Datasets:

NicholasSynovic
/

Modified-VEAA

Dataset card Data Studio Files Files and versions Community

Split (2)

train · 42.9k rows

text stringlengths 1.96k 5.76k	author int64 1 50
the evidence in his possession well nigh convinced him that had not fallen overboard he was either in the vessel or he had been swallowed up by the ocean as no one had seen him fall overboard as no one had seen him in a position where he could fall overboard it seemed more probable that he was still in the vessel at eight bells when the watch came on deck and the essential parts of the ship s work had been performed the captain ordered a strict search to be made in every part of the vessel not excepting the bread room and magazine the master himself was ordered to the search in the parts of the hold under his own care and the first place he went to was the good morning mr brown said touching his cap as by the light of his lantern he recognized the sailing master good heaven you here exclaimed mr brown as much astonished as though a ghost had risen from the depths of the ocean to him by the of a naval officer i am here sir just where you left me last night replied with undisturbed good nature where left you demanded mr brown i didn t leave you here i hadn t the slightest idea where you were i supposed not and i concluded that you had fastened the door on me by mistake it would have been a mistake if i had done so but i did not close the door at all i don t understand this nor i either sir it was rather too dark in there to see into anything but you brought the keys to me last night and the after hold closed continued mr brown i beg your pardon sir but i did not then it was your ghost replied the bewildered master that may have been sir but i am not responsible for the movements of my ghost but i am sure it was you who placed the keys on my desk the after hold all secure you will excuse me sir if i deny it again it would not have been convenient for me to lock myself into the store room and carry the keys to you i should say it would not it is all a mystery to me for i would have taken my oath you brought me the keys but i am glad to find you again now come on by the yankee ob deck and show yourself to the captain who has had a fever on your account it was instantly reported through the vessel that mr had heen found and under the direction of acting three cheers were given hy the men of which manifest breach of discipline no notice was taken by the officer of the deck for captain was pacing the weather side of the quarter deck with him i have the honor to report myself sir said touching his hat to the officer of the deck the captain grasped his hand with enthusiasm and his example was followed by the officer s face was radiant with smiles and it was plain that he was not in a suffering condition and had undergone no severe hardships during his absence have you been ashore mr asked the captain as he wrung his hand no sir i have not where have you been down in the store room sir i got locked in by some mistake by some mistake how did it happen i have not the least idea sir i only know that i was sent down with the keys by mr brown when the steward taken his stores i went in again to be sure there was no fire there i left the lantern in the passage by the adventures of a naval officer way and was making a careful examination when the door was closed and locked that is all i know about it sir i supposed it was an accident and that mr brown had locked the door himself i did not sir added mr brown you said that mr brought you the keys said the captain i said so sir and i would have sworn to the fact ten minutes ago though of course that could not have been the case well who did bring you the keys demanded the captain impatiently for every thing did not look regular and ship shape to him i do not know sir i was making an entry in one of my books at the time the keys were laid on my desk and the hold reported secure for the night i believed at the time and did believe till the evidence of my own senses assured me i was mistaken that mr was the person who had reported continued the master very much annoyed and confused by the situation in which he found himself placed captain was as much by the explanation as he had been by the fact of the s disappearance if mr had not returned the keys to the master who had on this point mr and the two master s mates had been questioned but they could not solve the problem neither of them had by ic the yankee ob returned the keys to mr as no further information could be obtained the officers returned to their duty and the captain in despair gave up the attempt to the mystery mr went to the mess room to obtain his breakfast mr and mr had preceded him well mr may i be allowed to inquire how you liked your quarters last night asked mr when the mess steward had gone for the s breakfast as well as could be expected mr replied with the most provoking good nature for our hero was expected under the circumstances to be very much dissatisfied and very indignant i am glad you liked them but i suppose you got used to such when you	36
were before the mast o yes replied refusing to take offence at the intended insult i have slept in worse places than that f by the way mr it is a little strange how you contrived to lock the door of the store room and give the key to mr brown while you were shut up in the room added mr brown explains that does he yes he suggests that it was my ghost who gave him the keys i think it was a ghost but one of another color a fellow about your height by the adventures of a naval officer do you mean to say that i locked you up in the room demanded his face turning red if it wasn t you it wasn t anybody else answered with a pleasant laugh mr you make a grave charge against me you took occasion last evening to make a quarrel with me i took occasion to make a quarrel with you exclaimed why man you pitched into me as though you had a seven years grudge to wipe out i made some playful remarks and you took advantage of them to insult me during your absence i was compelled to suffer on account of the words we had in short i was suspected of having helped you overboard or spirited you away in some other mysterious manner if you hadn t returned as you did i have no doubt i should have been accused of your murder that s so muttered if there is any man i despise it is one that wants to get up a quarrel in the mess room added mr with the utmost self complacency i am exactly of your mind mr said do you mean to accuse me of getting up a quarrel in the mess as i am not disposed to get up another quarrel we will drop that if you please mr replied as brought in his breakfast after you have insulted a gentleman you want to let by the yankee or it drop i know all about mr you have insulted me and you will find it no easy to let it drop as you call it mr you will oblige me by holding your tongue long enough for me to eat my breakfast continued but the was in no mood for a playful remark and he worked himself up into a passion though took no further notice of him shut up said who was trying to improve his mind in the mysteries of great circle sailing and was much disturbed by the of the angry mr the day of reckoning will come and come soon i want you to understand that i cannot be insulted with and you have done it twice will you or fight neither replied as he half a into his mouth but if you will let me eat my breakfast in peace i will talk over the matter with you when you are entirely cool then if i have done anything wrong i shall be to make it all right with you no words over an insult i will give you till eight bells to if you do it you may look out for growled in a significant tone but for om reason or other mr refused to consider by the of a naval officer himself insulted by anything which the master s mate could say mr went on deck and finished his breakfast which was an unusually long operation in the present instance without annoyance mr who do you suppose locked me in the store room he asked when he had finished what makes you think so the row i am satisfied myself but there is no evidence no in my opinion followed me into the hold to get up a fight with me and when he saw me in the store room he took his revenge by me in told you added the mate raising his eyes from his book for the first time told me what to look out so you did but i didn t think of his playing a little dirty trick on me malicious wretch i will keep my eye on him after this do to and the mystery was satisfactorily explained but as there was not a of proof of s agency in the matter they agreed that it was useless to say anything by ic yankee or chapter xiii mr becomes bloody minded r was not satisfied he was very far from being satisfied he felt that the honored name he bore was suffering for an sacrifice for it had been upon used as a of a vulgar household closely allied to dirty shirts and he was evidently for a quarrel with mr he made no issues with the master s mates and it looked very much as though he had a special object in picking a fight with his brother he was silly enough to do any ridiculous thing and before noon he rushed down into the mess room with a desperate resolve burning in his heated brain taking his bag from beneath his berth he drew from it a dirty into which his papers had been thrust without order or method he searched diligently for a clean sheet of note paper but he did not find it taking the nearest approach to it he could find he sat down at the table and wrote this luminous by the of a naval officer mb john sir yon have insulted me and you have refused to there is but one alternative among gentlemen and i take this method of formally demanding the satisfaction which nothing but blood can wash from the stain upon mine honor by your answer in writing you will greatly oblige yours respectfully with energy mr folded this savage document and thrust it within an envelope mr said he as he laid the note upon the table at	36
which the object of his wrath was still seated what s this a challenge laughed read for yourself replied mr as he sailed out of the mess room unwilling perhaps to trust himself any longer in the presence of his enemy read it and laughed again he handed it to who read it and laughed also savage said as he returned the note i suppose i must accept it or be as a coward added as he turned the dangerous paper over in his hands as persons often do when they have read a letter to ascertain if there is any more of it ejaculated in the present instance there was something more in the letter to reward the for his search some by thb yankee ob thing which seemed to be of greater importance than the silly challenge it was intended to convey on th third page there was another note which mr had turned in without noticing it as it was part and parcel of the terrible document which had received he ventured to read it as follows wednesday my dear i am sorry i was not able to see you last night as arranged the unexpected arrival of a business associate prevented me from keeping the appointment which you will please excuse my offer is still open and will remain so i don t know of any easier way by which you can make five thousand dollars and thus relieve your father s present necessities yours ever p five thousand dollars exclaimed when he had read the note that s a great deal of money and i hope it was not offered for doing any mean or wicked act did not understand this remark and it was too great an effort to ask an explanation therefore he said nothing was serious now for this note from was suggestive had been offered a large sum of money for doing some act had been offered double the sum to deliver him as a prisoner on board of the had by the adventures of a naval officer a decided hostility towards him since the first moment thej met there was no date to the note only the day of the week and the only thing that it proved was the ct of a of some kind with he suspected that the offer related to himself that at the most convenient time he was by some means to be given into the power of the he was not willing to believe anything worse than this of mr malicious as he had shown himself if s supposition was correct mr had been singularly unfortunate in the choice of the instrument of his evil purpose was little better than an idiot and by his display of towards his assumed victim he had almost destroyed his chance of carrying out his plan whatever it was decided to take no of the challenge at present but to keep both eyes wide open to defeat any evil intention his might cherish he did not see again till dinner time when that gentleman seemed to be cooler and more reasonable than when they had last met you received my note mr said he after dinner when they happened to be alone i did have you a note in reply no sir u by the yankee ob what have you to say in regard to the contents of my note nothing what do you propose to do about it nothing unless i hand it to the first lieutenant replied i might have expected that but i will do you the justice to say mr that i did not expect it if there is any person i despise in the mess it is a i have never believed you to be a gentleman of that description replied ti bs who was evidently much in dread of such a disaster what did you mean by the note mr demanded who could not lose sight of the ludicrous event which the contents of the suggested don t you understand it it looked very much like a proposition to fight a but as i don t believe you have courage enough to do anything of that kind i confess i am very much in doubt in regard to its real mr looked as dark and threatening as a thunder cloud another insult had been added to the list of his real or imaginary i meant to fight mr can you understand that said with emphasis where here in the mess room by adventures of a naval officer the time and place are after considerations which can be adjusted when you accept challenge how would the fore yard do for the conflict laughed i will take the lee while you perch yourself on the weather yard arm that would be a novel idea in and it would afford half an hour s amusement for the whole ship s company what do you say you may treat this matter as lightly as you please i am in earnest and i will convince you that i have the courage to fight a if that is your object you may soon have an opportunity to show your pluck in a more sensible way in close conflict with the enemies of your country this is sir in plain words sir will you or will you fight demanded working himself up into a frenzy beneath the sarcasm of his cooler companion in plain words mr i will not fight nor i will talk the matter over in a friendly way with you and if i have done anything wrong i will make it all right that s all i have to say about it then i brand you as a coward exclaimed bringing his fist down on the table you can brand me as much as you please now sir you have carried this ridiculous farce far enough and if you	36
before any such aid arrived and he was anxious to make out his expected prize before the daylight betrayed the true character of his vessel to the hour after hour he paced the deck and at eight bells in the afternoon he was absolutely in despair for the wind had subsided almost to a calm did you hear anything about waiting for the asked captain as he called over to the weather side of the deck no sir but i should suppose that would be understood replied it looks bad for us just now if we don t have a wind we cannot reach the spot in season i think the will wait for expects to go with him into went over to the lee side again which is the part assigned to and master s mates and officers not on duty while the weather side is exclusively appropriated to the captain and the officer of the deck shortly after it was a dead calm and the sails of the hung useless from the flapping idly as the vessel rolled on the long swell of the ocean the captain looked as blue as a the more by the yankee or the vessel didn t go the faster he walked up and down the quarter deck his example was and the people looked as if there had been a funeral on board mr tried to keep cool but it was work only a few of the officers on board besides himself knew the destination of the vessel and the depression of the rest and of the crew was wholly from sympathy or from the natural effects of a calm at sea which is the thing in the of a sailor there was an evident want of faith on board from the captain down to the side boys which nothing but a lively breeze could fortunately for the captain s peace of mind if not for the actual preservation of his for he was now walking at a fearful pace at two bells in the first a change came over the bosom of the throbbing ocean a slight ripple was observed far to the southward which travelled slowly up towards the the last wind had come from the north east and she had her port but before the breath of the gentle south as mr the senior master s mate who was a salt water poet called it the sails were trimmed on the other tack the wind struck the waiting sails and the captain very sensibly the speed of his monotonous it came in a few minutes and he the deck more like a sane man at four by ic the adventures of a naval officer bells he smiled as as a man on bis wedding day when the officer of the deck reported that the ship was making ten knots at eight bells it was blowing half a gale and the captain of the safety of his ordered the fore square sail to be taken in the was now flying through the water and captain was saved from at a lunatic asylum when he went on shore he was satisfied and went below if the decks of the vessel reflecting the sombre looks of the people had worn a aspect before it now looked like feast time on board the officers on duty walked with a step and the old sheet anchor men spun jolly about scenes on ship and shore instead of gloomy tales of blood and death inspired by the influence of the calm even mr was happy for whatever else he knew he was not aware that only a few lay between him and his particular friend mr philip he had no suspicion that his confiding co was in immediate danger of being up he was happy because others were and seeing everybody so good natured he ventured again to open the subject nearest to his heart to you promised not to ask me anything but the name of my laughed yes but your answer was a jest a mere by the yankee or for bow could i have informed you of that which never entered into my head nevertheless mr i told you the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth come come this is absurd you trifle with my feelings i am only anxious to my fair fame i must hold you to your promise mr but i will add for your consolation that you will probably have an opportunity to your fair fame in the course of the next twelve hours i hope you will be able to do it successfully really mr you must excuse me if i decline to hold any further conversation with you if there is anything i despise in the mess mr it is mystery replied impatiently so do i therefore i advise you to make a clean breast of it you speak in added more you seem to imply that i have some designs against you i don t imply it i say it now i am as curious to know in what manner you proposed to hand me over as a prisoner to the as you are to know how i obtained my information i hand you over to the why that would by ic the adventures of a naval officer be treason it would be giving aid and comfort to the enemy it is liable to that construction that is a grave charge added shaking his head if you wish to own up i will give you all the information in my power will you do it yes or no of course i will not for no such thought ever entered my head i have nothing more to say i must turn in now for it is my watch at twelve did turn in and mr left the mess room more bewildered and uneasy than before the latter was	36
what is called an on board ship this term is applied to officers and others who are not in either of the watches being what is called day officers the captain and officer who occupy the most positions on board are by this queer the principal mr was on duty on the berth deck during the day hence he was an which will account for his being in the mess room with during some of the long conversations we have had occasion to report mr could obtain no satisfaction below so he went on deck to nurse the of his discontent leaving to sleep out his watch below the wind continued to blow very fresh all night and by yankee or the captain was happily relieved from all and fear on that account although we are not permitted to the of the captain s cabin we will venture to say that he did not sleep much during that anxious night at six bells he was up and dressed engaged in certain reports which had been made to him in regard to the position of the vessel when he had carefully examined the sailing master s figures he went on deck it was seven bells in the mid watch or half past three in the morning when he took his place by the side of the officer of the deck sail ho shouted the man who had been stationed on the fore yard as a special sail ho repeated mr where away demanded the officer of the deck on the lee bow showing a green light and a white that s a steamer i exclaimed the captain when the report reached him all belonging to the united states as well as english french dutch and russian steam vessels carry in the night a bright white light at the head a green light on the side and a red light on the port side this is done in order to prevent at sea but it also those in charge of other vessels to tell which way the steamer fe going suppose the reader by ic the adventures of a naval is standing on the of the and sees a red and a green light with a white one between them then the steamer is approaching you the white light which is placed higher on the vessel than the colored ones should be seen in a clear night at the distance of five miles it is the warning light the red and green lights being lower down can be seen only two or three miles k the sees the white light he watches till the others or one of them can be seen if the were headed to the east and a red light only were reported her commander would know that the steamer was coming up from the southward for then she would show her port side if the green light were seen it would prove that she was coming from the north if any of our young readers wish to remember this explanation so that they may test it when they go to sea they have only to call to mind the fact that port wine is red port is the side and red the color if they cannot remember the color on the other side they have only to think how green they are in a knowledge of night the green light seen over the port bow assured captain that the steamer was coming from the north and that her course was at right angles with that of the he had no doubt that the steamer was the and his hopes ran high the circumstances could hardly have been more favorable for the by ic ob wind was fresh enough to make the if not quite a match for the in point of speed but the captain did not care to reduce the question to a mere matter of speed so he ordered the signal quarter master to bum blue lights on the quarter of the the steamer replied by burning another blue light and her identity was fully established mr had precisely carried out his part of the arrangement but it soon appeared from the movements of the snow den that he had no intention of being at present by his fellow instead of bearing down for the he held his course to the southward occasionally burning a blue light to assure the that she was aware of her presence captain was perplexed at first but he finally interpreted the movement to mean that he must wait for daylight before he her in confirmation of this supposition it was found that the had reduced her speed one half at least the could not follow her as the wind was exactly south but she came about on the port tack and sailed within six points of her course the exhibited no intention to run away and therefore captain did not deem it prudent to open fire upon her and thus disclose what he really was the was loaded ready for use by the adventures of a naval officer this ugly gun would betray vessel as soon as there was light enough to make it out on board of the to prevent so a recognition one of the boats was hoisted on board and turned up over the piece the guns were covered with sails and as much of the man of war appearance of the as time would permit was removed at daybreak the was about three miles from the and rather to the of her when the latter indicated by signal that she was ready to have the approach the critical moment was at hand the went about on the other tack and off her sheets went off towards the with the wind in a quarter of an hour the to under the bows of the steamer the men except those necessary to work the vessel were	36
sent below and there was as little display as possible of blue coats and brass buttons on the quarter deck one of the quarter boats was lowered and mr the second lieutenant was ordered to board her at his own request was allowed to go in her the men were armed to the teeth for it was not impossible that a conflict might occur but their arms were carefully concealed at first and another boat in readiness to pull off td her assistance if necessary by ic thb or chapter xv the and commander attain had at first objected to the request of to go in the boat fearing that the sight of him might raise a suspicion in the mind of the commander of the but our yankee who was a bit of a lawyer as well as a sailor argued that hid presence would be the very thing to any suspicion on the part of since it was hoped if not expected that he would be a passenger in s what vessel is that demanded a voice on the quarter deck of the as the boat approached the steamer that s said to mr who had been partially informed in relation to the event in which he was an actor the of new york with caps on board replied the second lieutenant all right shouted mr where by ic the adventures of a naval officer on board the where did you get so many men asked when he saw an unusual number in the boat they are good fellows that want a passage to the south and are willing to ship in a good steamer at all right the more the better responded to whom the replies were sufficiently intelligible by this time the boat came up under the lee of the the box a rope was thrown to her and she was hauled up at the accommodation ladder my word and honor as a gentleman and a sailor i exclaimed mr who had grasped the man ropes and was now looking down into the boat whom have you there mr the replied who had been instructed in his part for it was very necessary that mr should be kept force enough had been transferred to the deck of the steamer to prevent anything like reaction k the commander of the suspected any foul play he had only to ring the bell to start the engine and the boat might have been in the heavy sea or at least placed in a position where it would be impossible for the gallant blue to board her upon my word added by the yankee ob is a jewel and ought to be made an admiral come on board have you any caps in the boat ay ay sir a few replied mr though he neglected to say there was a head under each one of them pass them up as lively as possible let some of these men come on board first they are in the way here pipe them up then mr went up the accommodation ladder first and was followed by looked sharp at the second lieutenant as he stepped down the rail he evidently did not like the looks of the uniform he had on though mr wore an old coat from which the shoulder and sleeve band had been removed who are you sir demanded rather roughly as he stood off and eyed the lieutenant my name is sir at your service and i hope to obtain a position on board of this vessel when she goes into commission even if it is no better one than master s mate you are the man we want then has been doing a lively business in new york added as the old who had been carefully instructed to hold their tongues poured in upon the deck fourteen in number these are good fellows and i see they bring their arms with them which is better yet yes sir when we heard what sort of a man we by the adventures of a naval officer were to have as commander we thought it likely we should want to use these before we got into port replied very likely you will returned pleased with the compliment contained in the remark if will consent we will capture the first yankee ship we meet i think he will agree to it from what i heard him say my dear mr i am delighted to see you exclaimed mr who had hardly removed his eyes from our during the conversation with the second lieutenant pray how did you leave miss she was in excellent health and spirits the last time i saw her replied in a tone suited to the trying occasion i am glad to hear that she was well possibly she was rather sad when you informed her of your intention to leave she did not seem to be much affected and how were the rest of the family in continued rubbing his hands with delight they were all well was really willing to let you go from her side not very willing but i consoled her with the by thb yankee or ance that you would soon return and she would be again ton my word as a gentleman and a sailor that was very kind of you to remember the absent i shall that favor for i shall probably see her before you do very likely really mr this is a very unexpected pleasure i hardly anticipated seeing you again so soon do i understand that you are tired of serving in the old navy and intend to try your luck in the gallant little marine of the south no sir i don t intend to do anything of the sort mr you know me well enough to be satisfied that i would never desert the flag of my country said with proper spirit my little i	36
replied so much the worse for you k you wish to serve the states of america in the capacity of i think i have influence enough to procure you a warrant you know me better than that mr i would cut my right hand off before i would do anything of the kind then your right hand must be a very useless member to you my dear or you would not be willing to get rid of it so easily by ic the adventures of a naval officer me mr but the remembrance of oar past intercourse brings to my mind a very question good on your dictionary son ers i wish could have heard that remark but what s the question and all his family as you are well aware are intensely loyal the question which occurred to me was how you intend to make your peace with them after engaging in an enterprise of this description my dear and friend that question has already been up for consideration in my mind and i am very happy to answer you in less than six months from the present time that which i now called the united states of america will have ceased to exist or if it exists at all it will only be as a rival but not an equal of the states of america doesn t that answer the question hardly mr we who have fought for southern independence will not then be regarded as and what is now called treason will shine out as the glorious deeds of brave and self sacrificing men what looks black now to the eyes of those whom you call loyal my honor i hate the sound of the word will glow like living fire those who are now fighting the by yankee ob i battles of the north will off like whipped and return to the mud from which they came there to dig till your huge debt is paid then my dear the officers of the southern army and navy will not have to for what they have done they will not if things turn out as you replied they will turn out just as i long before you ever see your native town again france will have recognized the states england will follow her example and the great work of the nineteenth century will be accomplished but my dear i cannot stop to discuss this question now and we shall have plenty of time for it as we to the southward then i am to be a cabin passenger am i asked in rather tones certainly for the friendship i bear you i must accord you that privilege but when we get into port of course i can do nothing more for you wliat is to happen to me then i am very sorry my dear fellow but the fortunes of war have placed you in my power and i can do nothing less than hand you over to the authorities as a prisoner do you think my capture was entirely fair and honorable asked who was the interview to enable mr to make his dispositions of the men about the deck and below by the adventures of a naval officer perhaps not exactly in accordance with the strict letter of the rules of war but you see my dear i had a particular liking for you and wanted you very badly i hope will be able to get along without you probably she will not miss either one of us very much in a word i suppose i happen to be here to gratify your malice towards me don t use hard words my dear you were certainly in my way and it was necessary to remove you here you are my fine fellow and it will be many a day before you see again i am satisfied if you are mr well i ought to be i have won the game added he rubbing his hands again in the of his delight that s a very fine pistol you wear in your belt my dear allow me to look at it excuse me mr it is loaded and you might get hurt with it replied as mr approached the quarter deck i ll trouble you for that pistol repeated rather sharply i can t spare it you are my prisoner not yet mr i am sorry to interrupt you gentlemen interposed the second lieutenant of the but i think it is about time to proceed to business by the yankee or i think too have you brought your caps ou board demanded yes sir all on board very well but the first business is to this young i think i wouldn t stop to do that just now captain replied hardly able to keep from laughing he will do no harm where are your caps demanded glancing around the deck for the valuable stores they are on the heads of the men am in no humor for growled mr neither am i and i think we will bring this farce o an end pray what do you mean by this farce demanded the commander of the well sir you have had all the fun to yourself thus far and i think it is time for us to have our turn replied the lieutenant confound your impudence sir exclaimed i put you under arrest for insolence pardon me captain but that is just hat i was about to do with you without further which i find is offensive to you allow me to add that you are my prisoner your prisoner by the adventures of a naval officer my prisoner sir i repeat and your vessel is the prize of the united states captain i think i have been sufficiently explicit mr to leave you no further doubt in regard to our relative positions mr the prisoner is in your charge mr	36
sank down on a seat by the side of the he turned deadly pale and the terrible of circumstances shook every fibre in his frame that s a fine pistol you have in your belt mr allow me to look at it said as he discovered the weapon beneath the frock coat of his prisoner don t insult me said he savagely i don t mean to insult you but i will trouble you for your pistol you can t have it growled the wretched man take it from him said to the ship s and a quarter master who had been detailed to guard the prisoner sprang to his feet and attempted to draw the pistol evidently with the intention of taking a sweet revenge upon the man whom he hated the ship s was too quick for him and before he could the weapon from his the chief of police of the was him as a bear his prey while the quarter master from him the by the yankee or weapon which would have been dangerous in the hands of a desperate man having deprived the prisoner of his power to do injury the men released him at a signal from in the mean time mr had effectually secured possession of the vessel and the blue stood ready with and pistol in hand to enforce the orders of their officer but no resistance was made what does all this mean asked in a more subdued tone where is a prisoner in fort we came out after this vessel and we have her you expected her then we did some one has betrayed me groaned the traitor no sir you betrayed yourself when those living fires of which you spoke begin to glow you will not be there replied by the f a naval officer r chapter xvi mb comes to he was a steamer of about eight hundred tons her capture was complete and it only remained to make the proper dispositions for sending her into port which of course could only be done by the captain mr you will proceed to the with your prisoner and report to the captain the capture of the steamer said mr when he had placed his little force in positions where they could any attempt to the vessel touched his cap and requested his prisoner to go over the side into the boat was silent and sullen he had been robbed of his last hope nd the glowing fabric he had painted of the great southern suddenly into ruins for most men identify their own fate with that of their nation he went below with the ship s and pointed out his personal effects which were put into the boat without a remark he went down the accommodation ladder and seated himself in the stem sheets by thb yankee ob i have to report the capture of the sir said touching his cap as he reached the deck t f the and met the captain who was eagerly waiting for intelligence from the prize her commander me sir he added when mr appeared in charge of the acting master i am happy to receive your report mr said the captain glancing at the prisoner mr directed me to say that he was waiting further orders they shall be sent to him presently mr was detailed as prize master with mr as first and mr as second officers but before you go mr there is a matter of some importance to be adjusted pass the word for mr said the captain mr may i trouble you to go below i am your prisoner and you can do with me as you please growled the captain went down into his cabin followed by the prisoner and by who was ordered to be present at the interview captain if you propose to question me in regard to the steamer i have only to say that this business is wholly irregular said as he threw by the adventures of a naval officer himself into a chair and i intend to let the consequences rest with you i am entirely willing to bear the responsibility you have captured my vessel without even examining her papers i think i understand perfectly what i am about captain my ship is a british steamer bound from one british port to another are you a british subject demanded the captain i do not intend to answer any question in regard to ray vessel he replied at last in surly tones it is not necessary for me to ask any questions that subject at this moment mr entered the cabin where he had been ordered to appear he looked very much astonished at the invitation he had received and it was clear that he did not know whether to expect a shock or an appointment on board of the prize took no notice of him as he entered and perhaps this fact had some influence in the young gentleman s future course mr said the captain with a queer smile which the senior of the could not we have a friend of yours here and i thought it probable you might wish to see him by yankee ob a friend of mine i exclaimed ah mr i learn that he is about to leave us for a time i am sorry to part with him no doubt you are but i did not allude to him but to your friend mr commander of the steamer just captured i beg your pardon sir but i have not the honor of the gentleman s acquaintance replied mr with a polite bow to the prisoner indeed i thought you were old friends no sir it is quite possible that i have seen the gentleman before your memory is poor mr mr s is better the gentleman is a stranger to me said the prisoner who was so strongly desirous of the captain that	36
mean part in a delicate matter and i did not hesitate so to express myself my father having a large family to maintain with his pay greatly reduced was in very circumstances and mr proposed to point out a way by which i could make five thousand dollars for my father s sake i listened to the offer well sir what were you to do for the five thousand dollars asked the captain as the speaker paused in his narrative when he came to the part thereof i was to get mr into difficulty and injure his credit with the officers was that all i was to dispose of him as i could dispose of him do you mean that you to take his life mr may have entertained that view but i never did by the yankee or mr never entertained any such view interposed that gentleman speak for yourself if you speak at all indeed sir i never accepted the offer added mr brightening up as though he had found a means of clearing himself from all blame but you commenced operations when you locked mr up in the store room no sir i am willing to acknowledge that i despised him for his meanness in the matter i have mentioned and was willing to play him a trick when i got a chance i never intended to injure him only to annoy him how came mr to make you this offer i heard that and myself were to be appointed to this vessel a week before i was sent on board and i told mr so mr with another man to hand mr over as a prisoner on board the added the captain i did not know that sir replied as nearly as i can judge you were to do the dirty job if the other man failed i was not to do that at least i never intended to injure mr you have done enough to disgrace any officer you are under arrest i beg you by the adventures of a naval officer i have nothing more to report to the arms under arrest i wish to sir so far as miss is concerned i never had the remotest idea of mr interposed blushing like a child i never paid her any attentions such as mr i never made love to her in a word mr thought he had not he had no serious intentions indeed no intentions at all but it is quite likely he did not understand the matter the captain went on deck followed by while and were handed over to the master by the yankee ob chapter xvii the in sound captain was in the cabin working up the case of mr the first lieutenant was making the details for the crew of the and brought up their bags and the boat put off the and of the steamer were willing to retain their positions on certain conditions but it was deemed necessary to have a large force of yankee sailors on board in case of any attempt to her the was to keep near her and to be by her in light or head winds mr was now first officer of the steamer and the place had been assigned to him at the special request of mr he was young but he was considered fully competent to perform the duties of the position the boat returned to the which immediately filled away on her course the wheels of the were started and with a quarter master to con the wheels she followed in the by the adventures of a naval officer wake of her little during that day the was able to hold way with the steamer but at sunset the wind subsided and a was passed from her to the the purposes of our story do not require us to follow the return voyage in detail and we pass over the tame incidents of an unbroken passage tiu the took on board a pilot about a hundred miles east of sandy hook though our had been absent from home but a brief period they were anxious to the war news and the bundle of papers which the pilot brought on board were examined with great eagerness they were three days old but they were nearly a week later than any the officers had seen there was no very exciting news but who had a very decided for newspapers devoted himself to a careful perusal of them as soon as he was relieved from duty on deck of course he read the war news first and while looking over the paper for other matters of interest his attention was attracted by a familiar name no other than that of his gaze was instantly to the paragraph for everything connected with that name had a kind of charm about it the paragraph in which he had found it announced the dangerous illness of general who had been attacked by the papers were sent on board the with this sentence marked that it by the yankee ob might not escape the attention of the captain the announcement would give mr a thrill of anxiety hut it would not be on account of the impending death of one who had been his guardian and protector but for the final disposition of his large property perhaps the general was already dead and it was not impossible that the prisoner on board the was the heir of a quarter of a million money covers a multitude of sins and if the general had carried out what was understood to be his intention and made joint heir with of his estates it would not be a difficult matter for him to break through the of the law from this point of view the matter was one of no interest to on tuesday morning the up the harbor of new york followed by	36
the which had cast off the and run up in gallant style before a fresh breeze both vessels came to anchor off the navy yard and the first edition of the evening papers contained full accounts of the chase and the capture bought two of the papers and one to and the other to his first care after he had discharged the duties incident to the arrival of the vessel was to examine the papers of each day since the date of the one brought off by the pilot to ascertain the result of general i illness he could obtain no further information by the adventures of a naval officer from the papers nor from any of the officers with he was brought into official connection mr was sent to fort as soon as the s anchor struck the mud mr s case w reported to the authorities and he remained under arrest awaiting orders on the following day orders came by mail from washington for the to put to sea again as soon as practicable while the few stores she needed were coming on board the of the officers were taken to be used in the prize court in the case of the our younger readers may not understand that when a ship is taken in war the cannot sell nor use her at their own pleasure the customs or of nations embodied in what is called law all these affairs a vessel may be captured as the property of an enemy in war or of a while engaged in entering a port or when it appears to the satisfaction of the officer making the capture that she is conveying goods of war to the enemy but she is not yet the property of the nation under whose authority the capture was made if this were the law or the fact vessels might be taken from their owners after the vessel or the goods are captured they still belong in theory to the original owner and the officer who them is responsible for his act the captured ship is into by the yankee or a port of the or of a and the case brought before a court a for the purpose which n sit in the country of the or his ally the evidence on both sides is then heard and the court de whether or not the vessel was taken all the testimony respecting the vessel s the object of her voyage indeed all the information that can be obtained is presented to the court on this evidence the decision of the court is made if the testimony is not sufficient to prove that she is a prize she is and the government must pay any damage which may be caused by her capture if the evidence is sufficient the vessel is condemned and handed over to the of the district to be sold if the government wants the vessel it must buy her at the same as a private individual the sale is necessary in order to establish the value the distribution of the proceeds of this sale is also regulated by law when the vessel is taken by a war if the captured ship be armed and of greater force all the money she brings goes to the if she is of equal or of less force one half goes to the government and the other half to the officers and crew making the capture if we divide the whole sum into the captain has three parts or if his vessel belongs to a he has only two the admiral taking the other part two parts are divided among all the by the adventures of a naval officer the captain of and the sailing master two parts among the surgeon master s mates and similar officers three parts and a half among the s mates and other officers of rank two and a half parts among certain petty officers and seven parts to all the and all other persons not included in other if there are for example three and a sailing master each of them receives one fourth of two of all the money that is one if there are fifty sailors of all degrees each one receives one of seven or seven dollars of every thousand divided the and her cargo brought sixty thousand dollars above the expenses one half of which was divided among the officers and crew of the there were twelve persons of the class to which belonged therefore he received one twelfth of three and a half of thirty thousand dollars which is four hundred and thirty seven dollars and a half no small sum for a young man of eighteen to make in less than a fortnight and his fellow officers of the made before a magistrate in regard to their knowledge of the to be used in the prize court if they should be absent on duty when the case was adjusted the officers and sailors of the captured steamer would also be required to give their evidence by the yankee ob all these matters were disposed of and thought the importance of the events in which he had been an actor was sufficient to warrant him in writing a letter to as he had promised he did not write the playful letter he fearing that such an might be to her while the family were waiting to hear of the death of her grandfather if the news had not already reached them he scarcely alluded to for her relations with him were too intimate to permit a full statement of his at on the following day the went to sea again and as usual not a soul on board knew where she was bound but everybody was contented and happy for the success already obtained was an earnest of the future the vessel and her commander had received a great deal of credit for	36
the capture of the and the prospect of a handsome sum of prize money was calculated to make all hands good natured the officers and crew were the same as before with the exception of mr who had been relieved from duty and ordered to hold himself in readiness for trial by court martial and we may as well anticipate the event and say that he was dismissed from the navy the charge of and comforting the enemy not being fully established everything proceeded with the utmost regularity on board after the passed sandy hook where the by the adventures of a naval sealed orders were opened and read the was to go upon the on the coast of where sundry laden with cotton had the vigilance of the so few in number that it was impossible to cover the numerous which ran inland from the ocean the particular point to which the was ordered was the mouth of sound and she reached her station after a rather rough passage of twelve days here we are said captain when the vessel came to anchor to the southward of chimney spit this remark was addressed to who was on duty near the speaker yes sir but i hope we shall have something better to do than lie at anchor patience mr i have no doubt we shall find occupation before many days have passed away this sound is one of the back doors of the river so many of the vessels of the have been engaged in the attack upon that the have been encouraged to send out vessels and they have done so with some success this region has been pretty thoroughly and burned over by the negro troops was destroyed not long since and vast quantities of property captured and burned the place had a large trade in lumber i suppose they don t run the with lumber by the yankee or sir added who did not think such a cargo would pay for the risk no but a great deal ot cotton comes down the river which the are anxious to get out in order to pay the cotton loan i hope we shall have a chance to do our share in putting down the value of the cotton loan probably we shall for it is reported that is quite brisk in this vicinity at the present time though it is rather a narrow field we have this sound entirely to ourselves but the the expectations of the commander and his officers for a fortnight for there was no appearance of a vessel going in or out of the during that time the weather had been remarkably fine v ith bright moonlight evenings which was not favorable for running and all hands whistled for a change of weather a rainy misty day soon rewarded the s prayer and extra precautions were taken to any vessel which might attempt to run out the darkness set in with a fog so dense that the could not see a ship s length in any direction mr the third nt was sent off in the second to do duty inside of the sound at eight bells in the first watch when it was dead low tide and the wind was blowing in fresh from the eastward this boat was recalled for it was not considered by the of a naval officer possible that any vessel would attempt to run out at that stage of the tide and with a head wind at two bells in the mid watch the on the reported a noise like the puffing of a steamer up the sound in an instant everything was alive on board the the order to call the men to quarters was given but everything was conducted in silence that the position of the might not be revealed to the approaching vessel by ic ths yankee ob chapter xviii m the fog and darkness y away the first mr said m i the captain who when the order had been re gave the second lieutenant his directions which were to proceed towards the approaching steamer and carry her by boarding if practicable if not to throw up towards the position of the at this moment contrived to place himself in such a situation that the captain might see him he had heard the order given to carry the steamer by boarding and he had a yankee sailor s taste for this exciting employment captain however did not see him for the fog and the darkness were very dense but as our almost invariably formed one of mr s crew when he was sent away in the boat he ventured to go a step farther than hanging around shall i go in the first as usual sir asked he stepping forward and touching his cap by ic the adventures of a naval officer certainly mr certainly replied captain smiling at the eagerness of the young officer the yankee rushed to the deck and obtained a which in addition to his usual arms rendered him quite a formidable person you will hardly need that mr said the captain as the young gentleman sprang to the accommodation ladder boarding a is quite a peaceful occupation it is best to be ready for anything that may turn up and i should feel bad if there were to be a fight while i was not in condition to have a hand in it up oars shouted the of the silence there said the captain you will wake tip every man within ten miles of us ofi added the in more cautious tones hold on a moment if you please called finding the boat was going away without him haul in again said mr who was always glad enough to have in the boat with him not only because he was a faithful and officer but because he was a pleasant companion leaped into the fore sheets of the	36
i where have you been these three weeks asked mr been de wi de cotton o indeed have you yes there is one up here now is there yes fourteen ob em fourteen exclaimed the lieutenant well dis can t say dare s fourteen ob em but s a big pile ob em as sure as you where s the steamer i kin told you all about de steamer can you then you are just the man we want dis kin tell you all about her but dis want to go to de very well you shall go to the north if you know how to tell the truth by the adventures of a naval officer de dis tells but de as shore as you was bom where is the steamer asked mr now fully tliat he had captured a prize who would add a large sum to the credit of ihe officers and crew of the she done gone replied the band out into tho gloom what a she doing here she waa to take one ob de down de bar where is the demanded the lieutenant gone replied the negro a ain pointing into the banks of fog why don t she go down the sound if she is going s de trouble j said the black man significantly what is the trouble the intelligent then proceeded to explain the whole matter he informed the lie ti tenant tbat the with a in got within a short of uie spit off which the lay when a boat which had been sent ahead to feel the way had with the intelligence that the man of war was getting out her boat to capture them the negro further informed mr that the very dug out io by the yankee ob which he sat had been used as the of the and that he himself had held the the mate of the steamer was with him and after he had put him on board he had cast off again and had been about for an hour in search of the man of war or one of her boats his statement seemed to be very consistent and as his case was that of thousands of his kind in bondage he was readily accepted as a truthful witness what did the steamer do when the mate returned on board asked mr after he had fully satisfied himself in regard to the of his she put back down got a big gun blow de steamer all to if she a rap at her that s so answered mr yes then she has given up the attempt to run the out to night no she s to wait till all is still again den she s down s what i hear the liable say the what de de man like you is come from to de out who is the naval officer by ic the adventures of a naval officer do you know where the steamer is now well dis she is but i reckon she done inter de creek replied the what creek tea kettle creek give way said mr dis child ain t goin up no how said the negro with something like a shudder we will take care of you come into the boat dis s ob his life to go up done put him in de for de up the s fears were proof against the eloquence of the second lieutenant for a time but at last he by agreeing to follow in the dug out give way i said and the boat darted through the fog in the direction of the creek where the steamer and her companion were reported to be we shall not go back empty handed after all said mr whose hopes had again risen to the highest pitch no sir i hope not answered the chances are au in our favor at any rate added the lieutenant that is if the s statement is correct i believe a was never yet known to give false information by the yankee os no i think not the boat continued on her course till in the opinion of the officers she had made four miles from the s which was the distance to the creek all the officers of the had diligently studied the and calculated the distances between various points in the sound in an of occasions like the present at this point she ran in towards the shore of the sound they did not strike the creek for the calculations of distances were necessarily very imperfect but they until they r the object and the noise of escaping steam half a mile distant guided them to their prey stand by your my men said mr in a low tone when the boat had approached near enough to the steamer to enable them to the voices of the men on her deck ay ay sir replied the ready blue at that instant the roar of a gun saluted them and a twelve pound shot struck the tearing open her side while the water poured into her with the of a mill stream from that moment of excitement and eager expectation the officers and crew of the passed to one of anxiety for their own safety by the adventures of a naval officer xix first in rf line lip li he had the near lier i she waa no longer capable of bearing her gallant crew tlie of some of the men assured the ers that the of the shot were not confined to the boat it was evident that the expedition had fallen into a of some kind but it was impossible to ascertain the further purposes of the jump overboard aod hang on at the rail of the boat said mr who fortunate i j had i he presence of mind to do what the desperate condition of the boat would permit	36
