; T^
LOVE AFLOAT.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.
BY
F. H. SHEPPARD, U.S.N.
K.^v4 I V
A man is a golden impossibility. The line tie must walk lb a aaIr*B
breadth.— Emerson.
KEW YORK:
Sheldon & Company,
677 BROADWAY.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1875, by
SHELDON & COMPANY,
in the Office of the Librarian of Consjress. at WasUneton.
1 e o,
TO THE author's WISE COUNSELLOR, HIS PAITHPUL FRIEND, AND
HIS MODEL OF COURTESY AND HONOR— TO
EEAR-ADMIRAL C. R. P. KODGERS, UNITED STATES NAVY,
THIS STORY IS RESPECTFULLY AND AFFECTIONATELY
INSCRIBED.
Mil9g4
LOYE AFLOAT.
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAYY.
CHAPTER L
THE period of time at which occurred the events now
to be described, was during the years when piracy-
had been carried so far that the United States govern-
ment was obliged to keep a considerable naval force con-
stantly cruising among the islands of the Gulf of Mexico
and the Caribbean sea. Our commerce in those waters
had become so feeble, and the lives of our sea-faring citi-
zens were exposed to so much danger, that the country
undertook an expensive and tedious task of years in order
to restore strength to the one and give to the other that
security which is the birthright of America's children.
The work to be performed was the repression of piracy ;
and the government could use only its naval arm in the
undertaking. The law of nations forbade the employ-
ment of the other. This fact, joined to the languor of the
higher Spanish authorities, the collusions of Spanish offi-
cials, and the sympathy of Spanish people, made the work
proceed but slowly ; yet from the beginning the end was
apparent. That thor6ugh-going practical officer, Commo-
dore David Porter of Essex fame, acted as controlling and
directing mind; and the country felt that it was well
served. Unceasing vigilance, long watchful convoys, and
frequent dashing expeditions, which sometimes reached
4 ....... .XQVB- AFLOAT.
<; *. •/':.: '*..:! : /;. ,*
the stiore m defiance alike of the pirates attacked and the
law behind which they sought refuge, were the order of
the day in the efiicieut squadron of small craft on the sta-
tion. Beside the customarj demands of duty and the
great stimulus of an unequalled esprit de corps, each felt
that a master's eye was watching him. , OflScers and men
strove to do faithful work, sure of the reward of approbation.
This was our navy's Seminole war. It is a pity that
such valuable services should be entirely forgotten in the
present day.
The time is on a winter day in 1823, at sunset ; the
place, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, on board the old receiving
ship Virginia, in a state-room whose open door shows into
the more spacious ward-room.
The ward-room is deserted, except by two black boys,
who are spreading a table for supper. A large stove in
the centre warms the apartment and the surrounding rooms.
The lowness of the huge white beams overhead gives the
usual between-decks sense of confinement, and in the open
state-room the space is still more limited. The swords and
pistols, the uniform suits hanging on the bulkhead, the
pictures, and the professional books on the shelves, show
that it is an officer's room; while the choice and arrange-
ment of these things indicate that the occupant is a man
of taste and refinement. He stands before you, Lieutenant
Henry Hartley, at your service, showing to advantage
even though engaged in tying the heavy cravat of the
period.
Hartley is a New Yorker of wealthy family, a good-
looking fellow, with aquiline features, olive complexion,
dark curly brown hair, and clear brown eyes. His move-
ments are quick, without being flurried. He advances
steadily toward the end at which he is now aiming —
to be attired in full dress for the ball he means to attend
this evening. He is of medium height and build, appar-
ently twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, and alto-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 6
gether a pleasant-looking young man. Before long his
voice confirms a previous impression, and shows that he
is not alone.
"Where do you think I found my gloves, Garnet?"
he asks.
" Chatham Street,'* replies a dry voice, which we dis-
cover to come from a man sitting comfortably in a
chair tipped back against the end of the bureau, which
partly screens him from observation. He has been gazing
quietly out of the port, at the river gilded by the set-
ing sun, aiid watching the silver cakes of ice float past with
the ebb-tide. He is complacently and slowly smoking
a lori^-stemmed pipe, the bowl of which is a very suggest
tive carving in wood of the head of the devil. In spite
of his apparent lack of interest, the ofiicer addressed as
Garnet turns his head as though expecting some expla-
nation. His face at once makes on us the impression that
he is a character. There is in it a singular mixture of
expressions. Honesty, reserve, humor, and ugliness are
apparent, especially the two last. We feel that of Hartley's
disposition we shall rapidly learn more, and that his in-
timacy is obtainable ; but that in the first glance we have
found out as much of the other as we are likely to dis-
cover in a long time. However, we hgive a prepossession
in his favor as he turns toward his friend.
r*' Hartley answers the action rather than the words,
** Why, that rascal George had them all. The master-at-
arms found them in his bag, each pair wrapped in a
bit of dungaree, and all stowed in a trousers' leg. I'd been
missing them for a month. The fellow got leave to go
ashore to a dance to-night, and when they searched him
there was a black pair in his pocket.'*
" Right shade," replies the other.
Hartley has finished his toilet by this time, and, throw-
ing on a loose coat, sits down by his friend. The two gaze
quietly out upon the river, the only sounds intruding upon
their silence being the distant hum of the men's voices, thQ
6 LOVE AFLOAT.
faint footfalls of the watch officer two decks above, and the
nearer noise of Garnet's slow puffing at his pipe. In a few
minutes, however, their current of musing is interrupted :
the unusual sight of a vessel moving down the river among
the ice-cakes attracts their attention. Hartley throws open
the port sash, and both lean out into the nipping evening
air, to observe her well. The vessel is running a great and
seemingly needless risk by coming owt with the river full
of heavy ice, and this fact alone would make hei* move-
ments noticeable ; but her beauty of form, and the skill
with which she is handled, much increase the interest
of our two friends. She is a top-sail schooner, somewhat
like the Baltimore clippers of the time in looks, but her
rail is lower and her sheer much less. She carries two
boats inboai'd in the waist. Her immensely long spars are
painted white and black like {hose of a man-of-war. She
appears to be of about one hundred tons burden ; but
as she heels over to a puff of wind, she shows a breadth of
beam which makes it evident that the first judgment of her
size was far too small. She is under top-sail, jib, and main-
Bail, all new sails. Everything about her evinces to a sea-
man that there has been great care and thoroughness exer-
cised in her equipment, and that by some person of knowl-
edge and ability. J^he elements of speed and strength
seem to have been equally regarded, and more regarded
than appearance, yet the vessel is wonderfully grace-
ful. Hartley and Garnet watch her and her move-
ments, so lively and precise, with the intense interest
true sailors always feel in any new matter pertaining to
their profession.
The little schooner moves with a celerity and care
which are life-like. Now she darts close-hauled through an
opening between two masses of ice into a space of clear
water; now, putting her helm down, flics round in stays,
and runs into a lane which promises to lead a good way
down the stream. Finding only a cul-de-sac, her top-sail is
backed, her way stopped, and she drifts down with the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAYT. T
*
current. Now she wears round on her heel, fills the top-
sail, and with sheets eased ofi*, glides back toward the
Virginia. Up to this time she has been above that ves-
sel, and the lazy ebb has helped her progress very little ;
but she apparently sees the strip of clear water extending
along the Brooklyn shore, and she comes swiftly over
toward it, luffing to weather a cake of ice, or keep-
ing away to pass one, and curvetting and dancing like a
fairy craft.
The interest of the two watchers is manifest. Their
eyes never leave the approaching vessel. Hartley's enthu-
siasm is aroused plainly ; for he utters an occasional excla-
mation at some neatly executed manoeuvre or at the stylish
appearance of the schooner. Garnet says nothing, but his
extinguished pipe bears witness to his thoughts.
The schooner continues to approach until within fifty
yards of the Virginia ; *when, having gained the open
water, her helm is put up and she swings around, show-
ing her broadside.
" Do you know her, Hal ? " asks Garnet.
" Never saw her in my life before."
" Yes, you have."
" Why," asked Hartley, surprised, " is that the big
centre-board boat we saw on the stocks in Harvey's yard ? "
" Yes."
" She doesn't look half as large now.'*
Hartley referred to a visit they had made, a month pre-
vious, to the ship-yard of Harvey, a New York builder
whose models were then famed for speed. They had both
been much interested by the elegance and proportion of
the vessel now before them. A point which had made
particular impression was her exceedingly light draft. She
had a centre-board (a fitting unusual at that time, though
common to us)^ and her small depth of hold was ob-
tained by this means in addition to great breadth of beam.
Hartley had been so pleased by the model that he asked
information as to her ownership and future business j but
'i^;
8 LOVE AFLOAT.
no one in the yard could tell him more than that Harvey
said she was a pleasure-boat and was well paid for.
As she passed by the open j^ort a circumstance hap-
pened on her deck which created some surprise in the
minds of the lookers-on. Her men in sight were seven
in number. The person apparently sailing the schooner
was a gigantic, powerfully-built man, with a shock of fiery
red hair and a very florid face. Beside the man at the
wheel, there were four seamen, one of whom was a young
negro. The seventh person seemed from his dress and be-
havior to be a passenger. He stood by the taffrail apart
from the officer, and his attention was as much engaged by
outside objects as by what was going on at hand in the
schooner. He gazed at the Virginia as they passed, his
features being distinctly visible from their nearness. He
was a thick-set, short-necked man, with broad shoulders
and a sturdy appearance. He was dressed in a new suit
of black broadcloth, which fitted rather baggily, but beyond
the fact that his face was, if possible, even redder than that
of the giant sailing the vessel, there was nothing remarkable
about him. All these details were distinctly seen as the
schooner swept by, then within thirty yards of the port.
She had barely passed, when the young negro, in attempt-
ing to obey an order, let go the peak halliards. The peak
came down by the run, and the apparent passenger, thun-
dering out an oath, seized a rope's end, and with violence
of manner and coarseness of language much in contrast
with his j)revious demeanor and respectable dress, laid it
without mercy over the head and shoulders of the yelling
negro. The giant rushed up hastily and placed his hand
on the arm of the striker. He turned angrily at the in-
terruption, and the negro, seizing the opportunity, ran for-
ward and dived down the fore hatch. The giant spoke a
few words in a low voice to the passenger, who bawled
back, " What in hell do I care ? " He quickly moderated
his passsion, however, and dropping the rope's end walked
off to his old station by the taffrail.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 9
This little episode made Hartley look disgusted, and
Garnet thousrhtful. The latter, after the schooner liad
passed out of sight around the southern point of the bay,
and the window had been closed against the eager outside
air, remarked, " That passenger chap was the captain, Hal."
" He was a brute, anyhow," replied the other.
" Yes, a clotted brute ; but there's nothing surprising
—queer."
" What are you thinking about ?"
"Queer craft and queer party. They were all armed.
The captain had a pistol under his 'long-shore togs."
" Light your pipe. Will. This is the first mare's egg
you've :wund since you caught Paddy Rourke playing
ghost on the orlop deck."
Garnet chuckled at some remembrance, lighted the pipe,
and said no more on the subject.
Lieutenants William Pinckney Garnet and Henry Hart-
ley are — I had nearly said warm friends — ^but close frieiids
describes them better. Garnet is the senior in years,
though Hartley has the advantage of a few numbers on the
register. They entered the service nearly together: Garnet,
a strong ugly lad from Virginia, entirely the opposite in
his roughness and silence of the conventional, chivalrous.
Southern youth ; and Hartley, a delicate, spirited little
fellow, with so much of high thought, purity, ability, un-
compromising devotion to his young ideals of right, and,
it must be added, of irritability, that he had no earthly
chance for popularity in a midshipmen's mess. Garnet's
lack of polish made him a butt at once ; but he took all
jokes in such a quiet way, seemed to understand and ap-
preciate his messmates so well, showed such a superiority
over irifles and capacity for taking things at their just
weight — in short, evinced so much savoir faire, which even
boys practically recognize, that in two weeks he was at
the head of the mess, and no one was jealous. Yet he had
no intimate friend for a long time, and then only one.
Hartley was at first let alone on account of his small
1*
10 LOVE AFLOAT.
size, but he, also, was soon found out. His temper and
determination not to be imposed on drew upon him the at-
tention of the bullying set — there was more than one bully-
in a mess of twenty midshipmen — and his strictness of con-
duct, his high standard of right and attempts to publicly
maintain it, with some detected lapses into poetry, all made
him an object of persecution among the others. The bullies
discovered in due course of time that he was always ready
to do his best with his fists, and they became not overfond
of attacking the little fellow who was so quick to hit back
and so hard to keep whipped. They learned to let him
alone. In this they were assisted by Garnet, who came into
the steerage one day to find them "passing him round."
This operation consists in forming a circle about one per-
son, and pushing him violently and continually from one to
another as if he were a bolster. It is not particularly pain-
ful but wearisome, and very exasperating. Hartley, un-
able to strike a blow or help himself in the least, seemed
about to expire with wrath. Garnet promptly interfered.
" Stop this ! Sit down. Hartley ! If I find any of you fellows
troubling him again, I'll report you to the First Lieutenant,
and you'll be quarantined in Rio.'' The threat was was very
effectual. When the discreet crowd had left the steerage,
and Hartley's feelings had overcome him in nervous tears,
of which he was so much ashamed that he begged Garnet
to excuse him, the cheering word was, " All right, young-
ster. Nothing to be ashamed of. Wait till you get fat."
Hartley always afterward dated back the commencement
of his friendship for Garnet to that speech.
Hartley was devoted to his unexpected friend after this,
feeling a constant desire to serve him and do him honor ;
and Garnet, pleased by things in the other which wer^ com-
monly disregarded or laughed at, the recognition of which
proved a certain nobility in his own character, returned
a great kindness. He watched over the little fellow as
if he were a trust. He gave him many a quiet hint, eagerly
caught up; taught him, unconsciously almost to the teacher,
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 11
and as a consequence of the teacher's bent of mind, to
look less within himself, observing rather the character-
istics of others ; and made him, though sometimes very-
unwilling, pay attention to the details of his profession
till gradually an interest was acquired. The youngster
then, turning his good mind in the right direction, soon
learned as much as his teacher knew, and got a reputation
among his superior officers as a quick and promising mid-
shipman. At the same time he was gaining happiness in
another way. He was finding out how to conduct himself
toward equals, and was becoming tolerated and liked..
His old-time bullies came to respect him.
Garnet's life had been sorrowful. He went to sea at
what was then the very late age of seventeen. His family
was a good one ; but loss of property and the early death of
his father had left him without means of education or culti-
vation. His mother's poverty acted doubly, keeping him
out of company and out of school. He seemed to feel his
position, and lost no chance of making or saving money,
so as to benefit her. When he was sixteen she died, and
the sad boy was taken into the house of a great-uncle
whom he had never seen. This relative had wealth, influ-
ence, and a pretty daughter of winsome disposition who
was about a year older than her cousin. The great-uncle
sent Will to a day-school, where he applied himself steadily
to make up for lost time ; and the daughter gave her
cousin the only sympathy he had yet received. It was not
surprising that he slipped into love with his sweet consoler.
He did so, without knowing what the new emotion was.
His devotion to " Cousin Susan " became intense and
plain to all; and she seemed to her friends to be truly
touched herself, contrary to the rule in these cases. The
uncle finally became alarmed, and to get rid of the trouble-
some nephew, procured him a midshipman's warrant, and
had him ordered to sea in the first ship fitting out. Be-
fore he left the house he was informed that a glorious
career had been opened to him, and that it would be blacl;
12 LOVE AFLOAT.
ingratitude for him to write to Susan. He promised
proudly, and quietly: " I won't write to Cousin Susan if
you don't want me to." He did not even try to bid her
good-by apart, but went to sea resolved to become some-
body and return for her. Before his return ehe had married
and gone to another part of the State to live. He never
saw her again.
All of this history was revealed to Hartley one night, in
a first watch in the harbor of Genoa, after the two had
been messmates several years. Garnet stopped in his walk
and looked above his head at the brilliant sky.
" Look at Lyra," he said.
" Yes — what of it ? " replied Hartley.
" You see the bright star at the angle ?"
"Yes."
*' I had a notion, when I was a little bit of a chap in
old Virginny, that when I grew up I'd have two wives."
"What! at once?"
" Yes, at once. I thought the bright star was I, and
the others my two wives. When I got older I knew a
girl — welV, I thought for awhile she was the bright star
herself. I used to laugh at my early ideas then. By and
by I got to hoping my sweetheart would take me into
heaven alongside of her, and I fancied the two lower stars
would represent us very well and that Alpha hadn't
anything to do with it. And now, my boy— I think so
now. I am Alpha myself, that bright particular star, alone
in his glory."
While Hartley was astonished at such an unheard-
of poetical crank from his friend, he felt that it must have
been evoked by some strong memory ; and a little encour-
agement sufficed to draw from Garnet the story we have
told. The confidence deepened their friendship.
The efiect of the passing years was different upon the
men. Hartley had gained in all respects. His fine mind
had grown, reaching out tenacious filaments, seizing and
drawing in food from men and books. He had a reputation
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 13
throughout the service for ability as an officer ; and his cour-
age was undoubted. In accordance with the custom of the
day he had accepted several challenges to fight duels; but
always naming jDistols as the weapons, and always firing in
the air, he had come to be considered a person privileged,
and not to be challenged. His conversation was agreeable
and his manner graceful, though too nervous to be called
perfect. He had learned the French and Spanish languages,
beside keeping up the Latin of his boyhood, and on subjects
of general interest he was well informed. In dress he was
particular to a fault.
Perhaps as good a test of his usefulness as any other
was the manner in which his subordinates spoke of him and
obeyed his commands. The old salts would say, "Mr.
Hartley knows what he's about. He's strict, but he ain't
got no favorites ; " and the younger seamen, " I want to be
in Mr. Hartley's watch on deck reefing with the watch. He
knows how to lay a yard with the sail liftin' to your hand."
Or they would declare with enthusiasm, " It was pretty to
see him shorten sail to a squall."
He was a restless, useful young man, anxious to learn,
interested in anything which might appear, full of high
principle, always ready to go out of himself in sympathy,
having many so-called friends, and with an influence extend-
ing in every direction. He was growing. Already the
tree was tall enough for a landmark, and it yearly increased
in height, in symmetry, and in the spread of its far-reaching
branches.
Yet in this fine character there was a defect. Hartley
was not very persevering, and had not enough fortitude.
In reverses he became too despondent and hopeless ; in long
continuance of monotonous duties he grew disgusted and
weary. If he usually persisted in spite of his dislikes, it
was more through personal pride than just principle ; for
he lacked stability.
Garnet was different. He seemed to have gradually
become careless. None could be more attentive to duty
14 LOVE AFLOAT.
than he, and no one had ever known him guilty of any un-
gentlemanly speech or act ; but he seemed to have no care
for influence over others, and to have lost much of his for-
mer power. Not that others failed in outward respect
toward him, but he did not seem to be thought of. When
he entered a mess he speedily became a fixed fact. He had
a great power of hiding what he knew, and though he was
continually gaining fresh knowledge, but few remarked it.
His dress was generally somewhat slouchy.
Still, in spite of outer appearances, he was much more
of a man than common, a fact occasionally discovered by
some associate possessed of penetration. He governed him-
self well ; he was not easily moved by any low influence of
flattery, or of urgency, or of importunity, or by the power
of others' will. His actions came mostly from wise reflec-
tion, on which he mainly depended ; and from himself — that
good part of himself, his own mind — he could not be easily
enticed or forced away. He never made trouble, because
he neither sought the secrets of others nor talked of them
when they came into his possession. He had a fine control
over his tongue. His leading ideas for life were something
like this : Faithfulness in duty will be sure to give me all
the credit I deserve. I will keep my mouth shut and save
making trouble for everybody in range. I don't care much
what other men think, as long as I have had a chance to
think for myself and am acting up to my own ideas of
right. There is nobody doesn't need helping along and
holding back at the same time. I must try to think how
other men feel, and to remember that hardly anybody has
had a fair chance.
The men, recognizing his coolness and ability in trying
situations, as well as his regard for duty at all times, had
begun to nickname him " Old Steady." Yet he was only
thirty-two.
He was like a tree, too, but some not very showy or
very large tree, more useful than beautiful, and having
roots entirely disproportioned to the small display made
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 15
above the ground. There was his great defect. His good
qualities were not sufficiently positive. There was not
enough outcome for what went into him.
As a man digging into the earth finds a slender rootlet
and says confidently, " This belongs to that little tree away
off yonder," so the nientally penetrative could discover that
Garnet drew food from the richest of soils without regard
to distance, and that he took in a great deal of the best.
Yet instead of the ripe fruit of wise independent action,
he bore only the flower of quiet gentlemanhood. All this
showed a long-continued selfishness, which had become a
part of his life, though he never saw it in the strong light
of full conviction.
Hartley had personal ambition, which, joined to his other
qualities, insured his continual rising; but of ambition,
within and for himself, Garnet had none. He needed some
brightening, spurring, conscience-inspiring motive, beyond
any motive he already had, to redeem and vivify his life.
By a singular good fortune these two men, who had
come to know and love each other, had always sailed to-
gether. With a few exceptions of brief periods, they had
passed in each other's company all of their life, from boy-
hood into settled manhood. Their mutual regard and in-
separability had passed into proverbial expressions. Some-
times by way of example things were said to be joined as
fast as Hartley and Garnet, or something else was as close
as their friendship. They were spoken of together indiffer-
ently as " the twins," or " the mates," or " the partners,"
or " the old firm."
Some time after the schooner had passed they fell into
a conversation.
" Where are you going to-night, Hal ? " asked Garnet.
- " To the ball at Mrs. Van Meter's."
*' You'll find that woman yet."
"What woman?"
" The one you've been looking for these five years."
" I haven't been aware of the search."
16 LOVB AFLOAT.
" No, I don't suppose you have. How about that Spanish
girl at the Havana ? You met her at a ball, by the way."
*' Pshaw, Will, you know that was only a bit of soft-
ness."
" Soft as a sour sops, and like one otherwise."
" As how, William ? "
" Green. How about Miss Lansquenet at Gibraltar ? "
With 3 little hesitation : " You must allow she was a
lovely woman."
" I am not so qualified to speak of that as you. I never
saw her but — "
" Just one time and at a distance then — ha ! ha ! Saw a
lady coming off in the gig in your watch on deck — through
the glass, ha ! ha ! and got a relief and dodged into your
room till she was gone, ha ! ha ! "
"Well," replied G. in a summing up tone, " She toas
good-looking, and you didn't go ashore to the colonel's
house, and the balls, and the rides for nothing. You
would have found her that time if we hadn't been sent
over to Tripoli just in season to save you."
" You must allow she was a lovely woman, Will."
"To look at, she was" — Hartley put in a smile, remem-
bering Garnet's one look — " but you didn't know her. For
a month afterward you were as full as the mizzen top-sail
with the wind aft."
"Well, well, that's all past and gone, and I'm glad of
it. Those were my youthful follies."
" A part of them. And you're ready and primed to go
off into manly ones as the chance offers."
" Good Lord, Will, -I believe you'd have me keep
away from ladies' company altogether ! "
" Why not ? Look at me. How else are you going to
keep out of harm's way ? "
" You're as absurd as usual. You think because I enjoy
a dance and like to talk nonsense to a bright girl, and take
pleasure in shore society that I am continually hunting a
wife. And you give me credit for no higher motive than
A STORY or THE AMERICAN NAVY*. IT
a natural instinct. My dear fellow, you are much mis-
taken, and to prove it — "
" You are mistaken, Hal. I think you are a marrying
man, and that you will be happier married. But I believe
you are apt to take a pretty face for full proof of goodness.
I'm afraid after we are parted I shall see you dissatisfied,
and feel that I have been deprived of your company, and
you've got a poor bargain."
" Will," replied Hartley, with some feeling, " I beg your
pardon ; I was wrong. But you needn't borrow trouble,
for I assure you I haven't a thought of marrying. If ever
I do ask a woman to have me, it will be one that's too good
for me."
" How were you going to prove it a minute ago ? "
" To prove it ? Oh, yes : I was going to say that I
am tired of this yard duty, and to ask what you think of
applying for orders to the Fish."
"I'm with you. Gulf, isn't she ? "
«Yes." ';■:-■-.•-'•"'
" Maybe we'll have a little fighting."
" Tunis was the last, and that- wasn't much after the
other. It seems hardly a year ago since we were in the
Old Ironsides' steerage together. 'I Jove, Will, some
of those engagements won't go off our bragging-list soon."
" You're right."
" The Cyane and Levant, and the way old Stewart got
us out of Porto Praya that morning, were the best."
" Porter's the right man in the right place."
They sat awhile longer, silent. It had grown dark, but
a young moon shone with yellow glancing rays on the
black river, occasionally making visible in a pale and
ghostly manner the few remaining cakes of ice which the
tide carried across the path of light. Garnet's pipe had
long been out. The lamps were brought into the ward-
room, a cheerful sound of poking the fire, and rattling
crockery was heard, and by and by a black boy appeared
at the door saying, " Supper ready, sah."
18 V LOTB APLOAT.
*' Well, Hal, shall we apply to-morrow ? **
« Yes, Vm willing."
The other members of the mess now collecting around
the supper table, the two arose and went to their seats.
The meal was soon over. Garnet refilled his pipe, and set
the devil on fire, while Hartley put on a dress coat.
" Are you going over in the barge ? " he asked, as Hart-
ley emerged, fully prepared.
" Yes ; the captain was so good as to invite me."
"Good.-night to you." And he added, in a lower tone,
" Look out you don't meet her to-night."
CHAPTER H.
¥E must imagine Hartley's pull across the river with the
stiff captain for company, the landing, the walk up
town, and his arrival at the house of the Van Meters, which
was to be the scene of the evening's festivities. His
acquaintance with the family was of old date, and he was
received by the hostess, a lady of unmeasured abilities as a
talker, with a familiarity which bore witness to that fact as
well as to the esteem in which he was held. " Oh, Harry,"
exclaimed the robust matron, advancing with extended
hand and giving him no time for the usual courtesies,
*' I'm so glad to see you, and so soon. I was afraid you
would be late."
" Thank you, madam ; I am proud to hear you say so —
but perhaps it is not entirely on my account."
" Oh, you vain fellow ! to think of such a thing at all.
Certainly it wasn't on your account."
" How can you be so cruel ? To awaken my pride and
then — what is the reason you wished me to come early? I
see I am among the first arrivals."
" Now do be still, Harry, if you can, and let me tell you.
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 19
I'm sure I'm anxious enough to do it, for somebody may
come in at any moment, and I couldn't teil you then at all.
If you only would give me a chance to say .what I wish — ^buf
you always would talk to the exclusion of every one else — "
" At your service, madam. I'm as still as the grave."
" H'ssh ! " with reproving finger ; " there you go oif
again, sir. What did I say ? I do wonder hovv you get
along, Harry Hartley, at church on the ship, or whatever
service you heathens substitute for the regular service, and
you ought to be ashamed to do so, or some of those dread-
ful ceremonies when all must be so still, and the commander
looks at all the sailors and the cannon to see if all are ready
for service. Oh, Harry, it's a dreadful trade you follow,
devoting all your time and talents to kill poor inoffensive
people you never saw before and that never did you any
harm. I want you to tell her all about that beautiful moon-
light battle with the two ships, when so many were killed
and the Old Ironsides escaped from them so gloriously, in
spite of all they both could do."
Hartley found a single blank instant wherein to enter
the point of a question, and knowing Mrs. Van Meter well,
he was quick. *'Her? Tell who? Why did you wish to
see me early, Mrs. Van Meter ? "
" I'm sure you need'nt speak to me in that way. I am
telling you, and you ought not to be in such a hurry. It is
Miss Dewhurst — Mary Dewhurst you've heard me speak
about so often at your mother's. I want you to be atten-
tive to her, for she has been in mourning for l^er ^wo aunts
and her grandmother for two years. You know Mrs. Terrell
died just as she came into society — you need'nt pretend to
be surprised, sir ; you know I mean Mary — just as she came
into society two years ago, eighteen years old, and she has
been 80 quiet and retired ever since. Old Mrs. Tildmondley,
her other aunt, you know, she died about six months after-
ward, and then her grandmother. It seemed so provoking and
really too bad for such a nice girl to lose her two best years.
But she told me — you know I'm a distant connection of Mr.
20 LOVE AFLOAT.
Dewliurst's, and Mary quite regards me as an aunt — and
she told me she could'nt think of going out into gay com-
pany and leaving her mother feeling badly at home. I
don't know really that she has lost anything, for she is
lovely now, and I don't think girls ought to marry quite so
young — mere children, in fact, many of them — and there's
that rich Mr. Rojibles shows what he wants plainly enough,
but she won't look at him, for he's fifty if he's a day, and
young Martin, too, he is very well off, and quite in our set,
and has known her intimately all his life; they were near
neighbors for ever so long — for years, and he is devoted to
her, and I think she had better have him, for my part."
Hartley showed his -courtesy by his patience, but was
beginning to fear that the lady would fatigue herself early
in the evening. A new arrival calling away the hostess,
gave him a respite, and passing on he accosted some ac-
quaintances and engaged in talk with them. It was but a
little while till Mrs. Yan Meter was back. Calling him
aside she told him in her discursive style what she desired.
This was for Hartley to come with her to make Miss Pew-
hurst's acquaintance, and afterward to be attentive to her
and dance with her. She added : *' There's Miss Isabel
Terrell, Mary's cousin, an orphan girl and quite poor, you
know, for Mrs. Terrell had nothing to leave her. She and
Mary are very close friends, and really I can't understand
it, for though I acknowledge she is fine-looking, she is so
cold and distant and reserved, I can't see how Mary can
like her. » Sa dissimilar in every respect, you know — but
Mary dotes on her, and Mr. Dewhurst insisted on Isabel
making his house her home and looking on him as her
father. I wish you would just take her down to supper,
for Mr. Dewhurst is here and he will be pleased to have
some attention paid to Isabel. She is his sister's child, you
know."
By this time they had reached the end of the spacious
parlors where a group sat around an open fire, in a conver-
sation which appeared to be more genuinely social than
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 21
was often heard at a ball and which, but for the rich dress
of the women and the solemn black of the men might, from
its ease and gentle gayety have been thought domestic.
Mrs. Van Meter introduced him. " Mr. Dewhurst, this
is Mr. Hartley, one of our naval officers, and a very old
friend of our family."
" Mrs. Dewhurst, Mr. Hartley," said the gentleman.
Hartley bowed and was then presented to the young ladies.
Made curious by the long prologue of Mrs. Van Meter, he
looked at each„ and he saw such a pair of young women
that h^ lost his easy indifference at once. Isabel was
a magnificent looking girl, tall and of full proportions,
with dark rippling hair, a clear dark complexion, and fine
brown eyes with a far-away expression. He was introduced
to her, first, and her clear low-toned voice sounded as her
eyes looked. It was not cold, but cool ; not unmindful
of the stranger, but made him feel that she was one who
thought, and that her thoughts would naturally be not of
him but of things remote. " A young Medea," was Hart-
ley's fancy.
But if Isabel made him think of Medea, Mary should
have brought Helen to his mind. He gazed for a moment
on her beauty, forgetful, and then bowed low in pure un-
thinking homage. It was a bow that expressed the true
sentiment of that gesture — " I cast myself at your feet."
I cannot give an adequate idea of the charm of Mary
Dewhurst's face at the age of twenty. I cannot express it,
for in it was an inexplicable something which, to put in
words, would be like painting the moving sheen of the sea.
Her face was lovely with changing expression and delicacy
of color and outline, rather than with classical features.
Her eyes were truly blue, rich and dark. They seemed to
HartJ^y for an instant to look through him, with calm
power. If a face could be believed, this girl was good.
She seemed good, and sweet, and gentle; and Hartley
thought her glancing down before his direct regard was
a pleasant unaffected modesty. He saw her bright brown
22 LOVE AFLOAT.
hair lying low on her smooth broad forehead, her pretty
pink ear, her well-shaped mouth, and her long dark lashes ;
and it was no wonder that he bowed low. He was, as
Garnet had intimated, very susceptible; and Mary was
the unconscious flower of all temptation and attractive
mystery.
Mr. Dewhurst's voice recalled him. " Draw up that
easy chair behind you, Mr. Hartley, and join us. I have a
partiality for the members of your profession, sir. You
will find it very comfortable here. This genial fire is the
best part of the ball to us old folks."
" Father puts his strong reason first, Mr. Hartley," said
Mary with a smile.
Hartley thought she was even lovelier with the smile
on her face than she had looked before. He smiled back
spontaneously.
" I believe," she went on, " he likes the navy from a
sort of mercenary, gratitude."
"And for the same reason," her mother remarked,
"Mr. Dewhurst loves a good fire. The nearer he gets, the
warmer grows his afiection."
^"Of course that gets warm with the rest of me. I
think my affections are all centred in my left knee to-
night, sir ; for I have a little rheumatism there, and the
heat seems really kind to warm it. The fire is certainly
the best part of it all."
" The best part for me is to see the brightness and en-
joyment of so many young folks," said Mrs. Dewhurst.
" You see, Mr. Hartley, how it is. My daughter says T
am mercenary, and my wife intimates that I am selfish.
How good for mankind it is to have charity always at
hand in the persons of the fair."
" At any rate, sir," replied Hartley, "I am glad to find
a friend of the service in you, for we are not •always very
highly valued ; and as for the fire, it is a pleasant feature.
Imagine us all assembled for pleasure, and depending on
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN" NAVY. 23
furs for warmth. Will you tell me," he added, turning to
Mary, " why Mr. Dewhurst's gratitude is mercenary."
" I believe father had a ship saved from the British in
the late war."
" Yes, sir ; I had. I sent out a very fast ship of 600
tons, to the East Indies for coffee in '13, and coming home
she was taken by an English ten-gun brig. It was a need-
less surrender entirely, for the captain let the brig come *
within gunshot, thinking him a Frenchman, and then was
so panic-struck that he made no effort to get away what-
ever. The brig put a prize crew aboard my ship, and
started her to England, but the Constitution overhauled
her on the way, and changed her destination to suit me
better."
" What was your ship's name ? "
" The Saratoga."
" I remember her recapture ver^well, and a long chase
she gave us. She would have escaped almost anything but
the Constitution."
"What, you were on the Constitution, then ! "
" I was a midshipman in her. Your captain made a very
lame excuse for his capture. Bainbridge told him his luck
was better than his desert, and advised him to keep
awake."
" He followed the advice. He was so glad to get away,
and so careful to get home safe, that he was almost too sharp.
He lay hid down on the coast of Maine a long while before
he dared venture to come home ; and finally he slipped
through the New London blockade and actually ran up be-
hind Shelter Island at night. He was snugly hidden there,
but that did'nt satisfy him. He discharged the cargo — I had
to have the coffee hauled in wagons to Williamsburg — and,
then he got everything possible out of the ship, put floats of
hogsheads under her, and towed her up the Peconic Sound
on a mud bank. She lay there till the war was over."
After a few minutes' longer talk several mutual acquaint-
ances joined the group, which then divided into little
24: LOVE AFLOAT.
knots of talkers. The rooms began to fill. Hartle}'- kept a
seat with Mary and Isabel, whom he amused with his lively
conversation for awhile longer. It w^as very pleasant for
him. Mary listened with a ready laugh for his fun, and a
ready rejoinder and quick appreciation for the remarks on
solid subjects with which he tried her — an appreciation
which delighted him. He found that she was actually well-
informed m politics, and that both she and Isabel took an
interest in them. Mary avowed that she was in favor of
the Compromise, but Isabel was strong for the House bill.
Hartley refused to have any politics in such a division of
sentiment, and asked Mary for the first dance. She was
" engaged for that one."
" May I have the second, then ? "
" With pleasure."
Isabel said she never danced, and Hartley asked to sit
by her. Then, as the^ets were forming, a handsome, ele-
gant young fellow came to claim Mary. Hartley felt a
vague displeasure at his fine appearance and at the manner
in which he hung on Mary's words and attended to her
slightest wants ; and his discomfort increased as he watched
Mary's pleasure in meeting the gentleman.
" Who is that handsome youngster ? " he asked Isabel,
as the pair moved oif, the observed of all.
Isabel smiled and replied, " He would'nt thank you for
that appellation, I think. Mr. Martin is twenty-five years
old, and though he looks younger, his friends think he is a
man,"
" Excuse me, I was careless not to remember that he
might be your friend."
" He is only a slight acquaintance of mine. My cousin
Mary knows him better, I believe."
" And does she like — I mean, is he agreeable — I should
say — " He stopped, quite embarrassed by the difficulty into
which his eagerness had led him.
" You mean does Miss Dewhurst like his style ? " asked
Isabel, kindly.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 25
" Yes, that is— I—"
" I can't say as to that, but I suppose so. ^Nfost people
do." Then, seeing that Hartley was uncomfortable, she went
on as if to relieve him, " Mr. Hartley, you do not remember
me in the least."
After a look of surprise and a moment of thought, he
replied, " I believe I must plead guilty to the charge."
" And yet you once professed to admire — indeed I may
say "—she blushed a little here — '* that you professed an
unchangeable attachment."
Seriously and surprised, " Why, Miss Terrell, I — are
you sure that I am the man ? I — "
" It was several years ago. Are you so forgetful of
solemn vows ? Then I must remind you."
"I am sure — "
" Don't you remember little Bell, whom you selected
when you were ten years old, as the object of your constant
affection ? "
'^ Lit-tle Bell! Indeed I do — " (rising) — "and I am as
glad to see you as flowers in May. This is a most delight-
ful surprise. And to think of my not remembering the
name."
*•' After all your vows, and your injunctions to me not
to forget ! "
" Indeed, Little Bell, I almost — I do feel quite young
again to see you-^I feel no more than ten — "
" In short, as the young man that tried to preach, and
couldn't, said * You feel — oh ! you don't know ho^o you feel;
and you want to say — oh ! you don't know what you want
to say.' Harry and Little Bell have grown older since then ;
at least. Little Bell has, and wondrous wise, Mr. Hartley."
He was old enough to see the point, and wise enough
to appreciate the gentleness of the rebuff. "I hope Miss
Terrell will be as good a friend to Mr. Hartley as Little
Bell was to Harry," he answered.
" She doesn't know his deserts, sir, and Harry was a
good boy^ if I remember rightly."
2
26 LOVE AFLOAT.
" If you will take his word, he is not entirely undeserv-
ing of friendship now." The talk was getting serious.
He went on : " But, my dear Miss Terrell, we men need
the kindness of good women whether we deserve it or no,
and I believe it was meant that we should have it."
"Well, Mr. Hartley, I am very well acquainted with
you through recollection and through others, and if there
is any friendly ability in me, you would have had the
benefit of it,'* she said seriously.
" Thank you. Shake hands on that."
It had gone further than Isabel liked, and she was now
somewhat confused herself, but she did not withhold her
hand. A pair of girls passing looked at them curiously
and jealously, and one of them whispered, " To think of that
proud thing thawing enough for such barefaced coquetry ! "
They passed on giggling.
Hartley spoke next. " But what can I do for you iu
this friendly partnership ? "
" Never fear but I'll let you know if a time comes.
To-night you may take me down to supper, if you have
asked no one else."
" Thanks for the opportunity."
"Here comes Mr. Martin, bringing Mary back to me —
or to you, for you dance with her next time, I believe."
Mary introduced the gentlemen, and they all chatted
together for a few minutes. Hartley was forced to admit
to himself that Martin was a very agreeable fellow. Mar-
tin soon went away to seek his partner engaged for the
next dance, and Hartley had the pleasure of Mary's com-
pany to himself. It might be called so at least, for his
newly found friend Isabel was entirely overlooked. He
was looking as often as he dared into the blue deeps of
Mary's eyes. From them flowed the subtle magnetism
which puts a man into the condition called " in love ; "
and when they danced, her graceful rhythmic movements
strengthened the charm.
After they sat down he obtained her promise for one
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 27
more dance, and unwillingly surrendered her to his suc-
cessor.
Until his time canie round again he was very much pre-
occupied in mind. The ladies wondered at his mistakes
. and silence. He kept a keen lookout all the time for Mary,
and if her partner was ugly or awkward, he felt easy. If
the gentleman was prepossessing, he was disquieted ; and
when Martin danced with her, as it chanced again, he was
quite uncomfortable. At the supper table he tried to get
Isabel to talk of Martin, but with no more success than in
his first attempt, for she refused to be drawn out. From
this he inferred that Mary had a liking for Martin, which
she had confided to Isabel.
His second dance with Mary was her last for the even-
ing, and shortly afterward he enjoyed a double pleasure in
assisting the ladies to their carriage. It was a pleasure to
attend to the slightest need of such a beautiful girl, even to
help her mother and cousin ; and it was an equal, though
dissimilar pleasure, to think that he was taking her away
from Marti n.
He returned to the ball-room, for the hour was yet
comparatively early, to enjoy some very dull gayety ; and
finally, wearied by his u-nexpected sensations, he took his
leave long before the close. A brisk walk of fifteen min-
utes carried him to the hotel where he intended to pass the
night, and he was soon asleep, dreaming of little Bell, broiled
sardines, the Missouri Compromise, and Mary Dewhurst.
28 LOVE AFLOAT.
CHAPTER III.
THE next day Hartley and Garnet made their application
for orders to the Flying Fish, then fitting out at the
Brooklyn Yard. Hartley secured them by writing to request
an influential Congressman who did him favors, to interfere
in their behalf at the Navy Department.
The tedious and small, though not unimportant duties
of their positions in a receiving ship, had from the young
officers that honorable attention which their fidelity required
of them, and which the naval training of that day had made
almost a second nature.
After supper they sat in Hartley's room reading and
smoking together. Garnet sat perfectly still, reading in-
tently, and smoking deliberately. Hartley read rapidly,
turning the leaves often, puffed fiercely, and continually
twisted a lock of his hair up into an unwilling horn. By
and by Garnet laid down his book and looked at his friend.
He did not speak, because he had a way of attracting his
attention without interrupting him. It was a kind of
magnetic language. Sure enough Hartley looked up after
awhile.
« What is it, Will ? " he asked.
" I wanted to know if you saw anybody at the ball last
night who had any character."
" How ? In what way do you mean ? "
"Any one who seemed capable of seriousness, or of
thinking steadily about life, or that even gave out any signs
of a settled occupation — I mean anybody that naturally
showed something of the true side of himself."
" That's a surprising question. Why do you ask it ? "
" Because I have an idea of people at such places — '*
" Where did you get it, old chap ? "
" I have looked in, occasionally."
" Semi-occasionally, I should say. But why ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 29
" Because I think of people at such places always look-
ing as near alike as possible, and acting as near up or down
to a certain pattern as they can. They all seem to have
laid aside common human nature, and all try to be pleasant.
Every man aims to be very amusing, polite, and gallant,
I believe they call it ; and every woman's conduct is a mix-
ture of Aveak small talk, simpering, and trying to get some
fellow in love with her. Isn't it true ? "
" That depends upon the people — no — I can hardly ima-
gine enough such together to give that tone to the
assembly."
" That is the impression I have got."
" WilliamJ you are young — you lack experience. If you
had joined in the talk you might have found it different
from your notions. You prepared yourself for a certain
impression, and of course you received that impression.
Some of those you saw were ill at ease, and smirked to hide
it ; some were foolish, and smiled from sympathy ; some
had a habit of smiling; some, doubtless, thought it the
correct time and place to smile ; and some felt full of fun
or enjoyment and smiled with pleasure. As for showing
anger or any other bad feeling, everybody knows that a
festive meeting is not the place : beside, when people meet
for pleasure, there is naturally less to call it out. But you
can find the same traits of character there as anywhere else,
by a little digging for them. The w^omen — bless you !—
you cannot tell what a woman is or what she is thinking
about any more at a ball than anywhere else. They bring
one another up to be lady-like and proper till it is inbred
in them to keep back any prominent traits of character,
especially in public. For all that they do their own planning
and thinking and — the amount of it is that they are quietly
running the machine."
" Perhaps that's why it runs so poorly.'*
" That's why it runs no worse."
" For all you say, I hold to it that balls are humbugs."
" These cynical ideas were inside of you at the start,
30 LOVE AFLOAT.
Will. You've had no chance to deduce them from ex-
perience."
"I retire."
" Conquered but not convinced."
" Just so."
After a little pause, Garnet went on : " Honestly, Hal,
do you get any real satisfaction out of what you call
festive meetings ? "
" I don't know. I used to—" he heaved a sigh—" I
believe I am getting to take less pleasure in them. You
asked me awhile ago if I met anybody with character
apparent in them. I made four new acquaintances last
night, almost as soon as I got into the house, and every
one of them showed a decided character."
