort’s 100k and
words, that the schooner would be blown to at—
oms the instant her capture seemed inevitable.
So he replied, in a quiet tone:
3 “ Keep out of sight. I’m lufling up where I
‘431 can answer questions without giving them the
trouble to send a boat on board! Have no fear;

 

 

an ,v' I’ll throw dust in their eyes!”

7,, A minute later the lumber—laden schooner was I
 up in the wind and almost motionless within :
; ., easy hail of the 8100 f—war.

g... , “ Schooner ahoy! here from, whither bound,

and your name i” came 8 and clear from an I
a ,, officer whom Marvel recogmzed as the first lieu- I
l tenant of the man-of-war. ,
" ' “Out 0’ Halifax, twenty days, runnin’ for
York for provisions and water—had a ale and ,
stove some of our water-casks. “Bonn to the ,
West Indies with staves and puncheons for the i
an ar trade. We’re the Sally Ann, from Green—
oc l" drawled Marvel—awkwardly.

“So I see—now your stern shows the name. I
Have you seen a rakish brigantine, painted i
blacrk, sharp and low in the water, on your voy- ,
a 9

 
  
   
 
  
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
 
  
    
 
  
  
 
  
 
   
   
    
 
 
     
    
  
 
  
  
  
 
    
   
   
   
  
   
   
  
   
   
  

“ No, cap’n—haven’t seen nothin’ but some I
flshin’craft on the banks since we’ve been out.
We’ve been in a to or a gale all the time!”

‘f Very well! Fil awa ! We'llnotdetain you!”

"‘Thankee, ap’n! W hat mon ht your vessel
bet—I see she flies the Stars and tripes 1" ‘

“The sloop-of—war Ontario, Captain Porter,
bound on a cruise. Report us when you reach
New York!” |

“ Ay, ay, sir!”

The sloop-of-war now squared awai and re- 1
sumed her course, and Marvel drew 5 cats aft
on the schooner and headed as near down the i
Sound as the wind would let him. i
' As soon as both vessels were well apart, seein ‘

that the bri had held her wa , Marvel ste peg
 down into he cabin to tell pirifort tha the ,
, danger was over.

He found the pirate chief calmly smokin .
near the hatch which covored the magazine, an
 saw, too, that the hatch was open, and a lighted ,
V ‘ fuse burning within reach of his hand.

 “It is all over—we are safe for this time at
1‘ .Jeast!” announced Marvel. ‘
, “Yes! I heard every word. You did well,
-Mr. Marvel— well! I will not for et it here-
It would ave been a. close cal had they .
boat on , but you see I was ready
, for the worst!”
a And Spirifort pointed to the open magazine '
‘ who? tons of powder lay exposed to an igniting
' .. r .
SPThen, laying down his cigar, he extinguished
the fuse, and closing the magazine put on the
shelterin hatch again.
’ Marve did not evince any surprise. More
’.than once he had heard the captain swear never
to be taken alive, and that when capture was
Lbertainthe schooner should go down or up, no
mattaelerhich, with all on board and the treasure
"as we

Returnmg' to the deck. as night was now draw-

-"hi on, he set his lookouts, put up the customary

 héht: and shaped his compass course by charts.

, . manner in which he had handled the

:Ichooner, and answered the man-of-war in the

T‘ Jehour of peril, made Marvel more than ever popu-

‘ "hr with the crew. Little did they dream how

Ignear he had been to betraying them, for his first

'planwastorunascloseas he couldtooneof the

moi-war, throw himself into the sea, and

- swimming to her, announce himself as escaping
"  a pirate, leaving them to no uncertain fate

 could not reach or man a gun for de-

mnst surrender or be sunk.

Only the certam’ ? that Spirifort wouldrEive

 no chance for t c act saved them. S ' orti

i a dead ridershot, and ever kept his avorite
W loaded where he could use it at a second’s

notice. .
.1 Marvel had thought of this only when he saw
$61318. stern face of the chief in the companion-
‘ é. y, just before the bail came from the sloop-
war. And he knew that one who could hit a
Wag bottle tossing in the sea a hundred yards
ay, nine times out of ten, would not miss the
= of his head at half the distance.
he: waited for another and a better chance.
did not mean that, Spirifort should reach
timers before he did, for he put no faith in
, professions of pure love and a desire to leave
life he had led so long.

CHAPTER XXIII.
' srmxron'r’s Loss AND GAIN.
Arms the two men-of-war were well out of
-. so that no critical eye could see the change

/

 

: well’s Island, telling the supposed

! o
1 c or—wide awake, thinking of

ea I er,

even through a glass from their decks, Spirifort l
and a few more of the (pirate crew came up and ! life.

helped to trim sails an work the “Sally Ann,”
for the wind had drawn ahead and they had to
makéa occasional tacks as they proceeded south-
war .

Even with all sail set, and a chunky head sea
to butt against, the schooner made slow head—
way, and the night of another day was on them
when they sighted the narrow ss known as
Hurl Gate—or on their chart Hel Gate. It was
marked “ very dangerous,” and risky as it was,
Spirifort knew he must have a pilot to pass it in
the night as he wanted to.

So, with Marvel again acting as captain, the
hail of a pilot-boat was answered and a pilot
came on board.

He was in a 1i ht skiff, which was fastened
astern as soon as 0 got on board, so he could
leave after the schooner was safely through
“ The Gate.”

This pleased Spirifort, for the man would be
on board too short a time to make any danger~
ous discoveries. In truth, he was not half an
hour in performing his duty, and left the schoon-
er assoon as she the eastern end of Black-
ca tain, Mar-
vel, of two anchorages—one off the atter , the
other near “The Hook,” in the East river.

The latter was too close to the United States
Navy Yard, Spirifort said; so the North river
anchorage was chosen, and an hour or more be-
fore midnight they were at anchor in the stream
off Castle arden.

Weary with work, for they had been two da 8
beating to windward in the lumpysea on t e
Sound, they were only too glad to turn in for
rest leaving only one man as an anchor watch
on eck. And he soon fell asleep, giving a class
who spend their nights afloat and wide awake
for mischief, a chance to get in a lesson on “ riv—
er piracy ” to men used to less stealthy work on
the open sea.

Spirifort lay in his berth, his state-room door

n, an hour or so after the came to an an-
's pro visit
to Baltimore, planning out a disguise and a
course of action. The hanging lamp in the
cabin, turned partially down, cast a softened
light over the room.

Suddenly the chief heard a sound as of muf-
iied footsteps coming down the companion-lad-
der, and Just as he sprung to his feet, and
snatched a pair of pisto ‘ from under his pillow,
there was a sound of a heavy fall and a. growl-
{gg vpice muttered a curse on “slippery rub-

rs.

As Spirifort leaped out on the cabin floor, a
pistol in each d, be was confronted by the
man who had just come down the cabin lad-
der so rapidly, who rose from the floor with a
pistol in his right hand, as five other men, all
masked like himself in black, with holes for

their learning eyes, rung noiselessly down
the der and ranged t exnselves by the stile of
the leading man

“ You seem to be ready for visitors, mate, but
aswe are six to one, you mi ht as well lower
them barkers 030nm and give in!” cried the
leader of the m ed men, his pistol cocked and
leveled.

Spirifort laughed.

On the right Marvel opened his state-room
door holdin a cocked piste in each of his hands;
on the left t e second mate of the schooner af'
forded a similar picture; while out from the pan-
try, forward, stumbled black Jumbo with a huge
blunderbuss in his hands.

“ Covered, by the big wolf of Ramapo—cov—
ered in front and rear!” cried the head river

pfirate in disma . “I say, boss, we’ll cry nits
you will, an take to our boat which ys
alon 'de!”

“ ot yet! I never let (guests go away with-
out refreshments !” sai S irifort grimly.
“Though you came uninvi , I shall not ne-
glect the rules of hospitality. Advance, one by
one, lay our weapons on that table and un-
mask! on will be safe—men in the same line
of business should never narrel!”

“ In the same line I t are you i”

“ Pirates like yourselves, only we do a big-
ger trade at sea, while you work the rivers I”

‘ ‘ Boss—you’re fooling us! You’re loaded down
with lumber!”

“I‘ll show you a different sight in my hold.
Do as I bid you, or that blunderbnss will throw
a handful of musket balls through your

“ It am all ready, Mars’ Fire Feather!” cried
Jumbo, his terrible weapon at full cock and pre-

sented.

“Hold on there! Don’t fire! We give in. If
you are what you an , we’re safe in it!” -

And as he s ke t 6 leader of the masked men
advanced and (1 his weapons and his mask on
the fable! Each of his men followed his ex-
am e.

ey were not any handsomer unmasked than
before. Every man in visage looked the full-
rnfiian. The leader, a giant in size had

a scar that was almost aconnterpartof the _ k
on the face of Spirifort.

The latter laughed long and loud. ‘

“ Brother!" he had.

said “ on look asif ou
la! ’

seen service in rough tndes!”

e. : = uccaneer mg.

 

 f}; t i  « 31- 17,: ‘,‘:11.v.,': ,;."‘§g<fi'r}nv'k {4,39 "33’

 

“ Ma be I have. I’ve not been at play all my
ut that’s no reason why I should be
laughed at! You’re not much of a beauty, your—
self!”

“ That is true, my brother. Sit down. gentle-
men. Jumbo, put away that blunderbuss and

et a cold lunch out and some wine and brandy!

arvel, on and the mate can keep laid on
deck an see that we are not disturbei by an
more visitors. If you find the anchor watc
asleep, see who he is, but do not disturb him.
I’ll settle with him at another time!”

Marvel and the second officer Went on deck as
directed.

And, to the astonishment of the river pirates,
the negro steward brought out cold meats, fine
bread, butter, wines and li nor, and they Were
asked to sit down to a verita le feast.

“ You’re a cussed queer ’un !” declared the cap-
tain of the river gang. “ How many men have
you  this old drogher, to make you feel so
eas ?

‘ Over a hundred! One note from the whistle
you see hanging here will fill this cabin with
armed men!’

“ By the eat wolf of Ramapo, you’re well
heelet ! An you’re the coolest cuss that ever
got the drop on me! Boys—we’ve met our mas-
ter! Here’s to his health!"

And the river pirate drained a bumper of raw
brandy as quietly as if it had been water. His
example was followed by his men.

“ And now, cap’n—what are you going to do
with us i)” he asked.

“ No harm you can depend. If I meant that,

ou’d have all been overboard before now!” said
I‘pirifort. “ Are you well acquainted on this
coast?”

“ I ought to be! My father was a coast pilot
and I worked with him nigh twenty years, till he
got into quod for smuggling. Then I went to
the bad and turned river pirate. You ask if I
know the coast? There isn t a bay, river or har-
bor, big or little, from Maine to Mexico that I
don’t know!”

“ Good! I may give you a job. If I do, fin
and your men wil get better pay from me t 11
you ever had before!” v,

“ All right, boss! We risk a good deal in our
line here, for the fly cops are sharp, and only
once in a coon’s age do we make a real good
haul!”

“ Captain, will you step here a moment?”

The second mate called from the head of the
cabin hatch.

“ What is the matter?” demanded v' Spirifort.
“ Anything going wron up there?”

“ Idon’t know, sir! r. Marvel stepped into
the boat alongside, as he said, to see if there
were any more men there. The next I saw he
was scnlling of! in the darkness toward the

shore!” I
“ Hell and f ! He has dewrted! The next
thing we know ’11 alarm the authorities and

we’re can ht like rats in a trap!”

“Yes, t ere are three or four men-of—war and
two revenue cutters lying at anchor within a
mile of us!” announced the river pirate. “ And
the cuss has run 03 with our boat!”

“ You’ll not need the boat, just now. I’ll 've
you and four men a boat-load of silver dol rs,
he pure coin of Mexico if you take me safel
down the coast to where I direct! We must ge
out of here in a hurry. If that man has turned
traitor he will leave nothing undone to destroy

me! On deck there-how is the tide i”

“ Stron ebb, sir.”

“ And t 8 wind?”

“ Coming out fresh from the northwest, sir.”

“Good! Be read to slip the cable and up sail
at once! Call all t 9 men up you need. It is
toodark for men to be seen a rod. Show no
lights! Jumbo, shut off the cabin windows
there!”

These orders giVen, Spirifort turned to the
head river pirate.

“ Your name i” he asked.

” I’m known as Scarfaoed Jim,” was the an-

swer.

“Then, Jim, will you serve me—you and your
men. for a few days, for me PAY?”

“ I will! My men are free to act as they wish
—th'eyhcan k for themselves.”

“ ere im goes, we go. We’ll stick to
him I ” was the re 1y.

“ All right! T e another drink, and then for
the deck. We’ll get out of here, and by the
time we are out at sea, we’ll be fit to fight or run
as the case may call! 'I’ve got the men, the
tools and the craft, as you’ll see when we are on
Wigwam!” f th lodged

e pirates o e river p fealt to those
of the sea in another bumper of bralidy; then
all hurried on deck. ,

In less than five minutes the schooner was
scudding off with a at ebb tide astern and
all the canvas she could use to a still? breeze just
coming out from the northwest. She headed
dBwtn the bay, and Scar-faced Jim was the
P 0 ~

And as she went men were h under the di-
rection of the ca nter prying o the false bow
and bulwarksan stern which impeded her speed

so much.
in tossing the deck load

Others were e
of lumber over , and cleaning away all im.

 

 

 

 

, have her brou

 

ire ea er, e uceanee ' 2; ..

 

pediments which prevented a free working of
the as.

Still others, under Spirifort’s own eyes, were
staying back the masts into theirold rake, and
getting up square hub, so as to crowd on more
canvas if she Coul stand it when outside.

All the men—the river pirates included—
worked as if they knew their lives depended on
their energies. ~

the l

And when, just as day was dawnin ,
schooner, headed of! south by east, wit the i
Highlands of Navesink on her weather uarter,

sped along at a ten-knot rate, no one wo d have

known heras the same veSscl that had beat down

tLong Island Sound so sluggishly the day be t
ore.

Her false sheathin was all stripped off. Her
false bow, stern an bulwarks one also, and
now the bow, sharp hull an ra ing masts as
well as the cannon ready for instant use, told er
true character.

Her crew, once more in shape for work, were
full 2f glee, for they had got tired of peace and
qu1e .

Scar-faced Jim had gladly acce )ted, in ad-
dition to his position as ilot, the o ce of second
in command under Spirifort rendered vacant v
by the desertion of Marvel. is comrades, lured
by the prospect of vast riches held out to them,
joined he pirate crew willingly. '

Scar-faced J im—now known as Lieutenant
James, by order of Spirifort—was 8. 00d navi-
gator, as well as a fine seaman, so t e irates
would have gained by the exchange but or the
new danger on shore—the man bein there who
knew their Southern haunts and co (1 recognize
them in every rig they coul assume.

Fairly at sea before it was light enough to look
up through the Narrows to see if an men-of-
war were in chase, Spirifort scudded o , keeping
a lookout astern as well as ahead.

After a topsail had been got up forward, and
a squaresail set, the pilot’s course 'ven and
taken, Spirifort went down with “ ieutenant
James ” into the cabin to consult upon their fu-
ture course.

Knowing that he could find safety nowhere if
Marvel worked against him, for the latter could
send the hounds of war upon all his usual
tgmlsédhe knew he must destroy him or be de-
5 my .

So he told the old river irate all about Mar-
vel, and the likelihood t t the latter would
hasten to Baltimore to join his mother and sis-
terZ even if he did not at once betray him.

‘ Then why not 0 or send some party to Bal-
timore who knows im, and have the cuss put
out of the we 1 Then if you want the girl,
t off, and with her scud away to

, ere we can rake in plunder hand
over hand I’

“The idea suits me,” said Spirifort. “But
the schooner is already known up the bay and
in Baltimore. lVe could never anchor there
again in safety, day or night.”

“ Who wants 1you to?” demanded Lieutenant

. “Itwi beeas to captureasmalloys—
tfiar or fishing-smack.

a

new waters w

nd her crew down to
Jones’s locker, and then 0 in the craft or

a smart chap with a few gusty men to do
the‘ W131i his

‘ iet ' is being done, I know of a mu
hiding- lace a'little way down the coast wherg
we con  lay for weeks unseen—a lagoon in the
turpentine pines of North Car’liny where I Went
more than once to la out a 6 when dad and
me were coastin’. e hid t ere from the rev-
enue—cutters when two of ’em were close after
him. He was a-smugglin’ ci and tobacco
tthe froxlili Cult)? angld W111i: h' ’ a big thing of
i,w en e o o t on thetreache of
a mate that he badge. row ” ry

f‘ The plan is good—the best in the world!”
cried Spirifort, w en he thought it over a min-
ute or more. “ an you show me the hiding-
place on our chart?”

“ No; it would be a r hiding-place if it was
down on any chart. t has been overlooked be-
cause, in the first lace, it is so small, and next—

it don’t 0 n on in sight. But I can find it,
ht or y, and put you on lan ks that
1 lead on right into it. You run by Hat-

teras inle first, and that is all plain sailin . The
coast isn’t settled yet and scarce ever a.g craft
goes in there, but some old coaster in a stress of
weather that can’t reach nowhere else.”

“ Lieutenant, on are a treasure! I see my
wa clear enoug . Before we are of! the Chesa-

a e, which Will be to-morrow early, if this

olds, we Will both look the chart over carefully
and I can get instructions how to find you. I
Will go in to Baltimore in the craft we ca ture
and take men enough to do my work. will
leave you in command Of this craft. Our inter-
ests hereafter are one and the same!”

‘ Kee-rect,.cap’ll, if zou say so. I’ll send one
of my $113 With you, w o is not only a good pilot
in the y but was with me and dad of old and
knows the hidin’-plaoe. The th' vu work like
a launch on we 3 whenmtie tide is up!
There’s always a lot of s oops and schooners com-
in’ out with oysters from the James river and
up the bay at this time 0’ year. A good man ,
too, are fast and room ,and one of ’em will
Just the thi to run in with. Ten or a dozen

 

men can han e him easy, and no one would we

pect anything wrong in an oysterman. \Ve’ll
do the whole thin 11;) in three or four days and
then—(hen hurra or work somewhere out o’
the reach 0’ buzzardsl” _

Thus—with a plan settled and washed down
with a bumper of brag, to which Lieutenant
James was much ati‘ec , the captain let him go
on deck.

For himself, he now had a little matter of in-
spection on hand. He did not believe that Mar-
vel had gone on shore—deserted him, with em )-
ty pockets. He had, as we know, a key to t e
treasure-box in the magazine.

And to examine this, now that he had time.
was the first work of S )irifort. Often—hundreds
of times had he open the box of jewels and ex-
ulted over the precious contents. He knew they
were worth millions of dollars. He had been
many years adding to the store.

First he found that a bag of gold-coin was
missing. Then—when he examined the large
'ewel-box a cry of rage and vexation broke from
his lips. ecould see that diamonds, pearls and
rubies to an immense value had been taken.

“ The ungrateful wretch!” he gas 1. “He
has carried off a fortune! But I wil have his
life and all those jewels back or lose my own life
in the work!”

Closing the box of which now he held the only
key on board, he shut up the ma azine and re-
turned to the cabin. Hitherto, arvel, whom
he had so im licitly trusted, alone had shared a
knowledge 0 the contents of that box. Now he
meant to keep the knowledge to himself. Thus
only might be at some time be able to appro ri-
ate the whole to his own use—while he satis ed
his ignorant and murderous crew with the tons
or plate and coin that lay in boxes and bags in
the cabin run and after hold.

For, like all other criminals, he looked forward
to a time when he could leave his perilous life
and on some far—off shore live like a kin in all
the luxury and ease that boundless wealt could
brin !

Gd‘ing on deck, Spirifort learned from the of-
ficer of the deck that several lofty, square-rigged
ships were standing out past Sandy Hook and
heading south.

“ That curse has set the men-of—war or cutters
after us!” muttered Spirifort. “ But we’re in
trim now and can outrun any craft afloat,
let alzgne such old tubs as they have in their
m .

“ he men-o’-war don’t amount to much, with-
out you’re under their l” said Lieutenant
James, his scarred face a aglow with pride over
his new position. “But, they’ve got some cut-
ters in the revenue line that are keen as blood-
hounds; but I reckon this little devil, as you call
her, can outsail ’em all!”

“ Stake your life—all our lives on it and we’ll
win I” was the cool mplfi. “We’re hardly in our
old trim yet, but ou’ see us leave ’em every
hour till not a sai can be seen astern. But we
are in our old pattern now, and we must look
out ahead as well as aft, lest we tumble on
an enemy when we least expect it!”

He now looked again carefully at every stay,
and spar, and brace, had new sails set up, and,
bendin one at a time, soon had better canvas to
:pld t 9 still? nor’Wester that drove his craft

ong.

And, as he had boasted, in a little while the
sails astern grew less and less in size, and long
before night they were alone on the ocean—not
a sail in sight.

CHAPTER XXIV. ,

mvnn’s wonx.

WHEN Marvel went on deck he had no thought
of escape from the schooner. But, looking at the
thousands of street lamps and lighted windows
on shore—that shone scarce two cables’ lengths
away—and seeing the empty boat alongside, the
thought of his loved ones in Baltimore, and the
dear one in the far North, leaped like fire into
his heart.

The chance the boat gave him seemed so 0
portune—he knew he could scull her out of sig t
in less than a minute and land in thirty or forty
seconds more, before a boat could be got out to
pursue him. _

Instantaneous as his thou ht came the action.
He was armed. He had a It of coin and an-
other of precious gems about his waist, a full

urse of American old in his pocket and he

been before in ew York in his boyhood
and still remembered somewhat the lay of the
streets

He knew well that, once he was on shore, he
was safe from the open pursuit of S irifort and
his crew, for they had too much ris to run to
make their appearance under the eyes of a vigi-
lant police.

The instant he entered the boat, he cut the
rape which held it to the schooner’s side, un-

hipfied the rudder and placed an our in the
sen ing-hole over the stern.

ea in direct] for the nearest wharf he
sent the t swi tly ahead, and as it touched
the ier he leaped upon it, pushing the boat

adri t with his feet.

Amoment he waited to hear if any alarm was
raised on board the schooner; then hearing no
noise, he passed on quietly up the deserted pier

 

‘:

 

crossed one street and went up a narrow lane
which led directly into Broadway.

He paused on y a moment here to consider
what next to do. To destroy Spirit‘ort would
remove danger from those he loved and also
from himself, for, while that fiend lived. he
would seek revenge. If his vessel was captured
with all the proofs of her character visible un-
der her disguise, the pirate’s fate was scaled.
And he would soon be beyond the povvcr of doing
an injury to any one.

Marvel did not take long to consider what to
do. He hurried to a cheap hotel, which had an
all-night restaurant connected with it. Here he
called for a light supper and a mug of ale, and
while eatin talked with the night-clerk.

Through ini he learned that four men-of—war
—a United States frigate, a sloop-of—war. a large
brig, and a foretopsail schooner—lay at anchor
near by in the i orth river. Also that two
revenue cutters, both foretopsail schooners, and
very fast, were near the very anchorage of the
“ Sally Ann,” or Diablocito.

Calling for a room and paying for his lodging
in advance and ordering 11 a bottle of wine
and pen, ink and paper, whic he also paid for,
Marvel made a very: favorable impression on the
clerk, and also on t e sleepy waiter at his table,
who got a silver dollar for an eye-o ner.

Once in his room, Marvel wrote a etter direct—
ed to the captain of the American frigate, telling
him that the writer had just escaped from the
notorious irate Diablocito commanded by one
Spirifort, ' Own as Fire eather, the King of
the Caribbean waters. In his letter he described
her present anchorage, her disguise and false
name the heavy armament concealed under her
deck- oad and the number of armed and des-
perate men under her decks.

He stated that, when his absence was discov-
ered, she would most likely change her anchor-
age and perhaps try to et to sea.

Making six copies 0 this letter, he hurried
down to the clerk and asked where a trusty
boatman could be found who would do an impor-
tant errand for him. '

A boatman who sle t in the house was aroused,
and taking him outsi e Marvel handed him the
six letters, and giving im ten dollars in gold,
received his promise to deliver a letter to each
vessel—or to the officer in charge of the deck.
When he came back from the performance of
this errand, the boatman was to receive ten dol-
lars more.

As each letter was marked outside—-“ IMPOR-
TANT—FOR msraxr ACTION ”—-he felt sure that
apart if not all the vessels would at once ro-
ceed to overhaul and examine the craft descri ,
whether at anchor or under way.

This done, he sat and talked with the night
clerk over a cup or two of strong coffee for the
next two hours.

At the end of that time the boatman came
back to receive his promised extra pay.

“Thankee, sir!” he said, as he pocketed the
gold coin. “ Whatsoever the news was you sent
to them men-o’-war and cutters, it stirred ’em up
mightily. Before I got back to where I keep my
boat, two or three of ’em was under sail, and a
whole fleet o’ boats from the frigate went tearin’

down the harbor!”
“ The news was important,” said Marvel,
“ and the effect shows that you have earned your

money. It is so near morning I think I’ll take a
walk and come back fora sleep when I have had
breakfast!”

With this excuse he left the hotel. While

there he had seen a notice of the hours when he ~

could leave for Baltimore by railroad, and he
meant toleave as soon as he could learn fora
certaintiy what had become of the Diablocito.
He haCrl y believed she; couldh be captlfnzsed lyféth-
outa esperate strugg eon e 0 pi ' ort
and his crew, and he almost wisfitshe might be
blown to atoms, thus ending the existence of all
on board and relieving him from all future

r11.
peAnxiously he crossed over to West street on
the North river and peered out on the water
where the schooner had been at anchor. She
was not there! But near the very pier where he
had landed, several boats, fully manned, seemed
to be on the watch for something, and he heard
an oflieer say:

“ There must be something in it. The captain
of a vessel at anchor out there, with an anchor
watch on deck says just such a vessel as that de-
scribed in the letter got under why in a few sec-
onds making no noise, slsiaplping her cable with a
splash and runnin up ' faster than he ever
saw canvas 0 up fore. She went right down
the bay. e’ll hear from her soon with three
of our vessels and the two cutters in chase! She
can’t get away!” _

“ Heaven grant she may not but the arch
flend below has ever seemed to hel that S iri-
ggtd aynd I shall never be easy until know 0 is

1

Thus soliloquized Marvel as (19. began to show
in the far eastern horizon. e men-of-war
with the cutters in advance, were seen under
the canvas they could carry far down the bay,
and an officer in a boat sent up from the 3100
of-war with a mesmge to the senior captain in
his frigate, told the officers in boats near the
pier that the bay was covered below with staves,

M...~.__.._v._ _ l _

 

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uncheons and planks thrown from the vessel
hey were in chase of and there was no doubt
she was a pirate, as the letter of warning had
stated

 

Marvel was now in a fearful state of suspense.
The question was if Spirifort did escape, would
he not, in his anger and desperation, endeavor
to strike a blow in Baltimore which would be
worse than death to him if it succeeded? And
how, without revealing his own late connection
with the accursed pirate, could he raise force
Q" from the authorities to save and protect th0se
7, whom he loved—oh, how dearly, now that he
 hoped for a better and brighter life than he had
ever lived before.

For near half the day he wandered aimlessly,
restlessly along the wharves near the Battery,
waiting, hoping to get some news from below.

Seeing a pilot-boat coming up, he hired a
Whitehall row-boat and went on board to see if
he could gather anything there.

He was told that an armed schooner, with a
long, low hull, very sharp and rakish, had gone
i“ to sea, heading south, about daylight—carrying
, a cloud of canvas.

‘-' ~‘ ‘ About two hours later a fleet of men—of—war
and cutters went out, carrying all their kites.
That was all the pilot knew—but they spoke of
i being bothered on their way up by a large uan-
.v tity of drift. Some heavy, splintered p anks
1,} A‘ had been icked up as they came along.

' ’ Marvel mew them at a glance. But he kept

thatto himself and as soon as he got on shore
he started for the point where he could take the
. fastest train for Baltimore.
 On his way he bou ht the first edition of an
 , afternoon paper, am saw a notice of the escape
" of the supposed pirate. In the notice a copy of
the letter sent to the captain of the frigate‘was
printed, and appended were these words:

“ Captain Dallas will liherallv reward the writer
of that letter if he will report on board the frigate
and give his aid toward capturing the notorious
Big-late, who so narrowly escaped capture lately in

timore, where she masqueraded under the
. Spanish flag. The writer is assured of his personal
safety if he so reports."

For an instant Marvel wavered in his plans.

He could, if he would, name ever haunt of the
pirate, every harbor where he had sought conceal-
ment, or gone in for rest, safety and refresh-
ment. He could put the men-of—war on routes
which the pirate would be sure to take, he
thought. But if he did this, his services would
be required as a pilot, and if danger, near and
dark, did threaten those who were in Baltimore,
he would not be there to help them.

On] for an instant did he falter. Checkir‘ig
all 0t er desires he hurried to the station
tOOk the train for Baltimore.

He was faint, weary and slee y, and after
swallowing a sandwic and a g ass of water
from the tank in the car, he leaned back in his
seat and slept.

He woke once only when the conductor in-
' .. his through ticket, and then fell off into

a slumber which lasted until they reached the
,old-fashioned ferry-boat at Havre de Grace.

Here he got a cup of coffee while crossing the
river and got thoroughly woke  It was near

ylight, or those were days 0 slow travel by

rail.

,When the train entered Baltimore clad as he
was in coarse seaman’s drew, he had no fear of
recognition, but to be safe and sure, he entered
a clothing store, purchased a suit that would
have suited a. genteel farmer, or cattle-buyer,
bought a valise to put it in entered a hotel
' as Mr. Smith, and a room an

i When he came down to breakfast in clean
linen and new clothes he looked well, as a mir-
tor in front of his table told him. He breakfast-
od on Baltimore luxuries; then, anxious to look
his best after a bath he went to a barber-shop,
had hishair trimmed and ot shaved.
Then so nervous that e hardlydared trust
himselffor the visit, he wrote his real name on a
card and, with tremulou’s haste, started for the
well-known: mansion in Calvert street, inten
Qtosend his card in b the servant who open
thadoor, rather than startle his mother by a
sudden owes.
, It was ten o’clock when he reached the
front of the house.

“ Great Heave’h! THEY here!" he gasped, as
he looked through the parlor window.

g

 

  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
   
 
   
   
   
  
  
   
  
 
   
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
   
  
  
    
   
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
    
    
 
  
     
   
 
   
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
    
  
  
  

 

CHAPTER XXV.
A LIVING wrrsnss AND A nor sun mun.
 Br noon of the second day out the schooner
guns of! the capes of Virginia, pretty well out in
 edge of the Gulf Stream, yin in wait for
some fast-looking oyster sl or so nor, with
Web, when captured 8 i ‘ art could carry out
the by his first lieuten-
Scar—faced Jim.

fiendish plans su
.: to chief had selected twelve of his
v and most reliable men, besides the pilot

 H by the river pirate, who were with
to boardand ca turethe first vessel they

       
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
  
    

’ uled of a suite. is character. The hapless
~ were to be thrown overboard, and noman

’l

 

was to be left who could tell the tale of how the
rest perished.

They had several hours to wait before they
saw a craft which seemed to have plenty of

and good weatherly qualities.

A half-dozen slow and common—looking craft
went and came Within three or four miles, but
were not molested. But at last, just before night
set in, a smart-looking schooner under main
and foresai], jib and flying-jib, with gaff top—
sail furled on the mainmast—head, came skin-
ning out with “ a bone in her teeth,” as sailors
often say when they see a wall of foam part
under the bows of a vessel going fast.

“She’s our meat! Look how her masts rake.
She is a re ar clipper to go—bet our bottom
dollar on t at I” cried Lieutenant ames, as he
saw her standin toward them.

“Get up a nited States revenue flag and
hoist it before it’s too dark for it to be seen!”
cried Spirifort to the second mate.

In a con le of minutes the flag was at the
main gatl’ 0 the Diablocito, and as the clipper
schooner came near, Spirifort told James to bail
And make her heave to.

“ Schooner ahoyl Lufl up and heave to un-
der our stern!” shouted James. “We wish to
send a boat on board!”