ay aj sir responded the men cheerfully for sailors never give way to as long as there is a voice to direct them the order was promptly obeyed and in a moment the crew were in the water supporting by holding on at the rail of the she had no or other heavy matter on board which cause her to by thb yankee or sink on the contrary when the weight of the men was removed she rose so that the hole in her side was above the water there were two men of the party who were unable to obey the order and still remained in the boat one of them was quite dead the other was severely wounded mr directed the to examine into the nature and extent of the done to the boat and he soon reported a ragged hole in her side about a foot in it was also found that she would support two or three men without sinking so deep as to cause the water to flow in two of the of the men were directed to get in on the opposite side and her out the sound was quite smooth at this distance from the sea and there was no difficulty in carrying out the various orders which had been given when the boat had been out five more men got in including mr who had already devised a plan for stopping the where is mr demanded the lieutenant now for the first time noticing the absence of our mr repeated the and several of the men the word passed around the circle of men clinging to the boat but was not there to answer to name by the adventures of a naval officer where is he demanded the lieutenant in his efforts to the boat by this sad discovery no one could teu where he was in the excitement which had followed the discharge of the gun and the of the boat no one could tell in the gloom of the terrible what his neighbor had done to secure his own safety had seen some one go overboard before the order was given but he did not know who it was he could not have been killed by the shot said mr with a shudder perhaps he was hit by a sir suggested one of the men who proved to be the stroke one of them struck me on the shoulder several shots followed the first one but it was evident that they were fired at random and that it had been a chance shot which struck the boat the tide had now begun to run in and the shattered boat was drifting up the sound the shots were directed farther down the it was evident therefore that the did not know where they were and had no idea of the mischief they had done mr after the wounded man had been as comfortably disposed of as the circumstances would permit ordered the sail which had been placed in the bottom of the boat to be hauled under her and carefully by the yankee ob secured to the this work was accomplished in spite of all the under which the men labored no one was permitted to speak above d whisper and all noise was carefully avoided so that the could not obtain any information to direct them in pointing their guns the men w ere all ordered into the boat again of course the could be only partially stopped and two men were detailed to the water out and two more to stand by the hole and keep the canvas in its place the boat was not in condition for active service and all that could be expected of her that she would enable the crew to reach the in safety under these circumstances mr gave the order to return the dug out with the had disappeared about the time the shot was fired the negro s worst fears seem to have been realized and he had probably away from the scene of strife in mortal terror the lieutenant did not concern himself about the dug out or its timid his thoughts dwelt only on the disappearance of he had not abandoned all hope of picking him up on his return the was a powerful and an oar or a log would enable him to support himself for a long period on the water at the risk of drawing the fire of the he called his name as the boat proceeded on her course towards by the adventures of a naval officer the but without success everything was done which the circumstances would admit to recover the lost officer and mr came to the conclusion that he had ashore and if not captured by the enemy had concealed himself where he could return to his vessel the next day while he was thus considering the fate of his young companion the splash of the steamer s wheels was distinctly heard by the crew of the she is ahead of us sir and going down the sound said i am afraid we have made a bad night s work of it replied mr those guns were not on board of the steamer as i supposed for they are still firing them they have got an company there to protect the cotton we can t catch the steamer if we chase but there was a remote possibility that something might be done to for the of the night and mr ordered the men to give way with all their might hoping that something might occur to the steamer to delay or stop her the men pulled a vigorous stroke but using two less than her of oars with the drag of the sail under her she made but poor time through the water then to add to these and cover the attempt with disaster the canvas was drawn from its place and	36
the by the yankee t b water began to flow into the boat again the chase was abandoned and when the canvas had been restored to its former position the boat proceeded slowly on her course the steamer was gaining rapidly on the boat and was now at least a mile from her the lieutenant and fretted under the difficulties of his situation and groaned in despair as he heard the steamer on her way down the sound he could not help thinking of the miserable report he should be obliged to give the captain on his return of the failure of the expedition the of the boat and worse than all of the loss of while he was thus indulging in unpleasant reflections he was suddenly startled by the report of a heavy gun which he was satisfied was that of the a m lively was heard for a few moments but it soon ceased and the lieutenant ventured to hope that the had accomplished what he had failed to perform this hope like its was soon dissipated by the nearer approach of the steamer and it was rendered evident that she had again put about and was seeking safety by a return to her former position now is our time said mr with energy we will board her boat or no boat ay ay sir replied the stroke who did the speech making for crew have your ready my lads added hfe stand by to lay oo your oars i by ic the adventures of a naval officer when the boat stopped mr listened attentively to determine the position of the steamer she was approaching her and it was only necessary to be quiet till she came up in a short time he could hear her close aboard but when almost up with the boat she shifted her and stood away towards the northern shore give way said mr the men bent on their oars just as the dark form of the came in sight through the fog pull i pull shouted with a zeal which promised good results the boat dashed up to the as she came abreast of her the made fast to her side and the hopeful sprang into her chains lay aboard of her i shouted mr as he followed them up and leaped on the deck but there was no resistance only half a dozen men appeared on the deck and they submitted without striking a blow as soon as the steamer realized the situation of affairs of her she cast off her and thus relieved of her heavy burden darted forward and disappeared in the fog it was useless to pursue her and mr ordered his men to let go the anchor for the prize having no sail on her was liable to drift ashore while the men were engaged in this the by the yankee or second of the with mr in charge dashed up to the and a dozen of her crew leaped on board you are too late mr the second lieutenant the prize is ours i am glad to hear it replied the third lieutenant we began to be troubled about you when we the firing above what was it all about we are all right replied mr who that he had saved his credit l y the capture of the that is most of us are the first had a shot go through her and we have lost mr missing and one man killed and one wounded missing exclaimed mr that s bad news i have strong hopes that he is all right i am pretty well satisfied that he was not killed and we may pick him up in the course of the day i dread to tell the captain of this part of our i was sent out to assist you as soon as we heard the firing but when i found the steamer was coming down i went on board to report and was then ordered to make sure she did not run by us in the fog continued mr i will go on board and report with the second said mr for i hope the captain will move the vessel up and look after the company of by the adventures of a officer which i think is stationed up the sound you must keep your weather eye open mr for i should not be surprised if an attempt was made to this i have not a gun to defend her if the steamer should return with the company you shall hear from me before she can do that replied mr as he went over the side into the second ah mr said the captain as the second lieutenant reported on board the i began to be very much alarmed about yon when i heard the firing we were somewhat alarmed about ourselves sir at one time and i regret to report the loss of one officer missing one man killed and one wounded one officer missing mr exclaimed the captain it is hardly necessary for me to add that it is mr but i hope for the best in regard to him mr briefly reported the events which had occurred during his absence concluding with the capture of the cotton and suggesting that she was in danger of being by the the wind and the tide would permit the to be moved up the sound though she was powerless to chase a steamer in the opposite direction orders were immediately given to slip by ic the or and the cable and in a few moments she was moving up the bay what became of the who gave you your information asked captain when the vessel was under way he disappeared i know when i heard the dug out s a moment before the shot was fired i presume he made the best of his way from the danger but in what direction	36
i don t know perhaps mr was picked up by this band suggested the captain that is utterly impossible sir replied the lieutenant shaking his head why impossible because if mr had got into the dug out he would immediately have made his way to our relief for he knew that the boat had a hole knocked in her side he is not a man to look out for himself when his comrades are in danger you are right mr said the captain sadly after considerable difficulty in the fog and darkness the was near the in readiness to any attack which might be made by the by the of a naval officer xx keeps his ears wide open again hen the cannon shot struck the first realized as soon as any other person in the boat that the expedition must prove to be a failure he heard the water pouring in at the side and there was nothing to think of at that tremendous moment but the safety of the officers and crew as we have before shown our was not deficient in self possession and the question of what should be done came to his mind with all the force which such an event could require it so happened that he had noticed the position of the dug out only a moment before the catastrophe occurred the apparently frightened out of his wits when the shot struck the boat was away from the spot as fast as he could and when looked for it it was just disappearing in the dense fog there was only an instant for reflection and before the full extent of the mischief was known had leaped into the water and was swimming with all his might towards the retreating by the or there would have been but a slight chance of it if the attracted by his voice had not suspended his labors and waited for him to come up the water was smooth and made good time but the negro did not offer to the distance between them by towards him why don t you pull up to the boat and help save the men demanded at the stupid course of the ne p o dis s he be shot by de cannon balls replied the as he helped into the boat over to the boat as fast as you can said fiercely as he sat down on the bottom of the dug out out of breath from the violence of his exertions the raised his as if he intended to with this reasonable demand but instead of i the to its legitimate use he sprang towards his exhausted passenger and brought it down with tremendous force upon the top of his head sank k in the boat unconscious of what followed the having accomplished this treacherous deed up the creek a short distance to escape the flying shots and then made for the shore along which he rowed till his boat reached the steamer probably the wretch believed he had killed his victim for without any further attention to him he by of a naval officer fastened the boat and stepped upon the deck he passed half a dozen persons but he did not stop till he had reached the bow where he found the man of whom he had been in search now s your time i said the black man you haven t a moment to spare where is the boat smashed by a shot and one half her crew killed are you sure of that am i sure of it i saw it with my own eyes answered the black man i picked up one of them but the firing must have alarmed the people on board of the below replied the cautious captain of the steamer for he was the person who spoke what of that she depend upon her own boat which has just been smashed to head you off and will not get out another your wheels before it is too late well i will make the attempt said the captain the black man returned to the dug out jumped in and round the steamer to a point of land on which the guns were posted still lay perfectly quiet and his seemed to be of the opinion that he never would move again for he stepped on shore and walked up to an officer who stood in the rear of the guns was worth half a dozen dead men the blow he had received was given with the flat of the and by the yankee ob though it produced very great of ideas indeed a total of all ideas for a time it was from a fatal one he had begun to have a tolerably clear idea that he was still in the land of the living when the black man went on shore and before he had been gone fifteen minutes he was quite certain that he was not dead having fully established this fact to his own satisfaction he very turned his attention to the circumstances which surrounded him he first heard then saw the steamer with the in tow moving away from the landing he could not prevent her fix m going and this fact filled him with regret he was thankful to god that his life had been twice spared within an hour and how much shorter time he knew not sat in the boat a few moments thinking over the events which had just happened some of the poor fellows who had been in the boat with him had lost the number of their mess and the others were in imminent danger of being captured by the while in their helpless condition if such an event had not already happened again his heart glowed with gratitude to for his own preservation with this thought and not only this thought but this feeling present	36
in his mind and heart he rose from his posture in the bottom of the boat the guns on the shore had ceased firing but he could by the adventures of a naval officer hear the voices of persons on the point of land it was evident to him that he had been expected to lie still a much longer time than had actually been the case for there appeared to be no person in charge of him taking advantage of this fact he cast off the painter of the dug out and pushed her off a little way from the shore unfortunately for him as he thought the rising tide forced the boat back to the shore he was in the act of repeating the operation when he heard voices dose by him hoping the last push would send the boat far enough from the land to permit him to use the without exposing himself he again lay down in the bottom of the dug out the voices of the men came nearer and he did not deem it prudent to show himself now you have told me what i ought to do and i want to know what you have done said one of the persons on shore in a voice which strangely familiar to our i told you i had smashed the boat and killed half the crew more than that i have taken one prisoner and i suppose he is dead by this time why dead because i was obliged in order to keep him quiet to knock his out with the he won t miss them replied the first speaker whose tones had already caused the heart of to beat wildly with wonder by ic tee yankee ob he listened with the most intense eagerness not to hear what the speaker said but to compare the sound of his with the familiar one which he recalled he could not believe the evidence of his senses and he rejected the conclusion to which he was tending as aa illusion of his own imagination k you had taken the guns on board the steamer mr could hear no more for that name confirmed what he had rejected as utterly and impossible mr this was the name by which had called him and this evidence added to that of the tones of his voice left him no margin to doubt that one of the parties on the shore was mr this gentleman had certainly been committed to fort before he left new york and he was within four weeks of that time doing rebel work on the coast of it was strange and unaccountable and nothing but the most positive evidence would have justified him in believing what was now undoubtedly a fact i tell you my orders would not permit me to take the guns on board of the steamer replied mr in the same impatient tone which the listener had bo often heard before besides i didn t believe in it myself it is the most stupid plan i ever heard of you might have put your guns board and th by the adventures of a naval officer all to pieces if she had given you any trouble replied highly excited by what he deemed the of affairs on the sound you have a right to your opinion and you can be as blind as you please what sort of a chance should i have against the with her and her four twenty i tell you i will capture the and go on a in her within two weeks perhaps you will thought i have done all that has been done so far pray what have you done i have got that out to night for one thing k i had been near enough at the time i should have prevented her from getting under way i dare say you would sneered she will be captured and the steamer with her very likely what was i sent out in that dug out for demanded to give you a little more practice in talk laughed then i made a blunder and did the enemy more damage than you will in six months what damage have you done i put your guns in the way of killing half that boat s crew by them in shore by the yankee ob that was a chance shot which hit the boat it looks to me just as though you brought it in there to enable her to capture the steamer and the k we hit the boat it was an accident for we could not see or hear the first thing to aim at i don t think much of your and he was doomed to think still less of it when the steamer returned with intelligence of the s capture mr and mr continued to argue the point for some time longer and listened as he had done at with the most intense interest it was remarkable that he should find himself s plots and plans a second time though it was not half so remarkable as that should be there when he ought to have been a close prisoner in fort from all that he heard and all that followed as a matter of course derived some valuable information which may be up in terms than the conversation from which it was was the black man a who on the yankee s faith in the negro had the boat within range of the guns on the point this fact our could have argued out without any direct statement to that effect mr was there to assist in running sundry through the but the great by adventures of a naval officer object he had in view was the capture of the in which he intended to go on a under the flag much to s disappointment he did not indicate the means by which	36
he intended to accomplish this job and the listener was inclined to agree with the critical mr that he never would do it there comes the steamer exclaimed when he had wrung all the information out of the which that clever actor contained or would impart then she is not captured replied triumphantly no but she has not had time to tow the even down to the chimney spit much less over the bars i don t think she has but she can speak for herself replied disgusted with this unpleasant conclusion ru bet you my year s pay she has lost the no she hasn t she is her back as she did before the captain of that steamer hasn t pluck enough to look an baby out of countenance he is a prudent man and i presume he has obeyed my orders very likely sneered but i must look after my prisoner he may come to life who is he asked carelessly i don t know but i reckon he s an officer replied as he walked towards the boat in which lay by thb om chapter xxi r he critical moment in mr s affairs appeared to have arrived he had kept very quiet in the boat hoping that something would occur to call and his dangerous companion away from the spot and enable him to move to a place of safety the return of the steamer promised at one time to afford him this relief the noise of her could be heard at no great distance but the prudence of mr was likely to defeat his expectation his was approaching the boat indeed he was on the point of stepping into it and it was now or never with mr for the presence of mr complicated his affairs in this quarter as he lay in the bottom of the boat he had considered what chances he had to make a forward movement he had a revolver in his belt but it was in his wet clothes and he had some doubts about its present fitness for use the was in the boat just where had left it and had one hand on the by the adventures of a naval officer while he listened to the remarks of the gentlemen on shore having arrived at the conclusion that the was a more instrument for the present than the pistol he clung to it and stood ready to use it when the critical moment should arrive it had come now and when mr was on the point of putting his foot into the dug out he rose and with a couple of energetic strokes with the the clumsy craft out into the fog and darkness half a dozen pistol shots were promptly discharged at him but was careful enough to lie down in his boat as soon as he had escaped from the first and more immediate peril the balls whistled over his head and again he had good reason to thank god for his preservation not it safe to use the yet lest the noise of it should inform his enemies where he was and thus bring another of pistol balls down upon him he lay still in the dug out he was cool and enough to do this if he had not been in all probability his life would have paid the penalty of his your prisoner is gone said whose tones were distinctly heard by he won t go far i will have him again replied perhaps you will did you say he was an officer i did a i think by thb yankee or a i think he was he appeared to be on terms with the officer in command of the boat did you hear his name asked with more interest than he had before manifested in his com s prisoner i did not there is a on board of that steamer whom i want veiy much he and i have an old account that must be settled continued mr and he was evidently the alluded to by the who appeared to have told more truth than the nature of his business required you have got a grudge against him have you i have i lost the by his operations but that isn t the worst thing have against him what s the other never mind the other it is a private matter but why don t you take care of your prisoner if you intend to him there s time enough i have no boat now but the steamer will be here in a moment more she was now within a few rods of the place where the dug out lay and found it necessary to change his position to avoid being run by her but he was too much interested in the movements of his friends on shore to move a great distance especially as the fog and by the adventures of a naval officer darkness effectually concealed him from the view of the the steamer moved slowly up to the point she had a man on her forward deck who constantly reported the as she felt her way through the fog she had returned without the which gave a hope and a fear a hope that the had captured the cotton vessel and a fear that she had escaped and gone to sea shouted from the shore where s we lost her replied some person at the bow of the steamer what do you mean did you get no the her and we had to cut away from her replied the captain of the steamer for he was the person who answered the question glory i exclaimed in an emphatic whisper as he listened to the of oaths which came from the shore she is two miles from the man of war and if you will put your men and guns on board we can take her	36
to watch the and report her movements to the above by the yankee ofi the steamer which mr employed to assist him in getting the cotton vessels to sea was an river boat her guards as is usual in these craft extended over the water nearly the whole length of her knew all about these river and while he was considering his proper course under the trying emergency it occurred to him that he might a deal of hard against wind and tide by permitting the rebel steamer to tow him down to the scene of action she was high enough out of water to permit him to run the dug out under her guard this suggestion of his genius daring as it was he promptly adopted passing the painter through one of the far enough aft to avoid destruction by the water from the wheels and far enough forward to conceal the dug out from the observation of any on board he hauled her under the guard now i am under guard said he to himself and i am perfectly safe after washing his aching head in cold water again he lay down in the bottom of the dug out to await the next move of his anxious friends on board the operation of the guns from the shore to the steamer was a difficult one on account of the depth of the mud on the land and it began to be light in the morning before she was ready to move off saw nothing of the boat in which was to pursue the dug out by ic the adventures of a naval officer and he concluded that she had gone down the sound upon this errand the steamer backed out from the shore and commenced her third trip in the direction of the as soon as the boat began to move found his situation very uncomfortable as the steamer came about she over so far that the dug out barely escaped being as the sinking guard forced her deep down into the water the alarmed grasped the painter in readiness to let go but as the steamer up in a moment he decided to hold on for a time longer while she went on an even he did very well though his position was bj no means a comfortable one unpleasant as it was he remembered that he had a mission to perform and he soon forgot the perils of his situation in the consideration of an exciting question by the yankee or chapter xxii meets with an accident had been seeing hearing and what the intended to do and the most important information he had obtained was that they to the now in possession of a boat s crew from the on board of the steamer were at least two guns and not less than the man of war was two miles below the cotton vessel and out of supporting distance the fear that the would the prize was very trying to he was not aware of the fact that the had run up the sound and lay within a few of the the force on the steamer was equal if not superior to that in charge of the prize and he saw no reason why the with tolerably good management should not accomplish their purpose it was his duty to prevent so an occurrence if possible and the important which he was engaged in considering was whether he could do anything to defeat the either in whole or in part by ic tbe adventures of a naval officer he was a single man against an armed host therefore he could not fight under present circumstances but the little mouse away the net that confined the majestic lion and looked about him for some means by which he might the steamer k he could get at the engine the removal of a bolt or a pin might render it useless but it would be fatal to expose himself on the deck as he lay in the dug out he heard the creaking of the ropes and chains by which the was connected to the wheel on the deck they were within reach of his hand and he immediately commenced an examination of them if he could break this rope or chain the steamer would at once become at least for a time but the connections were all of iron near his locality and it was impossible to them he pursued his as far as he could but the law requiring iron ropes had been complied with so far as he could discover the steamer was rapidly approaching the cotton vessel and if anything was to be accomplished there was no time to be lost was nervous and uneasy made so by his desire to do something to defeat the intentions of the letting out the painter of his boat he followed the chains in the hope of finding a point where he could break the connection but without success by thb yankee ob there was yet another practicable expedient which afforded him some hope of stopping the course of the steamer he tried to jam the chain where it passed through a but in this also he failed if he could follow the chain farther it was still possible that he might find a weak place where it could be separated but the rapid motion of the steamer prevented him from doing this for if he cast off the painter the dug out would go adrift in spite of him while he was mourning over his weakness and inability to do the work he had resolved to do the wheels of the steamer stopped without pausing to consider the object of the he cast off the painter and handed the dug out round to the stern of the steamer here he found a ring through which he passed the painter and without losing a second of	36
his valuable time he proceeded to make a further examination of the chain to his great satisfaction he found a place near the where the chain had been that is one link had been passed through another and secured with an iron bolt when the chain was slack he pulled out the bolt and the two ends dropped down into the water having performed this work he felt that his mission wa finished and that the steamer could go no farther down the sound having no other business to with the he concluded to push off especially as it by the adventures of a naval officer was new nearly daylight and n the of his way down to the cotton which could not be far off i have done it said he to himself as he pulled the painter through the ring and off the dug out from the steamer your pipe is out for the present mr the dug out shot off into the fog and mr almost stunned by the noise of the escaping steam of which the engineer relieved the when the boat stopped did not hear certain sounds which would have warned him of approaching danger indeed he was too well satisfied with himself after the important job he had done to think of anything except the fact that he had defeated another of mr s schemes as the dug out darted away from the steamer mr s ideas were suddenly thrown into confusion by an unexpected crash some object moving rapidly through the water had struck his frail craft on the side it was borne under and our was into the drink but immediately rescued his ideas from the confusion into which they had been thrown and without stopping to consider how the catastrophe had happened he struck out for the steamer which was not three distant from him the crash had been caused by the four oar boat in which had been in search of the dug out and his by the ob prisoner the steamer had stopped to permit him to come on board for he had given up all hope of recovering the prize he had lost just as backed out from the stem of the steamer the four oar boat was in under her quarter it was still very and there was not light enough to enable mr at once to decide what had happened he was looking at the steamer as he rounded in under her stem and the men sitting with their backs to the bow had not seen the dug out what s that demanded with an oath as he grasped the to recover his balance for the collision had given the larger boat a very sensible shock a boat sir replied the by this time was perched on one of the under the guard of the steamer engaged in his throat and organs of an uncomfortable quantity of salt water which the suddenness of the accident had surprised him into it s the dug out sir added another of the men whose eyes were better than those of his companion was there any one in her demanded mr i think i heard a man swimming and puffing in the water said who pulled the stroke oar we have on him then he can t be far off added with no little excitement at the prospect of his prisoner by the adventures of a naval officer the blood of ran cold in his veins at the imminent danger of his position he could hardly escape being taken now and handed over to mr whose hatred would subject him to every discomfort if not to death itself he trembled with apprehension as he saw at one glance the fate that there was hardly the shadow of a hope left but he climbed in as far as he could under the guard and himself under a brace the boat pulled up to the steamer s stem on which the captain and were now standing was awfully in earnest and he commenced a vigorous search for his prisoner in answer to a question from he stated what had happened and his own conviction that the yankee was on board of the steamer but mr could not find his prisoner he searched under the guard and over the guard but the s compact form was too closely away to be seen in the darkness he has ashore said the captain i don t believe it replied of course he has or you would have found him before now come on board we shall have the whole of them in a few days said i know he is about here somewhere added the confident come on board we can t stop here all day by the yankee ob we have something better to do continued impatiently i know he most be under the guard send me a lantern captain and i will soon find him nonsense i tell you he isn t there he has ashore before this time come here added in a tone so low that could hear him ru bet my life he is here answered the that was but he stepped on board th steamer as had requested the two talked together for a few moments during which the naval officer occasionally pointed to the boat seemed to understand him and to ia his decision for the men were ordered on board and the painter made fast could hardly believe his senses and still shivering with cold and with apprehension he whispered his prayer of that he had again been preserved from capture but he had lost the and he had no means of reaching the captured when the steamer abandoned her purpose as he believed she would the prospect was not as encouraging as it had been yet he had the consolation of knowing that he had delayed if not prevented by the delay the of the s	36
prize then it occurred to him that the boat in which had been searching for him was at the stern of the steamer and by the adventures of a naval officer he decided to get into it as soon as practicable and bid a final adieu to his dangerous locality he heard the bell ring for the engine to start and it did start the wheels began to turn and was nearly drowned by the waters which they heaped upon him presently he heard the chain rattling above him then the bells were rung to stop and her and it was evident that the had discovered the mischief which had been done now s my time i thought and he began to move from brace to brace aft it was not his time yet and he soon discovered his mistake for men were sent to the stem to repair the damage done to the chain the precise nature of the mischief was soon ascertained but it required nearly an hour to the chain and it again it was now broad daylight though the fog was as dense as ever crawled as far as he dared he saw the boat which he and had arranged the method by which he intended to get into her at the proper moment the steamer started again but was vexed to find that she was still headed down the sound that the delay had not induced to abandon his purpose she continued on her course for a few minutes and then stopped again our felt that he had done all he for his country and that it was time to do some by ob thing for himself he had delayed the steamer and it was possible that this delay had favored his friends though in what manner he was unable to tell he felt that the present was his own and as soon as the wheels ceased to turn he worked his way and seizing the painter of the boat drew it up so that he could jump into it he then tried to un the painter where it was attached to the boat but finding this possible he stood up in the bow and reached over the of the steamer to it at the ring at that moment a man who had been lying on the deck sprang forward and seizing the by the collar of his coat jerked him on the deck as he would have whipped a from the water i ve got you my little exclaimed the fellow who had done this unkind act for him have you got him shouted who had stationed himself near the stem apparently for the purpose of witnessing the performance which had just taken place yes sir replied the man tell the captain to go ahead again said hastening to witness the discomfiture of his troublesome prisoner hold on tight there was no need of this latter caution for held our unfortunate in a grip of iron and it was utterly impossible for him to make any resistance how does your head feel my little fellow de by ic tee adventures of a naval officer in mocking tones i thought i struck heavy enough but i declare you have got the skull even for a yankee that ever i saw rs made no reply he was very much out of spirits and did not feel a bit like giving or taking a joke ordered to tie hand and foot and make him fast to a which was done in the most faithful manner by yankee ob chapter shot from the had fallen into a which had been set for him mr had not for one moment abandoned his hope of recovering his prisoner the conversation which had taken place between him and and which was in so low a tone that the intended victim could not hear it was the one thing needful to enable to keep out of the hands of his enemy when went on board of the steamer had suggested to him that the yankee would make his way into the boat and cast off at the first favorable opportunity it was only necessary to watch the boat and the game if there was any game there could be quietly in a few minutes assented to the plan and the boat started but the broken apparatus had produced a long and gave himself up for lost half a dozen times when the men who were the chain came within a few feet of his perch on the brace by the adventures of a naval officer when the steamer started the man had been placed on the deck so that he could not be seen to watch him and the boat as did not hurry out from his concealment it was believed that the motion of the boat prevented his operations and she was stopped for a moment to afford him an opportunity to be caught unfortunately for him he had improved this opportunity though it was his last chance of escape and had been captured he was now a prisoner and bound hard and fast to a the worst fate in his own opinion that could possibly befall him had overtaken him he was not only a prisoner which was certainly appalling enough as the treated their prisoners but he was in the power of the clouds hung dark and black over him his personal misfortune was not the only nor even the worst side of the picture for if he had succeeded in saving the cotton from capture he would have been in a great measure for the of being captured but even this comfort was denied him for the rebel steamer with two guns and a of trained was hastening down to undo what the s people had done it was useless to fret and he tried to make the best of the circumstances which surrounded him	36
but it was hard work with his aching head and disappointed heart to submit cheerfully to his destiny thought over the matter for a time and his by b the ob sublime philosophy soon got the better of his vexation it was useless to it would not improve his condition and therefore he wisely determined not to he had done the best he could both for his country and himself and regrets did not tend to promote his comfort nor his happiness the steamer must now be very near to the captured and the great event of the morning must soon take place it was evident to the prisoner that he must soon be joined by some of his who were to be captured but he did not look forward with any satisfaction to the meeting if he could have blown up the boat on which he was confined he would have been content to go to the bottom in her if he could thereby have saved his friends in the from capture and prevented the from recovering the cotton vessel indulged this reflection but we are forced to believe that it was a sentimental idea and that when he came to a decision he would have chosen to remain above water while he was upon his unpleasant prospects and was passing from the depths of despondency to the sublime heights of philosophical submission be heard the voice of mr as he walked aft that gentleman had made several during the night he had given the advice which had caused the capture of the he had the naval officer s policy by the adventures of a naval officer and it was no little satisfaction for him to be able to exhibit even a single yankee prisoner especially as that one was an officer he was disposed to make some display of his and he was now conducting mr aft to show him his prize if your prisoner has not escaped again you have done one thing to night laughed as they approached the place where was tied to the that s more than you can show r your night s work growled who by this time had washed off most of the burnt cork which had transformed him into a you are sharp what is the rank of your prisoner a but he is a smart fellow and if we had half a dozen like him in the navy we should have done something before this time thank you who could not help acknowledging this handsome compliment no doubt of it half a dozen men with your ideas would have ruined the states before this time where is your prisoner here he is replied as he walked up to the with a lantern in his hand which he held up so that the naval officer could see our ah my dear mr exclaimed as he recognized the features of the prisoner by the yankee ob it was plain that the meeting was entirely unexpected to him for he started back at first in the utmost astonishment no doubt you are better pleased to see me than i am to see you replied pleasantly for he knew satisfaction it would give to see him and depressed well my dear fellow i am exceedingly rejoiced to meet y u and if you are not glad to see me of course that is not my fault circumstances have slightly changed since we met last continued the traitor accidents will happen replied coolly then i was your prisoner now you are mine mine if you please interposed unwilling to be deprived of his hard earned honors well it s all the same as your prisoner is a particular friend of mine a young gentleman to whom i have taken a great liking i am going to ask you as a special favor to turn him over to me i want to use certainly lieutenant with the greatest pleasure mr i can t help my friend mr for his ability when i consider that he has captured miss s he is smart mr i recommend him to join the first band of negro he can find for he has a very decided talent in that direction said by the adventures of a naval officer good added you are as witty as ever thank you mr that reminds me that your wits have served you better on this than on a former occasion which you will readily recall i think i left you locked up in fort you did my dear but of course you did not expect me to remain there any great length of time how did you get out asked who was burning with curiosity to know how he happened to be in at that particular time though he did not very confidently expect an answer i walked out my friend i didn t know but the there were ashamed of you and kicked you out answered with an want of politeness excellent miss would have given you a crown of roses for that brilliant remark in sight sir said an officer who had been sent aft to inform of the fact i must leave you for a time my dear said the rebel naval officer in mocking tones when i have captured your ship s prize i will do myself the honor to meet you again thank you sir was glad to have him go not only because he disliked the man after what had happened but by ic yankee or because he felt vexed at the idea of a rebel and he was afraid he might betray his feelings a soon as had gone forward where the guns were placed the steamer down and cautiously approached her expected victim was disturbed by the most painful emotions for he felt that he was doomed to be a spectator to one of the navy s which had been so few	36
and far between that our gallant have not become at all accustomed to them and have not learned to look upon them with anything like everybody was busy forward now either in watching the progress of the exciting event or in making preparations for it could catch an occasional glimpse of the cotton steamer just visible in the dense fog as he gazed eagerly through the vista of men guns and machinery which lay between him and the vessel he could now see that s force were sailors and that there were as many as thirty of them there seemed to be no chance for the people of the in charge of the to make a successful resistance and with a sinking heart saw that the steamer was bearing down upon her prey already as the viewed it within her grasp however a change came over the spirit of their dreams for as the steamer advanced the graceful outline of the was discovered a short distance from the cotton vessel this was more than by ic adventures of a naval officer they had for and more than they were prepared to meet and the were at once filled with consternation hard a port the shouted with energy what the matter now demanded don t you see that man of war said nervously are you going off without giving or taking shot added in disgust but this gentleman was not to be entirely disappointed for as the steamer swung round the thunder of the s big gun broke on the quiet of the dark and the shot crushed through the upper works of the boat at the same moment and while the pine wood was still around him found himself lying flat on the deck with the still clinging to him but he was quite certain that he had not been killed the shot had struck the steamer just the port box and passed through her upper works it had torn away a portion of the cabin floor striking the to which had been fastened and as it had fallen the prisoner went down with it when he had satisfied himself that he was not killed or even materially injured the truth dawned upon him that the had moved up the bay and was in position to defend her prize by the yankee or r hail shouted as the gratifying fact became evident to his understanding as the had received a shot though they had not given one mr was probably satisfied at any rate the crashing of pine boards prevented him from making any suggestions to the naval officer and he walked aft to ascertain the extent of the damage possibly in search of a safer place than he open deck afforded the exclamation of his prisoner caught his ear and he saw that the had been shot away from or other motives he went forward again to call s attention to the matter instead of examining into it himself could not help thinking that the shot had been a to him and he used his best to shake off the which still clung to him but as his feet as well as his hands were tied he met with but indifferent success while he was and twisting to himself from his another shot struck the steamer and smashed through her upper works unfortunately for him the machinery of the boat was not struck and she still sped on her way from her dangerous situation while the prisoner was still his genius over the came aft and relieved him from all further exertion by removing tjie broken and making him fast to another the hope by the adventures of a naval officer which had cherished of escaping during the confusion was lost to him and he submitted with the best grace he could command to whatever doom his foes had in store for him shot after shot from the heavy gun of the followed the retreating steamer but as she was now under the protecting mantle of the fog she was not hit again and continued on her way up the sound this time she did not stop at the point of land where the guns had been posted but proceeded up one of the rivers where the shallow water would not permit the formidable man of war to follow her at a safe point she was to a tree on the bank while was carefully watching the movements of the steamer came aft him and conducted him to the cabin above the main deck where he found seated at a table by thb yankee or chapter xxiv in thb cabin of the disappointed by the failure of the expedition down the bay was and even savage but he knew the humor of his prisoner well enough to understand that any exhibition of ill nature on his part would subject him to a storm of and which were more to him than even the screaming of shells and the hissing of cannon shot there was on his face an expression of triumph as he glanced at an expression which no good to the unfortunate young man my dear mr began intent upon making the of his prisoner as bitter as possible i am at liberty now to bestow further attention upon you thank you replied with a low bow you are in my power now added as his compressed lips indicated an intention to use his advantage i am and my hands are tied behind me so that by the adventures of a naval officer you heed not fear to say and do anything which your amiable nature may suggest the lieutenant bit his lips for he did not like the on his courage which the remark conveyed he was tempted to fly into a passion but he feared that his prisoner would keep cool and sting him with his tongue beyond what he could	36
endure you are my prisoner mr he repeated you have my grasp several times before but i have you sure now there can be no possible doubt of the fact mr i have no intention of denying or your position i await your pleasure you carry a very bold face upon the matter i think you don t quite understand your situation sneered perfectly i think not the circumstances under which you were captured justify me in regarding you not as a prisoner of war but as a spy anything you please mr replied with apparent indifference but it is useless to deny that he was appalled at the announcement the court martial which i have summoned will make all that plain to you i am ready for anything that may come while i am in your power said by ic the yankee or have you no favor to ask of an old friend none i wish to save you mr from the consequences of your own folly then of course you will do so i cannot do so without some acknowledgment on your part of what of the error of your ways i am not conscious of any errors such as you indicate i have done my duty to my country as well as i could replied firmly that s all nonsense said impatiently we will not talk politics you have upset all my calculations several times that was your fault not mine you should not have engaged in such calculations you need not give me any good advice i don t propose to hear it i think it would he wasted if i did you have been a stumbling block in my path since the first time i saw you you are aware that you have crossed me in that wherein no man will brook any interference before i left i found myself less welcome at the house of than before you went there and i fancy that you will be still less welcome by ic the adventures of a naval officer whenever you go there again added very very likely you own your guilt and seem to pride yourself in it i own no guilt i refer wholly to your conduct miss for i will not affect to you mr will never smile upon a to hia country f mr you use hard terms mr and wrong ones i am a native of i go with the south and i am as true to her as you are to the north there is a difference of opinion between us and it would be wiser and safer for you sir not to use hard words when ones will suit the case better replied his brow darkening with anger miss is also a native of but she sticks to her colors simply because her father does but we will not discuss that question for it has nothing to do with either of us at present by some means best known to yourself you caused miss to dislike me of course you used your tongue to my prejudice t never uttered a syllable to her in of you or any other person replied warmly on the contrary i had a very high regard for you until your opened my eyes and i always expressed myself so to her and to others since by tbe yankee or that i have never to her of you in any other than respectful terms your apology is well up sneered i make no apology i only wished to say that i never presumed to look upon miss as anything hut a friend i never made any pretensions in that direction are you willing to promise me that you wiu never see her again no consider your situation mr said in mocking tones you are in my power charged with being a spy if you are afraid of me in your relations nothing of the sort replied the lieutenant proudly i wish you to confess for your own sake not mine i shall not do it either for your sake or mine all i have to say about miss is that you have ruined all your hopes with her if you ever had any the affair was quite enough to satisfy her i presume by the way mr you managed that affair very well i didn t manage it at all it managed itself you put in the fort and brought poor to grief by the adventures of a naval officer my agency in those affairs was very small mr exposed himself exactly so mr was a fool and that is the reason why i employed him was no fool and you used him up and finally you brought me to the ring tried to the purpose of his it was evident that he had some object to gain for he could not be making all these for nothing nothing of this kind could have happened if you and your friends had not been engaged in a bad speculation replied more good advice i suppose you think that those who do their duty as you understand it never come to grief sneered the fact that i am here now shows that i don t believe any such thing misfortunes overtake all men but those who are faithful to duty have the courage to endure them that s a pious thought i suppose you think you have the courage to endure whatever comes of this affair i trust in god and intend to do my duty if it is his will that i should suffer i will be as firm as i can we shall see about that pretty soon for the rope by which you will hang is waiting you now by the yankee or hang exclaimed startled by the word certainly that is what you will come to within a few hours unless you are less haughty than you	36
i ell mr what your decision asked as he was again ushered into the cabin have you concluded to accept the terms i have concluded not to accept them replied firmly looked disconcerted and angry it was some time before he spoke why so he i thought you had concluded to do so before we parted no sir you saw no objection to informing me where you obtained your information i see none now then the other point is the one to which you object it is you say you have no pretensions none mr but if ever i am miss by the yankee os again i want the right to caution her against one who would make her the victim of a heartless speculation undoubtedly this declaration was a very impudent one and if mr had not before made up his mind to hang his victim this would have been sufficient to induce him to carry out his barbarous threat did not believe that his in the face of public sentiment and the recognized laws of war would have the to such an crime it must be confessed in the light pf previous and subsequent revelations that he failed to understand and appreciate the spirit of the rebellion s stock of patience was exhausted and he could no longer express himself in the assumed tones of politeness which he had before labored to use he was angry and and the dark on his brow was a witness of the darker purpose which in his soul mr you beard the lion in his den i will waste no more words upon you replied he furiously and he sent the servants to summon certain officers whom he named i think it my duty to say exactly what i mean replied the officers who had been sent for presently appeared the number included and the captain of the steamer l of whom was competent to sit on a by the adventures of a officer court martial two naval officers apparently masters or completed the and the trial proceeded at once the charges were written out in due form and there was an appearance of used though the whole proceeding was simply a pretext to sacrifice the life of the prisoner fifteen minutes completed the business of the and after a consultation of fifteen minutes more was to be hung as a spy forthwith by this time the prisoner had come to a painful of the fact that his enemies were in earnest he was doomed to an death and the sentence was to be immediately executed he was taken to the main deck again by who acted as master over the a cord had been suspended from a deck beam above and a board placed over the on which the was to stand saw these preparations and the blood seemed to be frozen in his veins he felt that he was about to die that he was on the threshold of eternity it was a solemn and awful thought though he had often contemplated the possibility and the probability on the eve of battle of passing away from the scenes of earth but now it was more real than ever before for there before him was the rope and there the drop from which he was to be ushered into the world beyond the grave are you all ready demanded by the yankee ob tf all ready sir replied the master at arms then bring forward your prisoner was conducted to the he was conscious that he was a living being that his brain was still active but his body seemed to be detached from the thinking and feeling part of him everything looked misty and confused to him the rope said mechanically for he seemed to be hardly less moved than his victim the command was obeyed but even s hand trembled as he placed the knot under the ear of the prisoner everything contributed to assure that the were an earnest f that it was no farce in which they were engaged even his trembled which would not have been the case if he had been engaged in an attempt to deceive him there was no hope and breathed his silent prayer to god in that awful hour that his sins might be forgiven that the loved ones at home might be happy when he was gone and that his death might not be in vain but be an acceptable sacrifice to the holy cause to which he had devoted himself f his prayer gave him hope and strength his body and his brain seemed to be he looked his full in the face he was determined to die like a man and a christian and to permit his enemies to derive no strength from his weakness by the adventures of a naval officer are you ready mr asked in tones so full of as to betray his terror to his companions i am replied calmly and gently as one who can almost see the glories of the invisible world have you nothing to say nothing no message to leave none that i can to you tou would it proceed said fiercely for the words of the victim roused anew the hatred which the solemn event had for the moment softened was led out upon the board over the which was so placed that it could be easily slipped and thus the prisoner into the hold if you ever say prayers say them now for you have but a moment left said in tones prayed as he had never prayed before for god was nearer to him and he was speaking in the presence of the infinite again i ask you mr if you have anything to say or any message to leave if you can speak without insulting me i assure you your last request shall be fulfilled said again by the awful circumstances of the	36
hour i thank you mr and i forgive you for by tee yankee or the murder which you are committing if you ever meet any friend of mine say that i died like a replied do you still to your determination as reached this point in the sentence a twenty four pound shot struck in the upper works of the steamer making among boards and beams and sending confusion into the midst of the group that gathered around the victim of the intended murder the cabin floor above them was torn away for the space of ten feet and the wreck dropped down upon the heads of the men who were completely absorbed in the barbarous scene which was there the first shot was followed by a second whose effects were hardly less destructive the beam to which the s cord had been attached was shivered but it still hung in its place and s situation was not improved by the event the shots produced a panic among the and all eyes were turned from the prisoner in the direction from which the shots had come right over the bow of the steamer they saw two of the s boats each of which had a mounted in the fore sheets give way my lads shouted mr who was in command of the expedition lay em aboard the bent on their oars and the boats struck the bow of the rebel craft at the same instant by ic the of a naval officer tom was in the bow of one and in spite of his years he leaped on the deck like a cat followed by the boarding party the other boat poured her men upon the deck at the same instant the who had been so intent upon the barbarous spectacle at the that they had neglected to keep a on the bow and stem were completely by the suddenness of the as the of the boats the steamer over the bow they fled to the stern and leaped into the water or made their way to the shore as best they could leaving the in complete possession of the steamer the attention of the had been instantly withdrawn from when the first shot struck the steamer they had not a thought for him now and as the men from the boats leaped up they fled as though the angel were already at their heels their guilty gave wings to their flight and there was no chance for the to strike a single blow tom was the first man to put his feet on the deck of the as he rushed forward he discovered still standing on the board over the he recognized him at a glance and saw the rope extending from his neck to the broken beam above my blessed exclaimed he in trembling tones as he sprang out upon the board and grasping the cord in one hand he severed it with his by the ob throwing the weapon on the deck he placed his arms around the and him as though he had been a baby he bore him over the bending board to the firm of the main deck my blessed boy exclaimed he bursting into tears as he pressed him to his beating heart what have they been doing to you tom stammered out the words and then sobbed like a child he was completely overcome and for a moment he gave vent to emotions which were too strong for utterance thank you tom said in a gentle tone hardly above a whisper and the tears down his cheeks almost as freely as down the weather stained face of the the officers and crew stood in silence but with hearts swelling with emotion while tom held his young friend there was no enemy for them to strike and they were chained to the spot by the affecting scene the the infernal gasped tom struggling with his feelings which would hardly permit him to utter a word be calm tom i am safe now said in the soft tones of one who had just come from the embrace of death and whose soul had been by his communion with his god and with the gi eat of man by the of a naval officer calm would the hang you roared tom as he detached himself from the embrace of the and seizing his it with a desperation which fired the souls of the crew they shouted in with him breathing vengeance upon the wretches who had meditated so a crime the officers came forward and grasped the hand of they congratulated him on his miraculous escape but their words were few for their mission was not yet accomplished mr gave his orders in a spirited tone and the men dashed on shore in pursuit of the flying foe a few of them were captured but only a few for the had every advantage over their they knew the country and they had a choice of the paths which in that region was equivalent to a victory unfortunately none of the officers were taken it was well for them that they were not for their lives would have paid the penalty of their barbarous conduct and it was difficult for the officers to prevent the men from their vengeance upon the few who did fall into their hands the expedition which had thus fortunately saved the life of had been organized as soon as the turned her bow up the sound it had gone up tea kettle creek choosing this course because the battery had been planted at the mouth of it apparently to defend its by the yankee ob waters from an approach in that direction from the creek they had heard the noise of escaping steam which guided them to their prey by a cut off they had reached mud river above the the dense fog protected them from	36