" Tell me about them."
Hartley went on to describe the Dewhurst family and
Isabel Terrell. Garnet noticed that Mary Dewhurst was
spoken of last, that her name was not mentioned, and that
but little was said of her. These slight hints awakened
his suspicions, and he began to put questions. Having dis-
covered the young lady's name, that she had received
constant attention, and that his friend could not deny he
thought her very charming, he asked in a suggestive tone
whether Mr. Dewhurst wasn't pretty well off, and when
Hartley answered that he believed he was, gave a very
meaning " Humph ! "
This made Hartley smile and wince at the same time,
for he plainly read the current suspicion. He smiled at
the sly suggestion about the money bags ; and he winced
because perhaps there was some correctness in the mistrust
(though he would not own it to himself), and he was
anxious to efface the idea from his friend's mind, without
exactly seeing how. He almost attempted to create a
counter impression by dwelling upon Isabel's attractions ;
but wise consideration kept him from the useless attempt
to blind a person who knew him so well. He held his
peace, and no more was said at the time.
A STOKY OF TIIK AMP:KICAN NAVY. 31
Next day after that he went over to the city. After a
call on Mrs, Van Meter, who kept him for a weary hour to
listen to an account of the best part of the ball, which she
declared he had missed by going away so soon, he availed
himself of the invitation his new friends had given him at
parting. He reached the elegant house, and found that the
ladies were at home. After he had waited a few minutes
in a parlor where every surrounding showed the hand
of wealth and cultivation, Mrs. Dewhurst and the two girls
came down.
It is a hard task for most men to maintain a rational
conversation with three ladies for an hour, but Hartley
did it well. He was modest enough to think it was
because the ladies were uncommonly skilled in talk;
and so it partly wias, for two of them well knew the art of
helping the visitor along. But he had seen much of the
world and its people, had read a great deal, and was able to
express himself in good flowing language. He did not
need many suggestions on this occasion, and his audience
was very well entertained.
Garnet would have noticed, had he been there, how soon
Isabel became silent after the conversation had passed
from the subject of their .early days, and how, after they
had spoken of mutual acquaintances, Hartley insensibly
addressed himself to Mary. Perhaps Mrs. Dewhurst no-
ticed it also, for mothers are keen observers of such things;
but she showed no disposition to interfere.
After Hartley had gone, the ladies, as usual in such
cases, had a little talk of their own over their visitor.
** Mother, what a nice man Mr. Hartley is," said Mary.
" Perhaps he is, my dear."
^ Why perhaps ? "
** I do not know him well enough to pronounce certainly
on his merits."
"But you can see what he is."
•* I can see what he appears to be, my dear."
82 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Well, at any rate, he looks and acts like a gentleman.
Don't you think so. Bell ? "
" Yes, I think so — that he looks like a gentleman."
" Now, Bell, you have known him all your life : don't
you think he is a splendid fellow ? "
" No. I dare say he is all a gentleman should be."
" Why do you say wo, then ? "
" He was a very nice boy, but I hav'nt seen him since
till the day before yesterday."
" I'm sure you can't tell anything about anybody then."
"Mr. Hartley certainly acts and talks like a gentleman;
and he was well dressed," said Mrs. Dewhurst.
*' His glove was torn."
"Which one?"
"The right one."
" I like to see neat gloves."
*'It was a fresh tear, mother; he must have done it
putting it on."
"Was it?" said Mrs. Dewhurst, smiling. "I didn't
notice so closely."
" He has a pleasant voice. He does'nt shout at you,'*
said Isabel.
" That is a good sign in his favor. And I noticed that
he sat still," remarked Mrs. Dewhurst.
"And he doesn't twist his face about like Mr. Danneron,
or smile all the time like that young John Fooms."
" He can talk well, Mary ; you ought to know that at
least," said Isabel, innocently.
"Why?"
"You were surely attentive enough to listen."
" He did'nt talk to me more than to any one else."
Isabel, laughing: " Who accused you of it, little coz ? "
Mrs. D., thoughtfully: " I wonder if he belongs to the
church."
Meanwhile the subject of these remarks was uncon-
sciously returning to his ship. He would not have been
dissatisfied had he known the real impression he had made.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAYY. 33
For the next month Hartley was a changed man. There
came over him a certain preoccupation, an absence of mind
which led him sometimes when on duty or among his mess-
mates into droll mistakes. Garnet remarked it first, and in
a fortnight was prepared for his friend's avowal. The other
members of the mess, less observant and further ofi", saw it
more slowly ; but the dullest was bound to notice it at last.
Hartley had to stand the customary joking which is the
privilege of messmates, but it was hard to bear unmoved
after the party had once scented a love affair.
When he came to a meal with a quill pen behind each
ear, some one suggested he had been writing to name the
day : another thought he was sighing for the wings of a dove
and had taken part of those of a goose as a substitute :
while a third begged Garnet to use his influence in procur-
ing as much wedding cake for the mess as possible. Another
quoted : " Bring saffron blossoms for his bold young head."
Another thought he had asked orders to the Fish to escape,
his courage having failed.
Hartley, having been in many navy messes and some love
messes before, took it all meekly, and his very meekness in-
creased the general hilarity. When the servant said " But-
ter, sah," on one occasion he replied promptly, "Pll be
there." When he carved a roast goose for the caterer
another day, his absence of mind was manifested by a
remarkable ceremoniousness and care in the distribution of
the pieces. The pulling bone was made to serve as a hook,
wherewith to hold up small jokes on his matrimonial inten-
tions. He started on deck without his cap, repeatedly ; he
went to quarters without his sword ; he forgot to salute the
deck ; he gave the wrong orders at drill, and in his long,
rambling, broken talks with Garnet he tried to smoke more
than one empty or unlighted pipe. Truly his messmates
had grounds of suspicion, for, in addition to his vagaries on
board, he was continually wandering off ashore. From the
very first, attracted by Mary Dewhurst, he felt in rapid succes-
sion — if there was really time for succession — an interest,
2*
34 LOVE AFLOAT.
a deeper interest, a delight in her company — and love. It
was the genuine, old-fashioned passion of young folks, a
thing of rapid growth always, and stimulated in this case
by beauty, vivacity, and the not cold light of a pair of rich
blue eyes. It was an unreasoning emotion, but none the less
enthralling on that account — rather the more so, since that
very circumstance was a sign of the presence of one of
nature's powers about which we cannot reason. And nature
was not unkind in this case. She was drawing together,
with her unseen might, two young people suited to each
other in health, in station, in culture, and in bent of mind.
That which ruled Hartley, influenced Mary. She wan
not so rapid in going through the transition periods of feel-
ing, and they were not so strong, or, at least, not so much
felt by herself; but she also was under the spell. Perhaps,
as a woman's deep aifection is said to be longer-lived than
a man's, so also it has more phases in its growth, or takes
a longer time in each ; just as it is said that the fruit
soonest ripe falls first.
Nature was kind. Hartley was what we have seen, and
Mary what she seemed to be — an ingenuous, modest, viva-
cious girl, lovely in face and iji form, with somewhat of
genuine education, and notwithstanding her almost igno-
rant innocence, with an abundance of woman's blessed gil't
of tact. From the first Hartley's polished manly bearing
had pleased her eye, as his voice had sounded sweet in her
ear. This was only a good beginning with her, though it
would have been the end of some girls ; but by degrees, as
she saw something of his mind — and he gave her frequent
opportunities — she admired him. Then she began to look
for him at social gatherings, and to feel satisfied when she
met his pleased eyes. She was almost certain to find his
look awaiting hers. His frequent calling at their house,
where he was a privileged visitor (Mrs. Dewhurst haying by
this time found out all about his people), was pleasant, too.
-She liked best for him to come in the daytime, though she
would have felt guilty if she had ever thought of it; for
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 85
then Isabel generally found an excuse for withdrawing and
leaving them alone together for a delightful talk. In the
evening Mrs, Dewhurst and Isabel were always with them.
Mr. Dewhurst would sometimes come in, too, and liking
the straightforward young man, would lead him into long
narratives of the wars with England and Tripoli. Though
Hartley sighed for relief, and chafed with impatience for the
company of his more congenial listener, he was too. well-
bred to let any sign escaj^e,
*' Those words he spoke, but spoke not from his heart.
His outward smile concealed his inward smart."
Mrs. Dewhurst saw it all and was pleased as only such
things could please her ; and he lost no ground with Mary,
who sat drinking in his words with an absorption young
women do not usually feel for war stories.
But if Mary preferred the afternoons so, very much
more did Hartley. He never met Mr. Martin, the young
elegant of the ball room, at that time, while in the evening
be was usually a fellow-visitor, sharing Mary's attention
and awakening strong jealousies. The fact was that Mary
had never cared at all for Martin, who had been an acquaint-
ance and friend from lx)yhood ; and she continued still, in
spite of Isabel's warning, to attribute his attention to
friendship. There may have been in this, however, an in-
fluence from that tenderness of disposition which made her
dread to give pain to anything: she may have been wil-
fully deceiving herself. At any rate she imagined what no
one else, observing Mr. Martin's conduct and bearing to-
ward her, was able to believe. Mr. Dewhurst saw it and
kept silence, for he had lived a life which had taught him
the power of money, and Martin was not only rich, but had
a promising reputation as a business man. Mrs. Dewhurst
gaw it, and held her peace, for she liked Martin, loved her
(daughter, and could see no objection to their marriage if
they themselves should wish it. Indeed, she rather desired
it should come to pass. Some of his wife's finer feeling was
36 LOVE AFLOAT.
in Mr. Dewhurst*s mind ; and some of his coarser motive
was mingled with hers, as she thought complacently that
Mary would be very comfortable, and able to appear very
well in society. Isabel was the only one who understood
the true condition of affairs, and the only one who was anx-
ious to help Hartley. Mary laughed at the idea of a possi-
ble entanglement with Martin, and Hartley did even worse.
He had been getting deeper and deeper in love, and at
the same time more and more jealous of Mary. He told
Garnet about his feelings in a general way, a sense of the
unmanliness of complaint keeping back a full statement ;
and though Garnet saw many a little thing which was a
complement to the confession, his natural dislike of any
discussion or even mention of deep personal feeling, joined
to his cynicism of love, restrained open sympathy. Hartley
would not have thought of seeking it elsewhere, for his
passion was sacred to him. When he was becoming dis-
couraged and hopeless of success, Isabel saw it and tried to
reanimate him. She was a more competent reader of her
innocent cousin's mind, in which love was now but dawn-
ing, than any man could be ; and of all men. Hartley was
least capable of getting at the truth. Isabel tried to make
him give her his full confidence, she depending upon his
request for her friendship ; but he, scarcely remembering
the request and its granting, held back and avoided any
confidal of his feelings. She at first thought it diffidence,
but his growing reserve mortified her in showing her the
mistake. It was a deep wound to one who had lived so
much within herself and was usually so distant and reticent.
The thought that she seldom sought a confidence, and that
Hartley undervalued his distinction, a sense of injustice
and hurt pride in the remembrance of her promise of friend-
ship, and a feeling that she might have been overbold, all
were in her mind at once ; and she had been more than
woman if she had not been hurt. Her good sense made
her forgive Hartley whep the first of her mortification was
over; but then he had put himsejf into still worse plight
and was out of th^ reiich of her aid.
A STOKT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 37
Hartley sought every opportunity of meeting Mary, and
circumstances had favored him. For some time he made
his afternoon calls uninterrupted ; but Martin, finding them
out, resolved he would not permit a dangerous rival so great
an advantage. So he took to calling afternoons. The
consequence was that the two sometimes met in Mrs. Dew-
hurst's parlors, and suffered mutual tortures. While they
w^ere polite to each other, and amusing to Mary, they were
each writhing internally. As Hartley from his short ac-
quaintance had less personal intimacy with Mary than
Martin had, so he had a greater jealousy ; while his dis-
position ipade him less patient to bear, and less able to
follow up advantages than the other. All this time there
was no word, though there were many looks of love.
Hartley resolved more than once to bring matters to a
conclusion of some kind, but dread of ill luck deterred him.
One day, calling later than had become customary, he
rang the bell, and then stepped back on the stone landing
to wait for the servant. From the landing there was a
view into a parlor window near by, and Hartley thought-
lessly glanced in. Poor fellow ! he saw Mary standing
by the mantel with her beautiful head inclined, and Martin
putting a flower in her hair. He would have gone away,
but at that instant the servant appeared, and he went in,
he didn't know why. He passed Martin in the hall, com-
ing out smiling, but did not speak to him or look at him.
Mary seemed a little confused at first, but soon fell into her
usual strain of vivacious talk. She found that she had it
all to herself, and tried in vain to elicit something more
than mere replies from Hartley. He was obstinately silent,
and in a few minutes arose to go away, muttering about
not feeling very w^ell. Mary, concerned enough to have
made any body but him wonder, followed him, and in the
hall they had a few words.
" Excuse me — that's a beautiful rose in your hair." He
reached out his hand, and took it out of its place.
"Yes — very," she replied, a little angry but more em-
barrassed.
38 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Where did you get it ? " '
"It was given me by a — by Mr. Martin," she answered,
blushing a little.
" Indeed ! did you have it in your hand at all ? " he
asked sarcastically.
" What do you mean, sir ? "
" You know very well " — he flung the rose savagely on
the floor — " Good day, Miss Dewhurst."
" Stop, Mr. Hartley — what do you mean ? — you forget
yourself, I think," she said, advancing.
" I beg your forgiveness, I did, I confess," he answered,
suddenly contrite. He picked up the rose. "Allow me to
make what amends I can." He oflered it to her, but as she
reached her hand to take it, he withdrew it. " O ! if you
would only take it from me " — he said, with a strange thrill
and tremble in his voice — " take it as — if you only knew " —
Mary dropped her eyes at the first word, and stood silent,
pale, and agitated. She had heard the signal woman ever
recognizes. If Hartley could have stopped right there, he
would have turned his fancied reverse into substantial
advantage, but the unfortunate fellow had no able-bodied
friend in hearing to stop his mouth and drag him away.
He got that far, and a jealous recollection struck him like
a twinge of neuralgia. He laid the rose down on the hall-
table. " Excuse me," he remarked stiffly, " I suppose I
should offer my congratulations " — there was a short silence
— " Good day."
And Mary recovered herself just in time to see the door
shut. She went straight to her own room and thought
about it, all in a whirl ; told herself she was angry with
Hartley; and then had a good cry. She had a headache
afterward, but when Isabel brought up the cheering cup of
tea, made certain involved and feeble statements, which,
without being quite confessions, went to show that Hart-
ley's place in her thoughts was a good deal higher than at
that moment he dared to hope.
A STOKT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.
CHAPTER IV.
A SQUARE, solid-looking ship lay oif the Battery, rather
on the North River side, riding at single anchor to the
strong ebb from the Hudson, one warm, still afternoon in
March, after the events described.
Everything proclaimed her an American sloop-of-war,
from the black paint and white streak to the slender pole
above her royal-masts, even had the looker-on been unable *
to tell her nationality from the colors at the peak, lazily-
lifting to unfold in the slow breeze, and, unsuccessful
always, dropping again to the vertical. Ten guns pro-
truded their black muzzles from the white band on either
side. Above the rail of the light spar-deck were to be seen
the heads and shoulders of the working crew. The pipes
of the boatswain's mates were heard at frequent intervals,
a rushing tramp of feet in tune would follow, and presently
a large metallic box would rise swiftly over the rail on the
side opposite from the shore. Then would come the sharp
pipe to belay, followed by " lower away roundly ; " and the
box would disappear. The square blood-red flag at the fore
told the initiated what was the business in hand — the ship
was taking in her powder from the lighter alongside.
The band of copper encircling the ship just above the
water's edge is burnished bright, and the paint under the
scuppers is clean. There are no men loafing aloft, and no
Irish pendants are flying. The yards are square, the rig-
ging taut, the ports hang level, the rudder is amidships, and
no undue noise arises from the men at work.
Mr. Hartley has the deck, and is blue from causes best
known to himself, besides being hungry and a trifle savage
that the powder lighter should have come alongside at an
unseasonable hour and delayed the ward-room dinner. The
men are working splendidly at the whips, and the midship-
men attending carefully to the tanks below, so the lieu-
4:0 LOVE AFLOA^T.
tenant has only himself with whom to find fault. Poor
Hartley ! he would be uneasy anywhere just now, but the
restrictions of the quarter-deck seem unbearable. He walks
back and forth over the clean white deck, like a bear in a
cage. He is evidently in so safe a condition that the three
quartermasters sitting at the foot of the mizzen-raast in the
warm sun have made bold to raise their voices above the
low tones allowable in that vicinity.
The three men are interesting. One is tall and burly,
with an eye like a hawk's and a nose somewhat resembling
the beak of that bird. This is Bill Burke, commonly known
as *' Still Bill " among the older seamen throughout the
navy, and famed for mighty muscles. In contrast to him
is a dried, crooked little fellow, with a long neck that looks
twisted, a face seamed by a million wrinkles, with features
in constant motion, a pair of black mouse eyes like shining
beads set in his head, and a most dandified dress. He has
a voluminous handkerchief about his neck, his clothes are
all new and nice, his broad collar is turned back over a
monkey-jacket adorned with many buttons. Wherever he
has been able to put a bit of colored silk embroidery that
would pass muster, he has done so, be it star-work, pocket-
corner, badge, or watch-mark. At present he is showing
considerable dexterity in drawing with a pencil an eagle
on a piece of canvas. This oddity is named, or, at least,
has for many years been styled on the books of paymasters,
Wm. Johnson, but his messmates always call him " Thomas
Ap Catesby R. Jones, sir," or " Ap Jones," or " Ap " for
short. The third man is an intelligent looking fellow, and
very young in appearance for his rating. His name is
Henry Thompson, and he hails from the end of Point Judith,
or " P'int Judy P'int," as he calls it. As we approach wo
hear the talk.
[Johnson.] " He had a cork heel."
[Thompson.] "Who?"
" Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones, sir."
" The dickens he had ! Why ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 41
" He lost his left heel off Marocky. A shot come into
the bridle-port when the ship was in stays, and it tuk off his
heel, and went through the cabin door, and out at the open
port aft, and never teched a finger more. He was third
luff in the Peacock. It never teched the deck but once-t."
"Why?"
" Bekaze she was jest but hove in stays, and somewhat
pitchin' then — "
"Ships mostly rolls in stays."
"Well, let 'em. And her mostly pitchin', as I was
sayin', the shot — "
" They mostly rolls in — "
" Supposin' they does. Can't you emagine one a-pitch-
in', say once-t or twice-t in stays ? "
"No."
" You can't. You go to sea longer, then, young man."
" I 'spect to."
"I dessay you never see a tail."
Thompson having no reply ready he went on, "And the
shot, as she rose to it, come in the bridle-port and passed — "
" I was in that fight myself, I 'spect. What battery
was firin' at you ? "
" Thompson, how do you expect that shot to ever git
through the ship, if you keep interruptin' me this way ?"
" You had it out o' the cabin window once, and fetched
it back and put it into the bridle-port again."
" Well." In a moment he resumed, " He never teched
ardent sperrits." v
" Who ? "
" Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones, sir," replied Johnson
proudly.
" Who was he ? '
Johnson, severely, and twisting his neck around to look
Thompon in the face, "Young man, do you mean to tell
me you don't know who " — here Burke broke in, " Ap Jones,
hold the end of this bunting and help me draw the threads."
This stopped the complaint of Johnson, but in a moment
he asked, " Burke, what's the matter o' Mr. Hartley ? "
4:2 LOVE AFLOAT.
"How SO?"
" What makes him look so damn-your-eyes and all-in-
the-wind like, since we left the Virginny."
" Some gal, I 'spect," answered Burke.
" He's backin' and fillin' like his helm was lashed hard
down and all hands gone below."
" You see, Ap, some pretty craft has hove him to, and
made him show his colors ; and he likes her looks so much
he's left his main top-sail to the mast, and his ensign at the
peak, and started to go aboard of her," remarked Thompson-
" Sail ho ! " whispered Ap, to warn the others of Hart-
ley's approach. He resumed innocently before the officer
was out of hearing : " This 'ull be a regular rushin' wheel
cloth. * Gay but not gaudy, as the monkey said when he
painted his tail sky-blue.' "
" How will you paint it ? "
" I'll show you. See the eagle here — he'll be red with
blue wings — and the paper in his mouth, yeller. The guns
underneath — I'll make 'em the nat'ral color — bhick — and
the pile o' shot. The anchor I'll have green^ and all of
»em on a ^chite shield with the motter of the United States.
* Don't give up the ship ' on the paper in the bird's mouth.
Around the shield 'U be blue with a red leach."
[T. approvingly.] " That'll be all ship-shape and Bristol-
fashion ; won't it, Burke ? "
"Fine."
" And the larboard side the same ? "
" For them suckin' commodores to lean on ? Ketch me.
I'm goin' to make it a plain green, with a yeller star on a
blue ground, to larboard — and mind you don't shift it end
for end."
" It's no gal that's the matter with Mr. Hartley, for
now I think of it, he hasn't been ashore in two weeks' time.'*
" I 'spect it some o' them chaplain books he's been
a-readin', then. When I was in the Hudson in 'lY, one time
there was seven parsons took to comin' aboard o' nights,
and preachin' and prayin', and what out o' curiosity and
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVT. 43
bein' unable to sleep decent — I slung on the starboard side
o' the half-deck, d'ye see, and they was on the port side
with the meetin' — I used to lay and watch them by the hour.
They was havin' a — a ''vival, I b'lieve they called it — and
it was quare-like to watch 'em. The men mostly took to
goin', and every night they'd get worked up after a spell
and holler and cuss — some of 'em — and one parson a-prayin',
and the rest a-goin' around amongst the men a-talkin* to
'em. * Strive, brother.' * Pray without ceasin'.' ' Knock,
and it shall be opened.' *now is it with you, my brother? '
and a devil of a lot more stuff. The officers in the ward-
room came out after awhile and they ketched it too, but
they didn't lay down and holler like the men. One old
parson used to go up to a man layin' on deck, kneel down
by him, and rub his head like he was puttin' on grease."
Said Thompson, much interested, *' What come of it ?
how did it all end."
"Why, you see, the master-at-arms 'ud come around
every night at two bells and put out the lights accordin' to
reg'lar orders, and that 'ud bust up the meetin', and the
parsons 'ud look kinder sorry and go off without gettin'
half their 'vival out. They done that several nights, till at
last one of 'em struck a bright idee. When the master-at-
arms come and said * Cap'n's orders, sir,' and was just
a-goinVto blow the light out on the purser's table, the old
parson he says, says he, * Wait, my friend. Is it customary
to extinguish the lights at this hour ? ' The master-at-arms
told him as how it sartinly was. * Has your captain no
power to keep them burning if he wish ? ' says the parson.
* Yes, sir,' says Jimmy Legs. * Tell him then that I beg of
him light to carry on the work of God — one little light to
shine upon his holy word.' I don't know what Jimmy Legs
said to the old man, but you know it was nothin' like
that."
" My soul, yes."
" Any way he come back with permission for lights till
four bells that night ; and after that they sent for 'em reg-
44: LOVE AFLOAT.
'lar every night, till at last the old man wouldn't stand it
any longer. The captain's steward was a chummy o' mine,
and he told me one night when they was all a hollerin' and
groanin' like hell on the half deck about three bells, that
the old man jumped up and throw'd down a book he was
readin' and said he be dam if he'd stand the dam noise any
longer, and he sent the orderly to ask the parsons into the
cabin as soon as they was done. When they come in he
told 'em as how it was contrairy to the Articles o' War, and
they must come earlier if they wanted more time. They
tried to argufy about * the work of the Lord,' but the old
man jest caught 'em flat aback. He told 'em the Lord
couldn't do any work in his ship after two bells, and laughed,
and asked 'em to take a glass o' wine. They wouldn't take
it, and one of 'em told the old man he was ' bound quickly
and galled bitterness,' leastways the steward said so, though
I see no sense in it whatsomever."
" Did they come back ? "
" Bless you, yes ; every night for two weeks. Then it
sort o' slacked up and begun to get quiet again, and the
men begun to stop goin' to the 'vival. And then the par-
sons p'inted a day for a babtizin', and got the captain's
permission to babtize the men. The old man he said they
better come over in the mornin' watch, when the men was
stripped, and he'd let 'em have the use o' the head pump so
they could babtize all hands, * I might come out myself,'
says he, * and a little extra hose to reach the poop would do
ray business too,' says he. I was aft, cleaning the binnacle,
and I heard tell 'em myself. I tell you the old man didn't
care nothin' for nobody — but he drinkt a heap. Now there
was Thomas Ap Catesby R — "
" Oh, damn him ! Heave ahead with the babtizin'."
[Johnson, oflended.] " Young man, if you ever sails with
Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones you will get to be more po-
liter, I hope, and a better sailor, sure."
"Well, you needn't breeze up about it. Heave ahead
with the babtizin'."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 45
[Johnson continued.] " Well — the parsons was Bab-
tisses, and Methodys, and Prispeterins, and they 'lowed the
men might choose whether they'd be sprinkled or 'mersed.
They 'greed among thesselves to let the men settle it for
thesselves out of the Bible, but the two Babtisses sprung
their luff on the others and got clear to windward. The
day before the babtizin they' come aboard and went around
amongst the men, and told 'em how they'd all go to hell if
they wasn't 'mersed. So next day — it was a Sunday, I be-
lieve — they all come off in the afternoon watch about six
bells, and commenced for to babtize. When they called on
all who desired to be 'mersed to step forward, the whole
kit and boodle of 'em come along, and ye ought to see the
Methodys and Prispeterins look at one another.
" They had a ladder rigged into the water, and agratin'
across the foot of it, and one of the Babtisses he stood on
it in about half a fathom of water and babtized. Jerry
Dowling was a bos'n's mate in the Hudson — Lord love ye,
he was a man and a half — a reg'lar three-decker — weighed
three hundred. When it came his turn, he went down the
ladder and the whole thing sprung with him. I thought
the lashins was gone and him anfd the little parson was a
walking the plank like, together, and a-goin' to heaven,
like they ought to — by water, you know. But the stuff
was good and the gratin' held 'em all right. The little
parson was getting tired by this time, babtizin' so many,
and when Jerry come down he says, says he — the little
Babtis', you know, sort o' weak like, * We will now endeavor
to babtize our brother.' He like to dropped him, but blet?8
you ! I had a line all ready to heave Jerry, if he had.
" After he got him up, and Jerry was a-goin' up the
side a-drippin' like a swab, the other Babtis' standin' on the
marine gratin', said, * We will now sing the hymn, 'Tis
done, the great transaction's done. ' "
" Was that the last of it ? "
" Mostly it was, 'cept it wasn't a month 'fore half o'
them fellows was in the bay or the brig, one, along o' goin'
46 LOVE AFLOAT.
ashore too much, you know. But some of 'em is 'ligious to
this day. I know one o' them fellows in this ship now."
" Who is it."
" Still Bill, there."
" Better for me, if I was. Who teached ye to lie, Ap
Jones ? " said Burke.
" Who is it, Ap, sure enough ? "
" Think I'd tell you to have you devillin' him ? " a pause.
[Thompson, reflectively.] "I 'spect that's what he's
swallered."
"Who?"
" Mr. Hartley."
" Yes, I reckon he has."
"I heard one o' them fellows down at that thing-um-a-
jig — Bethel, in Water Street. That man know'd what he
was about — he'd been to sea. He was tellin' 'em how a
man was in danger o' hell like a ship runnin' close along a
reef to leeward and a p'int makin' out ahead, and no room
for stern-board in stays. There was a merchant-service
chap a settin' on the pulpit steps, and he got awful worked
up. At last the preacher turns and hails him loud enough
to take the hair off your head. ^ Hard down!'* says he,
" luff ! brother^ luff ! ! and you'll weather hell yet with
the lee leaches of your top-sails smoking.' "
" Fust-rate."
Thompson had been rather loud in his imitation of the
preacher's exhortation, and the three quartermasters were
startled to hear a stern voice, which they well knew for the
captain's, exclaim, " Mr. Hartley ! the quartermasters are
forgetting where they are." Hartley's order came instantly:
*' Less noise aft there." " Aye, aye, sir," answered Burke,
wisely taking the spokesmanship. " Good Lord ! " whis-
pered Thompson, I believe the old man's goin' to have a
drill now." " No, he ain't," replied Johnson, " but he knows
what he's about. That's the way to make the men smart.
Kow Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones, etc. etc."
The colloquy of the quartermasters was interrupted by
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 47
the captain's walking aft, they becoming respectfully silent
as he approached.
Captain Merritt was not a man to attract attention at
first sight, but one who grew mightily upon you with ac-
quaintance. In certain respects he was a product peculiar
to the Navy. He was quiet by inclination, though he could
come to the front on occasion, fastidious in dress, with his
niceness leaning to neatness rather than to show ; gifted
with a habit of plain politeness which sometimes rose inta
gracious urbanity, and possessing a keen though much re-
pressed sense of humor. He was a short and slender man,
though very broad across the shoulders, and he looked about
forty-five years old. He had a heavy brown beard, was
pale and a little bald, and he had the steadiest, coolest, most
commanding gray eye in the Navy. He was scrupulously
just to all, enforcing Navy law even upon himself, and the
only path to his favor was faithfulness in duty. Still he
seemed to think, like Lord Bacon, that roughness is a need-
less cause of discontent ; that severity makes men fear, but
roughness causes hate. He associated but little with his
officers, probably from a feeling that familiarity might
lessen respect, even if it did not breed contempt, and he had
many drills. His ship was not sought by officers who did
not desire labor and discipline, and those who sailed with
him were never disappointed in their expectations. He
spared himself less than he did his subordinates, for in
addition to close, careful attention to common duties, he
was a hard student of scientific and professional subjects;
Captain Merritt's idea in life seemed to be conscientious
concentration of his forces and talents on the service, suf-
fering no outside matter to long occupy his mind. He
made no attempt even to save money, trusting to his grow-
ing sons and to Providence for his wife's support in case
of his death, and spending no more thought on lucre than
was necessary to keep him out of debt. He was very nearly
the type of the Navy Captain as he should be. There was
too much conscience in his composition, however, to make
48 LOVE AFLOAT.
it likely that other officers would either resemble him very
closely or like him very much : besides which he was
usually too cool and ceremonious to be a popular person.
Presently a very ugly man, with a tawny complexion
and sandy hair and whiskers, came up the ward-room lad-
der and saluted the quarter-deck. It was Mr. Alexander
Campbell McKizick, first lieutenant. He was not dressed
with great elegance, for his clothes were all rather large,
and somewhat baggy ; but he showed the sailor in all his
words and movements. He respectfully reported, "Powder
in and stowed, sir."
" Very good, sir," replied the captain, with a restrained
smile and an involuntary twinkle in his eye. " I needn't
ask if the gunner has stowed it well for I see you've been
in the magazine yourself."
" That's true," answered the worthy and careful lufF ;
" and it's stowed none the worse for that ; but how did
you know it, sir ? "
" Your back scraped an acquaintance with the white-
wash as you came up the magazine hatch."
" Lord I what a sight for the quarter-deck ! " ejaculated
Mr. McKizick after looking over his shoulder ; " excuse
me, sir, but it's too bad. I'll go and brush it off."
"No, Mr. McKizick, I want to see you now," said the
captain. He had noticed that the men were grinning about
the deck at the first luff's white back, and he did not care
to give them a chance to think he had sent that important
officer below to brush his jacket.
*' Here's the key of the magazine, sir. I thought may-
be you had better tell me where to find it in case of need."
"Very true. I shall take out the right-hand little
drawer of the bureau in my stateroom, put the key in the
pigeon-hole, and let it lie back of the drawer."
Here Hartley sung out an order : " Aloft, and get the
whips off the main-yard ! "
The captain remarked : " I like Mr. Hartley's style of
giving orders. He seems certain of prompt obedience."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 49
"The men like it, too: they'll do as much for him as
for me, now."
" A fine young fellow, Mr. McKizick, attentive and
careful. I'd like to see him study more."
"He's had the name of a good student, heretofore, and
he's well posted, sir. He speaks French and Spanish, and
knows nearly as much of the profession as Mr. Garnet does."
" Is Mr. Garnet so very well informed, then ? "
"Uncommonly well, sir. He makes no display, but
you'll see he hardly ever makes a mistake either."
"I want no better officers. I shall feel safe to sleep at
night in their watch on deck. But what is the matter with
Mr. Hartley of late. He seems out of sorts."
" I don't know, sir."
- "He isn't sick?"
" He takes his grub regular, sir."
" He never drinks ? "
" No — not beyond a glass at dinner. I noticed his
absent-mindedness — in fact, the mess jokes him about it a
little ; but he keeps his affairs to himself."
" Between himself and Mr. Garnet, I suppose. But what
is the joke on him."
" They do say — he's in love, sir."
" Oh, if that's all he'll get over it as soon as we are off
soundings."
" If that's it, he's got it pretty bad. Have you heard
from the charts yet, sir ? "
" They'll be here within a week, and we shall sail as soon
as they come."
" No objection to my mentioning it to the officers, I
suppose, sir."
" Not in the least. Is there any improvement in Mr.
Dularge ? "
" I think he'll be very much of a muchness, sir."
" Keep an eye on him, and let me know if you think he
can be safely trusted with the deck." «
3
50 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Aye, aye, sir : Mr. Briggs will do, I think. He seems
very anxious to advance."
" And the midshipmen ? "
" Just about the regular set, sir ; full of meanness and
smartness and stupidity. I've seen so many of 'em I can't
tell 'em apart, hardly."
" You must try to discriminate, Mr. McKizick : it does
a great deal to let them see that you take notice of appli-
cation. And, by the way, I heard you swear at the main-
top, loosing to a bowline this morning. Please to remem-
ber that I do not permit swearing in either officers or men
on duty."
" Aye, aye, sir. You see. Captain Merritt, I got a little
in the way of swearing last cruise, for there was seventy
odd Dagos aboard, and the poorest set of men you ever
saw."
The captain smiled, thinking he had heard that McKiz-
ick's habit was older than " last cruise," but he said
nothing.
Just then Mr. Cornwallis Duncan Dularge, a young and
gorgeous lieutenant, came up the ladder, saluted the deck
ceremoniously, started toward Hartley at the fife-rail, and
was just in the middle of a very military salute, as he said,
" I'll relieve you — " when he stumbled over an eye-bolt.
He made the rush, undignified and ungraceful, which a man
always makes to keep from falling, and went straight for
Hartley with extended arms. That gentleman stepped
nimbly aside and Dularge clutched the head braces. The
captain turned away his head, but McKizick guffawed aloud.
Hartley asked Dularge politely if he could be of any
assistance, but the gorgeous creature, picking himself up,
merely repeated, this time without a salute, " I'll relieve
you—"
" Very good, sir. I've just had the sweepers piped.
The starboard bower is down, with thirty fathoms at the
water's edge. Report the gig manned to the captain at
one bell." And Hartley went below.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. ,51
Dularge was an incompetent and conceited fellow, loud-
voiced, very gay and frequently in bad taste in his dress,
ignorant alike of books and men, and very proud of his
family descent. His chief accomplishment was dancing,
and his best pleasure something good to eat. At the
same time he pretended to be able to speak several lan-
guages, to understand music, to know all seamanship, to
kill all ladies young and fair who exposed themselves to
his discriminating gaze, and to do many other things ; and
as long as his money lasted, he possessed other pleasures
beside those of the table. He was one of those men even
now to be sometimes found in the service, though not
of it ; small souls who, incapable of recognizing the
dignity of their position as servants of the nation, and
the self-sacrifice it requires, make of the service a con-
venience. It would improve discipline and esprit to remove
these parasites — in fact the service itches to be rid of them
— but unfortunately they usually have enough Congressional
influence to insure their permanency.
Hartley went below, down two ladders into a rather
dark ward-room where there still sat four oflicers talking
over the table which the servants were clearing off. Garnet
made a silent fifth. The four were Mr. Briggs, a passed
midshipman, who was just off leave of absence, and pi'esuni-
ably very spooney. Dr. Bobus, the surgeon, a solid chunk
of a little man, with considerable learning and ability, and
a kind heart under his crust of dignity; Mr. Owens, the
purser, who was an ordinary sort of a person ; and the
marine officer. The last was a peculiar man, in that to
all appearance he was entirely devoid of sentiment.
He was almost an animal. He was vulgar, stolid, and lazy,
ignorant of nearly everything beyond the requirements of
his easy position, fond of drink and other sensualities, and
utterly incapable of understanding love in any other than
the brutal sense. He had no conscience beyond the code
of honor, which gave him certain notions of what could
not be done by a gentleman. His only redeeming point
52 LOVE AFLOAT.
was his bravery, which made him more respected that one
would suppose possible. He was gross in body, fiery in face,
and awkward in manner. Such was Lieutenant Robbins.
This was the set of companions with whom Hartley and
Garnet were to live for probably three years. They were
fortunate in their messmates. From most of their associates
they could obtain new knowledge of life, or the satisfaction
of mutual respect; from the others, the amusement of ob-
servation at a safe distance.
After Hartley had satisfied his appetite with the dried-
up dinner which by ancient custom fell — and by modern
usage still falls — to the officer of the deck, he took his
cigar and went on the gun-deck. Going forward on the
white deck past the shining black guns, he found Garnet
absorbing in vapor the brains of his familiar spirit, his pipe
Satan, and listening to the talk of the other oflScers gathered
there smoking. Garnet joined Hartley in a place a little
apart, abaft the forward gun, and for awhile they sat in
silence.
Presently Garnet spoke.
" We shall be out of this inside of ten days."
" Yes," replied Hartley carelessly.
" Then for a little fighting, hey ? You'll get a chance to
swing a cutlass yet, Hal."
" I'm not anxious."
Garnet looked annoyed and began to reply, but stopped
after a slight essay to speak and devoted himself to his
pipe. The smoke arose in thick, cloudy wreaths above his
head, but Hartley's freshly lighted cigar began to burn
dimly. After awhile Garnet asked him if he thought the
Fish was on her best lines.
Hartley replied gloomily, " I don't know, Will."
" Haven't you noticed ? "
" No — yes, I believe I did, too.
" Well, what do you think of her trim ? " asked Gar-
net."
" Trifle by the stern yet."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 63
" It won't take McKizick long to find it out," said Gar-
net ; " he knows the ship has always been good for nine
knots on a bowline, and he'll get it out of her again."
No response. Garnet resumed in a minute: "You
know you have to make an early haul of the main yard."
Still no answer, and Garnet turned to look at his friend.
The poor fellow was staring fixedly across the North River
into the west, entirely abstracted and very woe-begone, and
his cigar was quite out. Garnet thought of the afternoon
when they had gazed together across the East River, and
felt that his presentiment on that occasion had been pro-
phetic.
Hartley looked at him abruptly and said, as if answering
his questioning look, " Will, I must see her again."
" Better not, Hal," responded Garnet quickly ; " you
have parted from her once, and you may as well not — "
Hartley interrupted him. " I have made my mind up.
I shall go to-night."
" Enough said," replied his friend ; and after a slight
pause, " Tell me what kind of a woman she is." This was
the one topic of which Hartley was full, on which alone he
was able to talk; and he was almost thankful for the op-
portunity and the relief.
" She is beautiful. Will," he commenced. Garnet smiled
*■'' Beautiful^ sir. She is not very tall, or very short, either;
about medium height. She has brown hair, with little waves
and curls in it, and she wears it low, rippling across her
forehead." (" All of it ? " thought Garnet). " And her
nose is little and fine, and the least bit turned up — it gives
her the prettiest look ! and her mouth is — well not small,
you know, but nicely-shaped, and sweet and full of expres-
sion." (" Better be full of potatoes," thought Garnet vul-
garly). "She knows how to talk, too: she is full of life
and fun — you would enjoy talking to her yourself — and
she can laugh the prettiest sweet-toned laugh you ever
heard. 'I Jove, it makes me half-crazy to remember. Her
face, sir, is the picture of innocent, lovely mirth when she
64 LOVE AFLOAT.
laughs. Her eyes fairly sparkle then. She has the loveli-
est eyes — I swear I never saw such eyes."
Here Hartley was vehement enough to attract the at-
tention of Doctor Bobus sitting forward of the gun. " Eh,
Mr. Hartley?" said he, "What's that? Our captain
doesn't allow any loose allusions to eyes."
The surgeon was thinking only of a favorite naval ob-
jurgation, more pointed than pious, which the captain had
forbidden; but Hartley misunderstood the doctor's mean-
ing, and was much embarrassed.
By and by he resumed, in a lower tone. " She is the
sweetest, gentlest creature ! By heaven, if I could pass
my life with her, I would actually resign."
Will thought that love made his old friend rather for-
getful, and wondered ruefully what he himself would do
for an associate in such a case.
Hartley w^ent on : " If I could go away knowing that
I should never see her again, that our fate would always
divide us in this world, I could still be happy if I knew
she loved me."
It was Garnet's turn for silence now. He was thinkino^,
" Hal has it bad this time. Worse than that Gibraltar
girl, by a long jump."
Hartley went on again mournfully : " To think I'll never
see her again after we sail — and she'll be sure to marry
that fellow, that ^conceited young fool of a Martin."
" The Doctor '11 hear you," suggested Garnet.
" I could see her preference clearly. She showed it in
her looks and her familiarity with him — confound him !
she was as cold as ice to me the last time I went."
He alluded to a call he had made after the episode of
the flower. Mary had been questioning her heart as to the
cause of her agitation on that occasion ; and the answer
was so unsatisfactory and contrary that it troubled and un-
settled her mind, and she went at once to the extreme of
virginal shyness and self-defence. The new feeling of love
w^as not yet strong enough to overcome that maidenly in-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 55
stinct. She was not yet far enough advanced even to feel
any pleasure in the discovery of Hartley's sentiments. So
she met him with a coldness which he interpreted to mean
anger at his conduct on their last parting ; and she, seeing
how he felt, permitted him to continue in error, to avoid
explanation.
The friends sat a long time. Hartley gazing at nothing
in a general westerly direction, and Garnet absorbing nico-
tine and naval tactics together. The drum for evening
quarters called them away at last.
After the crews had been mustered, and the reports
made, and the retreat beaten, and the two officers had laid
aside their swords in their state-rooms, Garnet came to
Hartley and asked if "there wasn't another young lady at
Mr. Dewhurst's ? "
" Yes," replied Hartley, "Miss Terrell. But why?"
" Why — I thought I had heard you speak of another one,"
answered Garnet, looking a little foolish.
Hartley thought he would repeat a small and very old
joke — asking the other to go ashore with him. "Will,
come ashore with me and call on the ladies. You'll have
a fine time."
To his great surprise Garnet stammered a half accept-
ance. " If I thought it would be the thing " — said he, " but
I'm not invited."
" Pshaw, you old fish ! " answered Hartley. " Come
along. Mr. Dewhurst told me to bring any of my naval
friends to his house I pleased, and Miss Ma — Miss Dew-
hurst has several times wished to see you as a rare specimen
in fossil ichthyology."
"I shouldn't care to be shown off as a queer fish," said
Garnet.
" Don't be a shark, and snap my head off. Will. That
was all gammon, of course. Come with me and pass a
pleasant evening. With a sensible woman like Miss Ter-
rell you'll feel at home."
" Well, I'll go," replied Garnet, " but what can I wear ? "
66 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Pooh ! are you a woman, to want clothes ? Put on a
clean shirt and your best uniform."
' When they were ready, Hartley gave Garnet a careful
inspection in the privacy of his state-room, tied his cravat
in a better knot, and pronounced him comme ilfaut.
They waited till the boat was reported, and then went
straight on deck to avoid the remarks of inquisitive mess-
mates. Finding McKizick on deck, they obtained permis-
sion to leave the ship, descended the side into the waiting
cutter, and in a few minutes were walking up Broadway
together.
» ♦ <
CHAPTER V.
ON the way, Hartley asked Garnet curiously why he
wanted to call. Garnet said it was because he had
been thinking seriously of the inconvenience and loneliness
of a single life, and thought it was every man's duty to take
care of one woman, and so he had concluded to marry.
" And so," said Hartley, " you've come ashore to make
your choice to-night. You had better propose, too ; for
the time is short, and you won't see her again for two or
three years. Will, you wanted to see for yourself what
my Miss Dewhurst was like — that was it."
" Just so. Maybe if she suits me I'll propose to her in
your behalf."
" Very probable ! "
« Pd better, I think."
« Why."