“A , ay, sir! What vessel is that?” came
back rom the little clipper.

“United States revenue-cutter Marion, Cap-
tain Faunce in charge! What schooner is that,
what cargo, and where bound t”

“The oyster-schooner Flirt, from James river,
for New ork, sir, with a cargo!”

“ All right. We want some oysters; will have
a boat alongside in a few minutes, and then you
can lay your course!”

It was new dark, so dark that the little crew
of the oysterman could not see how large a num-
ber of men were comin in the boat.

There were Spirifort, is ilot and twelve men
besides, with the crew of t e boat which was to
row them to the oysterman and return to the
schooner after the capture.

The vessels were not a pistol-shot apart when
the pirate boat touched the oysterman’s deck.
The crew of the latter, officers and all, were
but six men, and before they could ask a. ques-
tion, or scarcely shriek for mercy, they were
stricken down and tossed overboard.

The work—fell and dreadful as it was, did not
occquly three minutes of time. Within that
peri Spirifort shouted:

' “All right; the craft is ours. Dead men tell
no tales l”

Then, while the schooner’s boat returned to
the Diablocito’s side, to be hoisted in, sheets
were started on the ca tured oysterman, and
she headed away to t e southward with the
schooner. , _

“ Dead men tell no tales.” But—God is all-
powerful and his providences are wonderful!

he captain of the oysterman, stricken down by
a stunning blow from the butt of Spirifort’s new
empty pistol, was pitched into the water with
the rest of his men. Yet—while all but him
went grgliug down to death, he revived in the
cold h of waters and rose to the surface as
the two vessels swept away in the darkness, to

the southward.
Swimming desperan for life he watched
, while he prayed to

their disappearing li h

Heaven for rescue. fie had a dear wife and a
precious boy waiting his return m New York—
would they never, never see him more? Must he
perish as he felt his men had done?

Oh, it was terrible! Out there alone on that
dark heavin sea—thirty miles from land ,
what did he eel as he struggled wildly for of

A drifting plank! He threw his tired arms
over it and rested. If he could but holdtast till
the dawn of another day he mi ht see a vessel—
might,in the infinite mercyo his Creator, be
saved-saved for those whom he loved so well
and to whom he was almost all in all of love and
life’s 811 port andjo .

The p k was 0 d and water-soaked—it had
been so 10 in the water that barnacles had

wnupon t, and it barely ke t his head and
ouliders out of water as he res with his arm
over t.

The short, tumblin waves washed over him
continually, and but or the the ht of those so
dialer to hingin hialléttlheahmgnie in be t t 131‘;

eci, ewo ve venu ego
Sled. gut he was a brave man, a glii'istian, and
strong of heart. He had prayed all his life, but
now he pra ed as he had never done before, in
agony and ear, to be spared for the sake of the
dear wife and little one.

All that long, that dreary night, he clun to
his frail sup rt——chilled to the marrow, nt
resolute to t 0 last. When the morning star
rose he saw it, and when the rays of the rising
sun an to redden the gray, ntisty clouds in
the eas , he looked longingly over the wide waste
ofwaters to see if a speck of white indicated a

am].

And oh how his heart leaped up thankftu in
praise to Him who had heard his prayers! He,
saw six sails in sight, all within a few miles of
each other, and one, a great ship, seemed to head
directly for him. ‘

Nearer and nearer she came, and he hardly
breathed lest he should so weaken that his shout

for help should not be heard, when she swept by,
for her course would be a musket-shot away (11-
most.

Nearer and nearer, until he saw the pennant
aloft, the guns and lookout in the cross-trees, and
knew she Was a man-of-war.

Now she was almost abreast of him, and he
had not been seen. Madly, wildly he shouted,
and tried to wave his feeble arms in the air.

On—on she went, and was alin0st be ond him
in her course when an officer, with a g ass in his
hand stood up in the waist of the ship and scan-
ned t 6 ocean.

The poor captain, too exhausted now to even
wave a hand, was seen, and sharp orders given
through the speaking trumpet reached his ears.

Swiftly tlégfreat sloop-o -war came up in the
wind, her h -sails flapping in the breeze until
they were thrown flat aback, while the after-
yards were braced sharp—up.

Even before the ship’s sh headwa was
stopped, a boat was lowered rom the vits,
with the crew all in, ready to pull toward the
hel less man the instant she touched water.

b, What music in those springing oars and
the shout of the officer:

“Hold fast, my man, we’ll soon be there!”

And soon, very soon, strong arms grasped the
poor captain, and he was lifted unconscious into
the boat. He had fainted from excess of joy as
much as from weakness.

Quickly he was in the cabin of the grand old
ship—the Concord, Captain Ridagelty, and his
story told. Then signals flew o t from the
mast-head, notifying the other vessels in sight—

men—of-war.

“ Pirate heard from—she captured a schooner
at twihght, last night, and threw the crew over-
board. We have picked {1p one survivor. Pi-
rate and her ca ture bore away south, a little
westerly, towar Hatteras. Keep up the chase!”

While everything was done to restore the al-
most exhausted oystcrman, the sloop-of-war bore
awa again, set studdin -sails below and aloft,
and ept u the chase. er captain hoped the
pirate mig t get careless and shorten sail when

e sup sed he was beyond ursuit.

Lit e did he dream the the master fiend of
the band, Fire Feather himself, disguised as an
honest oysterman, with half of his murderous
party hi den below, was speeding up the Chesa-

ke in the captured schooner, while the Diab-
Riga herself, guided by a. skillful hand, was
swiftly nearing a hidin -p1ace unknown on the
charts and safe from s approach—for, with
twenty-two feet draught the man-of-war could
not cross over the bar over which, with nine feet
de )th the sea-rover could safely pass.

he other vessels, answering the signals of the
Concord, now crowded on a the canvas they
could set, and spreading right and left so as to
barer keep in sighting distance, Swept of! to
the south.

Captain Minturn, the rescued oysterman, had
so completely described the pirate that Captain
Ridger knew she could not be a great many
leagues ahead.

It was thought she had taken the o ster-schoou-
er as a tender for her captain sai she was the
fastest boat of her class in the great oyster-fleet
which plies between Virginia and the Northern

rts.
poHe represented that she was boarded by at
least twenty men when the sup revenue-
cutter ordered him to heave to. he deck of the
pirate seemed to be full of men, and all her guns
appeared to be run out and read for action.

‘She shall have all the fight 3 e wants if we
once get her under fire!” and the gallant Ridge-
l,a noble man of a. noble stoc ,as he made
the rescued seaman at home in his own cabin.

 

CHAPTER XXVI.
m RETURN or m PBODIGAL.

Wm Edward Marvel Rid wood—the name
onthecardinhishand, and is real full name
it was—uttered the cry of astonishment which
closed the twenty-fourth chapter of this story,
he saw, seated with his mother and sister, near
the lor window, two Eople who had been in
his hts night and almost all the time
since he eft far-off Lab or.

These two were no other than Monsieur Duo
prét and his daughter, Melissa

Delayed by strong gales, and toward the close
of the voyage IE: verse winds, havin to seek
harbor several es, the little packet been
along time in reaching her destination. Thus
itoccurred that Monsieur Dupret and his fair
daughter with the letter of warning from the
son and brother, had been but one day in the
Ridgewood Mansion when the young man him-
self reached the city.

iv ,open arms not only on account
of the letter they bore but for their own evident
worth and true gentilitz‘, they felt and appreci-
ated the warmth of the welcome.

‘Mrs. Ridgewood, finding that they had not
discovered be real character of the vessel in
which her son had been, as she behaved, un-
willingly held, did not try to undeoeive them.

Between Sadie and Melissa a magnetic sym-
pathy seemed to springing the moment they met
-—a mutual love—a si r 00d of nature hard to
describe, but beautiful to look

 

Elm
After a moment of trem ous hesitation.

  
 

  

w...‘
a

sad v.

i
a

 

 

- nocaneer

‘,  we ,, y

 

oung Ridgewood as we henceforth shall know

im, not having 11 seen by those whom he
had looked upon, advanced to the door and
sounded the knocker.

A colored servant quickly appeared, and hand-
ing him the card, the young man said:

‘Take that to your mistress and say I am
here and will be most happy to wait upon her
if she is disengaged!”

The servant left the door ajar and carried the
card in. A scream of joy broke on young
Ridgewood’s cars and then a sound of hurry-
ing feet.

Stepping into the hall to avoid the notice of
passers-by, he was in a second clasped in the suc-
cessive embraces of mother, sister and sweet—
heart, if the term is applicable.

At first, words were hardly ken, emotion
chokin utterance. But soon, in the )arlor
where e met and gras the hand 0 good
Monsieur Duprét, Marve had a chance for brief
ex )lanation.

e told of his arrest and confinement on the
schooner away up in the Northern seas, of his
release only because it was necessary to use his
knowledge of navi ation, of the disguise )ut on
the schooner so s 6 could enter the astern
ports unknown, and of his escape by the first
chance he had and instant exposure of the dis-
guised pirate.

“ And now that I have found you here sa ,—
all that I love and care for on earth-I sha l at
once write to the captain of the frigate in New
‘York, avowing nifyself the author of the letter
he received and o cring m services as a pilot
to hunt the pirate down an to assist in his de—
struction.”

“My son, you are m‘ ht! It is your only
honorable course!” said t e mother, looking on
that manly form through a mist of tears.

“ But, dear mother—we ma lose him just as
soon as found. He will be kil ed if ever the pi-
rates are within reach of him i” cried Sadie.

“ Alas, yes! Let those whose business it is to
make war and hunt down pirates do the work
they are paid to do. Remain with those to whom
your life is so precious!”

And Melisse wept while she spoke.

“M daughters, both, listen to me!” inter—
posed onsieur Duprét gently], but firmly. “ It
seems that this arch fiend, e red-plumed pi-
rate, whOse deeds of cruelty and rapaeity have
horrified the civilized world has become mfatu—
ated with Miss Ridgewood’s beauty, and has
sworn to ssess her. While he lives, has a crew
to follow is lead, and a plank to float upon, he
is dangerous! Those whom he seeks to injure
are in constant, deadly peril! And our hero,
here, will know no )eace or safety until this
Spirifort is slain and is followers destroyed!

“ His bold, brave offer of service to the Gov-
ernment, as well as his first action after escaping
from the pirate will tend to lift his character
above reproach, and to prove that his stay
among such vile wretches was enforced and
not voluntary. Therefore I, who love him well,
sayto hint—write at once upon the good impulse
in your heart. Go and do your duty, and that
done, return‘here for the reward which faith

and love will render. As our mother’s eats,
Melissa and I will stdy an help to your
dear sister should dan or approach!”

These words from onsieur Duprét conquered

all 0 position on the part of the girls. And in
less t ian half an hour the letter written over his
full, real name was mailed to Captain Dallas of
the frigate in ew York. And in it youn
Ridgewood advised that a war-vessel be kep
near Baltimore in case the pirate, in his

rate mood, should venture into the bay.

The offer was made to 0 at once on board of
such vessel as ml ht be so ected, and to pilot her
and her consorts all the pirate’s haunts until
he could be found and taken or destro ed.

This letter mailed Ridgewood song t all the
enjoyment he could in the presence of his loved
ones, while he waited for a reply to his letter.
That, as the mails ran, would be apt to come on
the second day after his ofler was mailed.

Telegrzfiphic messages were yet unknown, nor
were ma‘ facilities near so rapid than as now,
as the reader will understand.

Returnin home—what home seemed now to one
who had so ong been a homeless wanderer of the
seas—young R dgewood felt as if he was enter-
ing Heaven after a c1058 inspection of the other
place.

What seemed most strange to him was that
Sadie, his own sister, seemed more shy in his
presence than fair Melissa. But he forgot she
was a mere child when he went away—a little
thing in pinafore and pantalettes, and he a slen-
der stripling of a boy. Now she was a grown

oung woman very retired, little carin for and
int little used to socxety, and he, , broad-
chested, muscular, and weather~bmnzed-—an al—
most herculean (young man. No wonder she
was almost afrai of him, when she thought of
his late terrible associations

That evening, while Sadie and Monsieur Du-
prét were intent overa game of chess, and the

air Melissa was trying some new music, oung
Ridgewood managed to get his mother n her
private closet, where he could deposit his money
and valuables in her strong box where she ke t
her Silver. etc.

 

 

. :30 and all, and s

 

‘ to find the traitor who deserted us in New

’ Remember,

He did not reveal to her t o i

value of the contents of his bolts, for he did not
then think it best.

He felt better when he was free from them.
Then he slipped out to the police station and
without giving any special reason beyon the
nervous fears of the household, asked that a
special watch should be kept by the police of that

beat on the Ridgewood Mansion and any sus- ,

picious persons interviewed who were seen near
t

1 .

This done, he sought the side of Melisse Du-
prét to spend all the time he could with her prior
to the recei t of an answer to his offer to the
captain in i ew York. For, once separated from
her in the line of this new duty, he did not know
how long it would keep them apart. One thing
gave his mind ease: her father had romised to
remain with her there till he returne , no matter
how long he was gone.

That was a happy evening to the rover. He
received from his afiianced love her miniature,
painted on ivory by her uncle, the riest, who
was, though an amateur, a ver skil fnl artist.
It was an excellent likeness o the lovely girl
and, incased in a locket of heavy gold attac ed
to a slender chain, he hung it over his heart as
an inestimable treasure. And when, at a late
hour, he retired to his chamber—the same he had
slept in when a boy—it was with a thankful and
a hopeful heart.

Thankful that he was once more beneath that
roof, hopeful of a future as bri ht as contrast
could make it from the dark, dar past.

CHAPTER XXVII.
THE rmsn’s BECONNOITER.

BUT few words were exchanged between Spir-
ifort and Lieutenant James, his new executive,
after the swift and unresisted capture of the un-
fortunate oyster-schooner. All their plans had
been laid and well arranged in the privacy of the

 

‘ pirate’s cabin.

As soon as he had disposed of the hapless crew

j of the oysterman, S lrifort filled away, and
, crowdin

all sail on be little Craft, ran for a
0011 le 0 milcs or so on the same course with the
Dia locito, to test the speed of his prize. He
found her to be very fast, though no match for
the larger veSSel under the same 

Well satisfied with her speed, and finding a
good stock of provisions in her hold, he deter-
mined to set out at once on his expedition up the

ba .

I’lailin Lieutenant James, he said:

“ I s bear up for Baltimore now. Look for
us in the l oon in four of five days I”

“ If you ave good luck, you mean!” cried his
lieutenant.

“ No fear there. Satan never deserts me. Nor
do I fail in anything I plan!”

The oyster-boat was now hauled sh on a
wind, and with her lee rail well down to e wa-
ter she headed in between the capes.

The Diablocito which had shortened sail while
in company with the other, now crowded on
again and bore away on her course, calculating

, to pass Hatteras in the night and to be ready to

run into the inlet with the earliest light of an-
other day, so as to gain her hiding-place unseen.

The 0 r-boat was a 8 flat of very fine
model, tween ei hty and ninety tons in meas-
urement and, 10a ed, her best int of sailing
was on the Wlnd. As she coul hardly lay her
course up the bay, requiring a tack now and
then, it was handy to have so many men
to tend sheets and WOI‘K her. The river pirate

" was not only a good pilot, but knew many men
; in the o ter trade who did not know his late ne-

farious usiness in New York, so the plan to sag
if questioned, that Spnirifort hadbought the boa ,
'p a new crew, could be

carried out with is aid.

A that night, keeping watch and watch, one-
half the men on deck ’at a time, the schooner
beat up the bay and by noon the next day the
were so far up that theystood on under easy '
soasnotterunintoawharfat Baltimoreun'
night had again set in.

‘ The wind is fresh from the west. After we
have done our work, we can cut and run for it,
and be half-wags) sea before da dawns. "

This was Sp ort’s remark his pilot and

mate.

“ We should all understand ust what work is
before us, so as to know how do it," said the
pilot in reply.

“ You are right,” replied Bpirifort; then he
called up his men and told them his plans of ac-
tion.

“ I shall leave our pilot here and one man on
board when I take the other nine on shore with
me. The will keep the sails loose, ready for
hoi ‘ ; eave light fasts out that can be cut in
asecon , and be ready to be ofi'xin haste when
we return. I shall leave the schooner a little be-
fore midnight so as to reach the house I intend
to visit by or before that time. There I ex 1:
or
and evidently ot men—of-war after us in chase.
If he is there, 6 dies on the spot by my hand.
he is my game, and no one but I
must raise a hand to him. Before he deserted

* he stole quite a lot of treasure belonging to the

Diablocito and her crew. That I hope to recover
with more plunder of value, such as we can car-
ry 03 with ease.

 

“There will be one bit of treasure there
which I claim for m self, not only for revenge
on the traitor Marve , but for my own urposes.
It is a woman. She must be bound an gagged,
and carried off unscathed—not even insulted by
a rude word.

“ We may do all this in safety without creat-
in an alarm, for at so late an hour the streets
w’ be deserted. But if an alarm is raised, we
can easily beat off a few licemen armed with
clubs or cut them down if they try to stop our

wa .

I We must, no matter What the odds be, fight
our way back to this deck with all our lunder,
andgshen we are safe. Do you all un erstand
me?

“ We do!” was the ready response.

“All right! In the lunder we get to-night
you shall all share equa with myself. But the
woman must bear no ru 6 words, receive no in-
sult. You all know me! I reward the obedient
—the disobedient DEE!"

No more was said. The men supped earl ', for
the spires and towers and monuments of alti—
more were in si ht. At about nine o’clock, un—
der a jib only, t e schooner lided slowly into a
berth at the end of a Wharf 1; at seemed entirely
unoccupied. Only a couple of canal~boats and
an old scow were near, and they were inside and
did not seem to have any men on board.

As soon as the schooner was fast and her last
sail lowered, Spirifort started ashore to recon—
noiter, leaving orders for eve man to wait his
return in quiet. He wore an o d sou’wester tar-

ulin hat, whose ear-flaps hun over his scarred

ace, and was dressed in roug , shaggy clothes
that completely dis ised him.

Thus appareled, nding his tall form in a
stooping, loungin gait, he did not look nearly
as 131' e as he rea g was. He moved rapidly on
until e reached alvert street, and from the
opposite side lared into the open windows of
t e Ridgew mansion.

And a bitter curse rose from his li when he
not only saw Madame Ridgewood an her lovely
daughter, but Marvel himself and the fair girl
whom he had seen in the Bower of Roses at
Labrador. Also a stately and noble-looking old
gentleman, whom he justly supposed to be her

ather.

“ 80—50! The double-distilled traitor had his
sweet love ready to meet him! Maybe she is
already his wife? No matter! I will carry oi!
two women instead of one, to-night!”

Thus muttering to himself, Spirifort went up
the street a little ways and crossed over. Then
coming down close by the windows, he took
another searchin look inside on the evidently
happy group. 'ous, he put his hand on a.

isto concealed inside his vest. He longed to

'11 Marvel then and there. But he controlled
himself. Itwould spoil the rest of his plan. He
needed his men with him.

Gnashing his teeth in fury, he turned and
went to the schooner. His e es blazed with hate
as he told his men that be seen Marvel there,
and he bade them look well to their arms. »

He would not wait till slow midnight to do his
work. It was not a long distance from the
wharf to the house. He would break in on them
in the hight of their happiness, like the destroy-
ing fiend that he was, and leaving the dead be-
hind him, bear the hving to his schooner, and
then send away before the northwest gale which
blew so strong and fair for his escape.

He was so eager and ferocious now, that at
ten o’clock, while the streets had yet magyssmg-
glers passing to and fro, he mustered men,
whose arms were well concealed by theiriooam
clothing, and started for the scene of action.

——«
CHAPTER XXVIII.
m BLPW STRUCX AND THE 8“ CHASE.
THERE was one thing that neither Madame

Ridgewood nor her daughter nor their Elm ,  .

could do. They could not induce young

woodtospeakof theterriblelife hehadbeen Y

forced to lead. With a shudderhe refused to de-
scribe the horrors of such an existence.

B t there were plenty of other to talk
abou the winter life which Monsieur Duprét
and his child led in icy, snow-bound Labrador,
the habits of the mines, the short but lovely
summer-time, and all that.

As' hfromsweetMelisseatinnctedthenotioo
of her over.

“ Why that sigh of sadness!” he asked.

“ Because I fear that to-morrow will b a-
letterthatwilltakeyouawayfromusfor .
perhaps months !” she answered. ' /

“ No matter, darligg, if it only gives no future

eandsafe. eareyoungandfullof
ovinglfaith, an can wait for happiness!”

»“ A —-what is that? Some one at the door?
Ma be a letter comes by hand!” said Mn.
Ri wood, as the door-signal rapped out on the
stillness of the ni ht.

A servant had urried to answer the call, and
inless than a minutes heavyfallinthe hallwu
heard. Hehadbeenstrickendownmndahordo,

of armed men rushed headlong into the lm'.
“Spirifort—and I unarmed!” cri youngj
Ridgewood, as he sprung forward to grapple

with the pirate chief. . i
“ Dog of a traitor, die !” yelled the pint; In: 

 

 Fix? ,;;  ,-

 

hr
U

’ " ire‘Feather,‘ the Buccaneer King»: 

. :_,:"ir.u‘:.:..

 

 

 

ing his pistol as it almost touched the young
man‘s breast.

Without a moan the young man fell to the
floor, while his mother dropped swooning on his

boildy.
onsieur Dgprét for want of a better wea-
Bon, brandish a heavy mahogany chair and
rought it down with terrible force on the head
of a pirate who had clas (1 his shriekin daugh-
ter in his rude arms. T 0 man fell crus ed and
bleedingto the floor, and the gallant old man
turned to strike another blow, but Spirifort
with a bound seed a short, keen—bladed sword
through and t ou h his body.

The rattle of po ice clubs reached their ears
now, and shouts from a man left at the 'door
warned the irates that help was coming for
those whom they assailal.

“ Quick—seize the girls and beoff !” cried Spiri-
fort, as he spurned poor Duprét’s bleeding body
aside. “ Ha! The police in force! We must
fight our way to the boat. Lead the way, Ru-
pert Strongalo—I will cover the rear; forward
at once !”

Two men, ushing their rude garments into the
mouths of t e screaming girls, seized and lifted
them like babes in their arms, and while, with a
drawn cutlass, the man Spirifort had called on
led the way out, cleaving down all opposition,
Spirifort himself covered the rear, cutting down
every man that came within the sweep of his
blade.

Rushing toward the wharf, while the small
bod of police fou ht as best they could, some
of t em using piste s but fearing to kill the girls
the strove to save, the pirates made their way.

wice Spirifort was adly hit with bullets,
but shooting back and slashing right and left,
he fought his walyly onward and at last, and in a
short time, too, t ey reached the schooner.

The (pilot had heard the sounds of battle, and
he an the other man had jib and foresail
hoisted.

Just the instant the almost exhausted pirates
touched the deck, Spirifort cried faintly:

“CUT Loosa!”

Ever fast was cut and the schooner shot out
on the ark waters, leavimr the baffled ursuers
behind, wild with their defeat, for near y every
miiceman was badly hurt and three had been

' ed outright.

Awa —swift as canvas hurriedly hoisted
could 've her, flew the fleet schooner and in a
little while, driving before the gale, Spirifort,
with his two prizes securely bound in the cabin,
hadtimetolookto hisownlosses and have his
wounds cared for, as well as those of his men.

None were hurt so badly that they could not
do some dut , their leader being hardest hit of
all. He 9. broken left arm and a bullet in
“his thigh. Rude was the surgery there, but one

of his men cut linters from an oar and with
stifl canvas for dages put the broken arm in
the best shape ible. The other wounded men

were looked to as Well, and food and drink given
to keep 11 their stren th.

Not an il they were eagues down the bay al-
most running bows under from the press of sail,
did Spirifort take time to speak to is captives.
, Then he had them unbound, and though -

inted to a small, wm owless

.ed, thgy were
room thawi eberthinit.

“Miss Ridgewood, we meet under rough cir-
cumstances, and your accommodations are r;
but soon, in the luxurious cabin of the Diab ocito

‘ you and your fair companion shallhave better

Vex;

‘ die said.

gnot always under contro.
i‘ any mercy shown you use pru ence with our
e.

t7011811
- safe in that room for the present. Take my ad—

w:

5'  Dark and nast , but the pilot runs

 twelve knots, and the
' much better l”

quarters!”

“ Murderer! We ask no favor at your hands!”
“ Kill me even as you slew my brave
brother!”

“ He met the fate of a traitor,” was the sneer-
ing answer. “ Beware how you .anger me, for
thereare fateswhich are worse than death.
have rough men and ones here who are
If ou would have
musical on and your friend be
vice and retire!”

“Come! All is not lost!" gently w
.m:- Melissa, drawin the hot-blooded

timore with her in the room. ,.

At that instant the sound of cannon-shots

eof

' boomed like distant thunder on the air.

“ Curse theml Theyfire from the fort to alarm

revenue-cutters or war-vessels if there are any
iaround!” cried Spirifort.

“ Crowd every rag

the sticks will hear u the craft! The sooner

‘weareatseathebe for us!”

“She has allshe can stand up under!” said a
man who came from on deck, where the ilot
was in charge; “ We never have any luc up

n

‘ ve luck—but it is bad. One good man
1i. ne-but we killed two in the house and a
hal dozen in the street to y for his life. The

guitar, Marvel, has got his reward! How does
5

lpok endeckf”
sm-
pa: as?” \;e vs pillagity 01:8 room. can];
ast or soun an. I we mar
8° 8 Dfiblocitoycouldn’t do

“ Very good! Stay here—watch that room—
Ieethatthe two girls stay where theyare. I am
going ondeck fora while!”

 

 

Limping, painfully, the pirate crept out upon
the spray-washed dec .

As he reached the side of the pilot he asked
him where they were.

“ Broadside to Anna lisnow—about six miles
clear. Do on see the ight there?”

“ Yes. 0 you suppose there are any cutters
or men-o’-war in the bay 3”

“ There is no knowing. You see I have the
binnacle—hght hid exce t the bare room for me
to see the compass. 11 other lights are out.
Ah—look there. We must run northward three
points more till she is by!”

‘I‘Ie‘pointed to some bright lights almost ahead.

hat do you think it is?’ asked Spirifort,
nervously.
“A bay steamer—burning wood. I can see

the sparks from her chimneys.”

The schooner’s course was altered, and none
too soon, for in a few minutes the great steamer
swept up the bay, the sound of her ldle~wheels
heard distinctly above the turmoi of wind and
wave.

“ Do you think they saw us?” asked Spirifort.

“No; if they had they would have tapped
their bell. It is well we have no lights out, and
canvas don’t show in a cloudy night with neither
moon or stars in sight. But we must be on the
lookout every second. The bay is full of vessels
always, but it blows too hard for small craft to
be out when they can make safe anchorage!”

Satisfied with the fidelity of his pilot, after
seein that all the lookouts were Wide awake,
Spir' ort crept wearin down into the cabin
again, and laid his weak form out on the cush-
ioned transom-piece, where soon, from sheer
weakness, as well as from mental strain, he
dropped off into an uneasy slumber.

And there be In until broad daylight streamed
through the sma cabin windows upon him.

Wa ing with a start he rose and sprung to
his feet. A groan broke from his 1i in spite of
a stern endeavor to su press it. is wounded
thig'h, terribly inflam with the bullet still
there, pained ingso much that great drops of
sweat poured from his forehead.

“A few hours more and the surgeon of the
Diablocito will hel me l” he muttered.

Then glancin a the guard near the door of
the little room e asked:

“ Are the captives safe?”

I “Yes—they sit there, pale, silent, and sleep-
essl” ‘

“ It is well. They‘ll improve by and by. No
woman lives who can remain silent ion 1’

Again the pirate crept on deck. e were
down in the broadest (part of the bay. he sea
was heavy. The win had so freshened that
runmng with it on the quarter, the pilot had
been forced to take in the gaff, topsail and single
reef the fore and ' ' , while the flying Jib
was furled to its boom.

Only a few vessels were in sight, and they
seemed to be creeping in under close reefs to find
a harbor. .

“We are safe!” cried Spirifort, exultingly.
“ In two or three hours we will be on the open
seal’

“The n sea, if this gale keeps rising, may
not be 3003.39, after all i” said the pilot, gravely.
“ If we were in any other snap than this, I’d ad-
vise looking out for a good anchorage in a safe
harbor. But we don’t know what may have
been sent after us!”

“ True, and we’ve got to take our chances out-
side, safe or unsafe though the be. The mo-
ment we can luff along the lan we must do it,
keeping as close as possible for a lee!”

“ There are too many sand-spits of! the coast
for us to risk inshore work! said the pilot.
“ We’ll have to give themawide berth. But I’ll
do the best I can l”

“ No one can do more. Go below, new, and

et some food and drink while I keep the vessel
a) her course. You mustn’t wear yo lf out
just yet. I’ll need all you can do when e get
down the coast near the hidinfigplace!”

The pilot went down into is cabin and ate a
hearty meal, washin it down with strong coffee
instead of spirits. e was an old hand at sea,
and had weathered maln‘yx'na tough gale. He
knew what was best for .

An hour later he came on deck, refreshed and
strong as ever. He glanced at the com and
{hen at a lighthouse seen broad on the board

w

“ We can come to, a bit, now and make a little
more southing l” he said. “ lint we’ll have to
take in another reef, fore and aft, to stand up
under it.”

“ All right; reef in and shape her course!” or-
dered Spirifort.

This was done, and with the wind now nearly
abeam, the schooner headed nearly three pomts
outside of the light, a course which would carry
her clear of the ca .

“ Sail ho!” shou
standing forward.

“ Whereawayi” demanded Spirifort.

“ Twaihpoints off our lee bow, sir—a square-
ri p coming-up the coast under tepsails
courses!”

Spirifort went forward with the old 
in his hand that he found becketed to e in-
nacle and looked at her.

Coming aft quickly, he said to the pilot:

one of the men who was

 

If so,
she is making port. What had we best do? If
she should heave us to and search us, we’re
IOSt!

“ What infernal luck is ours. If she is making

“That craft looks like a man-of-war!

port, she’ll run into Hampton Roads. And the
course we’re on will throw us across her hawser,
and close aboard at that!”

“ Then shift it at once. We must run no risk
like that. She is hull up now!”

Instantl the pilot gave the order to slack off
sheets, an
wind nearly aft, headed out to sea.

Anxiously Spirifort watched the ship.

“ She comes up with the wind ahnOst abeam
like a race-horse!” he remarked.

“ Let me take the glass,” said the pilot. “ I
can tell by the way she heads whether she means
to run into the Roads or not 1”

His face was pale when he handed the glass
back to Spirifort.

“ She is a sloop-of-war and a clipper to 0!” he
muttered. “ She is under whole to.  and
courses and stands up to it stiff as a c urchl”

“ But her course ! Is she going into the
Roads?” . -
“ No. That is the worst of it. She is comin

right up the coast, and in a heavy sea way, fa
as we are, she’ll beat us! We must get into
smoother and shoaler water if you don’t want
her in gunshot!"

“ Then put her there—for once under his guns
we’re lost if he should take it in his head to over-
haul usl”

Quickly as it could be done with safety, the
schooner, being dead before the wind was jibed
over, her heavy boom swung to star ard, and
now with sheets trimmed in she headed up the
coast instead of down.

Her course, too was more inshore, to seek
smoother water. And now she plunged forward,
with the Made little forward of the beam, every
spar bendin to the stiff gale.

Spirifort ept his glass on the ship that now
came along nearly astern.

“ She gains on us-—slow but sure!” he said,
with a oan.

“ If s e isn’t in gunshot within an hour, she’ll
have to kee outside of us. I’ll be in shoal
water then,’ assured the pilot, who now took
the helm in person.

“They’re setting top-gallant sail and l
fairl into our wake!” cried Spirifort, fiercely
gnashing his teeth, as he threw the glass down.

‘ They suspect us, or they would not chase. Ten
thousand curses on such luck! Hal What are
you doing there?”

The last angry cry was directed to Sadie Ri e—
wood and her fair friend. Both stood in t e
cabin hatchway looking at the ship. '

“ Lookiu at our friends and your enemies,”
answered ie, calmly.