to board the steamer as a last resort mr was in favor of taking shelter below and any attack hoping for a change in the circumstances what do you say mr said the captain to our who was now by virtue of his rank the acting third lieutenant if you will give me two men and six of powder i will make an attempt to the steamer by the adventures of a officer replied who proceeded without waiting to hear the comments of the officers to detail the plan he had conceived although the scheme did not look like a very hopeful one the zeal and determination of the young officer did much to recommend it he was familiar with the construction of these river and had had some experience with cotton on the river as a desperate venture it was adopted and was ordered to select his companions for the perilous enterprise tom and the s mate he promptly replied i will take the dingy and i recommend that the first and second be in readiness for service with asked mr no sir the men will need only their pistols and don t be rash mr added the captain i would not the enterprise if our situation were only a little less desperate i will be prudent sir but i assure you i had rather be blown up at the post of duty than b hung by the who that steamer for that will be my fate if we are captured be with you mr ejaculated the captain fervently remember that we have the boats by ic the or left and can ran for tlie shore if the worst comes so don t be rash by this time the s mate had the powder for the enterprise on deck and it was hurriedly transferred to the dingy which tom had hauled up to the it was not yet time to put the plan into execution and as the cotton clad was now approaching having suspected the cause of the s all the crew were sent below to escape the deadly fire of her she drew but little water compared with the and she swept round upon the spit so as to bring her head to the wind placing herself directly to or her intended prize her bow that of the so that her men concealed among the cotton could fire down upon the deck of the this time she carried her audacity a point farther and made fast to the fore chains of the it was quite dark and nothing but the motions of the devoted could betray their presence to the enemy mr stood in the shadow of the while the captain was concealed behind the companion on the quarter deck in readiness to summon the men when they should be needed to an attack with the acting and was in the dingy waiting for the favorable moment to commence his desperate enterprise the was preparing the by ths of a naval officer of powder for use agreeably to the directions of the officer well my darling are yon going to send us all to heaven to night asked tom in a whisper as he glanced at the ominous powder i am going to do my duty to god and my country and i cannot answer for the result to ourselves replied cheerfully go ahead my dear i m with you ready to go up or down which ever way the powder may send us you and i have been engaged in an affair like this before tom yes and you were shot in the leg and left on shore i intend to do better this time i hope you will my love if you go up i hope i shall go up with you i hope none of us will go up now work the dingy along the side of the ship but don t make a of noise the eyes of the were too intently fixed on the deck of the to see anything that in the water the dingy was concealed by the from their sight till it passed the and then the enemy were too far behind their to obtain a sight of it even if they had been on the watch tom guided by s directions by the yankee ob the little boat under the guard of the steamer and continued to work it along bj her side till he reached a point on the opposite quarter where the young officer began to search for a favorable place to operate the were all over on the side next to the not expecting any danger from the opposite direction they were straining their eyes to see a man and their ears to hear a sound which would enable them to reduce the number of their foes by even a single one the cotton on the steamer was piled up to a level with the deck the were on the top and fired over the the dingy had to go forward of the wheels before any could be found which would admit the six of powder just forward of the box a space about eighteen inches in width had been left so that water which the steamer might take on board would run off through this hole could see the and others connected with the boat but they were busily engaged in watching the progress of events on the other side the then placed his powder so that the whole mass should at once and he managed his part of the work so carefully that no hint of his movements was given to the enemy are you all ready sir asked the in a whisper when he had completed his arrangements all ready replied by of a naval officer me the match paper added the whose tones his of the peril to he exposed himself off added he aa he the burning match where in	36
a moment it would fire the mass of powder tom grasped the side of the steamer aud the dingy along the guard ted by till it shot past tiie stem the two men then the oars and rowed with all their might to reach a safe had pulled but a strokes before the explosion took place which seemed to shake the waters beneath them apparently the cotton clad into a thousand pieces by j the yankee or chapter the last of pf hat takes her off the hinges exclaimed tom m coolly while the fragments of the wreck were falling around the boat ay ay i that give it to her good added the i d give a sixpence to know what them are thinking about jest now i dare say they are rather confused in their minds said but give way my men i i hope we haven t blown up the i late we have shook her up some replied the who was proud of the work of his hands the pulled for the and could not conquer his fears in regard to her as yet he could not the extent of the mischief caused by the explosion he had by the flash of the burning powder seen the mass of cotton lifted up or into the water the steamer now appeared to be on are though the flames had as yet made but little progress by the adventures of a naval officer the dingy dashed up to the accommodation ladder of the the gallant little seemed to be by the explosion and leaped on her deck anxious to take part in any proceedings that follow i have to report myself said he to the first lieutenant as be touched his cap for no could make him the discipline of ihe navy you have already reported mr replied mr grasping hia hand hurriedly we have oil heard you is the da sir you lave smashed all the in the i don t know that any other damage has been done exclaimed tlie captain seizing the of our you lave done it i are you hurt no sir haven t a scratch thank god for that i replied the captain bnt e have no time to spare does she surrender mr he shouted to the second who waa forward no sir she has just fired several shots into us open upon mr ou strike while the iron is hot i see much water we lave forward i by thb yankee ob the report of the gun followed the captain s order and was succeeded by the minor roar of the two twenty four on the and the aft the was so up with cotton from the wreck that the gun could not be used in the mean time the fires on board of the steamer had been gathering and the was in imminent danger of being destroyed in the which must soon her the firing was suspended in ten minutes to learn the intentions of the do you surrender demanded mr whose station was forward never shouted the weu voice of and as he uttered the word several were discharged mr reported the result and at the same time suggested that it would be best to board the steamer captain examined the situation and with the advice ordered mr to lead the attack grasped his and made sure that his pistol was in good condition lay em al my lads cried mr ay ay sir shouted the ready adding a rousing cheer to their you are not going without me my blessed little officer said tom as he put himself alongside our by ic the adventures of a naval officer he had just reported the depth of water forward the tide was rising and in a short time the would bo afloat if she was not doomed to burn with the steamer he had carried an anchor out to to her off when she floated j and to prevent her from driving on any the boarding party headed bj the first lieutenant with hardly a behind re shed over the piles of cotton and leaped upon the deck of the steamer as they advanced a dozen shots were fired from the and n couple of their number fell but heedless of but victory they pressed forward to the deadly conflict most of the were engaged in an attempt to keep down the flames which threatened them in the rear but at the call of they abandoned this occupation and sprang to their arms the s blue were fully with the spirit of their gallant leader and they poured oyer the cotton o that resist thorn down with them shouted mr ay ay sir roared the sailors with a ae they plunged into the midst of the a desperate hand to band fight ensued with varying results for a time for the still the s people conscious that the crisis had come and that hia own fortunes were now by the yankee ob to be decided fought with a zeal and energy which he had not before displayed his own salvation rather than that of the southern was involved in the conflict and he fought as a drowning man to a straw if he failed his credit as an officer before would be utterly lost show me the beggar that wanted to hang you my dear said tom when he had cleared a spot around him with his fight for your country tom not for revenge replied as he rushed into the of the fight show me the beggar and i will do my country all the good i can but was gone he was some distance in advance of his party for the arm of tom added to his own had forced back the near the place where they stood in this exposed position he was seen by whose soul was still with evil	36
passions and whose revenge was still he crowded through his men and rushed upon with a fury which promised instant destruction to his enemy now we will settle the old score gasped he as he brought down his in the direction of s head the blow fell ringing on the blade of the who with a sudden spring passed his weapon through the by ic the adventures of naval office body of his enemy he fell and pressed forward with tom at his side to win the victory not to satisfy his own malice the fall of whose words and example had been the life of the conflict on the rebel side discouraged his followers and having fought desperately for a few moments they gave way all at once retreating to the stem of the steamer they were closely pressed by the enthusiastic but they cried for quarter and surrendered at call the victory was won and loud cheers rent the air the disordered masses of cotton were covered with dead and wounded most of whom had been the victims of the explosion the fire had begun to gather again since the had ceased to combat it and the was in danger of with her shattered prize in the devouring element which knows no friends nor foes mr panting from the violence of his exertions ordered the men to roll the burning overboard the were required to aid in this necessary toil and the officers with in hand compelled the able ones to work the were and in less than an hour the flames were subdued though the task was not accomplished without the labor on the part of friends and enemies when this pressing work was accomplished attention was bestowed upon the rebel wounded the portion of by the yankee or the steamer s cabin the boxes was still in condition to be occupied and the were borne to the state rooms or laid upon beds on the cabin floor there were about thirty of them most of whom h a been injured by the falling cotton or the flying of the explosion not less than twenty dead men lay on the main deck and the sight on board was sickening even to those who had been accustomed to the and ruin of hard fought battles was as active in his care for the wounded and suffering as he had been in the excitement of the battle among the first he saw in his humane labors was he bent over him to ascertain if his wound had been fatal and he found that he was still alive he was borne to the saloon above and was one of the first who received the attentions of the s surgeon after all had been cared for went again to the cot of his enemy the surgeon had done what he could but the patient was now suffering severely firom the pain of his wound water water said he with a heavy groan as entered the state room how do you feel mr asked the visitor exclaimed he have you come to in my misery no far from it replied the young shocked at the very thought by the adventures of a naval officer you have finished me and you ought to be satisfied i did not seek you in the fight and i am sorry that my duty compelled me to strike as i did you have killed me tell you have killed me gasped the sufferer ei hap not you may recover will you do me a favor added more gently with pleasure then give me a glass of water i am burning up brought a tin cup full of water to him and he drained it at a draught another was brought of which he drank a part the surgeon of the now entered the room for a moment to learn the condition of the most important personage among the what do you think of him asked speak out plainly doctor added as the surgeon proceeded to examine him again he cannot recover he replied do you think so cried the wounded man it is a plain case sir said the doctor shaking his head he may live till morning but i don t think he will he added turning to then it is all up with me groaned the sufferer as the surgeon hastened away to attend to the pressing duties of the hour by tes yankee ob the doctor says there is no hope for you replied for a moment he lay breathing heavily and apparently musing upon the solemn truth which had just been spoken of him he was about to pass away from the world in which he had and be ushered into another where the wicked cease from troubling and the weary are at rest it was an awful thought to him for the memories of the past were not pleasant in his dying hour i die exclaimed he suddenly as the full force of the thought impressed itself upon him i fear you must mr and i hope you will prepare yourself for the trying hour while you have the time i must go now and don t leave me alone moaned you will forgive me the wrong i have done you freely here is my hand said taking that of his late enemy thank you now don t leave me i must report to the officer on board the ship but i will return in a few moments do if you can our hero was almost disgusted by the praise b upon him by the captain and mr for he had just come from the couch of the dying man by his heroism he had saved the but with s by the adventures of a naval officer eye still before his vision he felt how vain was all human glory he readily obtained permission to return to the bedside	36
of the dying rebel and hastened down into the for the testament which his mother had given him and which had not been an unused companion in his leisure hours he found was sinking fast on his return and with the patient s ready permission he read to him a chapter from his testament that s all very well but if you forgive me i feel that god will said the sufferer i forgive you and from my heart i pray that god will forgive you as i know he will if you are truly sorry i am satisfied but it was plain that he was not satisfied that he did not possess that inward peace which alone can smooth a dying pillow i have wronged you more than any other man he added after had given him another drink when i heard that your ship was ordered here i asked to be appointed here that i might be re upon you never mind me mr you have wronged your country more than you have wronged me i have done what i thought was right and i am not sorry for it except so far as you are concerned if you see tell her you forgave me by ic the yankee ob i wiu a kind of dying man s utterance and though he felt his own weakness in the midst of such a scene read another chapter and tried to raise the sufferer s thoughts to higher things than those of earth he felt that he had succeeded to some extent could not speak now bent over him and uttered a short but the patient did not speak nor move when he had finished he was dead by ic the adventures of a naval officer chapter in closed the eyes of the only enemy lie had iq the world and returned to the to report the event for the first time since the battle he had an opportunity to the extent of the which his ship bad sustained poor mr j as noble and brave an aa ever walked a k lay dead in his state room mr brown the sailing master was severely wounded in the hip five of the crew including the acting who had fired the train that shattered the steamer were dead aod twelve were by wounds in addition to as many more still able to attend to duty it had been a hard fought series of and nothing but the gallantry of the crew had saved the from being capture d the plan which had been devised aod executed by was the immediate salvation of the vessel but if the had been devoted and the crew less determined the have been taken early in the evening by ic i tee yankee ob realized now what a desperate battle had been fought against greatly superior numbers though victory had crowned the terrible work of the night there was nothing but sadness about vessel not an officer nor a man was seen to smile now that the excitement of the battle was over and the fearful results even of victory had been up the death of that one brave man who lay dead in the ward room would have cast a deep gloom through the ship but the poor who had risked his life without a murmur to save the ship had fallen and there were four other cold forms in the banner for which they had fought and died in the ward room lay the sailing master suffering agonies from his painful wound and the sick bay was crowded with gallant fellows who scorned to utter a groan or a murmur in the midst of their sufferings truly the consequences of victory are hardly less terrible than those of defeat there was no sleep in the that night for there were hardly men enough left to keep watch on deck and guard the of rebel prisoners on board the shattered steamer when had his watch below he devoted himself to the care of mr brown as other officers and men had done by their wounded the had been hauled off from her dangerous to the chimney spit gloom and sadness per by the adventures of a naval officer every part of her but the duty which she had been sent to perform was not neglected while the dead slept on and the wounded stifled their sighs of pain the on deck still gazed into the gloom of the night serving the cause of freedom and humanity as truly as the who led the and the who the armies of the union sail ho shouted the on the but the tone was less and joyful than usual for the speaker had a heart which was with the dead and the dying below clear away the gun said the officer of the deck when he had made out the approaching sail which was a coming down the sound the captain presently appeared and a shot was dropped across the of the for such she was without a doubt mr was ordered out in the second to board the vessel which was beating out with a fresh breeze it was quite evident that those in charge of the vessel did not expect to find any obstacle to her passage out of the sound for they would not have attempted to run by the with a head wind had probably been so certain of the that he had ordered this to sail at high tide directed his to lay on his oars when the had pulled a few strokes from the ship lie sat in the stem coolly contemplating the movements of by the yankee or the appeared to be master of the the was now the spit and must tack in a moment give way said when he had timed the movements of the the men hardly excited under the trying circumstances of the hour by	36
the prospect of a prize gave way with the vigor of discipline rather than of enthusiasm and the boat came up with the vessel just as she went in stays the seized her bob stay and who had gone forward into the fore sheets sprang into her head and made his way to the deck he was closely followed by a dozen of his brave who are you demanded the captain of the with an oath your vessel is a prize to the united states captain stand by her fore haul shouted the crew had not completed the operation of and that the was in danger of the ready sprang to their stations as though they had in the which having a good full came round handsomely and stood off on the other tack the captain was very much surprised to find his vessel captured for he had been assured that in a few hours there would be no man of war in the sound to dispute his passage after one more tack the came to anchor by the adventures of a naval officer a short distance from the and went on board to report the success of his undertaking captain was entirely satisfied with the manner in which had discharged his duty and he was sent back with orders to remain in charge of her as prize master the of the and four were detailed as his command but the crew of the were all foreigners and as willing to serve under one flag as they for duty and a of them expressed a desire to ship in by the responsibility of his first command j did not dare to sleep and he spent the of the on the quarter deck of tbe talking over the affairs of the past and present with hia faithful friend tom when the morning came the men fatigued and by the events of the were called upon to perform the heavy labor of moving the cotton clad to a more secure position she floated though her port box and guard and all her upper works forward of the wheels had been to pieces she was up under the shelter of a point of land the near her all the prisoners were put imder guard on board of her including the officers of the captured nothing could be done with them at present for it was necessary to keep the well ones to nurse the wounded in the course of the was at the by ic s the yankee ob receipt of an order addressed to him as acting third lieutenant of the to proceed to port royal in command of the mr and tom were detailed as his first and second officers and he was to be the bearer of the to the admiral the of the first lieutenant were conveyed on board to be ent to his friends at the north almost overwhelmed by the responsibility laid upon him and the confidence in him made sail and proceeded on his voyage the record of his would be only a narrative of sleepless nights without any incident worthy a place in these pages the young commander could not make the cares of his new situation rest easily upon him but the pleasant weather and the favor of divine providence enabled liim to reach his destined port in safety blushing and he reported to the admiral who happened to be there and delivered his the papers told the story and he was thrown into a terrible state of confusion by the admiral seizing his hand and thanking him for the valuable service he had rendered i have heard of you before mr and you have been true to your record you shall go to boston in command of the you have captured thank you sir stammered unable to say by thb adventures of a naval officer before the departed a steamer was sent down with a for the crew of the and at the which was the name of s vessel was out of sight of land our soon became accustomed to his responsible position and was able to sleep the ran through a gale of hours da rat ton but being well handled she reached boston in safety by ic i thb os chapter xxx miss he came to anchor off the navy yard and her young commander went on shore to deliver his from the the necessary legal proceedings were immediately commenced and was required to remain as a witness until the prize had been condemned at the earliest moment his duties would permit he ran down to where of course he was warmly welcomed it required an afternoon and evening for him to tell his adventures and no soldier or sailor from the stirring scenes of the south ever had a more attentive audience at the conclusion of the legal business he was ordered to new york there to take passage for the south where he was to join his ship together with the officers and sailors who had accompanied him having found that the vessel in which he was to return would not sail for several days he obtained permission to spend a day in mr the of received him like a brother and the officers and by tj e of a na officer of the academy gave him a very welcome well mr i suppose you will not forget to go over to s will you asked the with a smile when our had answered all the about tbe service which had been proposed don t know sir whose face betrayed the fact that he had been thinking of such a thing don t know i exclaimed mr you do know i suppose i shall call there i yon more than suppose it mr if i thought you had any doubt about going there i put you under arrest and send you under guard of	36
a file of i go laughed and he did go he was not willing to confess it even to himself the anticipated pleasure of that visit had been considerably more than the for him to visit was not in the room he entered and he received a very greeting from mrs but presently the daughter s step was heard in the adjoining apartment and poor s heart fluttered worse than it did when he had been appointed to the command of the it waa by i yankee ob ten times worse than to meet her face to face after so long an absence felt very much like going by the board as the rustle of the silk dress fell upon his ears but entered the room and rushed forward with both hands extended to welcome him her cheeks were with and it was quite evident that she was not taking the matter so coolly as her manner and her subsequent remarks might have led one to suppose why is it possible that you have returned exclaimed she as he took her extended hands for a brief period only said hardly able to articulate the words why couldn t you say for a short time instead of a brief period mr now you shall not begin to make fun of mr interposed mrs if i had known your pleasure i should certainly have said so added my pleasure i why can t you talk like a christian and not use that language you are not an admiral yet now sit down and tell me where you have been and what wonders you have done i haven t done any wonders miss yes you have i read all about it in one of the boston papers then there is no need that i should tell you by ic the adventures of a naval officer but i to hear it from you i will give you an abstract of the log book of i don t care for the log book of the ko i suppose you want to tell me the latitude and of sound but what awful stories are told about poor i added suddenly looking as as a matron of sixty are they true i am sorry to say they are of course yon have heard of his death they had not heard of it and the events which had dated in the death of the young including the last scene which had on of the cotton clad mrs aud her daughter were both much moved as he described the had event j but both of them condemned in fitting terms his treason and his treachery spent the afternoon and took tea with the family s cheer fulness was not much by the intelligence of s death the first had passed neither she nor her mother was disposed to say much about him perhaps they felt that he had disgraced the family by his connection with it and that silence was the only proper on his had learned that general had destroyed the will in which had been joint by ic the or heir with of his property and that the as the next of kin would succeed to his fortune delicacy as well as policy required them to speak lightly or not at all of s now you are going off to do new wonders are you said after tea i am going to do my duty though for your sake i could almost hope that i shall have nothing to do but my daily routine for a year replied for my sake i hope you will capture every at the south why you are a mr and i believe if they would turn you loose on the atlantic ocean in a jolly boat with nothing but a broken you would capture the within twenty four hours i protest laughed well call it forty eight then added the merry girl wouldn t you oblige me by making it a week no not another hour two days are enough for you to sink or blow up the biggest ship that ever floated well i don t know what i might do under the inspiration of bright eyes at home said looking into her beaming what bright eyes asked she with the least possible agitation yours to be sure laughed the little naval hero by the adventures of a naval officer that s silly mr do you mean to say that you ever think of any one besides yourself while you are away to be sure i do i don t believe there is a single hour of my watch on deck in which i don t think of my mother and you well i declare you are improving wonderfully wouldn t you like to have me fall overboard or do some other ridiculous thing to you another opportunity to save me from a watery grave i hope you are not angry with me for thinking of you w i am away you have amused me so much that i cannot help thinking of you pray mr is that the particular reason why you think of your mother when you are on duty certainly not then i will thank you not to think of me as the sport of your idle hours how may i think of you then as an esteemed and valued friend who is always ready to give you good advice and keep your vanity from eating you up then i will think of you as such i suppose you forgot during my absence miss that such a person as mr was in existence you are not here to me mr you are a but there are some things you cannot by yankee or do replied but she answered the question much more satisfactorily in her looks and manner pardon me said he rising to go i must leave now tear yourself away you ought to have	36
le at the of and that the book will confirm and by preface increase their love of liberty and their hatred of tyranny if the young were resolute even to shedding the blood of the slave hunter they had and christian hearts in which there was neither malice nor revenge and in this respect if in no other they are worthy for the young and the old with this explanation i give the third volume of the stories into the hands of my young friends for it the same favor which has been bestowed upon its william t august by contents chap i the plantation of chap ii the goes down to point chap iii master receives an unlucky blow chap iv to watch and wait chap y the tragedy at the dead oak chap vi a vision of the promised land chap vii the is prepared for a chap viii the departure of the young chap ix the reach lake chap x breakfast on board the chap xi the bay of the chap xii the chap xiii the night chase on the lake chap xiv the battle for freedom chap xv the fate of the slave hunters chap xvi in the swamp page by contents page chap xvii has a bad fit chap the on the lake chap xix lily on the watch chap xx preparing for the voyage chap xxi down the lake chap xxii the runs the chap colonel changes his tone chap x xiv the young make a harbor by watch aid wait by by watch mb wait or the young chapter i the plantation of one soft summer evening when was crowned with the glory and beauty of the joyous season three strangers presented themselves before the grant family and asked for counsel and assistance the party consisted of two boys and a girl and they belonged to that people which the traditions of the past have made the despised race but the girl was and fairer than many a proud who would have scorned her in any other capacity than that of a servant by watch and wait or and one of tlie boys was very nearly white the other was as black as they were and from the far and the story which they told to mr grant and his happy family will form the substance of this volume the plantation of colonel was situated on one of the numerous which form a complete of water communications in the western part of the parish of in the state of the colonel whose military title was only a courtesy accorded to his distinguished position was a man of immense possessions and of large influence his acres and his were numbered by thousands and he was largely engaged in growing sugar and rice the estate on which he resided went by the name of his mansion was in its dimensions and was furnished in a style of r magnificence by the young the region in was situated was a low country subject to in the season of high water the sugar plantation was on a belt of land not more than a mile in width upon the border of the which contrary to the usual law was higher ground than portions farther from the river the lower lands were used for the culture of rice which our young readers know must be during a part of the year a short distance from the splendid mansion of the was a large village of negro huts where the people of the estate resided as colonel was a liberal and man the houses of the were far superior to those found upon many of the of the south they were well built neatly and no doubt the who dwelt in them regarded it as a fortunate circumstance that they were the slaves of colonel along the front of the negro hamlet and of the mansion house ran the public highway while in the rear of them and at a distance of nearly by watch and wait or half a mile was the which was generally called the because it joined two larger rivers at the foot of a gravel walk leading from the mansion down to the was a pier upon v hich was built a summer house after the style of a chinese so that the and his family could enjoy the soft breezes that swept over the surface of the stream there they spent many of their summer evenings and truly it was a delightful place fastened to the pier were several small boats including a light and a four oar race boat in the middle of the stream lay a large sail boat in which the often made long for pleasure for by the of rivers with which the was connected he could explore a vast tract of country and even reach the red river on the north and the gulf of on the south the family that dwelt in the great house as the called the mansion were colonel his wife and two children the himself was a genial pleasant man when nothing by the young i disturbed him but he was quick and impulsive and the homage due to his position from his mrs was an easy indolent woman who would submit to injury rather than endure the effort required to ess it master his older child was a youth of fifteen and was as much like his father as miss a young lady of fourteen was like her mother as he was familiarly called by black and white was fond of having his own way and as long as it did not conflict with that of his imperious father he was indulged to the fullest extent miss was fond of repose and could not even speak french	36
been proud to exhibit as specimens of his art and with a vigorous thrust of the hook forced the light craft far out into the stream thus disturbing the repose of a young which was himself upon a was fond of the water and had no taste for the various labors that were required of him about the house and stable he was delighted with the prospect of a sail by watch and wait or on the river and being a slave and not permitted to express his views in the ordinary way he did so by his mouth into a grin which might have the on the log toss added and up went the four oars of the let fall and with a precision which would have been creditable to the crew of a s the blades the water as one give way and the boat dashed down the stream impelled by the vigorous strokes of the dusky the crew were boys of sixteen or selected from the hands on the plantation with reference to their size and muscular development they were clothed in white duck blue cotton trimmed with white and wore uniform straw hats encircled by black bands upon which was inscribed in gilt letters the name of the boat in compliment to the young s sister the was a magnificent craft built in ne v and fitted furnished and ornamented without by the regard to cost colonel liad a nephew was a in the navy who while on a visit to had instructed the crew in the elements of the black boys did not regard their labors as work and took so much pride in making themselves in their duties that they might well have comparison with the best boat club in the country master was very dignified and magnificent as he in the stern of the beautiful craft he said nothing and of course the who sat behind him was not privileged to say any thing it was his duty to speak v hen he spoken to and with a keen eye he watched the progress of the boat as she cut her way through the v of the as we have before remarked was a youth of quick parts and under the scientific instruction of mr he had thoroughly mastered the art of not only in its application to row boats but also in reference to sailing craft and there was no person on the place more skilful in the management of the than the body servant of master by watch and wait os the flew on her course from their repose the and the that were enjoying the sunshine of the spring morning master did speak sometimes but this morning he was unusually he seemed to be brooding over something those who did i ot know him might have supposed that he was thinking but the son and heir of did not often give himself up to meditation in its higher sense it was more likely that he was wondering what he should do next for time hung heavy on his hands he had nothing to do but amuse him self and he had completely exhausted his slender ingenuity in new amusements stop her said he languidly after the boat had gone about two miles obeyed the order without a question and the soon floated on the water waiting the pleasure of her owner back to the pier added and under the orders of her skilful she was put about and darted up the river on her return the shining face of the great by the philosopher s looked and discontented he was not satisfied with the order but not being a free agent he was cruelly deprived of the luxury of grumbling in the cane or himself on a log like the while master took his walk or even pulling the boat was much more to his taste than rubbing down the horses and digging weeds out of the gravel walks in front of the mansion the order to return therefore was a grievous disappointment to him for the head gardener or the head groom would be sure to find a job for him that would last ail day master did not know his own mind he did not have the same mind for a great while at a time supposed he had thought of something that would please him better on the estate no doubt if the young of pleasure had permitted his dark companions to think for him they might have invented a new pleasure but he seldom spoke to them and they were not allowed to speak to him except in a case of emergency the boat reached the pier and was brought alongside the landing steps in a style that was above by and wait ob criticism poor was disgusted and indignant at the idea of having his day spoiled in this capricious manner if he had been born under the free skies of new england he would no doubt have remonstrated but his social position and the discipline of the boat did not permit him to utter even a word of but was disturbed in the present instance for his master had no intention of the though if he had been so as to say so when he ordered the to return he would have saved her crew all the bitter pangs of disappointment which they had endured during the passage said master when the boat came up to the steps and the had tossed then oars replied the word as though he had been a member of s class in french sounds and with a start which seemed to shake every fibre in his frame do you know where my gloves are yes in de answered again exhibiting his for the case began to look slightly hopeful by the in the what demanded a languid smile appearing upon his face in de said taking advantage	36
the attitude of defence though he had thrown away his gloves in obedience to the of his master for a few moments defended himself from the impetuous assault of the young gentleman who displayed a vigor and energy which he had never before exhibited the consequences of any accident to his master were sufficiently apparent and he maintained his coolness until an unlucky blow on the nose caused that member to and at the same time produced a sharp and pain had been and discreet up to this time but the sharp pain roused a feeling of resentment in his nature he had borne all he could and no longer acting upon the alone he assumed by watch and wait oe the both parties were angry now and for a moment each did his best which shortly brought the combat to a disastrous conclusion s arm which had before been soft and suddenly hardened into solid muscle and one of his heavy blows came full and square upon the region of s left eye the young lord of the as though a had struck him and fell heavily upon the ground the blow was a hard one and it fired his southern blood still more he leaped up and seizing a large stick which lay upon the ground he rushed towards his unhappy servant with the intention of him upon the spot s senses came to him when he saw fall and he was appalled at the result of the conflict he had struck the blow upon the impulse of a momentary rage and he would have given any thing to recall it i didn t mean to do it master forgive me pleaded he as he retreated to avoid the uplifted club was so furious that he could not speak and was compelled to run for his life by the young chapter iv to watch and wait fortunately for master was not as long as some of whom we have read and unhappily heard and therefore we cannot say to what extent his passion would have led him on the present occasion there was no fear of consequences to him from his even unto death if he had killed him though the gentle hearted might have frowned or trembled in his presence there was no law that could reach him there was no dread of prison and to stay his arm and what his fury prompted him to do he might have done with even the made for the protection of the slave from his cruel master would have been of no avail for the want of a white witness to the facts ran away it was all he could do except by watch and wait or defend which might have resulted in injury to his young master and thus involved him deeper than before in the guilt of striking a blow in his own defence with no particular purpose in his mind except to avoid the blow of the club he retreated in the direction which led him away from the point w here they had landed he ran at his utmost speed for a few moments for the of his master had wonderfully increased his master s wind gave out and he was no longer able to continue the chase he abandoned the pursuit and throwing himself upon the ground his rage in a flood of tears did not deem it prudent to approach him while in this mood and he seated himself on a stump at a point where he could observe his master s motions master was not cruel or by nature and hoped that a few moments of rest would restore him to his s faults were those of his education they were the offspring of his social position he had been accustomed to have his own way except when his will came in opposition to that of his father which was by the young very seldom for colonel was extremely and indulgent to his it was evident to his body servant that something had gone wrong that morning with master he had never before carried his fury to such an extreme though he was never reasonable it was not often that he was so unreasonable as on this occasion watched him patiently till he thought it was time his passion had spent itself and then walked towards him discovered the movement before he had advanced many steps but without making a demonstration of any kind he rose from the ground and moved towards the scene of the late encounter as he passed the spot he took his coat upon his arm and made his way to the point the unhappy servant was troubled and by this conduct and he was still more bewildered when he saw step into the boat and heard him in sharp tones order the to pull home s isn t he to go home us said who was even more than the body servant by watch and wait or no questions obey my orders and pull for home replied as he adjusted his shirt sleeves and put on his coat when he had arranged his dress he threw himself upon the velvet cushions and took no further notice of or the crew his orders were of course obeyed the bow pushed off the boat and she was headed up the by this time poor who notwithstanding the of his master s disposition had a strong regard for him reached the shore i am very sorry for what has happened master and i hope you will forgive me said he in humble tones the imperious young lord made no reply to this petition please to forgive me pleaded silence don t speak to me again till i give you permission to do so was the only reply he vouchsafed knew his master well enough to obey literally the imposed upon him himself upon the ground he watched the receding by	36
the boat as the drove it rapidly the water the events of the morning were calculated to induce earnest and serious reflection the consequences of the affair were yet to be developed but had no strong he hoped and expected would recover his good nature in a few hours at the most and then he would be forgiven as he had been before it is true he had never before given his master an angry blow but he had been provoked and he hoped this prove a sufficient excuse had lost his temper sprung at him with the fury of a tiger and struck him several severe blows his face was even now covered with blood and his nose ached from the it had received he could not feel that he had done a very wicked deed he had only defended himself which is the right of man or boy when assailed he had been invited nay pressed to strike the blow had caused the trouble then he thought of his condition of the wrongs and which had been heaped upon him and if the few drops of negro blood that flowed in his veins by watch and wait oe prompted him to patience and submission tlie white blood the saxon inspiration of his nature which through the same channels resistance mad as it might seem as he thought of his situation the tears came into his eyes and he wept bitterly the future was dark and forbidding as the past had been and hopeless they w ere tears of anger and resentment rather than of sorrow he almost envied the lot of the who toiled in the cane fields though they were clad and fed they were not subjected to the and of a boy they had nothing to fear but the lash of the driver and this might be avoided by diligence and care and then the tears down his pale cheeks he realized that the field hands who labored beneath the eye of the and the driver were better and happier than he was what can i do murmured he as he rose from the ground and walked back to the shade of the trees if i resist i shall be whipped and i cannot endure this life it is killing me by the young i will run away said he as he sat upon a stump at some distance from the point where shall i go he shuddered as he thought of the rifle of the and the blood hounds that would follow upon his track the free states were far far away and he might starve and die in the deep which would be his only hiding place it was too hopeless a remedy to be adopted and he was obliged to abandon the thought in despair i will watch and said he something will happen one of these days if i ever go to new again i v ill hide myself in some ship bound to the north perhaps master will travel some time he may go to cape may or with his father this season or next and i shall go with him i will be patient and that is what the preacher said we must all do and if v e are in trouble god will sooner or later take the burden from our weary spirits i will be patient and but i will and wait watch and wait there was a world of hope an consolation in the idea which the words ex by watch ob pressed he wiped away the tears which had down his blood stained face watch and wait was the only north star which blazed in the darkened of his existence he could watch and wait for months and years but constant watching and patient waiting would one day reveal the opportunity which should break his bonds and give him the body and spirit that god had bestowed upon him as his comforted by these reflections and inspired by a new and powerful hope he walked down to the river again his step was elastic and in his heart he had forgiven master he determined to do all he could to please him to be patient and even under his and rule he washed the blood from his face and tried to wash away the which his master s conduct had kindled in his soul having made his peace with himself his master and all mankind he sat down upon the stump and took from his pocket a small testament which a had dared to sell him for the moderate sum of five dollars he read and the blessed words gave him new hope and new courage he felt that he by the young could bear any thing now but he was mistaken for there was an ordeal through which in a few hours he was doomed to pass an ordeal to w hich his patience and could not reconcile him while he was reading he heard the dip of oars restoring the volume to his pocket he waited the arrival of the boat it was the of but the young gentleman was not a passenger the crew had been sent down by colonel to convey him back to the estate the blank looks of the crew seemed ominous of disaster even the brilliant of the were veiled in darkness beneath his cheek he looked sad and terrified and before any of the crew had spoken a word was fully assured that a storm was done send us down to you up said gloomily what s the matter demanded trying to be cheerful in the face of these clouds of darkness done a black eye some how or and l into a horrid by watch and wait ok passion den lie roar and swear like an a coal o fire in is replied aghast witli horror well what then asked with a long breath den	36
had received had his soul and he was a willing servant ready for a smile from his m to perform with barbarous fidelity the duties of his office seizing by the arm he pulled off his shirt and led him to the tree the last ray of hope had expired in the soul of his blood at the thought of being by watch and wait oe whipped he was not stirred by the emotions which disturb a free child with a in prospect he not at the pain he not at proper and wholesome punishment this was the of the slave it was the emblem of his the blows were the which the master upon his his soul was free while his body was in chains and it v as his soul rather than his body that was to be the thought was madness his blood boiled with indignation with horror and with the tide of despair in upon his spirit and overwhelmed him he resolved not to be whipped and when long tom turned away to the he sprang like an through the group of spectators and ran with all the speed he could command towards the river perhaps it was a mistake on the part of but it was the noblest impulse of his nature which prompted him to resist the unjust sentence that had been passed upon him he ran and desperation gave him the wings of the wind but he had his chances if he had considered them at all for the by a he young swift horse of the was tied to a stake near the dead oak he had been riding over the estate when returned from green point with the story of the blows which had been inflicted upon him colonel leaped upon his horse the instant he realized the purpose of the and before had accomplished half the distance to the river the overtook him he rode the horse directly upon him and if the intelligent beast had not been kinder than his rider the story of poor might have ended here as it was he was simply thrown down and before he could rise and recover himself the had dismounted and seized him by the arm so deeply had the prejudices of his condition been in his mind that the thought of blows upon the sacred person of his master did not occur to him if he had dared to fight as he had the strength and the energy to fight he might still have escaped colonel was an awful presence to him and he yielded up his purpose without a struggle to carry it out the swore at him with a fury which by watch and wait or chilled his blood and struck him several smart blows with his riding whip as the of what he was still to undergo now back to the tree said colonel as he mounted his horse again had given up all hope now and he marched to the post as the condemned criminal walks to the he had advanced but a short distance before he met the other spectators to his doom and long tom seized him by the wrist and held him with an iron till they reached the dead oak tie him up quick tom said colonel it has been more work to this young than a dozen full grown long tom fastened the around s wrists and passed them through a band around the tree about ten feet from the ground he then the victim up till his toes scarcely touched the earth now lay them on well said the how many asked tom as he the long lash of his whip by l tub tragedy at the dead oak page by by the young lay on till i say stop s flesh quivered but ms spirit shrunk than his body from the of the slave master s the lash fell across his back his back as white as that of any who read this page the blood from the wound which the cruel lash inflicted but not a word or a groan escaped from the pallid lips of the sufferer a dozen blows fell and though the flesh was terribly the of the soul was deeper and more severe stop said colonel long tom promptly obeyed the he evidently had no feeling about the brutal job and there was no sign of joy or sorrow in his countenance from first to last if he felt at all his experience had effectually him in the difficult art of concealing his emotions take him down added the who as he gazed upon the torn and flesh of the victim seemed to feel that the had washed away the offence during the punishment master had be by watch and wait oe no small degree of emotion and before the driver had struck the sixth blow he had asked his father in a whisper to stay the hand of the negro he had several times repeated the request but colonel was till the crime had in his opinion been fully long tom the and the body of the dropped to the ground as though the vital spark had for ever fled from its de boy fainted said the driver i see he has replied the with some evidence of emotion in his tones as he bent over the prostrate form of the boy to ascertain if more was not done than had been intended he felt the pulse of and satisfied himself that he was not dead we must do him the justice to say that he was sorry for what had happened sorry as a kind parent is when to punish a dear child he did not believe that he had done wrong even accepting as true the statement of the for the safety of the master and by the young his family made it necessary for him to regard	36
the striking even of a blow under other circumstances as a great it was the system more than the man that was at fault was not dead and colonel ordered two of the house servants who were present to do every thing that his condition required he and then walked towards the house gloomy and sad both of them by watch and wait ob chapter vi a of the land i and bleeding but still insensible was conveyed to his chamber in the mansion house by some of the servants his physician was an old slave skilled in the treatment of cases of this kind when the patient recovered from the into which he had fallen his back was carefully washed and the usual were applied though suffering terribly from the effects of his wounds he did not permit a sigh nor a groan to escape him the flesh could be healed but there was no at that could restore his spirit felt that he had been crushed to earth slavery which had before been with patience and submission was now intolerable he had been with the lash by the he had realized what it was to be a slave in the most bitter and terrible sense i will watch and wait said he to himself when the old slave had left him alone with his reflections but no longer with patience and submission i will cease to be a slave or i v ill die a with the and the in the swamp the day wore slowly away but it was filled up with earnest and energetic reflections in a word with plans and suggestions of plans for escaping from the bondage whose now him to the quick and before the sun set upon the day of his greatest humiliation he had a scheme by which he hoped and expected to win the boon of freedom it was a daring scheme and its success must depend wholly upon the skill and energy with which its details were managed when one to do a thing it is already half done and stretched upon his couch of pain was inspired by the hope and comfort which his plan him it might be weeks or months before the favorable opportunity for by watch and wait oh his purpose should arrive but the time would come sooner or later i will watch and wait said he while a smile of hope illuminated his pale face watch and wait had now a new significance more vital than before and he kept repeating the words for they were an of the whole duty of the future while he was pondering his great purpose he was surprised to receive a visit from master the imperious young gentleman displayed a languid smile upon his face as he entered the chamber it was intended as a token of if his pride had permitted him to speak to the suffering he would have said you see this smile upon my face it is the olive branch of peace i freely forgive you for what you have done and you see by my coming that i feel an interest in you not every young master would bestow a visit of sympathy upon his slave after he had been whipped so you see how i am we will be friends as we were before it is true you have been whipped but you deserved by the young it and i am willing to forgive you it may have been my fault but as you are a and in my power it don t make much difference this was what master s looks said and the sufferer read them as well as though the words had been written upon his face after came to his senses his first thought was that he would be upon for his mean and cowardly conduct but the great scheme he had drove this purpose from his mind success required that he should conceal his feelings or he might lose the confidence of his master and thus be deprived of the opportunity for which he intended to watch and wait how do you feel asked in tones of sympathy as he placed himself by the bedside of his body servant not very well master replied my father carried it farther than i intended i tried to stop him before thank you master answered the patient meekly though it was more than i meant you should by watch and wait oe have i hope you will remember it a long time added i shall master my eye is not in very good condition said he wiping the injured organ with his handkerchief it was a hard blow you gave me wished he would leave him and he did not care to argue the matter with him even if he had been privileged to do so it won t do to let your servant go too far said i am very sorry it happened replied well i hope the lesson will last you as long as you live it will master the young tyrant when he had fully satisfied himself that his was in a state took his leave much to the satisfaction of the sufferer the old negro who acted as his physician paid him another visit in the evening and assured him that he would be well in a few days he left him with the to go to sleep and forget au about it by the young could not go to sleep could not forget all about it the wound in ms soul v as more painful than those upon his back and hour after hour passed away but his eyes were still set wide open his great resolution filled the future with sublime visions which he panted to realize his path lay through trial and danger was by death on every side but paradise was at the end of it and he was willing	36