" My lad, you've got your yards a-cock-bill before Good
Friday. You are going off to sea in the blue devils with-
out ever having asked her. You are not of much account
yourself, Hal, but may be she has bit -at your buttons.'*
Hartley, half-offended by his friend's light tone, made
no reply, and failed to receive the intended impression.
When they arrived at the house, Isabel and Mary came
down, the latter stating that her parents had gone out for
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 57
the evening. Hartley was pleased to see that Garnet
showed no annoying embarrassment, and that he commenced
a conversation with Isabel easily enough. Beyond that h*e
did not see him or hear him, or think of him, the whole
evening through.
He was enveloped in Mary's atmosphere, which hid from
him all things but her : he was intoxicated with her beauty
and her personality, which seemed to surround him like the
strange fragrance of some new flower, to permeate and
thrill through him with a magnetic quality; he was joyful
as a lover is when with her he loves, and because he is with
her ; he was sad because he was so soon to lose sight- of
her, and because his hopes were in the inverse ratio to his
love. It was not strange that their talk was wandering
and desultory, for Mary, too, was affected by an unavoid-
able though unknown longing, and she too was sad. She
did not yet know that the Flying Fish was to sail so soon,
but was thinking of her own early departure with her pa-
rents and cousin. Mr. Dewhurst had arranged to take them
to Philadelphia for a short visit at a relative's house, and
there had been talk of their all going South for the re-
mainder of the cold weather. Mr. Dewhurst suffered from
rheumatism, and was of half a mind to try the effect of a
change of climate. The day had been spent in preparing
for their journey, then more of an event than now.
So while Hartley sorrowfully thought, " I may never see
her again," Mary pensively reflected that she would not
see her dear friend any more for years. This feeling made
her kinder in manner to Hartley than at their last meeting,
but she was still minded to keep him from talking of per-
sonal matters. Hartley was in a pitiable condition, pos-
sessed at once by love and jealousy, and fear and sorrow.
Meanwhile Garnet watched them both.
At last Hartley resolved to tell Mary of their approaching
departure, and to bid her farewell, feeling that he could not
suffer longer at that time, and would not endure such a trial
again. He told her, and a pleasant hope arose into Mary'a
3*
58 LOVE AFLOAT.
mind — she might meet him again sooner then she had ex-
pected. She at once informed him of their own approach-
ing trip.
" Why didn't you tell me before that you were going ? '*
he asked, surprised.
Mary did not remind him that he had no claim to be
foretold her movements — in fact, she did not think of that
at all.
" Oh," she answered gayly, " we had only talked about
it — like a very improbable thing, you know ; and it is so
dangerous for father to travel in the winter. We finally
determined to go only yesterday morning at breakfast."
Hartley made no more question, and after a few mo-
ments, Mary went on : " Perhaps we may go further
still."
" Where ? " He asked it so carelessly and lifelessly
that she made him guess. After several very wide con-
jectures she said, smiling : " We have only talked about
this, but it may turn out like the Philadelphia trip. While
we were discussing the difficulties of that we were all the
time finding ways to avoid them — we made excellent pre-
parations without knowing what we were doing. Maybe
it is so now."
" Why," said Hartley," do you wish to go to this place
so much ? '*
" Oh, I long to go. I have wished for it, and hoped for
it, ever since I was a little girl, and read — " she stopped,
smiling.
Hartley felt the influence of her change of tone, and
smiled responsive. *• What was it you read ? "
**Such a charming book, Mr. Hartley. If you ever
come across it, don't fail to get it. You will enjoy it, too
— ^but I don't know that it will be so fresh and good to such
an old traveller as it was to me. You will take my advice
though, won't you ? "
" Certainly, only you will have to tell — "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 59
Mary interrupted him roguishly. "Then it will do
father so much good. All the doctors say so."
"The doctors! — the book! — " ejaculated Hartley in
bewilderment.
" Oh, no," said Mary, " the travel and change of air."
'* Where is he going ? "
** Why, with us, of course^'* she replied with a pretty
pretence of surprise.
" And you are going with him, of course^'* said Hartley,
laughing for the first time in a fortnight. Garnet was all
attention. " I give it up."
" What makes me feel pretty sure we shall go is that
father has long wanted an opportunity to look after that
part of his business, on the ground," said Mary.
Hartley looked incredulously delighted. " You don't
mean to say that you are going to the West Indies this
winter?" he asked.
" No ; only that I think it likely we shall all go," she
answered.
It was such a relief to Hartley to find there was a
chance of meeting Mary, that he almost lost control of him-
self. " O, I am so glad," said he earnestly ; " I shall see
you — perhaps." He instinctively reached out — for what ?
actually to shake hands with her — and Mary let him — and
Hartley held on to her pretty hand while he went on,
** But when are you going ? and where are you going ? "
Mary first remembered herself, and disengaged her hand
with blushing confusion, yet gently, as she replied to him :
** I do not know when we are going, for nothing is settled
yet ; but I suppose we shall stay in Santa Cruz and the
Havana longer than anywhere else. Most of father's ves-
sels go there."
" Then," said Hartley, " I shall be sure to see you. It
will not be good-hy^ but au revoir.^^
Mary now felt as if she must be cool again, to atone for
the momentary betrayal of the truth of which her looks and
voice had been guilty.
60 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Yes," she said carelessly, "maybe so. I should think
though, if you are going to look after pirates, you would
hardly have much time to pass in port."
" Well, we must have a little," he answered.
" Oh, you cannot bear duty all the time, you hardy
sailors," said she, attempting to be sarcastic ; " you must
be amused a little."
Hartley took it quite in earnest. " It is not that," said
he, " but we have to take in prizes, and go in for provisions
and water, and sometimes look in for suspicious craft. We
have to eat and drink — and I think there are — I need more
to— I feel—"
He was about to say something to the point, or, at least,
was trying ; but she broke in provokingly, " You feel as if
oranges and bananas would be nice after eating salted meat
and those hard square biscuits for a week or two — is that
it?"
Hartley was nonplussed to have his feelings transferred
from his heart to his stomach in such an abrupt manner.
His heart was in his throat before, and she was trying to
place it still higher — in his mouth. He hardly knew how
to begin again, but was too much in love to wish or dare to
be impatient. Then he remembered the rose.
" Miss Dewhurst," he said, " I must ask you to forgive
my conduct in the hall the day I — when I threw your rose
down."
" Say no more, Mr. Hartley, you are forgiven," was the
rather stiff reply.
He persisted. " I was a — I cannot forgive myself so
easily — I — "
*' Oh, Mr. Hartley, please let it pass," urged Mary, sud-
denly changing her manner and fearing that his agitation
would be observed.
" Mary," said he, with a tremulous, unnatural voice, "I
saw Mr. Martin put the rose in your hair. Oh — if I might
have such a privilege ! "
He meant, of course, that he longed for the intimacy
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAYT. 61
which would permit such privileges, and he wanted her to
make some sign which would give him either her freedom,
or permission to ask for it ; but his remark was unanswer-
able to such a girl as Mary, and she accordingly kei>t
silence. She was very pale, her bosom tumultuous, and her
hands trembling; but Hartley could see nothing. His love
was blind, as usual, and he still feared to put it to the
test. So he asked her a question to which, on a common
occasion she would have refused all reply, but which she
now answered eagerly, as a relief to her maiden dread.
" Mary, I beg you — I implore you to tell me if Mr.
Martin is — if you — if he is anything to you ? "
" Oh, no," she said, " not at all — that is, he is a very
dear friend of mine."
*' No more than friend ? " he insisted.
She shook her head. •
He might after this have got his courage to the sticking
point, but just here Garnet, who had actually been making
talk with Isabel for some time past, " so Harry might get
through " as he said to himself, put in, to his friend's regret.
" Hartley, I have. discovered that these ladies are tired.
They have been packing trunks to go to Philadelphia.
And I've just remembered what Miss Terrell drove clear
out of my mind — I've the middle watch."
" Why am I guilty ? " asked Isabel.
« Must I tell the truth ? " said Garnet.
" Certainly," said she.
" Because," replied Garnet gallantly, " I have admired
Miss Terrell and her conversation so much that admiration
filled my mind to the exclusion of everything else."
" Bravo ! " exclaimed Hartley. " There spoke the chiv-
alry of Old Virginia. Blood will tell, Miss Terrell. He
isn't used to speaking his mind that way, but the cavalier
in him came forward for once. That's the first compliment
of his life, I honestly believe, Miss Terrell, and you ought
to frame it, and hang it up as a trophy."
Mary had recovered herself enough to say quietly —
62 LOVE AFLOAT.
almost confidentially — ^to Hartley, that she didn't think
Mr. Garnet so very diffident, after all. Her tone and manner,
and her avowal about Martin, had made him very light-
hearted.
Then they had a little pleasant bantering chat, all four
together, said good-by, and separated with two of the party
feeling very much better than they had felt at meeting.
And as the two friends walked down to the landing in
the still streets flooded with moonshine, their boot heels
glinting on the cold steely stones, the fresh, crisp air biting
like champagne, and cigars burning, Hartley felt as if he
were floating along. He " seemed to tread upon the air,"
as John Keats puts it; but the real feeling is one of an entire
absence of legs. He talked to Garnet with boyish lightness
of heart and openness, and Garnet was so uncommonly
sympathizing, that a shrewd acqu-aintance looking on and
hearing, might have suspected that it was the first faint at-
tack of a fellow feeling which made him so wondrous kind.
CHAPTER VI.
LET the reader, dismissing previous localities and per-
sons, imagine himself on the south coast of Cuba. Let
him come with me to look at shores on which our charac-
ters lived and fought, and waters over which they sailed,
searching and hiding, pursuing and fleeing. On this lovely
south coast fate threw them together for a few short weeks
— weeks that afterward seemed as years, in remembrance
of their crowded and thrilling incidents, their myriad sen-
sations of fear and hope, of love and hate, of sorrow and
of joy.
Cuba is an island of brilliant natural beauty, of loveli-
ness so deep, in season, " as almost to upbraid the eye with
happiness beyond desert ; " and in no other part is this more
displayed than on the rich south coast. It is a land of
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 63
palms, of white beaches, of short mountain rivers, of ever-
greenness. The sky is a swimming soft blue, the twilight
horizon a melting green, the sun a faithful, flashing silver
ball. The sea-waters everywhere are of that intense trans-
parent blue, that color of delight, which we Northmen
worship in our tropical messenger, the Gulf Stream.
There are multitudinous islets and keys of sand and of
coral ; pale coral reefs beyond number glimmering milkily
through their- clear covering of water ; thickly-scattered
shoals — all those obstacles which pirates loved about their
haunts. These dangers make the sea dark to all honest
navigators, but the pirates sought them out. They loved
darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.
The coast abounds in little bays, lagoons, and creeks,
with the entrances often deftly hidden by nature's hand.
Sailing along a mile from shore only the best glass and the
keenest trained eye could detect the slight break in the
line of bordering palms and the long beach ; but run in
closer and the entrance is revealed. Perhaps a hundred
yards back the bay or river mouth bends suddenly and
parallel with the coast, and once around the bight, your
very spars are invisible from the ofiing, hidden behind the
fringing trees.
By this time our vessel of imagination has come— for
she sails swiftly — has come with you and me to the spot I
have wished to show you. Look around.
To the south, nothing but " the fresh, the ever free : "
to the east, a rocky, wooded promontory tapering to the
water's edge at its end, which seems to point across a nar-
row strait at a large low key. Mark well that key — El
Cayo del Pescador. Between our place and it lie innu-
merable rocks, reefs, and shoals.
To the west the long shore-line bends in and out its
strip of white beach and wall of waving green, till both
fade away in the horizon. The islets and shoals seem to
cease just in front of us, and only commence again about
two miles further to the left. The Cobre River runs out
64 LOVE AFLOAT.
just behind that little point of trees, and the force and
freshness of its waters have prevented the working of the
coral insect.
To the north a mountain range uprises, dim and blue
and far away. The country between is broken, and irarae-
diately in front of us hills extend clear to the water. In
front of us and, a little to our right, lies a rounded hill, with
only one break in the slope toward us — a kind of clean
step down of twenty or thirty feet, as though along a
certain line the soil had sunk sharply, leaving all above
that line intact.
Do you see that shining object on the edge of the little
bluff. It is shaped like a rock, but appears peculiarly
white. It looks like a big whitewashed bowlder — and that
is just what it is. You observe that we are running straight
toward the land, and with so many rocks and shoals ahead
that it seems to you a risk even for a craft imaginary : but
fear nothing. Watch when the bare stem of that solitary
tree half up the hill comes into line with the white bowlder.
" Weather braces ! Look sharp now. Brace in ! up
helm ! " You can now see, over the forecastle, a lane
of clear water with many a threatening rock and reef on
either side, extending to the shore, yet half a-mile away.
" Steady as you go, and mind the range, helmsman."
Listen to the musical surf moaning in soft bass an invita-
tion to fiercer winds to come and give its waters strength
to roar. Do you catch the lapping wash of the little waves
on the rocks by which we are gliding ? It is all right.
" Mind the range, helmsman ! " Here is a close shave.
You might toss your hat on the rocks on either side, and
that one on the left comes still nearer us under the water,
if you did but know it. Yet on the darkest, wildest night,
with a fair wind, any vessel drawing less than sixteen feet
can run over this track if two lamps be put accurately on
the range.
Look to the eastward at the confusion of rocks rising
raggedly above water. Would you think anything could
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 00
get in that way ? Anything of less than twelve feet draft
can, in the daytime, with a hand at the helm that knows
the channel. The natives of this part of the coast say that
only two men living know that channel — Big Ben and
Captain Hackett, famous names about here, I assure you.
But you ask where we are going. I can't stop to tell
you just now, friend, but you shall know directly. This is
the only dangerous place we must pass. See that slight
break in the shore line ? Watch it.
" Helmsman, round that big rock as close as you can
shave it and bring her head north by west. Lee braces, fore
and aft ! In spanker sheet ! Down helm I Brace up ! '*
Ah, now you see something — but you don't know just
where we are going, after all, eh? You see, at least, that
we are running for that creek-like bit of water ahead.
Wind will be too far forward ? Oh, no. " Stand by to
shorten sail ! Hands by the anchor ! " Now we are in the
very mouth of this seeming creek, "Luff and keep her in
the middle of it, helmsman ! Haul taut ! shorten sail I
square away ! aloft and furl ! "
Look about you now, friend. With no sail on we are
gliding through this narrow channel by our previously
acquired motion, our yards nearly touching the trees on
each side. Pretty, isn't it ? Still you can't see where we
are going? No more can L "Hard a starboard!" Ah,
you see now. " Let go the anchor ! " Here we are.
A lovely place it is — you are right. Sloping hills
clothed with feathery woods on the north, the east, the
west ; and steep, tree-covered bluffs on the south. Palms
nodding about you — almost bending over your head.
Sandy beaches — bright sunlight — deep shadows — brilliant
greenness reflected in glassy green water. It is a mere
little oval haven, not more than two hundred yards long
nor wider than a hundred yards at the broadest place.
No sound but the faint moan of the surf over the rugged
wall. So you think that in such a spot one could remain
forever with only those he loves, "the world forgetting, by
C6 LOVE AFLOAT.
the world forgot." Scarcely, dear friend, for there is a
colony here now the world would like to forget, if it could,
and its settlers would probably conspire together to make
you unhappy. Yes, in this still, sweet, Sabbath-like retreat.
But you do not seem to notice that pretty vessel — there —
close to the west end. Do not the beautiful surroundings
become her elegance of art ? That is La Ilembrilla, the
little craft we saw over two friends' shoulders as they
leaned out of a port one evening at sunset last winter.
She is owned and sailed by Captain Hackett of this port :
mates, James Arrowson and Benjamin Markley, the latter
usually known as Big Ben. What place is this ? This is
The Hole, inhabited by the worst nest of pirates on the
south coast.
Now, friend, assume a garment of invisibility and let
us go ashore. Other clothing might invite reflections upon
us. Come along.
See how still and swan-like La Hembrilla lies ! Every-
thing is neat, but evidently not a soul is on board. She
has mounted a gun since we last saw her. Hillo ! there is
somebody. See that darkey jump into the dingy, and scull
ashore. How easily he rolls the oar. How the brawny
muscles play in his bare right arm, and how his grease
shines in the sun. See where he lands — by the hut — you
hadn't noticed the hut, either? He has gone in — we'll
step ashore and follow him. Come right in, he can't see
us. He is gone — out of the back door after him ! Yes —
a pretty stream — down the bank! here! — ^^walk on these
stepping-stones in the water. Yonder he goes up the
brook — ^keep him in sight. How dark it is here with
the trees and bushes meeting overhead ! Do you hear that
noise ? A laugh, wasn't it ? There — the darkey is gone —
hurry up — no matter if the stepping-stones have given out
— the water isn't over an inch deep, and it is clean. Be-
sides you could not get up these high banks, and if you
could, the close thicket would force you back. Here's
where I saw him last, at the mouth of this little brook.
A STORY OF t^E AMERICAN NAVY. 67
Come to the left and let's try it. Hear that talking
and singing ? Yes, and a violin. 'Ssh ! still, now. Bend
the bushes aside gently — come on quietly — Ah-h ! here
they are.
Come a little to one side — we are right in the path.
Now let us see what is to be seen.
Quite a lively spectacle. The sides of the brook val-
ley have been getting steeper and higher as we came up, and
here they are changed to rich gray bluffs, sixty feet high.
The valley itself stops right yonder in a wall as sharp and
steep as the side walls, so the thing resolves itself into
a cul-de-sac, in which we have the rogues at bay. Not
quite, either, for in the north wall appears a narrow, rugged
cleft, with foot-marks on its steps of wedged-in rocks.
There's another way out, evidently. Yonder's their water
supply — that silver thread of a fall in front of you: There
goes a darkey woman now with a bucket. See how she
catches the whole of the little stream in which we waded
— convenient pump, isn't it ? What a help these scatter-
ing trees are ! They grow with bare stems, and with
their leafy tops just about as high as the edge of the sur-
rounding bluffs, as though nature had tried to roof in the
glen. The roof leaks enough sunshine to make the pattern
of the carpet quite diversified, however.
The dozen houses strung around near the foot of the
bluffs in an irregular semicircle are the Quarters, and very
comfortable quarters, too. Captain Hackett brought part
of them down in La Hembrilla last winter, every piece pre-
pared for its place and painted. He had them made on
contract, and got them a bargain. Oh, a thorough man
is Hackett ; he means business. He knows that his men
are of a class that can't endure to lose all the domestic
pleasures, and so he has made them comfortable, as far as
possible. That accounts for the presence of the ladies you
see — certainly, the men's wives, of course. Hackett insists
on his men being married. Won't let a bachelor sail with
68 , LOVE AFLOAT.
him. The fact is that men leading such a life of trial and
temptation, need something to keep them steady.
The open space in front of the houses where you see the
happy dancers, is the public hall of the colony, where all
hands meet for business or pleasure. It is pleasure this
time. What's in the barrel ? Water, I suppose. The
captain is a strict temperance man — no liquor for him.
That's a fact — the stream is quite near at hand — anyhow
it can't be whiskey on tap, for the ladies are drinking out
of the tin cup.
Yes, the ladies are rather strangely dressed. Kich silks,
soft muslins, shiny satins, and one — that one with Mr.
Markley — Ben Markley — Big Ben, you know — has an
ermine cape over her shoulders. Where they buy, the
goods are better than the milliners, I suppose. That would
account for the simplicity of the styles. No stockings on
— pshaw ! you shouldn't observe so closely — so she hasn't.
The ladies have a rare taste for color, anyhow ; you might
almost imagine yourself at a New York ball, if it were not
that most of them are black and yellow women. Merely
tropical freedom, friend ; their ideas are different from ours.
See that rather moody-looking pei^son coming this way.
Fine sailor-man that, Mr. James Arrowson of England,
Captain Hackett's first mate. He is of a somewhat retiring
disposition — perhaps that's why he leaves the gay party.
Some say he is cross occasionally. Let us trust not. He
seems a little unsteady in his gait — must be affected by
the heat. Ah, that handsome quadroon is coming after
him. Looks as fierce and beautiful as a tigress, doesn't
she? There — she leads him away. That must be Mr.
Arrowson's house he has entered. His wife ? Oh, no ;
probably only his cook.
Rather a mixed set of nationalities in the colony. Let
us see — English, Yankees, Danes, Irish, Portuguese, Mexi-
cans, Spaniards, negroes, mulattoes, and more you can't
name. Yes, and dressed almost as gayly as the ladies are.
That house with two rooms is Captain Hackett's cot-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 69
tage, and there he sits on the door-step, smoking a cigar.
He loves to see his people enjoying themselves. The Span-
ish girl ? — where ? — oh ! sitting back in the room. I see
her through the window now. Pretty, child-like thing !
His wife ? well, no — merely his housekeeper, but they are
probably engaged. A fine young woman, too. Captain
Hackett is particular about his housekeepers, so he
obtained this one at an early age from one of the best fam- '
ilies in Cuba, and trained her up in accordance with his
own ideas.
How they have been enjoying themselves all this time.
But look I there seems to be some trouble. Two of the
men are angry — ^fie ! they are swearing at each other in
Spanish. What, drawn knives ! fighting ! Why does no
one stop them? There goes the captain — he^will attend
to it — and there goes Big Ben. Ah ! too late ! he's down.
We had better go, friend. It is really impolite in us to
be spying in this way. I hope the poor fellow wasn't much
hurt, after all. But how strange the ladies didn't seem
more alarmed.
CHAPTER VII,
** T OOK alive with the mizzen-royal yard ! Capsize the
•^ lower lift and brace, you lubber you ! Are you ready
forward ? "
" All ready, forward, sir," answered Garnet, ringingly.
" Ready with the main, sir," reported Hartley quietly
from the starboard gangway.
" What do you say with the mizzen ? " asked McKizick.
No reply from the agitated Mr. Briggs, who is dan-
cing about nervously on the port side of the quarter-deck.
" What have they got in their luff", now, Mr. Briggs ? "
asked McKizick, half-sadly, half-severely.
** Lower lift — top-gallant yard " — gasps Brings. Then,
70 * LOVE AFLOAT.
in a thundering bawl, " Mizzen-top, there ! Smith ! go up
and put on that lift."
" Aye, aye, sir," from the top captain, who springs to
obey ; but before he is fairly in the rigging, Briggs reports ;
" All ready with the mizzen, sir ! "
"Stand by!" roars McKizick. "Let fall I sway
across ! hoist away ! haul out ! Lay down from aloft ! "
Like magic at the words, the trembling light yards drop
from the vertical, square, and at the same time a cloud of
new yellow canvas envelopes the spars. The jibs and
staysails travel up the stays, and the other fore and aft
sails out on the gaffs, with a rattle and run; the foot
of each topsail follows out its bowlines, till the sails hang
in pendulous folds shading the decks ; and the rigging is
bedotted wHh nimble men, coming down from aloft like
all-crazy.
McKizick walks aft to the captain. " A little better,
I think."
"A good deal better," replied the captain.
" I'm not satisfied with it, sir. I want to keep at It
awhile."
" As long as you wish, Mr. McKizick ; only don't tire
the men out — and recollect the officers' dinner can't begin
preparing till the hands are piped down."
" Shall I send your cook and steward below, sir ? "
asked McKizick.
" No, sir ; never till the hands are piped down."
Back went McKizick. "Pipe furl sail, sir," said he,
addressing the boatswain, Mr. Thick, a stout, short, yel-
low, pock-marked individual. "Koo — week — week —
week," goes the pipe ; " week — week," answer the pipes of
the boatswain's mates. Then, " Ko-o-o-o — we-e-e-e-e-e-k !
Koo — we-e-e-e-e — hee-e-e-e ! " they all go together in a
prolonged, piercing squeak. Nobody pays any attention,
for all hands heard the order and look upon the pipe
rightly — as a preliminary of undoubted, though hard-to-
explain useliilness. Then the large-lunged three take in a
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 71
big breath apiece and bawl loudly and drawlingly — as if
suffering from gigantic stomach-aches " All — ^hands — furl —
sail ! "
^'•Man the gear T'' orders McKizick shortly. "Mr.
Briggs, see the mizzen t'bowlines tended this time. Keep
down^ for' d ! You captains of the tops, keep your men in
till they're ordered out. No stealing, dy'e hear. Lay in
at the word, furled or not furled, and down from aloft to-
gether. Let's have no noise aloft."
" Stand by to lay aloft ! Aloft^ light yardmen ! — aloft^
topmen! aloft, lower yard men! Haul taut! Clew up!
Haul doum ! " The rigging is darkened with the racing
blue-jackets, and, as they seem to fly aloft, in come the
sails, vastly reducing the amount of canvas exposed to
view. In a marvellously short space of time the men are
clustered in dark knots at the slings of the yards, awaiting
with eagerness and tense muscles the next command.
They know McKizick will not stop now to criticise, for
that isn't his style. The order comes — ^^ Lay out!'*'*
and out they dart, swifter and more reckless, on the slen-
der foot-ropes aloft, than we on hard ground. Every
man's hand seizes the government property — ^the loose sail
— quicker than a politician could grab, but no one ventures
to lift a thread. " Furl away ! " roars McKizick, and
the sails roll up instantly. A faint humming sound per-
vades the air.
The captain of the main-top cannot restrain himself,
thinking from his glance across that the foe is ahead again ;
and he calls out in a voice of pent-up agony released. " Up
bunt-jig on deck ! "
" Silence in the main ! " comes quick and sharp from
Hai-tley ; and then, to the top captain's delight :
" Ready to lay down in the main, sir," just a second
before Garnet reports the fore. Briggs is only a 'trifle
later.
"Lay in! down booms! lay down from aloft!" and
down they tumble, arriving on deck flushed and excited.
72 LOVE AFLOAT.
Lewis, captain of the fore-top, a slim, tall Yankee, active
as a cat, pushes aft in the gangway through the clustered
groups of seamen who are criticising the furl. He is
jealous of the main's having for once beaten him, and
means to take all the consolation he can get. The main-
top captains and a few seamen are discussing the furl in a
low voice, and chuckling over the victory. Honest John
Brown 2d, who hailed the deck, is especially triumphant.
"You Brown," says Lewis, "when everything is
workin' nice aloft, you hadn't oughter holler out that way.
Your fellers thought it was the first luff at 'em, and
jumped as if the devil kicked 'em. Didn't calc'late you
had got the deck. That's what made 'em work so fast
and so dam bad. Jest look at that furl now — and come
look at the fore."
" That furl's good enough," replies Brown, after a crit-
ical squint aloft. " Good as your'n. I 'spect I better keep
my jaw-tackle belayed, though. First luff '11 be down on
me like a gull on a minner."
" Brown ! " comes a call like the instant fulfilment of a
prophecy. Poor Brown's face falls. It is McKizick calls
him, and the tone is far from sweet. ^^ Step over heref^
" Told yer so," whispers Lewis, gliding forward to keep
clear of the thunder.
"Don't the officers attend the gear to your liking?"
asks McKizick satirically.
" Lord, sir, it warn't that. I was afeard the fore would
beat us, and it jeat slipped out like an eel from your fist,"
replies the penitent.
"You'll come out of the main -top like a star from the
sky, if you don't mind." Then McKizick added, in a lower
voice : " I don't want to break you. You're a good top-
captain in every other respect, but I can't be always after
you about singing out aloft. Look out for yourself."
" Aye, aye, sir," answers Brown, backing out with a
lively assurance that the first luff meant business.
The men were eager, and McKizick still unsatisfied.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 73
He meant to make the crew efficient, and knew the value
of port practice. So, unmindful alike of the sad looks of
poor Dularge, whose tender body was tired and whose
heart not in the work, and of the periodical appearance
above the after-hatch combing of the head of the marine
officer, who liked his meals regular and foresaw a delayed
dinner, he went on to send down the light yards. All his
brief cautions and explanations he gave before the men left
the deck, saving a great deal of noise and worry afterward.
His officers had been instructed not to hail aloft, except
.when absolutely necessary, and the top-captains made signs
to attentive watchers below instead of keeping up a chorus
of yells. McKizick and the captain agreed in thinking
that such noise was superfluous, and sounded too much like
orders travelling in the wrong direction.
The exercise went on till even McKizick was content.
" Well, captain, I think they're doing well," said he.
" Very well, indeed, replied the captain.
« Shall I pipe down, sir?"
" I think you had better, sir."
Then the long-drawn pipe released all hands, and Du-
large ruefully relieved the first luff, to stand out the watch.
Dularge was master, and thought it a shame to have
to keep a watch in port, but Captain Merritt thought
otherwise. - .
The ship had now been waiting for her charts, in all a
month, and advantage had been taken of the delay to make
the crew proficient, both at the guns and aloft. Continual
exercise had gone far toward accomplishing this end.
Hartley and Garnet both relished their professional
work. Garnet, because duty was always his engrossing
thought; and Hartley, because he too was conscientious
about giving work for his pay, and because he was brim-
ful of life and hope since last he saw Mary. He was
impatient to see her again, of course, but he found the
drills good to work off that impatience. His enthusiastic
excitable nature made him take an interest in passing
4
74 LOVE AFLOAT.
work, deeper than Garnet's cool appreciation. He would
warm to it, become wrapped up in it, and for the time
would be oblivious of all beside. He took a livelier joy in
success than did Garnet, and bad results depressed him
more. Garnet had been working a long time wnth unfail-
ing good-nature on this mercurial quality of his friend's,
although he could not but see the uselessness of trying to
change the original character of the man.
How strange it is that people generally do not recog-
nize the fact that it is pains in vain to try to alter charac-
acter. You can't change a man by pecking at him : the
stuff is in him, and the best you can do is to get him to
cover it up, or make it smooth. The diamond is a rough
pebble in its native state, by patient labor reaching polish
and brilliancy ; but so long as it is a diamond, it will be
hard enough to scratch anything else, and will possess all
the other essential qualities of the rough stone. So with
a man. And as fire reduces the stone to a cinder and dis-
sipated vapor, so only mighty forces, perhaps only that of
death, can really change a man. That resolves him into
ashes and floating soul.
Hartley had not seen Mary since the evening he had
called with Garnet. He was hungering and thirsting for
her as only the genuine absentee lover can. He had writ-
ten to Mr. Dewhurst in the lofty fashion of the day, in-
forming him of his aspirations, and had received from that
gentleman a reply which amounted in a few words to a
permission to take her if he could get her. Here is the
letter Mr. Dewhurst wrote him from Philadelphia :
" Lieutenant H. Hartley, U. S. K
" Sir : I have received your communication of — th inst.,
informing me of your wishes with regard to my daughter.
I can offer no objection, believing you to be a young man
of good principles, able to support my daughter properly ;
and hoping that, in case of your marriage with her, you
would retain enough of your present feeling to keep her
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 75
happy. I shall therefore, with my present knowledge, in-
terpose no obstacles, but I shall not attempt to influence
my daughter in your favor. It has long bee» my intention
to let her choose (among worthy objects) unbiassed by my
wishes or judgment. My family and myself leave here
next week in the brig Bonita for Santa Cruz, where we
contemplate a residence of some months. We shall prob-
ably visit the Havana, also, before our return.
" I remain, sir,
" Your obedient servant,
" Jno. Dewhuest."
So it was settled in Hartley's mind that he was to see
his dear again, though he had somehow felt as if that were
pretty certain ever since his farewell. Strangely enough,
he did not now worry himself about the possibility of
missing her or of finding time for only a glance at her.
Mr. Dewhurst was not half willing to let Mary go, and
concealed Hartley's letter even from his wife, lest she
might influence Mary in the " young man's " behalf. He
grumbled internally at the idea of losing her; for she was
an ornament to his house, the pride of his heart, and had
a great deal of his afiection. Still he could not but admit
to himself that Hartley was a very suitable son-in-law, and
he reflected that as Hartley's wife, Mary could pass the
time of long cruises with her mother. Altogether Hartley
was about the least of necessary evils. Mrs. Dewhurst
was now a more interested friend of the lieutenant's, and
Isabel, putting out of her mind the slight she had received
-^she would have valued it far less if she had ever been in
love herself — did what little she could in wisdom, to help
his cause along.
All Mary needed was letting alone. With all her inno-
cence and ignorance, she had an intuitive inherited pen-
etration, which, more than lack of opportunity, had kept
her out of love. Martin's chance was poor, for he had
always been too intimate and brother-like : others had no
76 LOVE AFLOAT.
chance at all, because Mary saw deficiencies of mind and
soul in men, which put them beneath her standard and the
worthiness of tier affection. But do not think she was con-
sciously measuring and gauging the men she met. She
tliought very seldom of marriage, and never of what it
would be to pass her life with particular persons. So when
Hartley came along, with his high motives and enthusiasm,
his handsome appearance, gallant bearing, polish, and
devotion, he simply dawned upon her in an atmosphere
and in a light of love. She, too, now looked back with
pleasure — a pleasurable emotion, which came in her mus-
ings alone — and forward with joy, though some dread
was mingled with the expectancy.
Hartley had bad quarter-hours by this time. Now and
then he would get into a cold sweat of doubt, full of fears
that he had been mistaken in his deductions. Garnet
rather liked these short fits, for they gave him considerable
relief. Ordinarily his friend took every occasion to get
him alone, and go off into raptures. Garnet bore them
with patient fortitude, feeling well-assured from his one
evening's observation, that his friend was in a fair way
sooner or later to obtain his Dulcinea. He was not so sure
as to her suitability to "his boy" (as he sometimes called
and always thought Hartley), but he believed Miss Terrell
would have made a good wife. He even wondered if it
were not possible that he could have married such a woman
as that, himself; and he more than once sat down to think
out coolly, in calculus style, a solution of what life would
be with such a woman sharing him and demanding his at-
tention In every relation. He always reached a negative
result, or went off into infinity, because his data were in-
sufficient ; but somehow the singular attraction of the
problem would demand a reconsideration.
The charts came in a few days after the exercise we
have described. There was a hurried laying in of stores for
officers' messes, a bringing off of books and other shore lux-
uries, a penning of farewell letters to sweethearts and
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 77
wives ; and then, on a bright morning, with the wind in
the northwest, the pilot came on board, and McKizick got
the ship under way in style. They ran down the bay and
out past the Hook without accident.
Hartley was almost the only one who seemed perfectly
buoyant and happy, for while nearly all were either indif-
ferent or had ties more or less strong in the land they were
leaving, he longed for the isles of the south and the rapid
flight of time. When the pilot left them, remarking on
the fine manner in which the men worked, Hartley felt as
if he had a start.
With good weather and fair winds they made southing
rapidly. Everything seemed to be working together for
good to Hartley, but poor Martin was attending very
closely to business at that time, trying to forget.
When the crew came on board, and after they had
been berthed and assigned to their separate messes, the
captain made them a little speech. He had all hands
called on the quarter-deck, and spoke short and sharp
as follows :
"Well, my men, we're all aboard to serve together for
some time. To serve^ mind you. Everybody on board,
myself included, has to obey his superior officers. Wo
have surrendered our liberty, and all our time and work
belongs to the United States. I shall obey my superior
officers, and you will have to obey me and my repre-
sentatives on this side of the quarter-deck. Just bear that
in mind.
"I don't like to punish my shipmates ; but when I am
forced to do it, I do it well."
" I mean you shall all be as comfortable as the duty
we are going on will permit, and when there's a chance
you shall have all the liberty on shore possible. I feel it
my duty to warn you against the danger of excesses on
shore in a hot climate, but I suppose you will act as sailor
men commonly act.
** I don't like shirks, and I don't want the honest men
78 LOVE AFLOAT.
aboard to screen them. The" man that lies to save a shirk's
back isn't much better himself. Let the petty officers
remember it is a part of their duty to look sharp after any-
thing of the kind. Pipe down, sir."
The men dispersed thoughtfully, and appeared to be
talking it over.
A man-of-war must have a despotic government or be
useless in the supreme hour of need. Effective combined
action — that is to say, efficiency — must come from the
plans of one person who has power to carry out his plans.
This is the history of the world everywhere, and this is
why Navy life is only a higher kind of slavery. The peo-
ple ashore who pay taxes to keep their navy good and
efficient, should remember this. Their officers have a great
deal to bear, but are content to endure it for the country's
good. With the feeling to meet on shore among his fel-
low-citizens that he is a would-be aristocrat, with a life at
sea of danger and exposure, separated from his family,
unable from the requirements of his position to save up
any money against his old age, and trusted with so little
power as to be in constant dread of failure in controlling
the turbulent spirits over whom he is placed, the United
States naval officer has a hard time and a far from en-
viable place. The feeling of the people who have, through
their Congress, destroyed the discipline of the Navy by
humanitarian legislation, is a good feeling; but it is
misapplied.
A number of persons signify their willingness to guard
the honor of the nation on the high seas. As the country
does not wish to pay much money the force is small, and
to be useful it must have a fine discipline, all of which is
seen by the force itself. Hence its members virtually say :
"We do agree to sacrifice to our country's service, as
needed, our comfort, our hope of future wealth, our chil-
dren's welfare, our health, our lives ; and, that our fellow-
citizens may enjoy a more perfect freedom, we also give up
our liberty and our will."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. T9
The country certainly ought to grant to such servants
at least the satisfaction of confidence : it ought to trust
them with the means needed for their own discipline. If
the power be abused, the offender should, by all means, be
severely punished, but his whole class should not be in-
cluded. Trust the service with the means of its own gov-
ernance, and punish thoroughly those who use the power
wrongfully.
Thoughtful men will not fail to reflect that it is impos-
sible to carry out Christianity in the Navy. The Navy is
in the very fact of its existence, unchristian ; it is an instru- .
ment of revenge, of unforgiveness, of death to the offender.
As long as nations must fight, as savages remain savage,
it will, however, be thought necessary. It should be re-
garded rightly, as a weapon, and the people should stop
trying to make it such a weapon as will be consistent with
the teachings of Him who would not defend himself, but
commanded Peter to put up the sword. They have swal-
lowed the camel, let them not strain at the gnat. In plain
English, since they have fought in the past, and mean to
fight in the future, let them prepare properly. Let them
not, sticking absurdly at trifles, fool away the force of the
Navy in humanitarian legislation, but let them go on to
make it efficient, by giving ofiicers the means to govern
the crews.
At the time of which we are writing things were differ-
ent. A few days after sailing, the master-at-arms brought
to the mast a man who had been in his hammock when his
watch was on deck at night. The captain of his top had
missed him, after he had answered to his muster, and cer-
tain of his topmates deposed to seeing him slip below.
Captain Merritt did not hesitate, but had all hands called
to witness punishment at once. After a dozen blows had
been well laid on, he had the man unbound, and spoke
kindly to him, telling him his fault was now expiated, he
was as good a man as ever; and urging him to take a
80 LOVE AFLOAT.
fresh start, and get a name pn board for a smart faithful
seaman. As it happened this man was reclaimable ; and
he afterward not only avoided giving trouble, but distin-
guished himself for diligence.
CHAPTER YIII.
rpHE first night they struck the Gulf Stream, Hartley had
-*- the watch on deck. The pleasant warmth of the air,
the bright moon and its multitudinously changing glitter-
ings upon the waves, the sky without a cloud, and happy
thoughts, all joined to make him patient of his watch.
The sails needed no attention, and force of habit kept him
scanning the horizon for any threatened change of weather,
without thought of what he w^as' doing. So his mind was
left free to dwell upon the favorite subject — the incompar-
able she — Mary.
What a queer and funny thing is a man in love, anyway !
He loses his dignity almost always, his wits invariably,
and does things which would warrant the world in locking
him up. But the good old world knows its children too
well, and is satisfied with laughing at them during the
period of this short soft derangement. Mother World
looks on it as a disease — a sort of ridiculous measles.
The older you have it, the worse for you.
Hartley fell involuntarily into an old trick, and began
composing a sonnet to his mistress's eyebrow, in the form
of a serenade, thinking in the intervals of the rhymes, how
he would gently steal at night beneath Mary's window in
Santa Cruz, and there pour forth his full soul. He ima-
gined the scene : a fine large moon — " a good fat moon " as
clever Billy W. used to say — looking on with mellow ap-
proval, vines clinging to her balcony and swaying in the
breeze, "glimmering, murmuring mystical waters near, and
my love alone to hear ! " So ran his serenade. He sings his
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 81
best, and no accident occurs to annoy — not even a guitar
string snaps. He ends, and glancing upward he sees the
snowy curtain parted, and down flatters a — what ? a
flower? might miss that in the dark. A handkerchief?
Well, no — he remembers the use of the handkerchief, and
even angelic girls have a cold in the head sometimes.
He repels the handkerchief with disgust. A little bunch
of violets breathing the language of love, and tied around
with blue and white ribbons, colors of faith and purity. He
would be sure to see the white. And he would smell it —
h'm — quaff its sweet odor, and place it in his pocket — his
bosom, and go away content. And then — and then — and
then. Well, what then ?
But suppose Mr. Dewhurst should wake up and come
to the window, and ask him in good English what the
devil he was making all that fuss about. That would be
embarrassing.
He was relieved from this strait by the appearance of
Garnet coming up the ladder to take a turn with him on
deck, preparatory to taking a turn into his bunk, and he
found that during his soliloquy the ship had got half a
point off her course, and the main-top-gallant studding-sail
was gently lifting in the light air. Johnson, the quarter-
master, had been spinning the man at the helm a yarn
about Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones.
Garnet joined him, and they walked rapidly back and
forth for a few turns, like beasts in a menagerie cage, in
the customary manner of naval officers. When they once
began to talk the pace naturally slackened.
" Those mids are queer creatures. I've been one my-
self, but I can't quite understand 'em. They're always sur-
prising you, one way or another."
"Yes, very."
" Coming up the ladder in front of the steerage, I saw
what was going on. One or two were pretending to study
— Spanish, I suppose — but were a heap more interested in
listening to the boatswain."
4*
82 LOVE AFLOAT.
"Is old Thick in there ? "
" Yes. They've got him telling stories about the
*Callypaykus' — Gallapagos he means — and they're draw-
ing him out in a fine style. The gunner is in too. I heard
him called 'Dry Bob,' *Sly Bob,' and ^dle Bob,' by
those irreverent youngsters, while I was on the ladder."
" How did he take it ? "
"ZTe didn't care."
" He has a dry, lazy look about him."
" Yes, he's a queer fellow : but he attends to his busi-
ness well. If he associates with those cubs, he must expect
cubs' play ; but it sounds unnatural to hear an old,
gray-headed — "
A sudden roar of laughter came up the hatch from the
steerage, and stopped Garnet's speech. They walked to
the hatch rail to find out what was the matter. Evi-
dently the steerage was enjoying itself, for the laugh went
on, mixed with the <jrash of falling camp-stools and loud
exclamations of ** Go it, William, I bet on you ! " " Hang
on. Dry Bob ! " " Call him Idle again ? " " Five to one
on Thick ! "
The rogues had got both boatswain and gunner to
boasting of their past feats of strength and agility, and
had finally led them into a wrestling match. Suddenly
there was a great calm, and McKizick's voice arose.
*' Hope you're not hurt, Mr. Thick, or you Mr. Harri-
son ? " he asked, with apparent solicitude.
" Oh no, sir," stammered Thick, who was the first to
get breath, ** a bit of a lark — that's all, sir — only the young
gentlemen made a devil of a row — they might a' made less
noise, I mean, sir — regular hurrah's nest.'*
" I am happy to see you remain, uninjured, sir," said
McKizick, preserving his gravity, " and I am delighted to
have such a valuable set of midshipmen. They have made
you and Mr. Harrison young again to-night. But, young
gentlemen, you must moderate your transports." With
rising voice he went on : " If you think you can make a
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 83
monkeys' den of this steerage for your tricks and noise, you
are mistaken — and you'll find your mistake — you will by —
jiminy ! no more of this after eight bells ! " There was a
dread silence in the steerage as he walked away, but in a
moment was heard the voice of the boatswain, grieved,
angry, and restrained. *'Now Mr. Larkin, and you, too,
Mr, Young, I suppose you feel nice to get me to make a
fool of myself that way," A subdued laugh from the irre-
pressible and undaunted youngsters was the reply.
Hartley and Garnet laughed a little too, accustomed as
they were to the pranks of midshipmen, and then resumed
their walk.
^ " Dularge has been trying to explain the principles of
dead rise to Briggs — you know Briggs is hunting up infor-
mation everywhere — and Robbins overheard a part of what
they were saying. After awhile he went into the pay-
master's room, and I heard him growling to Pay that we
line officers thought ships came in everywhere. * There's
Dularge out there,' says he, * telling Briggs all the ships
will appear bottom side up at the resurrection.' "
" Resurrection ? "
" Yes — he caught at dead rise^ you know."