“ Back—back to the cabin, or rude hands will
thrust y‘ou there l” shouted the pirate. “ Guards
—do ggur duty, and keep the prisoners where
the long!”

6 poor girls knew it was madness to resist,
and With one lon ' g glance at the great ship
astern they went low.

The schooner now plunged madl on toward
the northwest, heading just clear 0 the ca in
that direction. Every man but the guard p ed
ovsergclie iris we; on}E deck.k . _

u enyapu o smoewasseen gm
from a bow 1port in the sloop-of-war and] a round
shot came p
of the schooner.

“ Shake out eve
“ We’ll drive her it
enemy!” '

reef!” yelled S ' ort.
r if we cannot the

 

CHAPTER XXIX.
ran s'rmcan noun.

WHEN the police, or such of them as had not
been injured in~the terrible affray with the esp
caped pirates, ree‘ntered the mansxon of Made me
R1 wood, they found the terror-stricken ser-
van and a neiglhbo ' physician whom they
had summoned oing t on best to restore the
victims of the attack to consciousness.

The lady came to her senses only to learn that
the two young ladies had been carried bodily off,
and then fell back again in hysterical convul-

sions.
Believing, as the servants reported, that the
mug man was stone dead, shot through the
rt, the surgeon hastened first to stanch the
bleeding from the terrible sword-wound in the
body of poor Monsieur Duprét.
e latter believed that he was (1 ing, but he
tho ht not of that; he on] moan out:

“ y rdaughterl ould to God she was
here to e with me. Heaven shield her in mer:
cy—in mercy I’.’ v '

A police surgeon was now added to the group,
and ,the captain of the station, maddened
think the iréites had escaped, came in to note

casualties he house.
One dead irate, with his head crushed in by

tdhe heavy c in Duprét’s hands, lay on the
oor.
The lice surgeon, aided by the captain, lift-

! of young Ridgewood to a sofa, and
astheydi loa groan broke from his lips and
with a faint struggle he sat upright.

unging into the water close astern ‘

 

once more the schooner, with theg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Melisse—my sister—where are they?” were
the first words he uttered.

“They are not here; be quiet as you can; let
me examine your wound !” cried the surgeon.

“It is nothing! I feel numb all over—that is
all! A slight pain herehno more!”

He laid his hand over his heart and then fell
back, swooniiig.

“ Brandy- uick!” cried the surgeon, and be
poured some tween the white lips of the pa-
tient.

“My son—is be alive?” gasped Mrs. Ridge—
Wood as she again became conscious.

“ Yes—madam, and served by this!” cried out
the sur eon, as he lifted a shattered picture and
broken‘locket from over the heart of the young
man. “The ball has ssed through this an(
Ste pad on a rib over tgghmm. Here it is!”

nd with his fingers he extracted the deadly
missile from the wound.

Revived b ' the stimulant and rapidly recov-
ering from t e shock to his young, Vigorous con-
stitution, 'oung Ridgewood asked what had be-
come of t e pirates.

“They escaped, after killing three of our
force and woundin r many more. Their leader
Seemedtc have a c armed life. Twice I shot
him with m own hand, and each time he stav-
gered, but id not fall' and finally fou ht his
Way to a large oyster schooner, in which e evi-
dently came, for the sails were up and she was
03 in the darkness the instant he and his men
touched the deck!”

“ And the ladies?”

“ Were carried on board and are gone!”

“ Merciful Heaven! Has no attempt been
made to follow them?” .

“ Yes, sir—the revenue-cutter sailed after the
pirates as soon as the alarm reached her. Guns,
too, were fired from the fort to alarm other ves-
sels that ma intercept them. Many of the
band must be ad hurt. M men fought nobly,
usin their clubs and piste for all they were
worth!”

“ What vessels are in rt? Armed vessels, I
mean. The must be fo owed without an hour’s
delay! If t cg get to sea, those poor riris are
lost forever. etter a thousand times t ey had
died here !”

“ The cutter—the only armed vessel we know
Of this side of Norfolk—is gone in pursuit now.
But news like this will cover the sea with eager
Pursuers!” ,

“ I must not stay idle here. Mother, 
rescue my sister and dear Melisse or die in
aven 'n them!”

“ elisse—gone, gone forever!” moaned her
Mr father. _

Then, weakened by the loss of blood and m-
t“31136 suffering, he fainted.

“Is he hurt past recovery?” asked young

Rid wood_

“ e is ve badl hurt, but there is abare
possibility of ife,i he is perfectly uiet. He
must be held down with sedative m icine' the
least excitement will create internal hemorr
which cannot be stopped.” _
And the surgeon prepared a ion, which, in
Wine, was poured between the hps of the uncon-
8010118 sufferer. .

And now the an n exhibited to y
Ridgewood the she icture and the
which, aging through it, come so near to
en“ all” 1 lell th 1

6 —m 51189 _ W or our
safet , since )our gift of love opesav my
life!’ moaned idgewood, as he pressed the shat-
tered picture to his lips.

It was dawn before they thought of time in
that house of mournm . The dead pirate had
been carried to the tion-house for the cor-
oner’s view, as well as the bodies of the unfor-
tunate licemen who had fallen in the fray.

The c. —or rather the citinensm masse, were
Wild w1t exc1tement over the events of the

night. That such an on could occur in a
great city like that seemed out beyond belief.

he sympathies of the poo lo were terribly
amused, and if ten thousandc ivalric men could
have been used in pursuit of the daring abduct-
ors and murderers—they were there and ready

Yougg Ridgewood had seen Monsieur Duprét
prOVid with two careful rofessional nurses to
watch over himynight and y, and by words of
tender hope and brave encouragement partially
quieted his poor mother, when the postman
brou ht him a letter from New Yor which

ave im new hope and life and action to nerve

u . I

The otter was from the captain of the frigate,
who held chief command 0 the vessels on
northern station. It ran thus:

“ Oomaon at once! Your offer ll received. We
are lining out the largest and fastest armed schoon-
er in our service. She will be ready to all when
iyou get here, having a picked crew and the best of-

cers in the navy. of their rank. to conduct her.
You are rated as pilot. and it you do your duty well

on will be rewarded beyond your ho . We have
{end from the pirate twice since. ecleared the
Narrows, and have no doubt she has sailed for
Southern waters. Qlflw ‘ “093130” now after her,
but we have more ho in your knowledge Of her
"Id her haunts than n all the fleets afloat. Come
on without an hour’s delay after receivinfithis note.

Anus.”

Hurriedly young Riagewood made his prep“.

_ ations.

 

Fifé‘fééiffiéfi'the” Buccaneer

King. 1 9

 

 

He wrote a brief letter of consolation
full of hopefuls .mpathy to be shown to Mon-
sieur Duprét w en the latter was able to read
it.
He received his mother’s tearful blessing and
rting caresses and started for the first north-
und train.
His last words to his mother were these:

mother until I have found my sister and my
love! ra to your God and mine while I am
gone that may be helped and made strong in
my work.”

 

CHAPTER XXX.
THE SEA HOUND.

them lest they should be drugged into insensibil-
ity and helplessness. But—know ing that if ever
they were to escape the dreadful perils that en-
vironed them, strength was all essential. they
ate some hard biscuit and drank some water—
refusing coffee and cooked food though it was
proffered, freely, by the wounded and suffering

‘ chief.
“ I will not rest or falter in the search, dear .

WHEN the reefs were shaken out on the oyster .

schooner, though she almost buried bows under
in the sea, she went with greater speed, for her
build was such she could carry sail as long as
her spars would stand the ressure.

And a cry of triumph to d the crew that the
ship had ceased to
measured the distance and speed of both vessels
with an eye that scarce ever made a mistake.

A ain a shot was fired from the bow chaser of
the s oop-of-war and this time it struck the wa-
ter still further astern. But the chase. was not
given 11 . A lower studding-sail was set on the
sloop-o -war, though she seemed to have all her
spars could bear before.

Now, if she did not gain, she did not lose, and

gain on them. for Spirifort ,

the pirate was obli ed to sail a course directly i

opposite to the one e wished to take.

‘ This infernal luck is drivin us ri ht away I
e§Spi fg

from our right track!” mutter ri ort.

“We cant help ourselves, ca tain—not yet,
at least. I am  for sh
they have no coast-npi 0t on yonder craft, and
she follows us up, I’ 1 her into trouble which
will end this chase. I can go far inside of reefs
and shoals which will bring her up all standing,
and if she strikes in this Weather she’ll sta

water, and if 1

Y
where she grounds till there’s nothing left of her !

worth icking up. If she

rounds. we can turn .

on our eel and run for the inlet, where we’ll find i

Scar-faced Jim and the other craft.”

“ Good! Do our best, and when we get safe
on board the iablocite, I’ll give you all the
gold ou can lift!”

“ like life too well Cap, to throw it away.
I’ve done my best so ar, and sha’n’t slack up
an while trouble is in s' ht.”

e schooner was now u smoother water, but
as she drew in under the lee of the land low as
that land was, the strength of the wind lessened
and her sensibl decreased.

The a topsail an flying-jib were now hoist-
ed an( helped a little.

bften now the ilot turned his eyes toward the
ship in chase. er course, as she drew in with
the land, was altered slightly, but enough to
keep her outside the shoals.

“ Curse it i” he muttered. “ The war-dog has
somebody on board who knpws the coast. She
luffs just clear, and that is all. They’ll hound
us down if we can’t keep ahead till night comes
on and skip them in the darkness.”

The sloop-of-war did indeed have one on board
who knew the coast and every shoal on it from
the Chesapeake to Lon Island Sound. It was
the rescued captain of t e oyster schooner.

The sloo f-war had sailed to the south of Hat-
teras fin g no trace of the pirate or her prize,
and her captain had determmed to run as far
back as Hampton Roads when he saw signs of
a coming gale.

Thus, they were of! the lower cape when the
captive schooner was seen co out of the
Bay. The keen-eyed ca tain knew ' own craft
the moment he got the ocus of a glass upon her.
Thus we know why the chasewas made and so
persistently kept up.

After the schooner was headed directly up the
coast and inside shoals which kept the sloorfi-of
war outside of gunshot, the pilot told Spi ort
all present dangr was over if the wind held.

They could run the Ca of the Delaware be-
fore the sloo f-war cou d get them under fire.
“ But," d he, “ if we keep going at this rate,

we’ll be there too soon for our own good. We
couldn’t take up the Delaware to get out of their
reach, for there’s always an armed revenue-cut-
ter in at the Breakwater, and she’d cut as  i”

“ Then we‘ll get out a drag and slow up With-
out shortening sail i” said the keen-witted pirate,
full of expedients.

The oyster dredeges found in the hold were the
very things need for this new device, and soon
one was paid out astern, fastened to a long
hawser: it lessened their speed so much that the
8100 I-war went ahead handover-hand, but
too ar out to do any damage with her

“ The plan works well!” said the ilot. “ This
will kee us back till night, and en, by com—
pass an lead, I’ll beat that follow sharp as he
18.”

Until now so exciting had been their peril no
thought mi been given by the pirate chie or
his crew to refreshments.

Orders were given to the man selected as cook
to prepare the best there was on board, and Spiri-
fort went below to offer his captives food and
drink.

The were faint and almost famishing, but
they not eat or drink what he proffered

i

 

For though he kept up, 8 irifort was so ter-
ribl ' hurt that every breat was agony. He
heldy little converse with any one, but once or
twice he s ke as kindly as his nature would al-
low to Sa ie Ridgewood. But, all the hot Span-
ish blood in her nature rose up and she had not
one word for the man whom she believed to be
the murderer of her brother. For she had seen
the latter shot down before her eyes. and poor
Melisse also had seen her aged father fall, drench-
ed in blood, as she was seized and Lorne strug-
gling from his side.

The day were on. The captain of the sloop-of-
war, finding he was fast head-reaching on the
schooner was puzzled to know the cause.

The old captain of the latter was the first to
suggest the true reason. He knew just what his
craft could do under such canvasin sucha breeze
and that only a drag could hold her back.

“She wants to hold on inside the shoals till
dark, sir!” he ex lained. “ Then she’ll wear
around to the sout and try to get away in the

kness.”

“ It is a game two can play ” averred the cap-
tain. “ If that is her plan she’ll find us as far
to the south as she is when day dawns. Most
like] the larger vessel waits for h:r in some
sout ern nook or hiding-place. But what the
want with 'our schooner I cannot understan
That she is eld by pirates, the numbers on her
decks and her actions in avoiding us is sufficient
proof. We will not lose her, for she will be apt
to lead us to a big r prize.”

Using his lead 0 ten, as well as the knowled e
of the coasting captain, the commander of t e
sloop-of-war several times got almost with-
in hot of the schooner, but out-laying
shoal-:nvf’ould necessitate a change of course,
and then the distance would be increased.

He had shortenedsail so as to keep the “ chase ”
as nearly abeam as he could, but once in awhile
she was a little ahead.

On one of these occasions, through his glass
he saw two white signals waving through the
stern windows of the schooner.

He called the attention of the captain of the
oyster boat to it, and handed him the glass.

“ By creation, cap’n, I believe there‘s women
in the cabin, and if so, they’re prisoners! It
looks to me like white arms were shoved out
there, wavin’ handkerchiefs for hfilp! Tflhgnsteib':
of the schooner overhangs so 0 co t
seen at it from her deck. While {was on her
there was never but one woman in that cabin.
Afore my boy was born my wife used to take a
trip now and then with me. I had a little room
fitted u for her on purpose. Since she had my
little a We to care for she has staid at home
for tgigdyoungster is safest there. He crept and
chm like a regular tar afore he was six
months old!”

“ Gold help the captives, if such there be, and
they women!” sighed the captain of the war-

'p. “ There is no mercy in a pirate’s heart—
if hearts they have.”

The da wore on, and before the shades of
night to , going as they did, the light-house
on Henlopen loomed up in view from both the
chaser and the chased.

Not until night set in fairly darkness hi
one from the other completely, did Spirifo
dare tophangehis course. Then the dr was
cut adrift, and the schooner wore around, -
ing south—not a light in sight on her deck or
be ow which could throw a gleam toward the
Chasers.

At that same hour a spar buoy was lowered
from the deck of the sloopof-war, with a lan-
tern aflixed to the spur. And exultantly, as.
they southward, tha pirates looked at that
light ading away to the northward, thinking it.
shone on board of theirtoo persistent enemy!

But she, too, had played her ruse, and done-
it we , for even when the light was dropped
astern, the sloop-of—war had uared awa for
the south, and showing no 51 er of h
making no noise, under all e sail she coul
carry, she was heading for an offing near the
capes, or as far south as she could run before
dawn where and when, taking in all sail, her
captam’s pll'lan was to wait for a sight of the cun-
ning and 'cky pirates.

CHAPTER XXXI.
rill: FLYING SHARK.
Wmahalf-hourafterthetminreached
New York from Baltimore Edward Marvel
Ridgewood r rtedon board the frigate asdi-

rected by the otter from hercaptain. The fri- '

gate lay at moo ' in the North river, about
a mile above Garden, and Ridgewood
hired a row-boat to take him alongside.

He found the captain ready and anxious to see
him. A lo and scare ' interview followed,
andtheca was startedtohearofthere—
cent horrib outrage in Baltimore, which newn-

 

 ’Z I. pride on the fastest and heaviest vessel of her



 

" ,jaunty schooner and over her low bulwarks,

     ~    "3   

 

was brought on the same train on which the ,
young ex-pirate came, and was spread over the ,
cityin “extras ” by the newspaper-men in a few ;
hours.

“ Every available vessel out the Shark and this
frigate are now out!” said the captain. “ It is
necessary that I should remain here to receive j
and act on reports from vmsels coming in. But j
the Shark, the schooner I alluded to in my letter '
to you, is, or should be, ready to sail now. She
was to come over from the Navy Yard, ready
for sea, this morning. Her commander’s in-
structions are ready-here is a copy for your
guidance. You are her pilot, and the com- ;
mander is to act with you in this search. I ‘
know from your own sufferings, as well as the
terrible suspense you must feel in regard to the ‘
fate of those unfortunate ladies, that you will al- 7
most move heaven and earth to find the wretch ‘
who abducted them. The moment the ca tain
of the schooner reports, you must be off. very
hour lost with us, is a gain to the fiends who '
evade us I”

“You are right, sir, and I am ready. My
heart burns to on a chase which I wi never
willingly relinquish while Spirifort or one of his
fiendish gang is left alive !"

“ The schooner Shark is standing u the river,

toward us, sir, with the Signal ‘rea y for sea,

I flying in

 of noble-looking officers stood ready to receive ‘
’ 'theca tain.

Mr. Ridgewood, your p' ot on this expedition. '
.» _He is the young man who escaped
‘ rate and ave knowled eof her to us ,and I hope
" withhis elp you will

on
1; Mr. Ridgewood says she has animmense amount

‘ speedyou; I will not keep you back a second!”

 captain
"crew held their cars apeak
v .. pushed the boat clear, while the orders came

‘ i .‘e

fiebayata i wléigéibothpleasedand sur-
prised, oun dgew ,
Turn’ing 5) the lieutenant in command, he

This was the report of the midshi man of the
watch sent in by the officer of the eck.

“ All right, sir! Tell Mr. Hoe to order her to ,
heave her head-sails aback, and I will go on 1
board with the pilot and final instructions.
Have my gig manned at once!”

“ Ay, ay, sir!”

In a few minutes the captain of the frigate ~
and Marvel were in the fast-rowing gig, being ‘
sent swiftly through the water by six stalwart
oarsmen in the direction of the Shark, which,
with every sail set 11 to royals, forward, was
1 ' gfihove to, a cab e’s length to leeward of
ti? 'gate

“ Does she look as if she would be a match for '
the pirate, should ou encounter her yard-arm
and yard-arm?” as ed the captain, gazing with

class then in the navy. .

“ She carries eighteen guns, two long thirty- .
twos on pivot, and sixteen broadside twenty-
four- unders. For a crew, one hundred and ,
‘ten p’rcked men, and nearlya double set of ofii— I

cars!
“ She will more than match the accursed pi-
rate, sir, with right on her side!” was the prompt

‘refilly of the pilot.
a minute more they were alongside the

where the lieutenant commanding, and a group

P
“Lieutenant Chandler I introduce you to

from the pi—

able to overhaul her
destroy her. If -

and either capture or utterly _ I
in prize-money _

ptured, you will all be ric

of treasure on board !” i
“We will do our best, co. in!” replied the ;

lieutenant. “Mr. Ridgew is welcome. His

looks speak for him as a gentleman, and he will

’ share my cabin with me!

 Bi wood bowed low, touched to the heart 
with 's generous welcome.

“ Here are your instructions, Mr. Chandler,” ,
continued the captain. “I have given Mr.
Ridgewood a copy. Now fill away and. God

A grasp of his unior’s hand and the gallant
was pi over the side‘ and his boat’s
as the bowman ‘

“ Brace up t e head-yards—hard up the helm
-draw sheets and fill away!”

While the yards flew around and the clipper-
built schooner gathered way, her crew, at a sig-
nal from their oung commander, ve three
or the captain of e frigate,
who waved his cap in response.

Butawa ,onboardhisown tship,the
cheer was card, and six hu sturd throats
give back the compliment in cheers w ch rung

and wide over the glittering waters of the
lovely bay.

The cheer was returned as the schooner with
her sails swelling to a fresh breeze that held
"nearly abeam, gathered way and shot off down

“Yourd schooner, siré tocomesthe theftan in
cpeed an e we 11
each of, of anfiing I have ever seen cat.
She is hbealgty and a wonder to go!"

3 to hear you say so,Mr. Ridge-
wood. was her first lieutenant on a two years’
animonthe coast of Africa, and I know ust
about What she can do! hShemnfiaver before t of
«‘0' a crew nor sue a comp omen
dealing; ' ’

I must not hesitate a second. Better that my loved

, escapes the felons doom.

1 may rest at ease on one point: I shall never—

 

“Shewillneed them all,sir,whenwe fall in

with the Diablocito. For her captain and crew,

so to speak, will fight with ropes about their !

necks and battle w1th the desperation of men
whi)d know they will find no mercy, if they
yie !

“ That is to be expected. As the harbor pilot
takes us to sea, come into the cabin and I will
show you your future quarters after we have
had a glass of wine together

choose to do, of your own free will—no more. I

am not given to curiosity, thou rh from the start 1
(

I feel a esire to be your fricn I”
“ Thank you, lieutenant! Never did a men need
friendship 'and true manly sympathy more than

I. I have just left a mother almost dying, a ‘

prospective father - in - law almost hopelessly
wounded, and two nights ago In only sister
and my betrothed were abducted rom my me-
ther’s house, while I, stricken down by a wound
which would have killed me but for this, was a
helpless to aid them!”

" And was this the Work of the pirate we are 3
sent after?” cried the lieutenant, as he gazed ,
upon the shattered and bullet-pierced picture i
and locket.

“It was! Spirifort’s pistol was at in breast i
when I sprung forward, unarmed as was, to f
inte my form between him and those I i
lov ! How he ot there—how he esca -—no 1
one can exactl 11. He went off in a she |
built oyster sc ooner, but his own craft c0133 1
not have been far away. He never would leave 5
his werful crew where they could not come to =
his elp if he got in a tight place!”

“ Horrible!” said the lieutenant, as he led the .
way into his cabin, “It is fearful to think of ;
those ure, fair young girls in the power of such
a flen l”

“ It almost maddens me, sir!” said Ridgewood. l
“ My only he now is in you, your brave crew
and this nob e vessel. If we find the pirate we 1

ones be riddled with our own shot than live to be
the victims of fiends in human sha . I would
rather slay them with my own han than know
they must live in his wer. For he has no honor
—no conscience. e is a devil, if devils ever
move u n the earth or sea!”

“ We 1—we will hope, and gigay, and strive hard
to get at him as soon as may . I have not look-
ed over the instructions, but we will both scan I
them closely ere we reach the open sea. My own
idea is that he may yet be hoverin about our
coast. I have a singular fancy.. ter we have
taker), a glass of Wine, I will picture it out to
you!

Standing at a well-furnished sideboard in the
cabin, the two young men pledged each other in
a less of sherry.

hen, taking a seat, and handing another to
Bid ewood, the lieutenant went on:

“ have always had a morbid desire to trace
the history of crime and great criminals as de-
picted in books and neWspapers. And I have

ound, in almost all cases, that, though a crimi-
nal might escape for a time, justice is almost
universally trium heat, and the criminal rarely
And—in nine cases
out of ten, when a murderer has committed his
bloody work, he lingers around the scene of his
crime as if infatuated, until he is detected and
taken. Like a spider who has drawn a fly
within the meshes of his net, he is drawn nearer
and nearer to his victim until he is himself en-

trapped.

‘ nd on this theory, I hope that this bloody
wretch may hover somewhere along our coast
till we get our eyes on him. That done, you

never leave his wake till he is under my guns.
Then—God helping me—his career will come to
a speedy end, or you and I will have our pay
sto ped for this world I”

e lieutenant now showed Ridgewood a neat,
well-furnished state-room, exactl like one 0 pc-
site that he used himself. On a over ead
a bright. keen cutlass shone in its brackets—e
gefpon fit for service in hands that were used

t

“ You have your own pistols I presume; if
not I have a pair of fine ones at your service,"
said the emcer. ~

“I will accept their loan!” answeredRi‘dge-
wood, “ for I did not take timeto fitm self th

00d weapons when I hurried on to jo you. I

a pair when I left the pirate—but those were

in my chamber when we were attacked,,for I
did notdream of such darin as Spirifort evinced
-—coming upon us in the eart of a mt city
the streets full of people, with only a dful 0

men at full an hour or more before our regular

bedtime l” ‘

“ The ve audacity of the thing made it seem

ble to im!” said the lieutenant. “It was
ratel bold, and if the lice captain re-
t y, he got badlyh beforehe escaped.

his, too, may be in our favor I”

The nowyvent on deck, for the swift schooner
was a ready in the Narrows and under the frown-
ing batteries of Fort Lafayette, than in fair con
di on. Together the young commander and his
new pilot th uarter-deck while the

Vth we are at 1
sea, and! you feel at home, you can tell me just 1
as much of your life on board the pirate as you ,

‘ men on board laughed gleef

i swing, dashed through the yieldin waters as if
eager to kiss the azure lips of “t e dark blue
sea.

 

CHAPTER XXXII.
UNDER FIRE.

Tm: signals that seemed to be waved from the
windows of the captured oyster schooner were
indeed made by the two captive girls. Plainly
they could see that the great an-of-war, its
side pierced with guns, its deck full of officers
and men, and their only hope for life and honor
lay with her. If she could once bring the
sc ooner under fire, they would either find res-
cue or death.

So far they had not been subjected to any in-
sult, but they (lid not know how long that state
of security might last. They felt that fiends
held them in their power, and they had little of

' good to expect from them. Only in the weaké

almost be] )lcss state in which his wounds lef
S irifort, 'd they feel any safety from him.
I hile he was striving to escape from pursuit, if

: they could only draw the pursuers nearer by any

action or signal, they would do it.

Fortunately for them, the pirates did not dis—
cover the window signals seen from the sloop-of-
war. They had been left unguarded in the cabin
during the day, since escape was impossible and
the men were wanted on deck:

But, when ni ht drew near, and they saw that
the ship—of—war ad got no nearer, the poor ca
tives began to despair. Until then, it seemed
them as if the schooner could not escape the strict
and stem watch kept over her.

then darkness came all lights were ordered
out, and then noiselessly, suddenly, the course of
the vessel was changed, as they easily discovered
by her careening to the other side, and with all
her sails spread, she swept swiftly back upon her
old track. Then—despair entered those young
hearts, and the poor girls wept in bitter hopeless-

! ness as they clasped each other in an embrace of

wretched but un altering love.

They too saw the li ht which the pirates su
posedtobeon board eirenem , and whilst e
y, the hearts of
the r irls sunk ower and lower in gloom as
the ight aded from sight.

Running at night, among dangerous shoals and
only b compass now, the schooner pilot had to
have t e sounding lead ke t oing constantl ,
and more than once the das 0% breakers reac -
ing the ears of S irifort told him the dangers
they were encoun ring.

It also forced them to lessen their speed very
materially, for they had to luff up when the lead
was cast to get bottom, and that so far check
their way that it was near daylight when t y
passed the lights of the Virginian capes.

As the wind held fresh off-shore, and the shoals
were less dangerous south of the capes the pilot
kept his luff and swung in as near the s ore as he
dared, intending to run inside of the dangerous
shoals of Hatteras in a narrow channel used only
by the boldest of the coasters.

The poor girls had slept a little by turns
during the ni ht, they were so utterly worn out
with grief an anxiety“ They dared not both g8
to sleep at the same time, for they had vowed
resist any entrance to their little room, and
having each secured a sharp knife frOm the pan-
try during the day, they kept them concealed on
their persons, but ready for use.

Spirifort, weak with intense suflerin
the outer cabin on a bunk a part of t e m ht,
and one or more of the pirates mtegluard be ow
while a strict watch was main n on deck all
the night, forward and aft as well.

Spirifort had issued orders that he be called at
the first glim of day, and it was done.

As soon as t was light enough to use the ag-
glass, he began to scan all the surroundings. e
was almost alarmed to be so near the sandy
beach, but the leedsman called out “a quarter
twain” and he knew there was water to spare in
an 3i lit—foot draught.

See nothingb shoreward to alarm him, he
looked awa to e north. Far, very far away
in that direction he saw two or three tiny
specks, which he knew to be sails. They were
too far away to annoy his mind, stmined though
it was. Then he looked ahead, and far as the eye
could reach almost a straight amuse of low,
sandy coast and outside of t t un ken water,
green and shallow, met his gaze.

“ So far, all right !” he muttered.

Then he took in the eastern horizon, tinged
with flecks of red and black as the sun to

athwart the heavens.

Suddenly his glass rested on a point about
three or four points forward of the beam—or, in
fact, nearl of! the lee bow. And it stayed there
for seve minutes.

“ What do you see, Ca 1” asked the pilot, for
Spirifort, though silent, ooked anxious.

“It may be a wreck—I see no canvas—or it
may be a craft at anchor—~thereaway!” he re-
plied pointin with his hand.

“No vesse ,1: she could help it, would ever
anchor out there!” declared the pilot. “ We’ll
soon have a better view, for I havoto keep awe.
and make some coasting. There is a lo san -

 

e
schooner th every ki aloft that she could

spit or shoal which makes out ahead, an I have

 

, slept‘in '

rise around the mas of clouds which swept *

if.

'3

 

 

“3":

Ace

 

 

Fire

   

     

21

 

Feather, the Buccaneer King.

 

to go around it. That cleared, I can bear away
for Hatteras!”

As he said this, the
that he brought the o iject ncai‘lv ahead which

ilot so altered his course .

The increased sail gave more speed '. the I d There was but one thing for a good officer to
‘ o.

schooner held her own—began to gain
But another shot fell so close it dashed the

‘ spray over her after deck.

had attracted the attention of tlie pirate chief. v

The schooner, under all_sai] now but gaff-top-
sail, staysail and flying-jib, flew gziyly through
the water, and the pilot remarked:

‘ use at the enemy.

“ If this wind holds, before night I’ll haVe you !

alongside the Diablocito in her snug harbor!”
“ I am glad to hear it!" assured Spirifort. “ I
shall be in agony till our surgeon gets this ball

out of my thigh and re—dresses my broken arm. ,
()iir boys have done the best they could, but I ‘

I’ll go below and get a

sutl‘er untold agony.
I’ll be back in

glass of liquor to strengthen me.
a few minutes.”

“ The old man‘s minutes count half an hour,”
muttered the pilot, as Spirifort delayed his re-
turn. “Look out, one of you Sleepy-heads for-

, ward, and see if there is any craft in sight
thereaway! The cap’n saw something before he ‘

‘W

‘ the

went below!”

“ J um in’ Moses!” yelled the man. “ Here
are brea ers just under our lee bow !”
“ I know that!” cried the pilot, coolly. “It is

,int of the shoal I’m going around!”
“ orse yet. There is a full-rigged ship square

' ahead of usflat anchor, I reckon!”

“At anchor in forty-fathom water, on fool?
You’re blind drunk, aren’t you? T 6 water
runs deep outside here!”

“Come and see for yourself!” growled the

man.

“ Take the helm one of you, and another throw
the lead!” cried the pilot, as he took the spy-
glass up, and went forward.

He gave one look at the ship which had been
reported, and with a cry of alarm rushed aft.

‘ Bear in to the land two points—not one inch
more for your lives, or we’re on the point of the
spit!” he cried to the man at the helm.

Then, putting his head down the cabin hatch-
way he shouted:

‘ Come on deck, cap’n, quick! A full-rigged
ship is laying off not more than five or six miles,
maybe less, and if she isn’t a mane-war, I
never saw one i”.

Forgetting for the instant the agon which
had made him so faint that he had to ie down
when he went below, Spirifort hurried on deck,
groaning and cursing as he came.

Takin the glass, he glanced toward the vessel
now in p ain view.

She was large, square-rigged, but not a sail
was set, neither could a man be seen aloft or
below. She was evidently pierced for guns, but
her ports were closed—not a muzzle could be seen
E—neaither flag nor pennant at peak or mast-

ea .

“ I cannot make it out. She looks like a de—
serted ship drifting inshore!” he said to the pilot,
who had also come forward.

“Shall we run closer—get a plainer sight of
her?” asked the latter.

“ No—no! She may be plague-stricken. If
I’ve got to die I want no plague to help me.
Kg? your course, and get us alongside my own
g craft as soon as may be!”

The schooner was now close to the breakers on
the point. Yet the lead gave them five fathoms
clear, water enough to float a frigate.

Suddenly a cry of wonder and alarm broke
from every man who stood forward.

The ship which had seemed to drift tenantless
on the ocean was full of life! Men were seen to
spring aloft and out on eve yard; the sails
were loosed as if by magic, s eeted home and
hoisted as they fell from the furling gaskets.
And, as she gathered steerage—way, her ports
flew open and along row of broadside gunswere
seen ready to belch forth their iron contents.

“ Tricked—tricked like fools!” groaned Spiri-
fort. “ It is the same ship which chased us yes-
terday !”