to encounter every hardship and brave every danger to win the glorious prize or content to die if his struggles should be in vain he was determined to leave at the first favorable opportunity and while he pictured a glowing future beyond the chilly of the swamp and out of the reach of the rifle ball and the there were still some ties which bound him to the home of his childhood home no it was only a mockery of that heaven upon earth it had been the scene of his that which the bonds upon his limbs but it was home so far as it was the abiding place of his friends not those who by watch a nd wait or mm whose had tormented him not his young master not his old master that delightful poetry which a loving slave cling ing fondly to the master that him had never glowed in his imagination whatever of regard he had cherished towards his master had been driven from his heart by the of the slave whip he had friends at the gentle meek and patient lily the wild they were his friends indeed and the thought of leaving them at all was sad the thought of leaving them in bondage to be sold and was intolerable while he was thinking of them he heard a slight rap at the door may i come in it was lily and the permission was promptly given the clock in the great hall below had struck eleven and the family had but just retired she had been waiting all this time to pay a visit of sympathy to the sufferer how do you do asked she as sat down in a chair at the head of the bed by the young i m better lily i m very glad i wanted to come and see you very much but i was afraid to do so it was terrible to tbat you be whipped i should as soon have thought of being whipped myself it is terrible lily what did you do it must have been some awful thing the sufferer briefly related the particulars of the event at green point which had procured him the lily expressed her horror at the meanness of master and poured out her sympathy in fulness upon her friend but i shall not be here long lily added in a whisper why what do you mean asked she amazed at the idea of resistance in any form will you keep my secret lily you know that i will i mean to run away b un away gasped lily i will not stay here another month if i can help it by watch and wait or but where will you go i know where to go and how to go and live or die i shall make the attempt and you will be free i will or i will die i will not be a slave said he in an energetic whisper how grand it would be i wish i could be free sighed lily i don t know what will become of me one of these days none of us can know if i were a man i should not fear so much master was offered two thousand dollars for me a year ago he will not sell you whether he does or not i shall be miserable as long as i live i often wish i was dead poor lily sighed can t i go with you asked she bending over him and whispering the words into his ear you lily i shall go to the first i may have to live with the for months perhaps for years i am not afraid of them if you will let me i will go with you added she eagerly by the young i shall have to meet hardships and dangers more than you could hear i ll hear every thing i will help you i will die with you poor girl i would hear any thing i would rather live with the than with miss you don t know how much i have to hear the same that i have to hear from master if i thought you could stand it lily i should he glad to take you with me i can stand it replied she with enthusiasm you shall go lily heaven bless you and i m going to take with me too if he will go hut he don t know any thing about it yet when shall we start i don t know not till master goes a hunting again i will tell you all about it in a few days lily was content to leave every thing with in whom she had more confidence than in any other person for he was her only real friend with her by watch and wait or soul full of new emotions left the chamber of the sick boy just as the clock struck twelve s great purpose now assumed a new significance and as lily vas to share in the toils and dangers of the enterprise a new responsibility was imposed upon him it was two hours more before his exciting thoughts would permit him to sleep his wounds had ceased to smart and he had even forgotten his in the glorious vision to which it had introduced him and when he slept it was but to dream of the swamp and its perils and of the promised land which his fancy pictured beyond it by the vii the is prepared for a at the end of a week the flesh of poor was so far healed that he again discharged all the duties of his position near the person of his young master the flesh was healed hut the spirit still under the effects of the watch and wait was his motto and though he possessed his in patience	36
he kept his eyes and his ears wide open ready to seize upon the desired opportunity to carry out his great resolution the season most favorable for shooting had arrived and was in expectation that colonel would order the preparations to be made for his annual excursion either to the rivers above or the lakes below in search of game upon this event was based his hope of making his escape the smiling month of may was ushered in with by watch and wait or its pleasant days and about a fortnight after his had the satisfaction of hearing the subject the excursion was a matter of considerable importance for the was generally absent two or three weeks during which time he and his party lived on board of the large sail boat as there were no guests at the people wondered who were to be the colonel s companions we will leave on wednesday said the to his son are you going alone father certainly not you may go with me for one and you may take with you and shall go to do the heavy work who else there is room enough in the cabin for four there is no one else to go so we shall have the more room ourselves replied the as he walked away master announced to and that they were to attend the party and both expressed their satisfaction at the privilege accorded to them by the young they were directed to put the which was the name of the boat in good order for the trip she had to be thoroughly washed and dried that she might be in readiness to receive her stores on the following day which was tuesday and they hastened off to perform their task the was about twenty five feet long she was very broad on the beam and drew but very little water for a boat of her size she was provided with a centre board and worked admirably on the wind she had been built expressly for the shallow waters of the lower lakes she was and could carry a heavy press of sail which the light winds of these inland lakes rendered necessary the cabin was twelve feet long and nine feet wide at the part and contained four the trunk which was elevated about fifteen inches above the deck afforded a height of about five feet beneath the which extended beneath the main deck answered for beds by night and by day the standing room or open space the cabin was eight feet long with seats on three by watch and wait or sides forward of the cabin there was a four feet long in which the fuel and used for cooking were kept under the cabin table and under the and seats in the standing room were a plenty of for the reception of provisions and other articles required on board we are thus particular in describing the because and his friends were destined to make their home on board of her for some time they might have found many a worse dwelling place on shore for the boat had ample for them the cabin was fitted and furnished and there was every thing on board which could be needed to make them comfortable while and were cleaning the the former boldly announced his purpose to run away and invited his friend to make one of the party dis go for sure roared displaying his wealth of and dropping his brush with amazement at the magnificence of the idea hush you will tell every one on the place by the young no i won t tell no one ob it s de be careful then and don t speak so loud but where you demanded i m going into the swamp and shall stay there till master thinks we are all dead then i m going to run down to the sea and get on board of some vessel that will carry us to the free states this prospect was rather too much for the simple comprehension of the negro boy and he only rolled the of his eyes in mute astonishment i ve studied it all out and i know where to go and how to get there yes you knows ting and i ll you to de end ob de world s de added and lily will go with tis lily yes now keep your mouth shut and don t look any different from what you always do yes when you to go to morrow night every thing will be put on by watch and wait oe board ready for the colonel to start early the next morning just as soon as all the in the house have gone to bed we will meet here and go on board den i shall be a free yes if we get off and the plan works well but you must be very careful you kin trust dis you knows you kin i do or i should not have made you my companion his friend very in the duties he was to discharge in connection with the he had every confidence in s discretion and knew that he would rather die than betray him the was carefully cleaned and left to dry in the bright sunshine of a clear day the next morning the steward of the plantation laid out the stores which were to go on board and as their was a nice matter was charged with this duty he was assisted by s boat crew who conveyed the articles on board and before sunset the boat was by the young ready for lier every was filled with meat vegetables fruits cakes with every thing which could contribute to the comfort or luxury of the there were two barrels of water in the standing room and the choice pieces of the and his son were in the cabin	36
with a supply of sufficient to destroy half the game of the parish to the supplies laid out by the steward contrived to add a dozen nicely up in canvas bags and several of which he took from the store room these articles were in the forward and concealed beneath the fuel and so that the when he the boat might not discover them some other articles were placed in a convenient position on shore that they might be taken on board in the night at sunset colonel went off to the and carefully examined every part of her to satisfy himself that there had been no in her you have done very well said the when he had completed his inspection how many have you put on board by watch and wait ob six sir replied we may be absent five or six weeks you put in six more added colonel yes sir he also ordered an additional supply of smoked beef and tongues which of course the was glad to convey on board when these stores had been added to the stock he was satisfied and ordered and to be on board by six in the morning the of these operations then locked up the cabin and went on shore though he was burning with excitement he managed to himself with his ordinary coolness and looked as immovable as a statue at the usual hour they retired to their several rooms but not to sleep as the conductor of the enterprise was weighed down with the of his position though he had done every thing he could to the success of the venture he was still with a anxiety lest something had been omitted and with the dread that something might happen to interfere with the plan there were many things which might to by the young his purpose if the night should prove to be calm there would be scarcely a hope of success for the was so large that the two boys could not row her far enough before daylight to place them out of the reach of pursuit there was quite a fresh breeze when he went to his room but he trembled with fear lest it should before he could take advantage of it while miss was at dinner that day he had found an opportunity to whisper his purpose into the ear of lily and to give her such instructions as the occasion required he had no doubt that his companions would meet him on the pier at the appointed time fortunately for the success of the plan the family retired at an earlier hour than usual and waited with impatience till the stillness of the house assured him it was safe to leave his chamber he then tied up a portion of his clothing and crept softly down stairs his heart beat with most tremendous the opportunity for which he had been watching and waiting had come and issues more terrible than these of life and death hung upon the by watch and wait oh success of the enterprise if lie failed if lie was captured lie might expect the block for colonel always sold a servant that attempted to run away the destiny of poor lily was also in his keeping and for her to be sold was to be consigned to a fate worse than death to a pure minded girl a fate which both of them were old enough to understand god be with me ejaculated half a dozen times before he left his chamber it was all the prayer he ever uttered but it was an earnest and sincere one god be with me repeated he in a whisper as he closed the front door of the house behind him and stealthy step crept down to the pier was already there for he did not sleep in the great house and had not to the movements of the family he trembled with excitement as joined him for he knew the fate of the if he was caught they immediately brought the articles which had been concealed down to the steps and put them in the which was used as a tender for the by the young what s dis for asked as lie deposited two pots of paint in the boat don t ask questions whispered earnestly not another word or i ll leave you now put these things on board and mind you don t make a of noise obeyed the order to the letter and off to the sail boat every thing was now in readiness for their departure but lily had not yet made her appearance returned to the shore and they waited half an hour but the lady s maid did not come there was a stiff breeze blowing and was impatient at the loss of a single moment of precious time he walked up to the house fearful lest something had happened to prevent her from keeping her appointment there was a light in miss s chamber which explained her non appearance but he could not think of going without her when his patience was nearly exhausted the light was extinguished lily soon made her appearance on the lawn and they hastened down to the pier by watch and wait ob chapter the of the me exclaimed lily when joined her on the lawn i am frightened out of my senses there is nothing to fear yet lily said her conductor as he took her by the hand to restore her confidence the wind is quite fresh and long before we are missed we shall be out of the reach of pursuit i am frightened and i can t help it you will feel better when you get on board of the boat you shall have a nice cabin and you can lie down and go to sleep just as you would in your own chamber i don t think i shall	36
sleep much to night i was afraid i should not be able to join you for miss had the headache and made me stay with her till she could go to sleep by the g we are all right now lily every thing is as favorable as it can be we have nothing to fear as long as the wind blows lily had very little practical knowledge of and she did not comprehend the allusions of but she trusted him with all her soul and when he said there was no danger her fluttering heart was down before they reached the pier she had entirely recovered her self possession though she could not help being deeply impressed by the important stop she was taking was seated on the landing steps whistling the air of a negro melody as cool as though he was about to engage in a lawful enterprise he had been agitated at the announcement of the idea and when he decided to form one of the party but he was one of that class to whom exciting events soon become an old story he regarded his freedom as achieved and he had even made himself familiar with his new social condition handed lily into the which was to serve as the s tender and then seated himself in the bow by watch wait ok come bear a hand said the leader in a low but sharp tone what am i to bear a hand to demanded jump in quick and off to the is dis got to row de boat says i says i you s a free and you got to do but take your quick or i will leave you here interposed obeyed this time his ideas of freedom were no doubt derived from his master and the other white people at who had nothing to do but amuse themselves and order the round the place they were very crude ideas and he was yet to learn that freedom did not mean idleness he the off to the sail boat and lily was put on board now haul the alongside said the as he proceeded to the sails de exclaimed what you to do de haul her alongside replied sharply if you spend the night in talking we shall not get off till morning by the young ejaculated whose being rather limited he was under the necessity of a word occasionally when he felt the need of a strong expression dis he was free but it s do dis and do dis he s only got a new s all for if you don t want to go you needn t i will put you on shore and go without you dis like to know what you to do i shall do very well without him shall i put you on shore or not no i se you any how then you must mind me added the earnestly i done do haul the alongside then i se to haul de alongside but dis like to know what for mind me or i ll put you on shore cried angrily i se said as he by watch and wait oe stepped into tlie tender and off to tlie which was a short distance above presently he returned and the painter of the was made fast to a on the quarter of the was much by the operation for he could not see why they should take the with them he was very anxious to argue the point with who it seemed to him had never before in his life been so sharp and ill natured but the w as too much excited by the tremendous issues of the hour to be in a mood for argument by this time had cast loose the sails and together they the and hoisted the it was large and the fresh breeze caused it to and beat with a fearful noise which added not a little to the excitement of the stand by the and have your ready said as he took his place at the i m you needn t me stop which i do stand by de or stop demanded whose by the g were now distinctly visible in the gloom of the night neither jump into the and bring the alongside replied what you to do de mind me or go on shore said the sternly i se makes two boats apiece all round for go quick i se gone like i se only off for but obeyed the order and brought the to the side of the to which she was secured like the other boats the bewildered boy was not in the habit of doing his own thinking and his faculties were not therefore very fully developed and an explanation would have relieved him of a world of doubts and conjectures now have your ready and stand h the said yes replied putting a wicked em on the complimentary part of the answer by watch wait or let go the shouted as he hauled in the main sheet all gone replied as the heavy rope by which the boat was secured into the water the added the in the same loud tones that he might be heard above the noise of the flapping sail up she goes responded the released from her caught the breeze and the voyage of the young was commenced she leaped like a race horse before the fresh breeze we done gone exclaimed as he walked aft when he had secured the sheet we are off replied as he cast an anxious glance in the direction of the s great house to assure himself that none of its inmates witnessed their departure the night was very dark and there were indications of a storm it required all the skill of the bold leader of the expedition to steer the boat in the thick gloom of the night the	36
was by the young difficult and dangerous the was filled with and and to strike one of them was to dash the boat in pieces and wreck all the hopes which hung upon the success of the enterprise but was thoroughly acquainted with all the difficulties in his course and was so familiar with the waters of the that he was as much at home upon them by night as by day the said the dis de boat s enough answered but i se to do what you say do it then did do it then but it was evident to the commander of the that the crew of his vessel was in a lamentable state of all his orders were questioned and the boat was liable to go to the bottom in an emergency because his commands were not promptly obeyed pie was not a little astonished at s conduct for in the boat of master he was in the habit of obeying all orders like a machine never to ask a question or suggest a doubt by watch and wait ob the was set and the dashed on with increased speed there was no more working ship to be done and again took his place on the seats in the standing room a luxury by the way in which he had never before attempted to indulge himself but when it is considered that he had just emerged from slavery to freedom his want of respect for the dignity of the quarter deck will be fully excused go forward and keep a sharp ahead said as soon as the crew was comfortably seated on the cushion i suppose i se a still said he dis he s as good s any body now you are den i on de hard deck and you sets on de cushions take one of the cushions with you if you wish to but go forward and keep a sharp i se go then by the young dis don t like dis kind ob freedom growled as he moved forward the wind was about south west which w as fair for the course the was then and in three quarters of an hour she made green point could not but recall the events which had occurred there three weeks before for they had stimulated him to the daring enterprise in which he was now engaged it w as there he had resolved to watch and wait in patience and submission for a less perilous opportunity to effect his escape than that which he had now embraced the spot was full of interest for his great resolution had been born there but the moment was big with the destiny of the whole party and he could not stop to indulge in sentimental reflections stand by the sheet said he as the swept past the point yes all ready replied who had so many times assisted in working the boat that he was perfectly familiar with the routine of a hand s duty hard lee cried as he put the down and brought the up on the other tack by watch and wait or tended the sheet without further tion and then took his place again on the fore castle to look out for danger ahead the course for the next live miles was up the large of which the was a it was lined on both sides with large trees which sheltered the water to some extent from the force of the wind and her progress was less rapid than before the was less and was called aft to enjoy the luxury of the seats lily who had now become reconciled to her situation also joined the in the standing room the hurry and excitement of the departure had passed off and the load of anxiety was removed from the mind of it was midnight dark and gloomy but the young felt that they were passing from the gloom of slavery into the light of freedom the first difficulties of the enterprise had been overcome and though there were months of peril and hardship before them it seemed as though the glorious sun of the new existence had already risen by the young chapter ix the reach lake the moved steadily through the waters of the wide bearing her precious freight farther and farther from the plantation with every mile she advanced the hopes of the grew stronger though alone knew the route by which they were to reach the land of freedom they were conscious that any white man whom they might meet would arrest them as before they could pass out of the limits of the state they must go in sight of many where they were liable to be seen and even near two or three villages in spite of the perils which the future had in store for them the party were quite cheerful even lily gentle and timid as she was soon became accustomed to the novel situation in which she was by watch wait or placed and ceased to dread the pursuing footsteps of the slave hunters do you think we shall escape asked she as she seated herself by the side of her friend i expect we shall replied he unwilling to too strong a hope in the mind of the girl if we manage well we have a good chance i hope we shall for master would certainly sell us all if we should he caught ud be as staying l added but i s we won t be caught why do you call me master dis you cutting it fat what do you mean by that you se tell me do dis and do as dis no account at all i am in command of the boat and it was my duty to get her under way when i told you to do any thing you began to ask questions dis s free	36
now replied with becoming dignity not yet we may be caught at any moment by i i was free now wliat made you think so we done away from l he may catch you again de l ain t here no how pose i see him any more and he see me any more who s my den when you get into a free country you will be free but who s my now s what dis want to know for you have no master den i se free exclaimed exhibiting his which the gloom of the night increased by the deep shadows of the tall trees was powerless to conceal i tell you i se a free commenced a most violent demonstration of satisfaction as he contemplated his new social position he laughed kicked with his heels sang and danced he felt that he had got the best of the argument and this was no small ground of rejoicing suppose you should be caught den i be l s boy again by watch and wait or but why did you call me you order me round like and de white folks dis begin to he s your you are just as good as i am yes knows all about you tell me to de row boat den to de and when i ask what for you tell me to mind my own business and riot ask it was because we had no time to spare replied whose feelings were injured by the charge of his companion maybe but you speak to me like de white folks i didn t mean to do or say any thing that would make me seem like a master for i hate the very sound of the word exclaimed gratified by this acknowledgment i done you meant to be my like de l if dis as good you be can t see why you don t teu what you do for i am willing to tell you what i did these things by the young for now tliat i have time to do so but i will change places with you what fur you shall command the boat and i will obey all your orders without asking a single question what yes replied earnestly here take the i you re very well i will give you my map of the country and you shall find the way for yourself as i shall have to do what you me the map what s here it is replied giving him a small pocket map of the state of of which he had possessed himself a few days before the departure took the map turned it over two or three times and could not make out its use lily and both enjoyed his confusion for it was a great puzzle to him to know how they were to find their by watch and wait or way the swamp by the aid of this little book as he called it a lantern was lighted and lily unfolded the map and spread it out upon one of the exclaimed when he had carefully examined the map and the lantern was extinguished i don t see what dis paper far it s all i have to guide me to the ocean after we have passed now if you will take the map and command the boat i will obey you in all things i don t see what good de paper s fur i kin de star but we are going to the south i i will stay where i is and you shall command de boat then you must mind me at once our very lives may depend upon your prompt obedience i will free men have to obey as well as slaves on board a ship every body the captain what s use ob bein free den the captain of the ship can t sell the sailor nor by the young separate hm from his wife and children the man is paid for what he does and when his voyage is up he may go where he pleases i knows all about it now i don t want to be called any more my name is daniel but you may call me dan for short den s what s my name i se free too and i wan t my name changed your name is no laughed dan for we will adopt his suggestion and call him no longer by his plantation name to up afore breakfast to speak word in season for dinner chuckled you are called for short as i am dan there is nothing bad about the word it s a very good name added lily if you say so lily it s all right if it suits de fair seek it suits me said shaking his fat sides with satisfaction dis don t what you calls him if you only calls him to supper by watch and wait ob now i will answer the questions you asked we were getting under way yes what ye got all boats us fur don t you see the reason the boy scratched his head but he could not see as we have before observed he had not been in the habit of doing his own thinking and consequently he was not skilled in reasoning from effect to cause suppose we had left the boats added dan den we shouldn t em us de boat back at six o clock in the morning colonel will be ready to start on his trip he will go down to the pier and expect to find us all there we shan t be exclaimed whose imagination was lively enough to enable him to picture the scene that would what then l up and like he did afore replied who appeared to enjoy the idea by the young well what then he can t help chuckled suppose we	36
had left the boats he tell four stout boys to in de club boat and streak it down de like an a ha ha i roared holding on to his sides do you see why i have taken all the boats yes dan i sees into it like a you se got a long head dan what ye to do de paint we shall live in the swamp till the colonel has done looking for us this boat is white now and we will paint her green so that she can t be seen so easily s good dan but de l won t stop fur us till he finds out something i mean that he shall find out something he will suppose that we have gone to the north he will never suspect that we have come this way here we are said dan suddenly rising in the boat as she came to a narrow on the bank of the river by watch and wait oe running tlie boat up to the bank of the he ordered to make her fast to a tree on the shore what s to be done now dan asked when he had obeyed the order we shall follow the big river no farther now i want to make master think we have gone up that way which leads to the i left some papers in my room which will convince him that i intended to go that way now lily we must leave you for a little while added dan as he drew the alongside we will not be gone more than an hour dan and got into the and the other boats about two miles up the river where they secured them in such a position that they seemed to be abandoned when the search for them was made these boats would be found two miles from the course the had actually taken they then pulled back to the and got under way again their course was now changed and the boat passed down the narrow cut off which soon by the into a broad stream the wind which had been quite fresh when they started had now subsided to a gentle breeze but as the country was more open than on the big as it was called they still moved along at the rate of three or four miles an hour at five o clock in the morning dan had a silver watch which had been presented to him by master they reached the entrance of lake it was about daylight and as there was a plantation on the western bank it was not deemed prudent to proceed any farther for if the boat was seen it would at once be recognized as that of colonel the side of the lake was low ground covered with a thick growth of trees and an of cane the of the ran along this shore till he found a stream flowing into the lake up the centre board he ran his craft into this creek as the sails would not draw being sheltered by the trees and cane the two boys worked the boat up the stream with their oars till she was completely concealed from the opposite shore or from by watch and wait or the lake if any boat should happen to pass during the day here the careful intended to lie until the friendly shades of another night should permit them to proceed on the voyage to a more secure haven by the young x breakfast on board the no w get up the furnace and make a fire said dan as soon as the sails of the had heen and the boat carefully secured to a tree on the shore replied as he took off the of the hold who s to be de cook dan do you know how to cook i don t know at all bout it neither do i and i think lily does not i will try my hand at the business first we can make some coffee boil the potatoes and the bacon i am sure i can do that so kin just as soon as we get to the place where we are going we will divide the work between us by watch and wait oh you shall be cook one week and i will the next week now up the bacon the potatoes and the coffee old who was to do the cooking for the had provided every thing that would be needed for the purpose in a short time the fires were blazing in the two the and the potatoes were boiling upon one and the other was in readiness for the pan when the other articles should be in a sufficiently forward state to require its use though dan had never actually turned his hand to the business of cooking he had so often seen the various operations performed that he was competent to do it himself after acquiring a little experience he was a keen observer and whenever he saw any thing done he could generally do it himself in the forward part of the cabin of the reaching from the to the centre board was a fixed table and while dan was cooking the bacon prepared it for the morning meal they had every thing which could be found in any by the well ordered house and the table had more the appearance of that of a first class hotel than one provided for the use of the slaves exclaimed when the table was ready as he sat down upon the berth to observe the effect s fine you se to set down to table you se a free now and as good as de best ob s de bread s de s de butter s de sugar s de milk s de salt s de all s fine and s to set down at	36
de table here called dan through the sky light as he proceeded to pass down the breakfast put them on the table do you think don t know what to do i knows what bacon s fur the potatoes the bacon and the coffee were handed down and when they were placed upon the table the effect called forth another from while he was the bacon and the potatoes he was joined by dan by watch a wait ob come lily said he breakfast is ready we forgot one ting for exclaimed suddenly looking as sober as though he had not a friend in the world what de bell bell what do we want of a bell to call de folks to to be sure replied his mouth from ear to ear i think we can get along without a bell replied dan laughing at the folly of his companion lily joined the boys in the forward cabin as they called the space forward of the centre board she looked as pleased and happy as dan and and one would hardly have believed from their appearance that they were from slavery all the talk about the chilly of the swamp the perils and the hardships of the flight appeared to have been forgotten the and his son could hardly have been more jovial than the party which had taken possession of the was not accustomed to the of social life as dan and lily had been and he be by the young ill to behave in a very and remarkable manner as it was all in the family dan ventured to suggest to him that as he was now seated at a gentleman s table he should behave in a gentlemanly manner and not eat bacon from his fingers when a knife and fork had been especially provided for this purpose accepted the rebuke and thereafter the manners of his companions even carrying his ideas of to extremes the cooking was a decided success with the exception of the coffee which was very muddy and this was not strange inasmuch as none of the conditions upon which good coffee is produced had been complied with it was nothing but coffee and water together dan was and for the failure how did you make it dan asked lily with a smile which fully spoke the s pardon i put the coffee in and then the water replied the amateur cook with a blush hot water no cold by watch and wait ob lily laughed aloud at this blunder and then gave him a receipt for making good which included the use of boiling water and fish skin i saw that fish skin in the and i couldn t think what it was for laughed dan but the breakfast was finished and in spite of the of poor it was pronounced satisfactory especially by whose plantation had not included butter white bread and other articles which the table of the now dan and you can go away and do what you please said lily we will clear up the table and wash the dishes first replied dan no i am going to do that you lily i am going to do my share of the work i can t manage a boat but i think i can cook and take care of the cabin set the table and do every thing that belongs to the women i didn t mean to have you work lily said dan you have been a lady s maid all your life and never did any work by the young well i know how and i m going to do my i should not feel right to live like a lady here i mean to do all the work in the cabin and the cooking too no and i will do that do all and all de rest too i must do something or i should be very unhappy well lily you shall have your own way and while you are clearing off the table and i will prepare the lady s cabin the what asked lily your cabin you shall have a room all to yourself dan left the cabin followed by taking from one of the in the standing room an which was used to spread over the forward deck he it and proceeded to make his calculations while stood by scratching his head and wondering what was going to be done the cabin of the was entered by two doors one on each side of the centre board which divided the after cabin into two apartments dan after by watch and wait or measuring the cabin cut the to the size required and then nailed it up as a between the forward and the after cabin the space thus enclosed formed a state room six feet long and three feet wide outside of the berth this room could be entered only by the door from the standing room it made a very neat and comfortable chamber and lily was much pleased with it by the time the dishes were washed and put away there was considerable gaping among the party opened his mouth fearfully wide and miss lily s eyelids drooped like her fragrant when its mission on earth is nearly finished the had come to the knowledge that they had slept none during the preceding night and as the voyage was to be continued when darkness favored the movement it was necessary that the hours should be appropriated to slumber lily retired to her new state room closed the door and was soon asleep now one of us must turn in said dan can t we turn in no one of us must stand watch while the other sleeps we have been getting along so by the young finely that we have almost forgot that we are in danger gasped what you want to keep watch fur suppose any one	36
should come upon us while we are asleep added dan pose any one come us when we re awake what den who s a to help yawned i am for one i shall not be taken if i can help it what you to do pose you see de hunter tree four dozen what you to do den i m going to fight and you must do the same replied dan with energy as he grasped one of the pieces that lay upon the to fight cried opening his eyes with astonishment to kill de dogs and kill de men that s what i mean i will shoot man or dog that attempts to touch me stammered as he by watch d wait ok always did excited but the idea was too big for him just then and he broke down altogether that s a settled point and you must learn to use a gun would you shoot l if he come for to take you demanded i would or any other man i belong to myself now and i will fight for my own freedom to the last i bout dan mused shoot l bout turn in and go to sleep you may have the first chance the two boys drew lots for the choice of and dan obtained the after one was soon m one of the forward while dan took his place upon deck to guard against the approach of man or beast that might threaten their newly acquired freedom by the young chapter xi the bay oe the dan had his solitary watch for four hours with nothing to disturb his meditations except the occasional visit of an but as the ugly did not offer to swallow the boat or otherwise interfere with her the lonely did not even challenge the he was very sleepy for he had not closed his eyes during the preceding night and his great purpose had sadly interfered with his since the time for its execution had been fixed it was one o clock when he called the watch below lily was still wrapped in slumber worn by her sleepless night and by the excitement of her novel position after charging to keep awake assuring him that eternal vigilance was the price of liberty dan went into the cabin to obtain the rest he so much needed he slept soundly and no doubt by watch wait or dreamed strange things but when he awoke it was nearly starting up with a spring he bounded to the deck where he found fast asleep upon the cushions of the standing room exclaimed he seizing the by the collar is this the way you keep watch ejaculated as he sprang to his feet i done been asleep been asleep i should think you had have you been there all the afternoon no i dis t been asleep more n two minutes no nor more n a minute and a half yes you have you have been asleep all the afternoon you deserve to be a slave all the rest of your life added dan indignantly i not what does you mean by how dared you go to sleep when you were on watch i tell you dan i se been wide awake all de hadn t been asleep quite two minutes he hasn t slept long dan said lily as she came out of the cabin for i was with him only a little while ago by the young tm glad of it if he hasn t added dan more calmly you kin bet yer life dis don t go to sleep on de watch no but you did go to sleep you were asleep when i came on deck i close my eyes for a minute but i was to wake up when you on deck i can t keep awake all the time i must sleep some bout six hours chuckled and his companion had really slept about this time why didn t you call me then as i did you i told him not to do so dan interposed lily whose sweet smile was sure to remove any objection which dan might have we ate our supper about an hour ago was going to call you but i wouldn t let him i knew how tired you were and you will not have chance to sleep to night it was very kind of you lily said dan with a smile but i must teach not to sleep when he is on watch any carelessness of this kind might spoil every thing by watch wait ok i never u go to sleep on de watch so help me exclaimed now fully impressed by tlie magnitude of his criminal neglect answer for him said lily i ll stay ov deck and keep him awake next time o no you needn t lily but why can t i keep watch in the and let both of you sleep if there was any danger i could call you i don t mean to ask you to keep watch or do any such work it is not a woman s place i mean to take my turn next time said she resolutely dan i will get your supper and i ate bread and butter and drank cold water but if you are going to sail the boat all night you will want some tea thank you lily you are very kind i get the tea myself no you shall not i am not going to be idle all the time i mean to do my share of the labor if it isn t a woman s work to keep watch it is to get tea and if you please i will do it myself my young readers will remember that lily by the young a slave girl was a gentle delicate creature she	36
liad never done any manual labor had simply stood by her young mistress her when she was warm brushed away the flies handed her a book or other article when she wanted it picked up her handkerchief when she dropped it and assisted at her toilet if miss needed any greater exertion of bone and muscle another person was called to render the service but she had been about the kitchen and work rooms of the plantation and having a taste for the various housekeeping operations she had incidentally acquired some little skill in cooking needle work and other branches of female industry her form was and graceful her tion delicate and no person even with a knowledge of her social condition and with southern prejudices could have denied that she was beautiful in form and feature her complexion was fairer than that of a majority of saxon maidens her eye was soft and sweetly expressive such was lily the slave girl of and when she talked of performing the by watch and wait oh of the dan with that tion for the sex which the true gentleman resented the idea he preferred to labor day and night rather than permit her to soil her white hands with the of the lily as we have seen had wiser and more sensible ideas on the subject she had an instinctive contempt for that sort of chivalry and in spite of the of the of the she kindled a fire and with the assistance of soon placed the tea and bread and butter upon the cabin table she then took her place at the head of the board and did the honors with an elegance and grace which would have adorned the breakfast parlor at though had been to supper he accepted the invitation to repeat the operation before the meal was commenced it was necessary to light the cabin lantern which swung over the table whether there is any in a cup of tea or not the party soon became very cheerful and was as as though he were in the midst of the christmas holidays by the after supper dan took the and pulled out to tlie lake to the position and assure himself that there were no obstacles to the departure of the when he returned lily had washed the dishes and put the cabin in order thus carrying her point and establishing herself as mistress in this department dan did not deem it prudent to start so early in the evening but the sails were hoisted and every thing made ready for the departure the wind was light and the leader of the expedition had some doubts about starting at all that night the had made only about twenty miles during the preceding night with a strong breeze to help her during a portion of the time he had carefully studied the maps in his possession and estimated the distances by the scale between the various points he knew exactly where he intended to go and a failure to reach the place before daylight would expose him to the risk of being seen from some of the on the banks of the lake the responsibility of deciding this important by and wait ob tion rested upon him alone the distance to be accomplished before they could reach another place of security was about twenty five miles an average of three miles an hour would enable him to complete the passage by sunrise and he at last decided to attempt it about nine o clock the two boys got into the and the out of the creek and with and stay sail set in addition to the fore and main sails the voyage was renewed keeping as near the western shore of the lake as it was prudent to go the boat glided gently over the tranquil waters in a couple of hours the reached the narrow outlet of the lake thus far the south wind had enabled her to run with a free sheet but at this point the course changed and dan that he should be compelled to beat dead to in order to reach his destination then he he had not started but up the creek he had been unable to determine from what direction the light breeze came and had decided the question to the best of his ability by the young though he had no reason to reproach himself for his want of care the situation was none the less difficult or trying on that account but there was one advantage as he passed through the narrow outlet of the lake the surface of the was before him it was forty miles long by ten miles wide and afforded him abundant space in which to work the boat and in this open sea the wind came to his sails the course of the on her first tack lay close to the eastern shore of the lake the boat moved very slowly through the water and lily and sat by the side of the talking in low tones of the future with its hopes and its trials its joys and its dangers suddenly they heard a sound in the cane near them then came from a greater distance the bay of there was no these sounds and for an hour they listened in almost breathless anxiety to appalling indications of a slave hunt the of the dogs came nearer and nearer but they had lost the pounds which indicated the presence of the hunted fugitive by watch and wait ok whispered for he had been forbidden to speak a loud word where you pose de dogs is is i don t know i pray that he may escape replied dan can t you help him asked lily whose frame shook with terror as her fancy pictured the terrible scene which she had so often heard described a splash in the water a hundred yards of	36
the now attracted the attention of the party can t you help him repeated lily in trembling tones it wiu not be safe for us to show ourselves for the human are not far off do help him if you can save him from those terrible dogs pleaded lily he will swim to that island said dan perhaps the dogs will not catch him yes they will yes will done leap in de water go added as they listened to the as the brutes sprang into the lake save him save him dan cried lily by the young it may cost us our lives and our liberty replied dan no matter let us die if we can save the poor man from the of the i will lily replied dan as he put the about and headed towards the small island about half a mile from the shore take the continued he as he left his post at the and rushed into the cabin he returned in a moment with two in his hands and proceeded to load them by this time the panting fugitive was distinctly seen closely pursued by the dogs by watch and wait ob chapter xii the dan had loaded tlie pieces with shot though not a ood he had some experience in the use of arms and felt fully competent to cut off the before they could upon their human prey leaving at the he went forward and stationed himself at the heel of the the dogs were better than the fugitive and were rapidly gaining upon him for the poor creature s limbs seemed to be partially by the appalling danger that him the was approaching the scene of this exciting race with a rapidity which promised soon to the affair dan immediately obtained a correct idea of the relative positions of the do and the man his ob by the g to run the boat between and thus cut off the savage beasts from their prey a little said he em tis replied the who was enough to understand the phrase and even to handle the craft under the direction of a more skilful steady as she is see here dan is you to shoot asked certainly i am what do you suppose i got the guns for what you to shoot the dogs of course a little you are letting her fall off em tis see here dan you be mighty you don t hit de silence now and mind your you are wild had so far improved in the cultivation of the quality of obedience on that he did not speak again but he was fearfully excited by the stirring scene which was near him by watch and wait ob dan was not less moved his cool determination produced a different of his feelings he was conscious of the danger to which his interference in the hunt subjected him there were probably several slave hunters on the track of the fugitive the would be seen by them and possibly be recognized which would certainly bring upon her track but it was not in his nature to permit his suffering fellow creature in this unequal strife to be conquered by his human and brute the appeal of the gentle lily had been addressed to a heart and he entered with all his soul upon the task of saving the slave from the of his the had now come within a few yards of the dogs and their prey the time for action had come dan w as fully sensible of the great crime as the southern slave law regarded it of shooting a dog but with a steady hand though his heart bounded with exciting emotions he raised the gun to his shoulder and taking deliberate aim at the nearest hound he fired the brute gave a by the young deep yell and for some time continued to splash about in the water don t shoot me don t shoot me and i ll myself up cried the fugitive who seemed to have heard the report of the gun without observing the effect which the shot had produced i mean to save you replied dan as he the gun at another of the dogs but this time he missed his aim and the hound continued to swim towards the negro a little more said dan to as the boat came between the man and the dogs em tis as the boat now divided the dogs from their prey dan did not again load the guns but seizing the boat hook he gave the foremost hound a knock on the head which caused him to retreat howling with pain swim this way cried dan to the negro i will save you yes gasped the negro whose breath was nearly exhausted by the hard struggle through which he had just passed by watch and wait ob as the up the fugitive came alongside and dan assisted him to climb upon the deck o lord groaned he as he threw himself at full length upon the poor fellow sighed lily who ran forward to see the sufferer as soon as he was hauled on board what can we do for him he needs rest he is all worn out he may have run for miles before he took to the water can t we give him something there is some cold tea in the cabin i will get him something added dan and he ran aft and entered the cabin he returned in a moment with a bottle and a the fugitive still lay upon the deck panting and groaning like a dying after the mortal struggle of the freedom was worth the exertion he had made though every fibre in his frame had been strained he had fought the battle though without the interference of our party he would certainly have lost the day dan poured out a of the wine which	36
by the young the bottle contained and placed it at tlie lips of the sufferer he eagerly drank off the draught and sank back upon the deck he will be better soon he is all out of breath said dan as he brought one of the cushions from the standing room and put it under the poor man s head shouted who still retained his position at the though his interest in the scene of the forward deck caused him to steer very badly added he in gasping tones de dogs de dogs what s the matter demanded dan de dogs done eat dis all up won t de ghost ob a spot of dis cried in mortal terror mind how you steer then replied dan hastening to the assistance of his terrified companion don t you see you have thrown her up into tha wind so that the sails don t draw a bit dis don t want to be food for de dogs you will be if you don t mind what you by watch wait ok about said dan as he took the and putting it up the boat gathered fresh and soon shot out of reach of the why don t you shoot de wicked dogs i don t want any more noise i hate the dogs as bad as you do but we must be careful replied dan now can you mind what you are about and keep the sails full dis kin do for if you don t the dogs will have you now be careful and i will go forward and take care of the poor fellow who is nearly dead watch the sails never mind the dogs they can t catch you if you sail the boat properly you kin dis for isn t ob only he don t want to be eat up by de wicked dogs dan went forward where lily was bending the panting rubbing his temples and speaking sweet words of hope and comfort to him in a short time he was in some measure recovered from the effects of his fearful struggle with the fate that beset him by the young i was sure i was when i saw de boat said lie as he raised himself to a sitting posture and gazed with astonishment at those who had so singularly proved to be friends instead of foes are there any men on your track asked dan who could not lose sight of the peril he had incurred by this act i speck is replied he i hear off so far but i don t see can they chase you on the lake i speck can u get a boat and de dogs where are you from asked lily from major s plantation bout ten mile from parts i speck how long since you run away i de place about tree days ago i stay in de cane till noon to day and so hungry i could it no longer den i goes out to find to eat den somebody sees me and follow me de dogs i done kill two of dogs and i kill de rest but i hear de men coming and i run for de lake i speck when i by watch wait ok in de water to de dogs off de scent so near de see and hear me s mighty fine dogs or never me into de water i done it all up when i hear in de water me did you get any thing to eat when you went out of the cane asked lily no i got seen fore i find any ting poor fellow then you haven t had any thing to eat for three days noting but an de bark ob trees i will give you some supper at once said lily as she hastened to the cabin lily called dan you mustn t light the lantern or make a fire why not the light would betray us the slave hunters will soon be out in their boat after this man i will not then while lily was engaged below dan provided the with a suit of his own clothes which were not much too small for him as he was a man of medium stature he then conducted him to the by the young standing room for he was still too weak to walk without support his supper was brought up and he ate cold bacon and potatoes bread and cheese till the wondering lily thought he would their whole stock of provisions and till dan kindly suggested that he would make himself sick if he ate any more while he was eating dan satisfied his curiosity in regard to the and the party on board of her the whose name was an of listened with astonishment to the story of these elegant who ran away in a and lived in a style worthy of a s mansion no doubt he thought their experience was poetical and pretty compared with his own for his flight had been a death struggle with famine and flood with man and brute in the mean time the had run the dogs out of sight and the waters in the direction from which she had just come were as still as death no doubt the lake would be in search of the fugitive but for the present the party seemed to be secure from pursuit by watch and wait ok the boat was now approaching the northern shore of the lake and it became necessary to tack the wind held steady but light and dan had but small hopes of being able to reach his destination before daylight when every thing was made snug on the other tack and there seemed to be no present danger ahead or conducted to one of the forward and he turned in for the night the was evidently a very pious slave and	36
the young listened with reverend interest to the long prayer he offered up before he retired it was a of for his escape from the of the slave hunters it was homely speech but it was earnest and sincere and those who listened were deeply impressed by its simplicity dan and lily sat alone in the stern of the boat for had been permitted to turn in with the they talked of freedom and the future for an hour and then they were started by the sound of oars in the distance the slave hunters were on their track by the chapter xiii the night chase on the lake though the carried all her extra sails the wind was so light that she made very little progress through the water and the sound of oars which indicated the approach of a boat was appalling to dan there could be no doubt that it contained the slave hunters in pursuit of and the fate of the whole party seemed to be linked with that of the slave who was sleeping in happy security in the cabin the was close hauled and sailing as near the wind as she could but dan as soon as he realized the peril of the situation gave the boat a couple of points which sensibly increased her speed when he first heard the s boat it was just of the his present course therefore carried him nearer to the boat for a time by watch and wait ob but it was not safe to permit her to get to the ward of the in that light breeze dan was satisfied that if he had been in the four oar boat with his black crew he could have the in a short time if the two craft had been in the positions occupied by the and the pursued the race depended entirely upon the character of the boat in which the had embarked whatever the result of the pursuit dan was fully determined not to be taken himself nor to permit his friends on board to be taken with the arms in the cabin he was confident that he could make a good defence but the thought of taking the life even of a slave hunter was terrible to him though he had fully reasoned himself into the belief that such a course would be perfectly before god and he cared little for the judgment of a slave holding community his maker had given him the right to be free had endowed him with the right to use his own bone and for his own benefit and happiness and the man or the community that attempted to deprive him of this right by the young committed a crime against god and him and it was his duty to defend himself against this of his heaven given right he hoped however to be spared the pain of to the use of arms he prayed to god with all the earnestness of an earnest nature for more wind for his creed if he had any was very simple and included a belief in special the boat of the slave hunters was now not more than half a mile distant and the chase had become intensely exciting to dan and lily who alone were on deck the trembling maiden could with difficulty maintain a reasonable self possession she was terrified as the panting hare when she feels the warm breath of the pursuing hound we certainly be taken dan said she as she caught sight of the boat beneath the main boom of the we are lost no lily not lost you shall never be taken while i have a drop of blood left in my body replied dan in a low and earnest tone why they are ever so much nearer than they were when we first saw them by watch and wait ob that is true but it is only because i changed the course of the boat why did you change it then because if i run her down into the corner of the lake they can easily cut us off i suppose you have done the best you could there was no other way to do answered dan as he glanced under the boom at the we shall soon know which boat goes the now i don t understand it at all said lily whose knowledge of was very limited you know the shape of the letter a i do well that boat has been running up one leg of the a and i have been running up the other so you see we must be coming nearer together i had to run this way in order to use the wind to the best advantage but you will come together in this way in a moments no we are as near now as we can be unless tliat boat sails faster than we do i shall continue to sail in a straight line but i shall get ahead of the by the young if she does not change her course she cannot cut me out now at any rate probably lily was willing to talk of this subject to banish more painful thoughts from her mind though it is not likely that she clearly comprehended the of the of the don t you think i had better call and asked she after she had again glanced at the position of the pursuing boat no let them sleep we will not call them till it is necessary to do so replied dan do you think we can escape them asked she anxiously i cannot tell lily i hope so it depends entirely upon the wind if the breeze should die out of course we could make no progress at all do you think the wind will die out said she nervously i can t tell lily i hope not i pray not suppose it should die	36