"Ha— ha— ha.— "
Silence for a while.
" What are you thinking about to-night ? "
"I was just wondering if the Dewhursts would get a
vessel to Santa Cruz in time to be there when we are."
" I should think that all settled from Mr. Dewhurst's
letter to you. They are probably afloat now. But you
seem to take it for granted that we are sure to go to
Santa Cruz."
" Why yes : don't you think so ? "
" Don't know. Can't tell till we get to Key West. I
suppose we shall though."
Silence again for a few moments, while the soft wind
fanned their faces, and the waves glistened, and the parted
water murmured beneath the bows.
84: LOVE AFLOAT.
" Wish the breeze would freshen," said Hartley.
" 'Twill before morning. What is she doing ? "
" Six, two."
Silence again. Garnet broke it.
" Harry, a perplexing thought has been on my mind."
" What is it ? "
" You know the theory of the trades, how the easting
is obtained by the wind's constantly arriving at points on
the earth's surface whose velocity of revolution is greater
than its own ? "
" Yes, I know."
" Well, that set me to thinking about the difference of
centrifugal force on the equator and at places away from
it. The rg^ius of revolution differs according to latitude."
" Yes."
" And each point of the surface requires the same time
to go around — twenty-four hours. The theory is that the
attracjtion of gravity is enough and a little to spare to bal-
ance the centrifugal force that tends to throw a fellow into
space like a stone out of a sling. There's a little in favor
of gravity — ^just enough to make a man firm on his feet.
But if gravity is always the same and toward the centre,
I should think — it looks like bodies should weigh more as
we get toward the poles, where the centrifugal force be-
comes zero."
«Yes."
*' I don't understand it. Maybe the resolution of the
forces will do it."
*' Yes."
" Now it looks as if gravity must act toward the axis
and with diminishing force toward the poles, instead of
uniformly toward the centre. On the last supposition a
person would get heavier and heavier travelling north, and
at last would hardly be able to lift a foot — like a lump of
lead, eh ? "
" I should think she n^ight, perhaps," replied Hartley
abstractedly.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 85
"She? Who?"
« Why, Miss Dewhurst."
« Ha-ha-ha."
"I beg your pardon, Will. My wits were wool-
gathering."
" In the thick ringlets of her clustering hair, eh? " said
Garnet good-humoredly. " Well, old chap, I sympathize
with you. We may be happy yet."
" Will, love on earth is a fallen spirit — "
" I'll tell Miss Mary that," put in Garnet.
"A fallen spirit, I say. Once it was all pure, now it is
weakened by carnality. Love has the instinct of striving
to regain his old home in heaven, and he uses the only
means he sees possible to return. Men are his bearers, and
he tries them all. Nearly all carry him well for awhile,
but each tires at last and puts him down."
" In thafyou sacrificed the truth before your figure."
"Shut up. — Will, being in love is like going up in a
balloon. Sometimes we burst and drop. Sometimes we
come down in a sea of troubles, or of cold water — maybe,
hot water — but we generally settle down easily on solid
ground and get back to where we started — indiflference."
" O, philosopher ! stay with us awhile, since you have
descended. Your last remark is unusually sensible — for
you, Hal. I might have made it myself." *
" So might a pig."
" But I didn't and wouldn't be likely. I cheerfully take
my part with the pig. We are not guilty."
They walked up and down a few minutes longer, and
Garnet said he believed he would turn in.
" What's your hurry ? Don't go yet," said Hartley.
**I've the morning watch to stand, you know — and you
are in good company, any how, with Miss Mary.'*
" Well," said Hartley , " I only hope that wherever she
is to-night she is in company with me."
Garnet left him hurriedly, muttering something to him-
86 LOVE AFLOAT.
self about wishing Harry would get through soon, he was
no good now — and Hartley was alone.
He looked out on the water lit up by the sinking moon
in a broad golden road to the west, and admired its beauty.
The moon went down and thoughts of doubt crept over
him with the darkness. He tried to shake them off, unsuc-
cessfully : he roused the watch up for a pull at the stud-
ding sail halliards, hoping that the stir would dissipate his
vapors; but that also was ineffectual. Fears that his love
was not returned, fears of not meeting Mary according to
his previous expectations, fears for her safety on the pas-
sage, fears for his own — strange fears for him — beset him.
Gradually, however, his mind worked off the old ground
on to new, and from the field of love went to that of belief.
Here Hartley had always found trouble and pain. To-
night he wondered at the doctrine of the redemption of
souls. He thought that surely the Father could save his
children, if he would, by a simple exercise of power, because
they were his children, He, their Father who loved them.
He thought he ought to save them because He had made
them subject to fate, and because everywhere in the world
they were looking to Him under some guise, instinctively,
as their Father. He thought it would be unjust of God to
hold men responsible for the circumstances which sur-
rounded them and by which He did mould them. He
thought it too cruel an action to ascribe to Mercy to make
myriads of human beings with a capacity for suffering,
knowing that vast numbers of them would suffer eternally.
He thought that perhaps sin itself was intended as a means
of education. Is it right, he thought, to hate sin as the
preachers bid us. Or should we see in it some good, and
a part of the Divine plan. Sin may be the necessary expe-
rience of souls in the growth -of the world, the rough mixture
of cold winter's snow and frost and wind which must come
be'fore the spring of the hereafter can make buds bloom, or
the eternal summer can ripen any fruit.
He thought that if Christ be really God and mediator, as
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 87
is upheld, his death ought to be sufficient to atone for all the
sins of all men, inasmuch as it was the death of God. He
thought that in another state, men or souls might come to
a knowledge of truth here withheld, and learn to repent,
enduring a punishment meet for their earthly sins mean-
while. Then he wandered farther back and doubted.
What is God ? Perhaps the principle of motion, life, and
reproduction, existent of itself, unconscious but eternally
working. The thought made him sad. Perhaps he is the
soul of men, living a part in each — a Brahma. Perhaps
after death, each soul returns to Brahma, the soul of all,
whence it came. Like the waters of Abana, which flow
in beauty, making the land alive about them ; which are
lost in the outspreading of a black morass; which, by
evaporation, return to the common source of all streams — •
the bosom of the air. The conceit pleased him, and led
him off into working it up into poetic form ; so that he for-
got his doubts, though they remained as they must remain
to us all, unsolved by reason. So interested was he in
the new occupation that he did not hear the quartermas-
ter droninfUs to the man at the wheel his yarns about
Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones, nor the reports of the mid-
shipman who hove the log, and to whom he gave mechani-
cal directions.
Midnight came before he knew it. The bell was
struck, the watch was called, and in a few minutes Briggs
came reeling up the ladder, drunk with the heavy sleep of
youth. Hartley was still fresh enough to remain on deck
awhile, and kindly talk Briggs awake. Then he sought
his state-room and his three-foot bunk, to forget Mary and
all the world in deep sleep.
Next morning after the exercise at thei battery, the
three quartermasters came together a little abaft the miz-
zen-mast, and sitting down on deck in the warm sun, went
to work on a new ensign. The three had chosen this cosy
spot for their headquarters in good weather, because there
was no gear near them which required handling and made
88 LOVE AFLOAT.
it necessary for them to move about. Johnson (Ap Jones)
usually did the talking for the party. He had seen a great
many things in his wanderings over the seas ; and being
in addition endowed by nature with volum'mosity and a
pretty thick skin, he possessed all the requisites of a sea
talker. He had dubbed their party the Sociable Cluh^ and
the name had already become attached to it among the
crew ; so whenever the three came together, somebody
was sure to remark on the Sociable Club's having met.
Drawing out needles and thread from their diddy-bags
they began to stitch up the long-lapped seams with a neat-
ness and dexterity which bore witness to years of practice.
Presently, when the work was fairly under way, Ap Jones,
twisting his long neck to bring the spittoon in range, com-
menced, " That feller Jackson is lucky this cruise."
"Who's he?"
*' That foretop-man that got licked yesterday."
" What's the luck in a lickin', Ap ? "
" They say the man that gets the first dozen never gets
it no more."
" It's a lie if they do, for I was licked twice't j|i one ship."
" Where, was that ? "
" When I was ornery seaman in the States frigate.
Old Quillbelly was the first luff."
"Well, that doesn't prove nothin'. A young man like
you gettin' twice't licked in one ship is no sign. Sur-
prisin' if you didn't get more lickin's than there is reef-
points in all the taups'Ies. 'Twixt old Quillbelly and
you with your sky-larkin' boy tricks."
" I never was catted but the twice^t, Ap Jones. What
are you talkin' about me for, you old growl ? I bet my
head to a pumpkin your back has been like a Cadiz winder
oftener than twice't."
Ap was suddenly very busy threading his needle. He
began again :
" When I was in the Ohio liner-battle-ship round the
Horn with Thomas Ap Catesby R — "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 89
" Take a turn with Thomas Ap," broke in Thompson,
" I want you to tell me how many times you've been at
the gratin's."
" It's little enough politeness ye've got, anyhow,
Thompson. If the angel Peter was to open the hatch o*
heaven a crack to let you slip in edgeways — I don't mean
to say he will, for it's bloody sure he won't — but jest
s'posin' he did forget himself, you'd never stop to make
him a bow."
"Devil a bow. I'd go below. But what's all this pal-
aver about? You axed me and I told ye : now turn
about's fair play."
"Young man, you've got a sight to learn more'n your
seamanship, and that's but jest begun."
"Burke, Ap would jest as lief tell, but he's had such a
sail burton-fall o' cattin's in various parts o' the world,
he can't remember the half of 'era. Give him a month to
recollect 'em and it'll take him the rest o' the cruise to
spin his yarn."
Johnson merely requested Burke to hand him a roll of
bunting, and went on working without either reply or irri-
tation. Indeed none of them thought of being angry, for
they were merely chaffing in rough sailor style.
Presently Ap ; " When I first shipped in the sarvice,
I was a scrap of a youngster, no longer'n a whale's hind
leg. I went out in one o' them old revolution brigs, and I
was stationed to hand the fore-r'yal. Lord love ye ! I was
no more use on the yard when I got there than water
in grog. You see I was disp'inted in findin' the sea differ-
ent from what I expected, and sort o' sulky like with my
monkey's allowance, more kicks nor halfpence, and bein'
all hands' messenger boy, and I didn't know much nohow,
for I'd never been aboard nothin' better nor a coaster, nor
higher nor the futtock riggin' in them, and that none too
often. Besides, you see, I was not very smart and lively as
a hoy, nohow. So I ketches it all round. I had a trick o*
standin' still so long I couldn't get out o' the way quick
90 LOVE AFLOAT.
enough at last ; and whoever it was would fall over me, not
bein' much higher nor a shark's foreleg, and come down by
the run. Then I'd get kicked and cussed for a lubber with his
leg in the ground — or maybe if 'twas the hands runnin' away
with a brace they'd go on right over me and nigh stomp me
to death. I learned soon enough to jump for that, but if
'twas a man I'd a grudge against, I'd stand still sometimes
and let him go over me, in hopes, ye see, that he'd break
his darn head on an eye-bolt or a shot-rail or somethin'
else hard enough ; and the minute I felt him goin' I'd call
on the captain of the afterguard on the lee side o' the quar-
ter-deck. Sometimes they'd recollect me a watch through,
but most generally they'd forget. Now the first luff was a
powerful observin' man, and he noticed how I was up to
gettin' safe under the lee of the officer o' the deck till
the squalls was over, and he suspicioned I throwed the
men o' purpose. He never said nothin' to me though, till
one day I tried it on him. He come up the cabin lad-
der from a palaver with the old man, and jest as he set
foot on the quarter-deck — looking aft, you know — the
lee fore-taups'le sheet parted. The sail begun for to
flop and bang — it was blowin' like hell — and he turned
round quicker'n a shot and started to run for'd to see what
was the matter. I never know'd what made me do it, but
I jumped right across his bows, pretendin' to be goin'
to the weather-rail, jest as he come a flyin' past the main-
mast, and me bein' somethin' shorter nor a whale's foreleg —
what's the matter o' you Thompson ? — and bein' somethin'
shorter nor a whale's hind leg, he naturally fell over me.
Laws-a-land ! You oughter see him ! Fust he took a rank
sheer to port, then he went down by the head, then he
fairly grounded and went on his beam-ends. When he
got up there I was a settin' on my stern sheets, tryin' to
look like I was hurt, and nigh bustin' open with the laugh
I had to hold in. He said nothin' to me then, but about an
hour afterward when the captain come on deck to see who
was hollerin' it was me. He give me a dozen, and told me
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 91
he would like to see me improvin' on the fore-r'yal yard.
And it was surprisin' how much faster I learnt after
I had that lickin'."
" Served you right."
" Sartinly. Nothin' makes good sailors but knowin*
they'll get licked if they don't tend to their dooty. That
feller Jackson — I heard him tellin' the armorer's mate he
'lowed to keep his watch on deck after this."
"The old man ain't goin' to play with the hands.
Reckon he told the straight yarn that day we went into
commission."
" Shut up — Mr. Hartley's comin'." A minute later he
continued: "There's the kind of officer I like, now. Jest
as straight-for'd as a taut main bow-line, and knowin' well
his business and never a rough word to a shipped man
even when he's mad at 'em, and hard-workin' and rough
when needs be, but ready to rig out fine as a dandy and
speak all the furrin languages to the furrin kings when
they comes aboard, or to dance and talk sweet to the
handsome ladies. He's an officer all over. He looks more
fat and quiet-like now. Reckon he's got his gal,
Burke?"
" 'Spec so."
" Mr. Hartley reminds me right smartly o' Thomas Ap
Catesby R. Jones when I was on the west coast of Africky
in the Somers."
" I reckon Mr. Garnet jest as good an officer any day,
for all he's so shet-up in his shell, clam-fashion. Anybody
can see he tells Mr. Hartley what to do."
" Now you're talkin' about somethin' you're acquainted
with."
" Me ! What ? " said Thompson, with a surprised air.
"Clams. They mostly is raised on the farms down
'long P'int Judy."
" I never dug a clam on P'int Judy P'int."
"Anyway, you know more about them than you do
about officers. Anybody can see how Mr. Garnet keeps his
92 LOVE AFLOAT.
mouth shet and his years open tryin' to larn by watchin'
Mr. Hartley,"
" They mostly hangs together."
For awhile the three were still, but Johnson soon broke
silence :
" Thompson, you axed me quite brash about my bein'
licked, why didn't you ax Burke ? "
" I feel like Burke can tend to his business without
none o' my help."
" Come, now ! — you're afraid he'll snap you. That's
what makes you feel so bashful-like — as the lady said
when she married her third husband."
" Ax him yourself if you want to be interferin* — ^I've
got no curiosity."
" I haint' neither. Burke, was you ever licked ? "
" Tend to your own business, Ap Jones."
Ap began a series of mingled complaints and apologies,
to which Burke paid no attention whatever. He soon
broke off suddenly, by saying, that he bet Mr. Hartley
was a good 'un to fight. He has fit his doo-il many a
time."
" I hear the ward-room officers talkin' over their pipes
by the port round-house the other day when I went to set
my scouse-pan in the galley, and they was sayin' Mr.
Hartley wouldn't be axed to fight no more because he
always shot his pistol in the air."
" In the air ! He couldn't hit anybody that way."
" No more he wanted to."
" What made him fight doo-ils then, if he wasn't goin'
to shoot back ? "
" 'Spect he was afraid they'd think he was afraid if he
didn't ; don't you reckon, Burke ? "
"'Spec so."
"Well," said Johnson, "I be dam if I let any dam fool
stand up and shoot at me, and not try my best to hit him.
'Taint fair. I didn't think Mr. Hartley would 'a done
that way."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAV^. 93
" Every body to his taste, as the old 'oman said when
she kissed her cow."
*' I recollect a doo-il they had in the Ohio liner-battle-
ship when I was in her and Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones
was first luff. I was down in the gun-room."
** The gun-room! "
" Yes, percizely there. One mornin' I was lashin' up a
midshipman's hammock — "
" Shet up, Ap. Whoever heard of midshipmen in the
gun-room ? "
" The ship wasn't in commission, I tell ye, and all hands
fleeted up. She was jest a receivin' ship. The quarter-
masters had the steerage and the mids the gun-room — there
warn't no flag-officer in her at all. I was a-lashin' up the
hammock and listenin' to two of 'em quarrellin' — they was
a mate and a midshipman. The mate had been devillin*
the middy a long time, shakin' his clews and wakin' him
up at five bells after he'd kep' the mid-watch, or easin'
down his lanyards till he was all doubled up in a bight and
most uncomfortable, or lowerin' his head clean down to the
deck and leavin' him to wake up when convenient — which
it most generally was in a short time — and the middy had
been gettin' madder and madder. He wouldn't pitch into
the mate with his fists, 'cause the mate was a man grown,
and he know'd he get no joy out o' that, but this mornin'
when he wakes up and finds the mate shakin' his clews, he
jumps out in his shirt tail as bold as brass and walks up to
him. * This has got to be stopped, sir,' says he. * Well,
stop it,' says Mr. Mate. * I'm not strong enough to give
you the dog's thrashin' you deserve. ' I challenge you to
fight me with some other weapons — swords, pistols, knives —
anything you please.' I see the other mids crowdin' round
and lookin' sort o' queer like, and I jest went on lashin'
the hammock as slow as I know'd how, for I know'd there
was something in the wind. The mate, he was sort o' took
aback and holds off at that, which makes the mid all the
more anxious and pushin'. x\t last the mate, says he,
94: LOVE AFLOAT.
* Well, then, if you will, you young fool, I name pistols, and
Mr. Marshall is my second if he'll act for me. We'll fight
it out right now — across a handkerchief if you like.' That
was a little too sudden for the middy, and he turned white
as a scrubbed hammock, but he was too plucky to back
out, so he asks another middy to be his second, and goes
off and writes on a piece o' paper and folds it up and hands
it to his second. The mate he never wrote a word. Well,
they put 'em up on the settees, a matter o' four fathom
apart, and told 'em they was to wait for the word and not
to shoot till a white hankercher was dropped. The middy
was awful white, but he was jest as plucky as the devil. I
.tell you, it was still in that gun-room then ! Says he to
the mate, ' I'm in earnest about this here, I'll shoot you if
I can,' and the mate he jest laughed at him. When the
hankercher dropped neither of 'em shot. The middy had
only half-cocked his pistol, and couldn't pull it off, and the
mate was a-waitin' on him, and coverin' him with his pistol,
kind o' shakin* the pistol at him, and a-cussin' him. First
I know'd, hang ! the mate's pistol went off, and sure enough
the middy dropped. I see a red place on the front of his
shirt, and him a-layin' on the deck. He hollered out,
* Shoot again ! and put me out o' my misery.' * My God ! '
says the mate, * is he hurt ? ' They all run up to the middy
and tore open his shirt, and there was a bloody raw spot
about as big as a half-a-doUar on his right breast. The
little Pill came in in a minute, and felt of him and twigged
the joke, and says he ' The ball has lodged in your liver.
I feel the bulge of it. You're a dead man.' You see it
was soft tommy bullets the pistols was loaded with."
"Well, I'll be !"
" 'Spec you will, Thompson. And, sir, that middy
never see the joke they played on him till four hours after-
ward. He couldn't understand what made 'em laugh at
him so. And he sat down and eat a hearty breakfast the
same time he thought he was dyin'."
Johnson commenced another yarn, but seven bells
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 95
sonnded, the sweepers were piped, and they were
obliged to put away their work. Nobody had ever reached
the end of Johnson's stories, or was able in them to sepa-
rate truth from fiction.
Still the Flying Fish sped southward. Night and
day she glided smoothly onward, till at last, one afternoon
her dry anchor dropped off Key West.
The captain went ashore in the gig immediately, leaving
orders for all hands to remain on board.
The place wore a deserted appearance. Not a vessel
of war was in the harbor, though they had expected to find
several of the squadron. While the officers were wonder-
ing what could be the reason for their being thus alone, the
captain returned. The gig was at once hoisted by his
order, and in a minute more, everybody was electrified to
hear the boatswain pipe, " All hands up anchor ! "
The captain sent for Briggs, and told him to take the
deck and get the ship under way. He wanted Briggs to
learn a naval officer's duty — to be ready for any emergency
— and he thought rightly that Briggs would try harder to
prepare for emergencies if the possibility of their occurring
were thus impressed upon his mind. Briggs had kept a
deck watch with tolerable credit, but looking upon getting
the anchor as a first lieutenant's duty he had not expected
to be called upon for years, and had not given the duty
close attention. He was a good deal confused, but the
captain did not mean to let him make a failure before the
ship's company. He therefore stood at the young officer's
elbow, and made necessary suggestions. All went well till
just before the anchor was reported aweigh. Briggs had
forgotten to have the jib cleared away, and when the cap-
tain suggested the advisability of so doing, was so much
confused that he misunderstood.
" Clear away the flying-jib ! " he bawled.
The forecastle-men stared at him a moment in surprise,
and then darted out on the head booms, obedient.
" I said the jib, Mr. Briggs," remarked Captain Merrrit ;
96 LOVE AFLOAT.
but Briggs was too much agitated to be able to hear.
*'*'-Man the flying-jib halliards! " he ordered.
"The Jib, Mr. Briggs," said the captain in a louder
voice, "and — "
" Anchored aweigh, sir" sung out the officer of the
forecastle.
" Very good, sir," replied the infatuated Briggs,
" Clear away the flying-jib down-haul! "
" DorCt set that sail, sir ! "
" Hoist away ! " and in spite of all, up went the &ying-jib
merrily, and under that useful sail the Fish was cast, while
the men grinned, and the officers smiled, and the captain
looked very blank. Poor Briggs ! he lived to be a respected
and useful officer, but never to the day of his death could
he be reminded of the time he cast with the flying-jib with-
out feeling hot and uncomfortable.
They sailed out of the harbor so lately entered, every-
body wondering why they left and where they were going.
However, Captain Merritt made it known as soon as possi-
ble, for he was above annoying his officers with useless
petty mysteries.
" I suppose you are all disappointed in not getting your
washing done and fresh provisions in, Mr. McKizick ! "
They were standing aft by the cabin skylight after
the hands were piped down.
" Well, yes, somewhat ; though it's a small matter,"
replied the first lieutenant.
" I was sorry," said the captain, " to have to weigh
immediately, but I found orders awaiting us on shore
at the consulate to make no stoppage whatever. Here
are the orders." He opened a big official document.
"First, a description of a very fast topsail schooner
called La Hembrilla, built in New York last- fall and win-
ter, and now cruising in these waters. She has already
done an immense amount of damage — she is commanded
by that scoundrel Hackett, who has so often dodged us.
There seems to be no catching him, but now we're to have
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 97
a try. We are to make it our especial business to get in-
formation of this craft, follow her up, and capture or de-
stroy her. The flag-officer has heard that she runs around
the south coast, and hides in or near the Cobre."
" There's plenty of places to hide in, there, sir," said
McKizick, " I'm afraid it'll be like looking for a needle in
a hay-stack."
" We have the best part of three years in which to pull
the hay to pieces, and split the straws open. I only hope
we may succeed early, for it will be very hard on all hands,
and I have no liking for a worn-out ship's company. You
must remind the officers of this, Mr. McKizick, and put
them on their mettle to endure a good deal. Make them
feel that we are going to improve the knowledge of the
coast, and help the charts, even if we don't catch the
schooner."
"Aye, aye, sir; I'll 'tend to it. You'll need no spur for
Mr. Garnet and Mr. Hartley, sir, for they are as faithful as — '*
"As faithful as my first lieutenant, and that's paying
them a high compliment. But I thought Mr. Hartley was
in love."
" So he was, but he appears to have shaken it off
by this time."
" Just as I hoped. He won't be discontented and mop-
ing over his duty, as I feared."
" Where are we going now, captain ? "
" Across to Matanzas, and along down the coast stopping
at every port to make inquiry. Then to Cape Haytien and
around Hayti by the south, running up to Samana, and
stopping at discretion. Then along the south side of
Porto Rico in the same way, and over to Santa Cruz. We
are to provision and take in water there — the commodore
gives us ten days for that — and then to run down the
south coast and cruise mostly off the Cobre. Of course, it
we get on a hot scent we shall not stop to provision
and water ship."
" Are we to have company? "
6
98 LOVE AFLOAT.
"No, Commodore Porter says he can't spare anothei
vessel, as much as he would like to, and he expects us
to do double duty. By the way, Mr. McKizick, the men
always feel better when they know of what is coming.
My steward is in the pantry now ; suppose we go down
and talk it over while we look at the charts. Mind, that
La Hembrilla ought to carry at least a ton of doubloons."
The captain's gray eye twinkled as he started down the
ladder thinking of how the steward would serve as an
unconscious messenger to carry the next wonderful galley
news.
CHAPTER IX.
THE system of piracy at the time of which we are writ-
ing was worthy of having applied to it the word st/s-
tern. Warned, by the vigilance and activity displayed by
the American cruisers, of the necessity of equal watchful-
ness and address in making their depredations, though
not yet sufficiently punished to make them see the lack
of profit in their adventures, the pirates had now made
themselves more dreaded than they had ever been before.
Merchant vessels were seized in places deemed safe, when
least dreaming of danger : perhaps at their anchorage
in some of the less frequented ports : perhaps by a boat
expedition when becalmed off the shore in broad daylight:
perhaps by a piratical vessel immediately after leaving the
protection of a man-of-war, and almost before her sails
were below the horizon.
Nowhere were the pirates more troublesome than on
the coast of Cuba, more especially the north coast, the
southern passage being less frequented by the rich mer-
chant-men the buccaneers loved to meet. Using small
craft of light draft and good speed, the enemies of com-
merce could lie in wait for their prey, hidden them-
eelves from passing ships, but watching eagerly for a suita-
A STOliY OF THE AMKKICAN NAVY. 9^
ble vessel to attack. When the piedcstined one came,
it was quick work to slip out to sea, slay, capture, plunder,
make prisoners, destroy the useless prize by fire, and again
dodge back into hiding. In case of pursuit by a man-of-
war their more thorough acquaintance with the danger-
ous coast, joined to the light draft of their craft and
much practice in_ escaping, gave the pirates great ad-
vantages. They would boldly thread their way among
shoals and reefs where the man-of-war durst not follow ;
and soon the hospitable shore would open to receive and
protect its children.
The pirates hunted in bands of from ten to one hundred
in number, each gang having its recognized commander,
and confining its operations to a particular strip of the
coast. That is to say, its homeward operations ; on a
cruise the whole sea was free to all. The lesser bands some
times combined their forces for attacking a stronger ves-
sel than common, but with the larger parties combination
was unnecessary. Yet all had a fellow feeling, and stood
ready to do one another a good turn. There was among
them a constant communication and interchange of cour-
tesies. Did a 6ne ship escape the gang which first tried to
seize her,. the word was passed along the shore immedi-
ately, and, unless she had a strong fair wind, for hundreds
of miles she would be eagerly looked for by other parties,
each of which stood ready to take advantage of any oppor-
tunity which fortune might render. And so she ran a
gauntlet, in which the penalty of slowness, carelessness,
lack of courage, over-confidence, or any of the ordinary
accidents of the sea, might be destruction.
The methods of conveying intelligence were various,
and suited to difierent cases. Sometimes a boat was sent
at night, sometimes a man rode over with the news, and, on
urgent occasions, a bonfire on a hill told the story quickly.
Certain it was that in one way or another information
seemed to pass along the line of the north coast as electri-
city flashes along the wire.
100 LOVE AFLOAT.
There was, also, correspondence between the head-
quarters of the gangs and the nearest towns, in which they
usually had an agent. From these towns provisions and
news of the rest of the world were received, and to them
goods were taken for disposal. Certain classes of people
in the towns were as glad to hear of a good capture as the
planters were to know that another load of slaves had
been landed.
It is a well-known fact that the pirates and the slavers
alike received support and sympathy from the Spanish res-
idents, and it is equally well known that Spanish officials
systematically connived at both- wicked pursuits. With
such great natural advantages in front, and with friends
and a market at their backs, it is not surprising that the
gentlemen of the coast long did well.
When a merchantman was taken, the customary course
of the captors (in case she was a large one) was to collect
every portable thing of value which she contained, carry
this property on shore with the prisoners, and burn the
ship. Cruelty was not frequent after the fight, though it
was sometimes resorted to in order to induce revelation of
the place in which valuables had been secreted. After
landing the passengers and officers, they were directed to
send for ransom. The crew were usually turned adrift in
an open boat to look out for themselves. The prisoners
were guarded until news of the ransom was obtained ; in a
few cases actually being confined in a town jail, officially
imprisoned on some trumped-up charge sufficient to give
the alcalde a plausible excuse. He, of course, got a share
of the ransom in payment for his services.
In case no ransom could be had, the prisoner would
sometimes be shot, but was usually conducted blindfolded
a distance of some miles into the country, and turned loose
to get to a seaport as best he could. When a handsome
amount of money was received, the pirates always dis-
missed their guest with vast politeness, a guide on the road,
A STORY OF Tiiii AM,fi;RtcAlN'''irjVYi';; ]\ > I /',101
a pass to protect him from other gangs, and a Vaya Y.
con Dios.
The goods captured were divided among the men in
shares whose size had been fixed by long usage : and the
new owners of the merchandise sold it as opportunity
offered to their middlemen in the towns, at very low prices.
Captain liackett's custom had always been to buy the
goods himself from his men. He gave better prices than
the agents, which was one reason for his having, up to the
time of this account, possessed unusual popularity and
influence among his crews. He shipped his honest pur-
chases to the United States in regular form, entered them
properly, paid the duties like a good citizen, and made
enormous profits. But he had capital and business enter-
prise, which his brother chiefs had not. Their gains were
almost invariably squandered in dissipation as low as was
that of the men they commanded.
Captured treasure was an exception. Nearly all the
gangs, impelled by a very strange though common instinct,,
buried it as fast as obtained, in one place, known to the
men of the band only, and guarded by them with an afi\ c-
tionate and fearful secrecy. Each man knew the danger
of his comrade's vengeance, and each looked forward to a
day when the division of the treasure would enable him to
live in ease and safety. With such a mine of wealth
accumulating there was the less motive to be saving of
daily gains. In point of fact, few of the hoards were ever
equitably divided among those who had laid them up ; for
death fast lessened the number of heirs, and the treachery
of later years robbed the robbers of the proceeds of their
robberies,
Hackett was one of the most successful of the freeboot-
ing commanders. He carried correct business ideas into
the work, and being a keen, sharp man, with a judgment and
knowledge of seamanship on which his men relied, he pros-
pered well. It was he who developed the ransom system.
He found it only occasionally resorted to, and then but for
7 « e * « • * .ft t/
' e « * J • • « '^ ,
lOa't * *,/: "!?;*'/'•' ' eoyIe afloat.
persons of consequence : he made it a regular, profitable
part of his business, and his success led to its adoption by
nearly all the Cuban bands. Now that the thing was so
frequently practised, the old difficulties and delays had
been greatly lessened. Routes for intelligence and prison-
ers had become fixed, official acquaintance made, fees
established ; and the whole thing was dropping into routine.
The outrages and cruelties of the past were now more
rare. Blood was not often shed, except in the attack
and capture. Though occasionally the tiger nature
of these low, abandoned men would assert itself, still
they had generally come to regard themselves as ene-
mies of property rather than of life. Such was the piracy
in Cuba at this period.
CHAPTER X.
" Where, over fig-tree and orange, in tier upon tier still repeated.
Garden on garden upreared, balconies step to the sky,
Ah, that I were— far away from the crowds and the streets of the city,
Under the vine trellis laid, O my beloved, with thee."
IT is about half-past eight in the morning of a clear deli-
cious day, warm with the warmth of spring in the tropics.
Hartley and Garnet sit by the open bridle-port of the
Flying Fish, smoking the after breakfast cigar, and look-
ing out at the scene before them. The ship is lying to her
anchor in Santa Cruz harbor, so still that to our two friends,
after feeling the send and swing of the sea so long, she
seems to be motionless.
The hands have just been piped down from bringing
ship to anchor, and it is the meal-hour. The men are all
on deck, puffing reeking navy tobacco in clay pipes, and
discussing the work to be done, and the chance of liberty
on shore. The other ward-room officers sit somewhat abaft
our two friends, and are occupied similarly to the crew,
except that they smoke good Havanas, and speak of shore
as a certainty.
A STOBT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 103
" Will the captain stay his ten days out ? "
"Don't see how he can get in provisions and water, and
give each watch twenty-four hours in less time."
" That's so — and we need a rest after such a round as
weVe had."
" I don't suppose a man-of-war ever did move more
rapidly.
" Ten ports in two weeks."
" Hardly fair to say ten, for at three places we only
hove to and sent the boats in, and at two we anchored
outside."
" Going ashore to-day ? "
" Yes — I suppose so. If I'm not back by four, keep my
first dog-watch, will you ? "
" Yes. What makes you speak in that careless way
about going ? I thought you were all anxiety to get here."
" I hardly know why. Will. I'm surprised to feel so
listless about it. I suppose I've been anxious so long, I'm
no longer able to take any interest. I'm more than half
miserable to-day.
" Maybe Miss Mary isn't here."
** She's here, I know."
"How?"
"I don't know how I know it, but I feel sure she's
somewhere ashore yonder."
" That's a queer sort of knowledge. I've heard of it,
but I can't say I ever had any myself."
" I know she is here."
" Well, why should you be miserable then ? It's just
what you've been wanting. Here you are head over
heels in love, and longing to be taken. And there's
the very charming young lady only waiting for the chance
to take you, if I'm any judge. You've no right to be
miserable, Hal."
" I'm not so sure about the acceptance as you are. It's
true she showed some preference for me in New York, but
she is not the kind of a girl to fall into unchangeable love
104: LOVE AFLOAT.
in SO short a time. I'm afraid she has half forgotten me.
Her father didn't regard me with any too much favor, I
know by his letter.
" No fear she's forgotten you, my dear fellow. Your
}30sition is a good otie, you are rich, and a good-look-
ing boy, and you were very plain-spoken in your actions
toward Miss Mary, so that she certainly knows your chief
merit of all, which is loving herself. Hold your head up,
Hal, and go at it like '* — he was about to say " Like you did
at Gibraltar " but mercifully changed it to " like a man."
"She isn't a girl to be influenced by money and navy
buttons. You are very wrong if you think that of her."
"Pshaw! all of them are, more or less. It's only
natural."
" I mean to do the best I can, but shall make no offer
without some plain encouragement. I don't care to be
anybody's fool for nothing."
" Right you are."
" But suppose I see clearly there's no use in speaking
to her. What a prospect for the future ! That's what makes
me wretched."
" What ? "
" It would take all the motive out of my life."
" Oh, no. Honor — duty — usefulness. Won't you always
acknowledge them ? "
"Yes, old boy, and friendship, too. Forgive me for
forgetting that. With my old-time friend aboard, I'll be
better off jilted than some are married."
"You're right, though I say it that shouldn't."
" Still, it will be pretty rough, Will."
" You haven't asked her yet. You talk as if it were a
settled misery."
Hartley had nothing to say. Garnet went on ; " Hal,
I wish you could be more equable in your mind. You are
always on heaven's highest hill, or in hell's hottest hole.
Three days ago you were brimming over with good spirits,
BO much so that everybody in the ship noticed it — just be-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 105
cause you were approaching the young woman : and here
you are to-day as doleful as the devil — because, I suppose,
you've got as near to her as the ship can carry you, and
you've only to take a boat to get nearer, and only to walk
a bit to get nearer still, and only to knock at the door to
get in, and only to ask Miss Mary, to have her say, " Yes,
and thank you, too." " What did that boy say doctor ? "
he asked, raising his voice.
Dr. Bobus, who was sitting with the party further aft,
replied that he came to report that a boat would leave the
ship, for ward-room officers, at nine-thirty.
" There, Hal, there's your boat, you see. * Take it easy,
me boy,' as the Irishman said to the fellow that swallowed
the live crawfish." So saying, Garnet resumed his half-
extinguished cigar, and puffed vigorously to relight it.
They gazed awhile in silence out of the port at the
lovely picture it enframed of the harbor's mouth — the ship
rode to a light sea-breeze, and Garnet enjoyed the fresh
bright view. To the left a point ran out, helping to form
the harbor. Its extremity rose in a little hill, connected
with the island by a low neck of land. The hill was
crowned by a clump of fine palm trees, in whose green
centre there stood a tall, snow-white tower — a light-
house. Bricks and whitewash seldom get together to pro-
duce a prettier effect than this was.
" See the light, Hal ? "
** Yes."
" Pretty isn't it ? "
** Yes, very."
" What does it make you think of? "
« Her."
"Why?"
" That shiny white is the emblem of purity.'*
"And your verdancy and freshness bring that out just
as the green trees set off the light-house. Excuse me."
*' I don't mind your nonsense. Then she stands alone
5*
106 LOVE AFLOAT.
and without an equal to my mind, as the white tower does
yonder to my eyes.
" Now I've got your interpretation, let me give you mine.
« Do."
" The light-house is a guide to port, and a welcome to
the weary sailor — that's you. White is the color of peace
as well as of purity. So we may say that the light-house
is Miss Mary welcoming you ashore to peace and rest,
just such as you need. The trees are palms, and Pve
always heard them called the symbol of victory. So all
you've got to do is to go ashore, surround her, and take
her prisoner, palm-fashion. I'm only afraid you'll be con-
tent to stop and grow up around her, you and your picka-
ninny palm trees, like them you see."
" That's a good deal mixed, but with a little practice you
could set up for a prose poet. I'm much obliged to you
though."
He smiled cheerfully at last, threw his cigar stump out
of the port through the middle of the picture, and got up
saying he must go below and get ready for the boat.
He went down to his dark little den of a state-room and
made a careful toilet, putting on a civilian suit. While
busy at that, a messenger came for Dularge from the cap-
tain. Dularge went on deck and Hartley heard the captain
talking to him, through the open hatch.
" Mr. Dularge," said the captain, " I am not satisfied
with our chronometer rate. You have noticed that it is
gaining, of course."
" I — I believe," replied Dularge hesitating, " I believe I
did, at Key West, sir."
" At Key West ! " The captain's voice was surprised.
** I don't see how you told anything about it at Key West.
Anyhow I want a reliable rating, and I desire you to
attend it while we are here."
Dularge answered, "Aye, aye, sir," in rather a dubious
tone, and came below. When Hartley started on deck
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 107
Dularge was deep in a work on navigation, and was wear-
ing a troubled face.
Before Hartley left his room Garnet came in and
advised him to get through to-day somehow, assuring him
he would be better off in any event, and Hartley half-prom-
ised. When the boat reached the shore, he at once sep-
arated from the officers who had come, and made inquiries
for the United States consulate.
He took his way thither and was soon in the presence
of the august citizen who represented the great republic at
Santa Cruz. The consul was a little German Jew, who
epoke such bad English that it was hard to understand
him. Hartley made out, however, that the Dewhursts had
been several weeks on the island, that they had lived the
first week at the hotel, and that they had hired a house
somewhere in town — the consul did not know where.
Consul did not know where their address could be obtained,
imless Messrs. Blank & Co. could give it — Mr. Dewhurst
had business connections with that firm — but now he
remembered hearing the resident partner was going over
to St. Thomas to-day — maybe was already gone. Hartley
got the merchant's address and hurried away. At the store
the clerks could give him no information about the Dew-
hursts. The head of the house was going over to St.
Thomas to-day and had gone home to get ready. He
might have left by this time.
Hartley rushed to the merchant's house, but only to find
him gone, as he had feared. None of the family could tell
him where the Dewhursts lived, though they had all
seen them out riding. Thrown on his own resources in
this manner. Hartley went to the market and inquired
there, thinking that information might have been left
by the servants. It probably had, but that did him no
good, for the mixed lingo of the market darkeys was
wholly unintelligible. He walked back almost in despair
to the store, found out where horses were to be hired,
went and got one, and started on a systematic search
108 LOVET AFLOAT.
for his darling — a modern Quixote in quest of Dulcinea
of New York. The ludicrousness of the situation never
struck him, for he was too much worried, too much in
love and earnest to think of anything but his ill-success
and of Mary. So he rode on manfully and knightly
through the streets, every now and then dismounting from
his steed to ask questions, and fortunately avoiding an en-
counter with any of his brother officers.
After a two hours* hunt he found himself hot, dusty,
and tired. His horse had walked of his own will some
little distance out of the town ; and Hartley, feeling vastly
disgusted, stopped him, intending to ride back to the
stable and give it up for that time. About to turn the
horse's head and put his resolve into execution, he noticed
at a little distance before him, bordering the road, several
little cottage houses surrounded by trees and gardens.
He pushed on again, thinking that one more attempt would
do no hurt, and would take but little time.
So he rode on, looking at the houses on either side and
hoping to see some person of whom he could make inquiry.
He came to the central house on the right hand, a small,
pretty frame building; examined the windows, as he had
those of the .other cottages and with like result, and passed
on by. Between it and the next house lay a garden filled
with bushes, plants, and vines. In front, next the road,
were open beds of richly colored flowers in full bloom.
Further back there were hedges of tall rose bushes and
various other plants, lining winding walks. All these
walks went to a common centre, a circle enclosed by a high
hedge, which surrounded an arbor covered with vines.
Hartley did not at the time notice the symmetrical
and charming arrangement of the garden, for he was
not in a condition to receive pleasurable impressions ; and
he would have gone on past, but that just as he was abreast
the arbor, he heard a few notes of a sqi^g come from its
direction. He instantly checked the horse, and lookpd
that way with a beating heart, for the voice seemed famij-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 109
iar and the song was one be had heard before. He listened
intently. The voice sang sweet and clear again,
" Bee in the deep flower-bells.
Brook in the cavern dim.
Fawn in the woodland dells
Hidethhim."
And in a moment more Mary Dewhurst appeared,
walking in one of the hedge-lined paths directly toward him.
At that sight he no longer felt heat, or fatigue, or agi-
tation. With a coolness which must have been exaltation,
he dismounted, tbrew his animal's rein over the low gar-
den palings, and sprang over himself. Mary had not seen
him, and was now walking toward the house. He called
her : " Mary ! " was all he could say. At his voice she
stopped and turned, saw him, and became very pale.
She stood motionless awaiting him.
He went rapidly to her, and took her hand in his with-
out saying a word. For a moment they remained so,
until Hartley could speak and Mary's face had changed
from white to vivid rose. All Hartley's resolves, his inten-
tion of waiting for encouragement, his eloquent speeches
thought out on night watches — all vanished away. He
was silent for a time, but his face spoke for him. " Dear
Mary ? " he said at last, and that was all.
Then he dropped her hand, and plucking a white rose
he turned again to her. She took the rose with a most
lovely smile, a smile that expressed her mingled emotion
of gladness, shame, and agitation at once. "Let us go
into the arbor," said he, offering his arm. She took it, and
they walked together back into the path by which she had
come out, the hedges hiding them more and more, until
they reached the cool inner seclusion and shade.
There he stopped, and turning to her, took the rose
from her hand and placed it in her hair. Then he took
her in his arms for an instant and kissed her. Mary suf-
fered it, though she drew back and did not return his caress.
110 LOVE AFLOAT.
"Sit down, Mr. Hartley," said she; and he saw her
eyes full of shining tears.
" Please do not call me that : my name is Henry for
you."
" Well ; if I must," she answered, smiling through her
tears.
" Dear Mary," he said, " I have made you cry. I am
sorry. I won*t do so any more." As soon as he said it,
he felt that it was either a false promise or he wished it to
be ; but she answered, " No — I feel very glad you have
come. But— Henry, please do not — "
" What, my own love ? "
" Do not put you arms around me," she went on ; "I
hardly seem acquainted with you — it has been such a little
while since we first met — I seem hardly to know you, yet
—I can't tell why I am so gla^ to see you."
" Well, my dear one, I have enough, I am satisfied —
satisfied is a poor word for it — I am paid for all." He
looked upward and said, in a voice of rapturous address,
" O, how thankful I am ! " ^Mary's eyes fairly ran over
with sympathetic emotion at beholding the deep joy of the
man whom she loved so much better than she knew.
After awhile she asked him what he meant by being
paid for all. Hartley forgot his rash promise, and straight-
way tried to kiss her again.
" That is what pays lor all," he said.
" Henry, Henry, you said you would not."
" I forgot," he answered contritely. .