“ A , the very same!” echoed the pilot. “ And
she s away—she steers to head us 0!!! Luff
there, at the helm—lufl' for the' shore! Only
shoal water can save us now. It will be the
beach, I’m afraid, before we get through!”

The schooner quickly changed her course and
flew toward the land, leaving the breakers on
her uarter.

“ k there, captain—look there!” shouted
the pilot, mting aft,

Sadie R EPWPOII and Melisse Dupréthad been
left un ed in the excitement, and both were
on dec wildly Wavingeslheir scarfs toward the
man-of-war. Undoub they were seen.

“ Carry them below! 1: them in their
state-room, and if they leave it again they die !”
shouted S irifort.

the Two

A half ozen men rushed 11 girls.

received each a fearful gash mm the knives the

girls had drawn, for, mad as the act was, they
resisted those who rushed upon them.

“Down With them, but harm them not; their
punishment Will come!” shrieked Spirifort, who
saw the act.

Overpowered, bound and helplem, they were
dragged below Just as a shot came shrieking
through the air, fallmg Just astern of the
schooner. The slmp—offwar  Opened fire.

“ Up with the staysail and fiymg-jibl"shcutai
the pirate chief. “ Set thtivgafl-topmfl. If we

° aspar, we are gone! ark. men—won!”

     

 

“Bang away, curse you, bang away!” cried
the pirate, as he shook the only hand he could
“If I had the Diablocito
here, I’d give you gun for gun, and all you
wanted of it!”

A race was now begun in earnest. Had the
captain of the oysterinan known the coast below
the capes as he did above, the result would not
have been long in abeyance.

But the sailing-master and captain of the
sloop—of-war now had to run by the chart, and
it marked many a. shoal betWeen t! .em and Hat-
teras, now not far away.

Yet, after those struggling women had been

1 cruel, hard to be so disapiminted.

: that had been seen coining,r down under all sail

, the Shark. The stars and stripes at the peak
, told her nationality.

seen on the schmncr’s dcck, the naval captain, 7

with all the chivalry of his service, drove his
vessel on, at every risk, to close with the pi-
rates.

Firing as fast as he could from his bow chaser
on that side, he stood on, while the schooner,
headin for the inside channel off Hatteras,
drove orward in desperate haste.

Twice he had seen shot strike the vessel, but
no vital 5 )ar or rope or sail was cut.

The sai in ~master was aloft in the fore—cross-
trees to 100 out for shoals; two leadsmen on
either side got soundings when they could.

“ Sink herZ cap’n—sink her!” cried the old
oysterman. ‘ I’d rather see her go out of sight
under water, thou h she is all I own in the
world than let t 050 bloody wretches get
awa i”

“ (he is ours! She is ours!” cried the captain
of the sloop—of-war rubbing his hands in glee, as
he saw a round 8 0t tear a hole thro h the
mainsail. Tell the gunner to send a cable-
headed shot in the next charge. “We’ll cut
every spar out of her!”

A couple of minutes later and the new charge
cut away her foretopmast.

All this time both vessels had rushed at their

highest speed down the coast.
‘ another double—header forward there!”
came cm the captain.

The shot went shrieking through the air, and
3mg went the Bchooner’s mainmast, close to the
ac
“ Steady now, steady!
we’ll cut her down to t e
naval captain.

CHAPTER. XXXIII.
DIABOLICAL CUNNING.

MADLY the pirates were seen cutting away
the wrecked mast and trying to stay up the tot-
tering foremast. They seemed read I to sink
without a thought of surrender, for r course
was held by the schooner without a change.

But now the sloop-of-w‘ar was gaining hand
Over hand. ‘

“ Cease firing! She is ours, and we will not
cut her all up !’ cried the captain of the sloop-of-

If she don’t surrender
water’s edge!” cried the

 

ar. .

Suddenly the sailing-master from aloft. who
had watched the schooner when he should have
been looking ahead, shouted in the wildest ex-
citement:

“ Hard down the helm! Throw all aback, or
we are lost! Breakers close ahead and on both
bows!”

Cool as an iceberg, the heroic captain took
in the situation at a thouglllit. Snatching the
trumpet from the ofiicer of e deck, he s rung
upon the hammock-netting and holding y the
mizzen-shrouds shouted:

“Every officer and man to his station for
wearing ship! Hard up the helm! Brace in the
after yards and tend forward braces!”

Nobly the gallant ship answered the helm, and
as she swung almost around on her heel, not
ing three lengths ahead, she came free of the
deadly peril in front.

But other shoals were all around her; the
schooner, aided by a man who knew all the
coast, had iterally led her into a trap, and to
get her out of it uired consummate seamen-
ship! Sail had to be shortened, tack after tack
made, and even then, in spite of care, the cod
ship struck twice on a sunken reef with a orce
that almost jumped the masts out of her.

But she drove off and went clear, and finally
headed into deeper and clear water.

The carpenter and mates were sent to
sound the pumps. Quickly it was found that
she was leakin rapidly. The pumps were
manned fore an aft, and the carpenters sent be-
low to do all the could to find the leaks and
check the inflow 0 water. '

And in all this rs. id struggle to save the ship

and crew, neither 0 cer nor man given a
thou ht to the half-crippled pirate.
A ook for the schooner brought bitter words

to the captain’s lips. She was now out of gun-
shot, going ofl.’ free under her foresail and run-
ning in close to Hatteras, where he ’ not fol-
low, even had his ship been all right.

For the shi under his command and the lives
of the gallan men on board were his team, not
to sacrifice.

Further examination as to casualties showed
the foremost badly sprung, for she had all her
canvas on when she struck the met.

\

1 war, she hailed:

 

 

The ship, under sail that would not strain
her masts, must be got into the nearest port
where she could be docked and re iaired. That
port was Norfolk. “’ith a heavy cart the cap-
tain gave the order to steer for that port.

He had been so sure of those pirates, so sure of
the rescue of these distressed women. It was

It was near night when the crippled sloop-of-
war headed in for Hampton Roads. \‘i 11:10 yet
it was light enough to see. a inan—of-war schooner

.A warm... .:.;. . ..e..., . .

with a spanking breeze from the. north, rounded
in as if to speak her. “ _
Her signal number new at the fore—it denoted
Ranging up on the lee quarter of the sloop-of-

that is the

 a
a,

i,

“ You seem in distress, sir!
matter!”

“ \l’e got aground while chasing a pirate.
I’ll heave to—come on board and learn particu-
lars, so you can renew the chase!”

“ Ay, ay, sir.”

With beimding hearts the lieutenant com-
manding the Shark, accompanied by his pilot,
hurried to board the sloop-of-war, and hear the
news. ,

It was soon told! How the soul of young \
Ridgewood exulted when he learned enough to
satisfy him that his sister and Melissa Dupret
Were et alive and on board the smaller vessel
of which the now heard for the first time.

“The Dia locito is on the coast and not far
awa !” he said. “If we can run to the south
of atteras to-night. we will be almost sure to
overhaul the crippled oyster boat in the mom-
m . .

% That is our course, and we will try it!” said.
Lieutenant Chandler.

The captain of the captured oysterboat begged
leave to go in the Shark. that being able to re—
cognize his boat he might aid yet in her recap—
turc.

Before rowing back to the Shark, a re rt was.
sent by the sloop-of—war, to be mailei to the
captain of the station at New York, and Ridge-
wood wrote to his mother.

Then Mr. Chandler filled away and stood \
down the coast, careful to avoid the dangers;
which had so nearly wrecked the other ship.

The officers and crew of the splendid schooner
were all elated with the news received, and.
hoped soon to find themselves in contact, not.-
with the oyster boat and her scanty crew of
wretches alone, but with the Diablocito herself“.
and her band of blood-stained villains.

As for young Ridgewood, the hope of his life
lay in gett' alongside that smaller schooner
and rescuing is loved ones, while he punishedi‘
the arch fiend of all, Spirifort, Whom he knew to:
be there, if he had not rejoined the larger vessel
before being overtaken. .

After long and earnest consultation between '
the commander of the Shark and his pilot, it was:
decided to rim well to the southward of Hat-
teras, near which the crip led oyster schooner ,,
had last been seen, and In till it was light-
enough to make things visib e on the land and.
water, and then heading northward, there was a
chance to intercept her. With only a foremost. .N
standing, she could not go very far south in one- . .
afternoon and night, nor could she very easily ~ ‘ "
work into any 0 the narrow inlets along the

coast.

So  on sail and standin out far ,
enoug to c ear the dangerous sh of Hair 3
terns, the Shark was again headed south. .’

During her run from New York her crew 1nd; ;,
been exercised at the great gims and with small» .-
arms twice a day. and all being picked veteran
in service, they were found proficient in all their. 4%
duti‘igs:i fpll ready for the hazardous work ex—
pec 0 ~ ,

Neither Ridgewood or the youn lieutenant
command turned in that night.
was out of the question. Ridgewood was too
anxious—the lieutenant held his first command,
and his heart was full with the importance of
mission and the belief that very soon he
carry his vessel into action.

Before dawn, by the dead reckoning of
run, the were considerably south of the
kokc t—further than it seemed

    
  
  
  
   
  
  
 
  
 
   
   
     
  
   
  
   
 
   
  
  
  
   
  
  
   
   
    
   
   
  
   
   
    
    
  
  
    
     
   
  
   
   
  
   
 
    
    
  
   
  
  
 
    
   
  
   
 
    
    
  
  

without their white sails beinch icuous. ,
Fore and aft,aloftand below, wi everysp "
glassonboardin use, anxious eyes 
expanseof landandwaterwhen the risingsufl

threT: itsra

farand wide. _
o wereinsight. Oneagreat
riggedvemel farout intheGulf Stream, ... _.
' nontrvijtc‘itiflya 
e o r— coming on o kmko
schooner,a.nd of abuild and rigwhich . s»
smelledof turpentine. Nothing more. 3'
As the schooner headed out to sea, as if;
reachtheGulf Streamandget its aid to v;
her north,sailwasmadeon the Shark toininr
cept herand learn if she had seenorhaafd
aux suspicious craft inside on theSoun .
runofoevenoreightmilesplacedflm :‘

I

  

  

  

  

,'I

..
l.

l

 J, ,  ~ r." l  I.“  N 1“!

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer King.

 

sail, Lieutenant Chandler hailed her:

I
close to the strange schooner, and, shortening 1 They were conscious by the sound that the

vessel passed over high, rolling waves, just as

“Schooner ahoy What name, and where darkness was near, and they could hear surf

bound ?”

“ The J erushy Small, Capting Small, for Ken- ! knew t ey were near land.

nebunkport, down East—got pitch, tar and (ur-
pingtine below and on deck. Who be yeou 3’”
“ The United States schooner Shark, Lieuten-
ant Chandler in command. Report us when you
et in!
“ Sarh'nqu!
“ Yes. Have
mast- gone, running under foresail only, on the
coast or in the Sound?”
No—haven’t seen no sich !”
“ Or an
this, rakis , low in the water, and armed?”
“ Jerusalem, No! Be there pi rates abroad
 you lookin’ for ’emi” cried the alarmed
8 1p r.

Anything more ?”

beatin on the shore on either side. Thus they

In a short time the

' vessel seemed to be in smooth water and they

I

i

 

!
!

heard the anchor splash as it went down from
the bow.

Spirifort came down into the cabin now, and
openi their state-room door looked in. He

Satisfied, Spirifort took another pull at the
brandy bottle and then glanced in upon the
girls!

They had laid down and appearedto beasleep.
The )1rate smiled iml .

“ hey’ll never is ofy grief !” he said, and he
went to the cushioned transom and sat down.

“ How drowsy I feel—I must take another

‘ drink to keep awake on!” he muttered.

held a amp in his well hand, and its light fell on ,

you seen a schooner with main- ‘3 their pale but resolute faces as well as on his own

scarred and sardonic countenance.
“ So, my lady-birds! You are unhurt, after
our sharp bombardment. I have been too busy

suspicious—looking vessel—large as ‘ hitherto to look to your especial comfort—but

soon on will be in ruimy quarters on board the
Diab ocito, where, if you behave well, you may
stand a chance to be happy!”

“ Happy in the presence of murderers ?

“ ’es—keep your eyes skinned and carry sail ’ Would angels re 'oice in hell i” cried Sadie

on your drogher!” cried the lieutenant, laugh-
ing at the sudden trepidation of the Down-
Easter.

“ We can make nothing out of him—fill away i”
he added.

And the schooner went ahead of the turpen-
tiner as if the latter was at anchor, when her
head yards Were braced up, and her sheets flat-
tened in.

“Say!” shouted Ca tain Small, before the

'were out of hearing ‘ can’t you keep bya fe -
ler an’ Prfect him ti l he gits out o’ danger?”

The ‘hark was too far ahead b this time for
ananswer to reach the ears of a tain Small,
for she was going up the coast at a ten or eleven
knot rate.

When four or five is run by a turpentine
dro her, she is doing well for the trade.

“afloat-head, therel” shouted Ridgewood, the
pilot.

“ Ay, ay, sir!”

“ Can you see over the sand-hills into the
Sound, plainly?”

“Yes, sir—between the patches of timber I
can see ciear water all alon i”

“Can you see any vesse under sail or at
anchor?” .

“ No, sir—not now. I thought a bit ago, awa
to the northward, I saw somethin like a sa' ,
but it was gone so quick I thought ’d mistook a
gull}t or something in the air for it and didn’t re-

“ Report the instant you see anything even
like a sail, in any direction, inshore or at seal”

“Ay, ay, sir!”

A keen-eyed midshipman, on his last cruise be-
fore examination was now sent aloft with 8. sp -

less and directed to keep a special watch on e

und, while the Shark sailed up the coast as
close in as the lead would allow them to go.

The crew were now piped to breakfast, and

1 the officers took their morning meal. The epi-

.',.

 

A, 

.

   
 

 Almighty for help, for in Him

code with the “Jerushy Small” had belated
themalittle.
Over their coflee Chandler and Ridgewood

discussed the feasibility of sending boats inside.

r, to try’ discoveries there. K
CHAPTER XXXIV.

FLIGHT.

Goon blood tells 1 Especially when it is called
upon! This applies to men and horses' Why
not to women as well?

When the cannon-shot from the sloop-of-war
first shrieked out the shrill warning of danger,
as it sped throu h the air close to the flying oys-
ter boat, Sadie idgewood and Melisse Duprét
rejoiced to hear it. When a shot crashed
throu h the low bulwarks of the schooner almost
over eir heads they did not tremble. The had
but one fear. It was that the pirates mig t es
aw even under that scathin fire.

hen they heard the ren canvas and the
curses of the pirates as sails were weakened, the
girls pra ed that worse might come, and they
almost 8 'eked for 10y when the heard the
mainmast come c g down over cad.

They could see the sloop-of-war from the cabin
windows, for all the guards had gone on deck

" sin and left the cabin free to them. The no-

ship seemed one sheet of sail from the trucks

down, and the thought she must soon be along-
' side and that t eir rescue was assured.

But in an instant all was changed. The ship

‘ was among breakers, or so it looked to them, for

 

. they saw the foaminglfmes rise high between

thanand the ship. eir hearts sunk when
,thoy saw her all in confusion and turning short
away from the chase.

Then the cheers of the pirate fiends above told
them that ho was gone, and they wept bitterly
when the lsc ooner, crippled as she was, posed
safely on, eavin the great ship behind.

Disarmed—att e mercy of wretches whom it
would be vile slander to call men—it is wonder-
ful that they did not sink in despair.

But after the first paroxysm of grief was over,
the nerved themselves up. and retiring to their

a statiwoom, closed the door and rayed to the
arena had they

- heard the feet of the hates overhead as
J repair , and knew
;,by the sound of dashing waves is they still
'uiledon. I

I"  ,, , .

 

  

!

Ridgewood, bitter y, bravely, her eyes flashing
defiance as she spoke,

“ Awaallen ones, my dear!” sneered the pi-
rate. “ Your supper will be ready soon, and
then, when we have found the hiding-place of
my own warlike craft, you will have a change
of uarters.”

rning, he set the lamp on the cabin table
and ain limped on deck.

“ e are where they do not fear to show
li hts,” said Sadie.

en, goin out into the main cabin with her
com anion, s 0 looked through the little cabin
wm owe. . _

All she could seewas a wide ex use of water,
and dimly, to the ri ht, a low s ore with some
small trees upon it. ot a house or light or any
other vessel could she see.

“ It is but a little way to the shore.
swim, Melissel” she asked.

“ 0h yes—I often bathe in the surf iu the
warm summer-time, and there I learned to
swim strongly and well, aided by my father and
uncle!”

“ I, too learned when bathing on the sea-
side!’ said Sadie. “ If we could onl elude our

ards and dro overboard, we con] reach the
s ore. It is nogtwo hundred yards away.”

“We ‘will try if the slightest op rtunity oc-
curs!” said Melisse. “T ese win ows are so
small we could not get through them!”

“No—but all the men except Spirifort have
been up and awake these two nights. They
mustbe nearly worn down. If they sleep—we
can pass them unseen and then—once in the wa-
ter we will reach the shore and hide or—die be-
fore we let them reca ture us!”

“ Spirifort may wa h us!”

“ Let him. If the rest sleep I would strangle
the murderer with my own hands and bless God
for a chance to do the deed!”

“ 0h, Sadie—you aremore brave than I! But
I e:Z1('11111)1t:31p optilll I can andhdie liy yoillli side if
n . 'ng—euery ing ut ' e pur-
chased at the rice of honor !”

The girls em raced They were united in one
thought. e could die, and die together, but
they would no submit to further wrong.

‘ Sadie—dearest, there is a edicine-chest in
the pen I saw it when e got our knives.
If we co (1 find m kid. and put some in the
bottle of brandy which the pirate drinks from
Every tyne he comes into the cabin, would it not
Q 0 us

‘ Mousse—you are a blessed angel! It‘will be
just the thing—better far than to risk an attack
upon him, weak as we are!”

Quickly the search was made, the so rifle
powder found and the whole—an ounce at east—
put in the large decanter of liquor—enough to
put him to sleep it taken in small doses, to kill

im if used l 1y.

Then the gir hastened to their room to await
events.

When supper was laid on the table, the ate
only hard- read and drank water—two
which could not well be drugged without detec»
tion. . ~

It was not lon before Spirifort came down
with his pilot. th men then k freely of
the drink and did not detect the drug. They ate
heartily also and talked of their plans coolly

“ It is too dark to—night for us to try find the
lagoon where the big schooner lays with this
craft for I can’t steer by compass and the Sound

Can you

is full of shoals!” said the river pirate. “ But I
can take a boat and go near the lace and lay a
signal he’ll know and answer Scar-faced im

can learn where we are and en we’ll run in

when day breaks!”
“ The plan is good. I'dtgo with you, but these
girls are too sharp to be is t under any guard but

myiown; Take what men you want in the boat
an o!

“ right. I’ll take four men, the boat rows
that man oars!” .

“ How ong will you be gone?” ‘

“ Not more than an houror two, if I find ’em
easy Cap!”

‘ All riglit—be of! as soon as you like. Tell
’em on dec that I’ll keep watch down here, and
they can all turn m—them that do not go with
you I mean!”

T 9 pilot went on deck, and soon theboat was
heard pushing off.

i, . ,_ "5.5.33. ., .31

And he suited his action to his words.
.The last dose fixed him. He staggered toward
his former seat and fell at full length on the

‘ cabin floor.

  

 

“ Now is our time, or never!” whispered Sadie.
seeing that he made no attempt to stir. “ If he
has taken enough to kill him all the better!”

“ I will secure on’e weapon at least !" said Me-
lisse, as she bent down and took a golden-hilted
dagger from the pirate’s belt and placed it in the
bosom of her dress.

“We must change our clothes—we can never
swim in our dresses!” said Sadie.

Hunting through the cabin they came upon an
old brass-bound trunk and, on opening it, found
two or three suits of common sailors’ cloth-

in .

suickly' discarding the outer portion of their
own garments, they each donned a sailor’s shirt
and pants, and then they were ready for their

venture.

Cree in stealthil up the cabin stairs they
reach t e deck. ely listened, but heard no
sound. The men who lad been left had gone
down into the forecastle to sleep.

“ I wish we knew how the tide ran—n0 matter,
it is but a little we to the shore. Come, Melissa
—come, side by si e we escape or side by side
we die!”

Careful] the two girls in their sailor garb
lowered t cmselves over the low side of the
schooner into the water. Hearing no sound of
alarm they let all go, and swimnung slowly, but
steadily, moved tOWard the sandy beach.

They could see dimly between them and the
eastern sky some stunted pines, and when at
last they stood tired and trembling on the sand
they could hear the roar of the ocean surf out-
side, and they feared they Were on an island in-
stead of the mainland and that perhaps it was
uninhabited.

“ No matter—we must move on and get as far
from here as we can, for they will pursue us the
moment our absence is discovered, ’ said Sadie.

“ It will warm our chilled forms to move on
and as fast, too, as we can go,” added Melissa.

They hurried through the little grove of pines
and then saw far away to the north or it seemed
far in the darkness, the ‘ lenses of the
Hatteras light-house.

“ There—there is our hope. If we can only
reach that light; it is a Government station, and
we will be protected ” cried Sadie.

And they pressed forward through the loose,
deep sand, now tumb ' Over hillocks that had
been raised by the win , then falling in some
unseen depression, for it was only starlight, and
that much dimmed by clouds flying overhead.

But for the time they were he. py in spite of
their fears—they were free; free rom their hor-
rible and murderous captor.

Faint—terrified at every sound, not darin
to sto for a moment’s rest, on—on they push .

“ 0 , how far it is! Can we live to get there?”
murmured Melissa.

“We must live to get there or die in the ef-
fort. Death iibetter than to be retakenx by the
foul wretch w om we have escaped. If we are
pursued, kill me with the dagger you carry and
slay yourself, rather than submit to recap-
ture!’

Sadie spoke bravely, and she meant every
word she uttered.

On—on—panting for breath—on, treman in
every limb. on each to hold up the at or,
they sta gored unt the light seemed almost
overh and the roar of the Ocean surf grew
louder and louder. ‘

0n, until they were in front of a plain house,
whitewashed so they saw it plainly, even in the
dark. They knew it was almost morning for a
large star rising in the eastern horizon to d them
as much. '

Almost falling against the closed door, Sadie
struck it hard with her hand.

No answer came. If inmates were there, no
such feeble blow would arouse them.

Melisse took the dagger from her bosom and
with its heavy hilt struck several resounding
blows u n the 

“Is t you y? If ou’re done wid the
light for the ' ht, why the ivil dtp’t you come
in an’ not stan a-thumpin’ the dure Wid yer big
pertatie-mashers?”

It was a woman’s voice they heard, and she
seemed in a querulous humor, from her sharp
tones.

“ It is two poor girls who seek shelter!” cried
Sadie. “ Let us enter, lease.”

“ Gurrls/ Gunnns ere on Hattems! Is
there a wreck?” screamed the same voice, and
they heard sounds inside as if the woman was
rising and saw a light gleaming through a crack
in the door.

The door was thrown open a minute later, and
a tall, red-faced woman, with a lamp in her

v

hand,_glared out upon‘them. Her a u

,Itv‘

l i

   
 
 

 

g.

 

Fire

 

and scanty garments indicated that she was just
out of bed. .
“Is it gurrls ye call yerselves? GURRLS Wid
b’yes’ clothes on—wet, too, as drownded rats!
“ here’s yer wreck—where is it, I say, and is
J the stuff coniin’ ashore?”
“We have not been wrecked—we escaped
. from pirates, got men’s clothes and swam on
shore—oh. take us in and give us shelter!”
“ Pirates? The divils! I must call Barney!
He‘s wid the light!”
And the Woman, setting her lam
as hard as she could for the light- ouse a few
yards away.

 

CHAPTER XXXV.

PURSUIT. . .
WHEN the boat steered by the river pirate
who acted as pilot on the oysterschooner, shov
G off, she headed up the Sound, and her helmsman
' took the bearings of the light  shape her course
with. That could be seen distinctly on his star-

! board or right hand. His course was westerly ‘

toward the mainland not far distant. For a
little while he spoke occasionally

and then he seemed to grow strangely drows ,

and by the time they were well over on t ei

!
' other shore he dropped over in the stern of the
i boat, sound asleep and snoring.
: As he had not told the men how to steer, or
| how to find their destination, and his first course
I, was lost by his yawing around, the crew were
3 thrown into a quandary,
(‘ They tried to arouse him in vain, though they
shook him roughly, dashed water in his face,
' and tried every other means they could think

of.
“He has been drinking hard. We’ll have to
wait till he sobers up!” said one of the men.
“And that might take all night!” said an-
other.
“A ni ht drifting about like fools in a cold
wind wit out a bite to eat ora sup 0’ drink!”
growled a third.

“ Cussed if I’ll stand it. He is not one of us,
no way!” snarled one of the oldest pirates in the
band. “ Let us take him back and report to
the captain himself for orders i”

last plan was 1:. upon by the boat’s
: crew and within-an our from the time they
left t e schooner themere on her deck

“They keep a b ed nice lookout ere!”

3 cried the old pirate, when they got on board
' without being iled. “One man could run of!
‘ with the schooner before anybody woke!”

Some of the men from the forecastle came out

drowsy and careless when they heard their com- .

rades on deck, and to the query, “ Where’s the
ca ' i” answered that he was on watch in the
ca in, and had sent them word that they could

turn in.

‘ Down into the cabin went the oldest and
shrewdest pirate in the crowd, expecting to find
the ca tain also aslee . He was not disappoint-
ed. sound, too, t t at first he thought he

was dead.
But he breathed heavily and groaned when
shook; but could not be amused from his stupor.
“There’s witche in all this! I never knew
thecatainso hewasnotfit fordu ,to
fight or his life if ’twas needed!” mutte the

man.

Then his eyes fell on female garments scattered
over the floor of the cabin; and the open chest
of sea-clothing.

Quickly he sprung to the state-room where the
young ladies had been confined. It was em ty.

“ On deck there! The captain has

, and the women prisoners are
They've jumped overboard to drown, or
got ashore some way 1”

His cry brought every man below, and at a

lance they saw that what he had said was truth.

D8.
V6

6 girls were not there. But their dresses, not '

torn or disordered, but laying just as they had
left them in their haste, were on the floor and
berth in their state-room. And portions of sea-
men’s clothing that the had discarded, la
tosseqabout in front at c old. trunk in whic
moreof the same sort remained.

“Mates! The cap’n will go wild when he
wakes and finds ’em ne! He’ll murder every
man aboard—see if e don’t!” cried the man
who made the discovery.

“ We’ll hide his weapons
fury!” said another. “It no fault of ours,
anyway. We were 03 obe ‘ his orders, and
he took the .watch here on himself!”

By this time, after repeated eflorts, the-pilot
was brought back to wakefulnem. At first he
was very stupid, but the new of this discovery
of the escape of the girls aroused him quicker
than all else.

' he gets over his

urgent measures to get Spirifort aroused. He
caused large doses of salt-water to be poured
down his throat, almost strangling him in the
treatment.

After a long time violent retchin occurred,
Which almost killed the patient, w. o it gave
him so much pain where he was wounded that
he uivored in agony—but it brought him -
tial y out of his stupor—fortunate! for t one
under him. not fully. or he would ave found
weapons and rented his fury before he had time
, to think or reason.

 
   
 
  

 

l

.. ‘GIJA‘ VJ“: -‘ , L;2_::.
. . I , .'

down, ran 1

to the men, .

And the first thing he didwes to take the most ‘

..  fi'rr' s , H. .- l _.

Feather, the Buccaneer

; When at last—very sick, he asked for brandy,
the man who went to et it, ronounced it
drugged strongly with opium, an he was given
strong coffee instead.

This aroused him, and he began to realize the
situation. For a wonder, he seemed to take the
esca of his prisoners coolly.

“ hey cannot have got ar away!” he said.
i “ Has the vessel been searched?”

“Yes—fore and aft, aloft, on deck, and be-
: low!” was the answer.

, “The only boat we have was absent. They
have either drowned themselves or escaped on

i some of our broken spars!”

‘ The thought of a woman being a strong swim-

! mer never entered his mind.

I “ Take lanterns in the boat, land and look all

‘I along the short! for tracks!” he cried. “Their

feet are small, they can be traced if they have

reached the land!”

A half-dozen men hurried to obey the order.
They rowed to the shore and scattered all along
the shelvin beach, lights in hand.

Soon a. s out of triumph was heard, and the
boat came dashing back. The river pirate, or
pilot was the first to speak.

“ They have landed—the tracks of their small
feet are plain in the sand. They have hurried
j awa north toward the li ht—house!”

“ en they cannot .esgsape. They must be
followed at once and by every man on board!"
‘ cried Spirifort. “ You pilot, will head the
‘ shore party to follow the tracks with lights.

Take half of our men—the strongest of them—

! and push on till you overtake the fugitives.

, You will get them, you must not fail. But they

3 will be worn out and you tired. I will take the

boat with the other men and row up the beach so

. as to take you all on board when you have the

i gir‘lsysafe.’ Do you understand?”

esl

‘ “ Then into the boat at once—the schooner
can take care of herself until we get back. The

; have been gone for hours; you must hurry. f

1 they are at the light-house seize them, and if
the keeper tries to stop you, put out his light in
a hurry !”

I His orders were too sharp and stem for them

3 to hesitate a seoond. Each man sprung for his
armsandthentookhisplaceintheboat.

i The captain now missed his da er.

! “ Look out when you close with t e she-tigers !”

, he said. “My dagger has been taken from my

, belt, and one of them must have it. You have

i seen them use knives before. But remember—

‘ no violence beyond enough to take and hold

them safe. When theyare found—shout! We

! will answer from the boat!”

By this time the land-part were on shore and
as t e moved forward, trai ' g the ste of the
poor ugitives the boat was rowed sowly up

along the beach, keeping as far as ible with-
in sight of the lights that went b0 bing up and
down over the sand-hills. ‘

CHAPTER XXXVI.
A vmaoo.

WHEN the woman ran in her scanty night-

robes to the light-house, the poor girls, ready to

from sheer weakness, rod into the
house and sat down on a rough wooden bench
near the door.

'The house was coarsely but comfortably fur—
nished, and seemed to have three rooms, all on
the ground floor, with a little loft overhead
reached by a ladder. One room had a bed in it,
which from its tumbled appearance, had just
I been deserted by the female who had exhibited
‘ such scant hospitality. '

Full ten minutes went by before the woman

‘Thbathh d i’ party story

‘ ere ey are, an ts a the
, tell!" cried the woman, 'nting to the girl;
and addressing a short, ick-set man with but
one arm, the empty sleeve on his right side tell-
: ing that the other was gone. “ Here’s my Bar-
? my, and he’s my lawful ould man, mind that
7 now,” she continued, now addresing the rls.
1; “Tell him the cock-and-bull story ye toul me
i an’ see if he’ll beleve it, for I don’t!’
5 “ Whatever e say, sp’ake the truth and shame
, the divili” sai the man, in a kindertone than
i the woman used. “I’m an ould sojer as have
} fought wid Gin’ral Jackson an’ lost me arm wid
; a bullet through the elbow, and I’m not easy de-
1 saved!” '
i “ But ou’re a bould desaver, Barney Bu lin,
. or I won dn‘t be wastin" the flower of me li e in
3 these desert sands! But go on, gurrls—tell me
; ould man or sto i But l’ave off the pirate
3 mgr I n’t be vs a. word of it!”

“ you not ve us a little water? We are
l abnostd wi thirst!” Melissa.

~'“ Wat -—when we’ve w to the fore?
Sure the water is so sal it’s not fit for the
I drinkin’!” said Barney, 100 in at the rl’s pale
, face With pity, and getting a lack be e down
I from a cupboard and setting it beside a water-

pail which had a dipper in it.
, _Both girls drank_ eagerly of the water but de-
clined the whisky, an then Sadie said:

i “ We spoke truly when we said we had es-

 

 

caped from the Vpgwer of a murderous pirate ‘

eagle htis cacti. t eln a‘pai-t ofthigfirew were
.a man eres see ,we 0 morphia
' and put it in the liquor  and-f”

ii. 1  .\,.