out dan added she moving up nearer to the if we lose the wind there is nothing to prevent the boat from us at once by watch and wait ob o dear shuddered lily moving up still nearer to him who was her only earthly protector why do you tremble so lily asked dan as he took her hand and pressed it in his own perhaps thinking that he might thus impart to her some of his own because i am so terribly frightened replied she with quivering lips i would rather die than be taken and i have been thinking that i would throw myself into the lake if the boat catches us you shall not be taken lily said dan his lips compressed and his teeth tightly closed the determination with which he had resolved to meet the slave hunters if they attempted to lay their hands upon the gentle girl by his side what can you do against such men as those i can fight lily i would do so to save myself but more to save you heaven if i should be taken what would become of me no no lily don t take on so said dan as he passed his arm around her waist a familiarity by the young in he liad never before indulged but which was done only as a father his child to inspire her with more confidence to assure her that she was in the care of one who was able and willing to save her from the dreadful fate that i wish i could be brave as you are dan said she for the expedient of her devoted friend seemed not to be without some effect you don t to be at all alarmed have firmly resolved not to be taken myself and no to let you be taken i suppose they only want they cannot ha re him he is a fugitive like ourselves and i t believe god would permit us to escape if we should abandon him nor i we won t do that we will all be taken together said lily whose sympathy for the hunted seemed f r the moment to give her new courage do you suppose the know any thing us asked she u by watch and wait ob perhaps they do i suppose colonel has sent hunters in every direction for us and has probably offered a reward then we shall certainly be taken answered lily with a shudder we will not be taken lily whoever us in the boat there shouted a man of the pursuing party the slave hunters were now within less than a quarter of a mile of the for they had been gaining upon her by a vigorous use of their oars the boat which contained them was now exactly of the replied dan who knowing that the men could not talk and row to the best advantage was quite willing to converse with them what boat s that shouted the of the slave hunters captain s replied dan whose virtue was not sufficiently developed to induce him to tell the truth in his present perilous situation where from down below answered dan who by the y ij had previously made up his mind what to say if any conversation with the should become what ye up here came up with a party seen in the water no shouted dan promptly the question filled him with hope for it assured him the slave hunters had not been near enough even to hear the report of the pieces when he fired them or at least not near enough to discover who had fired them didn t ye see him asked the again no what s de matter demanded rushing up from the cabin with both of them having been awakened from their by the voice of the silence said dan in a low decided tone hush added lily in a whisper don t speak a word by watch and wait or repeated lily who seemed in the moment of danger to be endowed with a self possession at with her former timidity where you bound now called the home replied dan they asked no further questions for a time and dan saw with a thrill of satisfaction that they were lying upon their oars he hoped that his answers had convinced them the was not on board but in this he was disappointed he heard the men in the boat talking together though he could not make out what they said when the conference was ended they renewed their efforts to overtake the the shouted the again the boat replied dan heave to and let us see you a minute what for want to talk with you can t stop guess ye kin t ye seen by the young no well stop won t ye can t stop must get home by sunrise well ye must stop the speaker angrily and with an oath groaned in mortal terror shut up added dan sternly if jou can t hold your tongue i ll throw you overboard come interposed in a low tone don t make a noise if you do we shall au be lost dis s awful i done wish i hadn t come replied in a tone but the words trembled on his lips said dan replied the fugitive with a self possession which thoroughly the take hold of the painter of the and haul it alongside yes take hold and help him haul it up to the and take it on deck by watch and wait or the order was obeyed though in his terror was not able to render much assistance the was taken on deck to assist the sailing of the and also to prevent the from seizing it if they should unfortunately come near enough to do so	36
stop your boat i say the slave hunter after they had pulled for a few moments with the most determined zeal can t stop replied dan stop her or i ll fire into you exclaimed whose teeth were stiu chattering with fear dan made no reply and concluded not to answer any more questions are ye go n to stop her demanded the i b e got that on board and if ye don t heave to i ll ye up with a bring up the guns said dan with forced coolness the guns said dan fiercely as he stamped his foot upon the to his meaning by the i done think but disappeared in the cabin without giving those on deck the benefit of his thoughts now lily you must go into your cabin lie down in your berth for they may fire upon us said dan don t be alarmed there are only three men in that boat and we can certainly beat them off i will not leave you dan i am not afraid of the bullets i only fear at that moment the report of a gun startled them and the ball whistled close by dan s head by watch and wait ob xiv the i oe i take the and mind how you steer i said dan with earnestness as he rose from his seat and seized one of the guns exclaimed aghast at the thought take the repeated the resolute with a decision which left no alternative for the dis don t want to set and be there is no more danger there than there is any where else take your place and don t be a toward if you want to be free you must fight for it now dis ain t but don t want to be you can t do by the but the trembling hand took his place at the he continued to to himself as though he was the charge of cowardice which had been fastened upon him come lily you must go into your cabin now added dan tenderly as he turned to lily this is no place for you o i m not afraid of the guns dan only of the slave hunters and i cannot hide myself from them you may escape if you stay in the cabin and you can do no good here i shall feel better to know that you are in a place of safety i m not afraid dan really i am not replied she earnestly but you are in our way here lily do go into your cabin and lie down in your berth i will if i am in the way if we have to fight it wiu be right here and i am determined to resist to the last i will go and dan led her to the door of her cabin she entered and threw herself upon the cushions of the berth and dan satisfied that she was in a by watch and wait ok place of comparative safety turned his attention to the defence of his party can you handle a gun said he turning to who appeared to be as cool and resolute as the well i done shoot some replied take a gun then gasped silence keep both eyes on the sails or i ll put a bullet through your head i didn t expect you would be a coward at such a time as this dis ain t a coward answered rising from his seat sit down and mind your then i give me de gun and i ll show you ain t no coward no how you never fired a gun in your life you would be more likely to shoot yourself than any body else mind your that s all we want of you dis ain t no coward no how growled as he cast his eyes at the sails fire way and show folks s no coward by the young to fire into folks in de boat i am if occasion requires replied dan as he discharged the gun he held in his hand in the direction of the but i want to let them know that we are armed and able to give as good as they send i don t want to kill any of them if i can help it i don t mind ob em s what done do to me if a chance stop your boat shouted one of the men again and it was evident from the tones of the speaker that the report of the gun from the was not altogether favorable to the views of the dan made no reply but loaded up his gun for further use stop your boat or we ll fire into you again shouted the speaker if you do you will get as good as you send answered dan as he put the cap upon his piece the reply was followed by another shot from the slave hunters but the ball whistled far above the heads of the dan took deliberate aim at by watch and wait oe the boat and fired ordering to do the sam so far as they could discover neither of the shots took effect from this time both parties kept up an occasional firing but as the night was so dark and the motion of the boats not favorable to a steady aim no one in the was hit and dan and his companion were not aware of any different result to the other boat maintained his position at the with the of an old salt who had stood at the wheel in a hundred battles and dan witnessing his improved began to think his singular conduct had been the result of excitement rather than of timidity but one thing was painfully evident to all on board of the that the boat was gaining	36
roared one of the enemy with a horrible oath don t go no keep her a goin replied another we ll fix em in a minute now the boat dashed up towards the but dan as soon as he had fired leaped from his place and seizing the fifty six pound weight it full into the bottom of the boat the heard the pine boards crash as the weight broke its way through and went to the bottom of the lake stand by now shouted dan as he seized his club and dealt a heavy blow upon the head of the slave hunter who was in the act of leaping on board the we re cried another of them and the of the in which they sailed was nearly by the g they had no time to act upon the it was all they could do to secure their own safety just then the expected struck the and though dan had before cast off all the sheets she over till the water flowed into the standing room her watchful sprung to the and in an instant she partially and darted forward like a pricked with the spur we are safe exclaimed dan as lily rushed from her cabin startled by the exciting events which had just by watch and wait ob chapter xv the oe the down the shouted dan as the gathered way and ahead be quick but be careful of yourself with the assistance of got the in though it was not without a deal of hard for the wind now blew a fierce gale as soon as sail was thus reduced the sheets of the and were secured and the lay down to her work dashing through the water at a furious rate we are all right now lily said dan go into your cabin again or you will be blown away were any of you hurt in the fight asked she as loud as she could scream for the wind howled fearfully through the of the no we are all well and hearty go to the cabin lily by the young she returned to her place of security and seemed to he satisfied that the hour of peril had passed for the thunder and the lightning the dashing waves and the roaring wind had no terrors compared with those produced by the presence of the slave hunters the labored fearfully in the heavy and it was only by the exercise of all his skill that dan could keep her right side up he was obliged as the of wind struck her to ease off the sheets and to her up by the glare of the blinding lightning he obtained the position of the boat in the lake or he might have run her on shore and with the beautiful craft wrecked all the hopes of his party here and stand by to this we can t stand this long said dan as he threw the up into the wind above the howling of the tempest we all go to de bottom for no we won t stand by and work lively let go the peak replied he as he cast off the throat on the other side haul the sail as fast as you can by watch wait ok with the still drawing full the continued steadily on her course while dan and put a double in the standing at the in the mean time and acting under the direction of the now up with it added dan when the were all taken up the was hoisted and again the dashed madly on her course for she had now all the sail she could carry in that fierce blow dan stood at the with his eyes measuring the distances as the vivid lightning revealed the bearings of the shores was ordered to the to keep a sharp ahead was directed out the boat for at least a of water had poured in over the side when the flaw struck her the came in heavy each one of which threatened to knock down the and if her had not been a thorough such must have been her fate by meeting the as they struck her he prevented her from under ordinary circumstances he would have deemed by the i it highly to carry any sail and would have the boat with a long cable but this was the battle of freedom and success was worth any risk and any peril which it might require the tempest however was of short duration when the rain began to pour in torrents the gale subsided the were shaken out and finally the was set again the wind continued to blow pretty fresh but all danger was at an end what you pose come ob men asked as he finished his task of out the b lt i don t know but i feel confident that not all of them are able to tell what has happened to them one of them was hit de shot added and i struck one over the head with a two be gone killed dead for sure said with solemn earnestness of course it was not possible for them to get ashore for their boat was stove all to pieces do you know them yes s all hunters by watch and wait ok could tliey swim i but i s could it would not make much difference whether they could or not the wind blew a for a few moments must be all dead replied the man shaking his head i m afraid they are but it was not our fault if i thought they were i would not go down the lake any farther added dan musing i feels almost s gone to reward may de good lo d mercy on sinful souls dan considered the question for a time in silence and finally determined to put the boat about and head her	36
for his destination at the north corner of the lake the rain still came down in torrents but as all on deck were provided with rubber coats belonging to the boat which had been provided for the use of the and his guests on board they did not suffer and were not even very uncomfortable but if they had been it would not have been regarded as a serious matter amid the fierce of that night by the the storm was nothing more than one of those sudden showers which come up so unexpectedly at the south we once passed through a in which came in a shower that gathered upon a blue sky in less than half an hour it tore up tall trees as though they had been and rolled up the so that it looked like a boiling in half an hour more the sun was shining on the scene of as though nature had no terrors in her of forces in an hour after the exciting scene on the lake the had a gentle breeze and fair weather still maintained his position on the and lily once more ventured into the standing room dan gave her a minute account of the with the slave hunters and concluded by stating his belief that all three of them had been drowned in the lake lily shuddered at the thought for the taking of a human life even in defence of the freedom which she valued more highly than life itself seemed a terrible thing to her gentle heart by watch and wait ob perhaps tliey are not dead said she perhaps not but it is hardly possible that they could have ashore we were at least three miles from the land and their boat was all stove to pieces might hold on to de boat suggested but there was an awful sea for a few moments why the water dashed clean over our decks added dan one of them may have saved himself but i am confident the other two must have been lost hi dan shouted from his position at he heel of the what is it s added pointing ver to as he walked aft what is it it s de boat ob de hunters perhaps it is said dan musing and our bounded or dying enemies may be clinging to it shall we save them kill us ef we does exclaimed by the your enemies said let us if we can we kin tie bands and em i don t tbey are we must save lives added tbe gentle lily and perhaps lose our own but i will tbe boat to satisfy myself whether the men were lost or not said dan as he let out the main sheet and put up the stand by with the in a few moments the had run up to the wreck of the boat and it with the boat hook there were no men clinging to it but in the bottom of the boat covered over with water lay the body of one of the slave hunters it was probably the one who had been shot he had not been killed at once for he had spoken after he was hit it looked as though he had been drowned in the bottom of the boat where he lay the were filled with horror at this discovery poor lily had nearly fainted and if had been shot himself he could hardly have made by watch and wait or a stronger demonstration uttered many pious showing that he had from his heart forgiven this man who an hour before had for his blood dan though not less impressed than his companions was calm and resolute this body may betray us said he we must sink it in the lake exclaimed with a thrill of horror we have no time to spare added dan briskly bring up another fifty six the weight was brought up and tied to the corpse of the slave hunter as it lay in the boat dan then ordered his companions to tip the boat over but asking for a moment s delay threw himself upon his knees and commenced an earnest prayer in behalf of the deceased forgiveness for his enemy dan listened reverently to the prayer while lily sobbed as though the departed slave hunter had been her dearest friend instead of the bitter foe of her race the service was ended the boat was till the body rolled out and disappeared in the depths of the lake by the young may de good lo d mercy on his poor sinful soul for de of sake exclaimed as tlie corpse sank to its resting place make fast the boat to that on the quarter said dan as he hauled aft the sheets and put his down obeyed and the filled away upon her course again lily was calmer now but she was still much impressed by the solemn and awful scene of which she had just been a witness it s all over now lily don t think any more about it said dan in soothing tones it is terrible isn t it dan replied she with a shudder it is lily but there was no help for it all that we have done was in self defence but it is awful to think of killing them it is better as it is than if we had let them take us did you really mean to kill them dan not if i could help it but i would have killed a dozen of them rather than be carried back into slavery by watch and wait ob we didn t kill em lily interposed done de good lo d strike em down like he did de in de red sea in de midst ob wickedness we kill em lily that s it lily added dan the explanation though the religious aspect of the case	36
was not so strongly impressed upon his mind as upon that of his pious companion we might have saved them continued the gentle hearted girl who derived but little consolation from the words of you might have taken them on board when the came why lily i had just smashed their boat with my own hands and i wasn t going to put my head into the lion s mouth it is best as it is lily the death of these men will remove all danger from our path for no one has seen us except them but how awful sighed she i told you lily before we started that terrible things might happen to us you shall be free let this thought comfort you but it did not comfort her and she continued to by the the catastrophe that had befallen the till the attention of her companions was called to the position of the s land on de sides of us called who had again been stationed at the heel of the to act as man all right i see it responded dan let go the how does it look ahead dark as de back of dis s hand look out sharp do for the continued slowly on her course for the woods on the shore now began to shelter the sails from the full force of the wind the corner of the lake grew with every moment she advanced till the boat was not more than a couple of rods from either shore she was running up one of the of the lake presently the creek was less than thirty feet wide and having passed round a bend so as to hide her from the open lake dan ordered his companions to make fast to a tree as he ran her up to the shore by wa and wait ob xvi the swamp the place where the had been was in the midst of a gloomy and extensive swamp though dan had never been here before he had heard of the region and from the first had determined to conceal his party within its deep and almost impenetrable the swamp was about fifteen miles in extent from north to south and ten from east to west it was full of and and inhabited only by and other wild animals of the south west it was impossible to penetrate the swamp without a boat for the of the region consisted only of islands covered with trees most of them surrounded by shallow and muddy waters it is doubtful whether any human being had ever fully this extensive swamp and dan was confident that by the if he could succeed in making his way with the to a distance of two or three miles from the lake his party would he free from intrusion unless indeed the slave hunters made a business of driving them from their covert the information of the leader of the expedition in regard to the swamp was exceedingly limited all he knew had been derived from colonel who in conversation with some of his friends had mentioned the region and given a partial description of it he had learned that the which was the outlet of the waters of the swamp was by fallen timber a short distance from the lake as slaves could not live in this desolate place there had been no occasion to pursue them into its deep recesses the party on board the were very much fatigued by the labor and excitement of the night and when the was safely dan declared that nothing more should be done until the party had rested themselves it was not yet daylight and the boat was in a secure position but we must not all go to sleep added dan by watch wait or i intend to keep a watch night and day while we stay in this place if it should be for a year what s de use of de watch yawned as he stretched himself and opened his mouth wide enough to take in a small suppose half a dozen slave hunters should come up here while we are all asleep replied dan sharply pose come when we re all awake what den we can beat them off as we did those last night some ob us killed for shore if keep de guns better die than be taken we must believe this before we can be sure of success s what i s to do added dis will fight till ain t ob him ye kin be shore ob den if you s all to fight ain t to be out ob de fashion for i s don t know much about de guns but kin split a two inch plank a it i s can t by the young but i can grinned you kin bet your life dis ain t no coward no how you did very well last night and i hope you wall stand up to your principles said dan what s what do you think he s sleepy yawned he opening his mouth in a fearful i s stand up to for shore very w ell but one of us shall stand while the others sleep which shall it be ril be de i done sleep some last night said you didn t your eyes once whose turn next s for you m did a big ting last night dan we all done to de bottom ob de lake or de hunters us for shore if t for you dan you kin sleep all day i m very tired and need rest for we have hard work before us but you must keep awake whoever is on the watch our lives depend upon the man on the watch you kin trust me dan replied by watch wait oh so you kin me added dan examined all the guns to see that	36
they were in condition for immediate use and then turned in to obtain the rest he so much needed lily had already retired and before the weary could close his eyes was like a sleepy was tired and sleepy as well as his companions but it was a matter of conscience with him to keep awake he walked up and down the standing room in his bare feet that the noise might not disturb the to guard against the possibility of being to the solemn duty which had been imposed upon him the sun rose bright and clear and the solitary still kept over the sleeping party in the cabin two hours four hours elapsed and still paced the deck it was full six hours before the showed any signs of life lily was the first to wake and come on deck in a whisper she told to go to his berth and permit her to keep the watch at first he objected but her finally overcame his scruples and he crept softly to his in the forward cabin in a by the young few moments lie was sleeping as soundly as the rest the two boys were physically incapable of going without their rest they were growing and to sit up all night filled with anxiety and excitement was more than they could bear without nature s strongest protest they slept hour after hour and lily faithfully performed her duty as over them the swamp was as still as the house of death not a sound was to be heard for even the were motionless as they themselves upon the dead logs of the dan having slept eight hours strong was the first to appear on deck as he looked at his watch he was surprised to find it so late and surprised to find lily acting as watch on deck his orders had been disregarded but lily was too powerful an advocate with him to permit any blame to be cast upon his companions she persuaded him that every thing which had been done was for the best soon after made his appearance having slept all he could at one stretch and the boys proceeded to get breakfast ham and eggs coffee and toast constituted by watch and wait or the prepared by the skilful hand of lily though she was assisted by her willing friends did not wake till the meal was ready to be put upon the table and the party all sat down to this banquet in the forward cabin with the feeling that they were fortunate beyond all other that had ever escaped to the swamp after breakfast or rather dinner if we the meal by the time of day lily insisted upon her right to clear off the table and wash the dishes which was yielded after some discussion though with the that should assist in the y work while they were thus engaged dan and took the which had been put into the water before dinner and rowed up the to explore the region above them finding an passage for about two miles they returned by this time the work of the was finished and the labor of the up the was commenced as the water was very shallow in some places they had to follow the channel and it was when they had her to the point they had reached in the by the young that will do very well said dan as they made her fast to a tree de hunters find us here for as he dashed the sweat from his brow we are not in a safe place yet continued dan but we are in no hurry and we won t do any more to day let us have supper and go to bed lily had already made the tea and had every thing in a forward state of preparation after supper the important question of the watch came up again for consideration we may as well settle this matter once for all said dan i suppose six hours sleep is enough for any of us plenty added said shaking his head and gaping as though he had not slept any for a week dis goes to sleep at eight and wakes up at five how long s dan nine hours that s enough for a for a too i have got a plan all ready and if you agree to it we will adopt it added dan by watch and wait os you s de cap n and we to it or not you your own way continued not at all we ll have no captain here we are not at sea and we will all be equal what we do will be for our own safety i intend to keep my watch and do my share of the work so you needn t in his life you seem to think that i want to make you do more than your share no i s you do more n your share dan ain t but a and you s a gen come come i shall be angry if you talk in that way i am just the same as the rest of you that ll do you s got all de brains and knows what to do and where to go what become ob us dan s what i added you does de and we does de i shall do my part of the work now listen to by the young me and i will tell you how i think the work ought to be divided we ll go to bed at nine o clock and turn out at five s um nodded i will take the first watch to night till one o clock and the second till five in the morning but s my watch demanded at five o clock you shall turn out and get breakfast to morrow	36
in the gulf we should perish with the cold or founder in a gale we may have to be at sea a month we shall have to meet our greatest perils after we leave this place well i s pose you knows best dan and we s to do what you say replied meekly s um dan you j us tell dis you wants done and we s to do but do it said but we must have something to eat while we remain here added dan s so can t we can do as the indians do we can hunt and fish suggested dan plenty ob ducks and and and we have pieces with plenty of powder and shot but none of us are hunters and i m afraid we shall not have very good luck in shooting game it was decided that dan and should try luck on the following day and having taken an breakfast they started in the down the by watch wait oe in the direction of the lake dan was provided with a piece while was to try his luck as a the former was landed at a convenient place while the latter pushed off into the deep waters of the lake each to exercise his craft to the best of his ability on the shore of the lake dan saw an abundance of wild ducks but they were so very wild that he found a great deal of difficulty in getting near enough to risk the expenditure of any portion of the precious which to last a year he fired twice without the game and began to think that he was never intended for a the third time he wounded a duck but lost him this was hopeful and he determined to at the next shot he actually a and what was better he believed he had got the hang of the business so that he could hunt with some success we will not follow him through the trials and disappointments of a six hours tramp but the result of his day s shooting was five ducks and one goose with which he was entirely satisfied a ith the game in his bag he hastened back to the place where by the young had landed him in the the other had been waiting two s for him and had been even more fortunate than his companion having captured about a dozen good sized the result of the expedition was very promising and the food question appeared to b settled with light hearts they pulled back to the camp as dan had their dwelling place in the swamp wh re is asked dan as he hauled the boat through the dense thicket which concealed the from the gaze of any he is here on deck replied lily with a troubled expression something what s the matter i don t know he is very sick and i am so glad you have come added the poor girl who appeared to have suffered an age of agony in the absence of the hunter dan was alarmed for he had not yet considered even the possibility of the serious illness of any member of the party and lily s announcement up in his vivid imagination visions of suffering and death he was full of sympathy too for his by watch wait or companion to he was strongly attached with a heart full of painful and terrible he leaped upon the deck of the and rushed to the standing room where lay upon the floor the sufferer had evidently just rolled off the seat and was disposed in the most awkward and uncomfortable position into which the human form could be distorted dan and immediately raised tenderly from the floor and placed him upon the this movement seemed to disturb the sufferer and ho opened his eyes muttering some words at the same time he threw his arms and legs about in a frightful manner dan was quite as much puzzled and alarmed as lily had been he did not know what to do for him his experience as a nurse had been very limited and his knowledge of human was extremely deficient what him asked lily whose anxiety for the patient completely her beautiful face i don t know replied dan hardly less for the fate of his friend how long has he been sick by the young after you went away i was busy in the cabin for two or three hours taking care of the dishes and cleaning up the place when i came on deck he seemed to act very strangely i never heard him talk so fast before he said he felt sick and thought he should he was so weak he could not walk when he tried to do so he staggered and fell i helped him upon the seat and then he seemed to be asleep i bathed his head with cold water when he up he was stupid and i was afraid he would die before you got back i didn t know what to do so i gave him some brandy how much did you give him asked dan only about half a full as much as you gave when he was sick poor fellow you don t know how much i have suffered in your absence during this conversation who had more skill as a physician and nurse than his companions had been carefully examining the patient what do you think of him asked dan as he turned from lily to consult with him i s hope for replied he a queer by watch or smile j laying about ms as lie glanced at tlie anxious leader of the party do you then you understand the case do you yes i do for my old used to such fits as added his countenance beaming with intelligence what did you do for him	36
but put him to bed and let him sleep it off i cold water good for him s what used to do for old when he it bad at the suggestion of was placed outside of the and half a dozen of cold water were dashed upon him by the hand of the negro nurse roared as the first bucket fell upon him see exclaimed triumphantly he done better so quick him some more and he dashed another upon him go away cried trying to rise but dan held him fast by the young do liim heaps ob good added and he continued to apply the harsh remedy don t do it any more interposed lily who seemed to think the remedy was as had as the disorder do him power ob good drive de fit right away from him answered as he dashed another bucket of cold water upon the patient s call de go away screamed dis lone don t he does not like it said lily pose he don t nobody likes de medicine but you may kill him added dan kill him don t you see he s better all de time u do replied as he carried the bucket to the what s the matter demanded do you feel better asked dan tenderly as he permitted the patient to roll over into the standing room by watch and wait or yes i s born way down de i s crossed de on a cotton wood roared trying to sing a familiar song why he is crazy exclaimed lily yes he s crazy but he soon it answered laughing why do you laugh you don t seem to be at all concerned about him added lily bad fit what him bad fit my use to lots ob fits chuckled but what kind of a fit is it only done drink too much and get drunk s all by the young chapter xviii the on the lake even lily laughed m hen she realized that her friend was in no danger of dying in the bad fit which had attacked him she laughed at his strange actions and his silly expressions they all laughed for a time but there was something very serious in the occasion the patient was taken down into the cabin and put to bed in his when he was asleep again and the rest of the party had returned to the deck the serious part of the affair came up for consideration and the meeting was so solemn and momentous that even the good luck of the two was forgotten and the game and fish were allowed to remain unnoticed in the to dan and lily it was a terrible thing for a boy like to get drunk it was very funny but it was awfully serious in view of future consequences by watch an d wait ob several bottles of wine and liquor had been deposited in the under the seats in the standing room and had helped himself as he sat there alone this was the key to his mysterious sickness and while his companions congratulated themselves upon s expected recovery it was deemed prudent to place all the on board in a secure place a in lily s cabin was selected for this purpose and it was soon out of s reach dan wanted to throw all the liquor overboard except a couple of bottles to be used as medicine but thought that some use might be made of it at a future time there was no one on board except who would drink it and he had rather as a than because he had any taste for the fiery article the patient slept all the rest of the day and all the following night the next morning he was afflicted with a terrible headache and was so stupid that he was good for nothing he was severely for his folly and made a solemn promise never to partake again and as the dangerous by the young was all locked up and the key in lily s possession it was believed that he would not his obligation roast ducks and and fish were the food of the party for several days to come and the change from salt provision was very agreeable about once a week dan and repeated the excursion to the lake and almost always returned with a plentiful supply of fish and game the lived well especially as and an occasional wild turkey their table a roast was not an unusual luxury for by extending their hunting grounds in various directions they added very much to the variety of their the small stores such as butter salt sugar coffee and tea were exhausted in the fall though they had been very carefully expended they had been so long accustomed to their luxurious living that the want of these articles was felt as a very great hardship their nice ducks and were absolutely without salt and dan came to the conclusion that salt was a necessity and that it must be procured at any risk about twenty miles from by watch and wait or the camp there was a village where could be obtained and after a great deal of consideration it was decided to undertake a journey for this purpose they had been five months in the swamp without seeing any human being though dan and in one of their hunting had heard voices on the lake they felt entirely secure in the camp and lily was not afraid to remain with while dan and went after the needed supplies it was resolved that dan should pass himself off as a white boy who with a party of hunters had in the woods he therefore dressed himself for the part he was to play and embarked in the with who was to act as his servant with the utmost care they pursued	36
ble property as you can said dan as he took his piece you must come with me i know that in the boat with you and i reckon you belong to colonel i you villain how dare you insult me i am a free white man perhaps you be but you ve been advertised enough to let any man in these parts know you that belongs to my neighbor if you ve a mind to come in quietly i ll see you let off without any i have no mind to come in either quietly or otherwise replied dan then the s your own and fired the ball whistled within a few feet of dan s head but by the peril he raised his gun and fired by the i m hit groaned as he sank down into the boat the other man in the boat with took the gun loaded it and fired at that moment dan had stooped down to pick up his shot and being the more prominent party in the the other man fired at him de lo d me groaned as he placed both hands on his chest dan was ready to fire again but to his astonishment he saw the man who had shot his companion seize the oars and pull away from the spot as fast as he could it was evident that the fate of his companion had appalled him and seeing dan nearly ready to discharge his gun again he hastened to the distance between them he rowed with the desperation of a doomed man as the boat raised himself up as if to assure the that he was not dead dan pointed the gun at the retreating boat for some time and then fired but not with the by watch and wait tion of his savage foes they were but he did not wish to kill them the boat shortly and dan turned his attention to his wounded companion the ball had passed through his lungs and had penetrated a vital organ deeply affected by the event he did what he could to the blood but poor was past the aid of any and breathed his last a few minutes later fearful that other might soon appear dan worked the boat up the as rapidly as he could alone but it was late at night when he reached the camp then he wept then the tears of lily mingled with his own over the corpse of the honest and faithful whose spirit had aloft where the black man is as free as his white by the young chapter xix ok the watch the death of poor filled ms companions with sorrow and dismay there was weeping all night long on board of the he had been a true and faithful friend to each individual of the party and they were all sincerely and attached to him with this sad came the sense of personal peril for those who had slain their associate would not be content till they had driven his companions from their covert and shed their blood or again reduced them to slavery lily was disposed to abandon all her hopes in despair and trembled with fear as he thought of what the next day or the next week might bring forth but the energy and firmness of dan soon their fears and restored in some measure the confidence which had before prevailed in the camp by s watch and wait or we have defeated the slave hunters twice and we can do it again said he as he rose from his seat at the table around which as dan ate his supper the party had considered their sad and perilous condition it s terrible to think of poor said lily he was so good and kind and we have one arm less to assist in our defence don t cry any more lily i m afraid we haven t seen the worst of it yet can t we do something can t we get away from this place asked lily that is impossible the water is too low to float the down to the lake even if she were ready to go it will take several days to her and put her in order for our voyage what will become of us i don t know i hope for the best don t cry lily i am not afraid of any thing if we are resolute we can defend ourselves if the slave hunters should find us which i don t think they can it s awful to think of fighting and being shot murmured lily as she cast a tender glance at dan by the young i thought of all these things before we started and i will not shrink from them now but come we must go to work and the the stores which had been procured at such a terrible sacrifice were taken on board the while the body of poor was laid upon the trunk cabin and covered up with a blanket as they lifted the lifeless form from the dan could not but recall the extravagant joy of the deceased when the stores were safely embarked the scene which followed was a sad on the hopes which the honest fellow had cherished only a few hours before it was necessary that the corpse should be buried that night for the weather was warm and none knew what were to be the events of the coming day a suitable spot was selected on one of the adjacent islands where and dan dug a shallow grave the remains of poor wrapped in the blanket were then conveyed in the to the spot and deposited in their final resting place by the dim light of the lantern dan read a chapter from his testament and then all of them knelt around the grave no audible prayers were repeated but the hearts of by watch and	36
wait ob these sincere were filled with the spirit of prayer and he who wants no vain words to praise him accepted the solemn but silent service the grave was filled and the used all their ingenuity to conceal the broken ground that it might not betray them to the slave hunters wh might soon visit the spot with sad hearts they returned to the camp dan was nearly exhausted by the fatigue and anxiety of the last two days but he could not sleep while there was any thing to be done to prepare for the expected visit of the slave hunters his first care was to put all the arms and in readiness he then showed lily how to load a gun that she might assist them in the defence on the islands they had collected a great quantity of logs to serve them for fuel during the winter these ere carried upon the deck of the and so arranged as to form a kind of to shield the boys from the bullets of the enemy by noon on the following day every thing that could be thought of to conceal or defend the camp had been done they were ready for the slave hunters then and if by the young had only been with them they would have felt confident of tlie result of an attack in the afternoon dan was so worn out that he could endure no more and at lily s urgent request he went below and was soon asleep was fully alive to the necessities of the occasion he kept his eyes and ears wide open but he neither saw nor heard any thing that indicated the approach of an enemy lily though very much alarmed was as resolute as her companions for she knew and felt what slavery would be if its were again fastened upon her she was a gentle timid shrinking girl but she was determined to die rather than be restored to the tyranny of her capricious mistress and the more terrible fate which would eventually overtake her the long gloomy night that followed passed away the anxious still keeping by turns upon the deck of the the next day while lily was keeping watch both dan and being asleep in the cabin she heard the dip of oars in the her heart beat a furious against her ribs and she almost sank with horror as she by watch a i wait ok listened to the sounds indicated the of the dreaded enemy it was her duty to call dan but she seemed to he to her seat the sounds came nearer and nearer and soon she could hear the voices of the slave hunters she could distinguish the curses that fell from their lips as they advanced and she was faint and sick with apprehension the was at some distance from the which led to the lake but through the dense foliage which the boat she could discover the slave hunters they were now not forty rods distant and the slightest sound might betray their with quivering lips and trembling limbs she peered through the bushes to ascertain whether the boat turned up the channel which led to the camp it was a moment of terrible suspense a moment with the issues of freedom or slavery life or death why did she not call her companions who were sleeping peacefully in the cabin while she was torn and distracted by these fears she dared not do so lest one of them should speak and by the young betray them all was impetuous and a word from him might render futile the labors and the perils of months hardly daring to breathe lest it should undo them she watched the progress of the boat the paused at the mouth of the channel consulted for a few moments and then the bow of the boat was turned towards the camp with a gasp of horror lily crouched down upon the floor of the standing room and crept towards the cabin door a torrent of despair seemed to be turned loose upon her soul she grasped the side of the cabin door when suddenly all her strength her and she sank senseless upon the floor the terrible agony of that tremendous moment was more than she could endure and she fainted the frail and delicate had failed in the important duty she had assumed at the very instant when her warning notes were most needed and the were then apparently at the mercy of the slave hunters dan slept slept both wearied out with watching and hard work all unconscious that their gentle willing had failed them by watch and wait oe and that the they dreaded were within pistol shot of their retreat they slept and were silent lily senseless upon the floor of the standing room pale and motionless as a marble statue in the form of beauty was silent as the grave not a breath of air stirred the forest leaves not a ripple agitated the waters it was perfect stillness in the camp there was no sound to disturb the solemn quiet of that temple of nature save the speech of the slave hunters mingled with curses there was none to keep watch and ward in the camp of the none but he who watches over the innocent when they sleep and when they wake he was there keeping ceaseless by the senseless maiden and over the sleeping boys he all things well and the very silence that reigned in the camp saved the from the keen scrutiny of the enemy the hunters remained in the vicinity for a few and finding no to the turned their boat and went back to the they proceeded up the stream a few miles farther and by the the in this direction returned to the still dan slept and slept and lily still lay silent in marble stillness	36
t help thinking what might have happened if the slave hunters had found us while we were all asleep replied dan seriously but i will not blame you lily the slave hunters did not find us i think it was all for the best dan that i fainted indeed if i had you and you might have made a noise that would have exposed us answered lily very solemnly i think it was the good god that took mj strength away in order to preserve us all it may be but i had rather be awake when there is any danger if you had been awake you might have been shot and then what would have become of us lily was fully satisfied that her fainting was a special providence which had saved them all from capture or death dan was not so clear upon this point and resolved never to sleep again when there was a possibility of an attack for al weeks after these exciting incidents all the confined themselves to the and the by the islands on either side of her indeed between dan and it was about enough for them to do the necessary work and keep watch and watch during the day and night as nothing more was seen or heard of the slave hunters they concluded that the search had been abandoned and they soon ceased to dread their dan ventured to hunt again and every thing went off as before though all the party missed very much the autumn passed away the winter came and then the spring if our space would permit us to record the daily life of the young while they remained in the swamp it would no doubt be inter to our readers and for their sake no less than for our own we regret that our limits do not admit of this lengthened narrative they had many trials from cold and storms from high water in the and low water in the from and but they lived through it all lily was sick a fortnight and dan a week their fuel gave out in the of the weather and an bit off the heel of s boots and a hundred other events occurred which would bear an extended by watch and wait oh recital but we turn from them with regret to the closing events in the career of the young with the high water in april dan and went to work in the most vigorous manner to prepare the for the uncertain sea voyage which was before her after a month of hard labor she was the sails bent her water filled a supply of fuel put in the fore hold and the remaining stores conveniently for the on the of may every thing was in readiness the in the channel were removed and at sunset with a breeze the hauled out of the channel and commenced her voyage by the young xxi wn the lake at the period of which we write the through the country had not been constructed and the population was very scattered oyer this region most of the available land however was occupied but of course none of the little villages which spring up around railroad stations and which in the course of years grow into large towns and cities had yet appeared with many doubts and fears in regard to the future the young commenced the voyage to the gulf it was seventy miles from the camp and it was absolutely necessary that the trip should be performed by night for the lake at the season of high water was for small with other craft occasionally passed over its tide in the passage down they were liable to by watch wait or meet some of boats and though the search for the had long since ceased the might be recognized and the mystery of her singular disappearance explained dan was determined to be very cautious and to expose his party to no risks which could possibly be avoided the voyage was perilous enough at best and he was not disposed to trifle with the good fortune which had thus far attended the expedition he knew nothing of the of the lake or of the river through which he must pass to the gulf of he was therefore exposed to many perils the boat might get at a perilous point which might expose them to an examination from some inquisitive he might be stopped by a steamer or by a boat and the taken into because they could not give a good account of themselves then if he succeeded in reaching the gulf he knew that a day s sail at the most would take him out of sight of land and he had nothing but a small compass and a map of the coast of by the young and to guide him he had no expectation of being able to reach the free north in the he depended upon being picked up by some vessel bound to new york or philadelphia and he had read the newspapers and listened to the conversation of his master and his guests enough to know that were very cautious about carrying slaves to the north but he had made his plans and hoped he should be able to overcome even this most formidable difficulty to contend against all these adverse circumstances he had a good boat though she was not fully adapted to a sea voyage with her light draught she had but a slight hold on the water yet dan was an excellent and trusted in his skill to overcome the of his vessel the was well for at least a month and if the weather was even tolerably favorable he felt confident that he should be able to contend successfully against the elements at any rate he feared the ocean storm and distance less than the hunters of the south with these	36
parts of the lake he counted three boats moving about near the shore these signs produced an intense uneasiness in his mind which was not lessened by the appearance of lily who came upon deck about this time while he was explaining to her the nature of their position the smoke of a little steamer was seen beyond the islands she soon came in sight by watch wait ob and was directly towards the spot where the lay dan and his fair companion were appalled by this new danger for a suspicion in the mind of any person on board the steamer hardly fail of being fatal to them but dan v as soon prepared to make the best of the circumstances called he as he rushed into the cabin what s de matter stammered springing to his feet go on deck at once replied dan as he the powder horn and shot over his shoulders and took one of the pieces was on deck before him and the nature of the danger which them the which had been placed upon deck was launched and was directed to get into it with the oars and pull off a few rods from the now lily you must go to your cabin close the door and on no account show yourself while the steamer is in sight said dan but what are you going to do dan asked she by the young witli an expression of the deepest concern are you going to shoot any one no dear replied dan with a smile at her fears i am going to pretend to be a as we can t get out of the way of the steamer i intend to be as bold and impudent as i can there go to your cabin now and we will hope for the best lily retired to the cabin closed the door after her and threw herself on her knees to pray for the safety of herself and her friends during the impending peril in the mean time dan walked up and down the deck with the gun in his hand apparently looking in all directions for game just as the came within distance of the a couple of fortunately flew over and dan fired his practice in the swamp had made him a very good and he was so lucky as to bring down one of the birds as before instructed pulled with all his might to the spot where the game had fallen shouted he fetch bird down for shore when he uttered this exclamation the was within a few yards of the steamer and the few pas by watch wait ok on board of lier anxious to see the sport hastened to the deck and thus obtained a full view of the as she rounded in under her stern on her way to the plantation where she evidently intended to make a landing any news below shouted dan the steamer as she approached by heaven that s my boat and my boy exclaimed a gentleman on the deck as the steamer glanced by the stop the boat stop her it was colonel by the young chapter xxii the the dan heard the words of the gentleman on the deck of the for that was the name of the steamer and at once recognized his master the worst fear that he had entertained was fully realized that unfortunate calm had betrayed him into the hands of his enemy but he was fully determined to carry out his resolution and fight for life and liberty even if he had to contend against the whole force of the steamer it appeared that the request or rather the command of colonel to stop the boat was not immediately complied with for she continued on her course for several minutes before her wheels ceased to and when she did stop she was fully a quarter of a mile from the by this time returned with the bird which the had by watch and wait ob killed and dan announced the appalling fact that colonel was on board of the steamer and had recognized him and the boat exclaimed leaping upon the deck of the what we to do take this gun and do as i do replied dan as he went into the cabin after the rifle to shoot him groaned to shoot do you want to go back to with him demanded dan with compressed lips don t want to go back for shore dis s a free man now then use your gun when i tell you do for replied he examining the lock of the piece dis shoot de whole crowd if you says so dan don t fire till i tell you and take good aim added the as he finished the rifle what s the matter dan asked lily opening the cabin door a little way for she had heard the stirring words of her friends on deck by the young dan told her in as few words as possible what had happened and the poor girl nearly fainted when she heard the name of her master then we are lost added she in tones tremulous with emotion not yet lily be of good courage and don t show yourself on deck the maiden threw herself upon her knees by her cot and prayed fervently that god would his strong arm to save them from the fate which now seemed to be inevitable while she prayed dan and worked and made such preparations for the encounter as their limited means would allow there was a small number of passengers on board of the steamer and the resolute captain of the hoped that a few shots would them and prevent colonel from rushing upon certain death but the of was as resolute as his and a battery of would not have deprived him of the satisfaction of	36