" You must remember, sir," she said severely, but she
smiled as she said it. " I did not ask about the pay," — she
blushed, — " but what you meant by alV*
Then Hartley went back to his hopes, fears, anxieties,
and jealousy ; and Mary listened sweetly, and questioned
a little, and kept him in his seventh heaven, while her
heart more and more warmed to him, as she more and more
understood how strong was his love. She felt as if she,
too, were getting into love.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVT. Ill
Surely it was a pleasant thing for them, two very nice
young folks, good-looking and adoring each other, to
come to such a mutual understanding. Spring, and flowers,
and soft breezes, and waving vines, and fresh fragrances,
and love, and one another — we don't get anything more
blissful in these low grounds of sorrow. Hartley was un-
conscious of the world, however. World, and life, and time
were effaced from his mind ; a throbbing ecstasy of love,
and a joyful longing for expression, supplanting all the
rest. He knew nothing but happiness then. And there
they sat for hours, taking no note of time, after the manner
of lovers, but, nevertheless, having a very good time. How
silly such love seems to us old married people !
When Hartley hitched his marine charger to the fence,
everybody in the house but Mary was asleep, taking a nap
after luncheon. The kitchen windows did not look that
way, so he was entirely unobserved, and had a clear field,
or garden, to himself. The family awoke up after awhile,
and missed Mary, but supposing her in the garden, where
she loved to idle, they did not seek her. But the lovers
were both so entirely oblivious, that at last Mrs. Dewhurst
and Isabel went out to look up the absentee.
The sound of their approaching voices recalled the pair
in the arbor to consciousness. Mary looked ashamed and
scared.
" Let's go out and meet them," said Hartley.
"Oh! no!"
" Well, they will come in and find us," laughed he ;
*' I am willing for anybody to see me when Mary Dewhurst
honors me by taking my arm."
She took his arm and they went out, but her courage
failed her and she let go again. When the ladies came
upon them around a bend of the path, Mary was shrinking
as close to the hedge as she could get, Hartley edging over
after her ; she blushing fearfully, and he as gay as a child.
Of course the ladies read the situation at once, but Hart-
ley's lightsome joyousness was perplexing to Mrs. Dew-
112 LOVE AFLOAT.
hurst. She felt it to be a serious matter. Was not Mary
her only child ? and her happiness or sorrow through life
now settled ? But of course Hartley could not look at it
with her eyes. He was ever so glad to see them, asked
questions about their voyage, praised their lovely garden
in flowing extravagant words, dilated on their charming
situation, and was overjoyed to hear of Mr. Dewhurst's
improved health.
Mrs. Dewhurst asked how long he had been there, allud-
ing to the arrival of the ship. Hartley replied, with an
unavoidable look at Mary, that " he did not know exactly."
Then pulling out his watch he found it was five o'clock.
"Miss Mary's conversation was so interesting after
being so long away from home and tossing about at sea,
that I really did not observe."
Isabel smiled openly at him, and Mrs. Dewhurst's face
relaxed.
" When did the Flying Fish arrive, I mean," she said.
" Oh, I thought — she came in early this morning,"
replied Hartley. Mary was as mute as a mouse all the time.
After awhile Mrs. Dewhurst asked him into the house.
Mr. Dewhurst met him rather queerly.
" I can't say I'm glad to see you, sir ; but be welcome :
I expected you would come."
Mrs. Dewhurst looked aghast for an instant at the
apparently discourteous speech. Isabel favored Hartley
with one of her quiet smiles, which always meant some-
thing. Mary was astonished, and managed to raise her
eyes, but dropped them again on finding her father looking
reproachfully at her. Hartley answered pleasantly :
"I remember your saying on our first meeting that
you were a friend to the service and always glad to see
naval officers, sir; and Miss Mary accused you of mer-
cenary gratitude. Must I believe she was right ?"
" It's not that I love Rome less, but Mary — I mean
Caesar — more," replied Mr. Dewhurst dryly.
Hartley understood, and let the ladies turn the talk.
A 8T0EY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 113
He tried to get a cue from Mary as to her wishes, for
he was longing to speak to her parents, particularly to Mrs.
Dewhurst. In his joyfulness he was ready to adopt that
lady as mamma. But Mary would not look at him, and, had
she wished to give him a word apart, she had no chance.
She really felt that she had been too forward, and was
afflicted with the usual complaint of modest maidens in
like circumstances. So when the talk was talked out, and
Mrs. Dewhurst and Isabel could not keep it going any
longer, Hartley felt that he must leave.
Mrs. Dewhurst gave him a sad invitation to call fre-
quently while in port and to bring his brother officers
over. Mr. Dewhurst said gruffly that he would be glad to
see them all, and requested him to tell the captain he should
do himself the honor of making him a visit. Isabel said
good-by cordially, and shook hands to give Hartley a pre-
text for holding Mary's hand a second. That young
woman could not speak yet, but gave him a look that did
him good. She was as shy as a fawn.
Once out of the house he walked rapidly away so brim-
ming full of happiness that he felt he must hurry to save it
from wasting by pouring some of it into Garnet's sympa-
thizing bosom. At six he was aboard again, and in ten
minutes had Garnet forward telling him incoherently all
about it. No, not all ; for he found there was now a line
he could not pass, that he had now a subject of which he
could not give a full account to his old friend.
Garnet was pleased that Hartley was so glad, but also
rather bored. On the whole he stood it very well and
managed to sympathize enough and to make the few
remarks necessary. He did try to joke him, but soon saw
he might as well make fun of the main-mast for all the
impression produced.
x\t supper Hartley told a good new story, laughed at
old yarns which the day before had been wearisome, ate a
hearty meal, and was altogether so buoyant and cheerful,
that his messmates felt and wondered at the change. He
114 LOVE AFLOAT.
had the morning watch, but, knowing he could not sleep,
exchanged with the other officers so as to be on duty until
two o'clock. Four hours never passed so quickly before,
as six did that night. He scarcely felt the hard deck he
trod, or observed the passage of time, for he was engaged
in going over and over again the events of the afternoon.
CHAPTER XL
lyrEXT morning the boatswain and most of the midship-
•^ ' men went on shore together, starting early and full
of expectations of pleasure. After cruising about the
town a few hours, buying all sorts of trashy curiosities,
drinking a good deal of poor wine and eating vast quanti-
ties of fruit, they hired horses and rode into the coun-
try. They alarmed and amused the natives by their reck-
less and peculiar style of riding. Several of them tumbled
off the horses, but, with the usual luck of middies, none of
them were severely hurt, though at last one was stunned by
the fall. Mr, Thick dismounted and went up to the uncon-
scious youngster, and asked if he were hurt. Of course he
got no answer. Thereupon he turned to the party riding
up and told them to keep back and give him air.
" Is he hurt, bos'n ? " asked half a dozen of them.
"No, he's quiet," replied Thick; "just give him air.
Some o' you fellows might ride over him now, if I wasn't
along. There ought to always be an old hand along
to look out for squalls in these hoss cruises, specially when
midshipmen is navigatin' the bosses."
In a few minutes the stunned middy recovered, and gal-
lantly remounting insisted on going ahead. "Nothing
the matter but a little ringing in my head," he said.
By and by they came to a small alligator pear tree
growing alone in an open space, and far from any house.
There was just one pear on it. The youngsters, who were
A STORY OF THE AMERICAX NAVY. 115
curious to examine and taste the new fruit, dismounted and
hitched their horses, and tried to bring it down by throwing
sticks and stones. The boatswain thought it all wrong.
He pleaded earnestly with them to let it alone. He told
them that it was without doubt a cultivated fruit, and
asked them how they would like to have their apples
stolen at home. One middy said to that, that " he had
no apples himself, but it was plaguy good fun to hook
other people's." The boatswain begged unavailingly,
A lady and gentleman passing in a carriage stopped a
minute out of curiosity to see what the party of boys
in uniform were doing. Thick insisted that the couple
were probably the owners of the tree, and were going to
town to send out the police. Still the missiles flew at the
pear, which, though bruised, clung to its stem tenaciously.
Evidently, the pear was not ripe.
Mr. Thick made a last appeal. " Young gentlemen,
you are officers in the United States Kavy, and accordin'
as officers behave oji shore, 'longshore folks thinks well or
ill o* the service. You ought always to try and propitiate
the inhabitants wherever you go, for the good o' the ser-
vice. I'm going back to town." So saying, he got upon his
horse and rode away. Either his speech or his departure
made the midshipmen leave the pear where they found it.
They all went back another way. At a bend in the
road a culvert was constructing to take the place of an
old plank bridge over a gully, and there was an unguarded
opening about twelve feet deep on one side. On the other
side enough of the culvert was completed for a narrow
road-way. A long slope led to it from the side by which
the mids were approaching, and down this slope they gal-
loped, holding on to the pommels of their saddles and
cheering, in blissful ignorance of the hole around the cor-
ner. Coming suddenly on it in a body, they were unable
to stop, and the consequence was that two of those on the
outside were crowded off into the gully.
The midshipmen scrambled out unhurt, but it was hard
116 LOVE AFLOAT.
on the other animals. One horse was killed and the other
had a fore-leg broken. The mishap and the sudden expec-
tation of a big bill at the stable sobered the party down.
Mr. Thick was the only one who seemed entirely un-
dismayed.
" Young gentlemen," said he, " you get blue under the
gills too quick. Surely it isn't much for so large a party
as this to pay for one horse."
"It's two."
" Because that brute has broke his leg we have to pay
for him ! No, sir, that is too old a trick to take in William
Thick with. I know the stable-keepers always charge it ;
but, young gentlemen, it is a common thing for bosses in
such a fix to recover their health. Oh, 1 know a good deal
about bosses — you needn't laugh, Mr. Larkin. Now I'm
goin' to show you what to do for a sick boss."
So saying he drew from his pockets a number of par-
cels carefully tied up in old newspapers, which proved to
contain wads of oakum, pieces of ratlines stuff, and bits of old
canvas. The middies gathered around, and laughed uproar-
iously as each bundle was unwrapped.
" I always carry my tools with me as far as I can, in
case accidents should happen. I see nothin' to laugh at.
Where would you be now, if I hadn't been thinkin'/br you
before we left the ship."
Mr. Thick cut several sticks, which he said were
" Scotchmen for splints." He then bent the ratlines stuff to
the horse's hind legs, and with the assistance of the mid-
shipmen dragged the animal a few feet further up the
gully, remarking that " it was no good to fix him up if
they left him right there where a low bridge would soon
go over him." Then he set to work.
"Steady out the leg lines, young gentlemen — Mr.
Young, catch a turn over that rock ! Swing off on it, Mr.
Young. There, belay ! I don't care to get kicked while I
fish him. Now mind you don't slack up, anybody, don't
check an inch. Mr. Munson, oblige me by sitting on his
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 117
head. Mr. Smith, I'll trouble you to dip while I serve.
Mr. Godolphin, .stand by with the Scotchmen, sir." By
this time the beast was very thoroughly secured, and lay
still and resigned to whatever might come. Mr. Thick
commenced working.
"You see, young gentlemen," said he, "I know well
what I am doin', and you had all better observe ; though I
see by your looks you are not inclined to regard it serious.
By the hokum ! my own fore-leg — my arm, I mean — was
broke in two places once, and I reckon a man's better'n a
hoss any day. Mr. Munson, you must preserve your grav-
ity better. Laugh, if it pleases you, but don't sway and
surge in that lubberly fashion, or you'll fall off."
Thick covered the fore-leg very deftly with canvas, as
if he were parcelling a forward swifter, laid on his impro-
vised splints with care, and secured them by wrapping
them around with the spun-yarn. He got up exclaiming :
" There's a good job well done, ship-shape and Bristol
fashion, and a hoss saved. But avast ! we must secure
him for heavy .weather or he'll be getting adrift and there'll
be the devil to pay and no pitch hot."
So saying he tied the brute's hind feet together, and
fastened back his " spare fore-leg," putting on canvas to
prevent chafe.
"There, young gentlemen, you are one hoss better off
than you would have been if I hadn't been along."
" How long will it take him to get out of the «ick-bay,
bos'n ? "
"Ten days, so as to be about, though he shouldn't be
rode by midshipmen short of a month."
" But what's he goin' to eat ? "
" You're right," replied the boatswain. " Hey, John ! "
he called to a black man who had been watching the latter
part of the operation from the bank of the gully; "come
here. We got one sickee hossee — very bad." The darkey
knew no English, but saw he was addressed, and grinned
wide and whitely.
118 LOVE AFLOAT.
" You fetchee this hossee plenty water, plenty — what
does a hoss eat? — yes — all right — plenty hay, plenty
corny; and when he git well, you know, takee off that
bit o' ratlin' stuffee, and secure him at Jansen's stable."
The darkey laughed again, and Thick, with some idea
that his directions were not perfectly understood, took out
a dollar, and throwing it to him, said gruffly,
" There's a dollar, you dam fool ; take that for your
trouble, and when we get back this way, I'll take it out of
your hide, if you don't tend to him right."
" Why, Mr. Thick," said a middy, " you ought always
to try to propitiate the inhabitants."
" He's no inhabitant — nothin' but a dirty nigger."
The party returned to town, the two dismounted mids
riding double on the quietest horses. They were much
disgusted at having to pay for the two horses after all,
and Mr. Thick would not agree to it until the stable-keeper
made him understand that he had acquired a title to the
wounded animal. That matter settled, they put their re-
maining cash together, bought a small but vicious monkey
with it, and went on board.
That night a heavy shower fell, which converted the
gully into a torrent as usual, and furnished "plenty
water " to put the poor horse out of bis misery.
Hartley had a very different day of it. He arranged
with Garnet so as to be free of duty, and went as straight
to the house in which Mary lived as the streets would let
hira, and as fast as he could walk. He arrived at rather
an early hour, but little was his happy mind troubled by
the conventionalities. Mary received him blushingly and
with pleasure, but she was not very demonstrative, evi-
dently would rather the kiss had been omitted, and seemed
somewhat constrained. Hartley felt it, but thought he
ought to be satisfied with what he had, it was so much
more than he deserved, or had only yesterday dared to hope.
Mary could not explain the causes of her reserve, as a
matter of course, but surprised Hartley by replying to his
A STOKT OF THE AMEKIGAN NAVY. 119
self-depreciation, that it was she who was unworthy. They
had a lovers' argument over that, which left it doubtful
whether they were both undeserving or each too good for
the other. After awhile Hartley asked permission to speak
to papa and mamma.
" I don't know whether you really ought," she said
hesitatingly, "I — dear Henry — I do care for you a little
bit, I know, but I am not sure — maybe it's only a girl's
passing fancy — maybe you'll see somebody you like better
than I. I don't think it ought to be all settled — 1 am
not good enough to be your wife — I" — and she broke
down and had to cry.
Hartley was all compassion, and gentleness, and
soothing. For once his impulse was. wisdom. "Dear
Mary," he said, " I don't want to trouble you. Don't cry.
You mustn't say you are not good enough for me, dear.
I'm so sorry I annoyed you," and plenty more in the same
consoling strain. The rogue bad a good voice, and be
made it as kind as a man's could be.
That helped Mary to recover herself and say, "It wasn't
anything he did, but she was — she couldn't tell just what
it was — she was foolish to cry for nothing."
When she had dried her tears of maidenly compunction,
Hartley began to argue with her. He assured her posi-
tively that she did love him, and that she would find it
out, and that he was more than satisfied if she would
only endure him. He asked her to imagine that he was
going away in an hour and that she knew she would never
see him again — how would she feel then ? She was obliged
to confess that he was very different from Martin in her
estimation and that she had never felt toward any one else
as she did toward him.
" That difierence is the difierence between love and
friendship," he said. Then he touched her heart by paint-
ing a picture of his life without her affection, making it
sufficiently doleful. At last she again consented for him to
see her father.
120 LOVE AFLOAT.
This time he would not risk a minute's waiting, for Mary-
had alarmed him, but obtained an interview with Mr. Dew-
hurst at once, and without parley plunged into business.
" Mr. Dewhurst," said he, " I wrote to you some time
ago about my wish to make your daughter my wife, and
you left me free to do the best I could. I am glad to say
I have been successful. Mary has allowed me to ask for
your approval of her choice."
Mr. Dewhurst looked mighty grave.
" Hem I You are aware that my daughter has always
lived in comfort — I might say, luxury — sir ? "
" Yes," replied Hartley.
" Of course you expect to assure her future ? " '
" That has been my intention," replied Hartley,
" though I know that it is not customary, in the sense you
mean,"
" It may not be customary, but in my daughter's case I
make it necessary, sir. Allow me to ask what you will
give her to hold in her OAvn name ? "
Hartley thought a minute, tore a leaf out of his pocket-
book, made a memorandum and handed it to the careful
parent. He examined the list.
" Hem ! house on — mum-mum-mum— one hundred
shai;es — mum-mum — " he read in a low voice. " This is
entirely satisfactory, Mr. Hartley. I'll do as much for her
the day you are married."
Hartley said no more, repelled by his expectant father-
in-law's coolness and satisfied with his own success ; and he
was going out when Mr. Dewhurst spoke.
" Mr. Hartley, I am sorry to part with my girl. She is
nearly as good as her mother. I'd cheerfully give away
half what I'm worth, to charitable institutions, if I could
have her always with me as she was before she saw you."
" Good," thought Hartley, as Mr. Dewhurst paused an
instant, "I'll make a point with Mary. Her father sees the
difference."
" I must say, however, that it is unreasonable in me to
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 121
want her to remain unmarried, and you, I believe, will treat
her well — better than anybody else that has been trying to
get her. If my consent is not very cordial you know it is
from no objections to you."
Hartley thanked him. Mr. Dewhurst laughed, and told
Hartley he was by odds the best son-in-law to be had.
" You'll be forever cruising and out of the way, and I'll
just have Mary at home with me."
Hartley smiled and started out again.
"Stop a minute; what is your hurry," said Mr. Dew-
hurst ; " it's best to have a perfect understanding. I want
to tell you the real reason I agreed with you so promptly.
I didn't believe till this morning that you cared enough for
Mary, but when I saw that horse standing half-starved at
my fence I was satisfied. Ha ! ha ! ha ! Any young man
that forgets a livery-horse, and walks off leaving him
hitched indefinitely, must be in earnest. Ha ! ha ! ha !
There— ha ! ha ! Go hunt her up— ha ! ha ! ha ! " Hart-
ley escaped.
When he found Mary again, it transpired that she had
seen her mother and had another cry — a good one, this
time — and was now tolerably resigned. Hartley got his
kiss by insisting that it was the seal of their engagement
and quite the regular thing.
** How did you learn so much, sir ? " she asked, laughing.
" Experience is a hard school — " he began.
" There ! — I know the rest," she cried ; " how absurd !
But is there any real necessity for — for this sealing pro-
cess ? " she finished demurely, with averted eyes.
"Absolutely essential, I assure you. Come, dear,
just— '••
" Oh, what a tease ! One would think you were afraid
something would get cold. How about those other times,
sir ? " she asked saucily, still avoiding his eyes.
" Oh, that was robbery — the right of the strongest, you
know.
" Well, you ought to allow an offset, if that's the case."
6
122 LOYE AFLOAT.
"What do you know about set-offs, my little Portia?
You belong to me now, and your first duty is to make me
happy. I can't be happy without— just this once, Mary ;
you must."
" Will you go out of my sight instantly ? "
" Twice as quick as that."
"Well — then — if I must^'' and a wave of pink blush
spread over her as she held up her face.
" TFAy, Henry l"^"* He was gathering the rosebuds
while he might. Instead of one it was six at least.
Hartley ran out, feeling that he had to pay for his
brief thrill of pleasure, and Mary was sorry, too, for she
had not really meant that he should go.
After this she was more amenable to discipline, and
made no more objections ; but for all that Hartley still
felt a little indefinable something keeping Ihem apart.
He grew more dissatisfied and uneasy from day to day.
On shore, and with his beautiful idol, he was content, but
on board ship, and on duty, he would vex his righteous
soul with remembering and interpreting the things which
had occurred. He had a sort of short-hand fashion of set-
ting events down in his head as they came along, and
afterward would amuse himself by translating them at
full length, sometimes incorrectly. In Mary's case the
sometimes became frequently : he was too much interested
to be a good judge. The truth was that she loved him,
and with growing affection, but she could not show her
feelings as he did, and her woman's love was gentler and
more immature than his masculine passion. To use Mr.
Washington Irving's figure, his love was a fast-growing,
strong, young tree in a rich soil and under hot suns. It
would die from over-stimulus and over-growth, or else
change into a character more enduring. Her affection was
a young grape-vine, well started, with a good chance to
live — perhaps likely to live longer than the tree. Fur-
thermore, Mary was a thorough woman, and she quickly dis-
covered, perhaps knew by intuition, what few of them are
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 12 o
slow in learning, that no market is more easily glutted
than that of a woman's favors. And more yet, she was
not only modest but bashful. And further still, she had a
persistent feeling lingering in her gentle bosom, that she
neither cared for Hartley as she ought, nor was she a good
•enough person to go through life by his side. She was so
good, she was humble, and she did not know herself very
well, you see. However, it was not surprising that she
accepted him. There is something which generally makes
women accept the right men, even though they are doubt-
ful about their feelings. When the proper one comes, this
vague force comes in and insures future happiness.
Hartley had a talk with Garnet the same day. He told
:how the course of his love was running smooth, how the
engagement had been regularly formed, and then spoke of
his feelings and happiness. Garnet's cool acceptance of
the latter part of the story rather piqued his friend, but he
saw it, and discreetly showed more interest, thus soothing
rising discontent. Hartley was so happy just at this
moment, that he charitably longed for the whole world,
and Garnet in particular, to enjoy similar feelings. He
thought, Now here's my dear old Will, a crusty bachelor
with no confidence in women — who are angels — and not
taring to see anything of them. He gets worse, too, from
year to year. He will be lonesome when we are married,
and I resign and leave him. He ought to have a wife to turn
to — a good, sweet woman — just like my Mary, if that were
possible. Isabel would do — ^he hardly deserves him — she
is so cold — but she would do, I guess. I'll sound him.
" Will, you are getting old."
" That's a business we're all engaged in."
" The first thing you know you'll be a dried-up, bald-
headed commodore."
" The promotion and extra pay won't come on me with-
out my persayvin it, as Paddy said."
"A weazened, fretful old chap, with no amusement
but to haze your officers. If .you don't change your ways
124 LOVE AFLOAT.
you'll not have a soul to care for you — leaving out myself
at a distance — and no other correspondent, besides the
Navy Department."
" Why do you say yourself at a distance? "
" I think I'll resign as soon as I'm married. Even if
I stayed in the service we should have to separate after
awhile."
" That's so. What remedy can you offer against this
cheerless old commodoreship ?"
" One you profess to hate. Form new ties nearer and
dearer than any you have ever known. You've no busi-
ness enduring life in your stoical way ; you've never fairly
tried it, and don't know that you can't enjoy it. The
greatest happiness in the world is in your reach, and you
won't take the trouble to pick it up."
" You mean for me to marry ? "
" Stupenduous idea, and most amazing, isn't it ? "
"It is rather an important thing. You must acknowl-
edge that I am better off than some married men you
know."
" You talk as cautiously as a young miss. Of course
it's a lottery, but choose the best looking ticket you can
find, and trust to luck. There are no blanks, you know."
"No prizes, you mean. Then, talking of choosing the
best looking ticket, in a regular lottery you can get your
choice and pick, but in this — hem ! "
" Pooh ! think of having children growing up about
you, and loving you, and catching you around the legs,
and calling you daddy, and making you spin yarns for
them."
" I confess to a liking for babies,"
" A liking ! haw ! haw ! haw-w ! — I should say so.
Haw-haw-w ! Recollect the time you kept the boat waiting
while you stopped to hush the yellow baby that fell out of
the door ? Dirty little thing ! haw ! haw ! haw ! J^nd
how the mother of the imp blessed you for daring to med-
dle vvith her young one ! Yes, you do like babies."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 125
" Seriously now, Will, it would be a great comfort for
you to be able to think of a good loving woman waiting
for you on ashore, and the pickaninnies all expecting you."
" That's a more attractive light to put it in. I am half
of your mind — but how am I to manage it ? "
" Manage what ? why your wife will manage you, of
course."
"The finding of the wife, I mean, my dear fellow ; or,
rather, the finding of the woman to ask. We are at some
distance from the white settlements here."
« You—"
" You can't expect me to go ashore and walk into every
door I come to till I find a young woman, and then to pro-
pose on the spot."
" No, of course — "
" That's the only chance I see. We shan't be stopping
here long enough to make acquaintance and do courting in
the customary manner."
" Will, there's a lady here now that would suit you
admirably, and you know her already."
" Miss Dewhurst or Miss Terrell ? "
" You had better take the one that comes handiest, if it
is all the same to you."
"It is."
" Then pay your attentions to Miss Terrell."
" Well, that's settled. Much obliged, Hal."
"I wish it were settled, really and truly."
After awhile Garnet said very deliberately :
" Harry, I have thought this thing over, and I would
marry if I could. But I must have time to learn something
about the lady — to pick a little, if I may say so ; — and I
must be satisfied that she and I can keep up the high state
of friendship married folk need so much ; and I must get
her to like me well enough to accept me. All this requires
time, and I never have the time ; so it is more than likely I
shall die single. But I don't look forward to a disagreeable
life. I am very well contented." Then he changed the
126 LOVE AFLOAT.
subject with a question. "Did you hear about Dularge's
observation ? "
" No. What about it ? "
He has been trying to rate the chronometers, and sad
work he has made. I showed him how to bring the images
together in the mercury ; and every morning he goes
ashore and gets a lot of sights, and comes off, and swears
over them all day. He got a notion in his head that the
chart had Santa Cruz down in the wrong latitude ; and he
went ashore last night to satisfy himself with an observa-
tion of Polaris. When he returned I asked him how he
had succeeded. He said he got one image in the quick-
silver and guessed the reading was about 35° 50'."
" Gracious, what a fool ! But was he serious ? "
" As far as I could tell he was."
" I declare, I don't half like the idea of his navigation.
It's bad enough to trust him in fair weather at sea, but
among these islands — "
" Don't fret. The captain is rating, the chronometers.
He will not trust an incompetent officer."
Garnet was somewhat impressed by what his friend had
said, in spite of apparent nonchalance; and he thought
more frequently of the dull prospect of a lonesome life.
The little he had seen of Isabel had pleased him. Now,
from being near her, and hearing of her, and, perhaps,
partly from Hartley's infection, he again began to reflect
upon matrimony.
Hartley had long since told Mary of his love for Garnet,
and after their engagement had talked a great deal of his
friend. Thus Garnet became of consequence to Mary, vi-
cariously. She talked about him fi*eely to Isabel, who was
chatty enough in her company, so that her cousin obtained
indirectly a pretty high opinion of her Damon's Pythias.
Hartley had never mentioned Isabel's name in speaking his
wish for Garnet to marry. To-night he resolved to ask
Mary how the other pair would match the first time he saw
her. And so he did.
A'STOBT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 127
Next day the Dewhursts came to see the ship. The
captain had them in the cabin, and sent for Garnet — Hart-
ley had come off with them — to help entertain them. Garnet
was at first embarrassed, for he knew he should have called,
and that he was the only officer on board who had not
responded to the invitation given on the ship's arrival. The
Dewhursts were too well-bred to question him, however,
even if they had not known of his avoidance of society.
Hartley, in speaking of his friend, had mentioned this de-
fect. He said, " He is like a soldier crab, and the ship is
his borrowed shell. He won't stir out of it if he can help
it." Very soon they put^him at his ease, and Mrs. Dew-
hurst devoted herself to making him talk. That he was
able to do very well in a sensible straight-forward manner,
and so he did upon this occasion. Isabel, at first listening
to her uncle and Captain Merritt, was won away by de-
grees to notice what Garnet said, and then to reply. She
was curious about him, having got from Mary a notion
that he was highly educated, witty, cynical, and bashful,
with every needful good quality, all of which did not tally
with what she had seen of him at home. There the impres-
sion made had been of a sensible well-informed man, rather
quiet, but not differing markedly from other gentlemen.
But that was stale and Mary's talk fresh, so there was a
slight confusion in her mind she wished to settle. Besides,
there was, perhaps, a natural attraction.
When the captain showed them over the ship, Mrs.
Dewhurst, who was afraid the guns would go off, took her
husband's arm, and Isabel fell to Will Garnet's care. After
their tour of inspection was completed, and everything had
been duly admired for its immaculate cleanness and perfect
order, they went up and had chairs on the quarter-deck.
The awnings were spread and a little breeze was blowing.
Mary and Henry naturally enjoyed each other's company
best, and sat apart in undemonstrative pleasure. Mr. and
Mrs. Dewhurst had found old memories or friends in com-
mon with Captain Merritt, and the three were chatting
128 LOVE AFLOAT.
quietly. Garnet and Isabel were thus left an opportunity
to talk and to learn something about one another, which
agreed with their wishes. When the party returned to the
shore they parted in a very friendly manner and with a
mutual good opinion. Garnet thought, " Miss Terrell is
certainly a very superior girl. I do not know that Hal's
advice was bad." He began to reflect on future possibil-
ities, an occupation in which he detected himself, and which
he ended by calling himself a fool.
The first lieutenant came up the ladder and joined the
captain as soon as the guests were well clear of the ship.
" Mr. McKizick, I did not send for you, for I thought
you might possibly be engaged," said Captain Merritt with
his quizzical twinkle.
" I am obliged to you, sir," replied McKizick. " I was
middling busy — leastways, I'm never much of a hand to
palaver to strange ladies. There's my wife at home — I can
get along tolerable well with her, but I can never make out
exactly what course she's steering — and you can't expect
me to know the motions of women I never saw before."
" Very true, sir," responded the captain, with another
twinkle.
" I came up to report Mr. Bobbins to you, sir. He
staid on shore all night."
" Indeed ! and what reason did he give ? "
" None of any consequence."
" Did he know the order for every one to be off by
midnight ? "
«' Yes, sir."
" I'm sorry., I suppose I must speak to him. What
reason did he give ? "
" Well, sir," answered McKizick deliberately, and with
seriousness, "he came off at seven bells in the morning
watch. I was on deck and asked him why he had over-
staid his liberty. He got huffy at that and said I talked
to him -like I would to a sailor-man. I told him no offence
was meant, and asked him the same thing over in a fashion
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 129
more agreeable to the rank of lieutenant of marines, and
then he said he didn't know as he was accountable to me
for his goings and comings. I told him that was true, but
to save trouble I generally attended to such matters, and
I thought maybe he had a good reason for not obeying the
order, which would make it discretionary with me to in-
form you or no. So he comes down off the monument, and
tells me that when he tried to get a boat, it was blowing
so hard nobody would venture into the harbor with him.
It was as smooth as a mill pond, sir, as you know — not a
breath of air before the middle of the morning watch.
But there was no proper lie in it, because he really be-
lieved it himself. The mess are joking below about * Mr.
Robbins's hurricane ' now, sir, and I suspicion he was a
little bit slewed."
" Yery good, sir. When you go below be so kind as to
tell him I wish to see him on the quarter-deck."
" Aye , aye, sir." McKizick went on to grumble about
the midshipmen, whom he accused of being no assistance to
him, and of no use in the ship."
** Does Mr. Larkin trouble you very much ? "
" Well, no — I can't say he does. Mr. Larkin is a little
lazy, but he has his good points. He is a very honorable
young gentleman."
" That Mr. Young is a very trifling fellow, isn't he ? "
" Oh, no ; I don't think so. He is full of sky-larking,
and I have had to punish him two or three times ; but it's
only like his name — he's young. A few years will make a
big difference in him, sir."
The captain turned the subject for a few minutes, and
then came back.
"McKizick, there's one of the midshipmen I wanted to
ask you about — Mr. Smith. Isn't he very careless and
lubberly?"
" Careless and lubberly ! I can't say I ever saw any-
thing of the kind, sir^ He is a decent young man, and
works the fore-top quite to my mind."
0*
130 LOVE AFLOAT.
By degrees the <iaptain drew further encomiums, until
not a middy in the ship was left unpraised. Then he said,
"I perceive what the trouble is. The midshipmen are
plenty good enough individually — in fact, each one of
them is a fine young fellow — but when you take them col-
lectively they are of no assistance to you. That is to say,
the whole is less than any one of its separate parts." The
captain twinkled his gray eye at McKizick.
" That's not fair, captain, I protest — "
" There are two things no midshipman likes to do, sir ;
you may depend on it."
"What's that?" ^;,• -
"Stand a watch and go in a boat. Send Mr. Robbins
up, McKizick, will you ? " Merritt was low on the com-
manders' list and McKizick high on that of lieutenants,
which brought the two officers closer together in many
respects than was customary between those in similar
positions.
Hartley made the most of his short time. He was
at the Dewhurst cottage in season and out of season. He
told Mrs. Dewhurst how soon he would have to go, and
frankly begged her to stand his friend, giving him all
the opportunity to see Mary she possibly could. "In a
week we sail," he said, " and though we shall return, there's
no certainty of finding you here again." Mrs. Dewhurst
fenced a little with him, but his earnestness conquered her.
" There is only one thing to prevent your seeing Mary
as often as you wish, Mr. Hartley, and that is herself: for
she may get the idea if you come very often and stay long
that she is doing wrong. But I think I can manage that
for you."
" Thank you. I want to have all I can of her company
while the ship stays here. What a misery this long separa-
tion is ! " he added, with a forlorn air.
" You must keep up your courage, my dear Mr. Hartley.
A day at a time it will all go by, and neither of you
will be any the worse for waiting. You must not borrow
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 131
trouble : you have a whole week left, yet. Ah, Mr. Hart-
ley, you love my child very well in your way, no doubt,
and I know you feel sorry to part from her: but every day
brings nearer the time when you will gain her and I shall
lose her. The less your trouble gets, the nearer at hand mine
is." Then Hartley forgot his dismal anticipations to pity
her and assure her that he meant they should never be sep-
arated. Which proved him to be either very unselfish or
very ignorant.
So as the ten days passed he stayed with his beloved all
he could. Each morning when he met her she was more
welcome to his eyes than a dewy rose ; and, when he said
good nighty he thought, in the poet's language,
** How can I call the lone night good,
Though thy sweet wishes wing its flight ? "
As his visit drew near its close he began to worry again
about his darling's lack of the cordial reciprocation he
wished. He had learned the wisdom of not being too
sweet, and she was loving him better every day, and liking
him, too, for his good taste ; but he could not know how
much he was gaining. Her mind was becoming reconciled
to the engaged state ; and now Jhat he withheld his ca-
resses, she bade fair, woman like, soon to desire them.
Two nights before they sailed, he and Garnet went
over. Garnet to pay his respects and Hartley * on duty' as
his friend styled it. Mary had become as anxious as her
lover to see the other couple take to each other kindly,
and she watched them with all of Hartley's interest. To
their mutual disappointment. Garnet kept away from Isa-
bel all evening, devoting himself mainly to her uncle and
reminiscences of the late war. Hartley could have scolded
him for what he declared to Mary was mere mulishness ;
but he was afraid of making the subject unpleasant by say-
ing anything more about it just then. His mind was thor-
oughly made up to have his friend happy with a family,
but he saw no means of working to that end.
132 LOVE AFLOAT.
On that evening they all discussed their plans for future
movements. Mr. Dewhurst meant to wait about a month
longer if he could ; but would take any suitable opportu-
nity that offered earlier to go to the Havana by the south
side of Cuba. It was really uncertain whether they would
wait two weeks longer or six. Captain Merritt had told
his officers to stock their messes for about a month, as
he intended to return to Santa Cruz within that time.
The next evening was the last one together, and the
lovers spent it all by themselves, and made it long. Hart-
ley was sad at going away from M^ry, for such an indefi-
nite time, and very anxious to get a fuller, freer expression
of love from her before he went. She was sad because he
■was, and also because she was about to lose sight of a per-
son who had become pleasant, almost necessary, to her.
She really wished to speak out and make him happy, but
the old influences of doubt, maiden modesty, and maiden
perversity, made it impossible for her to bestow the part-
ing cheer she would have given.
Once during the evening, pondering upon the " cease-
less farewell-taking, endless parting," incident to a sea-
man's life, he got very blue and very tired of the service.
Mary had never looked ^o attractive and lovable, as now
that he was about to leave her. He thought it would be
happiness to remain forever with her, if he could forever
feel her round arms about his neck, and her wavy hair
brush his face, and see her rich blue eyes closely beaming
into his, and hear her voice speak to him, low and loving.
Then he grew very bitter, and the Navy appeared to him a
cruel, unnatural, wicked life. But he soon remembered
that he was a man, and had no right to yield to so small an
ill : he remembered duty, too, and his sense of honor made
him hold up his head and take a more manly view of the
situation. After awhile he was almost cheerful again, and
he succeeded in making the farewell almost not unpleasant
to Mary. She returned his good-by kiss very cordially.
It was the first time she had ever kissed him back, and it
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 133
thrilled him. He almost embraced her, obedient to his im-
pulse, but managed somehow to restrain himself, and in a
second more he had gone away into the darkness.
Mary went to bed to lie awake a long time and think
about him. She knew as soon as he was gone that she
cared a great deal for him.
When the Flying Fish sailed out next day with a lead-
ing wind, she passed near the palm-crowned light-house
point. Hartley saw, from his station on the spar-deck, a
gentleman standing with three ladies near a carriage on
the beach. The ship swept by near enough for him to dis-
tinguish that they were the Dewhursts come down to see
them off. Out waved his handkerchief in defiance of all
rules of naval etiquette. Evidently his number was rec-
ognized, for there was a quick reply, all three ladies show-
ing their white answering pendants. Garnet joined Hart-
ley on the booms, and Hartley insisted on his waving, also.
They passed by rapidly. Mrs. Dewhurst helped his wife in
the carriage and got in himself, but the two young ladies
walked on down the beach to the extreme end of the point.
Hartley found himself well aft — as far aft as possible to
get — actually leaning over the taffrail. He and Mary were
keeping as near together as the circumstances permitted,
but*the strip of water between them fast grew wider. As
long as he could see, Mary reriiained down at the end of the
point ; or he thought so, which was much the same thing.
Garnet came along after awhile.
** Hal, in old Virginny when they think a woman about
perfect they call her a * far speck.' I suppose you think
just now your Miss Mary is a * far speck.' So do I."
" It's no time to punish me now," answered Hartley
ruefully.
"Do you recollect my prophecy about the palm-tree
and the light-house ? "
"Yes, Will."
" My fee is five dollars." At Hartley's blank lool^ he
134 LOVE AFLOAT.
went on : " My fee for a correct prophecy of the fifth class
is always five dollars."
"Well," answered Hartley, "Go thou and do like-
wise. My fee for correct advice is ten dollars." *
"Your advice is correct. I'd like to know that Miss
Terrell— or some other girl as good — was thinking about
me as your Miss Mary is about you."
CHAPTER XH.
T
HE Flying Fish dashed gayly through the waters to the
westward.
** Cloudy shapes and fears forlorn
Flew, like shadows at the mom,"
away from Hartley's mind in his ever-present pressure
of work and his welcome of the sea. He really loved the
sea, and it would cost him something to give it up as a fol-
lowing.
By the way, patient reader, did the quaintness and
poetry in calling a sailor a * follower of the sea ' ever strike
you ? If not, think about it now.
When they sailed. Captain Merritt sent for Dukrge
and thus addressed hira :
"Mr. Dularge, have you the chronometers rated ?" '
The unhappy fellow had several rates in his note-book,
but was not sure which was right, or, in truth, that any
was ; but he answered :
"Yes, sir."
" What is it for the working instrument ? "
Dularge took his book out of his pocket, and after some
delay made a selection. " Error, slow, 12m. 7s. j rate, l^s.
gaining," he read.
" What ! " exclaimed the captain.
^** Oh, I believe I read the wrong figures," said Dularge
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 135
feebly. Here it is, sir. Error, slow, 9m. 37s. ; rate, 3s.
gaining."
" That's a little nearer, but still very far wrong," re-
marked the captain.
" Perhaps, sir, this result is right. Error, fast — "
"Never mind, Mr. Dularge," interrupted Captain
Merritt. " Tell me so and so," putting a question in navi-
gation.
Dularge made a very lame reply.
The captain continued his impromptu examination, get-
ting very little evidence of knowledge out of the master,
until at last he asked, " What is a fore observation, sir ? "
" That's when you work out the altitude before going
on deck, sir."
*' That's enough. Have you ever done any deck duty ? "
" Yes, sir : I had a watch over a year in the Consti-
tution."
"Very well. I will relieve you as navigator of the
ship myself, and you may take a watch for the present.
Considering your past opportunities your ignorance is
inexcusable. I advise you to study and practice navigation."
Captain Merritt sent for Garnet, and desired him to assist
Mr. Dularge in acquiring the useful art recommended.
The wind hauled to the west and blew a steady soft
breeze. After working up against it for' two days, during
which the sloop made little on her course, they got news of
the vessel they were seeking. A sail appeared to windward
and stood down toward them, the Fish making short tacks
to intercept her. She came booming down, wing and wing,
with a great roll of creamy foam under her bows. When
about half a mile distant, the sloop fired a gun, went about
and stood across her track. The schooner hove to imme-
diately at the signal, and the cruiser, ranging up within
hailing distance, backed her main-yard. Captain Merritt
directed the first lieutenant to have a boat manned, and
to hail the stranger. The cutter was called away, and
McKizick took the trumpet.
136 LOTE AFLOAT.
" Schooner ahoy ! "
" Hello ! " was the frank reply from a person in a
red shirt, who seemed to be the captain.
"What schooner is that ? "
" The Mariner, of Great Egg Harbor."
** Whence come you?"
« The Spanish Main."
" Where are you bound ? "
" To Philadelphia. What ship is that ? "
" Unitt > States sloop Flying Fish, on a cruise. We'll
send a boatj aboard you."
Directly a midshipman was despatched in the cutter,
with directions to request the master of the Mariner to
come on board ; and in a few minutes the boat returned
with that worthy, who had finished his toilet by putting
on a greasy black swallow-tailed coat over his shirt. He
wore a unique and unshaven aspect.
" Tidy little boat o* your'n, skipper," he remarked with
gracious ease to McKizick, who met him at the gangway ;
" shouldn't mind givin' you a race with my craft in a good
breeze."
" The captain is aft, sir : be so good as to step this
way," growled the incensed lieutenant in reply.
From the oily individual, who introduced himself as
" Captain Haggai M. Kites," they learned that the Mari-
ner, two days before, while beating to windward along the
south coast, had been overhauled by a sort o' man-o'-war
lookin' craft : " that, suspecting all was not safe, they had
cracked on sail, but were unable to get away owing to the
fact that there were two barrels of pickled pork in the peak
which by rights should have been stowed in the cabin ; that
the stranger had fired a shot at the Mariner, which passed
through the foresail and accounted for its present ragged
condition, upon which the Mariner had hove to : that a
" Yankee lookin' feller " had come aboard with an armed
boat's crew, inquired very particularly about his cargo
and what vessels he had seen, gotten what newspapers they
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 137
had, jumped into his boat and left " without tellin' his ves-
sel's name nor nothin';" that the boat was hoisted in a
jiffy, the strange schooner's helm was put up, and she stood
on toward the land and was " hull down in no time at all."
" But I had my glass out, and as she bore up I saw her
name quite plain on the stern in gold letters, La Hem-
brilyer, which I take it is Spanish for little woman and
worse. Well, we pitched right in and got the pork out of
the peak inter the cabin, and I'd like to see the craft in
these waters could hold her own with us now." Captain
Merritt got the date and position of the encountei, thanked
the. unctuous Kites, gave him a glass of wine and a news-
paper, and sent him back to his swift, beloved Mariner.
The sloop filled away, trimmed her yards, and stood off on
the long leg.
Garnet was thinking about Isabel in his leisure moments.
He had about concluded that as a matter of policy it would
be well to follow his friend's advice, and though not yet
determined to do so, had begun to reflect upon the means
of carrying out that cheerful programme of affection, com-
panionship, children, and a home. He was satisfied from
what he knew of Miss Terrell that she could not be w^on
by a careless wooer lacking in respect, and under disrespect
he classed his fault, well known to himself, of inattention
to dress. He thought that if the time came to pay his ad-
dresses to Isabel or some other lady, he would begin with
a superficial change in his ways, at least, by presenting his
outer man adorned and not disfigured. In other words, he
would reform his dress ; but being ignorant, from long
carelessness, of what good dressing was, he thought best to
consult Hartley, the ship's authority. They were sitting
by the bridle-port rea^ng, with Dularge a little way off,
when Garnet took his pipe out of his mouth, closed his book,
and remarked, " Hal, I am going to turn over a new leaf."