   

 

    
 
 
   
   
   
    
  
    
   
    
    
  
   
    
 
   
  
 
 
 
   
   
  
 
 
    
   
   
  
  
   
  
  
   
  
   
   
 
  
   
    
    
  
   
  
   
  
     
 
  
   
 
 
 
  
  
 
  
  
   
     
   
 
 
  
   
 
   
   
  
 
    
 
          
   
  

23

“ D’ye hear that, Barney? Put that bottle
back, d’ye mind. Ye may get p’izened before
ye know it!” cried the woman. \ 4'

“Hush now, Colleen—hush, I say an’ let the
lady sp’ake i”

“ The lady in b’ye’s clothes. Look till that,
will ye? Or are ye gettin’ blinded wid their
beauty, ye one-armed b‘aste of the wurruld ?”

“ Ix ape your tongue still, woman, or ye’ll get
what Paddy gave the drum! Now go on, miss,
I’m a—listenin’ !”

“I said that we put a sleeping potion in the
bottle of li uor t e pirate drank from, and
when he fe asleep we changed our garments
for this coarse clothing and swam on shore.
Then we ran or walked all the way here. for we
saw the light and thought we’d get help!” ,

“ Divilish little can I help you, if pirates come
afther you. I’ve but one arm. and all the gun I
have is an ould musket wid a broken lock that
wouldn’t o of! if it had a load in, which it
hasn’t. I my ould woman has a mind to hide
ye she may, but——”

‘ Barney Buglin—am I such an ould goose as
to hide away purtv gurrls in b’ye’s clothes for
you to be peekin’ afther? It’s not me that’ll do
it. So the sooner they’re off out 0’ here the bet-
ter for ’em and for you too if you care for what
hair I’ve left ye!”

“ You hear!” said Barney to the girls, ruefu}.
1y. “ I’m boss over in the light-house, but she is’
boss here!”

“ Then let us go to the light-house—away to
its very top!” cried Melisse. “If we are pur-
sued there, we can die—that’s all!”

“Hear till that, will e?” yelled the woman,
thorough] angry. “ ou’d go into the light-
house wi him, would ye? I’ve a mind to
scratch yer brazen eyes out. Git away from me
house, wid yer b’ e’s clothes on! Begone I tell
ye, or I’ll h’ate e' kittle an’ scald ye! Go—I
sa "’

y.

And she threatened the poor girls so furiously
that they shrunk out of the house, weeping and
asking if there were no other house near where
they could find shelter.

‘ If you could paddle a canoe, or set up a sail
and steer it, there’s one over on the Sound by a
little landin’. And if you’ll steer off wid the ris-
in’ sun at yer right shoulder for ten miles an
come to a bit of an island, where there’sa er-
man lives wid his darters. His ould woman is
dead, praise the Lord, and you may fare better
than wid us. It’ll soon be light and the landin’
is down by yon big tree— ou can’t miss it. I’ll
loan you the canoe if you’ send it back!”

The girls knew the could not stay there and
they started for the ‘ , weak and exhaust-
ed though the were. . .:

Guided by t 9 tree the li ht-house—kee had
{fainted out, and fearful t they might be

ked from the schooner, the girls put forth
every energy. ,

It was 'ust in the gray of morning when they -.
reached 6 landing. A cry of delight 'broke . g
from the lips of Melisse. A long sharp canoe, ’;
hollowed from a cypress log lay in the water.
Ithadpaddlesandamastwithalugsailon.

“I have been used to canoes on our bayin
Labrador and can both paddle and sail them!” ‘
she cried.

“ Then for Heaven’s sake let us get in and be
01!. Look back at the light-house!” said Sadie,
hoarsely.

One glance back told Melisse how fortunate
the were in having been driven from there.

There were men running to and fro about the
place and one whom they recognized as the 

ilot of the schooner by a large white slouch ' '
hthewarewas seenrushingintothe light-
ouse.
, In’a second both girls were in the canoe. Me- '.
lisse seized a. ddle and swiftly propelled it up
the beach a 'ttle ways until it was behind a
small clump of dwarfish pine trees. I 1

Here she paused and idding Sadie sitvery ,
steady, she raised the slender mast, which steps .
pad through a thwart well toward the bow.

enshehoistedthel ilandwiththesheet.
in her hands stepped to where her steering- ’
paddle lay. '.

Handing Sadie the sheet—or rope which held
theieechofthesailinplace,sbedirectedhernot._, ,
tolet go except when told to, and wind it overt ' ’ r ‘
thole- in near her, to ease the strain on it when 
shefi ed away. _  '

Looking east,she saw by the roseate hneof.
the clouds where the sun was about to rise and 
heading the canoe in a course which would save 
the sun ‘on her right, she ushed boldly out '
where the wind would catch sail.

Andshesaw shehad no timetolose, tori-line.
ning at full speed from the direction of the
house she saw the partyof men seen. there
fore, and at their head came the pilot in hfi
broad-rimmed hat. - -

“Heaven be praised for this escape!” cried
Sadie. “I hated that woman for her cruelty,
now I bless the temper which drove us away.
Jealousyhas done many a wrong, but in thfi
caseithasbeenoursalvation!” , .v ,

“ Yes—and we are funny-looking %
dressed as we are, to excite jealousy!” ‘;
W, laughing in spite of their serious  ,5

i. a. wi«.....-._m u mama‘s u. ..

  

 

   

 

.- 5):;

 

 

seemed to come over the water asterii of them—
made Sadie look back.

“ Horror!” she screamed. “ There is that
wretch, Spirifort, in a boat full of men in hot
pursuit of us!”

In her terror she let go of the sheet, and the
sail flapped idly against the malst.

“ Are you madi—you have let our on! chance
of escape slip from your hand!” cried elisse.

But—bold and skillful on the water, she
sprung forward caught the re )0 and drew the
sail back a ain where it could 11 with the fresh-
ening win(. But they had lost so much that
Spirifort was within a few boats’ lengths of
them, and his triumphant order for them to
stx) told that he was sure of his prey.

ut just at that moment the pilot reached the
shore. In a loud, ringing shout he called out:

“Captain, stop and take us aboard, or we’re
all lost. There is a man-of-war outside the inlet
where we came in, and she has boats down that
are aboard the schooner by this time. I saw her
from the light-house !”

“ Curse you, I’ll have you yet!” yelled Spiri-
fort Itio the girls, shaking his drawn sword in

t

wra .

But he turned his boat to the shore to take in

is men.

And now feeling the wind, the light canoe shot
swiftly up the Sound, for Spirifort resumed his
chasel, or seemed to, the moment his men got on

 

CHAPTER XXXVII.
wanna ARE rnsr?

THE reader may have su W, in dee sym-
pathy with our persecu eroines, or oped,
hat the war-vessel seen ofl’ Hatteras Inlet at
that early hour b the riVer pirate who had
acted as ilot to t e captured oyster schooner,
was the hark, and the. Ridgewood was thus
close eiépon the track of his sister and his be-
troth . '

But a moment of reflection will tell him that
the Shark, swift as she was, could not have been
there, for at dawn she was ofl? Okracoke, far
down the coast.

The vessel seen from the light-house b the
alarmed pilot was the revenue-cutter whic had
been sent from Baltimore in pursuit of the mur-
derous gang. She had spoken the 8100 f—war,
an hour or more after the Shark had fll ed away
and learned all about the chase and esca. of
the pirates, with the loss of their mainmas and
other injuries. And she had started down the
coast, with great advantages over the Shark.

Her commander—Napoleon B. Coste*—was
himself the best coast-pilot in the revenue ser-
vice. He knew every port and inlet from Can-
ada to the Mexican line and could enter or de-
part by night as well as day any harbor having
water enough on its bar for his cutter, the
Campbell

Captain Coste was known as the smugglers’
terror on every station to which he was sent.

Thus, instead of bein forced to 0 around
the dreaded shoals ofHa ras, hehe his course
inside under shortened sail, carefully threading
the narrow and intricate gassage made before
by the fu ‘tive schooner. ydawn he lay, hove
to, off of tteras Inlet, but the tide was at ebb
and the water too low for him to attempt to
carry the cutter in.

Therefore, when the lookout from aloft 0t

‘ sight over the land of the crippled schooner, e

ordered out four boats with well-armed crews
and sent them in to capture her. She had been
described so well, and was so plainly marked by
the damage of the 11$ before, that she was
known as soon as sigh . .

The boats dashed ravelz in over the bar and
made at once for the sc ooner, ex ing, of
course a sharp resistance. Divid so as to
strike her how and stern and board, they swept
forward and soon were alongside—not a shot
flredoramanseenonboard, oreven a boat in

view.

“ She has been deserted!” said the lieutenant
who commanded the boat’s part . He looked
her all over, even into the room w ere the poor
Eds had been confined, and ordering that'noth-

should be touched or disturbed until his cap-
tagisaw it, sentoneboatoiftothe cutter to re-
rt and with the other three determined to
firm the recaptured schooner out over the bar to
an anchor there, where she 00 be tted and
sent in as a prize. _

It took some time to weigh her anchor, and
the wind having shifted as well as the tide, it
was slow work gettin her out. But at last it
was accomplished an she was taken to an an-
chorage near the cutter, from which a top-
mastwasprocuredtouseas a jurymammast—
or a tem mast to aid in her.

Captagio C came on board an closely ex-
amined the vessel. Accordingeto his judgment
she had been deserted hours fore, since there
was no fire in heglgulley, no cooked food visible,
and everything 1 t in disorder.

“ The pirates have boarded their large vessel
and let the go, since she has served
their purpose.” ,

' A real character, and noted for all the qualities
described

 

 

“And that large vessel—where do you sup-
pose she is?” asked his lirst lieutenant.

“ Gone to sea! “'hy, do you think she‘d lay
here to be caught in a trap! Pirates are not
fools, if the are robbers and murderers!”

“ Sail ho! ’ shouted the lookout on the cutter’s
fore cross—trees.

“ Whereaway, and what does she look like?”
responded Captain ('oste, springing into his
boat and ordering it alongside the cutter, which
lay hove to not a pistol-shot to leeward.

“She is close in with the land, sir! Square—
rigged—no, sir—she steers oil‘ to clear a shoal,
I reckon, and is—a forcmpsuil schooner—very
large and heavy—rigged, sir.”

“ By the holy )ipers! she may be the pirate
herself! Call alllhands to quarters and clear for
action!” shouted the captain, as he sprung on
the deck of his cutter.

Taking his glass, while officers and men hur-
ried to their stations, he went aloft far enough
to get a good look at the stranger.

‘ Armed —-terribly heavy spurred, sha
ainted black from stem to stern, it must be
er!” he cried, as he hastened back to the quar-

tor-deck.

“ Open the magazine, double-shot the broad-
side guns and put a chain shot in the Ion Mm.
there forward! Get up the pistols RIM cut-
lasses—the muskets, too—loud, and be ready for
Work, every man !"

His orders were given sharp and clear, and in
a brief, period everything was ready for battle.

The men who had been at work on the cap-
tured schooner were recalled, and the latter left
at her new anchorage with only one man as an
anchor-watch on board.

For Captain Coste, fully believing that it was
the pirate approaching, knew he would need
ever man at his guns, for there would be no
Chll( ’9 play when fire was opened.

And—-—on board the Shark, for it was that ves-
sel coming up the coast so fast, there was ex-
citement, though stern naval discipline kept it
down. for the two vessels had been sighted, and
the old oystcrman had recognized his Own

schooner, with one mast gone, through his tele- ,

sco , from aloft.
xiii.

at schooner but the pirate would be in l and it was net
1 went inside t e Scum on top tide and the Shark

there alongside the disabled craft.

Thus thinking, Lieutenant Chandler had clear-
ed for action, and was far better prepared for
hard and desperate flghtin than the cutter
since she carried nearly dou Ie the battery and
half as man more men.

Swiftly s e sped up the coast, every sail aloft
that would draw, her officers and men cool and

elate, onl anxious to meet the miscreant ma-
rauder o the seas, and to punish him as he
deserved.

Nearer and nearer now the cutter tacked, and
stood oil’ to get an offing to work the ship in
when the trouble began.

The other schooner headed out for the same
purpose, and now not three miles a , the
commanders of each vessel had a e co to
see the colors of the other.

“That craft flies the revenue flag, stars with
stripes up and down!” said Lieutenant Chandler.
“ But she can’t play that ruse on me!”

“ It is not the Diablocito,” said younglRidge-
wood, with a sigh. “ That craft is muc larger
—but the schooner is there! We will soon
know what it means. Heaven grant those poor
girls are safe!”

Ca tain Coste hardly knew whether to feel re-
liev , or to be angry when he saw the pennant
and colors of an American war-schooner on the
comin craft. He knew, had the pirate been so
large, e would have stood no chance. He had
a naval signal book, and when he saw _the
Shark’s number flying at her fore, recogmzed
the vessel, for he had seen her several times in
the course of service.

Still all hands were k t at quarters ready for
work, if there was any eceit until both vessels
were in hail. «

Then—hove to, explanations were made, and

Captain Costs asked Lieutenant Chandler to

come on board for consultation while the prize

was .

In those da s naval ofilcers were men, not uni-
formed dan es, and no sticklers on points of
etiquette. A revenue oflicer was treated with
asmuch courtesy as he would have been if he
wore the foul-anchor buttons of the navy on his

coat.

And Lieutenant Chandler with Ridgewood by
his side was rowsd alongside of the cutter in as
brief a time as possible.

Thence, with Captain Caste, they“ went on
board the oyster schooner.

Tears filled young Ridgewood’s e es, brave as
he was, when he saw the we -remem
dresses which had been worn by his sister Sadie
and Melissa Duprét.

“They have been murdered—or worse has

happened. or these garments would not be here!
Thank God I A{let live to revonge them!”

“ What sh we do? We have the empty prize.
but where is the irate himself, the vessel in
which the arch ii of all demons, SmirOa‘r,
reigns.” king of the buccaneersl” said Lieuten-
an Chandler. “ What is your opinion. Captain
Costs—the chief pirate was in this schooner with

.his two helpless captives! Where is he no"; I”

 

!
V .1
tr:

 

 

 

“ In his schooner, either down the Sound to
the southward, or he has slipped out tosea in
i the night! There is no water north of here, deep
enough inside, to float a craft like his. South——
he can run over a hundred miles and get to sea
through inlets as deep as this!” ‘

“ He could not have got to sea without being '
seen by you or I since this craft got in. He must
be somewhcre south in the Sound!” said the
commander of the Shark. “ What shall we do
to hunt him up and force him toclose quarters?”

“ You have more men than I, sir. Let the old
captain of the oysterman have three or four of
your men to carry her into port. Then, with
my force intact and my cutter in good order f 01'
action, I will run inside the inlet on this ‘flood’
and make a close search all the way down to
Cape Fear. You can keep outside, watch us,
and be. ready if "‘0 stir him up, to help us, for he-
is heavier than the Campbell!”

“ Your plan, Captain Coste, is the best I can
think of under the circumstances. “'e will ado it
it! If he is not found by this 0 urse—we will 0
i off to southern seas to look for h'm—will we not,

I Ridlrewood!”

I “ es, sir—I have almost lost hope for the
safety of those I love. Yet we can avenge them!
I am ready to go anywhere you think best!”

“ Then it is settled! We will take the courSO
suggestedby Captain  He knows the coast-
better than any of us—if the irate craft is yet-
inside the Sound he will hunt er out. We will
keep watch and bide our time, he ing, PRAYING
to meet her muzzle to muzzle on eep water.”

Having said this and extended the courtesy of
an invitation to come on board the Shark, the
naval commander prepared to return to his vessel.

“ One moment, ca tam—have you considered
about sending the sc ooner in—the oysterman I
mean .2” cried the reVenue oflicer.

“Oh, yes, sir—you shall have full credit for
the recapture. I will send her in to Baltimore
in charge of a midshipman and three men, just
enou h to nav1gate her!”

“ ad I will write to my mother and try to

 

o

 

ve her more hope than I feel!” said young

idgewood.

Time was flying during all these occurrences,
‘hi h noon” when the latter

filled awa ' once more to the southward, as the
tide turn .

At the same hour the oyster schooner, with a.
reefed mainsail on her short jury mainmast,
sailed away northerly, going outside of Hatteras =
shoals for this time. . '

She not only sailed for her point of destination
but bore diapatches to the Secretary of the I
Navy and the commanding officer of the north- j
gm station, detailing the services performed so i

ar. ,

 

CHAPTER XXXVIII. .,
A manners!) cooan. .

er'rLE did Sadie Ridgewood and Melissa .
Duprét think that while hastening from a visible
dan or they were flying away from their best ‘
earthly friend—the brother and lover whom I
both behaved to be dead since he was shot down ,:
before their eyes.

They had seen their pursuers at the light-
house, discovered them running toward the
water-side and then saw Spirifort in his boat
close upon them. - '

Thou b they heard the words of the river ,

irate t t a man-of—war was near, they did not 
or an instant think that they could reach it. 
Their only thought and hope was to escape from 5
their immediate and dreaded pursuer. Q

And as the wind carried them rapidly up the »,
narrowing bay, past reedy islands and sandy 5
points, their hearts beat lighter, for the slender .7
canoe flew along under the s dance of
lzifelisslel Dupliigt at I: rate which no boatwith y
oarso co reac .

In truth in less than five minutes from the g
start thggimtes were left solar behind that both :
girls cri out in oy:

“ We are safe-— 9 can never overtake us!” E
And just then Ca Spirifort did not try to 3
do so, The clam cinit Of that man-of—war '

troubled him so much t at for the time be 3.1- 
most for the fugitives- He feared the discov- ; .
cry of e hiding-place of the Diablocito and 2
that in his absence She would be taken at a d13- .
advantage and be poorly defended, perhaps (16- l
stro ed. ,
Rang? his overloaded boat in among the
reeds bushes of an island, at a tnear
the light-house where he could see 3 oyster,l
schooner at her anchor, yet remain concealed i
with his men, be caused two to swim on shore I
and to.steal down toward the inlet to makeI
what discoveries they could and, re , to;-
report when it would be safe for him to “‘79!
his place of concealment. i
From his hiding-place he saw the four armed 9
boats make their dash upon the deserted schoon' 
er and he lau bed in fiendish 3186 when he saw ;
their astenis eat at finding no enem -—Or
what he fancied must be their rise. ittfll‘
oaths left his lips when he sawt em towthe
schooner off, for she had sailed so well that 11O I .
meanttoarm herandmflkeher a tendertohi’ *.

 

lar er craft. ' .
is next fear was that they mightth '5

.'

  

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A.‘ W55‘i‘ii'i’fiu 035669-‘3‘15

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 ‘  Buccaneer

 

."

 

light-house and thus discover theesca of the
girls, for he had no fear of their trac s bein

seen because his own had trampled them out o
Sight in following them.

One thing worried him. Hours and
the sun had passed its meridian without his ab-
sent men returning to report. If they were seen
and captured—to save their own lives they
might betray him. The guilty live in constant
fear, whether they are in danger or not.

‘then at last they saw the revenuecutter, a
large foretopsail schooner, come into the Sound,
the river pirate who knew where the Diablocito
lay cried out:

“ It’s all up, cap’n! They’ve got some hint
that the big craft has hid in here somewhere,
and they’re goin for her!”

“ Curses—ten t ousand curses on the girls who

drugged us and kept us back, or We’d be on her
deck now, ready to send those dogs to perdition !”
cried Spirifort, gnashin his teeth in rage.
“ Can we not make a ash and get to our
schooner in spite of them?”
' “No, cap’n—no! There are two leagues of
open water between us and the lagoon where
she lies hidden by tall trees, so far inside its
winding channel that even they can see nothing
from on board, below or aloft. If we show our-
selves outside these reeds, how far would we go
Without getting cold iron around our ears?” A

“ I would rather die than lay here idle if they
d1? discover the lagoon you speak of!” said the
c ief.

“Ah—they head down the Sound! They are
off the scent!” cried the pilot. “Your craft is
safe, ca tain and when that fellow is hull
down, w iich he will be inside of two hours, we’ll
steer for her hiding-place!”

“ Not till I see the men I sent out as scouts!”
said Spirifort. “ The may have left men or
boats on watch. Per aps the have manned
and armed the oyster boat. t is ten h—but
caution is a. jewel in its place. “’0 stay
here until dark, if necessary, to wait for our
men!”

“ And them girls—will you let them 0?
They ought to be captured, if only to punish
them.”

“ They shall be. followed, when we can do it
safely! I will not lose them. I am keen on a
scent and a tiger to follow. If they even reached
Baltimore, I would have them again after all
the trouble they’ve given me!”

“ That’s grit ! I like it. I’d like to have the
taming of that blonde in in own hands!”

“ Be faithful and true, pilot, and you shall!”

“Bet your life on me, Cap, and you’re dead
sure to win !”

Another hour assed and the two scouts which
had been sent own the beach returned. y
this time the cutter was almost hull down to the
south.

One of the men hailed from shore:

“You can come in and take us on board!
There is no one around to bother us any more!”

Gladl the captain ave the order to row in
where 's men coul stretch their limbs, for
the had been cramped up in the beat all day
an were stiff as logs. .

“ Well—what have you seen?” the captain
asked. ‘1 Why have you delayed us all day?"

“ To see the last of your enemies ofl, sir. The
oyster schooner, with a prize crew aboard, is
yet in sight to the north, while a vessel larger
and heavier armed than ours, of the same rig,
is at in sight at' sea, going south under easy
sail: She is a regular navy craft and held a
long confab with the cutter that ran inside.
The ’re on the hunt, no doubt, for us, sir—and
we’ have trouble to make way with the one
outside, if she tackled us. ”

“Did any of their crews come ashore!”

“ No, sir—they seemed too busy to think of it,
boats ing from one vessel to the other.”

“ Amht. ' You have done your duty well.
Now for our own craft, where we’ll su , and
then-some of you will take a still hunt th me
for the ducks that went up the Bay. They
must be found l”

“Be on, cap’n ” said the river irate—
“ but It’zve an idea we’ll leave things slac if we
don’t give a con is of folks up at (you light-house
a scare that make them he! their tongues
shouldan of our enemies hap 11 over there to
question t em. I had no time do it this morn-
ing. I found out the girls had been there, for
we tracked them to the door, and that the we-
man—the light-keeper’s wife—had driven them
off, and just then I saw themano’-war, and we
had to run for you to give the alarm.”

“ Yes—I see. If it would not leave the light.

nntended, and thus draw attention in here all
the sooner, I’d order you to go up and cut both
their throats. That would silence their
ton es!”

“ right will do almost as well. They are
alone, and the sight of our gang nearly threw
them into fits this morning !”

“I’ll u with you and see what theyare
made 0 . fien if find anyth to eat or
drink there, we’ll bring you a s .

Accom nie'd by the pilot, Spirifort hian up
to the lig t-house. He had istols in his lt, a
sword by his side. The ilo was also anned.

When the approach the dwelling-house, the
keeper and wife stood in the door. ~

 

 

“The howly saints be wid ye, gintlemen!”
said the woman, her courage all gone. “ Barney,
you b’aste make er manners like a man! He’s
a bashful cra t ur, my Barney is, gintlemen,
an’ I hope ye’ take no ofiinse. Will you come
inan’ have a sup of whisky an’ a bite to ate?
It’s not much, but We have no bettherl”

“ We’ll take some whisky and food, for our
vessel has been stolen from us by the infernal
revenue men, and we’ll be short till we can get
to Norfolk!” said Spirifort. “They’ve broken
up our smuggling for a time, but we’ll have an-
other craft under our feet some day, and if you
are wise and We are luck you’ll have silk for a
dress or two and your 0] man cloth for a Sun-
day suit!”

“ An’ ye are smugglers only, an’ not pirates?”

“ Smug linais our business—we do not call it
a crime. 6 ring some good brandy in some-
times!”

“ D’ye hear that, Barney? How thim hussies
lied about decint gintlemen. Set out yer whis-
ky, man, while I get the bread and m’ate. D’ye
hear ? ”

“Yis!” said Barney, pale and trembling for
he took little stock in what he had just hear .

“'ith liquor and some cold meat and bread the
two rufiians made a hearty meal.

Then throwmg down a couple of pieces of gold,
Spirifort said:

“Bundle up a couple of leaves, a chunk of
meat, and a bottle of drink form men at the
boat. And hark ye both—I shall back here
as soon as I get another vessel, and if you have
kept still tongues in your heads, told no living

soul of our visit, either this mornin or now,
ou’ll find me a liberal paymaster. ut if you
tray us—”

“ Sure, we’d niver, m'ver be so m’ane, sir!”
cried the woman.

“ I hope not, for we would have to cut your
throats instead of handing you a purse of yel-
low 1d!”

“ arciful saints. Barney, darlint, we’ll be
still—no matther who comes—how we’d look wid
our throats cut!”

Spirifort said no more. The pale face of Bar-
ney, and the tremor of the woman told that his
threat had struck home.

The woman ut up a quantity of food—Bar-
ney added two ttles of whisky instead of one,
and the two irates went to the boat, where the
half-famish crew were led to see them.

“ The divils! How gla I am they didn’t ask
which way the gurrls went!” muttered Barney
when the were out of hearing. “ For they
havgzgot it of you if I had hild my tongue!”

“ is—you b’aste! You’re thinkin’ more about
them butther-milk faced gum-ls than you are of
me, yer own lawful wife. I’d ha’ tould ’em all I
knew an’ more too, if they’d axed me 1”

CHAPTER XXXIX.
rm: ISLAND CABIN.

WE have too lon lost sight of our two hero-
ines in distress. either had ever seen a great
deal of the world as the world goes, neither had
ever been in situations of distress and genuine
peril before. Therefore the dark side of human
nature had been like a sealed book to them.
They did not think the man who had been kind
enough and honest enou h to furnish them the
means of escape from eadly pursuit would be
treacherous enough to betray their route to
those who follow .

So they sailed boldly on for some time, they
thought at least two or three hours, until the
ba grew very narrow and on the inside seemed
to lined with a vast, im netrable swam .

“ Surely we have come n miles!” said '6.

“ It seems more I” sighed Melissa. “But the

.wiud has fallen and we’ve gone slow since we
got up near this heavy timber. Ali-I see
smoke. and it rises from yonder wooded island.”

“Yes—yes—it is our haven. God grant it
may be safe until we can learn how to reach
some yplace where we can send to Baltimore for
help! added Sadie. “In myhasteI forgot to
take my purse from the list in my dress, and
left it where we chan !”

“ And I, having in dear father ever with me
to purchase what wanted, never carried

monfiy. so we are penniless.”
“ at nite while I wear this diamond 
It is we a thousand dollars!” said Sadie. “ t

shall hel us through. It was mother’s gift on
my last irthday, but she will blame no sacrifice
that restores us to her side!”

Steering directly for the island, the soon saw
arudewharf. Toitsspilesor tst erewas a
small sailboat, a rowboat, an a canoe made
fast.

Back among some pines stood a small 1
house. Not a uman being was in sight, thong
smoke came from a mu chimney which rose
outside and at one end of the house, indicating
" file and probably life inside.

Taking in the sail, Melissa paddled up alon -
side the sailboat and fastened the. canoe to i
shroud—a single stay on each side to steady and
su rt the mast. 4

en making their way up on the wharf they

used, hoping to see some one come out of the

case to whom they could speak, and ask for
shelter and food. ‘

 

A dog—one of those little yelping curs which

 

are generally used for coon dogs by the poorer
class South, came barking out of the log cabin
door, and a second later a tall girl, barefooted,
red-haired and freckled in the face made her ap-
pearance there.

She gave one glance at our queerly-dressed
heroines, and without leaving her post, shouted
to some one back of her.

“ Sal! Gimme the gun quick! There’s two
bareheaded sailors a-comin up the path, an’
dad’s awa to Norfolk!”

And as 'e and Melissa halted a few steps
from the door, another girl as tall and no more
handsome than the first, rushed out with a long,
single—barreled musket in her hands.

“ Please do not be alarmed—we are only 

r, distressed girls, who need shelter
00d!” cried Sadie.

“ Skeered ? We’re not of the skeery kind,
be we, J emimy ?” answered the girl with the gun
in her hand—a twin in looks to the other.

“No, Sal. I’m not skeered a hooter! But
say if you-’uns are gals, what are you doin’
With trowsers on?”

“We couldn’t swim in our own clothes, and
wehad to put on these to get away from bad
men who carried us off from our home. Please
let us 0 in, for We are very weak and tired. We
couldn t do any hurt if we wanted to.”

“ I reckon not. Sal an’ me are wild—cats when
our back hair is up!” said Jemima, lowering her

“Poor creetur’s. They do look all tuckered
out,” said Sally. “ Come in—well get you some
corn-pone and fish and catnip-tea. Dad ’11 have
storetea when he gits back from Norfolk. He
ought to be here now—he went day afore yes-
terday—”

“ e day more that, Sal!’

“ So ’twas!” said Jemima; “ him and our Ro-
miette—she’s the baby—took down a lot 0’ coon-
skins and mug—rats and dried wenison to do
some tradin’.” ‘

While king, the poor girls were ushered
into the ca in by the twins and told to “squat,”
as a bench was pointed to for them to sit on.

Then, asking no questions while hastenin to
be hospitable, the 'rls t some corn breaif on
the table, threw a ew s ices of fish in a frying—
pan and set it on the coals in the huge fire-place,
and threw a handful of dried catnip-leaves into
the tea-kettle which steamed near by.

Some sweet-potatoes drawn from the ashes
where they had been roasting, added tothe meal,
and madeto the poor, weak girls a most delicious
and strengthening re .

“Eat hea !” the emonstrative Jemima re-
marked. “ l e’ve got plenty, sich as it is and
dad ’11 bring more. And me and Sal and the
baby will each have a new dress, it dad gets .
enou h for his truck.”

“ ow old is the baby?” asked Sadie.

“ Cluss on to sixteen, and it takes as much
kaliker to kiver her, as it does us—maybe more,
’caze she’s fatter an’ plum r nor we be. Doesn’t
work as hard as we-‘uns. e hunt and fish with
dad when he’s to hum. I’m holy death with the
gun. When I put my squinters over them gun-
sights, if it’s b’ar, deer or coon that I’m a-ped—
in at, down comes its carkiss. ”

“ And I’m not fur behind!” said Sally. “ I’ve
ot a gun, too single-barrel, like hers. Dad—
e shoots a double-barrel, but year in and year

out, we-’uns kill as much as he!”

“ Yaas—you bet! df you could see us '
when the wild geese and wild ucks come in the
fall and the swans and spoonbills! Why, we
don’t have shucks for our beds now, like we used
to have when we lived over by Edenton. We’ve
got feathers—me3, sun?”

And she wenttoone of the bunks that lined
the far side of the great single room in the
cabin and lifted up the bed-tick and shook it.

“ Sal an’ me helped to kill and icked over
four hundred geese and swans fall, not a-
countin’ the ducks an’ spoonbills. We’re holy
death when we tat it!

“ Yaas! D says we are worth all the boys
that ever kicked! We stays about hum and ~
mindsi at!“ business _ and mn’ifiaftfemavom’
roun e whisky-mills. Dad’s perance
he is! Mother was given to drink and it 

her. She dieth after the havlvry was born and
we’uns had to 'ug her up. e’re eight years
older than she l”

The girls’ tongues rattled on in this wa until,
SadieandMelimehadeatenallthe ' to
and drawn away from the rude, clozhlem table,
very much refreshed. _

Sally andJemima cleared up the table and
then satdownon stoolsin frontofourhero-

es. .

“Now,” said Jemima. “if ou-’uns want to,
tell usall about your troubles. isbig-hearted,
and ,we’uns ain’t slow, and we’ll help you if we
kin! '

“ Thank you—we will our gratitude by =
acts rather than wonls, if we ever reach our 1
home in safety.” ,

Then, from the hour of the attack in her mo-
ther’s house up to their on the little

island, Sadie told every pal-ti of their tare
rible experience. .
Neither of the listeners spoke until Sadie fin-

ished her story. 0

eyed, open-mouthed,
cared, stricken wi

wonder, they sat in six

  

r-

.g

' for fear o’my

"2'6

-.__..—.......‘... - "u... _.-.....—- -

  caneer

   

I r  v '

 

until she spoke of her landing and again tear-
fully thanked them for their kind welcome. _
“ Cre-a-tionl” gasped Jemima, when Sadie

 ,

‘ re-a-tion!” echoed Sally.