upon the though no fear could the master from attempting to recover what he regarded by watch and wait or as his own by the law of god and man it was otherwise with the captain of the for he declared that he was in a tremendous hurry to make his trip having been detained over night at the foot of the lake he with colonel in his desire to recover his slaves but he positively refused to put the boat about and capture the it is not improbable that the captain of the steamer saw the guns and the preparations made to receive a boarding party and possibly he reasoned in his own mind that a chance shot was as likely to kill him as any other man on board at any rate he was as resolute in his refusal as any of the resolute parties we have already mentioned dan could hardly believe his senses when he saw the standing out towards the before the plantation when her wheels started again he himself for the encounter for he supposed she would come about and bear down upon him it was incredible that colonel should give up the chase without an effort to capture them and he knew his master too well to think after more consideration that he would abandon his slaves without an energetic effort to recover them by the young the steamer went in to the landing place leaving dan to wonder and rejoice at the happy turn which had taken place in the affairs of his party he informed lily of the altered state of things on deck and the devout girl was happy in the reflection that her prayers had been so promptly answered but we haven t seen the end of it yet lily o no added dan colonel will never give us up he would spend more money than we are all worth for the pleasure of me for running away but he shall never have that satisfaction i had rather die here like a man than to be to death at the dead oak can t we get away is there no chance to escape asked lily whose beating heart was full of mortal terrors what s de reason we can t take de and row to de shore and take to de woods suggested well what then demanded dan calmly why den run like a up a tree with blood hounds and slave hunters on your by watch and wait ob track no we should certainly be taken if we did that what shall we do dan murmured lily we shall certainly be taken if we stay here no we have beaten off the slave twice and we can do it again they will come in small boats and i will shoot them down one at a time if they persist answered dan bringing down the butt of the rifle upon the floor of the standing room to his words but you may be shot yourself dan said lily with a visible shudder no i will conceal myself behind the when they come within range of my rifle but can t we get away can t we escape without shooting any of them pleaded the poor girl with a natural horror of we cannot unless we have wind come exclaimed pointing to two boats pulling out from the of the plantation heaven protect and defend us cried lily i will pray for wind i will pray with all my soul for a by the young breeze dan and our father in heaven who has so often heard my prayers will hear me again stop a minute lily stop a minute interposed gazing earnestly down the lake needn t pray no more lily dare s a breeze coming up from de east de breeze am like a down a cotton tree de breeze am coming shouted as he danced round the deck like a needn t pray no more lily de breeze am come then i will thank god for sending it replied the poor girl a smile of joy playing upon her fair face if dan was not so extravagant as his companion on deck he was not less rejoiced especially as the wind from this quarter promised to be a strong one the was hastily hoisted upon the deck of the and the sails trimmed to catch the first breath of the coming breeze breeze a hun d million dollars shouted as the first puff of the welcome wind swelled the sails of the by watch and wait ok it may be worth more than that replied dan it may be life and liberty to ns the breeze had come and plenty of it but for the course the wished to lay it was dead ahead yet it mattered little v here it carried them if it only enabled them to escape from the terrible man who was the of slavery to them as the wind the lake was agitated and the dashed on as though she understood the issues which depended upon her speed in half an hour the pursuing boats could not be seen and no doubt they had abandoned the chase in despair it was useless to seek a place for concealment for the white sails of the were doubtless watched by scores of eager eyes so dan ran up under the lee of one of the small islands that dot the lake and came to anchor there he did not care to run up the lake any farther than was necessary and he did not think it prudent to beat down the lake in the face of his no more anxious than he of the ever paced a deck colonel was as energetic as he was and would leave no means to capture the by the dan was at first afraid that he would the steamer and pursue them in her but	36
would not have fired at him if i could have helped it i only hit him in the leg but he will die he may i cannot help it we should have been slaves again in a moment more if i had not fired this is horrible moaned lily but it is better than slavery replied dan firmly though he was scarcely less agitated than by the young ms gentle companion mind your and go to of that little island ahead he continued for the s ideas had been shaken up by the stirring events which had just the second boat of the was engaged in picking up the of the first and the fresh breeze there was no danger of pursuit from that direction colonel was evidently suffering severely from his wound but his mental seemed to be greater than his physical pain his mouth was still filled with curses and of rage and hatred were poured out upon the he was so violent in his agony that none of the party dared to approach him and dan stood with the piece in his hand ready to protect himself and his companions from any possible assault there he lay unable to rise but still the dashed on as if reckless of the terrible scene which had just been upon her deck colonel s wound freely and the loss of blood soon his fiery temper gradually he down and became quite reasonable by watch and wait ob at least so far as outward were concerned then dan ventured to approach liim he did not his hold upon the gun and took every precaution to guard against any sudden movement on the part of the sufferer are you much hurt sir asked dan you have killed your master replied he faintly as he looked up at the i did not mean to kill you sir and i am sorry you compelled me to fire upon you added dan in respectful and tones i am wounded and in your power now i can do nothing more and you may finish me as soon as you please groaned colonel completely subdued by weakness and the fear of death i do not wish to kill you colonel and i am willing to do all i can for you but if you attempt to make a slave again i will shoot you at once i can t harm you now if i would said the sufferer faintly then we will take you into the cabin out of the sun and do what we can for you by the young can t you land me at mr s plantation asked he lifting liis eyes np with an expression so pitiful that dan could hardly resist the petition no sir i dare not do that he replied but i will do all i can to save your life dan then went aft and explained to his companions the condition of colonel lily was placed at the with instructions how to steer and dan and with a great deal of difficulty removed the wounded to the cabin but he had lost so much blood that he fainted as soon as they had placed him upon the then took his place at the and while lily bathed the head of the patient with dan examined his wound the ball had passed entirely through the part of the about half way between the hip and the knee the blood flowed steadily from the two but not in which would indicate the of an dan was no surgeon but he had ingenuity and common sense and he used these to the best advantage his limited means would permit he tore up one of his shirts for and lily made of one by watch and wait ob of his when the sufferer had recovered from his he drank a glass of brandy which seemed to revive him but he was still very weak and breathed not a word of hatred or malice dan where we shouted from the deck who had come to a point in the lake where he required further directions the took his map and went on deck from the position of three islands laid down on his and which he identified as those near him he concluded that the had reached the outlet of the lake which is the river its course gave him a fair wind and he headed the boat down the stream as the sailing of the boat was now a matter of the utmost importance dan w as compelled to remain on deck he took the precaution to place all the fire arms on board in a safe place where colonel if his condition should so far improve as to encourage him to make an attempt to obtain possession of the boat could not get them and where he and could get them it was sunset when the entered the great and as she dashed on her course the anxious by the young saw many boats and even some larger craft but no one offered to colonel remained as quiet as a lamb he was feverish and in much pain and all night long lily sat by his and watched over him as tend as though he had been her dearest friend instead of her most terrible enemy she not only she prayed for him prayed that god v ould forgive him heal his and soften his heart and all night long the sped on her course and at midnight she entered the great bay dan was worn out anxiety and long watching and as the waters of the bay were comparatively smooth the wind having subsided to a gentle breeze he gave the to and slept three hours upon the floor of the standing room with a cushion under his head at daybreak point au fer light which was marked on dan s map lay directly ahead of them the land to	36
the westward was low and and with frequent in one of these dan came to anchor about sunrise he was much perplexed to know what he should do with colonel he could not think of going to sea by watch and wait ob with him on board and to send him back was to invite an immediate pursuit the good care which had been bestowed upon the had very sensibly improved his condition breakfast he inquired of dan where he had been for a year and the whole story of the residence in the swamp was to him in return he told the what had been done to recover them and added that he was on his way from new to mr s plantation when he discovered the colonel said not a word about his property and apparently only cherished the hope of saving himself now what are you going to do with me asked he when he had finished his narrative i don t know sir after the i got i determined to run away and i say now i would rather die than go back replied he didn t i use you well asked the colonel as well as any master can use a slave i was rather sorry afterwards that i whipped you but you were treated as well as the members of my own family and so was lily by the young but i was a slave and so was she master tormented me and miss tormented lily i could have borne it perhaps if i hadn t been whipped you have your revenge now added the meekly i am in your power i don t seek revenge and i wouldn t harm you for all the world replied dan the proud spirit of the was subdued by pain weakness and the fear of death and he was in no condition to think of resistance he offered to give the free papers if they would land him at any place where there was a surgeon and from which he could be removed to but dan dared not rim any risks the wanted to know where they were going but the prudent declined to answer this question the remained at anchor for three days under the of the land during which time colonel was carefully nursed by dan and lily but his wound was still very painful and the patient fearful of mortification or some other turn in his condition declared himself v to do any thing rather than remain an longer in this place by watch and wait ok i put you on board of some vessel if i dared to do so said dan what do you fear demanded the sufferer if you should tell the people of the vessel what we are they would capture us do you i would do that asked he in tones i a m afraid to run any risks sir will you let me die here my may i think it is growing worse instead of better added he with a groan of anguish i will give you my word if you will put me on board of any vessel bound to any place where i can get home i will give you all your freedom if you are arrested send to me and you shall have free papers you know i always keep my word it was a terrible necessity v could such a declaration from the imperious and dan decided to accept the proposition the anchor was w and the stood out of the where she had lain for three days they all day v meeting a vessel but on the following morning they hailed a small bound up the bay by the young i will keep my promise to the letter said colonel as they bore him to the deck here is some money which you m want before long and he handed dan a roll of thank you sir replied he i hope we t friends yes and if you ever want a friend come to me the crew of the asked a great many questions all of which colonel took it upon himself to answer he was placed in the cabin of the vessel and dan bidding him good by hastened back to the they parted in peace and lily could not restrain her tears as the bore away on her course by watch wait or chapter xxiv the young make a colonel is not a bad man after all said dan as the filled away he wouldn t be if be wasn t a replied lily i feel sorry for when he lay and couldn t help added if he could have helped himself he wouldn t have lain there i never saw such a change come over a man he will be ashamed of himself i know hen he gets well and it will be lucky for us it we are put of his reach he would keep his word dan you know that sh lily whose looks seemed to contain a mild rebuke of the sentiment just uttered he would at least he wouldn t wish to break his word but he will want me as soon as he gets to be colonel again by the why he was always good to us responded lily he was always liberal and generous and treated all the people well while they behaved to suit him they ought to behave well i had to and before him and before if i dared to say my soul was my own i was punished for it what did i get whipped for for striking well why did i strike him didn t he insist upon my striking him and when he came at me like a madman because i happened to hit him rather harder than i intended i was tied up to the dead oak and whipped like a mule i shall carry the	36
marks of that day to my grave continued dan earnestly but he has changed he was afraid he was going to die and he was in my power he knew i could blow out his brains any moment when he attempted to lay his hands upon me and he knew i would do it too i never saw him so mild and gentle as he was while on board the boat i hope he will always continue so and treat the by watch and or people well when lie gets back to i have nothing against him now i forgive him and i did all i for him v hen he was wounded i know you did do you suppose he will get well dan i have no doubt he will shall you send for your free papers i shouldn t dare to let him know where i am he gave us our freedom i should be afraid that he would alter his mind and though he might keep his word he might cause us to be taken up for killing the slave hunters or stealing the boat and provisions or something of that kind i shall keep out of his way if we should be arrested i would appeal to him then where are we going now dan asked lily as she glanced out upon the vast expanse of which rolled to the ard i hardly know lily we have got to the bottom of m y map i shall stand to the south east till something happens if we can fall in with a vessel which does not from or to a southern port i should have some hopes especially as we have money enough now to pay our passage by the g i how have you dan two hundred dollars replied dan exhibiting the roll of bills which the had given him colonel is generous but this would net half pay us for the services we have rendered him the pocket compass upon which the had to depend for his course was now produced and before dark that night the was out of sight of land the wind was light the weather pleasant and the sea not heavier than they had seen on the lake it was arranged that each of the boys should steer four hours in his turn night and day and the voyage which had been looked upon as many perils was found to be very pleasant for two days they were favored with good weather but on the third it came on cloudy and after dinner the was taken in and every thing made snug about the in preparation for the worst the storm increased in violence and they soon had their first experience of a heavy sea the waves tossed them about like a feather dashing over the decks and several times filling the standing room half full of water by watch and wait oh dis big sea exclaimed as lie shook tlie water from his locks yes and it is coming heavier yet replied dan but the stands it well plenty ob water on d said pointing to the which was often in the heavy perhaps we can remedy that i don t think we shall want the any more and we may as well toss it overboard it sinks her head down too much de boat overboard yes over with it if you can took a boat hook and up the and after much labor succeeded in getting it over the side though he had nearly gone with it when a big sea over the deck finished his work the effect of the step was instantly apparent in the working of the she no longer up the seas but rode over them before night it began to rain and the gale increased in violence the bonnet had been taken off the and a put in the but she could not much longer carry this sail and at dark she was put under a close poor lily was obliged to remain in the cabin and by the g she was very much alarmed at the roaring of the waves and the terrible of the but dan often assured her that there was no danger that the was splendidly during that long night there was no sleep for the ban did not leave the and stood by to obey the orders of the at midnight the gale began to moderate but the sea still ran high the sun rose bright and clear on the following morning the wind had subsided to a gentle breeze and the moved slowly along over the rolling waves and lily went to sleep after breakfast and dan still maintained his position at the which he had not left for fourteen hours he was nearly exhausted but so was and he was afraid the latter would drop asleep if he left the boat in his care while he sat by the dreaming of the future and struggling to keep awake he discovered a sail far to the southward of him the sight roused him from his for he had not seen any thing that looked like a vessel since the day he parted with by watch and wait or colonel e he was wide awake and laying his course so as to the vessel lie waited patiently till the winds her within distance it v as two hours before he could clearly make her out for the wind was very light she was a bark and dan could only hope that she was not bound to any port in the slave states he had a very good knowledge of geography and after calculating the position of the he concluded that the bark could not have come from any southern city sail ho shouted he when he was within half a mile of the bark what s the matter called lily roused from her by the shout come on	36
e and sin have been raised up in the preface story an explanation would not and ought not to for the crime the writer no saints he no he believes that his young friends admire and love the youthful heroes of the story because they are good and true because they are noble and self sacrificing and because they are generous and courageous and not merely because they engage in stirring adventures exciting the youthful mind in the right direction is one thing exciting it in the wrong direction is quite another thing once more it becomes the writer s pleasant duty to acknowledge the kindness of his young friends as well as of very many parents and who have so often and so freely expressed their approbation of his efforts to please his readers he has been continually cheered by their kind letters and by their constant favor however manifested and he cannot help wondering that one who deserves so little should receive so much william t square mass july contents chapter i page three years after chapter ii fire chapter iii the hole in the wall chapter iv the plank over the chasm chapter v an argument chapter vi the flag chapter vii grave charges chapter viii contents chapter ix the examination chapter x mb c chapter xi the result of the examination chapter xii hotel de chapter xiii oft from apparent ills chapter xiv lose his own soul chapter xv another little plan chapter xvi pistols for two chapter xvii the gold restored chapter xviii mat contents chapter xix the chapter xx dock s letter chapter xxi the sails chapter xxii the who lost his way chapter off sandy hook chapter xxiv half round the world chapter xxv a happy chapter xxvi conclusion of fortune half round the world chapter i three tears after this is tbe spot said as he paused on the bank of the brook which flows into the bay near s point u but what was the thing you made asked as she looked with interest at the place indicated though she could not see anything very remarkable or even strange it was a young saw mill laughed it rested on those flat stones you see there but the dam is entirely washed away i made it in mr s carpenter s shop near uncle s house after a deal of and i got it so that of fortune or it through a board two feet long from one end to the other it was the day of my life when i showed mr the two parts separated by my machine and he declared i should make a good where is the saw mill now inquired interested in the machine because it had been made by rather than because she had a taste for it is up in the of uncle s house at least it was there three years ago when i went to live with mr i should really like to see it u should you well you shall if the thing is still in being i will go down to uncle s and get it and then i will set it up and you shall see it go answered as he led the way towards the house of his uncle the water privilege which as a boy of thirteen had improved was on the brook behind the cottage of mr did not care to meet uncle so she decided to call upon the carpenter s family for having spent three half bound the world seasons at she was well acquainted in several families near her father s new house which was on the shore not far from s point or as we ought to call her now miss though it does not sound half so pleasant to the ear and had been several times for addressing her in this formal manner miss was sweet sixteen or so near it that we give her the full benefit of the majority if she was pretty at twelve she was beautiful at sixteen she was rather tall for her age but exceedingly well formed she had spent much of her time in the open air and on her cheeks glowed the roses of health mrs a sister of mr who had been the principal of a young ladies before her marriage was with the care of her niece s education though attended school while in the city yet she was absent four months in the year during three of which she studied with her on the sea shore fortunately for mrs was an lady and was always ready for a trip in the flag of fortune ob s well tried craft she had a taste for not only in pleasant weather and on a smooth sea but when the wind blew anything short of a gale and the white caps whipped over the of the boat therefore was frequently on the salt water with her and her constitution had been wonderfully strengthened by this exercise and the flag were in demand almost every day and we need not add that the young did not regard himself as a martyr in the cause though the excursions to point the and other places v in the vicinity were frequently repeated he was never happier than when at the with and mrs on board not particularly on account of the latter though he was quite a favorite with her left miss at the door of mr s cottage and walked over to uncle s house three years had not improved the appearance of the s house for he spent no money upon it in paint and when anything about the building in as it frequently did he half bound the it himself if time bad not improved uncle or his house it had improved he was nearly eighteen was man grown strong as a lion and as a	36
deer within the preceding three years he had made two fishing though most of his time had been spent at the academy he entered his uncle s house though his visits like angels had been few and far between they were not so because cherished any ill will towards his former guardian but because he had been made to feel that he was not a welcome guest uncle never felt right after his removal from the position of guardian of his nephew the care of the money was taken from him and he was deprived of the profits he derived from boarding and clothing his ward he realized that money had been taken out of his pocket by the spirited conduct of and taking money out of the s pocket was the injury that could be inflicted upon him but behaved like a christian he did not forget that his uncle and aunt lived in that old and house and he did his best to keep the peace with them in the most literal manner he re of fortune ob turned good for evil it is true he could not respect his uncle or get up a very warm regard for him he was too mean selfish and to win the respect and regard of any decent person but he could treat him with christian kindness mr since he had been s guardian had by the advice of mr given his ward a regular allowance of five dollars a week for pocket money independent of his actual expenses for clothing himself this money was spent in books in improvements on the flag in charity and for other proper purposes not a cent of it ever went to the keeper of a shop saloon or other place which a young man should avoid but not a little of it in one way and another found its way into the abode of uncle though his aunt by the force of circumstances had become almost as mean as her husband she was not a bad woman in other respects and had considerable regard for her she had but few joys in this world and one of them was reading the newspaper when she was so fortunate as to procure one which was but seldom for the boston half round the would journal for her which came every day and for a weekly religious newspaper the old lady had a splendid time every afternoon reading her paper and enjoyed a rich season every day over her sunday paper did more than this lie not only earned to the house a great many fish he caught himself but a leg of or lamb a piece of a pair of chickens or a turkey was not laid upon the kitchen table by him uncle ate the roast the and the chickens but he hated the none the less it was a shameful waste of money to buy such things and these reminded him of the dollars and half dollars that had slipped away from him when he lost rather than the kindness and christian charity of the young man in presenting them it was not so with mrs though the age and unkind allusions of her husband to his nephew were not without their influence upon her she could net help feeling a great regard for the of the newspapers and the which gave the table such an unwonted as far as her op fortune or dull nature would permit she appreciated the kindness and good will of it is true that on several occasions uncle had sold the chickens and pieces his late ward had given him yet it had never been without a protest on the part of aunt it was an awful waste for him to eat these luxuries but selling the gifts of was monstrous to her and her protest was so energetic that she carried her point and the was compelled to eat food which was so costly that it almost choked him uncle did not get fat on the of his liberal nephew he had too many cares too many financial terrors too many fears that the banks would break his fail his stocks to eat and sleep like a christian never liberal as they grow old and he was no exception to the rule a financial panic had just swept over the land and though he had lost nothing by it it caused him more anguish than thousands who had lost their all he was afraid of banks afraid of men afraid even of good on productive real estate he dreaded some calamity he could not de half bound the fine which would from every dollar he had in the world to guard against this horrible event he had actually converted some of the less of his into gold and concealed it in his house preferring to sacrifice the interest to the safety of the principal bitter as the necessity seemed to be for two months uncle had kept four thousand dollars in gold in the house groaning at the loss of sixty six and two thirds cents a day in interest but a bank somewhere in the state had failed and he dared not trust the money out of his own possession it had been hidden in the cellar hidden in the parlor hidden in the kitchen and hidden in his chamber but no place seemed to be safe and the trembled when awake and trembled when asleep in his dreams lest the description of riches should be realized and his gold should take to itself wings and fly away ruin and decay had invaded the sleeping room of the as it had every other part of his house there was many a hole in the and many a hole in the floor but there was one particular hole of fortune or in the wall about a foot above the floor in a corner behind	36
the bed this particular hole was selected as the for the gold he had cut away the so that he could thrust his arm down into the and deposit the bag on the sill of the house he had begged a piece of board of mr to cover this hole and had fastened it over the with four while he was thus engaged mat the carpenter s son had come for the screw driver uncle had borrowed at the shop mrs not knowing what her husband was doing sent him into the chamber for it up the cracks to keep the cold out the i late i got the out of this hole mat wanted the screw driver but he helped fasten up the board before he took it and wondered what the old man had cut away the for the board was put up and the money was safe but the hardly dared to go out of sight of the house half round the world chapter ii fire entered the house uncle was not at home hut he was probably somewhere in the vicinity aunt was in the kitchen her weekly of brown bread the article of food in the family because it was cheaper than white bread aunt i want to go up in the garret and get that little saw mill i made four or five years ago said well i s pose you can replied she filling up the old brick oven with pine wood which cracked and snapped furiously in the fierce flames it s up there now isn t it i s pose tis if you put it there i t it u will you give me a little piece of candle too if you please w of fortune or you can take that piece in the on the mantel tree piece if it s long enough that will do just as well as if it were a foot long replied taking the piece of candle and rolling it up in a bit of newspaper he went up into the found the saw mill just as he had left it though it was covered with half an inch of dust and when he came down he heard uncle s voice in the kitchen he was growling because his wife used so much wood to heat the oven and concluded not to see him that day for he seemed to be in a more than usually frame of mind he went out at the front door and joined him as he passed mr s house the saw mill was taken to the spot where it had stood before the dam was much more readily than the rebel states taking the candle from his pocket the running parts of the machine hoisted the gate and away went the saw as briskly as a bee after its years of rest in the to the intense delight of who was quite ready to vote another feather for the cap of the hero a piece of board was ad half bound the world on the carriage and the saw began to through it when a series of in the direction of the road attracted the attention of the engineer of the structure why what s that smoke exclaimed fire fire fire shouted several persons in the road it s uncle s house said and without waiting to extend any further to his fair companion he bounded through the field and over the fence to the dwelling around the north chimney the smoke was pouring out in a dense volume uncle had raised a ladder to the and was drawing up of water to throw on the fire aunt and mat were assisting him and in a few moments several other persons arrived at the house ran up the ladder and went to work with a decision and vigor which promised the best results fm ruined i m ruined as true as you live groaned the the house will burn up no it won t uncle we can put the fire out if we stick to it replied in encouraging op fortune or tones as he dashed a bucket of water on a volume of flame that rushed up at the side of the chimney tain t no use it s jest my luck pass up the uncle and we shall be all right in a few minutes we are gaining on it o my money groaned the as he dropped the empty bucket he was carrying glanced at him his uncle was as pale as a sheet and seemed to have as though the flames had him he sank down upon the and would have rolled off if the strong arm of his nephew had not saved him his eyes were closed his lips were blue and and his frame was motionless was alarmed by his appearance he was either dead or had fainted and the young man saw that he must be removed lying down by the side of the senseless form he clasped his arms around it and rose to his feet with the burden on his back like all uncle was nothing but skin and bones which do not weigh heavily and walked along the ridge pole to the other end of the house the body on his back it was not an easy matter to descend the ladder half bound the world with such a load though would have carried his uncle down alone if no help had arrived before he reached the ladder two men had mounted and while one of them was directed to pour water on the fire the other assisted in hearing the down the ladder he was carried to mr s house and aunt followed having satisfied herself that her husband was not dead but had fainted having deposited the form of the on the hastened back to assist in saving the house his post was in the	36
midst of danger and he went up on the roof a plentiful supply of water soon drowned out the fire and before the engine arrived the last spark had been extinguished my money had been the last words of mr before he fainted did not understand the force of this expression for he was not aware that his uncle had four thousand dollars in gold concealed in the house the had worked with the energy of desperation to put out the fire until the flames appeared to be gaining upon him and then he was in despair at this point the thought of fortune or of l gold flashed upon him with such f that it had taken away his senses doubtless the smoke and the heat as well as the violence of his exertions had contributed in some measure to this result the house would be burned and the four thousand dollars would be lost this was the reflection which overwhelmed the even death seemed to losing such a vast sum of money his god appeared to be from him and the in his mind was terrible if his hair had not already been gray the shock was heavy enough to have it out in a single instant when the fire had been put out hastened over to the carpenter s house to ascertain the condition of his uncle the patient under the skilful treatment of the old ladies who had to him was just his consciousness but had not yet sufficiently recovered to know what had happened to him the house was not much injured a hole in ihe roof about six feet in had been burned out and the water poured upon the fire had found its way into the rooms below half the world the neighbors had worked with energy in the fire and some of them had gone into the house and were removing the and other furniture so that the water should not down upon it from above when came back he found dock and mat removing the bed from his uncle s chamber others were carrying out the and chairs the work was about finished and he joined in the road where she had been observing the exciting scene how did it take fire she asked i don t know aunt had a tremendous fire in the oven there comes your uncle added pointing to the poor old man as he up the road in his weakness like a man how awful he looks he feels badly about it i suppose replied s face did indeed present an aspect which was almost hideous it was still as pale and ghastly as death itself and upon it there was an expression of the most intense agony his wife was following him hardly able to keep pace with the long strides he made of fortune or it s all right uncle we saved the house and not much damage has been done to it said as the old man passed him uncle took no notice of him perhaps he did not even hear him so deeply was he absorbed in thinking about the gold and followed him into the house the wretched rushed into his chamber mat was there and seemed to be busy in wiping the water from the floor dock was in the next room apparently as busy as the carpenter s son the with all the powers of his being concentrated in his eyes gazed at the board which covered the hiding place of his money that dark hole was the temple of his god and all his hopes seemed to be in its gloom but the board was where he left it and as he left it and the breathed a little easier it was rather hard on you mr but it s lucky it ain t no worse said dock it s bad enough groaned the that s so but tain t so bad as it might be i was just coming down from the when i saw i half round the world i the smoke and been to work like a good one i ever since added dock if i can do anything more for you i m willing to help as much as i can said mat there ain t nothing more to do replied mr who only desired that the neighbors would leave so that he could assure himself of the safety i of his gold they did go without even the thanks of the was in the kitchen with mrs trying to make out how the fire had caught a piece of work knows exclaimed the old lady as she looked about her in dismay at the water which was still dripping down from above it ll take a whole month to put things to rights i can t tell for the life of me how it you had a large fire in the oven aunt suggested but the fire in the oven didn t set the was the matter with that and your uncle fixed it e a month ago i don t know what he did to it there was a hole in for sake what s now op fortune or this exclamation had been brought from her by a loud despairing howl from her husband who at this moment rushed into the kitchen with such a look of anguish on his face that it frightened u o my money groaned the wretched man for pity s sake husband what s the matter cried mrs it s all gone gasped uncle what s all gone the money he replied in a whisper his nature could endure no more he on his legs and sprang to his assistance just as he dropped senseless on the floor half bound the chapter iii the hole in the wall as soon as dock and mat had left the house mr procured a for he was	36
not the owner of so useful an as a screw driver and with trembling anxiety removed the board that covered the hole in the wall thrusting his hand down into the a cold chill swept through his frame when he failed to touch the bags in which the gold was contained with energy he felt in every part of the but the money had surely taken to itself wings and flown away had all the human beings upon the earth been suddenly destroyed before his eyes the effect upon the could not have been more deplorable he loved his money he did not love his fellow beings his heart almost ceased to beat beneath the shock of fortune or his lip quivered and the tears started in his eyes his brain began to before the blow he uttered a prolonged howl and rushed out into the kitchen rather from impulse than because he desired or expected human sympathy was terrified by the fearful aspect of mr when he entered the room and for weeks the awful expression upon his face haunted her like the vision of a midnight ghost was startled and mrs accustomed as she was to the ways of her husband was deeply moved by his singular conduct when he was he was subject to fainting fits but he had never appeared so badly as on the present occasion tho trusted no person had no confidence in any one not even in his wife he had not told her that he had four thousand dollars in gold in the house for he feared that site might be tempted to rob him of his treasure mrs therefore did not comprehend his despairing when he announced the loss of his money and his aunt conveyed the senseless form to the front room and after working over him nearly half bound the world half an hour he came out of the fit bat only to fer the most intense agonies at the loss of his money what on is the matter with yon asked his wife when after another examination of the hole in the wall he appeared in the kitchen again had gone home bat remained to render any assistance in his power in putting the house to rights o groaned the heavily as he paced the room with furious strides can t you tell what you continued mrs it s all gone gasped he with a prolonged sigh what is it what s all gone why don t you tell a body what has happened my money is all gone somebody has stolen it robbed me ruined me who on stole it i replied mr glancing at how much was stole four thousand dollars sighed the f for sake mrs and of fortune ob it was a question whether she would not faint for such a sum of money was beyond her comprehension where was it uncle asked who pitied the sufferings of the old man the looked at his nephew people always suspect those whom they hate if any wicked deed is done they charge it upon those they love the least regardless of circumstances you stole my money continued the old man fiercely nonsense interposed mrs didn t do of the sort didn t you tell me he went up in the before the fire didn t you tell me you gave him a piece of candle demanded mr earnestly and doubtless he felt that was guilty for his impulsive charge was made on the strength of a course of reasoning he had followed out what if i did tell you so didn t steal no four thousand dollars there s no sense nor reason in so added aunt i say he did steal it i know he did now the he set the house and then half round world took the money that boy hates me and he s bad enough to do anything if he is to the church has money enough argued mrs tt why should he steal your money cause he hates me uncle i don t hate you and i didn t steal your money said who had calmly listened to the debate between his uncle and aunt yes you did you set the house so s to a chance to the money it s all plain enough to me continued the old man up and down the room more rapidly than before i suppose it will be useless for me to say anything added more in pity than in anger i am willing to do anything i can to help you find the money if it is lost or catch the thief if it was stolen tain t no use for you to talk no more said the old man stopping in front of him you know all about it and you took the money if you re a mind to give it all back to me i won t say a word to nobody about it b op or i did not take it and i know nothing it i was not aware that you had so much money in the house replied a what did you want of the candle then if you didn t steal the money i it to the saw mill and the candle lies on a rock by the brook now u didn t you set the house when you went up in the garret u i did not i had no light and not even a match in my pocket who did steal it then if you didn t i don t know where did you keep the the old man led the way to his chamber and pointed out the hole that s a bad place to keep money said tain t no use to keep money in the bank now they re all and folks is and a man that s got a little money is off than them	36
that t got none asked a great many questions about the money and the hole which uncle hoping to find money answered there was no evidence to half bound the world fasten the crime upon any one the facts that appeared were that the money in four bags had been deposited in the that an hour before the fire the had assured himself the gold was safe that after the fire the board had been found in its place as before but the gold was gone a dozen of the neighbors at least had been into the room and dock and mat had been the last to leave mr was sure that neither dock nor mat knew he had any money in the house there was no good reason for supposing they any more than any other of the neighbors had taken the gold after a long and careful examination of the premises and a patient inquiry into all the circumstances nothing could be brought forward to any person in the robbery not willing to believe yet that the gold had been stolen he went down cellar and surveyed the under the hole hoping that the bags had dropped through but he could not find them he could not determine whether or not there was any connection between the fa and the robbery but mr insisted that some one he did not say now intended to of fortune or born the house so as to cover up the crime or at least afford an opportunity to commit the how could any one set the fire in the roof asked they might have gone up there as you did replied the old man rather let us go up and see how the fire took added aunt had a big fire in the oven it couldn t up there if she did replied uncle as he followed his nephew up the ladder some of the boards and had been burned through but the were only went up to the chimney and examined the near it the house was a very old one and had been built upon ui til its present proportions had been reached the chimney where the fire had taken was in the most ancient part and the bricks were laid in clay found that three or four of them on one of the inside corners had dropped out this was the defect which the owner had repaired there is a great hole in the chimney said half bound the world u i know there is bat i stopped that up a month ago i hadn t no mortar nor nothing and i just nailed a board over the hole u that s the way the fire took added wondering at the carelessness of his uncle i didn t suppose there was any heat up here twenty foot from the fire replied the old man a aunt had a rousing fire in the oven the wind was pretty fresh and i suppose the sparks caught on the dry board it is clear enough to me that no one set the house on fire u i suppose they didn t then but somebody stole my money you ll prove that nobody didn t steal it a i am willing to take your word for that and the s visible sufferings were all sufficient to convince any person that the money was gone whether any one had stolen it or not tried in vain to obtain a to the lost treasure he knew of no one that had visited the house during the fire who was bad enough to steal unless it was dock but it was not right to of fortune or suspect even him of the crime without some evidence neither nor his uncle saw how dock could have taken off the board removed the bags and then restored the covering while there were so many people in the house dock after his discharge from the state prison had gone to new york where he had been employed as the mate of a steamer six months before the story opens his brother in boston had died and as the deceased had no family his property to twenty one thousand dollars had been equally divided among his two brothers and one sister dock fully believed that seven thousand dollars on cape ann would entirely w pe out the disgrace of having served a term in the state prison and he returned to dressed in a nice suit of black dock was mistaken seven thousand dollars would not his character so that good men would associate with him he and swelled and declared that he had been taken up for nothing that this was not a free country and that he was a better man than thousands in town who had never half sound the world been to the state prison he never forgave for his plans and swore that he would be the ruin of him and of mr the best friend dock had was and the was not willing to believe that dock had robbed him of his gold after went home that day his uncle persisted that he had stolen the money of fortune ob chapter iv the plank the chasm a week of indescribable misery to passed away but no trace of the robber or the money had been obtained the and the had visited the premises and carefully considered all the facts without affording the miserable man a of consolation he groaned from morning till night forlorn and desolate declaring that he should come to want and die in the probably the money the wretch had lost was not a fifth part of his fortune and he was in no more danger of coming to want than the sea was of being dried up but he felt as though he had lost all and if he had been stripped of everything he could hardly have	36
the of fortune ob looking up into the face of dock i thought you set too much by me to me a trick as that i ve lent you a good deal of money one time n another but i paid you ten per cent for it i didn t take your money and i know mat didn t i was with him all the time he was in the house we worked together it stands to reason then that took it i can t help so they say he carries a good many things to your house suggested dock a good many things to my house repeated the with a sneer he does what sort of things does he there chickens and and and ribs of beef and he knows i don t want things and he does it jest to me if he wants to do anything for me why don t he me the money he pays out for em that s what i want to know i don t think you ve hit the nail on the head this time mr added dock who evidently half bound the world bad a theory of his own to propose they say you are worth some thirty or forty thousand dollars mr bless ye i ain t no money got a little or but i expect to lose it all well call it twenty thousand then i ain t that added mr for like all he desired to conceal his possessions as much to blind the as to avoid the peril of robbery well you are worth something a little or answered mr this for the sake of argument have you made a will squire no i t made no will i t got to leave a will for dock did not believe this statement but he took no notice of it you haven t any children and if you should die half of your money would go to and half to your wife if you should die would make ten or fifteen thousand dollars by it don t you see now what he gives you chickens and for he of fortune or means to keep things smooth till you step out if yon shouldn t come back when you go out after to morrow morning wouldn t feel half so bad about it as i should this was a disagreeable topic to the and he cut it short but the idea that was ready to have him die took fast hold of his shattered mind dock had produced the impression he desired he had added fresh fuel to the flame of the old man s hatred and he was content to let the subject drop for the present dock finding himself a person of no consequence at the cape had already announced his intention to to with his family and he appeared to be waiting only to his vengeance upon field who had defeated his plan to mr out of twenty thousand dollars the young man had exposed and ruined him in his estimation not the crime and he could not leave the country till he had paid him off though he was not so particular about his honest debts the next morning dock went down to the landing place when he reached the chasm he saw half round the world coming across the beach his eyes glowed with hatred as they always did when he looked upon the author of his misfortunes the one whose testimony had sent him to the state prison he did not care to meet him and it was evident that was coming for his boat stooping down he adjusted the plank over the chasm in such a way that his victim would be pitched down upon the sharp rocks beneath the instant he stepped upon it the fall would not kill him it would only and him was beneath the rocky precipice and could not see him there was a smile on the villain s countenance as he retreated to a place of concealment near the spot to wait for the disaster that should lay his victim upon the bed of pain and suffering he waited ten minutes for the crash of the falling plank but it did not come rising from his seat he moved to a position where looking through the chasm he saw the flag standing over towards mr s house had walked on the rocks and reached the landing without of fortune ok crossing the bridge dock was disappointed and began to climb the rocks to the plank as he ascended he discovered mr just stepping on the bridge he shouted but it was too late the end of the plank slipped the old man danced upon nothing and sank in the abyss below t half bound thb world chapter v an argument dock was appalled to find that he had tumbled mr into the chasm not that he was disturbed by any of conscience but because he wished to keep on the right side of the old man from motives he was in doubt whether to exhibit himself to the injured man or not if he showed himself he might be suspected of setting the trap into which the had fallen the old man might be dead and curiosity if no stronger motive induced him to inquire into his condition but he took the precaution to reach the path hy a way and approach the chasm as though he had just come from his house when he reached the abyss he found mr had risen and was trying to climb up the rocks he of or was groaning and taking on as though he had been badly hurt what s the matter squire demanded dock what you doing down there o o groaned the looking for your money in there o no o i fell in said the sufferer in fell in why how did	36
that happen asked dock with well feigned astonishment i o that plank gin away o and let me down are you hurt most killed replied mr holding his breath and then the words dock walked down the bank above the water and then entered the chasm where are you hurt he asked my is both broke and i m e to pieces i guess your aren t broke you couldn t stand up if they were suggested dock s broke i know half bound the world every day of the week sunday and he don t go then cause he s go n to the church continued the excited by the topic he was discussing yon don t mean do you said dock opening his eyes as wide as the holes of a man of war i see the flag a over to mr s new house when i was goin down to the pint did you asked dock when the old man paused to note the effect of the climax of the argument upon the listener tt i did that proves that went down to the p int afore i don t it well yes he went down there of course added dock in rather tones he couldn t have got his boat if he hadn t gone down there then of course done it exclaimed the old man tain t no use o beating round the bush no more done it and he meant to kill me tain t so protested mrs warmly there ain t no sense nor reason in done it wouldn t do a thing of fortune or a he may all the churches in town but i tell you he s a bad boy and he s go n as straight to the gallows as a chicken goes to her don t you know how he used me how he fit me and found fault with his and then got all the property took away from me jest because i wouldn t let him spend it all don t tell me i know what is better n any other man what on should the boy wan t to break your bones for let alone on you demanded mrs u o well you re but a woman and we can t expect women folks to see everything can we dock your wife has excellent judgment about things in general squire replied dock smoothly there now tell me i don t know retorted the somewhat appeased by the delicate compliment tain t in reason that boy meant to do a thing mr groaned and changed his position in the bed his bones ached and his but the task of showing that was wicked half bound the would enough even to plan a deliberate murder was too pleasing a one to be abandoned though the of pain that darted through the s limbs indicated rest both for body and mind the sufferer all the points bearing against his nephew in the act under consideration and he succeeded in satisfying himself and his visitor that the young man intended to his uncle s life mrs grateful for the newspapers which had given her a new joy in the desolate world and for the chickens and pieces which her an occasional from salt fish and fresh fish mrs was obstinate and refused to believe that who by the way had just added the cape ann light to his aunt s sum total of earthly joys was capable of doing a wicked act women folks don t see through things said mr disgusted at his wife s want of perception a been o what you said last night he added turning to dock i never thought of a thing before but i vow it s just as you said weu squire i didn t say that to set op fortune or you against the boy only to have you keep your eyes open replied dock when i fell into that hole it opened my eyes so wide i shan t em very soon mrs wanted to know what on all this talk meant and the relations of to his uncle s post estate were explained so that women folks could understand them she did not believe cared for the property what there was of it and she was not yet willing to believe that he set the trap to destroy his uncle i believe it and what s more i know it persisted the but i ll cheat him out of it i ll make a will this very day i ll give what little i have to i will by gracious it s very proper for you to do so replied dock mildly can t you write a will dock me no i don t know how you must make it strong or they ll break it you know better send for squire and have it done right squire exclaimed the invalid he charge half bound the world tf five dollars perhaps five dollars i what jest for a little or perhaps he won t charge you more than three i shan t give no three dollars i can t afford it fm e stripped of everything now the will was not made and dock left the house promising to call again in the afternoon of fortune or chapter vi the flag in happy ignorance of the misfortune which had befallen his uncle headed the flag towards the mansion of mr this was to be a great day with him and he was filled with hope and exultation the flag was a capital boat but had long been beset by an ambition to sail something larger this desire was about to be realized for mr always a lover of the sea had contracted for a of eighty tons at the establishment of a celebrated in the city she was to	36
be ready by the st of june but she was not completely stored and furnished till the th mr had remained in the city over night and was to sail in the for his summer home the next morning on the day that missed half sound the world filling into the chasm as the wind was fair and tolerably fresh the young thought she would arrive by noon and he was to take the ladies round as for as eastern point to give her a welcome to the waters of the cape was to be the commander of the and he was every way qualified for the position he had studied could take an observation and do all the problems required of a thorough sailing ter on the deck of a vessel he was in his element and there was not a point in or with which he was not familiar he could not only land and steer but he could knot and parcel and serve as neatly and as as a man of war s man he was interested in such matters and had spent hours and hours in making short and eye s heads and other parts of until he was an in the art had been the prime in this enterprise she insisted upon having a craft in which the family could go off for a month and be almost as comfortable as in their own home she prevailed of fortune ok in this as she did in nearly everything which involved only the will of her father to gratify her and mrs were handed into the boat at the pier behind the house and the flag was soon dancing over the long waves that roll into sandy bay from the broad ocean all the party were excited for to see a splendid new in which they hoped to have many good times was enough to a glowing enthusiasm in such lovers of the art of you don t know her name yet do you said in a kind of tone i do not but i shall soon find out if this breeze holds replied the who had been kept in ignorance on this important matter a wouldn t you like to know added him of course i would but i am willing to wait a few hours longer why don t you manifest a little impatience about it she it wouldn t do any good besides i am a yankee and i think i can guess what her name is indeed j feel almost sure i know it half bound the world what do you think it is that s telling laughed but won t you tell me said assuming an imploring look i think i will pay you off by keeping still do tell me what you think it is i shall not like it if you don t would have down among the fishes if such had been her will and he was compelled to answer a of course there is only one name for her and your father must have chosen that perhaps not but why don t you say what you think the name is will you tell me if i guess right i will if you guess right the first time very well here goes then her name is the to be sure there is no other name fit for her no how absurd you are replied blushing up to the eyes no why that ought to be her name if it isn t it s the the or some of fortune or thing of that kind i know it is of course your father wouldn t think of calling her by any other name it isn t anything of the kind i am will ing to confess that father wanted to name her after me but i wouldn t let him i wanted another name i m sorry you did for i wanted that name and i shall not enjoy her half so much as i should if she had been called after you replied not at all in the tones of gallantry but in those of simple truth and sincerity it is very kind of you to say so and to think so but i believe she has received a better name added not unmoved by the devotion of the gallant there isn t any better name i m really disappointed you will not be when you read her name a but what is the name asked seriously the why i almost told you laughed i hope it is not a hard name for sailors make such a fuss about jaw breaking words an old meant to name his vessel the but he i half the gave the name of to the painter and it was duly upon the stern however it answered just as well as the craft went into the coal trade it isn t a long name nor a hard one and i know it will suit you u well if it suits you it will suit me added though i did hope she would be called the the flag sped on her way and before noon was off eastern point there were several approaching but could not make out the till he examined every craft with the spy glass i see her exclaimed he as he headed his boat so as to her u is she handsome asked tt i can t make her out very well at this distance but we shall be up with her in half an hour or so looked through the glass and so did mrs but they did not obtain much satisfaction the was making her ten knots and in the time had named they were within distance of her of fortune or she is a beauty and no mistake exclaimed the warmly she is pretty enough to be called the you mustn t	36