"So am I: but you needn't shut the book first."
" The book has been open too long at one place. I'm
tired of it, and mean to try a fresh one."
138 LTOVE AFLOAT.
" Well, what's over the leaf, do you think ? "
" A brand-new suit of shore clothes in the latest fashion.
I'm going to try to appear decent, hereafter."
Dularge, who had overheard, approached eagerly and
officiously. " I would, by all means," said he. " It will be
a great deal more satisfactory to you, and I always find it
actually cheaper."
The assurance of the speech and its conceited assump-
tion were too much for Garnet. He turned toward Dularge
with feigned surprise and exclaimed, " Why ! do you dress
well ? "
" I try to," stammered out the creature, looking foolish.
" Take comfort then, Dularge," said Hartley ; " some
wise fellow says that * where endeavors do not yet fully
avail they tell as tendency.' "
Dularge went away, but Garnet followed his second
thought that it would be better to get information by imita-
tion than by advice..
There was not much of the convivial spirit in the ward-
room. They all drank when they wished, in accordance
with the easy cake-and-ale virtue of the day, easier afloat
than ashore. From the captain and dignified little Doctor
Bobus down to the boys, hardly a person passed a day
without tasting alcohol in some form; but there was noth-
ing to show it except the red nose of the marine officer.
The men's drinking could not exceed the regulation gill of
whiskey. The officers took their two or three glasses
of wine at dinner ; and other liquor according to taste, and
though any one who chose might get merry on occa-
sion, no one remarked it so long as the regular course of
duty was unbroken. Even to the midshipmen a license was
permitted which would be thought sinful in these days
with nothing stronger than sherry allowed on board ship.
The ward-room officers lacked the convivial, or, more
properly speaking, the carousing spirit, and were conse-
quently a quiet, well-behaved set of men. Even on Sat-
urday night, the weekly time-honored festival of " sweet-
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY 139
hearts and wives" was observed in a single glass. We
know that Hartley never forgot it, or dishonored the toast
with a heel-tap at this time ; and Garnet, too, began to
relish it somewhat.
" Sweet-hearts and wives ! " that tells the whole story.
The sweet-heart is always before the wife. She naturally
happens first, but why is she the most esteemed ? Is man an
unworthy animal who finds more joy in the pursuit than in
a long possession which gives him the chance to appreciate
and rationally to enjoy, the only chance to truly love ? or
is it that woman strives harder to please and satisfy in her
first capacity than in her last ? Either way, there is in the
old sentiment no compliment to the ladies.
If the ward-room was somewhat unmindful of the an-
cient ceremony, it was not on that account neglected in
the budding steerage. There each recurring Saturday
evening brought a new celebration, and there were liba-
tions copiously poured in to the honor of Venus whenever
liquor was in the locker. Songs and stories filled up the
intervals between the toasts.
On the Saturday evening following the departure of the
Fish from Santa Cruz the usual festivities were heightened.
The week before, the occasion had been slighted because
several membei's of the mess were on shore and the hearts
of the rest were with them ; and the week preceding that,
the observation of the rites had been feeble, for all were
fatigued by the incessant work their captain's activity de-
manded. There was at this time, therefore, a disposition
to atone for past failings, as a man who has dodged his
church attendance for several Sundays tries to make it
up at last by extra devotion.
After eight bells the midshipmen were all gathered in
the steerage, except those on watch. Two good-sized bot-
tles of whiskey, the result of their savings from the daily
grog ration, were on the table, backed up by sundry tum-
blers and lemons, a pitcher of water, and a bowl of sugar.
The party were, talking and watching their senior, Mr.
140 • LOVE AFLOAT.
Larkin, an old midshipman, who in virtue of his experience
always attended to collecting the whiskey rations and mix-
ing the grog. He was very busy brewing a cold whiskey
punch, and paid no attention to the many suggestions
of his interested messmates.
Mr. Larkin was a smart young man, who had been two
cruises at sea already, and was expecting his promotion.
He was now old enough to begin thinking, and he did
a moderate amount of study and attended very well to his
duty; but there was still enough boy in him to lead him
into an occasional scrape.
Mr. Smith, as his name would indicate, was young Smith.
Mr. Godolphin was a stout, rosy-faced boy, who had
a great facility for catching cold. When affected, he went
about wheezing, which af&iction at once drew attention to
his name. His fellow-mids called him "Go-porpoise," an
appellation soon shortened to " Go-porp," and then to
plain " Porp."
The other midshipmen were Mumson, Young, Robinson,
Maskelyne, and Carter, the last two being at this particu-
lar time on duty. They were a set of bright, mischievous
lads, full of promise.
The five were watching Larkin make the punch, criti-
cising and suggesting boisterously, when in came Messrs.
Thick and Harrison. Both were favorites with the young-
sters. Harrison for a sort of dry geniality and for never
setting himself and his experiences up as an example, Thick
for his peculiarities. The boatswain looked queer, and on
close acquaintance his character well sustained his appear-
ance. He was short in stature though mighty in strength,
his face was deeply pock-marked, his complexion was a
dark natnral-leaf, and his little eyes were bright and black
and snapping. Like Shakespeare's soldier, he was full of
strange oaths. His life had been greatly varied, and he
was able to recall the past in such an -extensive and inter-
esting manner as to win the admiration of the young fel-
lows with whom his position almost forced him to associate.
A STORT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 141
Though Mr. Thick had little choice of company, he
never felt that it was more than right for him to be thrown
on the midshipmen. He was used to it; it was customary
in the service ; and perhaps their life and sportfulness had
become preferable in his esteem to the sedateness of more
settled minds. He certainly enjoyed the ascendency which
his peculiarities, his knowledge of the profession, his large
experience, his toleration, and his yarns, gave him over the
turbulent steerage. •
Navy life is the strangest in the world, though looked
at from outside it appears simple. Shut several hundred
men up in a vessel, have some in authority with a rigid
organization over all, and send them abroad for three
years. The men become proficient in the use of the sails
and the weapons, the officers are skilled and watchful, the
ship goes from port to port ready to protect American
commerce, prepared to fight if necessary, opening new
lands to trade, and getting together knowledge useful to
the world. All goes as it should until she returns, when
the crew are dismissed and the officers separated among
other vessels. That is about the popular notion, but it is
not enough. A thinking man who has seen it all looks
back upon a great deal more. He remembers the parting
with family and friends, the straining into futurity with
hope and fear of its events ; the fierce passions, the good-
ness, the care, the carelessness, the expectancy of youth,
the material certainty of age, the myriad possibilities,
which the ship bears away. He remembers sickness with-
out consolation; anxiety for loved ones; weary labor;
wearing responsibility ; long watches in the day and the
night, in gales and calms, in cold and wet and under blaz-,
ing suns ; fighting with storms ; monotonous routine ; the
strangeness of foreign lands ; beguilements of cards and
wine and women with song and dance ; perhaps the fierce
zest of battle. The romance is not gone yet and cannot
ever go ; but there must be always mingled with it a great
deal of downright hard work.
14:2 LOVE AFLOAT.
In no regard is navy life more peculiar than in its
social aspect. With a despotic government, its society is
democratic. There is no aristocracy of money, for few offi-
cers have any ; little respect off duty to mere rank, and
almost no advantage in being old. Age brings wisdom
sometimes, and when the two are found together they ob-
tain a hearing. They are all mingled, young and old
together, in social equality. Every man is respected for
the ability he shows, but this includes his quality as an
officer and as a gentleman, also. In plain words, every
tub stands on its own bottom. The effect of the commin-
gling of ages is marked. It makes the young man mature
early, and it keeps the old boy fresh and lively. When a
youngster finds himself among men, with a man's part ex-
pected of him, he naturally tries to learn. He puts on the
outward appearance, and, if there be any good stuff in him,
shortly becomes what he seems.
Mr. Thick's first act on entering the steerage was to
turn to the dresser, pick up the coffee-pot which sat thereon,
and asking, " Anything in your pot. Jack ? " to put the
spout in his mouth and throw back his head. No cold cof-
fee rewarded him — the pot was empty. He set it down
again disappointed.
" Never mind. Sweet William," said Larkin ; " here's
better stuff than that. Sit down."
The others greeted him tumultuously. " Come in ! "
" Welcome, Sweet William ! " " Ah ! look at his purty
face, the darlint ! " " The heel o' the afthernoon to yez ! "
Thick, in no wise disconcerted, took a seat.
" We were just going to ask you and Harrison to help
us keep Saturday night," said Larkin. " Why, there he is
at the door. Come in, Bob, and help us with some punch."
Harrison " was just coming " anyhow, and he entered
amid shouts of "Hail, Bob!" "Dry Bob, ahoy!"
"Welcome, Idle Bob 1"
Larkin struck up in a sweet voice an impromptu song.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVT. 143
" Oh, I know a likely chap.
And wherever he may go.
If he's not two blocks and rap-
Full, liquor's out, you know.
He's a figure fine, and fame.
And a peaceful smiling nob—
.Did some fellow ask his name ?
Bry Bob ! "
The steerage rang with the applause and laughter of the
mids, who had joined in the two last words tremendously.
• ** You do me proud," said Harrison, when the noise had
subsided ; "I'm afraid that punch 11 be like the Injin's
pork."
" How ? " asked several.
" It * lasted dam quick ' you know."
" I wish our pork would, too," remarked Godolphin ;
" Larkin gives nothing else, it seems to me."
" Shut up, Porp," cried Young ; " you think more of
eating than anything else."
" Keep his glass full and he '11 say no more to-night,"
put in Munson.
" I tell you what, Mr. Porp," said Thick ; " it's a pity I
never know'd it in time, but you might just as well 'a had
fresh meat as not."
" Why ? how ? " asked Porp, regretfully.
" Our boss is dead," replied Thick briefly.
• The middies groaned deeply at this announcement, and
for a moment there was a sad silence, while one or two pre-
tended to cry and wipe their eyes. Then they broke out.
"How did he die, doctor?" "I shall employ another
medical man next time, sir." " Poor, faithful servant ! "
" Did he go off easy. Doc ? "
Thick spoke sententiously. " He was drownded that
same night. The rain filled the holler, and that done it.
He bilged under the bridge, where he got washed down.
I made a mistake lashin' his spars together, for of course
he couldn't get under way on one leg, and that sprung."
144 LOVE AFLOAT.
Godolphin slowly persisted. *'I don't see what that has
to do with fresh meat."
" If you'd a-seen as many hoss-shoes <;ome o' beef barrels
as I have, Mr. Porp, you might believe it as much as I do."
" Bless my soul ! " exclaimed the alarmed youth.
" With pork it is different. Hogs is not shod," contin-
ued Thick.
" I see," admitted Godolphin. They all had a good-
natured laugh at him, but he insisted : " I don't think our
grub is good enough.
" Dry up, Porp ! " shouted Munson. " You'd growl if
you had cracker pudden every day."
" No, I wouldn't," denied Godolphin. " It's all very
well for you fellows that went ashore so much and got
all you wanted to eat, but I was quarantined after the
first time we went."
" What for, Porp ? " asked the gunner.
" Oh, I had a sheet in the lucky bag. My hammock boy
dropped it out. I declare it was too bad of McKizick," he
continued, lowering his voice. "I never went to claim
the sheet, but when they overhauled the bag in Santa
Cruz, McKizick saw my name in the corner, and quaran-
tined me."
" Let this be a warning to you, son Porp," said Larkin,
stopping his work. " Better have three sheets in the wind
than one in the lucky bag. Gentlemen, the punch is made.
Approach and fill your glasses." This was done in rever-
ent silence, for they all respected Larkin's punch. " Gen-
tlemen ! " he continued, in a speech-making tone, " I give
you the toast of the evening, to be drunk in silence,
standing — "
"Hope none of us will be drunk in silence, lying,"
chirped Young.
*' Be silent, sitting, Mr, Young," said Larkin reproach-
ftiUy. "The toast of the evening, gentlemen. We are
hard-working sailors, in the service of our country. We
are not unwilling, though we get more knocks than glory.
A STOUT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 145
Pay is small and promotion is slow ; but we can all feel
bright when we think of the future and of lovely woman.
Back yonder in the land we love, await us those we love —
* Sweet-hearts and Wives / ' " .
It was drunk in silence, but in a minute they all broke
out into applause at Larkin's speech.
*' Fill up, fellows, and IHl give you a toast ! " cried
Robinson. "The health of our distinguished messmate,
Mr. Larkin. May his promotion come soon, anyhow."
The liquor went down with a hearty good-will, and Lar-
kin arose to reply.
" Speech ! speech ! " called everybody.
*' My friends, I am honored by this mark of your esteem,"
began the orator, in a serious funny way. " I am unaccus-
tomed to public speaking, and stand before you alike sur-
prised and unprepared. Under these circumstances you
will pardon me " — he paused impressively and looked
around — " if I sit down instead of standing up, and tell you
a story about a Dutchwoman."
"Yes!" "Sit down!" "Story!" "Give us the
Dutchman ! " shouted the chorus. " Well," said he resum-
ing his campstool ; " you had better all get a drop of the
cratur in your glasses before I begin.
"When I go on leave I have to take a stage-coach and
travel a hundred miles, part of it over one of the meanest,
roughest roads in the world. It takes twenty-four hours,
night and day work, enough to try the patience of a fisher-
man. You pitch, and roll, and get bumped, till you're so
sore you feel like a big travelling boil. Then the eating
along the road ! — it would kill Porp to make one trip.
The farmers try to give you as little and mean as they can
for a shilling.
" When I got to Lancaster I took good pains to be on
hand at the stage office early, for I wanted an end seat.
The middle seat has no back but a leather strap, worse
than nothing would be. You keep trying to lean on it,
and so does the other man ; and when he jolts forward it
7
14:6 LOVE AFLOAT.
slacks up and you fall back, and when he jolts back it
tautens out like a span and shoots you forward.
" I got there in good time, but somebody was ahead of
me. I paid for my passage, got my trunk put on, and
jumped in, resolved to stick to my seat in spite of anything
short of a woman in distress — we always have to break out
for them, you know. I believe Porp there would give up
a chicken pie to save a woman from starvation. When
I got in there was a Dutchman and his wife — I mean a
Dutchwoman and her husband — on the back seat. By
Jupiter ! I found it was me and my old man before I got
home. The next two passengers that came were very
reasonable sized men. One of them sat with me and the
other took the strap.
" It was almost time to start — about one bell in the
first dog-watch, and I was just feeling good that we weren't
going to be crowded, when along came two great big fat
fellows — enormous chaps — carrying a trunk and blowing
like — Porps. The fellow on the middle seat saw them,
too. ' Jerusalem cricket ! ' said he, and he slipped over along-
side me. Three on a seat is a pretty close fit ; but I
couldn't help it, and said nothing. The fat men got
their trunk put up, and then they surrounded the coach.
One came to the starboard door, one to the larboard. By
the Hokum, as the bosen says, it was a tight match for' em
to get through the doors. They squeezed in though, and
settled down surprisingly quick. All this time they
had'nt said a word, and when they got their seats they
just sat still and stared at us like fishes, with never so much
as a wink.
"The Dutchwoman and her husband had been still,
too; but when we got under way she began to make up for
lost time. It was ' John ' this and * John ' that, * John,
you preak dat glock ' — ^he had a wooden clock in his lap —
and 'John, you growds me.* 'John' one thing or another
till I was sick of her. However, she quieted down after
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 147
awhile and went to sleep. I wished I could sleep. I was
crushed as flat as a flounder.
" The road for the first sixty miles was pretty level,
and we didn't bump much, but I wondered how the old
lady managed so much better than the rest of us. About
two o'clock the moon went down, and the driver stopped to
light the lamps. One of them shone into the stage a min-
ute, and I saw how the old lady was stowed. She had got
up on the seat, and braced her knees against the side of
the coach, and was lying back on the old man. There
he sat, one arm around his wife, the other holding the
clock, bolt upright in the corner, wide awake and the
picture of misery."
" Patience on the lee cat-head, smiling at a wet swab,"
put in Thick.
*' Precisely. Fill your glass, Mr. Thick."
" When the light shone in, it woke the Dutchwoman up.
* John,' said she, * make dat driver take dat light out my
eye.' John didn't say a word. We went ahead again di-
rectly, and I believe I slept a little, for the next I knew it was
broad daylight and. the sun was shining, and I was chilled
through and so stiff" you couldn't have bent me without
breaking me. There sat the two fat men, staring at me
like fishes still, and there was the poor Dutchman, look-
ing ten years older, and there sat his wife, as fresh as Lake
Erie. * John,' says she, * I pleeve you grack mein glock.'
*Nein,' says he. * Yah, you grack dat glock mein mutter
gif me fife year.' And she went on and abused John, and
fussed and scolded till I felt like kicking her out. When
she looked at the clock there wasn't anything the matter
with it after all.
" The road was a little rough by this time, but we did
pretty well. The fat men were too heavy to surge much,
though the Dutchwoman began to look uneasy about some-
thing. However, we did very well till we stopped, and
got breakfast, and set off* again. Then the road was awful.
"The fat men commenced to bob about tremendously.
148 LOVE AFLOAT.
They would slip back on the scat and squeeze the Dutch-
woman and her old man, until a big jolt would come and
throw them forward on us again. 1 saw the old woman
was getting mad, and I looked out for squalls. The fat
man in front of her had a stern like a junk — round and
big and full in the run, you know — and he took up room
enough a't his best.
" By and by it breezed up a bit. * John ! ' she whis-
pered, sharp and angry, ' make dat man keep on he seat.'
John didn't do anything, but the fat man slipped as far
forward as he could. He worked back again directly, and
it began to freshen. * John, dat man on my knee.' John
said nothing, but the fat fellow crowded forward again.
But he couldn't help sliding back with the motion of the
stage, and it was a weighty matter for him to move him-
self. Then it blew a strong breeze. * John, you tell dat
man keep off o' me ! ' John didn't answer. * John ! you
hear what I tell you ? ' Not a word out of John. * John !
you tell Mm he must move ! ' No answer. * A hretty sort
of a husband you is ! Say, you man, you move!"*
" The fat man moved forward with a sigh. Pretty soon
it was, * Mister, you get off o' my leg ! ' It was a moder-
ate gale now. Pretty soon again, ' Mister, you keep off
o' me, by dam I ' Every time she spoke he would slide for-
ward, but in a minute he would slip back. * Mister, you
get out o' my lap ! ' Strong gale blowing now. * Mister,
you got to get off o' my lap, you hear mef* * Mister, you
hurt my leg ! ' ' Mister, you must get out o' my lap^ by
dam ! ' ' Mister, woman no like every man set in her lap.'
' Mister, you keep out o' my lap, or I stick a pin in you, by
Lord I ' Roaring hurricane.
" I watched the fat man closely then. For awhile he
managed to keep forward, but in five minutes he forgot
and slipped back. All on a sudden his face twitched and
got red, and he gave a squirm and a groan. She had
done it.
" The fat man looked at me, and for the first and last
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 149
time he spoke. 'Young — man,' says he, * would — you —
jest — as lief— change — seats — with — me?* I changed
with hira, and we had a dead calm.
" Gentlemen, I propose the health of a veteran tar,
browned by the suns of twenty cruises, toughened in a
thousand gales, gray in his country's service, our esteemed
guest, the bosen ! "
The toast was drunk, and Thick began. "I suppose
you want me to spin you a yarn like Mr. Larkin done, but
I'm thankful to say I live on the coast, and never have
occasion to go out o' sight o' salt water between cruises.
" I've seen enough that's hard to forgit in my life, and
when it comes in natural I can spin yarns as long as any-
body ; but jest to set down and pick good stuff out of all
the oakum in my head, and reel that off in a nice slick fox,
ain't so easy. I dont believe I can do it, if you'll let me off.
" But what Mr. Larkin was sayin' about bein' tough
and weather-beaten reminds me o' when I was a young
man in the service and went out bosen's mate o' the
schooner Grampus. We was cruisin' in the Gulf, pro-
tectin' merchantmen, for I tell you the pirates was worse
then nor now — a bloody sight worse. They robbed as
much and murdered more. I've know'd a loaded merchant-
man to lay three months in the Havana waitin' for a con-
voy, and then git snapped up outside the harbor.
" We had been down to the Spanish Main with a con-
voy, ^nd chased a pirate and run him ashore below San
Antonio comin' back, and we was proceedin' to Charleston
accordin' to orders, for some ships waitin' for us there.
That Grampus always was a damned unlucky thing.
She was fast, I allow ; but it was because she was sparred
too heavy. By the Hokum ! what a clew she spread ! her
main boom, young gentlemen, was — ninety— foot — long!
Well, she was over-sparred, and she was all cut away be-
low, so she had no bearin's, and her battery was too heavy
for her, and we had fired away most of our ammynition,
and eat up our pork and hard tack, and drunk up our
150 LOVE AFLOAT.
water — what comes out of the hold goes over the bows,
you know — till she was as empty below as a waister's
scouse-pan at one bell. By the Boot ! but I was scared of
her, young man as I was. I ricollect it well.
" We was joggin' along with a light breeze on the port
beam and sheets eased off, and the north coast jest in sight
to leeward, and dreamin' of no danger. Young gentlemen,
I am ashamed to own it, but a squall got up in the south-
west, and come on us, and capsized us, and nobody seen
it till it was close aboard. Every fool aboard was lookin'
to wind'ard or nowhere. The first I know'd I heard the
sails flop. * Breeze a dyin' out,' thinks I, and looks to
wind'ard. Everything was still and the sky was clear thei*e,
but I couldn't account for losin' the breeze so sudden, and
I felt uneasy. But I didn't have time to mickerate long,
for while I was starin' I felt a cold puff on the back o'
my neck. I turned around quick, and good Lord ! there
it was not three cables lengths off, on the lee quarter, by
the Piper ! a livin' mass of white foam with a gray cloud
over it, racin', bilin' along straight for us. *Look to lee-
ward ! ' I hollered to the mate that had the deck. *Hard
a larboard ! ' he yells. * Flow the head sheets ! haul over
the boom, Thick, for God's sake ! ' I wasn't waitin' for no
orders then, though. I was there before he spoke, and two
other men with me. We might 'a saved her, for the head
sheets was gone and she was a wonderful craft to luff,
always, but jest as the boom was amidships — youngs gen-
tlemen, let this be your lesson. Don't neglect little things,
or the day may come when you'll suddenly find 'em big.
A little thing cost the United States the schooner Gram-
pus. A reef point had worked loose in the eyelet right
over the sheet block, and some fool had been amusin' him-
self by puUin' it through as fur as he could and leavin' the
end hang down. It was jest long enough to choke the
luff o? the boom sheet, when we had got the boom amid-
ships and begun to heave it over to larboard. Two inches
shorter and it would 'a gone clear. I tried to pull it out
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 151
but it was jammed so tight in the shell, I didn't have time
enough. The squall struck her, and over she went at one
turn, clean over, keel up, perfectly turned turkle.
" As luck would have it, we had got both our big boats
in the waist that mornin' to caulk and paint 'em, for they
was leakin' bad ; and they was all caulked tight as bottles
when the schooner was knocked down and layin' loose on
deck. As luck would have it again, they was both launched
clear, so most of the men in the water got to 'em soon, and
hung on. They managed to upright 'em, and get in, and
bale 'em out, while they was driftin' away. I lost sight of
'em directly in the rain, and when the squall blowed off
clear again, they was clean gone.
" I never got in the water at all, but as she turned, kep'
a-runnin' up the top side of her, till she give two or three
wallows, and stopped, and I found myself a settin' on her
keel, scrapin' acquaintance with the barnacles. The bloody
beast ! But by the Hokum ! I was glad jest then she
hadn't done no worse. First thing I see was men a-crawl-
in' up the weather side of her bottom, which they done
eas3'- enough, and them to leeward, tryin' to get up and
droppin' back) ker splush ! Then I see a man, Tom Teel,
a chummy o' mine — I thought a heap o' that man — he's dead
now — died of the fever on the west coast of Africky in the
Somers — and he was a strong swimmer. He was about
four or five fathoms to leeward, tryin' to fight up against
the wind. He was a losin' a little, all the time, and couldn't
'a done as well as he done but he got some advantage from
the lee of the hull. I see him open his mouth, and I know'd
he was hailin' me; but though he had a powerful' voice, I
couldn't hear nothin' for the roarin' o' the wind. I jest
put my hand across my mouth for a sign to him not to
waste his wind hollerin', and I looked around for somethin'
to heave him. By Gash ! but I was glad when I see a line
washed and blowed up high enough for me to reach it. It
was one of the boat falls and a plenty of it. I hove the
end to Tom and had him aboard in less time than it took
152 LOVE AFLOAT.
Mr. Munson to carry away the launch's topmast on the
main-yardarm coming alongside with the liberty-men in
Santa Cruz.
" Then we got the rest of the fellows to leeward up and
counted heads. It was awful to think that inside of her
the mpn that had no warnin' was dyin' so nigh us, right
under us, and we unable to help 'em. We had nothin' to
cut through her bottom with, and if we had we wouldn't 'a
done it for she would 'a sunk right under us in five min-
utes. All that kep her up, she was so tight the air in her
couldn't come through her seams but slow.
" Well, we set on her keel three days and nights. It
fell dead calm, and there we set burnin' up in the sun,
Btarvin,' dyin' for a drink o' water, and the big goggle-
eyed sharks a-cruisin' around slow and easy, right close
aboard. Every little while one of 'em would poke his ugly
flat nose against the side of the schooner, and look at us
solemn, as much as to say, 'Take your time — you're my
meat.' By the Hokum ! they made me half-crazy. I
wanted a dozen good lances to give "em a taste of my qual-
ity with. And there we set three days and nights, and her
a settlin' steady, sir, and the little blubbers comin' up from
her seams every roll."
Just here Mr. Young gave a giggle. Turning to him,
Thick asked severely, "Might I inquire what you are
laughin' at, sir ? "
" At the little blubbers," answered Young, with another
snicker.
"If you had 'a been there you wouldn't laugh. It's
thirty odd year ago and I never felt like laughin' yet, when
I ricoUect it. Them blubbers was our certain death if
nothin' come to take us off, and we know'd it."
" I didn't mean anything," apologized Young.
" Shake hands on it, Mr. Young. You're a little too fond
of your fun, but I know you're a good-intentioned young
officer. Well," he resumed, " we was took off, or I
shouldn't be a-drinkin' your grog to-night, young gentle-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 153
men. A greasy little Spanish brig, though I oughtn't
to say anything against her, seein' what she done for us —
she picked us up, and the Grampus went down three hours
afterward and us ojfof her. So you know she wouldn't a
kep' up much longer with us on her. We run into the
Havana, and there was most of the rest, officers and all.
There was only eleven lost."
" Well, bosen, we are much obliged, and will let you
off your 2/ar/i. But tell us how you were reminded of this
accident by my calling you a tough tar," said Larkin.
" Oh, that's plain enough," responded Thick, with sim-
plicity. *' An officer ought to be tough and able to stand
most anything. And he needs ' picklin' too. It takes a
deal o' soakin' in brine to make a prime officer. Look at
Mr. Garnet, now."
" Where does the pickling come in ? " asked Munson.
*' Why, wasn't we in a pretty pickle on the schooner's
bottom ? " The mids declared that he had perfectly sup-
plied the missing link in the chain of sequent deductions.
Then they drank the health of Dry Bob the Gunner,
but failed to get a story out of him. He declared that his
junk was all on charge, but promised to have a yarn ready
before the next time.
" Bosen," asked Robinson, " were you ever on the coast
ofAfrica?"
" One cruise, in the Adams," replied Thick, " and I'm
thankful it's no more. It's nasty work hangin' around the
mouths o' them black muddy rivers, watchin' for slavers.
First you know, all hands is getting the fever, and then
there's nothing for it but to run to sea till it blows out of
the ship. -I pray the Lord never to send me on that sta-
tion again, by the hokum ! "
« Isn't it awful hot there ? " asked Smith.
" Hot ! It's meltin'. I've seen the master tryin' to get
a meridian, and the sextant melted, leavin' nothin' but the
handle in his hand, and the metal run down inside his coat-
sleeve and burnt it all to blazes. I see a man sweat so
7*
164 LOVE AFLOAT.
much he was all dried up, and from one hundred and fifty
he didn't weigh but fifty pounds. We had to lay him on
a board and carry him — 'fraid to touch him, lest he'd crum-
ble like a pie-crust. The doctor made him drink two
quarts o' soup with win-e in it, and hung him over the quar-
ter to soak. I see a man go to sleep in the shade, and the
sun got on to his legs, and when he woke up they was
cooked clean to his knees. We had a little dog aboard,
and that man got no peace of his life afterward for the
dog's following him about the decks, snippin' and bitin'
at his trousers legs, tryin' to get at the roasted meat."
"Avast heaving, bosen ! " "Come down a snake!"
"Heave and pawl!" "Take a turn!" *' Choke his
luff! " — cried out the laughing youngsters.
When their noise had somewhat diminished, Godolphin
solemnly spoke. "Mr. Thick, you must'nt expect me to
believe all that."
"As you please, Mr. Porp. I generally puts things,
and leaves 'em to the power of my hearers' minds."
"But, bosen," said Munson, "I know it is thundering
hot down there. How do the men stand to work in the
Sim?"
"They couldn't stand it. The men is always spared
the heavy work. They hire the niggers — Kroomen, they
call 'em, cause they use 'em for the time bein' as crews — to
do all the boat work and a good deal of the rest. Them
niggers is a sweet-scented set; d — d dish-faced, pitcher-
mouthed, bench-legged fellows, with ears like saddle-skirts
and noses like a baboon. They've all got names, too.
Every mother's son of 'em is named John, and lots of 'em
is called Friday. I know'd one named Christmas, and one
was Easter, and we named one Fourth of July. He was
mightily pleased with it — thought it was pretty, and it was
too good for that black rascal. Fourth of July stole a
pair of my breeches, him ! There was all the bells —
One Bell, Two Bells, and so on — and John Sheepshanks and
Bowline-on-the-bight, and Flemish Hoss, and Bottle o'
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 155
Beer. Bottle o' Beer was a general favorite. He was
head man and tol'able honest — for a nigger."
" I reckon mighty few of those fellows are so honest but
they'll find a hotter climate than even the coast of Africa
hereafter," said Munson.
** Don't know about that," replied the boatswain.
*' Some no 'count will make good angels, to my way
o' thinking."
" Coal black angels with woolly wings, eh ? " said Lar-
kin, comically. " Quoth the raven, * it's agin my princi-
ples.' Come, fill up, fellows."
" You'd better not laugh so loud," cautioned the gun-
ner. "You recollect that night ? "
" That's so, young gentlemen," said Thick. " Mr.
McKizick will stand a good deal, specially on a Saturday
night, but you must expect his patience to give out some
time."
" Ah, William," cried one of the young rogues, " I
know what's the matter. You recollect how Idle Bob was
about to get the best of you, and you don't want to tackle
him again."
"I know you young gentlemen got the better of us
both, and I felt like a fool with the first luff talkin' to me.
You can't play that trick twice."
Then the whole crowd turned on Harrison, and tried to
get him to challenge Thick to finish the match. At first
he gave no better answer than to sit smiling at them, then
he said, "Thick's too strong. I'm afraid of him. He
could knock a fly a mile." They left off urging, and Thick
asked Young to sing that song about the Sailor Boy's
Good-by.
" Want to hear it, fellows? "
" Yes." « Fire away, Young I " " Pipe up ! " came
from the party.
So. encouraged he sang a short little song, with the old
sentiment and stereotyped words about the sailor boy, and
home, and friends, and sweetheart, and farewell, and roll-
156 LOVE AFLOAT.
ing ocean, and bright anticipations of returning with fame
and cash. The music was fair, and the voice sweet, and all
enjoyed it.
As soon as he finished, Thick began, without invitation,
a dolorous ditty. He sang in the old lee-gangway style,
droning out the words, and increasing, by the severity of
his yellow visage, the effect of an air already sufficiently
sad. The whole thing was irresistibly comic.
" Come, all ye landsmen, stout and bold,
I'll bowse your attentions cliock-a-block ;
I'll sing you a story oft's been told,
The loss of the old Peacock.
" Now steady, my boys, the captain cried.
Keep silence fore and aft.
I'm sure it would, do you good, ,
To see him work the craft."
So far he got, when Young, unable to control himself, let
out the end of a laugh ; and instantly all hands broke into
a roar. The noise was so great, that all of them thought of
McKizick at once, and the stream of sound ceased suddenly,
cut off by the moral spigot. But dread of the first luff, and
unwillingness to hurt Thick's feelings, were not enough to-
gether to prevent the sputterings of fun which escaped from
several, as they recalled the boatswain's solemn face and
creaking voice. He looked very indignant for an instant,
and then softened, saying that " Young gentlemen would
have their laugh at anything." He even tried to join in,
but did not enjoy it, and only got into the dry grins.
Mr. Young relieved him.
He rose to his feet, rather exhilarated, and proposed as
a toast, " The downfall of the barbarious Moors ! "
" Yes," said Thick, sighing deeply, and wiping his
mouth. " Yes, d — n 'em, they have been much damage to
us. Do you know where the ship is goin', Mr. Larkin ?"
Larkin took a chart down off the lockers, and uaroUed
it. They all gathered around the table, from which the
spilled punch was wiped with an improvised swab — the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 157
inner side of a pea-jacket — before the chart was spread
out. It was a very imperfect one, showing but few of the
shoals and rocks. The Cobre was pointed out as their
centre of operations ; but though the river was known to be
navigable for several miles, there were no soundings laid
down, and no indications given by which it could be
entered.
When they had finished looking at it, Young, who was
slightly confused by the liquor he had drunk, and was
under the impression that he ought to reply to his own
toastjwith a story, began : " I could tell how the barbarious
Moors fetched it all in my head, as well as the bosen did
awhile ago — "
"All what, old man?"
" Why ! " looking about surprised. " This story Pm
going to tell."
« All right ! " " Heave ahead ! " " Trip and cast her ! "
"Hoist away the flying-jib ! " exclaimed the chorus.
" It was last summer, when I was in the receiving-ship
at Philadelphia," he began, " the captain, old Maskelyne —
Maskelyne's dad, you know, fellows — lived in the spar-deck
cabin. Reckon you've all heard what a careful old codger
he is — has his quart'-deck midshipmen in to report the
weather three times every night. Used to have *to do it
sometimes, myself. He was awful hard to wake up, old
Maskelyne — used to have to shake him and roll him in the
bed, he ! he ! Then he'd wake up on a sudden and roar
out, ' Who in ^s that f ' Golly ! I was scared the first
time. I found out all you had to do was to sing out how
the weather was and walk out.
" Old Maskelyne's two nieces come aboard one day —
Maskelyne's cousins you know — such pretty girls — 'bout
seventeen. Oh, me." He stopped and sighed. " Fellows,
let's drink Susan Maskelyne's health — Susan's my sweet-
heart — Sat^d'y night, yon know ? "
The middies were all a little elevated by this time, and
acceded very willingly. " Fellow-citizens !" cried Larkin,
158 LOVE AFLOAT.
" the health 'f her who reigns s'preme 'n the bosom of our
frien* — Miss Susan Maskelyne ! "
Young went on : " Thank you, fellows. 'S kind o' you.
"Well, they were both aboard, Susan and Annie, and I had
to show 'em the ship, and then old Maskelyne had me in
the cabin, to play with 'em, he said ; but we did better'n
that, and I saw a heap of 'em, and I flatter myself I made
a good impression. That evening it come on to blow
strong up the river, and raised a chopping sea for the Dela-
ware, and the girls were afraid to go ashore, so the captain
told 'em he'd put 'em in a bed aboard, and they were
tickled to death at the idea of sleeping aboard a man-of-
war. But I did'nt know anything about their being
aboard — honor bright — I thought they had gone ashore.
" I had the middle \^atch, and I was walking with the
officer of the deck, and he was spinning me a yarn, and
suddenly at five bells says he, * Mr. Young, the captain
left orders to report the weather at four bells. Get in as
quick's you play ! ' So I ran aft, and by the sentry at the
cabin door. He said something to me, but I paid no atten-
tion, I was in such a hurry. I went right in the captain's
state-room, and took him by the shoulder as usual, and
begun to shake him like a bunch of oakum. Thinks I,
*he shakes very easy to-night.' Then he stirred, and I
knew that was the right time to catch himj and I com-
menced to report, * Wind dying out, and it's raining hard,'
and golly ! such a screech ! * Ow ! ow ! ow ! ' I nearly
jumped out of my skin, but I held on to him. The orderly
came in with the deck-lantern just then, and there I was
with my hand on Susan's shoulder, and Annie sitting up in
the bed screaming, and Susan screaming too, and me in
my oil-skin looking foolish and dripping on the carpet, and
the beast of a marine holding the light up, and the worst
of it all was old Maskelyne woke up and come over. You
know how fat he is, and he has the rheumatism, and he
had on a long red flannel night-gown, and he looked
bloody. Says he, *You young scoundrel, what are you
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 159
doing in my nieces' room ? ' and he came near lambasting
me before I could explain it. That beast of a sentry ! he
ought to have stopped me. I fell in love with Susan the
minute he brought in the light and I saw who it was ; but
she never would let me explain, and I know she hates me.
I tell you what, fellows, a fellow feels queer when he finds
he's got the wrong pig by the ear, and is shaking a pretty
girl, instead of the old man."
" A pretty girl," said Thick, musingly. " I don't deny
she was, but, young gentlemen, you should 'a seen my wife
when we was married. There's nothin' to tell her looks but
a piece o' pfbetry I watched one o' the men writin' on the
fokesel paint-work with a lead pencil. I was goin' to report
him, but it was so pretty I let him off when he told me he
made it up himself.
" ' The rose is red,
The violet's blue,
Sugar's sweet,
And so is she.'
"That's her number. Young gentlemen, you will never
know what true comfort is till you get married. I approve
of all of you havin' sweethearts — reg'lar, decent sweethearts,
I mean — at home where you live, and not goin' on forever
like Mr. Hartley and Mr. Garnet is doin', with no concern
for the future. , You all marry as soon as you can'. If you
can get a good wife, marry as soon as you're passed. I
have seen a good deal of the service, and I know it saves
much for an officer to marry young. Isn't that so, Harri-
son ? " said he, appealing to the gunner.
" Sometimes it is."
" Always so, always. Now I'm only a bosen, and never
will be anything more, and jest look at my house. I own
every stick of it, and the land, too, and I can raise cabbage
between cruises, if it comes in the summer time."
Thick went on and gave a full history of his house, from
its first conception in his mind, when he was * in the States
160 LOVE AFLOAT.
frigate round the Horn,' down to the time the last piece of
furniture was put into it. He told them how he ' wouldn't
have no cellar dug, but jest done it himself, after the house
was built.' How he * couldn't get the dirt out handy, and
rove a double Spanish burton, and hooked the block to the
basket so he could bowse it out without stirring from under
the house, empty it with a spilling-line, and overhaul the
burton with the same, to bring the basket back for another
load.' How the basket wore out and he ' had to borry a
wheelbarry.' How there was a gully on one side of his big
gate, which caused wagons coming in to * take a rank sheer
to starboard and nigh capsize,' and how he wheeled dirt
and filled it up. He advised them, when their future wives
were secured, to be kind and attentive. " Don't run about
too much nights, gentlemen, the women don't like it. I'm
a mason, and I have to 'tend the lodge when I'm home, but
my wife never did like me to go though I always manage
to be in by two bells. There a brother died — he was a
shoemaker — and I couldn't get away from the lodge till
five bells, and when I got home it was nigh six bells. And
there was my wife, settin^ up ! She set up all that time for
me. Says she, * William, we've been married seven year,
and I never know'd you to stay out later than nine o'clock
before.' Says I, ' I know it, Mary Ann ; and I'm sorry for
it.'" From all Thick's account she must have been a
notable housekeeper and a bit of a shrew.
Most of this time the middies had been more interested
in the fast-ebbing bowl of punch, and in shooting bits of
hard bread at Porp, who was sound asleep, and wheezing in
the corner, than in Thick's talk. It was getting so late
they dared not make any noise, though all more or less
inebriated, but when Thick began to relate the manner and
incidents of his courtship they all listened again. He told
first how he met the young woman, and scared away a rival
with his brass-buttons; and then the course of his true
love ran smooth as lie carried the story along to where
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 161
Mary Ann had accepted him, and he had only the opposi-
tion of the old folks to encounter.
"You see, young gentlemen, they hated soldiers, and
like a pair of fools, though I shouldn't like Mary Ann to
hear me say so, they put me into the same category. I
argied with 'era, hut 'twas no use. They said I wore the
clothes and took the government pay, and I was no better
nor a fightin' pauper, livin' off o' poor folks ashore ; and
sailors never had no principle's, nohow. So the thing was
a standin' so, and Mary Ann vowin' she'd wait till they
was both dead before she'd give me up, when I got my
orders to the Adams for the West Coast. I goes to her
and I says, ' Mary Ann, I am ordered to the coast of
Africky ! ' The poor thing, she turned as pale as fresh
paint-work. Says she, * Oh William ! ' says she — it was
all she could say. Then I told her how she stood a good
chance o' seein' me no more, and how she must marry me
that evenin', for I had to go off to Portsmouth in a schooner
that was to sail next mornin' ; 'I will,' said she, and I
know'd she'd do it. So I told her to pretend to go out
before supper to see a friend o' hern, and get her friend
and walk around to the Methodist church, and I'd have a
preacher primed to splice us. She promised, and all she
said against it was she wished she had a chance to fix her
clothes up better before she was married. I got my things
aboard the schooner, and I see the preacher and made it
all right with him; and then I waited mighty impatient
till six o'clock, and went around to the church with a
chummy o' mine. Mary Ann was there, and we was
spliced in a jiffy, and a good, smooth, long splice it was,
young gentlemen. She cried a bit, but I cheered her up
as we walked toward the house. There was three rooms
in it on the ground floor. The old folks slep up stairs, and
Mary Ann's room was the back one below. When she
got home she begun cryin' again, and I couldn't stop her.
I told her she would wake the old folks up, but she vowed
she -didn't care — she was my wife anyhow, but when
162 LOVE AFLOAT.
would she ever see me again! I jest told her I wasn't
gone yet, and so long as she was my wife, I could see no
reason for goin' before mornin'. Well, young gentlemen,
if a gal is really fond of a man, she will keep him along-
side on most any terms.
*' Her pa heard us come in and go in her room, and he
come down stairs and wanted to turn me out, but I advised
him to go back to his wife, and leave me alone with mine.
I showed him the stifferkit,* and told him if he didn't get
out I'd put him out, and he went off. I see no more of him
for three yeai*6.
" Next mornin' by day I was aboard the schooner, help-
in' get her under way ; but before I left I give Mary Ann
three hundred dollars, and told her she should have more,
for I would leave her a 'lotment o' my pay, and she had the
law on her side, and if they troubled her jest to take board
and live separate. When my wife's pa and ma see the
money, they treated her wonderful polite. I declare, I
thought that cruise on the coast was the longest cruise I
ever see. By the Boot ! "
" How long 'go was this, bos'n ? " asked Larkin.
*' Seventeen year ago, this month."
Larkin tipped a tipsy wink to the other mids, and went
on : " Got 'ny chil'r'n, bos'n ?"
" Two, as fine as you ever see," replied Thick.
"How old are they, bosen?" asked Smith, who had
caught the wink.
" I see what you're steerin' for very well, young gentle-
men. My daughters is sixteen year and three months, and
thirteen year and three months ; and thankful I am they is
of the age they ought to be."
"Gennlem'n," said Larkin frowning, "on'y one more
glass 'piece. F'lup ! Gennlem'n, healt' 'sting'sht 'oman.
" ' Rose red,
Vil'ts blue.
Sugar's sweet,
So's she.'
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 163
Ha ! Ha ! Ha ! Great'n good 'oman. Wife 'f our frien' —
Miss Fick ! "
The boatswain appeared flattered by this mark of at-
tention.
The party got out pipes and cigars, and with uncertain
steps went forward under the swinging hammocks to their
smoking-place, leaving Porp wheezing noisily in the corner.
They received sundry maledictions on the way, from sea-
men whom they awakened by attempting to stand up
straight when directly underneath them. Young was about
the furthest gone, though even he was not too full for utter-
ance. " Mr. Young," said Thick, as the men grumbled at
being disturbed, "if any of these United States seamen
offer to punch you in the eye, tell 'em you've jest been
punched in the bread locker, and they'll let you alone."
" Sh'up ! " replied Young, feebly. " Your voice too
fick for jokin'."
CHAPTER XIH.