They could not read, and therefore had not en-
tered into the excitement of novel-reading;
hence this reality was not contrasted with any
fictitious heroism.

“ You-’uns is clear stuff and nary a knot in
it!” said Jemima, as she drew a lon breath.

“ Tougher than shark-meat!” sai Sally. “I
say, J emimy, has your gun got buckshot in it?”

“ Yaas, and a ball besides. Why?”

“ ’Caze, if them durned irates come here ar-
ter these poor gals, they’ git warmed, that’s
what I mean!”

“I'm with you all the time—but I wish dad
would come. Baby is tender like an’ not much
on the tussle. But dad—he is a team of mules
an’ a bull-d under the cart when his Ebenezer
is up. He on’t drink or use cuss-words like
some, but is a. holy horror if any one stamps on
his toes!”

“ There’s Witch-hazel a—barkin’—maybe it’s
dad a’ the Baby!” cried the other sister, as the
cur ran yel ing toward the wharf.

“ Or may the pirates!” cried Sally, springing
for her gun.

Both our heroines looked for wea ns—Sadie
snatched a fish-spear from the wall, elisse drew
the dagger she had taken from S irifort’s belt.

J emuna, mu hand, started or the door.

“ It’s da d and the Baby I ” she cried, as,
 laughing, half crying, she turned to the

g“She with the rest, believed the pirates were
upon them.

They all put aside their weapons and hurried
out to meet the old hunter and fisherman and
“the Baby,” who Were comin u from the

wharf, at which another sail was now
moored. -
“Who’ve ye got here?” asked the old man, .

frowning as he saw stran ers, men as he su
good, walking along in a riendly way with his
u hters.
“ on’t be worried, dad! Sally an’ me got
lonesome and sent for a couple of fellcrs to keep

' us comg’ny, you an’ Baby was gone so long!”
And

emima laughed while lifting the long,
blonde hair of Melisse, she added:

“ Aren’t they pnrty ?”

The old man—a muscular giant, full six and a
half feet high, looked an instant on the slender
forms of the stran ers, and his gray eyes soft-
gijed, and his voice out its harsh tone when he

“ They’re gals I Where in all creation did you
find ’em?”

“ The ’ve just got away from a gang 0’ pi-
rates— e come here hungry and tired, and
We’ve ke ’eml”

“ You e done right! But answer me one
word! Be you-’uns from Baltimore?”

This was addressed to Sadie and Melisse.

“ Yes I” said the former.

“ And were took from hum on a oyster boat!”

“Yes!” lied Sadie.

“ And tha oyster boat got shot into by a man-
o’-war outside 0’ here?”

“Yes—had her mainmast cut awa .
caped from her this mornin !”

‘ Cre-a-tion! Who’d ha’t unk it? Why, gals,
all Norfolk is wild about ya! They’re a-sendin

We es~

« off every man-o’-war in port arter the pirates!

And here ye be in my cabin! I hurried back
gals here, soon as I heard of it.
do ye suppose them pirates are now i”

“ he the men-of—war have found them!”
said e. “ When we were 11 from them
in the canoe, We heard one of em about that a.
man-of-war, with lots of boats down, was in the

' inlet !”

 

“Then I reckon their meat is skinned and

- salted down afore this. We’ll go into the house
a

-—I’m hun an’ I reckon b is too for
we’ve useflhydth car an’ sail, tooyto'get‘here
‘ afore ou seen trouble!”

“ e was ready for it, dad—both loaded

, with bucksho and balls in your dou le-barrel !”

 

" in on the Birmp shoulder of

“I’m af , ready or no, a

would ha’ made short work wi

g o’ pirates

you-’uns if I

‘ wasn’t here!” said the sturdy old man

and he

went into the house with his hu fiz’iaid lov-
a y.

would ve won a prize ate. “ Baby Show l”

Nearly six feet high plump enough to bring

down at least two hun red pounds on the scales,

, with eyes blue as indigo, askin fair as a rose-

leaf, and hair of a. fiery red, she was not bad-
Jockth
‘ The his was hurriedly reset—some more fish

' I lfried, and the corn bread and sweet potatoes hot

< from the fire, Iput on.

Then the o

(1 man and his Baby went in to
make up for lost'time.

They ate with “ travel-

ing appetites,” if the reader knows what they
- are

By the time they were through eating the sun

V had ot well to the' westward. Sadie saw itwas

' n

late, ut she ventured to ask the taciturn old
man aquestion for he had filled his pipe and
gone; out of the door to a bench there to
saw e.

I V“ Can you not take us to Norfolk, or to some

 

 

place from whence we can reach Baltimore?”
she said. “We will pay you any rice you ask
—I have no money, but here is a 'amond rin
for which my dear mother paid one thousan
dollars. Take it and help us! ’

And Sadie impulsively drew the glittering ring
from her finger.

“ Oh, how purty ’tis!” cried the Baby, looking
over Sadie’s shou der as she held it up.

“ You’d like to have it, wouldn’t ye, Babe 2‘”
said the old man, as he took the gem in his hand
and looked it over.

“ Oh, wouldn’t 1! It’s so gurty!” answered
the girl, her eyes flashing an her cheeks red
with excitement.

“Well, gal, you may wear a nice ring some
day, get by my hard earnings! But you’ll not
wear this ust now. Here, miss!”

He han ed the rin back to Sadie.

f  Will you not be p us?” asked Sadie, mourn-
u .

“liot for hire, gal—not for HIRE. I’m ready
to risk life to get you out o’ trouble. But all the
gold you’ve got—and they say in Norfolk our
folks i’s rich—wouldn’t make me raisea ban for
you. A good act is no good if it is paid for! I
will help Iyou, and so will in gals, out of our
own free carts! I couldn’t nd my we back
through crooked channels tow’rds Norfo k to-
night, if I was fit to go. W'hich I’m not. I’m
well-ni h tuckered out, out o’ hurr ing back so
fast to 00k out form gals. I nee rest! Then
I’ll be fit for work W en it comes!”

“ God will reward you, sir, if we cannot!”

“Maybe so, gal—maybe so! I’ve had hard
luck and little help from Hm! I had the best
little wife in the world. She gave me her heart
and hand when we were both young and strong.
I had a little farm just outside 0’ Edenton, a
good house, teams, farm tools, six ni gers and
some moneyin bank. Them two oldes% gals was
born—twins, as ou see—and both on us was
content. Then 8 e took a kind 0’ ailing and got
what they called the malary, and a youn col-
lege doctor I hired said she must have s imu-
lants. Well—I got her wine, and I got her
brandy, and by an’ by it got down to whisky.
The more she had, the more she wanted and no
other medicine would do! To make the story
short, it run so six or seven years! She ke it me
from seeing to anything, and by and byl run
fearful short 0’ money. Taxes was heavy the
doctor sent in a bill 0’ two thousand do 3,
then the Baby there was born—and—and sun,
as I loved better than life with all her faults,
died I”

The old man wept silently for a time. His
pipe had gone out. He turned it upside down,
em tying out fire and ashes.

0 one could interrupt that solemn reverie by
a. word.

After a time he spoke:

“ Yes—she died! I had three children on my
hands—the Baby and them twins, the God-bless-
edest two creetur’s on airth. Isold out, ni gets,
farm and all—I couldn’t stay thar! I est
enough, all debts paid and a stone put over er
grave, to et here, buy this island, build this
cabin and ice! '

“I came here with my gzls, here they’ve
grownup, we’ve lived here ppy, and here I
expect to die. I owe no debts— try to be a
man! No whisky comes here—the curse 0’ that

has never got this side 0’ her ve! Best con-
tent here with my als to-nig in the morning
we’ll talk about ge tin’ you- uns to Baltimore, or

to Norfolk, aniwaly !”

There was 8. us , while the soft y of twi—
light fell on the scene. Sadie and Mil-like, grave
and silent, had shed tears of sy‘gilpathy while
that good old man had told his , but simple
story. Every word had come up out of a brave,
sorrow-stricken heart.

It was dark when “ Baby,” who had assumed
charge inside of the house. called them all in to
an per. .

t was a qfulet, homely meal, but some way
our heroines elt a security, a dance of ro-
tection there that took away all ear. And w en
the old man had eve Weapon examined and
turned the dog out-of oors to kee watch, they
retired to rest on a £3th 11 one of the
rude bunks, confident t if attacked they would
bebravel defended.

The nig t passed quietly—no alarm—nothing
to trouble them.

And the r girls skpt for the first time since
they were rn away from home and ! friends, a
hopgful, dreamless, restful slumber.

ey woke, hearing the old hunter astir, at
the first break of day.

“Gals,” said be, addressing the twins at the
breakfast-table, which was set twenty minutes
later, “ there’s a heap 0’ work ahead of us and
plowerful little time to do it in. I’m goin’ to

orfolk maybe all the wayto Baltimore with
these als— in’ till I see ’em safe with their
frien s. has put ’em on my hands, and He’d
never forgive e if I desarted em.”

“ Nor—nor’ we wouldn’t either, dad. We’ll
stick as long as you will!” said Sally, and J emi-
ma added: .

H

Y I”
“ Well, as I said,” the old man continued.
“ there’s a heap 0’ work to do, and we’ve t to
divide up todo it. There’s the salt over the

~ ’~ - . K ,. _»
- .5 Jana“:xzay-‘dfieriaglih,  a 

dryin’-pans on the beach—that must be got in
for the Equinox is coming on, and ram w

’ile m three months’ savings. I’d like to run

own t e bayin one o’ the boatstetryan’
diskiver if any 0’ them pirates is a-hoverin’
about. Can you gals run over with the big-
gest Wheat and scoop in that salt while I’m

one
g “ In course we can,'dad. It’ll be jest play for
us. Not more’n thirty or forty buckets of it at
most.” cried Sally.

“ Wal, you do that—Baby and the Baltimore

als will keep house, and when I get back I

on’t know now what’ll hinder us 1n startin’.
The dorg is as good on watch as half a dozen
men—better nor some, for he’ll bite as well as
bark, when he’s cornered up.”

“Dad—he’s barkin’ now! Some one is com-
in’!” cried the Baby.

“So there is! I hear oars, too! To our
guns, gals, to your guns—shut the door. e’ve
peep-holes to use, if we have to!”

CHAPTER XL.
A VISITOR.

IN less than 'a minute, with closed doors, the
oldest girls gun in hand and the others armed in
one way or another, and the old man looking
through a chink in the loanwith his double-
barreled gun ready in his ds, the garrison
was prepared for battle.

The do barked furiously and ran toward the
wharf, w ile the heav‘fii beat of oars in the row—
locks could be distinc y heard. .

“Be read gals-be read ' and you, miss,”—
to Sadie—“ here to see i they’re the men you
got away from. If they’re enemies, We must
get the first fire, afore they’re ashore, while
they’re in a clump.”

Sadie, With an ax in her hand for a weapon
went~te his side and looked through the crevice
betweenrthe logs.

The prow of a boat was seen as it rounded the
foot of the island and headed for the wharf.
second more and it was evident that but one pair
of cars propelled it.

Next a pair of broad shoulders, a bare, frowzy
head of yellow or saffron hair, and two great
redhtarms plying the oars vigorously, came in
81 .
8As the boat touched the wharf the rower rose,
clutched the painter and jumped on shore to
fasten it.

“ It is the hateful woman who drove us from
the lighthouse!” said Sadie.

“ Sart’in as shootin’! It is. Barney Builin’s
woman—the first time she has ever been ere.
I’ll see what she wants!” .

And the old man strode to the door, threw it
open, and met the scrawny Virago as she strode
up the path.

“ Be you the cr’ather they call Zebe Snooksi”
was her first salutation.

“ My name is Zebulon Snooks!” replied the
old man. “ Yours, if I aren’t of! the trail, is
Missis Barney Buglin!”

“Yes, and bad case to the hour when I took
it. I see m ould man’s canoe down thar, an’

 

I’m aftheri Where’s the brazen hussies that
stole it?”
“The ' 18 are here to whom your husband

lent it w en their very lives were at stake!”
cried 'e, coming forward. “ He told us not
only to take it, but where to come to, and we

are here!”
“ There is no n’ade of er tellin’ me that when
my‘ e es are sore wid loo ' ’at year!”

ou can look the other wa i”
‘ “ Can I? Then I won’t. ere’s them. that’s
lookin’ another way that may look this we
afore ye are much older, Miss mpudence. It’
not be my fault if you don't see ’em aither l”

“ Woman, what do on mean b that threat?”
cried the old man,

viraaoi1
d1“ r, odo you call a woman, ye ould fish-ped-
er

“I madea mistakeand called on swan-n
instead of the miserable drunken that 011
are! Iwantto know, and that “811$ 90°11, ,
what you meant by that threat?”

“ Ask my fut I”

And the woman threw something forward
that had a. numberten broaan on it for his in-

tion.

“ Sally, bring me a . here—a stout one i”
said the old man, and is great, broad hand
clutched Mrs. Buglin’s arm with a force that
made her shriek.

“ Let go 0’ me, ye ould b’aste! Let go 0’ me,
or I’ll scratch yer 0; as out!” she shrieked. 

“ I’ve handled W d-cats afore l” he said, grim-
ly. “Scratch. 811’ 1’11 cut your claws! You
have threatened two r, defenseless girls who
are under my protection, and unless I am satis-
fied that you mean no harm to them, and are not
Iknowin’ that harm from some one else is a-
comin'to '81". I’ll tie you hand and foot, and
keep you here until I know they are safe and
be and the reach of da er!” ,

‘ You Waste, you’ll be ung for this!”

“ Then I’ll hang in a good cause.”

 

“D’Ye know ye are committin’ ' h my.
son? Aren’t I a Government ofllcer— e k’aper
of a light-house?”

\ “.No—Barney Buglin is the keeper!”

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“An’ I’m his k’aper! Light yer hand of! 0’
me or I’ll have e in \Vashington store the
Prisident inside 0 the w’ake l”

And she struggled to free herself but in vain.
She was brawny and stout, but the man who
held her was a Samson in comparison.

Sally brou ht the rope, and by order of her
father tied rs. Buglin’s hands behind her back.

She was then marched inside the house and
forced down on a bench with her back against
the logs which formed one side of the house.
Another rope secured her in that position.

She raved for a few minutes, but when she
saw the two oldest girls getting ready to go for
salt and the old man pre ring to leave, and
heard him tell the Baby to eep a watch on her
and break her head with the clothes maul if she
tried to get loose, she began to weaken.

“ Pl’aze, Misther Snooks, I was only a‘jokin’.
I thought I’d scare them gurls a bit, so theyd
Bay for the canoe me ould man let ’em have.

on’t be hard wid me, pl’aze. I’m a lone wo-
man a-livin’ on the desert sands, an’ it sours me
an’ makes me ugly. I’m sorry for all I’ve said,
I am, on me sowll”

Her voice was changed to a pitiful whine, and
she tried to squeeze a tear or two out of her owl-
ish eyes. The last was an utter failure.

“And you do not know of any one who in-
tends them harm?”

“Not a sowl since the men wint away that
thried to catch them at the light-house, and I’m
well-nigh sure they’re all dead or took on the
men-o’-war. We hearda d’ale of shootin’ oin’
on down b the Inlet, and then we saw t
schooners smt awa. i”

“ It may be so. f I let you 0 will you take
that canoe in tow and go right k to the light-
house?”

“ Ind’ade I will, an’ thank ye kindly for the
l’avel”

“ Then go! And mark me, woman, if I find

you n to any wicked deal I’ll put a bullet
throu you if ’tis the last act 0’ my life. What
I so mean!”

hile speaking he unbound her and pointed
to the door.
She went out, without another word, but she
cast back a look of hate on the r gir .
' “ I am afraid she’ll do us an -turn yet!” said

e. -

“ Don’t fear, miss! I’m goin’ give her start
eno h to get out o’ sight, then I 1 follow and
watc her, while I satisfy myself if there are any
parties lurking around that can do ye harm.

o-morrow morning we’ll start for Norfolk, and
if ye don’t find friends there, I’ll keep on with ye
to Baltimore though I was never that far from
home before. ’

Mrs. Barney Buglin’sarm ached too much et
from the iron grip of that giant’s hand for er
to say a word to anger himwhich he could hear.

But when she fastened the canoe to the stern
of her boat and pushed off to go down the bay,
she muttered:

“ I'll have m revenge on that owld coon-'ater
and them lily- seed hussies, see if I don’t. ’Twas
no idle threat I made, if I did take it all back to
get away from the owld rookery. I do know
where thim men in the boat went to—’twas up
the owld Snake lagoon, an’ if they’re there this
blissed ' ht, afther Barney has got his supper
and gone to light up the tower, I’ll find em
and maybe git a purse 0’ gould for what I’ll tell

fem!”
Her treatment made her so that she
pulled away with all the energy in er frame

and though she had the canoe in tow, the old
man, Zebulon Snooks could but just keep her in
sight when she went down the Bay. But he did
see her land at the right and take her
course to the light-house, and t en, though he
carefully explored both sides of the Bay, going
down and coming up for six or seven miles, he
saw neither boats or men to alarm him.

When he returned to his island home, he found
the two oldest daughters back with the salt, and
learned from the “ Baby ” that the day had

passed there uietl .

The two érls, elime and Sadie had been
busy some skirts out of calico, to wear
over their masculine dress, for the daughters of
the t hunter were all nearly as large again
as t e were, and their dresses would not have
fitted slender figures of their guests.

The girls who went for the salt were tired.
The salt-pans, where the ocean water was eggp-
orated by the sun, were over on the beach a e
or more from where the?' had a boat landing,

and this distance they traversed to and fro,
b ’ ing the salt in sacks on their shoulders, no
less seven times

They ate their supper as soon as it was ready
and went to bed, for the father said they would
all go to Norfolk with the two fugitives in the
morning and would start early.

The rest, securing the house, retired later.

 

CHAPTER XLI.
BETRAYED.
Wins thzsgirate pilot steered for a dense
' veofmo r cypress on the west shore of
e Sound, keeping certain bearings of the light-
houseesternto shape his course by, he was so
confident that he knew exactly where the Diab-

J

 

l
locito was, that Spirifort dismissed a startling i
fear which had entered his breast. I

That fear was that Lieutenant James might
have proved treacherous and gone 011' with the
schooner, instead of taking her to the hiding-

lace as promised. If so, Spirifort was in a
rd box. He had grown very weak, his wound
illy dressed at first had suffered from neglect,
and without prompt surgical aid of the best
kind and a good place for rest, he knew he would
go under.

But the river pirate was no slouch; he knew
where he was going, for he had been there with
Lieutenant James, or Scar-faced Jim, as he
called him, and was sure he would find his old
leader there.

And he did, to Spirifort’s intense joy, thou h
they were twice hailed by pickets before reac -
ing the Diablocito.

Great was the rejoicing on board the Diablo-
cito when once more the pirate chief stood on
her deck. The crew were sick of lying cooped
in that noxious swamp, full of snakes. owls and I
hideous shadows. 

The light of the sun only fell on them at noon-

 

day- the fresh touch of a cooling breeze never
reached its dark depths.

Jumbo shed tears of joy over his master’s re-
turn, which changed to grief when he saw how
badl he was wounded and how much he suf-
fe . The negro steward and cook almost wor-
shiped his master. Years had one by since the
chief spared his one life, while 6 sent a whole
ship’s crew down to death. And during all this
he had been well fed, well clothed and well
treated, and made rich and valuable gifts.

Jumbo hurried for the sur eon as soon as his

master was laid upon his . and the latter af-
ter administering stimulant freely went to work
on his courageous patient.

The badly-set arm had to be reset, for it had
not begun to knit, and was in a fearful state of
' tion, threatening to mortifi. That
done, he had to probe for and extract t e bullet
from Spirifort’s thigh.

Thrice the pirate ainted during this operation
as; it left him weak and imperativer in need of
r .

He would not allow any one to disturb him
with a uestion or ask for an order until he had
sle t at east twelve or fourteen hours.

Lieutenant J amee had to get the history of
Spirifort’s first success and after mishaps from
his former comrade in the river business.

The latter, after telling the story in all its de-
tails includin the escape of the girls and ne di-
rection they k, wanted to fit out an armed
boat and to go after them, for the promise of
having the beautiful blonde to tame had made
him Wild to recover her and the other.

But Scar-faced J m was firm and said no—not
until the captain himself gave the order, would
he stir in the matter. ,

He, for his own rt, never wanted to see a
woman on board. 6 behaved that they always
brought bad luck with them, and would rather
seethemsinktothe bottom of the sea than to
aid in bringing them where he was.

So thecrew allhad to rest contented as they
could in the swamp that night and another day
until the captain was able to stand 11 once
more, take food to strengthen him and with
his subordinates about his future 'course.

Then—and not till then did a thought of the
hi tive ‘ ls come into his mind. And when he
d th' , the time which had elapsed made it

robable in his mindthat they had reached some
wn in the interior where he could not overtake

them. .
It was well on in the ht, and he was talking
this matter over with his to pilot on the 0 er

schooner, whom he had rometed to third 0 oer
and brought into his ea in and listening to the
objections of Scar-faced im, when an episode
occurred which altered things in a hurry.

A picket-boat came up the n brmgfifla
woman who had boldly pulled in her own ,
and when hailed said she wanted to see the lame
captain with a red scar on his face, that hadbeen
at the lighthouse. She bad news for him that

he’d give “ a roe o’ gould ” to hear.
He ordered brought into the cabin instant-
ly. And when she entered he knew her at a

glance.

“ What bro ht on here?” he asked, sternly.

“ My skid, l was foreninst the lagoon.
Then one of your boats tuk me u , yer honor!”

“ Your business, that is what mean?”

“ To tell yer honor a saycret—somethin’ that
’11 make yer honor’s heart l’ape for joy, and
when ye’ve heard me I think ye’ll pull out a
purse 0’ gould and say Colleen Buglin, take that
as a tokz n i”

S “ Ikhav:i _1t10 3:218“ froniis mggfilcer's hgre.
pea ,an 1 w yousa wo paym or,
you shall be well paid!” y 3
“Thin, yer honor, it’s about thim hussies of
lsthat run away from yez and got to the
fight-house, and then run off wid my ould man’s
canoe. I’ve seen ’em this day wid me own eyes
and wt the canoe back !”

“ here are thein

“ Upthe bay, w d anould scapegrace of a fish-
erman and his three daughters. on an island-—

 

the ’rethere pertandsass askittens!”
‘yfiowfar,mmherei” y I

“Sure and I couldn’t say to a mile or two. I
could row aboat there in the dark in three or
four hours!”

“ There is a urse of gold for you!” said S iri—
fort, bidding umbo bring it ilrom his c est.
“And if you’ll pilot a beat up there which I’ll
send full of armed men to capture and bring
Ehem back, you shall have another just as

ea !”

“ owly saints—isn’t this luck? To be sure
I’ll do it. And when I’ve that much gould to
the fore, I’ll quit livin’ in the desertsands 0’ Eat—
teras, whether ould Barney Buglin goes wid me
or not. Get me a bite to ate and a sup 0’ drink,
an hing that isn’t wather, and I’m ready to go!”

umbo was ordered to set out food and liquor,

and the river pilot was told to pick ten good

men, arm them well, and, taking the woman as
do go at once and recapture the girls.

6 thought of one man and five girls resist-
ing eleven armed men did not once enter the
head of the chief.

Within an hour—an hour (past midnight it
was the boat was manned an on her way out
of the lagoon.

It was very dark, and a drizzling rain began
to fall, and it was difficult to see how to steer to»
hold the course. the woman wanted to take. By
the light-house alone could she et the right bear-
ings, and even with its aid, the t ran aground
on reedy marshes and stuck on low, grassv isl-
ands several times.

“ Curse it, woman—we’ll not get there before
daylight at this rate!” cried the excited and im-
patient leader of the party, when the grounded.

“ Sure an’ what’s the matther ' we don’t?
Can’t we see all the better how to get at thim?
Don’t fret, honey—the bay is gettin’ ’asier the
further up we go! I’ll have you there yit afore
the chickens crow i”

It was almost time for day to dawn wh the-
barking of a dog was heard by the boatmen, not-
far away.

“ Pull up now—pull lively, honeys—it’s their
whifi‘et cur we hear! We’re almost there—here’s
the ind of the island—hould on or ye’ll be right
atop of it!”

 

CHAPTER XLII.
a CLEW.

FREQUENTLY from the outside the lookouts
aloft on the Shark could see the cutter slowly
standin down the Sounds of Roanoke and Albe-
marle, t e t inland water-course protected
by the san y beach against which the Atlantic
surges wildly roll from year to year.

Captain Coste was making a thorough search,
as was at last roven byhis finding and cap—
turing in a noo , or bay, hidden b a swampy
timber growth, a periagua, or sm sloop, wx
its mast stepped in the very bow, without any
jib—only one large, long sail. This
three or four tons contained five runawayne-
gloss that he cared little to have on his hands.

ese fellows frightened almost to death, so-
knowledged t t they were fugitives and had
stolen the boat on the Eastern shore, and said
they had come near being taken once before.

A big black schooner full of men had almost
run over them up by the inlet where the tall
light—house stood.

Ca tain Coste’s eyes flashed witzljoy when be
h this, and he told them they ouldfifree
if the told him the truth, and where big
craft gone.

“ She runned right in among de trees ober in
de west, jem. a little way up from dat ’ar light-
house, nursta!” '

“Dat’s de trufe! Mama, we seen hergo in
dar clean out o’ sight wid ourown eyes! said
another.

Therestcorroborated the story, onesa V
that she went out of sight so quick be though
she was bewitohed.

“How long ago was this!” asked Capmin

“Jew four days gone by, ssh!” said the mod;
intelligent of the five.
“ Can she not have come out since!”

“Ihardlydonethinkso. Welaidrightclon‘ 7'

bydar two days and she no come out, and we
hear ’em shoot muskets in de swamp dar de ar-

ternoon ob de nigl-igwesailed down de bay. I I "

reckon she is in yet, ssh—maybe got away
back what dar’s tine.”
“If Isetyoufreeandgive you provisions to

last you a month, will you boys show me faith- '

full where she went in? I’ll take yourperiagua

in tgw so you shall not lose her.”

2 usmivm’mmmbbe uldhab if
or. e no r we run away

ole mambbed.

But he done gone an’
died,anddenhissons deywes all for, oss-rao-t s
iu’an’ rees,an’deyputaYankeeobersecrober ' "
If, lives out of usand made -

usdat ckedde
usworkfromda '
usaSaturda y.
dende oung
ofladosenobdebestestmenand

t to dark and neer
ecouldn‘t stan’ dat, ssh,

deperopan'left!”
‘Datsalldeirufe Mus‘Capnandifwe A

on’y git to Bemudyt’wen be free!" chimed‘in

another. ; '

‘Bermuda ' .

2'7-

boatof"

Dat’s better dan we hope- .4

marstahs de short o’m' '
yea; my.

 

 
    

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“Well, hel me to find the schooner ou de-
scribed and don’t care where you 0. igger-
catchin’ isn’t in my line of duty!” said the honest
old captain.

This point settled the next thing was to com-
municate with the Shark.

As soon as a clear sight of her overland was

ot, a signal flew from the fore-truck of the
éampbe .

It was read on the Shark by her signal ofilcer
thus:

“ Meet us at Okracoke Inlet. Have heard from
the pirate-want your cooperation. She is in a
trap. ‘ '
It was near night, when both vessels, steering
north again, were almost becalmed and a mean,
drizzling rain came on.

The cutter, drifting with a feeble tide, made '

slow way toward the place of rendezvous, while
the Shark, pitching and rolling in a heavy sea
without wind enough to steady her, had a nasty
time of it. .

All the night and over half the next day this
weather tormented them. Then a li ht breeze
from the east filled their canvas an soon the
Shark lay hove to, heading east, outside the bar
of Okracoke.

In his largest beat, well manned, Lieutenant
Chandler, With young Ridgewood at his side,

over the dangerous breakers on the bar
and boarded the Campbell.

There the colored men were submitted to a
rigid reexamination, and as theyI did not change
in their story on any point, t ose who heard
took credence enough in it to decide on a course
of action. ,

“ B all the signs, we shall have a shift of
wind or before mornin l”said Captain Coste.
“ It wi come out from t e west or northwest.
While it holds where it is, if the pirate is in
there he couldn’t get out, for no craft in a light
easterl wind can beat out over Hatteras Inlet
bar ut when it comes westerly, he’ll have no
If I get up there and stir him up in his
hiding- lace, he is so much heavier than my cut—
ter tha he’ll be like to come out and tackle me,
thinkin he’ll use me up in no time!” ‘

“ An he would, sir—he has three heavy guns
to one of your 11 ht ones!” said Ridgewood.
“No matter how rave yourself, officers and
crew are he would ho lesst overmatch you.
The Shark is the craft want to see laid along-
side of him l”

“ I hope we can both have a crack at him l”
said Captain Coste. “Such a wretch deserves
no chances in his favor. Murderous robber that
he is, all honest nien’s hands should be against
him-gall brave men should be anxious todestroy

“ Well—for our lans!” said Lieutenant Chan-
dler. “ My vessel ws too much water to cross
that bar in safety. She can be 'umped over it
at high tide, I know but we mig t ound, and
then, if we did not thump the keel o of her, we
would be helpless. If we can only coax the
craft outside, then I’ll take all the chances, fear-
less ! .

“ f I can draw her out from her hidin -place,
and then pretend fear and scud over the r, we
mayyget her where we want to!” said Coste.

‘ ee—an as there is a growth of pines north
of the inlet t t will hide a craft from view on

- the Sound, I can get that berth to-night while

you do your work inside. If you are‘attacked
or crowded in there, I can take all my boats in
to help you. When you discover him, let three
ra id cannon-shot at night be your signal.”

‘All right then, sir. I’ll move up inside, and
we’ll see or hear from each other near Hatteras
in the morning!”

This settled, the naval commander again cross—
ed the rough and dangerous bar and sailed north-
wardonce more. Night soon came on, coverin
their movements in the convenient shroud o
darkness. Fast was the network of justice form-
ing to entrgp the wretch whose whole life had
been depra ty and cruelty condensed. But,
desperate as he and his crew were known to be,
it was no light task before those who were to
board the tiger in his lair.

\
CHAPTER XLIII.
DADDY.

Tn funny of Zebulon Snooks were all astir
before daybreak, getting breakfast by the light
of inc knotsng in he  so as to

eanearlystartfor Norfo shehad de-
cided on the night before to take his three girls
as a friendlmzlescort to our heroines they were
in pu g on the bestthey had, to do honor
to t occasion when the sh barking“? the
watchful Witch-hazel, their a thful sen el by
nifigand by day, startled all hands.
oldman,gun in hand,started out to see
what was the matter. No one appeared to be at
the wharf which he could dimly see in the gray
of dawn-— t the dog was down near the lower

and of the little island.

Listening he heard voices there and then the
sound of oars—it seemed as ofmanyin afull-
manned boat not ulling in unison.

He bounded bac into the house and cried out
in a low stern tone:

“Clutch our guns, ale—them wretchee are
coming. I card that findevil’s voice, the hag

 

I should never have let go, and she no doubt has
brought them here. But they’ll have hot lead
for breakfast l”

He closed the door and fastened it, and threw
water on the fire to put out the blaze from pine
knots which made it so light within.

“ Get (your powder and shot hand —-we’ve got
to fight evils instead of b’ar and W' d-cats now!”
he said to his girls, as he threw the stra of his
powder-horn and bullet-pouch over his s oulder.

A minute later he and his irls, with their
guns pointed at the landing an resting on the

ogs mm which they had torn the chinking,
near the door, saw the boat dash alongside the
little ier.

“ T ey’re all here—there isn’t a boat gone.
Ma be the divils are aslape!”

he sharp voice of Mrs. Barney Buglin utter-
ed these words.

“ Dad—let’s give it to ’em!” whispered J e—
mima.

“ Yes dad, while they’re all in a lump I”
echoed 11 y.