say such things they are not pretty said very seriously the is pretty enough and so is the one she ought to have been named after persisted the gallant there it is again you are real naughty she and probably like all pretty girls she had a for compliments shouted but mr had already recognized the flag and the was thrown up into the wind hauled in his sheet and sailed in a graceful curve around the stern of the vessel intent upon reading the secret which had been so persistently kept from him now you will know exclaimed gazing anxiously into his face to observe the effect of the discovery upon him dog fish and ejaculated as he read the name the flag half bound the world u there now mr isn t that the name of all names for her u the flag repeated as he gazed at the golden letters on the stern of the why don t you say something you absurd i m dying to know what you think of it and you don t say a word i like it first rate but if i had read there i should have liked it better much as i like it now u i couldn t have her named after me how ridiculous fm sorry you don t like the name but i do like it though you couldn t expect me to like any other name as well as yours why how absurd you are replied as ran the boat up to the the had been so that the passage from one craft to the other was an easy matter even for ladies mr assisted them board one of the hands who knew the coast was to take charge of the flag and went on board of the beautiful vessel he was to command well what do you think of her asked of fortune or mr after they had walked around the deck and the cabin and cook room of the she is magnificent sir replied she is without exception the finest i ever saw and i have examined a great many i am glad she suits you how do you like the name very much sir though if it had been the i should have liked it better i intended to give her that name but was contrary and insisted that she should be called the flag in grateful remembrance of her trip from the i really appreciate her motives and both of us desire to the name of your boat by giving it to the finest that could be built since it pleases both you and her i ought to be satisfied with it and i am we have two flags now and we may get them mixed the name of your boat shall henceforth be the flag laughed mr when we say the flag we mean the and when we say the flag we mean your boat half bound the world the flag then cut her way through the long at a rate which was highly gratifying to the captain who prompt to his instincts had taken the when he had examined her he declared that she splendidly and he was sure she would prove to be a good sea boat in a short time she came to anchor off s point the steward had prepared a lunch for the party and they sat down at the table as soon as the swung round to her cable u now you must get a crew for your vessel these men with the exception of the cook and steward will return to boston this afternoon said mr are the crew to leave her tt engaged them to bring her down for i thought that you would prefer to select your own u i should replied thinking what young men he could procure we shall be ready to start on our to the eastward in three or four days added mr i will be ready sir of fortune or by the time the lunch was disposed o the flag had arrived and landed the party he was anxious to engage his crew and he ran tho boat over to her on the rocks he found dock who had been observing the half bound the world chapter vii grave charges what vessel s that asked dock as the young landed on the rocks it s the flag replied smiling no i mean the large off the point so do i you don t mean to tell me that vessel s called the flag yes i do that s her name my boat is now called the flag answered beginning to move off for he was not disposed to hold any intercourse with such a person as dock hold on a minute tell us about her said dock what is she for a but i am in a hurry now wait a minute i have some bad news to tell yon of os bad news your uncle had an ugly fall this morning just after you went off in the boat added dock where did he fall asked the young interested now and troubled by the information he fell into the cut where the plank crosses it replied dock pointing to the place where the accident had occurred is he much hurt yes i think the old man is badly in his he has taken to his bed and i shouldn t wonder if he had to stay there a month i am sorry for it said with entire sincerity how did it happen dock explained how it happened taking care to himself at a considerable distance from the scene of the catastrophe the old man thinks somebody fixed the plank so as to make him fall added he finishing his narrative to make him fall exclaimed the attentive listener who does he think did it well he thinks you did it answered dock half sound	36
world bis tones so as not to commit himself to view i the old man thinks so bat that don t make it so you know what makes him think i did it u because you were the last person that went down to the p int before he did you were running over to s new house in the flag when the thing happened tt i haven t been over the plank to day said you went to your boat just before the old man come down here and he don t see who else could have done it i did not cross on the plank i went along on the rocks as i always do when i come across the second beach protested the young well i don t know anything about it you see added dock in tones i only tell you what the old man told me he knows you hate him but i don t hate him don t you asked dock with a grin of fortune ob i m sure i do not answered with emphasis perhaps you don t but after all the trouble there s been between you and the old man it wouldn t be strange if you hated him and he hated you probably dock was as sincere as for there was not a christian idea in his head or a christian purpose in his heart he had no perception of the sublime doctrine of one s enemies than the beasts of the field or the fowls of the air in his view it was the most natural thing in the world for the uncle to hate the nephew and for the nephew to hate the uncle and he did not believe it possible for either of them to banish the foul impulse from his heart i don t hate my uncle i would do anything in the world for him continued earnestly but thoughtfully for he was deeply pained by the suspicions of his uncle i m going up to see the old man by and by and ril tell him what you say about it added dock i have a great deal to do but i shall go and see half bound the world him myself said as he began to move up the rocks again what s your hurry i want to talk with yon about that vessel she is a fine she is all that i have to find a crew for her for we are going off on a in three or four days do you know of any young fellows who want to make good wages without working very hard yes there s mat replied dock after a little reflection he ll make a first rate hand for you i rather think he ll go off to with me in the in the what in the that s my vessel she s a rather larger than that and she ll anything of her inches that ever floated if you want mat he ll be glad of a lay in that for i shan t get off for three weeks yet til speak to him about it v preferred to do his own speaking not wishing to place himself under any obligation however slight to a man of dock s character and he decided to visit his uncle at once and call at of fortune ob mr s house on his way home with some difficulty he escaped from his ancient enemy and crossing the plank which had been placed in its original position by dock after the accident he walked up the tongue of land the scene at his uncle s which the information he had received led him to expect he found his aunt in the kitchen and inquired particularly into the condition of uncle she thought he was a more comfortable and told to go in and see him if he wanted to for she was confident that the young man could clear himself from the grave charge preferred against how do you feel uncle asked kindly as he entered the bed room the old man looked at him with a savage stare but made no reply i am sorry you have had such a fall continued no you ain t sorry what do you want to say that for it s all your work and tain t likely you how much i suffer growled the injured man his words with many a groan half bound the would what is my work uncle asked mildly tf didn t you fix that plank over the cut bo s to me this fell tf no sir i m sure i did not protested don t tell me groaned the old man suffering as much from passion as from pain i can only say uncle that i have not touched the plank and i did not go near it this morning tain t no use i know you did you went down to your boat afore i did for i bee you oyer to s new house jest afore i fell you want to kill me that s what you re to do and you e done it this u fm sorry you have such an opinion of me uncle replied more in sorrow and pity than in anger tt you ve got most of my money afore i m dead and you mean to have the rest on t i m gone continued the old man in angry tones do you still think i took the gold uncle do i think so i know you did nobody else took it and nobody could done it but you what have you done with it z of fortune or u i know nothing about it uncle i am sorry you think so hard of me fm ready and willing to do anything i can for you then me back my money tt	36
i haven t it u yes you have it was useless to talk with the sufferer and s presence only excited him after repeating in the of tones his desire to serve him the young turned to depart a you ll be found out and you ll have to give that money up tain t no use to try to red on me for i m go n to make a will and leave what little i ve got to your aunt said mr a uncle do you really think i want your money asked beginning to be indignant at the foul suspicions of the old man that s what you want to kill me for the m i don t want to kill you or hurt you fm go n to make a will so tain t no use to try to red of me any more half bound the world pitied the sufferer as much for his moral as his mental and fearful that his indignation might get the better of his pity he left the room his uncle threatened him with all the terrors of the courts and the as he withdrew in the kitchen he found dock who had come to make his promised afternoon visit left immediately and called at the house of the carpenter mat after some consented to become one of the crew of the he was a man of eighteen who had made two or three fishing voyages and was a smart active fellow he had been rather intimate with dock since the return of the latter and this was all had against him before night the young captain of the flag had engaged three other hands the crew were to go on the next morning when intended to start on a trial trip for the purpose of training his men and becoming more familiar himself with the working of the dock entered the chamber of mr he found the old man agitated and almost crying with anger and vexation of po ok so s been to see you said the visitor himself at the bedside yes he has must be done cap n replied the old man trying to rise on the bed but sinking back with a groan don t try to up keep still squire and don t hurt yourself interposed dock i can t stand this no longer howled the miserable man the tears starting in his eyes must be done what shall it be squire asked the coolly i can t stand it no longer and i won t repeated the sufferer somebody s got my money and i must it back or it ll kill me that boy must be took up and till the money s found i know he s got it nobody else couldn t have took it he must have it off in that little that s what he come the saw mill for to off the money in do you want to have arrested asked dock musing yes he must be took up as soon as he sees bound the fm in he ll scared and give up the i money t be too hasty squire if yon be it ll dam i age you a no t can damage me now it it a but don t dock moderation and thought it would be better to wait till they had more before taking any decisive steps he finally the old man by promising to hunt up the evidence and have arrested as soon as there was any proof to work with of ob chapter vm went on his trip in the flag the next day the wind was very fresh and he had an excellent opportunity to test the qualities of the and she proved to be all he had anticipated or desired she would sail almost into the wind s eye and went through a chop sea as steadily as a judge through a trial captain as all hands on board called him was proud and happy in his new situation he was in his element and it was not likely that the possession of any sum of money could long keep him from the position he was born to fill the command of a vessel the was fitted up below with special reference to the wants of her owner s family and friends her trunk extended nearly the whole length of her half round the world affording a high and spacious cabin for a vessel of her size on each side of the companion way lead down from the or standing room was a small state room one of which was appropriated to the use of the captain it contained a single berth a writing desk a plentiful supply of drawers shelves and for clothing and instruments had himself in this little apartment and felt like a lord as he sat in its arm chair at the desk glancing at his and convenient surroundings this state room and its fellow on the opposite side of the ladder opened into the main cabin which contained four with curtains extending out in front so as to form an for each securing entire privacy opening from the forward part of the cabin were two large and airy rooms each having two for the accommodation of mr s family they contained every convenience belonging to a first class hotel with a curious economy of space which would have excited the admiration of those who have a taste for oo op fortune ok between these state rooms was a narrow leading to the which occupied about half the length of the vessel and contained the ice house cook room store room and six in the forward part for the hands the cook and steward were colored men the former had served for years in a packet ship and the litter was a waiter who never failed to on a white jacket	36
at meal times the four hands who had been employed on the cape were men the oldest not over twenty all of whom had made several fishing voyages and were hardy active and accomplished for a small craft on her trial trip took the as far as island on the coast of he dined m state all alone in the cabin he had no passengers on this and the cabin steward wore his white jacket and stood behind his chair in fact was captain on this occasion and he wore his dignity with becoming modesty and grace in the evening after his return he made a ml and enthusiastic report to mr and the ladies half round the would of the good behavior of the and declared that lie was ready at once to go round the world in her we don t care about going round the world in her laughed mr but on monday morning we will start for mount desert if you are ready at that time i am ready now sir tt i cannot leave before monday if we enjoy this i trip we will spend the whole of the month of au gust on board of the flag i should like to go as for as the if you think it is safe to take so long a voyage in her safe exclaimed you can cross the atlantic in her as safely as in a for my part i should feel safer in her than in any steamer that ever went to sea she would shake you up mere perhaps bat she will take you through all right if she is well handled a no doubt of it i told the to have her as strong as wood and iron could make her my directions were first strength second comfort and third speed i think he has got the speed in first for we of fortune ob twelve knots to day with the wind free in a sea but she can t be for comfort and safety i know by the feeling of her in a sea just how she would behave in a gale have you seen mr since your return asked mr suddenly changing the subject and wearing a look of anxiety no sir he was not at home when i went to supper replied satisfied something unpleasant had occurred and he had not much difficulty in its nature have you heard anything about a search warrant not a word sir but i almost expected something of the kind my uncle charged me with taking the money he lost but i did not even know that he had any money in his house answered grieved and at the necessity of again defending himself from such an assault mr told me that your room at his house and indeed all his premises had been searched by in your absence to day for the missing gold half bound the world a f course they did not find anything replied blushing no they did not bat perhaps they would if your affairs had been managed by a less discreet person than mr it seems that dock to the house with the about dinner time your uncle appears to have employed to look up the money for him mr was willing to admit the officer but he positively refused to allow to enter his house that villain is the worst enemy a man ever had you must beware of him have nothing to do with him and nothing to say to him i do not any more than i can help the story now is that you took your uncle s money and set a trap to kill or severely injure him at the cut because you are his legal heir how absurd interposed indignantly as she rose from her chair and seated herself by the side of on the sofa her mild eyes beaming with unwonted fire very absurd my dear but there are people who are foolish enough to believe such absurd stories even of fortune or of their own minister of course there is no real danger but you may be seriously annoyed was smart he had done great deeds he was known to be worth thirty five or forty thousand dollars in the hands of his guardian and his intimate relations with the family of mr rendered it exceedingly probable that he would eventually roll in wealth to be counted by hundreds of thousands most of the people were generous enough to congratulate the young man in their hearts on his brilliant prospects especially as he did not put on any airs or cut any of his old friends but there were weak and evil minded men and women who envied his good fortune and were ready to seize upon any which tended to bring upon him among these was whom dock had employed to search for mr s money he could not help thinking that if he had been with the warrant for the arrest of on the charge three years before of s money instead of mr he would have done precisely as that worthy man had and in the end would have been half round the world ed the young man s guardian making a few hundred dollars every year in on the care of the property he could not exactly forgive mr for being so fortunate nor was he so exclusive as to confine his dislike to the guardian but extended it to the ward therefore was a fit person to do the dirty work of an his he adopted the s theory in full that had set the house on fire with the candle in order to cover up the loss of the money which he had conveyed from the house in the little saw mill since the arrival of the it had even been that she was the property of who had paid for	36
her with the ill gotten gold this theory explained and up with argument and evidence by the rather staggered many people who believed in if the young man s character had been doubtful the theory would have been plausible for after all a person s good character is the best testimony in his favor mr and discussed the situation coolly though the ladies with their warmer sympathies were of fortune ob indignant and disposed to be violent in their measures nothing could be done but to wait the issue of events and walked as proudly as ever through the streets of the town the next day he took the ladies out to sail in the but before he went he called at his uncle s house carrying a nice and a jar of for the sufferer who was improving in spite of the heat and excitement to which he agitated himself don t tell him aunt that i brought these things said i pity him and i don t hate him i shall try to be a christian towards him now whatever he does the old lady burst into tears such a spirit amazed and overwhelmed her the reading of her religious paper had prepared her in some measure to appreciate such conduct the next day which was sunday carried some other luxuries for the invalid but he did not venture to see his uncle after the violent scene which had attended his first visit to the sick room on monday morning mr and mrs mrs very and were conveyed on board of half round the world the flag the and the had been hoisted and the hands were heaving up the anchor when a boat from the shore was discovered approaching the hold on shouted when the boat came nearer and was found to contain besides the officer dock and two other men tt all said captain and the operations at the cable were suspended i ve come to search this vessel said when he and his party had reached the deck a i have a warrant a i will afford you every facility for the discharge of your duty replied as he led the way to the cabin don t let go into the cabin said mr in a promptly informed the officer that captain must not go below a i want him to help me persisted captain can t go into my cabin if he attempts to do so throw him overboard added rolling up his coat sleeves op ok i ve a right to call in aid to law said the officer angrily you shall not call him in protested mr spoke he had money and the was afraid of him and the matter was one of the other men went with the officer who proceeded directly to s state room the desk was opened the examined and the drawers searched in one of the latter a shot bag with ten half in it was found that s one of the bags almost the in the fury of his i never saw it before said quietly nor the gold it contains u i have a warrant for your arrest and you showed fight on deck i shall put the on you mr and the ladies were shocked and alarmed but not one of them for a moment doubted the innocence of who suffered himself to be without resistance half bound thk chapter ix the examination pat the irons on the wrists of not from a sense of duty but with a keen relish for the act itself it is bat justice to the officer prejudiced though he was to say that he was entirely sincere in the belief that his prisoner had stolen the s gold he was rough and severe in the discharge of his duty and the irons were a mr protested vigorously against the s useless display of authority was frightened and terribly grieved the harsh treatment bestowed her ideal of a hero himself was the only person in the cabin who was calm his quiet dignity was by the heaped upon him and he looked proudly conscious of his innocence of fortune ob i what does all this mean demanded mr when had been effectually so that i he could not tear the and his assistant to pieces as they seemed to fear he would i do not know sir replied shaking his head with a smile a i think it is all clear enough mr interposed i don t think it is replied mr sharply you have found a shot bag with ten five dollar gold pieces in it what does that prove it proves that stole the money just as clear as the proves it s day is it anything surprising that the captain of a has fifty dollars in gold in his state room i don t know s tis but it s that he should have one of the bags the old man kept his money in in his state room said the officer with a sneer how do you know that is one of the bags how do i know repeated the taking the bag from his pocket mr told me he writ his name on all the bags there it is half round thb world the bag was exhibited and over the of i the of the shot it had originally contained was the name a n rudely traced i in large awkward characters in pencil on the cloth saw it and the formation of the two capital i letters assured him it had been written by his uncle i the bag was found in one of bis drawers but it was plain that an enemy had done this tt if that don t satisfy yon mr i don t know what will this ain t pleasant business but i can t help it added who perhaps had begun to think it was	36
to offend a rich man that doesn t satisfy me replied the obstinate merchant do you suppose put that bag and the gold into the drawer i suppose he did sir that s his state room isn t it there are half a dozen places there with locks oh them do you think he would put his money into a drawer without any lock upon it i don t know anything about that answered the who could not help seeing that the a of fortune or ment was a good one i ve got a warrant for his arrest u did you know the money was there before you came on board demanded mr warmly i supposed it was there what made you suppose so i was told it was there who told you so u i don t know as i m obliged to tell you who told me replied the officer i don t know that you are either but some of you shall be ind ted for conspiracy if you don t answer you came on board with a warrant in your pocket for the arrest of captain you expected to find the gold here you say somebody told you it was here and that somebody knows more about it than the person you have arrested and put in irons continued merchant indignantly you know why i put him in irons didn t he threaten to throw one of us overboard replied the when officers take of the state prison to assist them in the discharge of their duties they must expect some opposition half bound the world a but captain is acting for mr who s too sick to do anything himself pleaded the officer who could not help seeing that dock was not a proper person to aid him in the performance of his duty til take the off if you say so i do say so most emphatically added mr removed the irons stepping between and to do so so long as you and your father do not believe i am guilty of any crime i don t care for the irons or the prison said cheerfully i am rather glad of an opportunity to myself for i have no doubt there are some people who think i took my uncle s money but it is so terrible to be sent to prison and to be added her pretty face full of tender sympathy not at all as i view it the guilt is the only thing that is terrible this may lead to the discovery of the real thief have you any idea how that bag came in your state room asked mr op fortune or not the least sir it most have been pat there by the thief or by some one acting for him a we shall not make our trip to day that is clear enough come mr we will go on shore and inquire into this matter at once continued mr you must send all hands to the office of squire for probably we shall want their evidence the four young men who constituted the crew of the lived in and knew all about the relations of with his uncle they were directed to go ashore with the cook and steward and appear at the office of the trial justice was taken in charge by and went in his boat with dock much against his will we are likely to have a sharp time on t said the officer when they had pushed off from the why so what s up now demanded dock mr has sent all hands ashore and i suppose hell have squire who s as sharp as a new set and hell us all over the coals what s going to be done asked dock i turning to the prisoner half bound the world a i have nothing to say about it replied what did you send all hands on shore for i shall answer no questions afraid of committing yourself i suppose said dock with a sneer which did not wholly conceal his anxiety made no reply without being willing in the absence of some evidence even to suspect dock of stealing his uncle s money he could not help feeling that the of his old enemy him in thinking that he had something to do with the or at least with the charge upon him and causing the shot bag to be placed in his state room the party landed and while conveyed his prisoner to the office of the justice dock called at mr s to inform him of the arrest the old man was somewhat better and able to sit up in his rocking chair but his bones still ached though he suffered less in body than in mind dock called upon him every day and assured him he would find his gold in time on the present occasion he had encouraging news and related the particulars of or of the events which had occurred on board of the i it exclaimed mr when he h d listened to dock s story i was that boy took the money a i suppose it s a dear case enough now added dock finding the bag with your name on it settles the matter but did you find all the money cap n asked the old man nervously no only about fifty dollars of it didn t find no more added mr with a blank stare no but we shall find the rest of it mr s going to make an awful fuss about it about what about taking up i suppose they ll want you to swear to the bag but i can t go out said the old man with a when reminded of the pains in his frame then the squire must come here as he did when you swore before i ll go up and see	36
about it but squire i shan t be able to do much more half bound the world for you for i expect my vessel round here soon and i be busy fixing her up for the voyage to u i hope i shall find the money afore yon go added the old man with a gloomy look tt i hope so too and i expect you wiu replied as he left the room to attend the examination in the mean time had been conveyed to the office of squire who the evidence of mr absolutely necessary had decided to hold his court at the house of the and the old man was soon astonished by the appearance of the whole crowd of officers counsel justice and witnesses in his chamber mr was examined first he with many a sigh and groan that he had deposited the four bags each containing one thousand dollars in gold in the hole in the wall which was pointed out to the justice he had marked his name on each bag and he identified that produced by as one of the four he was if the ten half were his property he was disposed of fortune ob to swear to them also he had no doubt they were part of the money he had lost but when asked to state by what marks he recognized them he was unable to show wherein they differed from other of the same value the officer then swore that he found the bag in a in the state room with the money in it squire who had already been fully instructed in the case by mr began to put disagreeable questions to him which appeared to make him nervous you went off to the with a search warrant did you mr asked the lawyer i did sir did you expect to find the money or the bag on board i did had any one told you the bag was there well i can t say any one told me it was there replied with some embarrassment you can t no sir i can t what induced you to look for the money on board of the half round the world i was pretty well satisfied that stole that money and being he was goin off on a i thought likely he would put some on t on board to use that s what made me expect to find it there added with a more satisfied expression on his face for the explanation he had given appeared to meet the of the case did you reason this out yourself or did some one suggest the idea to you well some one spoke to me about it precisely so who spoke to you about it no one said much to me and i but who said anything interposed the squire well captain said i might find the bag he didn t say i should find it of fortune os chapter x mb c squire had brought out from the unwilling witness the fact that he wanted and dock was put upon the stand the learned counsel conveyed the information that the witness had been convicted of crime and had served a term in the state prison which though it did not him from giving evidence might affect his this statement roused the ire of dock and he was cross and sullen which is a very bad state of mind to be in when subjected to the torture of a skilful lawyer dock described the manner in which he had assisted mr in finding his money he had done all that an honest man and a good neighbor should do to help a feeble old man and it wasn t right for one horse lawyers to insult him half bound the world do you consider yourself insulted captain asked the squire yes sir i do have you been convicted of a crime what if i have there was no justice in it growled dock have you served a term in the state prison if i have it wasn t a fair thing and a good many better men than or me have spent years in prison undoubtedly but our best men don t usually at the state prison you admit the facts as i stated them now captain you were employed by mr in finding the money he lost i said so i was did you tell the he would find the bag on board of the no sir i did not what did you tell him in my opinion stole that money i didn t think so at first but his uncle convinced me he must have done it i told the to look for the money and the bags on board that vessel of fortune or didn t you tell him he would find this bag in s state room no sir i did not didn t you tell him he might expect to find it there perhaps i did whether i did or not i expected he would find it there answered dock casting a malicious glance at why did you expect he would find it there because i was satisfied stole the money and would use some of it while he was gone on the was that the only reason it was captain do you know how that bag came in s state room asked the lawyer looking upon the floor as though he considered the question of little consequence yes sir i do please to state how it came there put it there you are willing to swear that put it there are you half bound the world ill yes sir i am replied dock promptly did you see him put it there of course i didn t i never was aboard of that till this morning how can yon swear that he put it there then because found it there	36
is that the only ground on which you swear put it there himself that s ground enough answer my question if you please yes it is and my belief that robbed his uncle of his money that will do we shall give you the little end of the horn to crawl out of before we get through added squire dock sour and sat down near the rocking chair of mr and mr caesar cabin steward of the flag was politely invited to take the stand he appeared in his best clothes and his name quality and position on board of the were duly by the magistrate what do you know about the money or the bag asked squire op fortune or i know all about it your honor replied the witness with a radiant smile who put them in the where they were found did your honor that s been to say that interposed dock savagely who do you call a demanded mr stepping briskly up to dock with his fists doubled up for use i never was convicted of crime and sent to the state prison order called the justice dock was the more disturbed of the two but the him while mr patched up the wounded dignity of the cabin steward who wag doubtless a much better man than dock he had formerly been the body servant of a french gentleman in and he could read and write and spoke french he wrote his name c and he insisted that his should be pronounced a ba ne a he was a person of no little importance in his own estimation and had a southern negro s contempt for mean half sound the world of whom dock seemed to be the meanest specimen he had yet seen now mr we will proceed with this examination a ba ne a if you please your honor suggested the witness with the of bows i beg your pardon mr said the justice with a smile you placed the bag and the money in the did you i did your honor in the captain s but i didn t comprehend what was in the bag at the particular moment when it was in my possession exactly so i was not precisely informed in regard to the nature of the contents of the bag which was in a mass and exceedingly heavy for the bulk of the parcel appearing to consist only of a portion of tow cloth just so mr we are fortunate in being able to understand you i beg your honor s pardon but the e in my should be pronounced like long a excuse me laughed the justice but of fortune or my french is rather rusty will you do me the favor to indicate in what manner the bag and its contents came into your possession with pleasure your honor yesterday afternoon just previous to captain s going on shore who asked squire who was not familiar with s new title captain your honor you mean no your honor far be it from me to commit the gross of calling the captain of the in which i sail by his christian name captain your honor go on then i know whom you mean yesterday afternoon just as captain was going on shore i the precise time but it was about five o clock post that is sufficiently accurate mr do me the favor to proceed i beg your honor s pardon but these have a tendency to prevent me from following accurately and the thread of my narrative half bound the world the magistrate bowed and laughed as all in the room were doing except dock and mr the witness commenced his story again repeating everything he had said before and the squire did not deem it prudent to interrupt him again i was in a standing position near the entrance to the main cabin and your honor is aware that in first class the descent in the standing room which in new york is more frequently called the at a distance of not more than a quarter of a marine league from our lay a fishing which i was informed by those who probably possessed an accurate knowledge of the intended movements of the though i really could not now state to your honor the names of the parties from whom i received this intimation not interposed the squire the information i received may prove to be material your honor i was informed that the vessel intended to sail for the grand banks or the coast of i cannot now swear which or indeed if it was either of these possibly of fortune or it was either possibly it was neither or possibly it was both i wish it particularly understood that under the solemnity of an oath i do not state positively where the vessel was going suffice it to say that she was going on a fishing voyage but whether for or or either or all or a portion of these inhabitants of the mighty deep i am entirely unable to say the court counsel and witnesses with the exceptions before noted roared with laughter and the cabin steward smiled complacently as though he was conscious of having made a point i can only observe under oath that i was informed that the vessel intended to depart in search of some of the numerous specimens that in herds through the boundless depths of the sea as soon as the tide turned a excuse me mr but what ha ul this to do with the money and the bag asked the justice choking down his laughter w i trust i shall be able to to the entire satisfaction of your honor that there is an intimate connection between these circumstances and the half round thb world articles discovered in the state room of captain go on then it is almost dinner time	36
a an exceedingly craft to a resident of new york where i have had the honor to reside for several seasons a you mean a don t you i am really unable to pronounce the word according to any as it was never my good fortune to see the word in print i am not informed whether or not the acute accent is placed over the final there is no e in the word d o r y ah excuse me it is not a french word then and it is quite proper to call it a precisely so and now having settled this important point that it is a and not a will you inform the court where you got the bag and the money said squire beginning to be a little impatient but he might as well have attempted to make water run up hill as to induce mr c to relate his story in any other than his own way of fortune ob a from the fishing vessel about to depart on her voyage paid a visit of courtesy to the flag the party which came in the consisted of three persons all of them and all of them young men all or a portion of them were evidently personal friends of the four worthy young men who constitute the crew of the of which i have the honor to be cabin steward the persons who came on board were not cabin visitors i am not even aware that they paid their respects to our excellent captain but i feel compelled to add that while on board they behaved with the utmost propriety i was there exclaimed the justice the court is till after dinner i hope the distinguished gentleman will be able to spin out his before bed time half bound the world i chapter xl the result of the examination the dignity of the court had been effectually by the of mr c though it was evident that he was a very important witness of course no one was invited to dine at the s and the court and witnesses went home to dinner as a compromise was asked to dine with his prisoner at mr s at the appointed hour in the afternoon the court again assembled in the house of the a mi said squire you had proceeded in your narrative when the court to the point where four of the crew of the fishing vessel about to depart in search of specimens came on board of the which has the honor to have your valuable services as steward of fortune or m i beg your honor s pardon i had the honor not the interposed mr bowing well i should say that the honors were divided replied the justice and his remark was regarded as a joke if you could commence where you left and go on i should be under very great obligations to you i will make a persistent effort to do so your honor added the obliging mr c as i had the honor to hear your honor remark the three young men from the fishing vessel about to depart as were on board of our as and as i was standing near the cabin door as now my narrative your honor one of the young men from the fishing as captain was about to go over the side into his boat rushed up to me with the bag in his hand you mean the shot bag containing the gold do you asked the squire now deeply interested in the substance of the story i do your honor perhaps i should have said the bag which i thought i had described with half bound the world sufficient the bag bad originally contained shot if the words printed on it can be relied upon in the name of the constitution of the united states don t repeat the description of the bag protested the squire one of the young men rushed up to you with the bag in his hand the bag then your honor i affirm that he rushed up to me meaning that he walked briskly and rapidly towards me he placed the bag the bag your honor in my hand extended for the purpose of receiving it when i understood that he wished to commit it to my keeping precisely so what did he say he observed that the captain desired me to place the parcel by which i mean the bag with its contents not then known to me in one of the in his state room as nearly as i can remember though i should not be willing to swear to the precise of the language he used his words were the captain wants you to put this into the in his state room didn t you ask him what it was of ob no your honor i never ask any questions when the captain s orders come to me it is my duty to obey without knowing the reasons for the action i am directed to take i went immediately to the captain s state room and deposited the parcel the bag in one of the empty i supposed from its weight that it contained nails hinges or some other species of did you see the captain hand it to the person who gave it to you no your honor i did not under the painfully disagreeable circumstances which have followed the of the of the bag in the i wish to add if my humble opinion is of any value to this honorable court that i do not believe the captain gave the bag to the person of whom i received it do you know the name of the man who gave it to you asked squire i can only reply that i heard him called ben	36
which i presume is an of when addressed by his companions it was ben said he was on board at the time mentioned r half the world i have no knowledge whatever in regard to his added the cabin steward why do you say you don t believe the captain handed it to ben continued the justice because your honor the circumstances do not justify such a conclusion on my part it is not reasonable to suppose tt confine yourself to the facts mr we do not care to listen to an argument interposed the justice i beg your honor s pardon to facts then will i confine myself the captain went directly from the cabin to his boat and the person whom his companions called ben came to me directly from the i did not see him hold any communication with the captain though he paused for a moment at the and looked over the rail into the boat might not the captain have handed him the then i don t think it was possible your honor what were the men on the doing they were away a spare cable all but op fortune or bob thomas who was to pull the captain ashore and the visitors were assisting them that will do mr we are much obliged to you for the manner in which you h ve given your testimony which is very important said squire bob thomas who had pulled the captain ashore and who had been in the boat with him at the time when he was alleged to have sent the bag to the steward was next questioned he had neither seen the bag nor seen speak to ben the rest of the crew were examined but nothing was from them each of them was asked what had passed between ben and himself but the conversation related entirely to fish and fishing mat seemed to be slightly confused which was attributed to for his statements were as square as those of his ben who appeared to be the only person that could solve the mystery had gone on a fishing voyage and might not return for two months or more no one had seen him at the fire when the money was stolen and it was not probable that he half bound the world was the original whatever part he might have been employed to perform by the guilty party himself was then examined at great length his statements covering the time from the fire down to the present moment were clear and positive he knew nothing about the money he had not given the bag to ben had not spoken to him except to pass the time of day with him as an old acquaintance when dock and mr declared that hated his uncle mrs the statement by all the kind acts he had performed squire for the then the testimony for and against his tt it certainly has not been shown that stole this money said he nor has sufficient evidence been brought against him to render it probable that he is guilty not enough to justify your honor in committing him for trial this investigation has led us to follow the bag from the captain s state room to the hands of ben there we are blocked and can go no farther till this person s return from his voyage mr to a steamer send her after the fishing vessel and bring back of fortune or ben then we can follow the bag until it leads us to the fact of a conspiracy against my it is not necessary to send any steamer after the witness said the justice the only evidence in this long examination which has been brought against the prisoner is that the bag was found in his it has been shown that he did not place it there and probably did not cause it to be placed there the is discharged and squire rose from his seat at the table the decision though it had not been unexpected caused a decided sensation in the little audience assembled in the s chamber dock was mad mr was in despair and the was disappointed the victim had escaped and the had obtained no to the lost treasure the justice took possession of the bag and its contents to be used when ben returned the audience dispersed to talk over the event among themselves s friends including mr who had listened with the deepest interest to the proceedings halt bound the world were satisfied that the whole affair was a conspiracy mr s theory was that dock had robbed the himself and had employed the to place the bag in s room intending himself to be on the way to before returned as the matter stood nothing could be proved but mr declared that he should watch dock and a certain other person whose name he declined to mention by night and by day until some evidence was obtained it was not enough to the innocent the guilty must be exposed and punished then didn t steal my money all said mr to dock after the other people bad gone yes he did s smart and knows how to cover up his work we don t know no more n notion in the world what s come on t sighed mr s got it and it will come to light yet repeated dock i whether he has or not that lied all the way through folks of fortune ob that tell the truth don t spin no as he did if i catch that in the right place pound him till he tells the truth for certainly him to tell that story he didn t say a word about ben on board the vessel he only did it to get his master out of a scrape that s all you may depend upon it all i want	36
he moved however slightly the creaking threatened to betray his presence and he decided to satisfy himself at once one glance might inform him who the men were and perhaps the mystery of the stolen gold would be solved the steward made a spring towards the throwing himself forward upon his hands so as to look down through the hole he had forgotten the condition of the hotel de his weight and the force of his movement were too much for the strength of the rotten wood a timber gave way and mr c was head first through the hole he had made and struck between the two men who sat each on a rock facing the other with the light on the ground between them the lantern was smashed and the two men uttered a howl of terror of fortune or if the steward s head had struck one of the rocks it must have split it open the head not the rock he hit the ground and as it was he was again stunned the men making a hasty escape without recognition half bound the chapter from apparent doubtless a person with mr c s pretensions to should have sent down his card to the individuals engaged in conference below before he went down himself but the circumstances did not permit the exercise of this degree of courtesy in fact the steward had no intention forcibly to intrude himself upon the persons below only to obtain a glance at them he was a man of intelligence and the arrest of his captain in whose character he had a becoming interest was enough to assure him that something was wrong he had listened patiently to the details of the examination and while he was willing to admit that the old man had been robbed of his gold it never entered his head that was guilty of the crime the muffled speech of the two men in the hotel op ob de and the hour they had chosen for their conference suggested to the steward that they had something to do with this robbery he had vainly endeavored to identify their voices and as a last resort failing to obtain any information by other means he decided to obtain one glance at them at all perhaps it was well for him that the broke beneath his weight for the men not the intrusion might have subjected him to much bodily harm as it was they bolted as though an evil spirit had suddenly dropped down between them from the upper regions they were terribly frightened as indicated by their rapid flight the steward had not even obtained his view of their faces and forms and was no wiser in the end than he was in the beginning the treacherous had defeated his purpose while perhaps they had saved him from a greater calamity than his fall for the second time that day the steward lay senseless on the ground though mr c was not wanting in intelligence his skull seemed to have a for enduring hard half round the world which was really surprising doubtless his head was his strong place if it had not been his brains must have been dashed out according to the tradition it was safer for him to strike on his head than on his certainly he was not badly injured and if reduced to extremity he might have let out his head for use as a blacksmith s before the two men who had been together in the hotel de could muster courage to return the steward had in a great measure recovered from the effects of the fall perhaps the of stars which dawned upon his vision had not all ceased to shine and perhaps his ideas which had all been thrown into a confused mass were not altogether detached and restored to their original channels but was practically himself again his first was one of regret that he had failed to obtain a sight of the two men that he had not even learned whether they were or white old or young or he rubbed his head to relieve the pressure on his brain and to his ideas the incident which had occurred seemed to render the hotel de of fortune or an unfit place for him to remain daring the balance of the night but he was not willing to leave till he had examined the locality and obtained whatever evidence it might afford him in regard to the mysterious couple who had met there kicking about the ground he disturbed the glass of the lantern the globe had been broken but the lamp was still whole though mr c had a great many bright parts he was inclined to be a swell he smoked a pipe on the of the but when he walked through the principal streets of in his and sack he smoked an cigar with a in deference to his huge it was more genteel to smoke a cigar than a pipe the steward carried a cigar case which always contained two or three of the brand and he claimed to have brought them from himself in this case he also carried matches which now promised to serve him a better turn than for the lighting of his cigar in a moment he had the lamp from the lantern half round the world burning and was looking curiously and eagerly about the premises the steward had an idea perhaps not a very brilliant one but as brilliant as could be expected of a man whose intellect had been so rudely twice within a brief period the conduct of the two transient guests at the hotel de had been suspicious to say the least that afternoon the robbery had been fully discussed and he was confident that the visitors were in some manner connected with that affair his idea was that the fish house had	36
been used as a place of concealment for the plunder he made a hasty examination of the ground and the rocks which formed the first floor of the hotel de but discovered nothing to confirm his impression the steward crossed the place to examine under the stairs on his way he hit his head against a board which was hanging from the floor above partly detached by his movement through the structure it scratched the top of his head already tender from rough usage and thereby vexed and him as slight accidents often even great minds with a gesture of impatience of fortune or and a word not in good taste for a he seized the projecting board and gave it a savage mr was not a poet himself but he was fond of the poets and had milton and with real pleasure to say nothing of having read and in the original the steward therefore was prepared to appreciate the poet s sentiment oft from apparent ills our blessings rise his impatient gesture and his exclamation when the board scratched his indicated that he regarded the accident as an apparent ill but as he the board a shot bag with g d coin with a upon the ground at his feet narrowly avoiding his head and thus saving him from being knocked senseless a third time the steward opened his eyes and regarded the bag as the blessing he shook the board again and another bag came this time then he pulled it away and the sail which had formed his bed in the rolled down this he found a third bag and this was the last he could find picking half round the world up the lamp till it blazed like a torch he renewed the search but no more of these heavy blessings were available mr was satisfied and he set his lamp down on the ground intending to open one of the bags and ascertain the nature of its contents under ordinary circumstances the steward would have been too careful to set his lamp down so near a pile of dry as he did on the present occasion but his mind was probably so confused by the hard his head had received and by the excitement of finding the gold that he took little note of his surroundings his thought was concentrated upon the bags of gold he did not even think of the two men whose conference he had disturbed and did not seem to fear that they would return and deprive him of his he was about to the string of one of the heavy bags when a bright glare the space before him the pile of dry which had been used to cover a sail boat in the winter was all in a light blaze the steward tried to the flames with his feet but his efforts were the dry of fortune ob stuff burned like and the more he kicked the more the fire leaped up and spit at him he fought the flames as long as his courage held out and then he allowed that the hotel de was a doomed structure taking the money bags he retreated down the towards the landing place at the point lighted on his way by the burning building crossing the plank he reached the shore there was a there and putting the three bags into it the steward launched it and pulled off to the the treasure was conveyed to the cabin and deposited temporarily in a under a berth the was back to the shore and placed where the steward had found it that no early might be deprived of his morning trip was in a of excitement all this time and had not even considered what he should do with the bags his present object was to secure the plunder so that it could not be recovered by the robbers and having done this he was entirely satisfied with himself and everybody else except dock to whom he owed a balance on account for that night s business half bound the world there was an alarm of fire on shore the bright glare of the flames from the hotel de penetrated the windows of a house near dock s and lighted up the bed chamber of a sleeping he gave the alarm the bells rang the engines rattled and the whole town was aroused from its peaceful hundreds of men who had worked hard all day lost two hours of sleep for an old which was not worth five dollars the hotel de was burned to the ground before many people had gathered some good men thanked god that it had not been a poor man s house young men enjoyed the excitement of running with the machine and those with an eye for the picturesque were thankful that the had been removed from a place where it the landscape no one appeared to be sorry but every one wondered how the fire had caught various conjectures were suggested but after all no one knew anything about it some thought a had used it as a lodging and set it on fire in lighting his pipe others thought some bad boys had set the fire for fun g op fortune or if the two men who had met there to confer about their ill gotten gold were in the crowd doubtless they were and wiser men probably they thought that the breaking of the lantern had communicated the flame to the the people present knew nothing of the event in the hotel de wherein mr c had been the principal actor the finding of the half melted remains of a lantern had no significance or to them the building burned up clean and there was nothing left of it but a few smoking and a thin of ashes on the ground and the rocks if the robbers whoever they were went to	36