O'N' the following morning the usual preparations for
Sunday inspection were made. The decks were washed
clean before breakfast ; and the warm sun and wind had
almost dried them by eight bells, when the men sat down
around their tarpaulin table-cloths to eat the morning
scouse. The scene on the Fish's spar-deck at that hour was
pleasant. Everything was as neat and nice as it well could
be. The rigging was laid down for running, the paint was
milky white after its scrubbing, the bright-work shone
brilliantly, and the sails by their close sheet-home, taut
leeches, and perfect trimming, bore witness to Garnet's care.
The men sat in groups, d la turque^ around the mess-cloths,
grubbing away with good appetites, and for the most part
in silence. Captain Merritt came up on the quarter-deck,
looked about and aloft, well-satisfied, and went down to
his breakfast.
1Q4: LOVE AFLOAT.
By degrees, as the men finished their meal, a confused
noise of talking, laughing, and jesting uprose ; and to this
Babelish sound was soon added the clatter of the tinware,
as the mess-cooks cleared off the cloths. The men felt
well. They had finished the heavy part of Sunday's work,
and they had a good loaf in prospect. Their stomachs
were full, and they were enjoying their pipes while they
put on their best clothes in a sunshine bright enough to
make a hypochondriac happy ; and they were now on their
cruising ground, and were hoping soon to have the excite-
ment without which it is impossible for sailors to live.
In the steerage, a party of dismal youngsters assembled
round, the table with aching heads, made a very light
breakfast. They were penitent, and thought " sweet-
hearts and wives " a poor afiair. Larkin " believed he'd
swear off." Young said he would too ; but Maskelyne,
who had escaped a headache by having his watch to keep
the night before, laughed at them, and told them they
would feel badly next Saturday night when they broke
their oaths.
" Better put in only a quart next time. Larkin made it
too good for you."
As no one replied it may be presumed the amendment
was accepted.
In the ward-room also, there was a silent party. Briggs
was looking bloated and puffy about the eyes as a conse-
quence of his mid-watch the night before. Hartley was
hurrying to finish his breakfast, and relieve Garnet. Rob-
bins was apparently affected in the same manner as the
midshipmen, though he had kept Saturday night alone in
his state-room, and with no reference to the ladies in his
deep^ potations. Doctor Bobus's solid remarks received so
little attention that he became silent, and the rest were not
great talkers at any time. They were all oppressed with
the sensation of a bore, which had soon to be endured, the
Sunday morning inspection. It was a wearying nuisance
in itself, and made necessary a good deal of troublesome
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 165
preparation. Item^ shaving, rendered a tedious and deli-
cate operation by the lively motion of the ship. Item^ a
complete clean rig, from head to foot. Item^ shirt buttons
to look after, clothes to have brushed, and shoes to have
polished by the lazy servants. Then the inspection itself.
It was tiresome to stand stock still, while the captain satis-
fied himself of the cleanliness of every man, and of each part
of the ship. Then would come the articles of war, and then
the captain would read the Episcopal service to all hands.
They were not to be so much bored as they expected
however.
During the inspection, the captain had paused in a
gun division to sternly contemplate a powder-monkey, a
lank yellow-faced boy, with enormous ears, who answered
in the ship to the appropriate nickname of "Dirty." He
had finished the examination, before which Dirty shrank
as usual, had given an order to Mr. McKizick to have " that
boy cleaned," and was about to start on ; when a long-
drawn, far-away, musical cry quavered through the ship.
" Sai-i-i-il, ho-o-o I "
It was the lookout on the fore-topsail yard. Every
man on board started involuntarily at the sound.
" Where away ? " bawled Dularge, who in his capacity
as ex-master had the deck.
" Dead ahead, sir," was the answer.
" Can you make her out ? "
" Topsail schooner, sir," replied the lookout.
" How is she standing ? "
" Hove-to, sir."
The captain heard, and went on more rapidly to com-
plete the inspection. " Beat the retreat, sir, and let's have
a look at this fellow," he said, when they had finished the
official tour.
The drum's quick note sounded out, the men standing
perfectly still in their places, until the last tap. Then, in
a moment, the silence and order were lost in a general
breaking up. All below rushed on deck to see the strange
166 LOVE AFLOAT.
vessel. Sails were not so plenty fifty years ago as now, in
those waters, and every body expected news, at least, from
the schooner.
The stranger was in plain sight from the deck, about
four miles away, right ahead. At that distance the eye
could not disengage more details from the mass than that
her spars appeared very long and that she was hove to.
The wind was light from the north, off the land, and the
Fish was moving but slowly. At the present rate of pro-
gress she could not expect to reach the schooner in less than
an hour and a half. The captain got out in the weather
quarter-boat and examined her long and carefully ; but,
apparently dissatisfied with his observation, he sent Burke
to the foretop-gallant mast-head, giving him his own glass.
Burke returned directly. " She's a topsail schooner, sir,
not like the common run o' coasters. Lookout says she
run from behind the p'int and backed her taupsle. She's
got a boat ashore on the key."
Every body by this time was full, of the excitement of
expectation, oflicers and men alike watching the schooner
and making conjectures.
" McKizick," said the captain, " come in the cabin and
let's look at the chart. It would be a fine thing if we had
flushed our bird already.
"Aye," answered the first lieutenant, as he descended
the ladder, " but he's flushed out o' gunshot. I'd rather
see him a cable's length abeam, with the hands at their
quarters."
" So would I, for that matter,'* said the captain, walk-
ing into the cabin. " And I'm thinking we won't be so
lucky as to get him in that situation very soon. Well,"
he continued, sitting down at a table on which the chart
was spread, and pointing out the plotted position of the
ship, " here's where we were at seven. Course west by
south, nine knots — puts us Aere." He made a dot with
the pencil. " Let's see how it agrees with the bearings.
South point of El Cayo del Pescador bears west, one^
A 8T0KY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 167
half south. Mount Alforjas, northwest by north, three
quarters north. Very near. A little southwesterly current,
I think."
"Let's see about where that schooner is," asked
McKizick. •
" Just about here," replied the captain, indicating the
spot with his pencil. " If he would lie still, we would be
up at six bells. Let's go on deck."
• The ship continued to approach the stationary schooner
slowly, very slowly it seemed to the eager men, though
every minute brought her more plainly in sight. Nearer
and nearer she came, as the dragging minutes went by.
Now she was within three miles. Another long twenty
minutes and it was only two. The schooner's boat could
now be seen lying up on the beach and the forms of men
could be made out near by. Aboard the Flying Fish all
were filled by a common impatience and a common fear of
seeing the stranger vessel fill away and stand ofi"; and
now they began to wonder why she did not go. There
was a presentiment of adventure on board : a craft look-
ing so much out of the common must be something out of
the common.
And still they draw nearer. Now she is within a mile
and three quarters. " McKizick, let the people shift into
working blue," orders the captain. The order goes to
Hartley, who has the deck, and in a minute the boatswain's
mates are passing the word, ^ Hear there, fore and aft,
shift yourselves in working blue I " The men rush below
for their clothes bags, reappearing directly, one by one,
much more plainly dressed in their substantial working
suits. All the good watching places are quickly filled
again. Now they are within a mile and a half, and the
erew becomes highly eager. " We're in shot of her ! "
" Why don't we blaze away at her ? " "Why don't the old
man send us to quarters ? " ai)d such like expressions are
heard all around. They watch the captain now as much
as they do the suspicious schooner.
168 LOVE AFLOAT.
"You may send the men to quarters and open the
magazine, McKizick," says the captain at last. "Don't
beat the drum."
" I'll relieve you, Mr. Hartley," says McKizick, walking
to him rapidly and taking the deck-trumpet. "-Go to your
quarters ! " he orders. " Mr. Briggs, open the magazine.
Boy ! tell the master-at-arms to send everybody to quar-
ters, and then tell the officers."
At the first sound of his voice the men flew to the
guns, and took their stations. " Cast loose and pro-
vide ! " commanded McKizick. The ship assumed at once
an aspect of bustle and confusion which looked little like
what it in reality was — a result of organization and drill.
In three minutes the work was done, the men ranged mo-
tionless in their stations, the last officer had reported his
division ready for action, and the ship was as still as the
death she menaced.
By this time the schooner was about a mile off, and as
distance always seems much shorter ov^er the water than
on shore, she appeared very near. The men on her deck
were as impatient as the seamen of the sloop, to judge by
their hurried, anxious movements. Every few seconds the
faint sound of a shout came over the interlying water to
the Fish. The men on the beach had launched their boat,
and sat in her with their oars poised, seemingly waiting.
Occasionally they gave a few strokes, to keep her from
drifting ashore in the light surf.
" Keep away a little, McKizick, and try him with the
bow-gun. Aim outside of him," ordered Captain Merritt,
who wanted to try whether the schooner was within easy
range, and give her commander an intimation that he had
better remain where he was,
" Boom J " went the gun. The shot sailed through the
air, a lessening black speck, and dropped in the water
short, and far to the left. Hardly did the fountain of
spray which it threw up fall again, than the schooner was
seen to brace round her topsail-yard, and stand directly
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 169
toward the sloop. A low murmur of disappointment was
beard among the crew.
" Why, he's all right." " He's standin' down to speak
to us." "He's no pirate." " He's comin' along^de! "
They were shortly to be undeceived, for the stranger
soon luffed up, and backed her topsail again, this time
heaving to, very near her boat.
As she came to the wind, two men appeared over the
crest of a sand hillock on the key, and ran down to the
beach, carrying a box between them. They reached the
shore, ran into the water to meet the boat, lifted the box
into her, and jumped in themselves. The four men at the
oars gave way powerfully, and sent their boat swiftly
through the water toward the schooner, one of those who
had come down with the box, standing up in the stern,
bending his body in time with the stroke, and waving his
cap as if to encourage the rowers to greater exertions.
Two minutes sufficed to put them alongside. They sprang
on board, and the boat seemed to follow them at once, so
quickly did she rise from the water. She was hoisted with
marvellous quickness in the pilot-boat way. At the same
time the schooner's main sheet was eased off, and her top-
sail braced sharp aback. She spun round on her heel, and as
her head came southwest, her topsail was braced full, and
her head-sheets drawn ; and she instantly shot away in that
direction.
" Open on him, McKizick ; elevate all you can, and fire
coolly," ordered the captain.
"Aye, aye, sir," responded the first lieutenant heartily.
" Mr. Dularge, flow the main-sheet, and brail up the
spanker ! Up helm ! Prime ! Point ! " he called, the
last two orders down the main hatch in a stentorian
voice, echoed by the officers of the divisions. " Fifteen
hundred yards ! train sharp for'd ! Keep her south, quar-
termaster."
The orders were rapidly obeyed, while the ship paid
8«
170 LOVE AFLOAT. *
off, and then all was still again. McKizick raised his
powerful voice once more.
" Gun captains, take your time pointing, and don't
waste the shot ! Aim at the hull ! "
Meanwhile the schooner, which had been within three-
quarters of a mile when she filled away, was plainly in-
creasing her distance. The ship was now steady on her new
course, and running faster for being so much off the wind.
" Commence firing ! "
Instantly the guns began to go off irregularly from
different parts of the ship; first one, then five or six
nearly together, then a pause, then the rest of the
broadside. The ship jarred and vibrated to her keel, and
the light spar-deck waved with the heavy concussions,
which were enough to stun an unaccustomed ear. The
captain eagerly watched the effect of the discharge, and
as soon as he could see through the smoke, looked ex-
ceedingly blank. Directly the guns were reloaded, and
another broadside followed, even more irregular than the
first. From that time gun followed gun at unequal inter-
vals, each firing independently of everything but the
quickness of its crew. The captain kept his glass on the
schooner for a few minutes, then shut it with a vexed em-
phasis, and turning to McKizick said sharply :
" Cease firing, sir ; he'll think we're playing with him.
Make sail, sir. Southwest, quartermaster."
" Cease firing ! " ordered McKizick. " On deck every-
body, to make sail ! "
The schooner had now very materially increased her
distance. The only visible effect of the sloop's fire was a
single hole in the mainsail ; neither the other sails, nor the
spars, nor the hull, showing any marks of shot. The gun
captains had all been too eager and hurried.
" Starboard stunsels ready for setting ! Keep fast the
lower stunsel ! " commanded McKizick, as the crew
swarmed up from below. In a few minuj;es the topmast
and topgallant studding-sails were up, each being set as
rapidly as possible, and without waiting on the others.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 171
The effect of these large additional sails, standing out
like wings to windward, was at once felt. The ship's speed
increased, and she seemed for awhile to hold her own with
the schooner. Though this was not the case, for the
smaller vessel had every advantage in the light wind and
smooth sea, she appeared to take an alarm. An enormous
light lib ran up on board her, and her main-topmast stay-
sail was also set. This increase of her sail power placed
the relative speed of the two vessels as it had been at first.
The schooner gained fast ; and it was evident that nothing
but an accident could bring her within gunshot again.
On that chance Captain Merritt kept up the pursuit.
After the guns were secured, the captain had the men
who fired them sent on the quarter-deck. " My lads," said
he, addressing them : " This is a poor start. In picking
you out to command the guns you were credited with some
coolness. You have all been to sea before and ought to
know better than to throw away shot in that foolish fash-
ion. Remember hereafter not to fire without first making
sure of your aim, if it takes you an hour. That'll do."
" Did anybody make her name out ? " he asked, turning
to McKizick.
The first lieutenant called Burke, him of the hawk
eye, knowing that what he had failed to see, all had.
" What was her name, Burke ? " ^
•" I don't know, sir," answered Bur^j^,*ifi, a tone which
implied he thought himself negligent an2**^^as sorry for it.
"There was two parts of it. The first was iay, but I
couldn't make the other out. Think it begun with an
IL sir."
" That's it, McKizick. I was sure she was our craft be-
fore, but that settles it," said Captain Merritt. " Well,
we've nothing to do but to keep her in sight as long as we
can. Keep a bright look out on her."
All the afternoon the schooner kept on gaining, till she
was only a dim speck in the horizon ; and before the sun
set she had disappeared altogether. Still Captain Merritt
172 LOVE AFLOAT.
kept on, bringing the ship by the wind at dark, and not
placing the usual sidelights. He hoped the pirate might
try to run back between the Flying Fish and the shore, and
that by hauling up she might be intercepted. But no
sight of ghostly sail or gliding hull rewarded the eyes of
the keen watchers.
Next morning the ship was alone, with nothing in view
but the distant mountains of Cuba. The captain gave up
the chase as useless, and headed back toward the mouth of
the river Cobre, which lies five miles west of El Cayo del
Pescador. The wind, which had been light before, srowly
grew fainter, at the same time backing gradually into
the west.
The ship was about half-way to the key, when an acci-
dent occurred which shows the necessity of the constant
watchfulness of mariners. It has been said that eternal vigi-
lance is the price of liberty. At sea it is the price of life.
Mr. Dularge had the deck for the afternoon watch.
He strutted up and down, delighted with the gentle breeze,
which could awaken no anxiety and occasion no labor.
In fact, it was only strong enough to fan him pleasantly.
He paid no more attention to the weather than he did to the
sails, allowing his indolent mind to loll in the slough of
vacancv. He did not notice a gradual massing of clouds
in twRiorth over the land, though it went on for hours,
the volume and appearance of the bank becoming continu-
ally more and more threatening. Johnson, the quartermas-
ter of the watch, saw the gathering danger from the start,
but he would not warn Dularge, because the foolish young
man had taken him to task for presuming to do so once
before. The consequence was, that Dularge continued to
parade up and down the deck in all the blissful security of
ignorance, until the men on deck were casting alternately
looks of amazement at him, and of fear at the approaching
squall. Their expressed thought would have been in some
such vigorous language as this : " Yon's a hell of a squall
rising, and that damned fool hasn't seen it." But the dis-
A StORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 173
cipline of the service had become so much of a second
nature to them that, although they knew their lives to be
in danger, they hesitated to speak to their superior on
the subject. A number of the petty officers and the older
seamen found . themselves, they did not know how, to-
gether on the forecastle at this juncture. They sent a
messenger, the captain of the after-guard, to ask why Ap
Jones would not point out the squall to the officer of the
deck. The messenger returned directly with the word
that " Ap said it was none of his business, and he wasn't
goiil^ to be damned again for putting his eyes in a fool's
head, and Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones was a different
sort o' man to that." This set the old sailors to thinking
very actively for the good of the service. The result was
that they almost forced an unwilling gray-headed boat-
swain's mate to speak to Dularge, at the last minute.
That officer knew there must be something of interest
to hear, from the unusual circumstance of a shipped man
approaching him when he was on duty : therefore he paid
an amiable and strict attention. His placidity quickly
left him on hearing the message and looking to the north-
ward.
His first agitated order was, " Boy ! tell the captain
to come on deck ! Stand by to take in the stunsels ! Hurry
up, will you ! "
The men sprang to man the necessary gear. They had
already without orders quietly prepared everything as far as
they could ; and, in spite of Dularge's confusion and blun-
ders, the outspreading wings began to fold up and disai?-
pear rapidly.
It is a feeling which a landsman cannot comprehend —
a sensation that strikes into the very marrow — that thrill
which runs through a man when he hears the sudden orders
yelled out by a surprised officer of the deck, in some
unknown emergency. " Danger-r— unexpected — he wasn't
ready — what is it ? " flashes instinctively through the brain ;
and in the same instant comes an impulse which drives one
174 LOVE AFLOAT.
to the deck. On this occasion, everybody in the ship,
Dr. Bobus included, was up in a moment ; and each one who
had a station there, went to it as if all hands had been
called.
Dularge was too late. He got the studding sails in,
and was clewing down the topgallant sails and royals,
when the squall struck the ship fair on the beam. Fortu-
nately the yards were exactly square, and the wind had
only the edges of the sails to act upon ; but even with this
little surface exposed she heeled over till the muzzles of her
lee guns dragged in the water. The fact that the*head
sails were set, while the mainsail and spanker were in,
joined to Johnson's jamming the helm hard up without
orders, kept the ship from luflfing. Then ensued a scene
which words are inadequate to bring fully before the mind
of one unfamiliar with the like. The sails shook with a
noise like rapid continuous musketry, a mighty flap of the
foresail now and then sounding like a great gun, loose
blocks rattled, the water boiled and foamed, officers
shrieked unintelligible orders, the men worked like giants
at the gear, and over and through everything, permeating
and inescapable, was the shrill, furious scream of the
squall. A blinding flood of rain slanted acutely down,
so thick it seemed solid, so swift that the drops stung
the faces they struck.
The captain was early on deck, and at once took the
trumpet from Dularge, assuming active command himself.
It was at the moment the light sails were half in, and the
squall was on the ship. He got them in and furled them
(at the risk of the lives of the men who could hardly cling to
the yards), with the exception of the fore-topgallant sail.
The lee sheet of that sail would not render through the
sheave, and the clew line was parted in a vain efibrt to pull
it through by main strength. The topgallant mast, carried
away at the cap with a crash, at last, hung abaft the top-
sail yard _by the rigging, an unsightly wreck. Captain
Merritt braced the foresail full, and the ship paid off
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 175
slowly before the wind, the topsail yards being at the
same time clewed down.
By degrees the squall abated, though it still blew in
puffs. The captain knew it would be unsafe to haul by the
wind while the main-topgallant mast was without any
forward support; so, surrendering the deck to the first
lieutenant, he gave orders to keep the present course, reef
the topsails, clear away the wreck, and get up a new mast
as soon as possible. This was done, and the ship close
hauled again, but by this time she had run a great distance
to the southward.
The breeze remained in the north, but fell away pro-
vokingly. The rest of that day, and through the night,
and all the next day, they beat up against it. In the after-
noon the key was sighted, and shortly afterward a sail was
reported in the northwest running across the sloop's track.
Though the Flying Fish's people had been of late through
too much to be excitable, still there was a great interest,
and the sail was closely watched.
The two vessels continued to approach upon converging
lines, but it soon became evident that the schooner — such
she was now seen to be — was so much the swifter that she
would pass the vertex long before the sloop-of-war could
reach it. Captain Merritt, thinking the breeze fresher in
shore, continued by the wind after La Hembrilla had crossed
his bows about two miles ahead. When he reached the
wake of the schooner the Flying Fish was kept away and
every sail set that would draw.
La Hembrella was fully two miles away and it was
nearly sunset. To the surprise of the man-of-war's people,
she again hove to, nearly in the former position, and lay
there waiting for them, as if in challenge. As s^e lay,
gracefully restrained but seemingly anxious to fly away
like a wild bird, rising and falling slowly on the light sea,
with the last red sunshine on her sails, she had a peculiar
air of tantalizing beauty.
When the ship was about a mile distant a gun was
176 LOVE AFLOAT.
carefully aimed and fired. The shot fell short and sunk.
Without further delay La Hembrilla filled her sails, hoisted,
her vast outer jib, and stood away to the eastward.
The Fish pursued as before, sailing in the light air
about two knots to the schooner's three. Captain Merritt
would not give it up, however ; for he was not the man to
let slip any possible chance of destroying so great an
enemy of commerce. Might she not run on a shoal ? or
strike a rock ? or spring a leak ? or lose a mast ? or meet
with some other of the million accidents of the sea suffi-
cient to diminish her wonderful speed ? It was possible ;
and he would feel badly to learn afterward that he had lost
a prize by not being at hand to take advantage of fortune.
CHAPTER XIV.
THAT evening there was a party of seamen and petty
officers seated and standing on the deck to leeward of
the foremast, enjoying the smoking hour and telling stories.
The narrations were partly of their own past lives, and
partly of what pretended to be the adventures of others.
The first kind of stories generally had about them an air
of truthfulness which compelled the hearer to believe ; the
second-hand yarns, it must be confessed, bore a strong
resemblance to myths. Some of these last had obtained a
sacredness in the mind of the narrators, ingrained by
superstition and long years of repetition. To them the
tales were true.
It is no surprising thing that followers of the sea should
be superstitious. They are ignorant, in the first place;
and formerly they were much more unlettered than now.
Their literature in the olden days was very small, fre-
quently nothing whatever. Confined to themselves in that
manner, they fell back upon tradition, the nurse of super-
stition. They retained among them, altered, of course, to
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 177
suit the age, stones as old as the first voyages of Prince
Henry, perhaps as old as the commerce of Tyre or the ex-
peditions of Carthage; and these tales continued to pass
along by word of mouth from generation to generation of
the toilers of the sea.
This old yarn-spinning tendency is now dying out.
The influence of science ^nd materialism has entered like
light (or poisonous malaria; suit yourself, reader) into
almost every nook and cranny in the world: it has affected
even the navy. The ocean was once dreaded, and escape
from its dangers looked upon as good luck, or as an exer-
cise of clemency on the part of Davy Jones. Now that
the mind of man understands, circumvents, even governs
the former tyrant, seamen begin to ascribe to that mind
a power in all things; and the supernatural recedes into
the dim and misty background of the past. -
But in addition to strange stories of old days, there
were other things that helped, with seamen, to stir the
supernatural ferment common to all men's blood into undue
activity. There are everywhere some men of an observing
cast, who are at the same time impressionable, and who
retain their impressions as a part of themselves forever.
Such men were in the service as common sailors. To them
the ghostly side of their life, their thoughts being other-
wise idle, was apt to be often presented ; on it they pon-
dered as deeply as men can. The strangeness and isola-
tion of an existence passed so near the inscrutable next life,
swaying between sky and earth ; the vast circle of the con-
fining horizon ; the vagueness of cloud shapes, the mystery
of the storm ; the unchanging heavens forever gemmed
with eyes of watching stars ; sombre sunsets ; pale moons
glimmering upon the waters and filling the ship with mys-
tical effects of murky shadows and phosphoric sails ; the
white soaring albatross, type of the sleepless wanderer ;
the little petrels, which flit unseen about vessels at night
uttering faint cries like the creaking of spars ; the unex-
plainable sounds to be heard in every ship ; — each had i||
8* ^
178 LOVE AFLOAT.
effect, and, all combined, a resistless effect, upon the men
prepared to receive it by nature. They, becoming imbued
with ghostliness, gave to the comrades with whom they
were in daily contact the same disease.
The group of men in the lee of- the foremast sat in one
irregular circle, with an opening on each side to allow pass-
ers-by to go through without obstruction. In the darkness
their faces were not visible, except when some pipe glowed
brightly under strong inspiration and illuminated the
smoker.
What a pity we cannot treat our minds in the same
way, reader, and thus get glory, being ** seen of men."
No — it would not do. We are so vain that to keep con-
stantly in sight we would soon burn up our little stock of
brains, and go out flaring, with stinking smoke. Have we
not seen a good writer do this very thing ?
- The men were Johnson and Burke, the quartermasters;
Smiley, the foremastman of the watch ; Lewis and Brown,
top captains ; one of the boatswain's mates ; both captains
of the forecastle, and several beside.
They naturally fell to talking of La Hembrilla, the ves-
sel they were pursuing at the moment. Let us imagine our-
selves in the ship, back fifty years ago, and let us stand
where we can hear the talk of the petty oflicers.
Captain of the Forecastle. — " Burke, what did the Old
Man say her name was ? "
JBurke, — " La Hembrilyer."
Lewis. — " Did you make it aout so ! "
BurJce.—'' Partly."
Xei^)*s.—" Dew tell ! "
Burhe. — " Done told."
Omnes.—'' Ha ! ha ! ha ! Yah ! yah ! yah ! "
Brown 2d. — " Purty good for a beginner, Burke. 'Bout
as much chance for us to overhaul that feller as there
would be to put the grains into a Mother Carey's chicken."
Boatswain^ s Mate. — " What makes ye speak o' such a
4fcink as hurtin' the bird, Brown ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 179
Brown 2d. — " Jest to show how onpossible it is for us
to ketch that slippery schooner. Nobody's goin' to hurt
her no more'n the bird — to my way o' thinki^'."
Captain of Forecastle. — " Lewis, that was a blamed
good shot o' your'n. If we'd a' been a little nigher
you'd a' hit the purty little pirate."
Lewis. — " I know'd I couldn't reach her, but I jest
wanted ter show 'em we could shoot stret, anyhaow."
Johnson — Ap Jones. — "And it's high time you was
a-makin* of 'em think so. 'Nother broadside like that'n o'
Sunday, and they'd not be afraid to let us come alongside."
Lewis. — " If all hed fired Sunday es stret as I done
to-day we coi^ld 'a gone alongside."
Boatswain^s Mate. — " Avast, Lewis ; you'll be claimin'
that hole in her mainsail next thing."
Lewis. — "Of course I claim it. I fired the last gun,
ez you all know, and Mr. Do-Small told me he watched my
shot, and seen it strike."
,ir Johnson. — " I reckon it was sence the squall he told you
that, so as to make you think better of him."
Smiley. — "The officer what couldn't see a squall like
that gettin' up in his watch for two hours right before his
face, couldn't be depended on to watch a shot, Lewis."
Lewis.— ^^ The mastman thet couldn't see a squall like
thet en time to hev his topgallant sheets clear for runnin',
and loses the ship a good stick by his blindness, hez no
call to jedge of eyesight in anybody."
Smiley. — " You know d — n well, Lewis, the sheet was
foul aloft."
BoatswairCs Mate. — " Say, you fellows, don't you git
mad there. You'll have blue eyes next, and I'll have to
cat two o' my chummies to-morrow raornin'."
Ap Jones, — " Laws a-land ! what a fool that nigger
was ! "
Captain of Forecastle. — " Which, Ap ! "
Ap Jones. — " That warrant officer's cook — did'nt you
hear about him? Well, you know his son, that Jerry
180 LOVE AFLOAT.
Jingo what helps the midshipmites to shave. He was
givin' his daddy some sass at the galley this morniii', and
the old fellow he gits the boy by the scruff o' the neck,
and paddles him well with a bit o' plank. He * lowed he
had de right to lick his own chile,' he said. That boy
Jerry ain't no fool when it comes to gittin' around work or
lickin', so he goes to the mast and reports his daddy for
fightin'. Mr. McKizick he went down in the cabin, and I
hear him and the old man through the skylight, laughing
about it. ' 'Twon't do to be too hard on the old fellow^
McKizick, if he r'ally thought he was exercising paternal
privileges,' says the Old Man. ' He whaled the boy —
there's not a doubt o' that,' says Mr. Make-Pjjysic. * Well,'
says the Old Man, 'put him in confinement without irons,
on full rations, for three days — that is if you have any one
to cook for the warrant officers in his place. And Mr.
Kack-Mizzerick, keep your eye on the boy now.' So they
put the old feller in the brig, in spite o' his standin' up at
the mast and provin' out o' the Bible that all daddies has
the right to whup their boys. Mr. Jack-Flizzick paid no
'tention to that, but told him as how he'd been a-fightin',
and them as fout had to take the consekences."
Captain of Forecastle, — " Ap, you've got a mighty mean
way o' callin' a good man names behind his back."
Ap Jones. — " Who was a-talkin' about Mr, Do-Small
here, a minute ago ? Anyhow I know'd one officer that
w^ouldn't a' let anybody off for fightin' as easy as Mr.
McKizick done."
" Who, Ap ? " asked several at once.
"Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones, sir," responded the
quartermaster, happy to bring in the name of his hero.
Smiley .-*" So he's in the brig."
Ap Jones. — " Yes \ he languishes in choky."
Here came up ^ little fellow belonging to these meu
called waisters, who are usually put \i\ that part of the
ship because unfit for anything bi;t tricing ^nd menial
duties. He ^l^o^ved a disposition to make qne of the party,
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 181
but was promptly repulsed. The petty officers were fully
conscious of the dignities of their rank in the Flying Fish,
and would not permit intimacy in any one less than a
seaman in rating.
Ap Jones. — " Gentlemen, I interjooce the first Primin*
Wire and Sailraaker." This was the only definition the
poor fellow could give when asked the name of his station
at the gun — Train Tackleman and Sail-trimmer.
All. — " Good evenin', sir ! Good evenin,' Mr. Primin'
Wire and Sailmaker ! "
/Smiley. — " Have a cheer, sir."
Lewis. — " Our cheers iz not so good as them the gen-
tleman iz used to. Ap, can't you borry one aout o' the
cabin ? "
Captain of Forecastle. — " Is * the ship goin' astarn, sir
• — no, the lead, I mean,' like it was the other day in Santa
Cruz when you thought you was a quartermaster ? "
Brown. — " Ap, while you're in the cabin, jest fetch the
gentleman a bottle of wine."
The man had sense enough to know they were jeering
at him, but not enough to make him depart. He hesitated
awkwardly.
"Be off with you ! " growled the boatswain's mate
gruffly. " Lay out on the flying jib-boom and drop your-
self overboard ! " At that he went away.
No one said a word about him after he had gone.
Johnson broke the silence.
" We was talkin' about doo-ils the other day on the
quarter-deck, me and Thompson and Still Bill there, least-
ways me and Thompson was talkin' and Bill was listenin'.
I see lots o' things that-a-way, and they been a-comin' into
my head ever sence. There's a sight o' doo-il fightin' goes
on in the service, and Pve seen my share of it. Why, when
we went round the Horn with Thomas ap Catesby R.
Jones, in the Ohio liner-battle ship, we had twenty middies
in the steerage, and they got to quarrellin' as soon as we
discharged the pilot off the Hook. They was in sech a
182 LOVE AFLOAT.
fix they wouldn't hardly none of 'em speak to one another
the whole passage, and that was a matter o' sixty days.
When we went in Ry-o, they got pistols and ammynition
from the gunner and went ashore on Santy Lucy island,
and shot their pistols at one another the best part of an
afternoon watch. I was on deck, and I kep' an eye on 'em
with the glass. You could see two little puffs o' smoke
every now and then, and by and by you could hear the
pistols, it bein' a still day. They come off about two bells,
purty dirty with the powder and grease, and lookin' tired
out and sulky; but that night they made it up, and had a
big blow-out, and was good friends afterwards."
Boatswain's Mate. — " Was none of 'em killed ? "
Ap Jones. — "No, not even a spar touched."
Boatswain^s Mate. — " D — n young fools, to resk their
wind for nothin' I When I was a boy we font a fair fist
fight, and somebody alius got hurt."
Johnson. — " They made it up and was good friends,
and it turned out lucky for 'em they did. While we lay
there they drawed their pay, forty-five dollars a piece in
gold — and bein' on their first cruise and never havin' sech
a pot o' money in their life before, they hove it away like
sweepin's. We was in port three weeks, and the day before
we sailed the boardin'- house keepers up town come off and
went through 'era, and took their last dollar and wasn't
satisfied with that. They said there was more comin' to
'em and they must have it. The middies swore they hadn't
a cent left, not even to buy sea-stores with, and promised
all fair to send the cash from Valpyryzo or Cally-ow, but
nothin' would do 'cept money down. They wasn't goin' to
let them middies pay with a fiyin' foretaupsle; and so
they goes to the first luff, Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones,
and he takes 'em in to see the Old Man. The Old Man sent
for the caterer o' the midshipmen's mess, and told him as
how the money must be paid, and he wasn't goin' to let
the service be disgraced. Well, the upshot of it was the
middies sold nigh all their cloze and paid the boardin'-
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 183
nbuse k epers, and with what was left they bought a sow
with pig. That was all the sea-stores they had, and there
was on'y five white shirts left amongst 'em, and as five of
'em was on deck at onct, the watch wore the shirts. They
used to relieve one another in the steerage so they could
shift. They lived on ship's grub till their sow pigged ofi"
the Horn. I tell you, they eat them pigs mighty young ;
— and the old sow didn't outlive her young' uns long."
Smiley, — " I don't see as Mr. Jones showed any great
conduck with them middies."
Johnso7i. — "He done the best any man could. No
officer can rightly be held 'sponsible for midshipmen. He
was a fine man. He never teched ardent sperrits. He had
a cork heel."
Brown. — " Your talkin' about dools and goin' round
the Horn 'minds me o' when we come so nigh havin' a dool
off the Horn."
JLeiois. — " In a horn, I calc'late. Brown ! "
Brown. — "Have it your own way."
Captain of Forecastle. — " Never mind him. Brown.
Spit it out. We all wants to hear it, Lewis too."
Lewis. — " Sho ! don't get so tarnation wrathy, Brown.
Reel it off!"
Brown. — "There was two middies in the States frig-
ate was awful mad at one another — some fuss about a gal
in Ry-o, I believe — and they was goin' to fight with pistols
the fust time they got a chance to set foot ashore. They
quarrelled afresh right when the ship was in a livin' gale,
and nothin' would do these young bloodsuckers but a fight
right off. They 'ranged it all. They was to go up that
night, for it was clear and the moon was shinin' that bright
you could thread your needle by it, and they was to go
out on the spritsail yard-arms, one to starboard, one to
larboard, and pop away. The young kilmarees ! If either
had a been teched he'd 'a been gone, for he'd 'a dropped
overboard, and it was blowin' so hard we wouldn't a low-
ered a boat if the flag-officer had fell out o' the cabin win-
184: LOVE AFLOAT.
ders. Howsomever, the cabin ports was up and barred, so
in course lie couldn't a gone through them. 'Bout five
bells the officer of the deck see two middies come up the
ladder and look around sort o' scared, and start for'd. He
noticed 'em 'cause they generally piled up permiskus,
hardly stoppin' so much as to salute the deck. And purty
soon, two more come up in the same fashion, and they
started for'd too ; but a pistol dropped out o' one of 'em's
breeches-leg. The officer made him fetch it, and he see it
was loaded, and he twigged the whole consarn. He sent
for the other two, and they had a loaded pistol, and the
whole thing come out."
JBoatswain's Mate. — *' When I was up the Straits
in the Potomick, we had a fightin' doctor in the ship.
He was a little bit of a red-headed, bench-legged feller,
that looked like he was peaceable, but he'd ruther fight nor
eat a meal o' shore grub, any day. He was alius a-main-
tainin' the honor of the sarvice, as he called it. One time
he was ashore in a coffee (cafe) in Naples, eatin' his dinner
quiet by hisself, and some Britisher officers of the R'yal
Navy come in. We had no great show of a squadron up
the Straits in them days ; but the Britishers, they had a
slew o' ships, liners at that. When we come in there was
fifteen sail o' their liners there, and we looked small
amongst 'em. Howsomever, we run in ship-shape and
Bristol fashion, not a head above the rail, not a bit o' n'ise
to be h-eard. We made the prettiest flyin' moor you ever
see : you ought to see it. Not a word was spoke, but our
first luff stood up in the hoss-block and signed what he
wanted done, 'stead o' givin orders. It was fine. We
know'd we were little, but 'lowed to show them -bloody
Britishers we was good. We had jest stopped lickin'
'em fightin', and we meant to lick 'em workin' sails and
spars. There was a power o' hard feelin' 'tween the
two sarvices then, and lots o' fightin' amongst men and
officers, too, when ashore. Well the little Pill was eatin'
in the coffee quite peaceable, and them Britishers come in.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAYY. 185
and see he was a 'Merican by the cut of his jib, and con^-
menced for to bulkhead him, only there wasn't no bulk-
head. They was talkin' about the little Potomick, and
laughin' at her size — they couldn't laugh at nothin' else
about her ; but the Pill he made no answer, till one of
'em said somethin' about her bein' no meaner'n the country
she came from. He got up then and challenged the feller,
and told him where he'd be to meet him next day w^ith a
friend, and walked off. Next day he went to the placp
and waited a long time, but the leftenaut he had chal-
lenged didn't come. Our Old Man and all the officers was
axed to a spread aboard their flag-ship that night. I was
cap'n's cox's'n, and a little before dark he took all our offi-
cers over to the liner in the gig. When we got alongside,
the cap'n went up the ladder and forgot to tell me what to
do with the boat, so I jest foUered up and see it all. AH
hands was aft, and the marines was turned out in full rig,
and all their officers was up, and bosen and side-boys at
the gangway to receive our Old Man. Their admiral was
on the quarter-deck, too, and says he after all hands was
done bowin' and scrapin', * Before we walks into the cabin,
I would thank ye to wait a minute. Captain Percival. I
had the people aft to hear a general order.' Our Old Man
stopped, in course, and the Britisher read out a paper kow
Lieutenant Thingumaree for behavin' hisself unfit for an
officer and a gentleman by insultin' a stranger had dis-
graced the R'yal Sarvice, and how he had disgraced his-
self by acceptin' a challenge, and then pusy — pusy —
pusy — "
Johnson, — " Pusy — lannymunusly ? "
JBocUswain's Mate. — " Adzackly. Pusylanusly backin'
out. Anyhow he was dismissed His Botanic Majesty's
service. Them Britishers was as polite as a Frenchman,
after their own 'thorities come down on 'em so severe."
Smiley. — "There's Captain Rodgers, the best officer
in the service to-day, shut up, Ap, with your Jones ! He
ain't no coward, though he's a peaceable-disposed man and
186 LOVE AFLOAT.
everybody likes him. You'd think he'd 'a got off without
any dools to fight, if anybody could ; but he has fit several
times. I know he was shot through the neck, and in the
leg, and he's got a scar on the right wrist where a ray-
peer gashed him."
Lewis. — " I see no advantage in ofiicers shootin' and
stabbin' of one 'nother so much."
Johnson. — " It's the custom of the service, and must
have its advantage."
Smiley. — " Anyhow, there's too much of it. Don't
you think so ? "
Boatswain's Mate. — " A d — d sight too much."
Brown. — ^*It's nonsense."
Captain of Forecastle. — **In course it is. It s'poses
all to be worth the same, whilst one may be a good offi-
cer with a head on him and the other a d — d fool. That's
so. Bill ? "
JBurJce. — " Aye. There'll be less of it."
Several. — " How do you know ? "
Burke made no reply.
Boatswain's Mate. — " Still Bill, you're a purty feller,
ain't you ? You're no better nor a pirate. You set
around and soak up wisdom like a sponge soaks water, and
you never let's none out. D — n my eyes, you ought to be
squeezed ! Come, spin us a yarn ! "
Burke. — " I'm no hand at it."
Brown. — "You better make a hand then, for there's
no fairness in your way o' doin'."
Burke. — " I shipped for a quartermaster."
Johnson. — "Brown's right. Bill; there ain*t no fair-
ness in it. What's yours is mine and mine's my own, that's
what you go on. S'pose we was all to shet our tater traps
like you, wouldn't the ship be a hell afloat ? "
Burke. — "I was born and raised on Block Island."
(Sensation among the audience, who now knew Burke's
nativity, always before a matter of conjecture.) "My
father was born and raised on Block Island. He told me
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 187
this yarn, and I know it's so ; for he was a straight man.
My mother's brother's wife told him her gran'dad told her
it happened when he was a little boy. He lived to be
ninety-seven. When the country was young, one time a
ship-load of folks come over to live. The men mutinied
and took the ship. They killed the officers and fetched
the passengers on. The men lost their reckoning, and
it come on to blow, and the ship got a-fire. She run
right on to the beach of Block Island in the gale. The
folks on the cliffs could see them. The men were drunk
and were killing the passengers. The ship was blazing
high up, clean to her poles. The passengers were holler-
ing and jumping overboard. The men were singing.
When she struck she broached to. A sea capsized her
and put out the fire, quick. They saw no more from the
cliffs. Next morning the wreck was broken up, and no
life was saved. Every year the ship comes in yet. She
comes in at midnight blazing and racing in the gale, and
the passengers hollering and jumping overboard, and the
men singing and killing them. She strikes and broaches
to, and that's the last of her."
The awe-struck men about Burke did not think of
questioning the narration. To them it was veritable
welcome truth.
Presently there spoke a fore-topman called Morris, who
had hitherto been silent.
"That's the best yarn to-night, by odds. It makes,
me feel queer all over.
" It reminds me of when I was on the west coast in a
trading schooner. I got tired of going cruise after cruise in
the service ; so when I was paid off in Boston in '20, I
shipped aboard a schooner that was going out with rum
and muskets and looking-glasses and cSlico, to trade with
the darkeys for gold-dust and ivoiy and pea-nuts and cro-
ton nuts. We were to take the croton nuts to England
and sell them, and bring the rest of the stuff home. I got
the second mate's billet.
188 LOVE AFLOAT.
" We ran across the pond nicely, and commenced work-
ing at Cape Coast Castle. But there was almost nothing
to buy there, and that so much dearer than usual that the
captain concluded there must have been a good many ves-
sels that way lately. So we on ran down into the Bight
of Biafra, to a place called Mungo Park Town. There we
found a fleet of small sail like our own, all busy trad-
ing. There must have been twenty vessels. There
were an immense number of niggers on shore, with dust
and ivory, and everything else we wanted, and all anxious
to barter. Our anchor was hardly down before two or
three captains of other vessels were aboard to tell us about
the tariff of prices all had agreed on, and see if we would
stand up to it. It was lower than we expected, and of
course we signed the agreement.
" The trade was brisk, I tell you. Boats going and
coming all the time with men from the schooners and
brigs, and canoes paddling backward and forward all the
time with niggers : whites ashore, niggers aboard, vessels
full of darkeys from morn till dew — till night : dust, and
bones, and nuts, and guns, and powder, and lead, and calico,
and glasses, and rum, changing hands fast.
" For convenience sake we were all as close in shore
as we could lay, and one vessel was right in the mouth of
a creek that runs through the nigger town into the harbor.
The consequence of our proximity and of our meeting so
much ashore, was that in a week we were all acquainted.
Then we took to pulling around evenings to visit one
another, and got better acquainted still. Some nights all
but the ship-keepers would be crowded aboard one vessel,
smoking and singing."
Johnson. — " And drinkin' ? "
Morris. — " We were afraid to drink much on account
of fever. But the fever came anyhow. One morning there
were a dozen men down in the fleet, and two died before
night. Next day half the crew were in their bunks, and
a lot died. Next morning after that, half the vessels were
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY* 180
gone. They commenced getting underway at sundown,
and all night they kept running out past us, going to sea
to blow the fever out. The rest stuck to it — our captain
amongst them. We had got off clear so far, and he was
too keen for the owners — he had a share himself — to leave
at a time when the trade would be bettered by so many
going out of it. So he staid and worked us harder than
ever. For the next three days it was awful. Two or
three times a day we would see a dead man hove over-
board, and the sharks' fins would swarm about the place. '
" Our captain had a medical book, and a big box of
medicines ; and he showed us two mates how to treat the
disease. He went around every morning and dosed every
sick man in the harbor, but it didn't seem to hinder their
dying. One at a time the other vessels got scared and
went out, till on the fifth day, there were only two beside
ours.
" That morning at breakfast the captain couldn't eat
anything, but he joked a little about the other two vessels,
which were preparing to slip, being too weak-handed to get
their anchors. After breakfast he said he felt bad, and
would lie down a bit. So he did, and never got up again.