“ Do not spare them, for if they conquer they
will not spare us I” whispered Melisse, who stood
by the door with Sadie, one armed with an ax—
the other with a fish-spear.

Baby had a tea—kettle full of hot water in her
hands—a woman’s weapon, but not a pleasant
one for even a strong man to meet.

“ Aim low—ri rht at the bow of the boat—
fire I” said the 01 man.

And at the last word the three shots, makin
but one report, rung out, and in a second yells o
agony, curses of wrath and shrieks filled the air.

" Load, gals! load quick, while I hold my sec-
ond barrel read !” cried the old man, speaking
only loud enoug to be heard in the house. “ See,
them that can are formin on the wharf! Hur-
ry—I must give them t is barrel afore they
start!”

He fired as he spoke and a man dropped while
the woman shrieked out:

“ Go for the murtherin’ divils, go—I’m shot,
I’m kilt intirely—out an’ out!”

There was a rush of four men—swearin fear-
fully and firing pistols at the house; but t e two
girls had their guns read now and fired when
the men were within ten eet of the dwelling.

Three went down in a heap, but the fourth,
wild and desperate, thinking, 1' f he thought,
there were more to help him, threw himself with
all his force against the door, breaking the
wgoden latch that secured it and stumbling in-
si c.

He was met 1) a blow from Sadie’s ax, which
staggered him a most to the floor; there as the
blow was repeated, Melisse pinned him down
with her 5 r, and a shriek of terrible agony
rose from is lips when the kettle of hot water
empltied right in his face and eyes completed the
wor .

“ They’re trying to get away. Load, gals, and
follow me!” cried the old man, who ha shoved
a handful of powder and another of shot into each
barrel of his ducking-fgun.

Reaching the whar , he was fired at from the
boat now a rod or two awa , drifting, rather
than bein pushed by one of t e wounded men.

He felt hat he was hard hit, but the heroic
old man si hted his gun as careful] as he could
and po both barrels into the t. There
were one or two shrieks and , but he did
not hear them—he fell back on the wharf, the
life-blood gushin from his breast.

“ D —d ear dad, speak to me!" cried
Sally, rushin to his side and trying to raise his
limp form in er arms.

Jemima, drawing her deadliest aim fired into
the boat, before she bent over her father’s form.

“ Stop—for the Lord’s sake! Ive man is
dead but me, an’ I’m a-dyin l” shrle ed the
treacherous wife of Barney uglin from the
drifting boat.

The two agonized girls, now joined by the
rest, 'd no further attention to the boat, nei-
ther the dead men on the wharf.

They lifted the giant frame of their hero fath-
er—those three strong girls, and carried it ten-
derly within the house.

The dead river pirate and former pilot of the
oysterman lay upon the floor, three more just
before the door, riddled with buckshot; yet not
one of those girls cast a look of either anger, hor-
ror or pity on those bleedin forms.

Every 00k, every thou t was devoted to
that poor old man. They thed his white face
with cold water they placed some to his lips
and Melisse and Sadie with some old newspapers
fanned him to give him air.

Already Sally the coolest of all, had torno
his clothing from over the wound and was -
ing :top the bleeding by pressing folded cl h
u n i .

p'ltzhe wound was right above the heart—the bul-
let seeming to have gone dee into the body.

“Had you not best let t 9 blood run out of
the wound than force it back to bleed inside?”
said Melisse. “ My dear father studied surgery
so as to be useful at the Mission, where we live
when at home, and I saw him treat a wounded
Indian so. He merely washed the wound with
cold water and after a time the bleeding stop
of itself. The Indian was shot accidentally net
in the same place as this!”

“ We’ll try it. Anything, everything to save

 

dad! We’d dieif he does! He’s the best man
in all the world !”

Sadie had a bottle of ammonia, smelling-salts,
in her pocket, which till now was unthought of.
Its ungent odor ap lied to his nostrils brought
back the first sign 0 life in the old man.

A feeble moan broke from his lips, and he un-
closed his eyes, which had shutd0wn in his faint-
ness.
“ Are they all done for, whipped off?” was the
first uestion that left his lips.

“ es, yes, father! Don’t try to talk—we are
doing our best for you! Baby, do step that cry-
in’, on only make dad worse!” cried Sallv.

“ ey hit me hard, didn’t they? But 1’ had a
head on ’em—I paid ’em back! ’ he said, in a
whis r. He could no louder.

“ es, dad—yes—t eir boat is driftin’ down
the bay without a livin’ soul to lift an oar. An’
there’s six dead ’uns here ashore. Kee still—
we’re safe. Sha’n’t we send to Norfol for a
doctor? You can’t be moved now!”

“Yes—yes—take those poor girls out of dan-
ger! You-’uns go and leave me here. If it’s

od’s will, I’ll live. If it isn’t, I’m ready to go!
I’ve lived as square as I knew how !”

“ We will not leave you! You are snfi’erin
for us! Our duty is here and here we stay, ti
you are better!” cried 'e.

“ Or die! You mi ht as well say it! I know
it, gals. I’m terrible rd hit. The chances are
ag’in’ me—ten to one, like them cusses were to us
awhile ago!”

“ But we beat ’em, dad—don’t give up now!”
cried Jemima, for the first time shedding tears.

“ I’ll stick as lon as I can, gals—be kind 0’
322;] Baby—maybe kin sleep, an’ ’twill do me

I

Instantly the youngest girl choked down her
sobs. Her heart was almost broken to see him
there, suiferin so. But if tears and sobs dis-
turbed him, s e would choke them down, no
matter how hard it was to do. She had been his
idol! He had been to her father, mother, almost
all she had in the world.

It was pitiful.

Tears, silent, but none the less the rain of true
grief, ran down the cheeks of the two girls
whom, at such cost, he had so nobly defended. .

In a little time he slept. Melissehad Sally put
a cloth wet with cold water over his hot brow.
And as it eva rated, she gently dampened it,
feeling often 0 his pulse, and watching anxious
ly a hectic flush that came and went on brow
and face—all that could be seen from the cover-
in his long, silvery beard left.

e two oldest girls now went out and r-
formed a stern duty themselves, because t e
had no other he] . The tide was running eb
down the bay. e boat, with its contents, had
drifted out of sight to the southward.

The duty alluded to was to dispose of the dead.
They could have buried them on the island. But
they did not want such carcasses on their ground.
It might soon become sacred to them, if they
had to lay their dear father down beneath the
shade of its ancient trees.

They dra god the irate fiends one by one to
the end of t e pier w ere the tide ran fast to the
south and cast the bodies into the sea. The
burial was good enough, thou b not a word was
spoken when the disappear from view.

When every ead man was out of si ht
and only ory stains left to mark where t ey
had been, t e two brave girls came back to the
house, washed their hands with soap and quietly
took seats near his bed. He slept nervously,
withf uent starts and low murmurs, but e
slept, an Melisse'whisgered that his pulse was
gagging and full, thoug fitful—now slow, then

r. .

Hours by and scarce a chan e. Once he
woke, me. whisper for water, drank a lit-
tle and fell asleep again.

Often Sally or Jemima asked if there would be
any use to go for a doctor.

We have done all a doctor would do,” said
Melisse. “ Before a doctor comes he will rally
for recovery come out of this deethlike sleep, or
suddenly sink away and go. I have seen cases
like his, and I know what I say.”

They waited. They could o no more. Many
and many a prayer went up that day to Heaven
while the gentle wind sighed through the long-
leafed pines and the rain fell softly on the roof
shingled by his hands.

Night came—e very little change. Melisse
thought it for the better, only she thought he
slept too long. Yet she dared not wake him.
He was no longer nervous. The twitches and
starts were lea frequent. The pulse yet held

full.

Oh, how hard it is for a man, right in
eved habit, pure in blood and c in brain—
to a.

Death has no place for a foothold.

Bab quietly got a little supper and laid it on
the ta 18. No one wanted any, and it remained
there—untouched.

Hour after hour—a little clock upon a slab
mantle or shelf over his head told the time and
he did not wake. .

His breath came a little faster, hispulse quick-
ened, though it was weaker and the color deep-
ened on his face. .

The girls in their happy ignorance thought

  
 

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Fire Feather, the Buccaneer

 29

 

these good signs. Only Melissa, who with her 
dear uncle, the priest, and her good father had '
been at more than one death-bed, knew different-
ly and she dared not tell.

More often did she drop cooling water on the
bandage over his brow—more constantly move
the fan that gave him air.

The night passed away and he was yet alive. It
was more than Melisse had expected.

“ I’ve made him some store tea and baked some
flour biscuit. Can’t I Wake him!” asked the
youngest girl—his Baby. _

“ I you like. He is s eeping more than is good
for him ” said Melisse.

Yet s e trembled for the result. She could
barel feel that a little pulse was left, and his
breat came very short.

Baby ressed his hand, bent down and kissed

his bluis -white ii and said: _ I
“Daddy! Da dy! Look up—it is me—
Baby!”

Slow] his great e es opened.

“ C ' d,” be whisgtegdfl‘ you have called me
back from Heaven. I was with your mother—
God was good, forgave her sins and took her

' home. Sheds happy—and I—well, God knows

 

best—he Will take care of you when I l n
gone i”

“ Father—DADDY—you’re not ugloing to die!”

“ Yes, I be, Baby, or I wo dn’t been up
there 1”

He pointed up with his hand—growingsocold,
so white.

The other girls gathered closer to him.

His whisper w stronger; he could have been
heard all over e room.

“Gals,” he said looking at Melisse and Sadie,
“ I’ve done what I could for ye. I’m not sorry
for it. Don’t fret and worry and blame our-
selves, for I’d have done as much for any 'vin’
thing, even a persecuted d . Don’t cry—I’m
not a-feelin’bad. The pain all gone. I’m
onl thinkin’ 0’ them!”

II; looked at his children who stood silent and
trembling-great tears falling fast from their
eyes, yet every sob stifled lest the sound should
give him pain.

“ While we live and have a home—they shall
share it with us!” cried Sadie, choking with

f.
gr‘izaNo—no—Wain’t that, though I thank ye. I
know they’ll not leave here, for I want to be
buried here on my own land, and I know they’ll
not go away. But comfort ’em all you can——
he] em if they need it, and come and see ’em
and) talk to ’em of the old man who died for
on!”
y “ We will—we will I” sobbed both the girls.

“ Hark—is that thunder?” he asked, as a dis-
tant sound came rolling up the bay.

“No—no—I hear it again; it is a cannon
speaking death and destruction to the pirate
fiends!”

Three successive shots, then for a time all was
still and the old man, slowly, sure] sinking
kfipfitleirstening while his breath grew orter and
s o .

The girls did not count time. They all knew
now that he was surely going.

Suddenly he started. h , strong loud gun
after , and it seemed as whole broadsides
were red reached every car, and roused him
up so that he rose to a sittin posture.

“ Ha! hear that!” he cried. “ The pirates are
at bay; their end is coming; the hand of the
avenger is raised; the blood of the innocent has
not been shed in vain!”

His voice was strong as ever for a brief mo-
ment, and his gray eyes flashed with the old,
fierce li ht.

“ Har how gun answers gun—blood is fiow—
ing like the water from a thousand springs!
There—there—hear that? Down, down to eter-
nal perdition have they gone, and—girls, where
are e? How dark it we!”

HZ fell back, while the house and ground shook
with a concussion that all felt, and a dull, heavy
sound louder than any thunder reached their
ears.

He was dead.

Now—as the floods of heaven fall when its

$08 “'6 Open to thesummer storm, those daugh-

rs gave way to overpowering, heart-broken
Eilef. Their tears fell in showers, their sobe

ed the air, their forms bent like wil-
lows in a. gale as they t over his 
“‘Daddyis dead!”wailedpoor Baby. ‘I have
"0‘ " Mutfdlii’t I ha di ‘ l”
* co ve ed and he lived
shrieketISally.

"He was all to us, and he is gone!” moaned

Jefiiiim' full losed h gm
e sse care y c t one 1; and

eyes. She took her own cambric 
which she had washed that me , and
ing it under his jaws, crossed and it a ve
his head, to keep his pale lips closed and preserve
his natural look.

And Sadie opened a chest from which she had
seen the girls take clean sheets for their bed,
and took a sheet and laid it reverentiy over his

T on the two went out, leaving those three

. orphans to weep, since tears were their best re-

lief.

4‘, ,The  of the cannonade belowhad long

 

ceased. With that one tremendous shock, the
battle, if it was a battle as they believed, had
ended!

They hoped and prayed that the pirates had
been attacked, defeated and destroyed. But
they could not tell. It might be that they were
victorious. If so—

“ Hark—I hear oars!” cried Melisse.

“ Yes—yes—there are boats full of men com-
ini up) the bay—oh, what shall we do?”

18Jot girls ran into the house and gave the
a m.

But those mourners never stirred.

Only Sally raised her head to answer:

“ They’ve killed dadd , let them kill us, too I”
Her words spoke for t e rest.

CHAPTER XLIV.
PICKED UP.

THOUGH to some extent grateful that her new-
ly-recovered son had not been mortally wounded
as at first supposed, Mrs. Ridgewood almost col-
lapsed under the terrible suspense attending the
fate of her daughter and her son’s betrothed,
Melissa Duprét.

Sympathizin friends were plentiful, and her

h siClans, the t in the “ Monumental City,”
all the could to sustain her, but she com-

letely bro 6 down with grief and despair over
her daughter’s fate. Not until she received a
brief note from her son, sent in on the oyster
boat, did she have any hope.

This note was in these words:

” Our darlings, Sadie and Melissa areheard from.
They are alive—we hope unharmed. We are close
udion the pirates and will not leave their track un-
t those we love are rescued and the fiends who
have done such fearful wrong are captured or de-
stroyed forever. I pray Heaven Mr. Duprét is re-
covering and that you, my dear mother, will be sus-
tained until I return crowned with success.

“The commander of the Shark treats me as if I
were a brother. and I am full of hope.

“ Lovingiy flour son,
“ . . Rimawoon.”
DuThlig lettter she was allowteld to read to Mr.
t, o who’ge recove 9 sur us
to gave hope. he news Irigid him geoas w as
it did her a benefit, and the atten h cian

said neither nursing or medicine woul 0 half
as much for both as the safe return of their chil-

 

The news of course was spread through the
columns of the press, and friends called or sent
in their congratulations without stint.

“ I have never lost faith since our son start-
ed!” said Mr. Duprét to Mrs. Ri gewood, after
she read the letter to him.

“ In the first place,” he continued, “ he is
brave, next he is prompted by the most tender
{gt the most powerful of all passions—last] , I

ve confidence in the great goodness of the L
POWERFUL above, WHO will not let iniquity tri-
umph while innocence suffers!”

“I feel as you do,” said the lady, “but we
must not weaken you with conversation.”

The very next day Norfolk papers contained
still further news.

The oyster schooner had been recaptured by
the revenue-cutter sent from Baltimore and the
pirates chased into temporary hiding. As the
girls were not seen, it was hoped the had es-
ca , and further news was expected ourl .

t willbeseen that no to ic of that day eld
ublic attention more close y, and when it was
nown how many vessels-of-war and revenue

cutters were engaged in the search, there seemed
a certainty that the pirate craft would becaught
and destroyed.

. The police in Baltimore were most anxious to
have their murdered comrades avenged, and
wanted the pirate taken alive so they could have
a “ hanging festival” in the city.

Thus glancin at some whom we have been
forced to negl while describing other stirring
scenes, we will go back to the boat which drift-
ed oif after the wounded defender of our hero-
{Inees had fired his last shot of vengeance into

r.

That terrible showor of lead had almost rid-
dled the bodies of the onl two men left alive in
the boat and again stric en the already badly
wounded wife 0 Barney Buglin.

Though alive—she dared not raise her voice

in or fear of dra another shot, and
bfidinghdying she believ , she crouched down
beside e deed and let the boat drift without
makinglgn effort to guide it.

The e at ebb bore it along quite rapidly un-
til she saw in the distance the tall tower where
she knew her husband was at work cleaning and

filling his lamps. .
“ ch Barney—what’ll he say whin he finds
me dead kilt and gone? An’ wid these men in
me company dead as ould herrin’s!”

The host glided on, and the tide carried it in
sight of the nding whence she had d the

' ht before on her treacherous erran .

he tried now to rise, so that she might, en-

deavor to get the boat in or in some way attract
Barney’s notice if he-looked that way from his
lo station.

effort was vain. She could not move.‘

One leg was broken—both arms had buck-
shot or ball through them, and am er had
passed into her body and seemed to paralyze her
—forshehadnopower to raise more than her

head a little ovrc the thwart against which she
had fallen. The cold rain and wind seemed to
have checked the bleeding of her wounds and
ke t her from immediate death.

n—past the landing, with no sign of help,
and the woman groaned in despair.

“ It’s to say I ll be swe t. an’ I’ll die on the
ocean. an’ poor Barney wi l niver see his colleen
again!” she moaned. “ Och, an’ it’s the punish-
ment I’m getting before death as well as what
will come afther it, wid no absolution or comfort
to me sowl. The two purses of gould burn in me
pocket. for they’re the divil’s own temptation to
me. Barrin’ a bit 0’ ugliness now an’ thin I was
an honest woman till I saw the gould and wanted
more! Och hone! Och hone! It’s all over W'ld
me, an’ Barney, he’ll nivir know how I died or—
Howly saints—what’s that!”

A cannon-shot fired close to her. a second and
then a third, gave her new fear, and with a des—
perate effort she raised her head enough to see a
vessel close to her.

She shrieked as loud as despair would let her,
and she was heard, and a boat sent to take the
one she was in alongside of the vowel.

Then she was lifted up and the terrible agony
took all consciousness from her, and she knew
no more. Before she came to enough to speak
to those near by she had a dim consciousness of
terrible noises around her—of sounds like thun-
der, and when she did recover enough to see and
hear, she saw she was in a dark hold with
wounded men lying around to whom surgeons
were rendering aid.

A man who saw her open her eyes called to an
ofiicer:

“ The woman that was picked up iscoming to,
sir, at last.”

“ Who are you, woman ?” asked the officer,

sternly.

“ I’m a dyin’ sinner, sorr!” she whined. “ Ould.
Barne Buglin’s wife, sorr!”

“ What were you doing in the boat in which
We found you with four dead men all riddled
with bullets?”

“ I bel’ave I was dyin’ whin I last remimber!”
she whined.

“ Where had you been?”

“ Wid them men ugato Zeb Snooks’s Island
afther two gumds t t got away from the-
men. They gave me red gould to show ‘em
where they were, bad cess to them and their
gould since I’m kilt for it!”

“ You are not dead yet! Are the 'rls you
speak of alive—where they can be foun l"

The woman grew too faint to answer. Terror
had partially revived her. But she was so weak
she sunk down in another swoon.

Stimulants were forced between her lips, her
wounds bathed, and once more she could speak.

Other men were near her now—officers of
rank, and a surgeon raised her so they could see:
her while she was questioned. '~

“ My good woman,”said one whom they called
captain, “you are very weak, but if on will
try to answer me a uestion or two we let you
rest. _You as? in a way, but with care you
_ . speak, gen y— on need not tr
to talk loud!” y y

“ I couldn’t if I thriedflll the blood in me
body has run out, I’m thinkin’, I’m so w’akei”
she whimpered, in a. whining whisper.

“ You told in lieutenant about some girls
you were after w en you got hurt and the men
with you were killed. here can they be
found ’

“ Uptheba wid Zeb Snooks on his island—
two hours’ p lfrom the li ht-house. But he’ll
not let you have ’em. im an’ darters
flight tin or a dozen men besides me an’ kilt us

1

“So far so well!” said the officer; then Lturn-
ingtoamanwhostoodnear, he said:

‘ Mr. Ridgewood, take two well-armed boats
and upthebe. andseeif you canfind those
we ook for. only man saved from the
schooner says they were never on board of her,
andphe may speak truth, for he knows he is dy-

‘I have but little hope, but I will go, sir!”
said the young man just an to.
“ Who is this Barney uglin you spoke of to
the doctor!” continued the uestioner.
“ Me ould man, an’ ye’ll him at the light—
house. He’s the k’s there, a man wid one arm
an’anedfaeewid esmall-poxpiisinit he had

8 .

Then he leftthe womantothe careof the sur-
geon and his attendants, and left the place.

CHAPTER XLV.
narruz.

IN the cutter, Captain Caste. after leaving
Okraooke, stood 'on up the Sound while the
Shark stewed the same course outsi a.

It was early in the day, when, knowin that
the Shark was in the anchorage she be pro-
medmrelse undersafl near it, he commenced

dutv of ferreting the pirates out if thev were

 

where negmes had described as entering
dense swamp of c which thiiepointed o—u:
munhmitatingtly, gi as near as y.could the

 

undershoflldhbemu eloes‘ over

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30

1

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer

King.

 

 

 

to the wooded shore as he could, and then lower-
inga boat with a dozen well-armed men in it,
sent them to seek the channel by which the pi-
ratical craft must have entered, if she was
there.

The boat had not gone a cable’s length from
the cutter before she was fired on and a.

the timber.

Captain Coste instantly fired the three guns 2

agreed u n, and recalling his boat stood over
toward t e inlet, intending to send some shells
into the woods to feel of the enemy, and, if pos-
sible, to draw him out.

The boat in returning fell in with a boat half-
full of water, with several dead men in it, and a
woman terribly wounded—but still alive.

The woman was taken on board—we know
who she was, and the boat allowed to drift on,
as“;a she was not worth saving in a time like

t.

Just as Captain Coste, after sending the we-
man below, got ready to open fire, he saw the
masts and yards of the huge piratical craft
emerging from among the trees, evidently scorn-
ing so light an antagonist, and coming out to
punish his temerity.

Coste bravely opened fire with every gun that
he could bring to bear, but the irate did not
anslwer until clear of the trees an able to make
em .

Then his guns began to open with a fire so hot
and gelling that Coste, losin several men, some
of his sails being pierced, an his cutter likely to
be sunk, if indeed he was not boarded by the
swarming horde he saw on the pirate’s deck,
stood for the inlet, to st outside as quick as pos-
sible, using every sail e could set to effect his

e pirates, cheering madly as the saw him
fly, crowded sail to f0 ow, and the ti 0 running
out, they were over the her before he was half a
mile away.

Having eyes only for their gallant little an-
nist, they sent shot after shot at her, and
di not know the trap about to be sprung upon

'them until a sweeping broadside came crashing

into them from the north, and then they saw to
their bewilderment a vessel full as large as theirs
 down upon. them from the spot where
she laid, masked by the trees from an earlier
view.

S irifort in spite of his wounds, was on deck,
on aided by Scar-faced Jim, elled to his men
that they must fight now to t e bitter end, for
thley must sink the new-comer or be sunk them-
.se ves.

The cutter, tacking, now poured in her iron
hail from every aggon she could bring to bear,
while the Shark, tacking, in her other
broadside, cutting down the pirate’s foremast
and crippling her movements, while her scup-
pers ran red with the blood of the fallen men.

But Spirifort, yet unscathed in this fire, and
Scar-faced Jim rallied eve , man that could
stand to the guns, and the S ark soon felt the
eflects of the desperate resistance the pirates

e.

Shot answered shot and fast as men were cut
down at their guns others su lied their places,
and the battle raged horribly or a time.

At last the mainmast of the Diablocito fell,
and the black flag that Spirifort had hoisted as
a of no surrender, went down with it.

“ you give up?” shouted Lieutenant Chan-
dler, as his vessel swept by the hulk of the shat-
tered and ' ted rate.

“ NEVER !” yelled pirifort, firing a pistol-shot

. witth only able hand that tore through the

lieutenant’s cap, grazing his head.

And afgim aimegt bt Scarfifaétlz‘ed b.I’im sent a
c e o a ug e w port 0
this-Eberhm the men at the gun there,
asthey were int s set of running it out after
loading to fire.

“ Boarders away! We’ll end this!” shouted
Chandler, and turning to the helmsman he gave
orders to put the helm up so they could wear
and come under the lee of the enemy.

The sail-trimmers were at their stations, and
skillfully the beautiful schooner, part1 cut u
aloft as well as below, was brought si e to si s
with the (1 rate enemy and grappling-irons
thrown to ho d her there.

All the pirates, not twenty in all that were
left had rushed to s irifort’s side, and foremost
with a huge outlass n his hand, stood Scar-faced
Jim, as the boarders from the man-of—war sprung
upon the pirate’s quarter-deck. v

Spirifort aimed at the first man on board, but
his pistol missed .fire, and then with a yell of
terror he sunk cowering to the deck among his
fighting, yellin men.

‘ Marvel’s g at I ” he screamed, but even as he
spoke the sword of the man he had most to fear
passed throu h his heart.

“ J im—to e magazine—en’s lost!” he shouted
as he fell back.

' The giant river pirate bounded down the cabin
hatehway, and Rid ewood, who knew what the
meant, shou to Chandler to cast his

" , schooner looseand fill away while he recalledthe
- boarders to their on deck.

Hardly had the Shark shot clear of her sink-
enemy, when with a shock which almost
the masts

l‘i.
‘ ‘ L"

 

 

rate’s magazine blew u , and spars, planks and
dead and dying men fil ed the air.
As soon as they could, the men-of—war’s-men

| lowered a boat to pick up what was left of that

'de

icket ‘
boat sent out by the pirates das ed bac into 

rate crew.
ne man alone, mortally wounded, with but
a few hours at most before him, was saved.

He knew Ridgewood, and when questioned

I about the ladies that Spirifort had stolen from

 

out of the manor-war, the pig ‘

 

their home, said no such women had been
brought to the Diablocito.

S irifort had been awa , and was brought
back terribly wounded, an the only woman he
had seen on board was an old Irishwoman, who
came to their hiding- lace with some news for
Spirifort and went 0 in an armed boat with
some men.

While the Shark came to an anchor to repair
damages, Captain Coste came on board to com-

re casualities and to congratulate Lieutenant

handler on the gallant work done and its al-
mosttoo complete success, since the irate hull
with its millions of treasure was at t 0 bottom
of the sea—or all that was left of it.

And he told a stran e story of picking up a
boat with some deag men in it and a badly
wounded Irishwoman who had been in some way
connected with the pirates.

“ Take us aboard the Campbell quickly, Cap-
tain Coste. Come, Ridgewood, we must see this
woman?” cried Ijeutenant Chandler.

We gave the result of that short interview in
our last chapter.

Ridgewood receivin orders, manned the only
two boats left fit to eat, for the others were
badly riddled, and got ready for a search up the

ba .

firom the cutter a boat had already been sent
for Barney Buglin and it was met by Ridge-
wood just inside the inlet.

He laid on his cars to ask this man if he knew
anythiliiifinabout the girls of whom the woman
who cl ed to be his wife had ken.

“ IndadeI do, sir,” said honest ey. “ Th
came to me when they got away from the pi-
rates and I wanted to hide ’em, but me ould wo-
man had the divil in her an’ drove ’em off, an’ I
tould ’em to take my canoe and go up the bay
eight or ten miles to an ould fisherman who lives
on an island. They couldn’t miss the lace.”

“Give way, men—give way cheeri y I” cried
Ridgewood to his boat’s crew, while he told the
revenue officer to hurry Barney aboard to see

his wife.

And as his boats dashed in over the bar and
headed u the ba , he rose in his heart and he
felt that e migh fin his loved ones yet.

The tide had turned and the passed close by
the boat with dead pirates in i which the cutter
had left adrift. They looked coldly on the ghast-
ly si ht, with blood excited by recent events
and ashed forward.

For miles their ears rose and fell fast and
strong, but the men began to feel very tired
when the mournful howling of a dog was heard
not far away.

“ Cautious, men—be steady and look to your
arms—I see a house ahead!” said Ridgewood, as
(tiheyhshuddered to hear that sound—ominous of

ea

CHAPTER XLVI.
JOY AND cam.

WHEN Melisse and Sadie saw the boats full of
men 00min , and heard not the sharp, watchful

bark but t e mournful howling of the dog, they ,

flew back to the house to alarm its inmates, and
stand once more on defense.

For what could these men, they thou ht, be
but pirates sent torevenge those who been
giggled, and carry out the fell purposes of the

t

On hearing the hopeless answer of Sally, as
already written—Sadie caught up one and
Melissa another, not knowing whether t ey had
been reloaded, but determined to die with arms
in their hands fighting for honor before capture
came, and worse, ten thousand times,
than death. _

The tramp of men approached the door, which
the hastened to secure.

elisse saw a tall form, le and earnest,
marching first of all, and th a wild scream
fell in a eathlike faint upon the floor.
ie saw the same form—she trembled, looked
wildly toward him, stretched out her arms and

screamed.

“ My brother! Thank God you live!”

The lost were found. '

Quickly the gallant oung man raised Melisse
from the floor and begito one of the men who
all remained outside, e him bring a flask of
wine which he had left in the boat.

But j does not kill. Before the wine could
be used it e blue e es of Melissa littering with
tears beamed on e noble face 0 lover, and
she was pressed to his manly breast.

Then came the explanation, and the story of
renters “News?! “‘3‘.” We
a ouse, ger 0 recs are, seen
hmun-om  pr(¢’i”ciidflwtslgi in that hunts:

e, p, e on ‘

   
 
 
  

'7

gift rt". .. .f  

fense a ainst such odds made by the heroic old
man, w o lay dead before them, and his brave
dau hters.

TEe tale seemed incredible, but the sad proofs
of its truth lay before them.

The girls, t ough told who had come, that
friends and protectors were there, hardly raised
a head until Ridgewood told of the battle and
how every pirate but one, and he mortally
wounded, had been slain and blown to atoms and
sent to perdition.

“Poor dadd is gone!” said Sally. “But he
is revenged. he murderers have all got what
thfi needed, a Scorchin’ 1”

en they consented, when Ridgewood offered
to attend to it, to have their father’s body laid
out and a coflin made, so that he could be buried
like a brave man by men of his kind.

Two of the men were carpenters by trade, and
so rated on the ship,’and rude as the tools they
found were, they took planks and with them
made as good a coffin as haste and material
would allow.

a suit of clothes which her father scarce ever
wore—they had been made for his wedding when
hgovgas in the prime and strength of his man-

The Baby got the last shirt which she had
made for him to wear when he went to town.

These were laid where Ridgewood and his as-
sistants could find them, and then the girls and
their sister-guests went out to let the men do
their sad work alone.

Meantime, one of the party got the mourning
daughters to choose a spot for the grave.

It was selected undera great spreading live
oak which looked as if it had withstood the storms
of centuries, and could stand for et a thou-
sand ears. On the highest point in the little
islan , it could be seen from every side, and
seemed a fittin resting-place for that giant form.

Here, while he sad preparation was made in-
side the house, a deep grave was dug and seen
all was ready.

The daughters, touched to the heart when they
saw how mcely all had been arranged, that their
father looking almost as if he lived had been
prepared with eviigacare, gave way to the ne-
cessity of his imm ' te burial.

They never could have done it with their own
hands—this they knew. And they were told
that the boats had to return to the vessel from
which they came, with every officer and man on
board. And they knew the must part with
Sadie and Melisse, who were be taken back to
their parents who were even then mourning
them as lost and almost hopeless of their re-
coveryl
SoiEZEeping bitterly, theylgave  dear face
one agonized kiss, one ong  un—
forgetful look, and then the cofiin was cased
from mortal eyes forever.

Led by the five girls—Baby arm-in-arm with
Melisse, Sally and her sister on each side of Sa-
die the mournful procession left the house.

6 coflgn was borne on the shoulders of six
strong sailors, and behind it followed a firing-
party with Rid ewood in command.

At the grave elisse knelt, and ere the coffin
was lowered, re ted a prayer and a part of
the burial service of her creed from memory.

Then, reverently, the coffin was lowered, while

. the girls, sobbing, stood alone. Every sound

seemed like a knell to the wesjdng daughters,
but they knew it had to be—an they bore up as
best they could.

After the ave was filled, under Ridgewood’s
orders, a so er’s honor, three rounds of mus-
ketry were fired over the grave.

One of the nters a good carver, out
through the rough k of the tree a large ores
and over it two crossed swords. '

It signified to a thou htful pager-b —-“ Here
whammy of a C ' ' who brave died in

e

Returning to the house preparationshad to be
made at once for the boats to return.