the fire it is more than likely that they searched eagerly among the ruins for the gold if they did they saw nothing which looked like the of the treasure the old sail in which the gold appeared to have been concealed or which had bee i thrown over its place of concealment was burned to and there was not a of the bags or the money half round the wo ld chapter xiv lose his own soul the steward of the flag after he had returned the to the rocks and secured the jolly boat of the had an opportunity to rest his mixed up brain and to consider his next step the four of the slept on shore at their own homes there was no one on board but the cook who heavily in the and did not hear when he conveyed the bags to the cabin mr lighted a lamp closed the cabin doors and drew the silken curtains over the ports in the upper part of the trunk so that no one could see what he was doing though it was not lawful for the steward to use the wash bowl in mr s he considered that the present emergency would justify him in doing so he performed his of fortune ob with the utmost care paying particular attention to his wounded head he then changed his clothing throughout and devoted half an hour te his which had been somewhat soiled by contact with the burning he even polished his boots before he put them away so far as cleanliness was concerned the steward was a gentleman which no person can be having completed his toilet and removed all signs of the operation from the state room he sat down on a in the cabin he was thinking of the extraordinary incidents of the night he was fully satisfied that he had found mr s treasure and that the opportunity entirely to free his young captain from suspicion was within his grasp it was a pleasant thought but after all who was captain only a young fellow behind whose chair at dinner he was privileged to stand he had seen him for the first time but a few days before and he did not feel under any peculiar obligations to him mr took the three bags of gold from the and laid them on the cabin table it was midnight by the clock which hung in the cabin half bound the world the dead hour of night when all were sleeping the on shore had burned out and all was still save the rolling sea the steward went to the door opened it passed up to the deck there was no one in sight and hardly a light to be seen on the land returning to the cabin he poured out the contents of one of the bags on the table and proceeded to count the gold it was a long job and there was more money than the steward had ever before seen together on a piece of paper he noted each hundred dollars with a mark his last pile contained but fifty dollars counting up his marks he made of them and the whole sum according to his reckoning was thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars the old man had lost four thousand dollars and the steward concluding he had made a mistake performed the agreeable task of counting the gold a second time but with the same result as before after making the allowance for the fifty dollars found in the captain s state room the amount was one hundred dollars short mr had the impudence to ask himself if this could be the s money of fortune or since it did not hold out in the sum he had lost but the bags were plainly marked as the fourth had been n in the cramped handwriting of the of course there could be no doubt in regard to the of the treasure and mr could not but wonder at the stupidity of the thieves in hiding it in or under the old sail in the hotel de but he did them the justice to conclude that it had only been placed there for a short time perhaps for but a few hours at any rate their presence in the indicated that it was to have been removed during the night it had been removed during the night the steward chuckled when he thought of it but his intellect was agitated by a great moral question thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars was an immense sum to a person in his station who had never had even a hundred dollars in his possession at one time honesty was a precious jewel but it was not possible for him to make thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars at one haul by being honest he did not steal the money he did not rob the old man if the steward had not suffered half bound the world the perils and of two broken heads or rather one head broken twice the robbers whoever they were would doubtless have divided the money between them and the old man would never know what had become of his cherished gold mr asked himself if this was not a of fortune in his favor if the money was not a compensation for his twice broken head thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars would be a very handsome for two such as he had received and he was enough to feel willing that his head should be to a at this rate so long as the of his mighty intellect was not extinguished the steward was a man of exquisite tastes and was ambitious for social recognition and distinction in paris a colored man was just as good as if not a little better than a white man his former master in had believed in paris and seeing with	36
his eyes he had been fully converted to his master s faith mr wanted to go to paris wanted to live there even as a waiter in a if no better situation presented itself with the money before of fortune or him he could realize his dream of luxury and splendor he could convert these half into and like a prince in the gay metropolis of france he would wear the finest of eat the most of dinners and up and down the es like a gentleman in short thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars or nearly twenty thousand in the of france would make a gentleman of him mr c was sorely tempted it might be only once in his lifetime that such a chance to be a gentleman would be presented to him he could put the gold into his carpet bag walk over to and take the first train for boston no one would know what had become of him or if they did he would not be suspected of having the gold but he would be missed and his absence might cause a commotion it would be better not to leave at present the money could be concealed on board of the and when he was disposed to abandon the vessel it would be his reach after more reflection on this important matter the steward became convinced that it would be safer and half round the world better to hide the gold on board at the stern of the vessel under the standing room there was a space not available for cabin use which formed a kind of store room for extra supplies it was reached by removing the cabin steps the tempted man entered this contracted and low apartment with the lamp in his hand he found a narrow which led to the space under the cabin floor where the was deposited and over which a board had been nailed to prevent the of water from penetrating the apartment of the passengers he removed this board and reaching down into the hold placed the bags in a position where they were not likely to be discovered even by a person searching for them on the board again he covered it with various articles and returned to the cabin on the table lay a bible which the steward occasionally read though it was now two o clock in the morning he was not sleepy he was too much excited to think of slumber he opened the good book mechanically turned its leaves and read a verse here and there but he was thinking all the time of the luxurious of the french capital and the of or pleasures which thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars would purchase for what is a man if he shall gain whole world and lose his own this was the last he read and he closed the hook as though this appeal of holy writ harshly on his feelings tt lose his own soul repeated he almost in spite of himself he tried to think of the and the gardens of the again but lose his own soul came up to his lips still as though some invisible power compelled him to whisper the impressive sentence he attempted to whistle and then to sing an air but lose his own soul came up to his lips and he could not help whispering the sentence again this money don t belong to me said he in audible words i am not the happy owner of this sum unto but few is it appointed to be both rich and good looking and i am not of the number i must be contented with my good looks it was no use to say it he did not mean it and the idea of paris and its luxuries still haunted his half round the world imagination he turned in but it was only to think what thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars would purchase and lose his own soul not only came to his lips but the solemn sentence seemed to be printed in sombre all over the cabin he went to sleep at last but lose his own soul followed him into his dreams in the distance and muttered in his ears by grinning such as those with which his fancy peopled the of the lost but he uneasily till the sun was far up on his day journey when he went on deck he saw the flag almost alongside captain field and the four came on board the young announced that the trip to the eastward which had been postponed from the day before would be commenced at once and the party would be on board at eight o clock the steward had enough to do to keep his hands if not his mind engaged in making preparations for the occupants of the cabin at the time appointed the party came on board and the sailed on her our story need not follow them during the ten days to which the trip was prolonged it is enough of fortune or to say that the party enjoyed every moment of the time even mrs who had no taste for the sea was delighted for at her request was careful to bring the to anchor in smooth water every night and to stay in port when the sea was very rough during those ten days mr considered and and then considered again what he should do with the money that had so strangely come into his possession he was disposed to use it but the gospel sentence thundered in his ears and trembled upon his lips and rolled like the chariot of an through his mind once or twice he was on the point of telling the captain all about the gold but the vision of luxury checked him when the entered sandy bay the lay off the point and the flag a couple of	36
length from her half bound the world chapter xv another little plan when the flag returned from her pleasant excursion to the eastward mr had so far recovered from the effects of his fall as to be out and to be making his preparations again to catch dog fish it seemed to him to be absolutely necessary that he should make some more money he felt like a poor man and his stocks and bonds notes and afforded him but little comfort his heart seemed to have been lost with the four thousand in gold when the made her the old man was at the landing place getting ready to go the next day his bones still ached and nothing but bitter necessity could have induced one so feeble as he was to think of going off in a miles from the shore the perils of ocean and of fortune ob storm he believed that poverty and want stared him in the face and that he must go to the if he did not make an effort to his great misfortune dock was never far off when a vessel came into port and though he was very busy in making the preparations for his departure he hastened down to the point when the flag in sight that s s vessel squire said he i s pose tis replied the old man casting an indifferent glance to i sold my house to day squire continued dock himself by the shore did ye what d ye for t fifteen hundred dollars it was worth two thousand but as i m going to right off i couldn t afford to hold it for a better price you ll have a good deal of money to off with you not much i paid six thousand for that vessel and she s dog cheap at that but i shall make my fortune in her carrying passengers i hope you will for you ve done well by me half sound the world though you didn t find my money and the old man sighed heavily i reckon i shall never see more on t x i m afraid you never will squire that lied so like all possessed that got clear and then we couldn t do anything i m afraid it s too late to do anything more i calculate that and understand one another pretty well they fixed things between them and i m just as sure as i can be that your money went off in that vessel in the yes in the replied dock warmly it was away somewhere in her but i suppose they have got rid of it by this time you think i shan t never see it again groaned the old man with a piteous expression on his thin i m sorry to say i don t think you ever will a then i m a ruined man i can t afford to lose four thousand dollars it was e all i had and i don t see but i must go to the dock took off his hat rubbed his head of fortune ob gazed upon the ground and seemed to be in deep thought for several minutes so was the in deep thought brooding over his lost treasure squire when i begin to do a thing i always do it sooner or later said dock glancing doubtfully at the old man you didn t find my money added mr no but fm going to find it or some more just like it squire i can put you in the way of making twenty thousand dollars just as easy as you lost that four thousand you don t say exclaimed the old man his sunken eyes glowing at the suggestion i can there isn t any doubt about it you don t mean to steal it do you steal it you don t think i d steal do you if you do i won t say anything more about my little plan another little plan well no i never know d you to steal nothing twenty thousand dollars is a good deal of money squire so tis more n i ever expect to see i half round the world i but yon shall see it and have it if you will take i hold of my little plan i what is t asked the old man curiously and eagerly i it s we must keep still about i m going to make my fortune out of it and yours too u what do you want to keep still for ef you ain t i go n to steal it a i see it s no use to talk with you said dock if you think i d steal i can t depend upon you or you upon me so there s an end of it dock rose from his seat looked at the flag which was just coming to anchor and then began to walk up the point but he expected to be called back and he was not disappointed u why don t you tell me on t so i can know what you re go n to do demanded the i shall not say anything to you i don t think i can trust you the business isn t all regular but it isn t stealing protested dock yon can trust me cap n jest as long as you can trust anybody you know i never says of fortune or to nobody about business i keeps things to myself mr will you keep this to yourself i will ton honor added dock earnestly a yes honor nobody ever me to say about business i never trust nobody not even my wife with business matters u sit down squire and we ll talk it over between us replied dock apparently satisfied with the old man s promise mr with some	36
difficulty seated himself on the rock and with glaring eyes so interested was he in a project which was to put twenty thousand dollars in his pocket he listened to the rather explanations of his companion for twenty thousand dollars he would have sold his soul but he was timid i never fail in doing a thing without wanting to try it over again dock began i always put things through when i begin upon them the old man was not quite sure of this but he did not interrupt the speaker half the world three years ago twenty thousand dollars slipped through my fingers just as easy as though the money had been continued dock i didn t know on t yes you did had his money all ready to pay over to me when i had the girl before and if hadn t come between me and him i should have had the money now squire i m going to try that over again and fm not going to fail this time i ve got things fixed so that i can t fail i about that said the old man i know and i m just as certain about it as though the thing was done already but i m not going to tell you anything more about it than i m obliged to and then you won t know anything about it and can t be held responsible for it a i don t see how fm go n to make any money by it interposed the who was more interested in this part of the plan than any other you squire how much money do you suppose s worth i i of fortune ob more than a million i know that to be a feet and i shouldn t wonder if he was worth two millions folks in boston think he is he s on t all on and things what that cost to him is no more than a copper to yon and me he don t mind a hundred thousand dollars any more than you would half a ent not so much but he don t believe in on t away fm going to him just seventy thousand dollars fifty thousand for myself and twenty thousand for you i don t see how it s go n to be done he shall pay the money over to you that s what i want you for then they ll me and put mo in jail suggested the old man nonsense they won t do it the whole matter will be between you and tou won t know anything about the business not a thing all you ve got to do is to take the money and keep it till i call for it after the girl has been gone a half bound the world month or two he will be glad to give you twice as much as i ask i shall get her aboard the how you go n to do it she won t go with you any more n she ll go with the evil til take care of that tou are to know nothing about it i shall leave things so that mr will go to you and offer to pay the money without your saying a word about it beforehand all you have to do is to keep what he gives you till i call for it i about it it s all right we shan t hurt the girl she shall have a good state room and my wife will be on board to see to her i tell you fm going to have this thing done over again where s go n to be all this time he sticks to the all the time and if you her o he ll follow you way round the world he won t know anything about it besides i calculate hell be in jail for stealing your money before that time you don t think so of fortune or yes i do fm going to fix that and bet won t have his wool to hold on to much longer but i don t understand about this business cap n said the old man doubtfully i don t want you to understand anything about it it s all right as it is when the money comes you hold on to it ain t you go n off to a of course i am then how you go n to the money leave all that to me replied dock impatiently if you don t know anything you ll keep out of trouble tou will make your twenty thousand dollars out of it and that ought to satisfy you squire there s only just one thing more to be done what s that i ll give you a chance to make another ten thousand if you like the old man s eyes brightened again as he asked how it was to be done i find i m going to be a little short fitting out half round the world fm going to take out some notions to sell that will pay me five dollars for one but i haven t got the money to do it continued dock the old man s chin dropped and he looked sad and sorrowful i want x ten thousand dollars more than i ve got i shall make forty thousand out of the venture and i can afford to pay a heavy interest i will give you ten thousand for the use of ten thousand i t got no money protested the but you can raise it i ain t sure of ever on t back yes you are you will lend me ten thousand dollars and then take twenty thousand out of my fifty when pays it over to you perhaps he never pay it over to me you may be sure	36
entirely at your service said the steward it won t take a great while to get off what i want to say dock began putting a very look upon his ugly face i suppose you know the old man that lost the money i have not the honor to be personally acquainted with him but i am informed that he is the paternal uncle of captain that s so and has treated him in the most shabby manner w permit me to interrupt you captain interposed the steward it would not be possible for captain to treat any person in a shabby manner certainly not his own uncle op ob on that point we differ steward but let me say what i was going to say proceed captain i simply refuse to your statement and i protest against it all this is neither here nor there to come right down to the p int the old man lost four thousand dollars in gold i m trying to help him find it i know just as well as i know anything that stole that money all the circumstances go to show that he did letting alone the fact that one of the bags was found in his state room not without an earnest protest can i permit my worthy captain to be in this manner on my own responsibility i declare that your statement is utterly false i am satisfied it s just as i say persisted dock now we ll go a p int closer to the wind fm almost certain that the gold stole is hid aboard this vessel and you wish to search the for it added the steward that s just my idea replied dock promptly permitting such a search would be an half bound the world on my part of the possibility of my worthy captain s guilt therefore i cannot suffer such an in to be well steward whether you are going to suffer it or not it s going to be done said dock savagely i didn t come off here this time to be with i know the gold s on board and i m going to have it you know it repeated the steward calmly yes i know it so do i added quietly you do exclaimed dock i knew you did been satisfied all along that you knew all about it and that you was helping cover up his guilt i suppose he was going to give you something for it one of your statements namely that the money is on board of this is assuredly correct but your theory your logic your premises and your conclusions are undoubtedly false and absurd said the steward a cheerful smile playing beneath his huge isn t the gold here demanded dock impatiently it is op fortune or then quit your and talk in plain english of course stole it not he who did then you and another person excuse me captain if my remarks seem too personal but i have a theory of my own which with your permission i will to you have a glass of cold water sir the steward filled a from the ice and politely it to the guest no i don t want any go on with your growled dock for he desired to ascertain what the steward knew we need use no undue haste in our replied as he drank the glass of water go on and don t talk any the money was stolen by you and another person what other person to be entirely candid with you i do not yet know who the other person is but a certain con half bound the world event will expose him he referred to the return of the fishing vessel with ben who had handed him the bag you and the other person to me at present unknown stole the money and concealed it in the hotel de in the what i refer to fish house which was consumed in the of ten days ago after you had knocked me down by a stone at me in the and most manner on my recovery from the effects of the blow i went to the to sleep being too late to return on board i was in the when you and the other person were below the floor broke and i had the misfortune to be upon you and your companion in you ran away but i found the gold and brought it on board this is my theory captain dock this is all a lie gasped dock putting his hand into his side pocket on the contrary it is all the sacred truth see here steward you can t fool me i want that money op fortune or allow me to inform you that you cannot have it in due time it shall be restored to the owner i can and will have it said dock fiercely as be took a revolver from his pocket and pointed it at the head of the steward i think not replied mr producing his revolver and out his legs under i table he threw himself into an attitude as as the human form could assume while upon j face played an expression of smiling assurance w took the all dock s hand trembled and the pistol his grasp as he looked in dismay at the steward weapon all and cocked as his own was not a circumstance which probably helped mr in keeping so cool and self possessed why don t you fire captain dock f the steward if you move you are a man at this moment a boat touched the side of the vessel and while the two men were each other as described entered the cabin he was half bound the world i startled by the array of deadly weapons presented to him as he descended the steps but neither dock nor the steward	36
appeared to notice him for each was afraid the other would fire if his attention was for i an instant diverted of fortune ob chapter xvii the gold restored could see no good reason why dock and the steward of the should be such deadly enemies as to draw pistols on each other he had come on board for a travelling bag which had left in her state room and he was not prepared for the scene that met his view in the cabin tt what are you about demanded he but the steward was obliged to attend to the ugly customer opposite him at the table and he made no reply a piece of however which he regretted as an absolute necessity captain dock i will trouble you to lay your weapon on the table said the steward if you don t do it i will fire dock did it half bound the would pardon me captain for my in not replying to your question continued i asked you what you were about repeated i was about to shoot this and i should have done so if i had not happened to observe in good time that his weapon was not in condition to go off dock rose from his seat leaving his revolver on the table probably he had not expected to use it believing the sight of it would be sufficient to the steward and induce him to give up the three bags of gold he looked at the colored man then at the former had dropped his revolver seeing which the walked towards the cabin door as the movement was not opposed he ran up the steps jumped into his boat and pulled for the again impatiently demanded an explanation of the scene he had witnessed the steward back at the day of the examination related in his and speech all the events in which he had been the chief actor up to the current incident of the day he did not confess that of fortune or he had been tempted to steal the money for he regarded the of the temptation as a sufficient virtue without the humiliation of exposing his own weakness then the gold is on board now exclaimed the astonished yes sir it is concealed in the run replied why didn t you tell me of all this before because i wished to find the men that stole the money i thought i could do it better alone than i could with the or anybody else answered but he hung his head as he thought of the purpose he had cherished he had resisted the temptation but his conscience was sensitive enough to make him regret that he had even been tempted to steal was thoughtful and troubled the triumphant of his captain which the steward had promised himself to bring about was not likely to be realized the gold was on board of the and could be restored to mr but the vessel had been searched for it and restoring it looked half b u td the more like the vile charge against him than like it perhaps it would be better for his reputation to keep the money until the return of ben but could not believe it was right to retain the gold even a single day he was honest and true and he determined to do his duty before god and man letting his reputation take care of itself he directed the steward to bring out the bags from their hiding place the name on the tow cloth in his uncle s cramped writing assured him there could be no mistake in regard to the the steward told him there was thirty eight hundred and fifty dollars in the bags one hundred and fifty dollars less than the sum lost the robbers had probably taken out one hundred dollars for present use and fifty for the which was to in trap the captain of the one of the bags had been emptied and its contents distributed among the other three the gold was transferred to the boat the cabin doors and forward were locked and accompanied by the steward pulled ashore and landed at mr s house of fortune ob the exciting story of the recovery of the money was repeated and the young declared his intention to restore the bags to mr mr volunteered to go with him on this interesting errand with the bags in lis hands entered the kitchen where his uncle was seated followed by his constant mend there is your money uncle said he as he placed the bags on the table what the gold demanded the with breathless eagerness yes sir the gold replied all of it gasped the old man rising from his chair while his frame trembled under the excitement of the moment all but one hundred and fifty dollars i think you ought to give me back the whole on t fifty dollars more of it is in the hands of squire but then there s a ed gone added the old man as he clutched the bags and raised them to test their weight half hound the world u i suppose the thieves took a hundred dollars of the money said who s the thieves u i don t know who they are but i think they will be discovered in due time the steward of the found these bags in the old fish house that was burned mr and had agreed that the ends of justice would best be answered by saying no more than this at present both of them were satisfied that dock was one of the robbers but unfortunately there was no evidence that connected him with the crime though he had gone on board the and demanded the gold of the steward he had done so in the name of the owner and the act was consistent with his position as	36
the agent of mr the old man asked a great many questions but he obtained only the facts all theories and suspicions were suppressed mr had sent the steward for mr and before they left the s house he arrived and the party proposed to visit the and examine the premises in search of any evidence that might be obtained op ob though mr was to find his gold his satisfaction did not prevent him from growling sorely at the loss of the hundred dollars he insisted that ought to make it up to him he followed the party out of the house and would have gone to the ruins of the hotel de with them if dock who had just landed had not joined him the steward told his story over again and the parts of the lantern which still remained there were a partial confirmation of the truth of it mr took possession of these pieces hoping to be able to prove something by them while they were still discussing the matter dock and mr joined them if you make up that ed dollars i won t say more about it the old man i shall not do so uncle replied certainly not added mr he ought to do it interposed dock he stole the money and the least he can do is to give it all back half bound the world c i do not wish to hold any conversation with you on the subject answered the merchant coldly i suppose you don t sneered dock it has all turned out just as i said it would stole the money and got that black steward to help him when he was like to be found out i knew all the time that money was on board the and squire may thank me for getting it for him i made the steward own up that the gold was on board j and after that didn t dare to keep it any longer i suppose you don t want to say anything more about it after that not to you added mr as he walked away followed by his companions there squire you can see them off like sheep said dock it s just as i tell you you may depend upon it and if don t make up that hundred i should put him through a course of he ought to me the whole of the money replied mr who accepted dock s explanation in regard to the recovery of the gold i reckon you ll get it yet but squire of fortune or i expect i shall get off in two or three days now and i want that money i spoke to you about added dock as they walked towards the road tt i am going to sail for new york first buy the goods there and then go to you are going to make thirty thousand dollars out of me and you can afford to accommodate me a little i expect you will get the whole thirty thousand before i sail from new york i know you will dock talked half of that night to the old man and finally persuaded him to raise the sum he required the gold which had been restored to him made up a large portion of it and the next day he obtained the rest the had sold his house and disposed of his furniture to the who was to have possession as soon as dock sailed while mr and his companion were discussing the loan mr called at dock s house after dark to borrow a lantern having ascertained that he had recently purchased one at a store in town we haven t any lantern now replied mrs half bound the i thought you had one captain bought one not long ago added the well he hasn t any now i m sure i don t know what s become of it it may be he left it on board of the vessel he never said what had become of it without having proved the fact mr was satisfied that dock s lantern was the one broken by the steward when he fell from the of the the parts he had taken from the ruins in size and form with one which the declared was like that he had sold dock the worked hard to obtain evidence enough to warrant the arrest of dock before he sailed for but squire declared that the lantern was not sufficient on the day after dock obtained the money from mr he moved his family on board of the which had already cleared at the mr was alarmed lest he should escape and hastened to squire for advice tf we must not let him go said the lawyer where is that colored man mr of fortune ob i saw him at mr s house ten minutes ago bring him to me the steward was brought to him and he was induced to make a charge against dock of assault and battery a warrant was obtained and mr with a sufficient went to the to arrest him his wife and a man whose name was not known but who was said to be a passenger in the declared that he had gone to new york on business and the vessel would not sail till his return certainly dock was not on board and it was ascertained at the that he had taken the train for boston half bound the chapter mat mr watched the night and day but he saw nothing of dock mr said his neighbor and friend had informed him several days before of his intention to go to new york the was forced to believe that the people on board his vessel had told the truth and he could only wait for his return of course the would not sail on her long voyage without him and there seemed to	36
with her situation otherwise the vessel did not feel like the and and her father did not appear while she stood watching the and trying to comprehend the inexplicable position of affairs she saw a light in the cabin she looked down and perceived a woman in the act of lighting a lamp half bound the world don t light that lamp shouted the man at the it blinds my eyes so that i can t see to steer the woman extinguished the match she was applying to the lamp and darkness reigned in the cabin again who was the woman she asked the tour father thought you ought to have a female waiter and he has obtained one replied captain but she did not notice the chuckle with which he spoke knew that her father would not have provided a woman without consulting her and she determined to inquire into the situation she went down the cabin steps again guided by faith rather than sight and felt her way to the where she had before been seated who is it asked the woman from her place at the forward part of the cabin it is i replied did my father employ you as of the i guess not replied the woman i m not anybody s i can tell you of fortune or a who are you then asked now really alarmed well i m mrs of course this is my husband s vessel and i never expect to be a servant to anybody answered the woman rather indignant at being thought a even in the dark now who are you i am miss replied her heart sinking within her so that she could hardly utter the words miss bless me what mr s daughter yes well that is strange sure enough is captain dock your husband asked almost choked with terror certainly he is and this vessel is not the flag why no it s the how on earth came you here i supposed it was the my father s gasped the poor girl overwhelmed when she realized half the world that she had fallen into a set by her former enemy tt that s too bad but i didn t know nothing at all about it she called her husband by his foil given name is up to some awful trick it was a consolation to know that the woman was not a party to her husband s wicked scheme explained how she had been but mrs declared that she did not even know the vessel was to sail that night she had retired with her two children at nine o clock and got up when she felt the motion of the vessel under way where is she going asked wiping away the tears that her eyes u we are all going to where is your husband demanded with a shudder i m sure i don t know he went off to new york but of course we are not going to without him while they were talking mat came into the cabin and lighted a lamp of fortune oil mat what does all this mean said mrs sharply we have carried the thing out just as captain told us to do replied mat what did he tell you to do he left us to get miss on board we haven t had a chance to do so before though we have been watching three or four days for one why did you wish to get me on board inquired trembling in every fibre of her frame o you needn t be frightened miss you are not to be hurt and you are to be treated as well as if you were on board of the three years ago your father and sent captain to the state prison he didn t forget it and he is going to carry out the plan he began upon then am i to be carried to asked that depends on your father if he pays the money captain asks we shall send you back tour father and served the captain a mean trick and he always said he would get even with them and i think he will now half round the world but how came you in this vessel mat asked i went into the for the sole of doing the little job i finished up to night answered mat with a smile o what a wretch exclaimed a wretch well perhaps i am but it pays better than going before the mast in the captain has your father this time where he can hold him added mat has gone off to to sail in the race and he can t do anything for you this time if you have a mind to write to your father and tell him to come down with the rocks i will see that he gets the letter within a week or so he must put down about a hundred thousand dollars this time poor girl ejaculated mrs tt i pity you but my husband is an awful man and i can t do anything about it we haven t anything against her said mat she is to have a state room by herself and live like a lady that s the captain s orders the matter of fortune ob rests there and it isn t any use to say anything more about it mat went on deck leaving to weep over her unhappy fate with no one but mrs to comfort her half bound the world chapter xx dock s letter mr drove to but at this hour in the evening he had some difficulty in finding the and it was fully ten o clock before he returned to his house in ready to go on board of the why i thought you had gone exclaimed mrs when her husband presented himself no i was detained in where is	36
has gone on board of the mat came for her and said you had gone off in the steward s boat there is some mistake about it replied mr but he had no idea of the mistake which had been made he went out to the pier but having no boat he of fortune or hastened over to the point to obtain a though he could not see why a boat from the flag was not waiting for him all was still on the point but he found a in which he pulled off to the place where the usually lay when in port he could not find her it was evident that she had sailed and it was more certain than before that a great mistake had been made he returned to the point mr was there he had come down to assure himself that the had not stolen a march upon him he could not see her in the gloom of the night he recognized mr as he landed from the did you see the asked the no did you see the n demanded the anxious father i did not mr stated the circumstances but the officer could neither assist nor him the flag was miles away to the east and the was miles away to the south south east had gone had gone the had half bound the world gone mr wanted to know why had gone without him but there was no one to tell him he did not suspect that had not gone with him mr wanted to know why the had sailed without dock but there was no one to tell him standing on the point both were vexed and perplexed but neither could help himself and neither could solve the mystery both went home mrs was alarmed when her husband told her that the had gone without him it was a feet as mat had stated that an excursion train left boston at eleven o clock for many of the people of had gone to file city to hear a great singer and were to return in this train knew of it or he might have doubted mat s story mr was a man of action he ordered his horse to be brought to the door and he drove at a furious pace to which was a little nearer than and the train would arrive there half an hour later at five o clock in the morning he was in he a large sail boat and stood down the harbor at of fortune os seven o clock he discovered the flag off cape elizabeth mr was angry because had left him behind angry because had taken and not taken him though an unpleasant word had never before passed between them the father whose ideas of propriety were very clearly defined determined that some emphatic words should be used on the present occasion he paid his when the had been hailed and in due time was transferred to her where is asked before her father had time to utter a single sharp word the emphatic words were never spoken where is she repeated mr isn t she on board of the no sir replied now alarmed as her father was not here certainly not didn t she come by railroad with you no i haven t seen her since i started for last night round the world almost sank upon the deck and mr s strength was all taken from him by the discovery that some had befallen his daughter explained when he had breath enough to do so mr also explained and each was in possession of all the information the other had but their wisdom was foolishness since it fell far short of the of the moment the sailed last night said mr who however did not regard the fact as of much importance or as having any especial connection with the absence of u sailed exclaimed then has sailed in her tt i can hardly believe it added mr it is another plan to money from you persisted in his belief putting this and that together he could almost that mat was in the employ of dock indeed dock had told him that mat intended to sail for with him mr decided to return immediately to and the lay to off the railroad wharf long enough to land him he took of fortune or the morning train for boston and reached home at two o clock the flag did not sail in the race that day as soon as her owner had been landed she was headed for cape ann again and arrived before night was bewildered and confounded by the shock of the blow which had fallen upon him and the family he could do nothing and in his he like a lion mr had gone to boston soon after his arrival taking mr with him he did not return till the next day he had a swift steamer and the with other officers had gone in pursuit of the in the morning mail on the second day after the disappearance of came a letter to her father was present when it was opened and it contained a full confirmation of his theory that had been carried off in the and was now going half round the world to the letter was written by dock and dated ten days before its receipt the villain assured the distracted parents that should be kindly cared half bound the world for by mrs and should be restored to her friends as soon as possible after her father had paid over to mr the sum of seventy thousand dollars mr dropped the letter on the floor and breathed a deep sigh he would have given double the sum for the return of but his conscience would not permit him to reward like that of dock your uncle is concerned	36
seemed to be a one she had no knowledge guilty or innocent of the of until after the had sailed but she felt herself powerless to undo the mischief if her husband had been on board she would not have dared to oppose him he was so violent and savage when she interfered with his plans she could at least protect the poor girl from insult and injury and she determined to do this at all it was evident to her that the would not proceed immediately to her destination without her owner and captain it was probably the intention of captain to put into some port before she started on her long voyage when dock would join her of ob mrs pitied and almost hated her husband when she realized of what he was capable she comforted the poor girl as well as she was able and promised to be her friend under all circumstances she conducted her to an state room which had doubtless been reserved for her use and spent half the night with her for trembled at the thought of being alone on board of the vessel of her great enemy was truly grateful to mrs who though rough and rude in her manners was kind at heart and her presence was a great comfort the poor girl torn thus suddenly from friends wept long and bitterly at her sad fate but at last she fell asleep committing herself to the care of the heavenly father and upon him for the which he alone could give no one disturbed her and mrs watched over her as a child till she was fast asleep when she awoke late in the morning she heard the voices of children in the cabin and it was hard to realize that she was the victim of dock s she was kindly greeted by mrs half bound the world and the children stared at her as though she had come up from the depths of the ocean she soon made with the boy of eight and the girl of ten who were included in the family of her after breakfast she went on deck with them and learned that the vessel was off cape captain was very civil to her but she did not allude to the events of the previous evening he was a bad man and she could hardly help shuddering in his presence all day long she played with the children and short as she made the hours to them they were very long to her she was so gentle and kind and unselfish even in her woe that the little ones loved her and would hardly leave her for a moment she was certainly comforted by their presence and her to assure them lightened the moments of the long day the kindness of mrs did much to assure her she was satisfied that nothing worse than a long separation from her parents was likely to happen to her feeling that it was useless to at her condition or to weep over what she could not avoid she resolved to make the best of fortune ob of it there was no real hardship in her situation and the circumstances were certainly more agreeable than when she had before been an involuntary c er in dock s vessel the absence of the villain himself was perhaps her greatest consolation but the presence of mrs and the children was a real comfort in the evening and dock s wife talked the matter over again in her state room mrs and condemned the conduct of her husband she had discovered that the was now headed to the west and it was plain to her that she was not yet on her way to dock had told her he was going to new york and it was possible that he intended to join them there she told that she might be able to leave the vessel when she reached her destined port the poor girl became more reconciled to her situation only because it was no worse rather than because it was not bad enough she slept well that night the next day she played with the children read to them and dressed the girl s doll in the latest fashion in the evening after had retired round the world the ran by sandy hook and made a harbor near where she came to anchor she was a mile from the shore and no vessel was near her captain had carried out the plans of dock to the letter he had been a pilot in these waters and was quite familiar with the dock had made his acquaintance while he was acting as mate of a boat and the mate and the pilot were congenial spirits when went on deck with the children in the morning captain told her if she wished to write to her father her letter should be forwarded as he was going on shore during the she was glad to assure her parents of her safety and she wrote a long letter describing her capture and her situation on board of the she stated the facts as they were dock s agent was writing at the same time in the cabin and when she was about to fold her sheet he wished to see it he read it through tore off the heading near new york and the date and then suggested that she had better ask her father to pay the money required for her release i i of fortune or my father must do as he thinks best about that replied decidedly you don t understand your situation i see added the captain it is impossible for you to escape from the vessel and if your father does not pay the money you will go to with us my father will do what is best repeated very well added captain if your father is not wiser than	36
you are you may spend the rest of your days in made no reply but folded and directed her letter it was plain now that dock was to his contribution on mr before he came on board this out of the way place had been selected where no one would be likely to hear of her for the vessel to remain until dock could obtain his money captain went off in a boat with one man leaving the in charge of mat he did not return till night but though she considered various plans to escape from the vessel was satisfied that nothing could be done for mat watched her all the time her only hope was that she might induce one of the sailors to assist her by promising him a large half bound the world sum of money but her guardian would not permit her to speak to any man on board if one of the came aft he was ordered forward and s hope faded away the remained for ten days in the vicinity of sandy hook changing her several times every day either mat or captain went on shore evidently expecting to see dock or to hear from him watched in vain for an opportunity to make a friend of one of the sailors or to hail a passing boat but so carefully was she guarded that all hope in this direction was cut off she began to wish that her father would pay the money for this seemed to be her only chance of escape dock s non appearance indicated that his little plan was not working as well as he had expected and mrs and saw that captain and mat were becoming very anxious on the tenth day after the arrival of the mat who had been on shore returned with a letter directed in a strange hand to captain he opened it in the cabin it contained but a few lines which he read and then hastened upon deck op ob leaving the letter on the table the rattling of ropes and the flapping of sails were immediately heard and it was plain to that the vessel was getting under way i wonder what is to be done now said mrs coming out of her state room i don t know captain read the letter which lies on the table and then hurried on deck replied a letter exclaimed mrs who was continually on the for news for she was hardly less a prisoner than she took it from the table and without hesitation opened it it is from my husband said she glancing at the signature things are going wrong with me and you will sail for without me she read the moment you get this letter keep things as before and do not let any one leave the vessel if you don t do this my only chance is lost be careful for they are after you i shall get the money and go to by steamer from england and shall probably be there before you half bound the world then we are actually starting for exclaimed with a deep sigh u i suppose so went into her state room and wept bitterly as all hope deserted her she cried and she prayed and then endeavored to reconcile herself anew to her situation the sails were hoisted and the was standing out to sea captain was at the and mat was at his side talking with him about the prospect if he wrote a letter at all he ought to have told us all about it said mat disappointed at the of the news from dock he says things are going against him u and he says they are after us but he don t say who nor what added mat i would like to know what has gone wrong and who is after us do you see that on the weather bow said captain pointing to a trim looking craft she has an eye on us and we must give her a wide berth she came about just now and is running across our fore foot of fortune or that s the as true as i live exclaimed mat when he discovered her what the flag she had been standing off and on between sandy hook and island for twenty four on the for the half bound the world chapter the traveller who lost his way the steward of the watched the house of mr all night but no one entered or left it took his turn the next day again and when he proposed to employ a fresh hand for the second night insisted upon serving himself he had slept enough during the day and he wanted the satisfaction of dock if he presented himself this time he w s in luck as he declared for about one o clock at night when the town was as still as though it contained not a single living the villain came to obtain his money probably not doubting that by this time it had been paid to his agent the steward had stationed himself in such a position that no one could approach the house unseen by him just after the clock on one of the churches had of fortune or struck one he heard footsteps on the road and presently a man stopped in front of the s house contrary to the usual custom of and he went up to the front door and knocked vigorously the heart of the leaped with expectation and he crept like a cat on the grass till he had obtained a position behind a bush near the front door the first summons of the visitor did not procure a response from within and the man knocked again though the did not recognize his cowardly enemy he had no doubt it was he the form was about the height of dock but appeared to	36
be better dressed than when he had seen the who else should go to the house of the at that hour who s there called mr with his impatient as he threw open one of the windows of his chamber i ve got lost and i want some one to show me the way to replied the visitor in a tone so different from the voice of dock that did not recognize it and began to fear that the villain half bound world was not within his reach as he had confidently believed lost have you well take the right hand road out by the school us added the not so as most people would have spoken when roused from their sleep to direct a night traveller there are two or three roads there and i can t afford to go much out of my way come out and show me and i ll pay you for your trouble this was quite enough for the and he promised to come the stepped out into the road and crouched down under the bushes to escape observation in a few moments mr appeared up in a ragged overcoat well squire what s the news demanded the visitor when the old man joined him if the steward had any doubts before he had none now it was dock beyond a and his voice sounded as natural as on former occasions it was plain that the bewildered traveller was a for the benefit of mrs who being a women folks and not understanding business was not permitted to share the heavy secrets of her op fortune ob band especially on the present momentous occasion there ain t at all for news replied the old man as he glanced at the house as if to assure himself that his wife was not watching him no news exclaimed dock hasn t come done with the money yet no nor that ain t the on t i don t believe he will o yes he will replied dock confidently u i ve got things fixed this time so that he can t help down the money he ll be glad to pay it i can tell you what have you done with the cap n we ve got her and never u see her again unless he pays the money that s so but he won t pay it and i ain t go n to my share on t at all the yes you will don t be alarmed squire they ve sent a steamer off the vessel have they though yes they have and has gone in her half bound the world all right the steamer cost some money and won t do any good she ll come back without the girl my vessel isn t a great ways from new york and when i say the word she ll start whether i go in her or not i tell you mr will be glad to pay the money before many days he don t understand the matter yet til come again in two or three days and i reckon have the money next time i come where are you now asked mr tt nowhere in these parts but til be here in two or three days but won t pay that money no more n in the world yes he will he can t help doing it if he wants his daughter again where s now he s round here but what am i go n to do for what you owe me if don t pay the money asked the old man anxiously i ll pay ft all just as i agreed to do now go to bed again squire or your wife will be out looking for you of fortune or but i want to know more about this business u tou mustn t know any more than you do i didn t mean you should know anything about it i never told you anything when you get the money you hold on to it till i come i don t know as it s quite safe for me to come here again even in the night i guess we ll fix it some other way dock did fix it some other way it is of no consequence how after i get this money and get all ready to start i m going to settle up matters with and that before i go i expect i shall kill that if i ever see him again shall you then now s your time mr c as he sprang from his covert and rushed upon his enemy dock was startled as a man than lie might have been under such circumstances but the steward did not permit him to recover his with an oak stick he carried in lis hand he dealt a heavy blow upon the head of the villain but his seemed to be made of more half round the world solid material than his african s for he attempted to rise when the steward repeated the stroke so effectually that he lay still on the ground don t don t pleaded mr terrified by the tragic event don t him ag in let him be but dock was not deprived of his consciousness even by the severe blows he had received and again he attempted to rise lay still if you don t be a dead man not far from here said the steward as he took his revolver from his pocket dock saw it and dared not move don t him no more let him go now not if i know it allow me to in the most direct manner possible that this man is my prisoner and if he don t spend the rest of his days in the state prison it will be an outrage upon humanity added the steward don t him no	36
until a warrant had been obtained replied mr it should be done at once and mr hastened to attend to this important duty dock and attempted to resist the as he termed it but the was determined and not the prisoner s protest or his struggles on his person was found a variety of papers and among them the letter which captain had written in the cabin of the but this document had no signature and was hardly more half round the world satisfactory than the letter which mr had received from at least it contained no accurate information one sentence however was sufficiently definite to make a beginning upon we are somewhere inside of sandy hook ready to go to sea at a moment s notice captain wrote you know where to leave a letter in new york when you are ready to go on board and one of us goes up to the city every day now it s no use said dock you can t find the mr i may rot in jail but you will never see your daughter again if you go on with this matter if you want to get her back pay me the money i ask let me go and you shall have her in a week i will not pay you a dollar replied mr firmly all right added dock with a sneer you will wish you had in the course of a year or two i know what i m about this time mr mr and went to another room to consider the situation leaving in charge of the prisoner of fortune or do you want to make a hundred dollars easy said dock in a whisper i don t know replied the officer i can t compromise myself you run no risk added dock as he wrote with a pencil on half a sheet of note paper the letter which captain received just before the sailed put this in an envelope direct it to captain john care of e g co no maiden lane new york and put it into the post office that s all and here is a hundred dollars took the note and the money dock wrote the direction for the letter on a piece of paper he thrust the whole into his pocket he had his doubts as well he might about the propriety of the letter from the information obtained was satisfied that the was at anchor in one of the secluded below york waiting for dock to join her it was not likely that she would go to sea without her owner whose family were on board of her dock says she will go to whether he her or not mr half bound the she will not sail till those on board have heard from dock we must take care that he does not send any letter or message added perhaps it would be better to let him do so if we could only stop the letter at the post office but we don t know who has charge of the vessel it is plain that he has a captain on board of her but he does not sign his name to the letter we found upon dock interposed mr don t let him send any letters persisted then the will stay where she is till we find her that is the better way replied mr perhaps it is said mr but it would do no harm to ask the to stop any letter to mat for instance mat did not take that vessel round to new york added there is a bigger man than he on board of her and we don j know his name we can t do anything in this way unless we stop all the letters directed to the vicinity of new york doesn t this man s name appear in any of dock s papers op or no i have looked in vain for it mr said suddenly springing to his feet i am sure i can find both mr and mr looked at him with interest he had done a similar work once before and his confident expression was entitled to respect i am as sure as i want to be that the is somewhere in new york bay dock s letter says so he sent her there intending to join her as soon as he had collected his black mail the facts and the theory agree with each other u admit what you say added mr a and there is no doubt of it what shall we do tt i will go to new york in the flag i can tell the as far as i can see her by night or by day i will stand off and on by sandy hook so that she cannot pass me you and mr shall go to new york to night a small steamer and explore all the and below the city till you find her w she may escape before you get there suggested mr half bound the world a no she will wait till she hears from dock it may get into the newspapers we will see that it does not various to s plan were considered but it was adopted without material alteration mr thought it would be better to a steamer in new york for s use but he preferred the she would be under his control and at the critical moment would not be out of coal or her machinery out of order determined to sail as soon as the examination of dock was finished he engaged three extra hands and put provisions and water enough on board to meet any emergency in case the should be unexpectedly prolonged he was confident that his plan could not fail and if had not been unfit for a place of trust probably it would not have failed either in whole or in	36

Subsets and Splits

No community queries yet

The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.