The three orphans clung to our heroines with
a love born of their bereavement, and not until
young Rid wood promised to return with his
sister and lisse‘ a some future time could they
reconcile themselves to the parting.

They were asked mdeed to go to Baltimore to
live lives of ease and comfort with the Ridge-
woods—but they would not go away from their
dear father’s grave.

The followed the 'rlsto the boat, and, weep-
ing, klrssed them a. farewell. They stood on
the wharf as lon as the boat could be seen, and
then Went back their desolate home to weep
over a loss that was irreparable—the loss of a
parent whose words had been notes of .kindness
and music to their souls from their inqu to
his death, who never, by word or deed, threw a
shadow over their young lives.

With a will the gallant man-of-war’s-men bent
to their oars on the return to their vessel.

They knew how proud their young command-
er would feel when he saw the rescued ladies and
knew that in all its glorious fullnessthe mission he
had been sent on on was complete—that the
phirate, Fire Feather, who had been the terror of

6 Southern seas. and had chilled with fear

 

   
 

ven. .
 of the Irishwoman’s

 
   

many a Northern heart, had  the fate he

Then Jemima went and took from an old trunk _

treachery, of the attack and the wonderful de- v

 

 
 
 
  
   

 

 

‘ {385* I

 is»

v grin-ann-  _ ,7. . .  l

Fire Feather, the Buccaneer

King.

31

 

 

merited—his band extinguished, his blood-

stained ship destroyed, and that they had added ‘

new glor to the service of their choice and
done credit to the country they loved. .

And they saw a new hght in their young pi-
lot’s face which had so long been stern and 
as he sat with his fair sister and his beautiful
love by his side.

CHAPTER XLVII.
CHEERS.

BEFORE Barney Buglin, the light-housekeep-
er, had reached the revenue-cutter in the boat
which was sent for him, the humane old captain
had caused the woman to be brought up from
among the wounded men below to his own
cabin. .

She lay on a comfortable cot, With a strong
light falling on her pale face when Barney was '
brought in. Forgetting all her errors, remem-
berin only that she was his Wife, his Own Col-
leen, e gave her face one lance and rushed for-
ward weeping to embrace er._

Gently the surgeons held him back and told
him the least excitement would be fatal, that
even then life trembled in the shadow of death
and chances were hardly even that she could
be saved, a cripple if she was. '

“My Colleen—my darlint, my poor Wife!" he
sobbed.

“Don’t sp’ake to me, Barney dear, I’m not
worth it,” she whispered, touched to the heart
by his grief.

“ Yis, e are! Ye are all I’ve 0t, Colleen, an’
if we’ve hard words now an thin, I was the
most at fault!” I

“ Not so—Barney dear. The (1in has been in

 

me, an’ now I’ve 0t me deserts! I think I’m
kilt intirely, but t e docthers say I’ve a chance
fit for it?

“ To be sure ye have—live for yer own ould
Barney that loves ye betther now nor ever he did
afore. It’s the throuble that wakes one up to
know jist what he is!"

“ But, hearken to me, Barney! They say I
must be kept as I am and here under doc-
torin’tilllcanbepntinahospital,and there I
may lay for months afore I can git about even on
crutches! And, Barney, I’d rather die and you
than l’ave ou!’

“ Ye sha n’t l’ave me Colleen. These are rev-
enue officers. I’ll get them to put a man instid
0’ me in the tower an’ give up my place. I’ve a
little money laid up an’ my pension of eight
dollars to the month, an’ I’ll go wid ye and stick
to ou night an’ day till you’re well and as long
afther that as I live!”

“ Barney, ye are too good tome! If I do live
I’ll l’ade you a new life. I’ll be betther nor I
was when first we Were married. I can’t be
more I”

“It is enough, Colleen; and now. be ’asy, till
I’ve ot the captain to put a man in my place.
The Fights are all ready, lamps cl’ane and full

and ready to light Then I’ll get our clothes and
come till ye.”

“Hist, Barney. I’ve a sa cret. I’ve two

urses full of gould in me poc it was given

me and irates’ gould but ere’s none left to
claim it. t shall I do wid t?”

“ Ka it, Colleen, for you’re sufferin’ at its
cost. pe it, and in time to come it may serve
to help us through!” .

“I will, if you say it, Barney! But if you
tould me to have it cast in the say, over it should

I”
so“ I’ll tell you no such folly, Colleen. It has
been a curse, but if we use it right itwill turn
' to be a blessing!”

Loud cheers, heard from the decks of the
Shark close by, reached the ears of all on board
the cutter. .

The boats sent up the bay were seen returning
and the two rescued ladies were seen and recog-

The cheers from the man-of-war were echoed
by the crew of the cutter, and soon the cause
was announced in the cabin.

“ Praised be the Lord and all Hrs howl saints ,

for what I hear now!” said the wife of rney.
“ I‘ve not the sin 0’ their sorrow or death on my
sowL I’m thankful for all I suffer, so as they
are safe at last. Since I’ve looked death in the
face my heart was heavy for sorrow for the we
I thr’ated thim! The Lord forgive me-I'd knale
g I cpuld an’ crave them to pardon whatfiI’w
one

“ You must keep at or ’11 never
well!" said the doctor?m ’ you get

“ I’ll be ’as as a suckin’ lamb, yer honor, doe
ther, dear. or I want to live now that Barney
as s he’ll stay wid me!”

d the woman closed her eyes and moved her

lips iii ginger.
On t e hark, with her decks cleaned up and
damages temporarily as far as his
then, all was exc1tement when the boa were
seen comin back, their errand a success.

Irr'epremfiile and spontaneous cheers [woke
from every lip on board without regard to rank
or station _

ladies, and

 

The sides were lined With the brave crew and i

i oficers. Even the wounded creggeup from below

to welcome the ladies who had 11 rescued un-
harmed from the terrible fate which had im-
pended over them.

And they Were handed over the side by the
chivalric Chandler with a courtesy that almost
made them forget their late sufferings.

And in his cabin, to their wonder, they found
the dresses they had cast aside when they started
from the irate schooner to swim for life and
liberty. e hurried to resume their garments,

lad to look ike themselves once more, and to

eel that they were at least presentable when the
officers were allowed to come in to pay their re-
spects and to offer their congratulations.

Captain Costa and his officers donned full uni-
forms, to show their respect, and were profuse
in expressions of joy that the ladies after all
their perils were safe and free from an ' ill, but
the sulfering consequent upon their a notion
and cruel detention. .

As the cutter was in trim for sailing, her
gals and sails being new intact, Lieutenant

handler asked Captain Coste tomake all sail for
Baltimore with the happy news.

He would follow as fast as a rather shaky
mainmast with three round shot in it, and a
fished fore-yard that had lost one arm, would
allow.

He would carry our neromes to their home in
his own vessel, knowing the commander of the
station would allow him almost any libertiaifi
consequence of the distinguished service he
performed so rapidly and so well.

Captain Coste was only too happy to have the
chance to be the first bearer of the glad news,
and hurrying back, as soon as he sent a man to
fill Barne Buglin’s place. he made sail for the
Cit of onuments.

he crew of the Shark were busied for some
time in makingepairs to spars. and sails, and
While this was ing done, Ridgewood had per-
mission to send up a boat-load of stores and pro-
visions to the orphans of Zeb Snooks, for the
ladies knew thev would not for a long time feel
like doin much to help themselves, and that
the we (1 sadly miss the provident care of
the r good father.

The girls could not write their thanks, but
they sent a verbal _message of gratitude by the
officer who had charge of the boat.

Six hours later than the cutter, the Shark
headed out around Hatteras, though the cutter
had taken the inside passage safe under the
pilotage of Captain Costa.

‘ CHAPTER XLVIII.
WELCOME HOME.

As I_think I have or ought to have said be-
fore—30y giver kills, no matter how much it

mgyhagita .
en the Campbell came to in her old an-
chorage of! Baltimore, Captain Coste did not
wait for the furling of her sails, but had his boat
lowered and in it he hurried on shore.

His duty was to make his first report to the

collector of the rt. But he let dut “slide ”
and first hurri to the old Ridgew mansion
and rung the bell.

enamels.“
e s. ' wood I would see her in-
stantly. I have good news for her!”

His card accompanied the m e.

In less than a minute the lady herself was at
{he dooi', both hands extended, asking him into

er or.

“ om my son?" she —“ is the news
from m dear son?” gasped

And 3 e trembled so she had to sink into a
chair to keep from falling.

“ From both son  daughter, well and happy
—the wg‘ltg'reet you in person in a few hours!

“ -on my knees I thank thee!” she
said, solemnly, and she knelt weeping for joy by
her chair.

Thecaptain sat silent; he cared not break the

11 in _which her reverent gratitude to Him
avg: giveth and who taketh away” Was ren-
e . .

When she rose in reply to her uestions he
briefly spoke of t action in which th vessels
bore a part desert the rescue of the young

left “the bill of 'culars,” as law-
yers would call it, to be fill out by her children
when they arrived.

Then he hurried off to report to the collector
and to face newspafig re Hers—terrible ordeal
that last—while . idgewood hurried to
gently break the glad newa to the good Mon-
sieur Duprt .

That ntleman, fortunately, was havmg his
wound , and the surgeon was there to of-
feiigaltdtif tihe newr;1 overcame him.

u e nstant esawthefaceofMfiRidge-
wood, he said:

“ Medium—you have heard from our children.
I read it in your eyes!”

“ I have—they are all alive and well, and on
their way home !" .

.line witha

 

!

 

‘j

“ When—when—” he gasped.

He did not hear her answer though she said:

“In a few hours.”

He had fainted dead away.

The surgeon was cool and unexcitable. He had
a stimulant ready, and in a very short time,
through proper treatment, M. Duprét was con-
scious.

Cautioning him that he must be quiet or he
would not be able to See his child when she did
come, the surgeon gave him a soporific and left
him to sleep until she arrived.

From the collector’s office the news spread
over the city rapidly. And the whole town
seemed to wake to sudden joy. Bells were rung,
crowds gathering about the bulletin-boards at
the newspaper ofiices made the streets ring with
their cheers

The hotels were illuminated and every police
station was a blaze of light because the authors
of the late terrible outrage had been so signally
punished.

But the next morning, when the United States
schooner Shark was signaled as ap reaching the
harbor, the excitement culminated?

Salutes were fired, colors flew from every ship
in the harbor—every flag-staff on shore.

The mayor and council turned out in a body
in carriages to receive our heroines and their
brave rescuers when they landed, and amid the
thunder of cannon, the 'ng of bells and the
glad shouts of multitu es, they Were welcomed

ack as those saved from the grasp and the
shadow of death.

Escorted to their home, the ladies were left to
the tender love which there awaited them, while ‘
the heroes of the hour received every honor
which could be heaped upon them.

Docked at the ex nse of the city, the Shark
was made as g as new, while officers and
crew enjoyed the freedom of the city.

Reporting to his commandin officer, and

through him to the secretary of t e navy, Lieu- .

tenant Chandler detailed the incidents of his,
brief but eventful cruise and by the return mail
received the commending approval of both.

In any country but this promotion, not thanks,
would have been his reward.

The brave lieutenant in his report did not for-
fiztnto give Captain Coste every credit for his
8 ' , good judgment and valor, and to say that
it was through him that the pirate was found
and brought to ba . Also that in the action he
did his part brav and was supported nobly by
officers and crew.

And now, drawing to a close, we have only a
few of our characters to place on rapport with
the reader are we lay down our pen.

Colleen u lin, carefully nursed by her “ ould
man,” honest ey grew rapid] convalescent
in the hospital, but though lamed and partially
paralyred, there was enough other left, as Bar-
ne said, to make them bo happy.

ith the pirate gold they set up a small thread
and needle store, to which Barney added the
sale of newspapers, tobacco and cigars, and
added to instead of using up the store, which
thus became a blessing where it had been a
curse. So much for them.

Lieutenant Chandler soon became a full com-
mander, but he clung to the gallant Shark and
her noble officers and crew instead of taking a
s! f-war with his new rank, which came only
in t e regular line of promotion.

 Caste clung to the Cam bell, for he
had 11 in herso long hecould not eelat home
out of her

The good Father Du et, sent for by his bro;
ther, got another price to attend to his mission
for the winter, and came a passenger in Captain
Odell’s last voyage of the mail packet for the
season.

His special mission to Baltimore was to unite
his niece Melissa to Edward Marvel Ridgewood
in the holy bonds of matrimony.

Commander Chandler was bestrman on the co— , ‘ ‘

casion, and Sadie, lovely as, the ,loveliest. was
bridemaid H
It was whispered, and the commander blushed
acknowl cut when he heard it, that Miss
Sadie wou d soon enter into the ship Cha
. .fi

stench yacht, it was announced that a joint
angry-trip would be taken, and as a portion of
l . 9
visit Hatteras Inlet and the three orphans on
Rescue Island, as Sadie insisted the island which
the Shocks family owned should be called.

And in preparation for that visit a handsome
monument was purchased by the two sisters.

The inscription read thus:

“ Zamora Snooze-

a kind father. a devoted husband and a brave, true
man, resta here. He died doing his duty. as he 504
giggled, to protect the helpless. In Heaven rest his

That ' and f love
crimeanldi‘tlel’pimishomenur “$3.3m ""1 ""

cate as hershare of ~ t
Then, Mr. Ridgewood havmg  a '

acht under competent pilotage would ’

:“TT~ :,

‘2‘: 

 

BEADLE’S*DIME*EBRARY.

Published Every Wednesday. Each Issue Complete and Sold at the Uniform Price of Ten Cents. No Double Numbers.

 

BY COL. PBEN'I‘ISS INGBAIIAM.

2 The Dare Devil; or, The Winged Sea Witch.

85 The Cretan Rover; or. Zuleikah tile Beautiful.

89 The Pirate Prince; or. The Queen of the Isle.

94 Freelance. the Buccaneer.

108 Merle, the Mutinei-r; or. The Red Anchor Brand.
104 Montezuma. the Merciless.

109 Captain Kyd. the King of the Black Flag.

116 Black Plume; or. The Sorceress of Hell Gate.
121 The Sea Cadet; or, The Rovor of the Rigoletts.
128 The Chevalier Corsair; or. The Heritage.

131 Buckskin Sam. the Texas Trailer.

134 Darkey Dan. the Colored Detective.
139 Fire E e; or. The Bride of a Buccaneer.

147 Gold pur. the Gentleman from Texas.
155 The Corsair Queen; or, The Gypsies of the Sea.
162 The Mad Mariner; or. Dishonored and Disownod
168 Wild Bill. the Pistol Dead Shot.
172 Black Pirate; or The Golden Fetters Mystery.
177 Don Diabio. the Planter-Corsair.
181 The Scarlet Schooner; or. The Sea Nemesis.
184 The OCeall Vampire' or. The Castle Heiress.
189 Wild Billis Gold Trail; or. The Des i-rate Dozen.
198 The Skeleton Schooner; or, The Sk miner.
as The Gambler Pirate; or. Lady of the Lagoon.
210 Buccaneer Bess. the Lioness of the Sea.
216 The Corsair Planter; or. Driven to Doom.
220 The Specter Yacht; or. A Brother's Crime.
224 Black Beard. the Buccaneer.
231 The Kid Glove Miner; or. The Magic Doctor.
215 Red Li ntning the Man of Chance.
2/16 ueen elell. the Amazon of the Overland.
255 he Pirate Priest; or. The Gambler's Dau hter.

, 259 Cutlass and Cross; or. the Ghouls of the 1 .
281 TheSea Owl; or. The Lady Ca tain of the Gulf.
807 The Phantom Pirate; or. he ater Wolves.
318 The Indian Buccaneer; or. The Red Rovers.

325 The Gentleman Pirate; or. The Casco Hermits.
829 The Magus of Three: or, Buffalo Bill’s Pledge.
316 The Magic Ship; or. Sandy Hook Freebooters.
841 The Sea Desperado.

846 Ocean Guerrillas; or. Phantom Midshi man.
862 Buflalo Bill's Grip; or Oath Bound to uster.
864 The Sea Fu tive; or, The Queen of the Coast.
369 The Coast Corsair; or. The Siren of the Sea.
873 Sailor ot Fortune; or, The Barns at Buccaneer.
877 Afloat and Ashore: or. The Co 1‘ Cons irator.
888 The Giant Buccaneer: or. The Wrecker itch.
398 The Convict Cs. tian.

899 The New Monte risto.

418 The Sea Siren: or. The Fugitive Privateer.

425 The Sea Sword; or. The Ocean Rivals.

430 The Fatal Frigate or. Rivals in Love and War.
435 The One-Armed uccaneer.

446 Ocean . the Outcast Corsair.

457 The Sea nsurgent.

469 The Lieutenant Detective.

476 Bob Brent, the Buccaneer.

482 n Tram .

489 The Pirate unter

493 The Scouts of the Sea.

510 El Moro. the Corsair Commodore.

516 Chatard, the Dead-Shot Duelist.

5% The Sea Chaser; or. The Pirate Noble.

580 The Savages of the Sea.

I 540 The Fleet Scou ; or. The SeaWi of Salem.
546 The Doomed W aler; or. The Life reek.
553 Mark Monte, the Mutineer; or, The Branded Brig.
560 The Man from Mexico.

BY WILLIAM II. MANNING.
279 Tii‘e Gold Dragoon, or. The California Blood-

oun .
297 Colorado Rube. the Strong Arm of Hotspur.
885 Will Dick Turpin, the Leadville Lion.
405 Old Baldy. the Eu adier of Buck Basin.
415 Hot Heart, the De ective S y.
427 The Rivals of Montana Mil
487 Dec Duke: or. The Man of Two Lives.
442 Wil West Walt. the Mountain Veteran.
449 Blul! Burke. Kin of the Rockies.
455 Yank Yellowblr , the Tall Hustler of the Hills.
468 Gold Gauntlet. the Gulch Gladiator.
470 The Duke of Dakota.
479 Gladiator Gabe, the Samson of Sassafsck.
486 Kansas Kitten. the Northwest Detect vs.
492 Border Bullet. the Prairie Sharpshooter.
498 Central Pacific Paul. the Mail Train Spy.
506 Uncle Honest. the Peacemaker of Hornets‘ Nest.
513 Texas Tartar, the Man With Nine Lives.
581 Paradise Sam. the Nor'-West Pilot.
581 Saddle-Chief Kit. the Prairie Centaur.
589 Old Doubledark. the Wil Detective.
551 Garry Kean. the Man w th Backbone.

in CAPTAIN nowsnn nouns.

W8 Hercules Goldspur the Man of the Velvet Band.
294 Broadcloth Burt. t 0 Denver Dandy.

891 California Claude. the [one Bandit.

8115 Flash Dan. the Nabob; or. Blades of Bowie Bar.
840 0001 Conrad. the Dakota Detective.

847 Denver Duke. the Man with “ Sand."

ass The Desperate Dozen.

355 Ken Ksnnard. the Shasta Shadow.

674 Major Blister. the Sport of Two Cities.

89 The Bonanza Band: or Dread Don of Cool Clan.
as: The Lost mu: or. The Boot or Silent Hound.
4111 Captain 00 dgrlp: or. The New York Spotter.
If! Captain Coldgrlp‘s Nerve; or. Injun Nick.

413 Cs tain Coldg‘l‘ig in New York.

481 Fa her Ferre . t e Frisco Shadow.

484 Lucifer Lynx. the Wonder Detective.

441 The California Sha .
447 Volcano. the Frisco py.
458 Captain Cold ri ‘s Long Trail.

460 Cs tsin 001 g the Detective.

468 Co grip in De wood.

480 Hawkspear. the Man with a Secret.

48? Sunshine Sam. a Chi of the Old Block.

496 Richard. Redtlre, the wo Worlds‘ Detective.

5% Phil Fox, the Central S tter.

518 Captain Velvet's Big take.

568 ynsrd of Red Jack; or. The Lost Detective.
592 Jack Javert. the independent Detective.

548 The Msgnato Detective.

550 Silk Hand. the Mohawl Ferret.

l9 Danton. the Shadow Sharp.

 

BY ALBERT \V. AIKEN.

27 The Spotter Detective: or. Girls of New York.
31 The New York Sllu rp; or. The Flash of Lightning.
3:1 Owrlalld Kit; or, The idyl of White Pine.

31 Rocky Mountain Roll. the. i‘alifornia Outlaw.

35 Kelltuck. the Sport: or. Dick Talbot 01' the Mines.
36 Injun Dick; or. Tile Death Shot of Shasta.

38 Velvet Hand; or. Illjull Dick‘s Iron Grip.

41 Gold Dali: or. The White Savage of Salt Lake.

WI

BY LEON LE‘VIS.

‘ 428 The Flying Glim; or, The Island Lure.

450 The, Demon Steer.
451 The Silent Detective; or. The Bogus Nephew.

:‘ 4154 Captain Ready, the Red Rausotner.

BY JACKSON KNOX—“01d Hawk.”

‘ 386 Hawk Heron. the Falcon Detective.

42 The California Detective; or, The. Witches of N.Y. i

49 The Wolf Demon; or. The Kanawha Queen.
56 The Indian Mazeppa: or. Madman of the Plains.
59 The Man from i‘exas; or. The Arkansas Outlaw.

63 The Winged Whale: or. The Red Rupert of thlf. 3

72 The Phantom Hand: or, The 5th Avenue Heil ess.

75 Gentleman George: or. Parlor. Prison and Street. -

77 Tile Fresh ot' Frisco; or. The Heiress.
79 Joe Phenix. the Police Sp .
81 The Human Tiger: or. A leart of Fire.
84 Hunted Down: or. The League of Three.
91 The Winning Oar: or. The Illnkeeper‘s Daughter.
93 Captain Dick Talbot. King of the Road.
97 Bronze Jacx. the. California Thoroughbred.
101 The Man from New York.
107 Richard Talbot. of Cinnabar.
112 Joe Phenix. Private Detective.
130 Captain Volcano or. The Man of Red Revolvers.
161 The Wolves of New York: or. Joe Phenix’s Hunt.
173 California John. the Pacific Thoroughbred.
196 La Marinoset. the Le tective Queen.
203 The Double Detective; or.’i‘he Midnight Mystery.

320 The. Genteel Spotter; or The N. Y. N ght Hawk.

849 Iron-Hearted Di: 1:. the. Gentleman Road-Agent.

354 Red Richard: 0: The Crimson Cross Brand.

363 Crowningshleld. the Detective

370 The Dusky Detective: or. Pursuedto the End.

376 Black Beards; 01. The Rio Grande H h Horse.

381 The G.Vpsy Gentleman; or Nick Fox. elective.

384 lnjun Dick. Detective: or. Tracked to New York.

391 Kate Scott. the Decoy Detective.

408 Doc G rip. the Vendetta of Death.

419 The Bat 01' the Battery ' or. Joe Phenix. Detective.

42s The Lone Hand; or, e d River Recreants.

440 The High Her e of the Pacific.

461 The Fresh on the Rio Grande.

465 The Actor Detective.

475 Chin Chin. the Chinese Detective.

490 The Lone Hand in Texas.

497 The Fresh in Texas.

520 The Lone Hand on the Caddo.

529 The Fresh in New York.

587 Blake. the Mountain Lion.

556 Fresh. the S rt-Cheva-ier.

5553 Lone Hand. ,he Shadow; or, The Master of the
Triangle Ranch.

BY JOSEPH B. BADGER, In.

28 Three-Fingered Jack the Road-Agent.
80 Gospel George; or, Fier Fred. the Outlaw.

40 Lon -Haired Pards; or. heTarters of the Plains.
45 Old ull’s-Eye, the Lightning Shot.

47 Pacific Pete. the Prince of the Revolver.

50 Jack Rabbit. the Prairie S rt.

64 Double-Si ht, the Death S 0t.

67 The Boy ockey; or, Honesty vs. Crookedness.
71 Captain Cool Blade: or, Mississippi Man Shark.
88 Big George; or. The Five Outlaw Brothers.

105 Dan Brown of Denver: or. The Detective. ~
119 Alabama Joe; or. The Yazoo Man-Hunters.

127 S01 Scott. the Masked Miner.

141 Equinox Tom. the Bully of Red Rock.

154 Joaquin. the Saddle King.

165 Joaquin. the Terrible

170 Sweet William, the Trapper Detective.

180 Old ‘49; or. The Amazon of Arizona.

197 Revolver Rob: or, The Belle of Nugget Cam .
201 Pirate of the Pincers; or. Joaquin‘s Death am.
233 The Old lloy 01' Tombstone.

241 Spitfire Saul. King oi! the Rustlers.

219 Elephant Tom. of Dursnizo. I

957 Death 'Igap Diggings; or, A Hard Man from

‘ a

so .
$8 Sleek Sam, the Devil of the Mines.
886 Pistol Johnny; or. One Man in a Thousand.
292 Moke Homer. the Boss Roustabout.
so: Faro Saul. the Handsome Hercules.
817 Frank Lightl'oot. the Miner Detective.
324 Old Forked Lightning. the Solitarg.
831 Chispa Charis . the Gold Nugget port.
889 Spread Eagle . the Hercules Hide Hunter.
845 Masked Mark. the Mounted Detective.
351 Nor‘ West Nick. the Border Detective.
855 Stormy Steve. the Mad Athlete.
860 Jumpl Jerry. the Gamecock from Sundown.
867 A Roya Flush: or. Dan Brown‘s Big Game.
372 Captain Crisp. the Man with a Record.
379 Bowling Jonathan. the Terror from Hesdwatsrsu
387 Dark Durg. the Ishmael of the Hills.
895 Deadly Aim. the Duke of Derringers.
4075 The Nameless Sport.
409 Rob Ro Ranch: or. The Imps of Pan Handle.
416 Monte im. the Black Shoe of Bismarck.
426 The 01'1086 Detective; or. e Spy of the Secret
Sorv es.
438 Lsuyfiilng Leo; or. Sam‘s Dandy Pard.
488 Okla oma Nick.
448 A Cool Hand: or. Pistol Johnny‘s Picnic.
450 The Rustler Detective.
458 Dutch Dan. the Pilgrim from Spitzenbe .
466 Old Rough and Ready. the Sage of Sun own.

474 Daddy Dead-Eye. the Despot of Dew Drop.

4&5 The Thoroughbred Sport.

495 Rattlepats Rob; or. The Roundhesd‘s Reprisal.

504 Solemn Saul. the Bad Man from San Saba.

514 Gabe Gunn. the Grizzly from Ginseng.

587 Dandy Andy. the Diamond Detective.

585 Dandy Dutch. the Decorator from Dead-Lift.

541 Major Magnek the Man of Nerve; or. The Muck-
s-Mucks of nimas.

547 The Buried Detective; or, Saul Sunday‘s Six
Sensations.

555 GripSsok Sid, the Sample Sport.

25': The Wall Street Hood; or. The Tele raph Girl. i 304 Tex“

 

424 Hawk Heron‘s Deputy.

; 444 The Magic Detective: ’or. The Hidden Hand.

451 Griplock. the Rocket Letective.

462 The Circus Detective.

467 Mainwaring. the Salamander.

477 Dead-arm Brandt.

485 Rowlock. the Harbor Detective.

494 The Detective’s Spy.

501 S ringsteel Steve. the Retired Detective.
509 0d Falcon. the Thunderbolt Detective.

. 515 Short-Stop Maje. the Diamond Field Detective.

536 Old Falcon's Foe; or. The Matchless Detectivs's-
Swell Job.

548 Falconbrid e. the Sphinx Detective.

561 The Thu ing; or, The Falcon Detective's In-
visible oe.

BY BUFFALO BILL (Hon. W. F. Cody).

59 Death-Trailer. the Chief of Scouts.

83 Gold Bullet S rt: or. Knights of the Overland.
243 The Pi rim har : or. The Soldier‘s Sweetheart,
ack. the rairie Rattler.

819 Wild Bill. the Whirlwind of the West.

894 White Beaver. the Exile of the Platte.

897 The Wizard Brothers: or. White Beaver's Trail.
401 One-Armed Pard: or. Borderland Retribution.
414 Red Renard. the Indian Detective.

BY PIIILIP S. WARNE. -

1 A Hard Crowd; or. Gentleman Sam's Sister.
4 The Kidnap r; or. The Northwest Shanghai.
29 Tiger Dick, aro King: or. The Cashier's Crime.
54 Always on Hand; or. The Foot-Hills Sport.
80 A Man of Nerve; or. Cahban the Dwarf.
114 The Gentleman from Pike.
171 Tiger Dick. the Man of the Iron Heart.
207 Old Hard Read; or. Whirlwind and his Mars.
251 Tiger Dick vs. iron Des rd.
2!) Tiger Dick‘s Lone Han . I
299 Three of a Kind; or. Tiger Dick. Iron Despard
and the Sportive Sport.
838 Jack Sands. the BOss of the Town.
359 Yellow Jack. the Mestizo.
880 Tiger Dick‘s Pledge; or. The Golden Serpent.
401 Silver Sid; or. A ‘ Daisy “ Bluif.
481 California Kit. the Always on Hand.
472 Six Foot 81; or, The Man to “ Tie To."
502 Bareback Buck. the Centaur of the Plains.
522 The Champion Three. .
544 The Back to Back Pards.

LATEST AND NEW ISSUES.

563 Wyomin Zeke. the Ho ur of Honeysuckle;
or. Old umility's Hard to Travel. By
Wm. H. Manning. V
564 The Grip-Sack Sharp' or, The Seraphs of Sodom.
B Joe. E. Badger. Jr. .
565 Prince Paul. the Postman Detective; or. Crush-
ing a Serpent‘s Head. By J. C. Cowdrick.
566 The Dauntless Detective: or, The Daughter
Avenger. By Tom W. King.
567 Cafgain Midnight. the. Man of Craft; or. The
ad-Kni ht‘s Plot. By P. S. Warns.
568 The Dude tective; or, Phelin McGallsgln’s
Hard Luck Hustle. By Wm. R. Eyster.
569 Cs tain Cobra. the Hooded Myste ' or. The
ckened Dead. By Capt. Howsr ‘Bolmes.
570 The Actress Detective; or. The Invisible Hand.
By A. W. Aiken
571 Old Dismal. the Ran e Detective: or. The Bld—
den Cabin of Win Canyon. By William G.

Patten.
572 Jauntv Joe. the Jockey Detective. By Geo. C.

Jen s.

573 The Witch of Shasta; or. The Man of Cheek)
By Major Daniel Boone Dumont.

574 Old Falcon's Double. By Jackson Knox.

575 Stead Hand the Napoleon of Detectives.
By William H. Mannin

576 Silver-Tongued Sid; or. The Gri Sack Sharp’s
Clean Sweep. By Joseph E. r. r. '

577 Tom of California; or. T e Actress Detective 5
Shadow Act. By Albert W. Aiken.

578 Seven Shot Steve. the Sport with a Smile. By
Willlst. E ster.

579 Old Cormoran . the Bowery Shadow. By Capt.
How Holmes.

5!!) Shadowing a Shadow: 01'. The Pacific Slope
Detective'l Triple Tl'lll- J . C. Cowdrick.

581 The Outlawod Skipper; 0r. T e Gantlet Runner.
By Col. P. Ingrs m.

582 Jorsm. the Detective. Expert. By Jackson Knox.

588 Cs. tain Adair. the. Cattle King; or, A Red

nsom. P. S. Walne.
584 Fire Feather. the Buccaneer King. By Ned

Buntline.

585 Dan Dixon Double; or. The Deadlock of Danger
Divide. Wm. H. Manning. Ready Jan. 8.

m The Silver Sharp Detective; or, The Big Rustic
at XL Ranch. Bg Albert W. Aiken.
Read Janus 1

587 Con . the Sal or Spy; or. The True Hearts of
’76. By Col. P. In am. Ready Jan. as.

588 Sand Sands. the ho from Snap City: or,
Ho 1: by His Own tard. By Joseph E.
Badger, Jr. Ready January 89.

A new issue every Wednesday.
Beadls’s Dime Library is for sale by all
Newsdealers. ten cents per copy. or sent by mail on
receipt of twelve cents each.

BEADLE AND ADAMS. vaslnas.
98WlllismStrsst. New York _