He was dead before dinner.
" The first mate agreed then to do what I had wanted
all along, and we went to work to get underway as quick
as we could. But before we got out of the harbor most of
the m6n were feeling bad, and as soon as we were clear of
the land the mate got down. Before next morning there
was only myself and one other hand that wasn't sick. I
was in a tight place — anxious to get out fast, and afraid
to carry sail on account of the squalls. That one w|»had
the other day was nothing to some of the squalls on the
west coast."
Johnson. — " That's so. They comes without warnin*
and heaves a ship down, before she can shorten sail or keep
away."
Morris, — " The sick men were all more or less crazy,
190 LOVE AFLOAT.
but they didn't die so fast as those in shore had died. The
man that kept up took spells with me at the wheel and
resting. The one that was resting had to give the sick
men their medicine and watch a young fellow who was
raving mad. He was a handsome lad, about twenty, come
on his first cruise to try the sea. You couldn't tell what
he would do. Once he got up, and came on deck, and
walked aft — Jack Hurst, the well man was so dead asleep,
I couldn't waken him — and seemed to be trying to talk to
me. He was apt to get out of his bunk any time, and we
had to watch him very closely. I did all I could for him.
" The first mate was dead and dropped overboard by
this time, and so were three of the men. But the third
night after we got to sea was the worst time. It was a
little after two in the morning, and I had the wheel. Jack
Hurst had gone below o^while to look after the sick men,
and see that young Perkins was in his bunk, all right.
He didn't come back at four bells to relieve me. I forgot
to tell you that I had a touch of the fever on me by this
time, and was so weak I could hardly stand. I couldn't
have kept a-going but for thinking of how much depended
on me.
"Well, Jack Hurst didn't come back, and I began to
wonder after awhile what was the matter. I called him,
thinkin' he might not have heard me strike the bell aft ;
but he gave no answer. Then I got scared — I was sick
and weak, you know — and I imagined Jack was down and I
was left all alone. I couldn't stand that. I left the wheel,
and the schooner to take care of herself, and went for'd.
" I'll tell you how those trading vessels are built, so
you'll understand what happened. They have a cabin aft
and forecastle for'd, like coasters, and between the hold
is bulkheaded off into a sort of a general store-room.
There are doors from the forecastle into the hold, and the
same from the cabin, so when the cargo is out you can
walk from one end of the vessel to the other through the
hold. Our store-room was still nearly full of the stuff we
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 191
took out for barter — boxes of muskets and trinkets and
bales of dry goods.
" Well, I went for'd and looked down the hatch. I
could see nothing, but someway I felt afraid. I called
Jack Hurst two or three times, an4 got»no reply, so I mus-
tered up my courage at last and went down the ladder.
There was a smoky old lantern burning that just did give
out light enough to see by. Jack was stretched out on a
chest asleep. Everything was quiet ; even the sick men
were still in their sleep. I looked into the lad's bunk, and
he was gone.
" I waked Jack Hurst up quick, but he could tell noth-
ing about the boy. He said he had been asleep but a min-
ute, and he knew Perkins was in the bunk just before he
dropped off. I knew he hadn't come on deck, so we com-
menced looking for him. We hunted everywhere in that
forecastle and couMn't find him — under the lower bunks,
into all the bunks, behind the chests, even in the chests,
and he was nowhere. Jack and I finished the search, and
stopped and stared at one another. If he was as much
mystified and scared as I was he felt mighty queer.
" Then I happened to notice that one of the doors into
the hold was open a little crack, and I took the lantern
and went there, Jack following me. I opened the door
and stepped in. The first thing I saw was — ugh ! I can't
forget how he looked. There was the lad squatted down,
stark naked, jammed in between two bales of goods, hold-
ing his hands out in front of him as if he was trying to
keep something off. His face was turned up, and he was
staring right at me. O, he looked awful ! I ran out in the
forecastle, and Jack told me afterward I took a step or two
up the ladder and fainted away. •
" The next I knew I found myself lying on deck aft, and
Jack had the wheel. He had pulled me on deck, and had
got the body up, too. We buried it in the morning. It
was still doubled up and so stiff we had to lash the arms
and legs down on the plank."
192 LOVE AFLOAT.
Johnson, — " What come o' the schooner, so weak-
handed ? "
Morris, — " The men got well, and I ran back to
Mungo Park Town, and traded out the rest of the goods.
Then we went to E-iverpool, sold the nuts, shipped three
new men, and sailed for Boston,"
Smiley. — " You must 'a made a pot o' money."
Morris. — " The owners paid me captain's wages, and
offered to let me keep the command of the schooner."
Captain of Forecastle, — " That was mighty mean in
'em."
Morris, — " It was all I was entitled to."
Johnson. — ** Why didn't you take the schoonet ? "
Morris. — " For good reasons."
Boatswain's Mate. — " Johnson, keep down your cu-
riosity. A yarn's a yarn, and you've no right to go"*
back of it,'*
" Morris, you have got the gift o' gab, and you knows
how to work a reckonin', by your own story. If you're no'
more nor a topman it's your own ch'ice,"
Morris got up and left, Johnson began to talk about
the Flying Dutchman, As that is commonly the close of
a, stance among seamen, I think we had better follow
Morris's example and escape the tedious old tale.
CHAPTER XV.
NEXT morning La Hembrilla was out of sight. Captaiiif"
Merritt shared the vexation felt by all, but gave up'
the chase as hopeless and had the ship's head turned back
again to the westward. It was his intention to return and
cruise off the mouth of the Cobre, watching his opportuni-
ties to get information, while prepared to act should the
occasion come. After a few days' watching he meant to
run along the coast for some distance to the west, to seek
A 8T0EY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 193
for news, and to return occasionally to the river at night,
in hope of catching the schooner off her guard at anchor.
It was also his intention to send a boat expedition up the
river at an early day, for he thought it possible that the
schooner might be caught in that way. However, his ex-
pectations were not great : a man of Hackett's repute for
acuteness would hardly shut himself up in a place easy of
access, as was the Cobre. Captain Merritt was convinced
that La Hembrilla had, not very far away, a snug hiding
place ; and to find it and attack her therein, before she
was frightened away by the hovering man-of-war, was
his chief aim.
The wind continued light and was exceedingly variable,
so that after a hard day's work, the Flying Fish at dark
was still several miles to the eastward of the river.
The air was so pleasant and the breeze so light, that
the ward-room officers availed themselves of the captain's
permission to smoke in the starboard gangway ; and, bring-
ing up chairs from below, seated themselves comfortably
inside of the rail, forward of the mainmast.
The night was very dark, and a light veil of clouds
overspread the sky, concealing the stars. It might nearly
as well for sailing purposes have been calm ; but now and
then faint breathings of the air were felt, which, though too
weak to do more than gently ruffle the water for a few
moments, still sufficed to keep steerage way on the ship.
The water was so still that its only sound was a faint lap-
ping under the bows and counter, as the sloop sunk and
rose on the ground-swell. Around the horizon was a
broad band of blackness, which faded away above into the
lighter darkness of the sky, and, below, extended out upon
the sea, surrounding them with its gloom. To a man
entirely alone, the silence and darkness would have been
oppressive, if not appalling ; but the comfortable party of
officers felt the advantage attendant on human companion-
ship, and, beyond a casual remark upon sitting down, paid
no further attention to their situation. There was only
9
194 LOVE AFLOAT.
one thing which could be clearly seen, and that was what
caused remark. The water was in a peculiarly brilliant
phosphorescent condition, and was swarming with fish.
The fish were all darting about as if in play, their swift
and devious courses marked by lines of fire. The efiect
was wonderfully beautiful. The patterns of the intersect-
ing lines charged like those of a kaleidoscope, and though
without their geometric order and variety of hue, were
more interesting. Old lines of glowing light would pale
and fade away, only to be succeeded by new ones with
fresher brilliancy. Occasionally, a sudden rush of the fish
would convert the water into a volume of soft golden radi-
ance in which swam the ship. It was a striking display
of submarine fireworks.
The officers naturally fell to talking about La Hem-
brilla, conjecturing her hiding-place, admiring her beauty,
and chafing at the speed which made her safe. Hartley
and Garnet had told already about the near view they had
had of the schooner from the Virginia, but they were now
asked so many questions that the slightest details of their
knowledge were brought out.
Mr. Briggs suggested as a means of capture that Dr.
Bobus should fill some very thin hollow shot — he had
heard of their use — with chemicals that would evolve
deadly gases on contact with the air, and that a few be
fired into La Hembrilla, when next they succeeded in get-
ting her in range. Dr. Bobus thought there would be
a practical difficulty in making the metal of such projec-
tiles of just the proper thickness, but believed that the
hollow shot would be a formidable weapon if filled with
gunpowder and if a lighted port-fire could be stuck firmly
into the hole just before firing. In such a case the shot
might be lodged in the hull of the schooner, where it
would remain till the port-fire caused an explosion that
would blow her up.
So they talked on, till Hartley remarked that he was
reminded by the yellow lights in the water of a queer
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 195
dream he had the night before. He was asked to tell it,
and began without hesitation.
" I can't imagine what put it in my head, and I
can't remember how it began. You'll have to be satisfied
with a part of a dream, and that is as near nothing as any-
thing can get without reaching it.
" I thought I was in a yellow ship in the Yellow Sea, and
the crew were yellow Portuguese and Chinamen and mu-
lattoes. I don't recollect being called, but I was dressing
myself at night in a state-room painted yellow. I got
through in the quick easy way in which we work in dreams,
and went up a yellow pine ladder to a yellow-painted
quarter-deck. I thought it was blowing a gale, and was
lightenii g so continuously that the whole sky appeared
yellow. The waves were combing, and there was so much
phosphorus in them — just like the water to-night — that they
made long rolls of yellow light. I found the officer of the
deck standing by the yellow fife-rail, with a yellow oil-skin
on, and a yellow brass trumpet in his hand. He handed
me a yellow order-book, and I was about to take the
trumpet, when, presto ! he changed instantly to a great
golden snake covered with glittering scales, and hanging
fifty feet down from the main-yard, around which he had
caught a turn with his tail. His head was sticking out
toward me, about at right angles to his body, and his big
eyes were like blazing topazes. He seemed hungry. His
mouth was wide open and his teeth looked horrible — a long
curved row of sharp fangs as yellow as gold. I threw
the morning order-book down his throat and woke up."
" Didn't you yell^ oh ? " asked Briggs.
The paymaster spoke up : " Any one who shall pun, or
attempt to pun, or who shall entice or attempt to entice
others to pun or attempt to pun, or who — "
" I won^t do it again."
" Better not, Mr. Briggs," said the doctor. " The pun
is the lowest form of wit, and the easiest."
" Mr. Hartley, perhaps your liver is a little torpid," he
196 LOVE AFLOAT.
continued. " A good dose of blue mass will save you
from such afflictions for some time to come."
** No, I am perfectly well."
" Relish your meals, eh ? Don't feel a bad taste in
your mouth in the morning, eh ? "
" No," said Hartley decidedly.
*' Preliminary attack of the green-eyed monster, Mr.
Hartley. A contusion is always yellow at first, you know."
Bobbins broke out coarsely, " Haw ! haw ! That's it,
Doc. You hit the nail on the head."
" Maybe it's a vision of gold dollars, Hartley," said the
paymaster.
Briggs. — " ' Her lips were red, her looks were free,
Her locks were yellow as gold :
The night-mare Life-in-Death was she ' —
I forget the rest."
Garnet, who saw that Hartley was annoyed at what he
thought light references to his sacred love, spoke up:
" You wouldn't feel so much like joking, gentlemen, if you
bad to stand a breach of promise suit."
" What ! How ? Why ? Tell us about it," exclaimed
the party.
"Hartley can explain if he will, but I shouldn't feel
like it if I were in his place." This had the effect of
silencing the jocose crowd. Briggs took Garnet's remark
without a single grain of salt, and for a good while after
Hartley received unnecessary pity from the sympathetic
young man. Bobbins and the paymaster were partly
mystified and partly suspicious of a hoax ; altogether, each
thought it safest for himself to drop the subject. Bobus
and McKizick, with more experience and insight, readily
guessed that the subject was a delicate one.
Hartley's goings ashore in New York, and the various
signs of the disease of love which he had displayed since,
had attracted the attention of his messmates. In Santa Cruz
the officers had called on the Dewhurst family, and had no-
ticed still more. They had seen that Hartley was usually
A 8T0KY OF THE AMERICAN NAVT. 197
there when they arrived, and that he stayed after they went
away ; and he could not entirely conceal in their presence his
preference for Mary. But they did not know of the engage-
ment yet, and felt free to joke him at will. A spoony oiRcer
is always a fair butt, though an engaged one receives more
consideration, partly because the lady is involved, partly
because publicity is commonly supposed to end romance.
Dularge had been quite taken with Mary's appearance,
and occasionally condescended to express his approval of
her in a manner that made Hartley long to thresh him ; but
he wisely allowed himself to be governed by the prudence
of Garnet, who insisted that he had no right to take notice
of the young fellow's conceited puffing.
Dr. Bobus was a good talker, and to-night he was in the
vein. The rallying of Hartley reminded him of one of his
own early experiences, which he now proceeded to relate.
" My friends, you are all bachelors except Mr. McKizick :
he and I are the only married men in the mess. But I was
once a bachelor myself, and I remember enough of that
heathen condition, to know how you feel. You consider
an engagement to marry as a sort* of self-immolation, or
rather like signing very disagreeable articles for life. Just
think of being engaged to two young women at one time."
" Why, Doctor ! Surely that was another man ! Give
us the story. Doctor ! " exclaimed the party.
" Well, gentlemen, you shall hear the story. I was the
guilty man.
" It was a good many years ago, when I was still young,
and I was assistant surgeon of the Washington, on this
same station. You know that the Spanish settled Pensa-
cola. There have always been a few of their good families
there, and generally some American residents looking out
for the main chance. Whenever one of our vessels put in,
the officers were sure of a pretty gay time. We ran in
with the Washington in the spring of 1801, and stayed a
month. There was a member of a Philadelphia firm there
at the time, with his family, come down for health, and to
198 LOVE AFLOAT.
attend to business interests. I shall call him Mr. Brown—
and by the way, Mr. Hartley, I don't want you to rehash
this story for the Lyceum — I've read your scribblings, sir
— for the people concerned are alive, or were at the last I
heard of them, and they might think hard of me.
" This Mr. Brown had a beautiful daughter named Emily,
whom I met on shore. To come to the point at once, I
fell in love with her — very much in love — and as I knew
my time was short, and that I should not be likely to have
another opportunity, I resolved to advance my suit as rap-
idly as possible. I had heard of the young lady before in
Philadelphia, how lovely she was, and how much attention
she received, and how coolly and easily she repulsed all
assaults upon her heart. Perhaps you may think it was
rather presumptuous in me to aim so high — -such a beauti-
ful girl, and with such a repute for coldness — but I had no
great hope of success, and then, you know, every young
male American may try as high as he pleases. Besides,
gentlemen, I was not counted an ill-looking man at thirty,
though I am now rather the worse for wear.
" There was an old hidalgo in Pensacola at that time,
Don Ambrosio de Yriarte y Llaca; and he had a pretty
daughter, too. By a singular coincidence, her name was in
Spanish what Miss Brown's was in English — Emilia. I
met her when I met Emily. I hope you all know me too
well to ascribe anything like bragging to me, but it is a
fact, that while I fell in love with Emily, Emilia fell in love
with me. There was no mistaking it ; all the officers of
the ship saw it and joked me on my good luck, as they
called it. Honestly, it was a great annoyance, and worse,
to me. Everywhere we met, I would find her dark eyes
fixed sorrowfully on me, and she seemed never so happy
as when talking to me in her pretty broken English. I
received several invitations to his house from Don Ambrosio,
who was about the only person in Pensacola ignorant of the
truth. He was a very fine old man, with the most lofty cour-
tesy you could imagine, and so dignified that I suppose
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 199
nobody dared to tell him. I knew he would never accept
a plebeian son-in-law, and besides I had no inclination to
take a place in his family ; so I excused myself, and kept
away from his house whenever I could. Still, I had to go
sometimes ; and I met Emilia at other places.
" I was fortunate in one respect. Emily had been accus-
tomed to admirers, and here she had none — not one of
our officers was smitten besides myself — so she naturally
listened better to me than she might have. I couldn't see
that I made any progress, and I was almost discouraged ;
but I was getting along very well, as events showed.
Things went on so, I paying every possible attention to
her and she as cool and careless to all appearance as ever,
till the day before we were to sail for the Havana. That
night the residents gave us a little farewell ball, and I
went ashore determined to finish the business, one way or
another.
" I did not enjoy the dancing very well, for I was nerv-
ous, and all the time getting more so. Between the dances,
I drank more wine than my custom allowed, but I did not
feel the efi*ect of it in the least. I am now inclined to be-
lieve that the usual stimulus was merely retarded by my
mental depression. I tried to get a chance to speak apart
with Emily, but she was in demand and something always
prevented ; so that it was after midnight when the oppor-
tunity came. She was engaged to me for one dance and
Emilia for the next. Instead of leading her on the floor I
begged a word with her in private. She graciously con-
sented, and I took her into an adjoining room, a kind of
library, temporarily vacant, and proposed. She referred
me to papa ; by which I understood, of course, that if he
offered no objection she accepted me. I knew Mr. Brown
well enough to be sure he would let Emily choose for her-
self, and I felt very much pleased. About that time, the
extra quantity of wine which I had drunk began to work
on me, I think. We sat there talking till the dance was
nearly done, when Emily asked me to go look for my next
200 LOVE AFLOAT.
partner. She said she would sit still and might not
be missed, she did not feel like dancing just then. I
remember the smile with which she uttered the words ;
gentlemen; it was — well, well.
" I obeyed her instructions, of course, but while waiting
for the dance to come to an end, in the exuberance of my
feelings I drank three glasses of sherry. I looked about
for Emilia and could not find her, so I thought I was free,
and would go back to Emily. Who should be in the library
but Emilia, herself, all alone ? She spoke to me in her
pretty way : * I no dance dis time, I tired. You talk to
what you call Mees Emilia, Doctor Bobus.' And I did
talk to her with a vengeance. I am sorry I begun this
story, gentlemen ; I am vexed to remember my weakness."
" Go on, doctor ! Too late to stop now ! Unfair to dis-
appoint us now ! "
" Please to lay what follows more to the salmon than
to me.
"Emilia looked so sad and talked so sorrowfully about
my going away, that I began to pity her. As the liquor
got into my head I wondered why she would not do for a
wife as well as Emily ; and finally, I forgot Emily entirely,
and told Emilia I loved her, and made a fool of myself
generally. She — I don't believe there was ever such a
happy woman in the world before. She was as kind as
an American girl would be after a five years' engage-
ment. It did not take long for me to cool down under
that. I sobered fast ; and, realizing what I had done,
b^gah to feel very much disgusted at myself and her, too.
I had no right to feel so, for I was entirely to blame ; and
she, I fancy, was only behaving as Spanish girls usually do
in such cases. But I could not help it. I tried to get away
several times, but it was always 'Ay, Eduardo' — she had
my name pat in Spanish already — *no leave your poor
Emilia yet. Emilia no see Eduardo no more, four, five year,
till we marry,' and then she'd color up and look happy.
Poor girl ! I hadn't sense enough to tell her it was the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVT. 201
sherry Edward Bobus had drunk, and not himself, had pro-
posed to her. At last I did manage to get away, and I
went straight aboard and turned in, a most miserable man.
" When I awoke in the morning the ship was getting
under way. I recollected the dilemma I was in, and was as
wretched as ever. While we were standing down the bay,
I wrote a note full of affection to send back to Emily by
the negro who piloted us out. Actually, gentlemen, when
I thought of Emilia's disappointment, I hadn't the heart to
bring it on so soon, and instead of writing her a letter of
explanation and apology, I copied the note to Emily, put
them in separate envelopes, and directed them."
" I know. You directed them crossways," put in
Briggs, eagerly.
" Not so, Mr. Briggs. A want of clerical accuracy was
never among my failings.
" We ran across to the Havana, and there found a
brig about to go to Pensacola. I wrote to both the girls
again from there, and sent each a box of fine French can-
dies. My guilty indiscretion about the notes had only com-
mitted me more deeply. I had concluded I would have
to keep it up, and trust to luck to get out of the scrape.
The brig came back before we sailed, but brought me no let-
ter from either girl. I thought that was strange, and it was
stranger still when two or three more vessels came in during
the next month, and still failed to bring me any word.
" At the end of two months the Washington was ordered
back to Pensacola for some purpose, and I prepared for the
worst. I got ashore as soon as I could after the anchor
was down, and went down to Mr. Brown's. He and his
family had gone home. Then I went to Don Ambrosio's,
and had an interview with Emilia. She came in the room
looking pale and thin, and the first word she said was, * Ay
Eduardo, you no love poor Emilia. Why you write same
carta k Emily y Emilia ? ' That showed me at once how
it was : I had entirely forgotten all along that the two
girls were close friends. I drew from Emilia how it all
9*
202 LOVE AFLOAT.
came out. It appeared that neither could keep her secret,
and each confessed to a lover aboard the Washington, and
notes and candy. The similarity made them curious, and
my name came out. Just imagine my feelings to hear it !
and from her.
" And Emilia said if I would love her, she would be a
good wife, and go with me anywhere, that Emily was angry
so I could not marry her. I felt like a mean scoundrelly
thief, who had picked up lost property he did not need,
and had failed to return it to the owner when he had a
chance. It was the worse I ever felt in my life. One good
has come of it, anyhow ; I have never since allowed myself
to be the least overtaken with wine.
" Well ! — I explained it all to Emilia the best I could,
and told her I was unworthy and unfit to be her husband,
and that she would die in our cold Northern climate, and
that her father would never consent. I had to tell her how
I came to propose, and that I didn't love her. Poor girl !
It seemed almost to strike her down. I did what I wouldn't
have done for one of our conventional American girls — I
thought it the best — the Spanish are more theatrical in
every-day life than we — I kneeled down and begged her
forgiveness for the wrong I had done her. She bade me
good-by ; ^ a Dios, Eduardo ; Dios guarde ' — the poor
thing could not say more — she broke down — and I had to
run away."
They were all silent when Bobus ceased, but in a minute
Robbins's coarse voice arose " I bet the present Mrs. Bobus
never got the straight of that yarn."
" Lieutenant Robbins, I have already regretted telling
the story, and you make me repent it still more. The per-
son affronts me who interferes in my family aifairs, where
he has no concern."
Robbins walked off in a huff.
The doctor went on: " I will finish the story, gentlemen.
I married Miss Emily Brown three years later, when our
cruise was up."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 203
The party showed their interest and pleasure by various
remarks, Hartley politely thanking him. Then they fell
silent, and no one seeming to have anything to say, they
all got up to go below, each picking up his chair to carry
it down. The procession of chair-bearers had started, each
moving slowly and carefully in the darkness ; when their
attention was suddenly arrested by something of a more
stirring nature than stories of the past.
A pale green light trembled in the air, illuminating thie
sails in a strange and ghastly manner, and making the
lofty spars and delicate lines of the mazy cordage stand
out distinctly clear against the sky above. At the same
time a soft fizzing sound was heard. After the first start
of surprise, each officer knew instantly what it w^as : some
vessel very near them was burning one of the colored fire-
vrorks used at sea for making signals in the night. They
instinctively put down their chairs and turned to the point
from which the light came. A single glance showed a
schooner exactly to windward not a hundred yards away.
She was standing to the westward in a course parallel to
that of the Flying 'Fish ; but the great amount of canvas
she had spread urged her forward at a double rate of speed.
To the sloop's people, their own vessel was stationary,
while the schooner was slowly creeping past.
The schooner was not a stranger : the whole watch at
once recognized La Hembrilla. So near was she that the
voices of men talking on board were perfectly audible,
every word being clearly understood. A party of five or
six persons stood aft by her taffrail : one, a gigantic man,
holding out the signal which burned with a hissing noise
and a vivid flame, while they all talked together. The
light shone with a bright green radiance, on the tall spars
and immense sails of the schooner, and revealed, standing in
the gangway and gazing to the northeast like their supe-
riors aft, a silent group of men, perhaps fifteen or twenty
in number.
"I bet them mulatty 'ounds 'as hall gone to sleep,"
204 LOYE AFLOAT.
came across the water in a gruff, grumbling, deep bass
voice, with a cockney accent.
" Wa-al, no," answered a keen, thin, decisive twang
from the group by the taffrail ; " they ain't had time yet,
I guess."
" Time enough," retorted the first. " The lights should
halways be ready to hanswer hany time."
" They haven't ever failed us yet," replied the second
voice. " You're too hard on the blacks, Jeames. There's
good men amongst our blacks."
" That's said for the 'earin o' the niggers in the gang-
way," replied the other, with a coarse laugh.
" Jeames Arrowson," said the second voice, sharply ;
" none of that. Recollect your place." Then the speaker
went on more mildly, " I said no more than is jest, Jeames.
I'm consarned to have to show our light, for that darned
cruiser may be around here for all I know."
" Pshaw ! " replied Arrowson, laughing again ; " 'e
couldn't 'it the broadside of a barn."
" His shot come plenty close enough last Sunday, off the
p'int o' Pescador, anyhow. He spiled the looks o' the.
new mainsail, a mile off. And every time he gets a chance
to shoot at the little gal he'll shoot better."
There was more of the talk, but no one had time to
listen longer. At the first gleam of the light everybody
on the sloop's deck was amazed, and it was a wonder that
no exclamation arose to betray her presence to the pirates.
Piscipline, and the quick, eager warnings of the petty offi-
cers, kept the men still.
McKizick without any hesitation walked up to Dularge
and relieved him. The word was quietly passed for the
watch to take off their shoes, gq below, clear away the star-
board battery, and commence firing. Thp guns were for-
merly always kept loaded at sea, and McKizick hoped the ship
would remain undiscovered long enough to enable hin^ tp
deliver the broadside they contained. He knew the signal
would, if riot extinguished, burn enough longer to make the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 205
schooner a good target, and he hoped to get in a disabling
shot. Captain Merritt was called, and he appeared on deck
in a twinkling, barefoot, and still clad in his night-gown,
which was stuflfed into his trousers at the waist. By day-
he would have presented an uncommonly stout appearance.
The men were all awake now, working hard to get the
hammocks out of the way and the guns cast adrift. The
captain sent messenger after messenger to the division offi-
cers for them to make haste. " Fire as soon as you can,"
" Open without delay," was the word. " Every second's
precious," he said to the first lieutenant ; " it's a wonder
he hasn't seen us already."
Below everything was in extreme silent confusion. The
battle lanterns had not been lighted, and the guns' crews
were striving bewildered in the complete darkness, to do
everything at once, quickly and without noise.
La Hembrilla kept on reaching ahead till the sloop was
well on her port-quarter, and then, either the changed po-
sition of the vessel, or a chance look, or some accidental
noise overheard from the sloop, betrayed the danger to the
pirates. The flaring signal was cast overboard, its light
instantly extinguished, and a thick veil of darkness fell
between the two vessels. La Hembrilla was gone, vanished,
flown like a thought, swallowed up in blackness. A hun-
dred imprecations arose from the disappointed seamen, who
missed the light and guessed the cause of its disappearance.
McKizick threw off all disguises. " Light the battle
lanterns ! " he roared. " Look alive, men ! On deck the
sail-trimmers, and get the t'gal'n't stunsels ready for set-
ting ! " A number of the navy night signals were brought
up, and several of them were lighted at once. A man was
sent on each topsail and top-gallant yard-arm to hold out
one of these bright illuminators. They brought La Hem-
brilla in sight again, but barely revealed her, for she was
now a quarter of a mile away. Firing was almost guess-
work, for the schooner was so indistinct the gun captains
could scarcely keep their eyes upon her ; and to get an
206 LOVE AFLOAT.
aim even approximating to correctness was very difficult.
However, they did their best. The guns flashed redly into
the night and boomed with no uncertain sound, though the
aim was none of the most sure. A dozen shots were dis-
charged before the captain gave orders to cease firing, con-
vinced of its inutility. Very soon afterward the pirate
ran out of sight.
Burke went over to where the captain and first lieuten-
ant were in deep consultation. " Yon is two lights ashore,
just lit, sir," he reported to McKizick. Both turned to
the quartermaster and asked him to point them out. He
extended his arm broad off the weather quarter, where
shone the two lights, not with the color and vividness of
the first seen, but with a steady yellow gleam, as a candle
would shine from a window across a dark prairie. One
light was higher than the other and nearly over it.
" They must be having a fandango ashore. They're
up later than usual," said the first lieutenant.
" It's no dancing, sir," replied the quartermaster.
" Them lamps has something to do with the schooner."
" Very good, Burke," said McKizick good-humoredly ;
**keep an eye on 'em, and report when they go out."
The breeze had freshened in the meantime, and the
sloop was now moving at the rate of two miles an hour.
While all the events had been passing since the discovery
of the schooner not more than fifteen minutes had elapsed.
That vessel now added to their wonder, and to the number
of her mysterious actions. She burned a firework like th >
first, except that it was red instead of green, and was tL.
time displayed in such a cunning manner, that she herself
remained unseen. The men were sent to the guns again and
allowed to fire at the light ; but their uncertainty as to its
distance, joined to the fact that it was a good deal like
shooting at a star, made their aim as dubious as before.
At any rate the pirates kept the light burning for full five
minutes.
McKizick thought Burke's idea about the two lamps
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 207
was very probably a correct one; but the captain, who had
a theory assigning the concealment of La Hembrilla to a
large lagoon near a village to the eastward, disagreed with
hira. He ordered the course to be kept, west one-half
south, intending to come to off the Cobre. A visionary
hope of finding the schooner some morning lying quietly
near, defenceless, at atichor, and unable to escape, still pos-
sessed him. > The most practical must sometimes hope for
the unlikely.
So they ran on slowly, all hands remaining on deck
because they would be soon needed to anchor the ship.
With such a warm fragrant air and such soft planks as the
Fish had in her spar-deck sometimes, there were few of the
men but preferred the sky to a blanket. The officers
asked permission, and resumed their pipes while waiting.
After awhile — -an hour or so — Burke reported that the
lights ashore had been doused.
*' Are you sure we didn't run them down ? " asked
McKizick.
" Yes, sir ; one was high up, and they both went out
together." This confirmed McKizick's opinion, and he
spoke of it to Captain Merritt ; but that officer thought
their distance was now too great to leave even Burke's
eyesight infallible, and adhered to his own opinion. Of
course the ship ran in the current of his mind, or sailed
before the gale of his will, or, in direct language, went
where he wished. She kept on after the pirate — at least
the captain thought so, and meant so ; but more correctly,
she continued to thrust her long head-booms into the
bank of blackness to the west. Very slowly by this time.
The catspaw had died away, and the puffs came fainter and
fainter. Still, she forged ahead, minding her helm.
The phosphorescence of the water grew dimmer. The
flashes still appeared to show the lightning-like passage
of the swift fishes ; but they were paler, their radiance was
thinner and more evanescent. At last they ceased, and
the unrelieved darkness grew painful. They were off the
208 LOVE AFLOAT.
mouth of the river, whose fresh waters were incompatible
with the presence of the luminous animalcula.
The breeze left them at last, and a dead calm prevailed.
The sails flapped backward, flapped forward, to the regular
rocking of the ship, with a hollow, monotonous, tiresome
noise. They could hear the surf breaking on the beach, a
slight washing sound, unlike the usual sustained and
mellow music, yet very distinct. It seemed the nearer for
its lowness, its warning whisper giving the idea of treacher-
ous reefs close at hand. Mr. McKizick walked over to the
starboard gangway, where a man was gazing intently and
silently into the gloom. Few could have recognized even
an old acquaintance with certainty on such a night, trust-
ing to the eyes alone, and in this case there was nothing
to guess at but the back of a black lump ; but the first
lieutenant was seldom at fault. " How's the wind, Mr.
Thick ? " asked he.
"Up and down, like a dog's fore-leg, sir," replied that
worthy.
" Going to have it any better ? "
" Not before morning, sir ; not enough to lift a sky-
scraper."
McKizick went away, and Thick renewed his seer-
like inspection of night and darkness. " By the hokum ! "
said he.
The captain reluctantly gave up his hope of any imme-
diate change in the weather, and determined that, as the
the current of the Cobre was sweeping the ship out to sea,
he would at once carry out his intention of anchoring.
This was done with no ceremony or delay, the anchor being
dropped off the bows without stopping to shorten sail.
Then the light sails and the courses were handed, but
the topsails were merely clewed up and their yards left at
the mast-heads. The captain was thinking again of the
idea, to which he clung, of finding La Hembrilla within
gunshot some morning ; and he meant to be ready to give
her a quick chase.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. ' 209
When the furling was done, the men lay down»^quietly
from aloft. Some dropped on deck and went to sleep ;
some gathered in little knots and talked together in a still
and drowsy manner. Then the pipe sounded their dismis-
sal and the lookouts were posted. In five minutes the
deck was deserted. It was after midnight.
Silence and darkness were Garnet's outer companions
of the watch. Within his faithful bosom, Isabel Terrell
divided the space with Uncle Sam.
CHAPTER XVI.
HARTLEY had the morning watch. The light of dawn
had already appeared in the east when he relieved
Garnet. " Well, Will," he inquired sleepily, " anything
in sight ? "
" No. Here's the order book. You're to get the ship
tinder way if there's any wind. Now let me get to my
bunk. I'm nearly dead for a nap.'*
"No sleepier than I am," growled Hartley after his
friend's retreating figure.
He was sleepy, for his four scant hours had seemed
scarcely more than a minute's nap, and had hardly rested
him. He was in a very bad humor with the service as
long as he felt fagged; but after awhile the bullet-headed,
dark-woolled youth of African descent who was his body-
servant, appeared coming from the galley, to his eyes a
charming Ganymede, and bearing a cup of * Navy mud,'
alias cofi'ee, according to the custom of the service in
morning watches. The decoction was not good to the
taste, but it was reviving to the body and cheering to the
mind. Under its inflence Hartley was able to enjoy the
sunrise.
At first the sky was covered with massings of dark blue
cloud, gatherings of the night's pall, except in the east,
210 « LOVE AFLOAT.
where there appeared low down a single little spot of sil-
ver vapor. As the sun rose up toward the edge of the
water the sea on that side took the splendid color of fresh
bronze, the dull clouds were tinged with a sombre rud-
diness, and the spot of silver changed and grew brighter
and brighter, till it glowed like a drop of molten gold.
For awhile it was the brilliant centre of light. The sun ap-
proached nearer the horizon and the ruddy tinges changed
to tints of salmon and saffron and amber. The little spot
lost its individuality in a mass of its own color which
drifted over it. Long shafts and pencils of amber and
gold light glanced across the sky, contrasting beautifully
with the dull blue of the shaded parts of cloud. The
sea changed gradually to silvery reflections on its usual
blue ; and last of all the sun lifted his eye over the rim of
the horizon to take a preparatory peep at the world, and
commonplace day was fairly ushered in. It put him in a
good humor with the world, the flesh, and the service.
The ship lay directly off the mouth of the Cobre river,
perhaps two miles from the shore. With the glass Hartley
could see clearly up the stream, to where it curved away to
the west, hiding itself in winding among the bold hills
between which it ran. Nothing was in the river, and not
a sign of life could be detected on the shores. To all out-
ward appearance they might have been the discoverers of
the beautiful coast before them. Hartley felt the longing
impulse which prompts us to examine and explore the new
and strange, to enjoy the bridal pleasure of unveiling
nature's virgin face. But it could be no more than long-
ing with him, for while he gazed through the spy-glass,
he saw the palms begin to wave their long arms, and
directly the water in shore was darkened with a steady
breeze off the land. He had the messenger passed, and, by
the time the wind got out to the Flying Fish all was ready
for heaving up the anchor. The men walked cheerfully
round the capstan, and the anchor came up easily, leaving
its hard bed without the usual clinging delay. The sails
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 211
were trimmed, and under a cloud of canvas the ship again
pursued her way toward the west. Then Hartley set the
men to work at the daily scrubbing and cleaning the im-
maculate man-of-war received. When Captain Merritt
came up from his cabin everything was in ship-shape again.
All day long they fanned onward, making but slow pro-
gress. As the sun rose higher it killed the morning
Btrenjrth of the breeze. At six bells in the evenino: the
captain told the first lieutenant to let the hands skylark.
" I want to keep them contented, and they have had enough
lately to worry them a good deal," he said.
"Aye, aye, sir," was the response, and so on the
pipe was heard attracting universal attention. The boat-
swain's mates bawled : " Do you here there, fore and aft —
skylark .^ "
It seems rather a whimsical thing to order two hun-
dred and fifty grown men to set to playing like boys ; but
the crew of the Flying Fish did not regard it in that
manner. To them it was merely a permission, and the
recreation was very proper in their eyes. A genuine
sailor-man is always a boy in many respects. He can't
keep his clothes, he is highly irreverent, he needs look-
ing after and correcting, and he loves to play.
The men were instantly full of fun and laughter. The
customary restraints removed, they felt as delighted as
scholars let out of school ; and they went into all kinds of
available mischief with zest. Games were started every-
where. Leap-frog was a favorite one, and they showed
their agility by springing neatly over the bowed mess-
mate with seldom a trip or a fall, in spite of the motion
of the ship. In the game as they played it only one man
went down, others vaulting over him in a steady stream,
and each was bound to give him a spur with the heel as
he passed his back. An old seaman stood by as umpire.
If any one failed in the kick, or touched the frog except
with hands and heel, he had to be frog. If a man fell
through accident, before he could rise, or the stream of
212 LOVE AFLOAT.
leapers be checked, several more would tumble over him
in a heap ; which was immense fun.
Another game they played was Bear. A sailor went
down on his hands and knees in the middle of the fore-
castle, and a thick folded tarpaulin was laid on his back.
He was the Bear. The keeper stood by his side, holding
in his right hand a rope's end with which to defend him,
and confined to a circle of about ten feet in diameter by
another rope, the end of which he held in his left hand.
The other players watched every chance to strike the bear
with their ropes, and the keeper tried to fight them ofiT.
He could strike any one he could reach without letting go
his tether, but if in his excitement he did let it go, all
hands were at liberty to thresh him until he had caught it
up again. Any one he succeeded in striking had to be
bear, and bear became keeper. This game was greatly
enjoyed, and " One, two, three, my bear is free " was often
heard as the keeper announced all ready to begin.
Practical jokers roamed through the ship, seeking
whom they might devour. One band made it their espe-
cial business to catch and bump every marine who showed
his head on the spar-deck. The bumping was done by four
men, each of whom seized one of the marine's limbs. He
was then swung backward and forward, and his seat of
honor brought into concussion with the cable bitts, like a
battering ram, with a very moderate amount of gentleness.
But all other fun grew insignificant when the old boat-
swain's mate was seen advancing up the gangway, holding
the, struggling monkey in both hands and calling gleefully,
" All hands ketch monkey ! " The men swarmed on the
forecastle, roaring, " Let him loose ! " " Put him on the
main stay ! " " Carry him on the foreyard ! " "Let him
go ! " " Set him on the galley funnel ! " " Give him a
start ! " and a hundred other directions. The old man
calmly put Jocko in the fore rigging. He grinned defiance
to all for one instant, and then mounted aloft with all the
nimbleness of his native woods.
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 213
This was the monkey which the boatswain and the
midshipmen had bought with the remnant of their money-
after Thick's horse trade in Santa Cruz. As he was a
joint-stock monkey it was nobody's business to care for
him, and he did not receive much attention after the
first novelty had worn off and he had bitten most of
the stock-holders in their vain efforts to caress him.
He was falling into neglect, and getting very thin and
lean in his cage, when a deputation of seamen, unable to
permit a pet to suffer, waited on the company repre-
sented by Larkin, the caterer of the midshipmen's mess,
with a view to purchasing. Larkin would not sell the
beast, but cheerfully let the men have him to care for and
feed. After that he fared well and throve. All the seamen
in the ship took charge of his diet, regulating it by giving
him the best they had as long as he would take it. At first
he would eat voraciously till his stomach was crammed,
then his " penam bags," as the men called his mouth-
pouches, would be filled almost to bursting, and then he
would look sad because it was impossible to stow away
any more. He speedily got fat, and became very particu-
lar in his tastes. His education was intrusted to a mizzen-
topman named Burson, who had made a study of the mon-
key, and by common consent knew more about teaching
them than any one else in the ship. " Jimmy Burson for
it," the men would say in rapturous admiration, after seeing
some new trick performed. "He's been shipmates with
'em. He knows how they feel. He can get in with 'em if
anybody can." And Burson really was very successful. So
much so that the animal was soon allowed to range freely
about the ship, and the middies got to speaking of him
proudly as * our monkey.' * Our monkey ' was a mischievous
and villainous little beast. When he got the run of the ship
he soon explored everything, and by the time he began to
feel at home he commenced his tricks. He would snatch
a man's cap off his head and run out on a yard-arm with
it, where he was over the water. There he would sit
214: LOVE AFLOAT.
secure and begin to pull the cap to pieces with tooth and
nail. It was useless to go out after it, because he would
instantly drop it overboard and run away. The men soon
found that the only way to get their property back was to
ask Burson, who had taught Jocko to bring him anything,
to call in the monkey.
Jocko got in the paint pots on one occasion, and orna-
mented himself in a striking manner. Solomon in all his
glory, or a wild Indian on the war-path, was not to be
compared to him then. • He contracted the bad habit of
chewing tobacco, and nearly killed himself by eating the
cigar stumps he fished out of the kids, where they had been
thrown by the officers. It became unsafe to leave a book
or paper of any kind in the chairs at the smoking place,
for he loved to make a litter with paper. This propensity
was displayed in the destruction of the boat signal card.
The first lieutenant had had the ship's painter make, on a
large sheet of cardboard, a complete copy of all the flags
to be used in recalling the different boats to the ship,
and this sheet was tacked up on the gun-deck against the
bulkhead of the cabin pantry. Jock was quickly attracted
by the bright colors, and tried to get it down. It was
about a foot higher than he could jump, however ; and
after several good efforts he retired. But he had not given
it up. He would recollect it several times every day, and
comeback to try again; and all the while his jumping
powers improved with the practice. The men saw it, but
they would not for the world have interfered. It was only
a good joke to them ; their sympathies were all with the
monkey. After a week's perseverance his faithfulness and
frequent efforts were crowned with success. He came up
the captain's ladder one afternoon, holding the card in his
hand, and grinning with delight. He seemed perfectly
aware that he had done wrong, for he darted to the cross-
jack stay instantly, and, in spite of the encumbrance of the
card, which was too much sail for him, ran nimbly up on
three legs. Then he got on the weather crossjack yard-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 215
arm, and proceeded with the air of an experimenter to tear
the card into very small pieces.
His greatest feat of all had been on the day before the
men had their skylark. The captain had brought a large
bunch of green bananas in Santa Cruz, and hung them in
his state-room, intending to eat them as they ripened. Sin-
gularly, none appeared to ripen. On inspection the bunch
proved to be much smaller than at first, and there were
marks on the main stem that showed where fruit had been
detached. The captain was. mystified, and said nothing
about it. There was a small air-port in the room, which
he kept open for ventilation, and through this Sir Monk
had made his entrances and exits. On the day of discovery,
the captain, who was sitting reading in the outer cabin,
thought he heard a noise in the state-room. He went
there, opened the door, and looked in upon a scene of de-
struction. There sat the monkey on the bed, eating a half-
ripe banana and looking happy. Captain Merrit stepped
in quickly, and shut the air-port before Jocko could get to
it. Then he cleared up the room. The monkey had opened
a drawer in the desk, taken out and torn up a considerable
amount of stationery, broken the sealing wax into bits as
small as possible, and unrolled the captain's commission.
This was on parchment and too strong to tear, so it had
evidently been a subject of study. The result of Jock's
cogitation was that he made up in the shaving mug a
paste of tooth-powder, mucilage, and ink, with which he
had plastered the commission. The captain threshed him
with a ruler, and let him out yelling.
When the boatswain's mate let the monkey loose all
the foretop-men and a number of the other seamen started
aloft after him, while a good many went up the main rig-
ging to head him off in case he crossed the stays. Then
ensued a lively time. The men were active and determined
to catch the monkey. Jocko a great deal more nimble, and
fully as anxious not to be caught. He was full of resources.
When he seemed hopelessly penned and everybody looked
216 LOVE AFLOAT.
to see him grabbed, he would suddenly find some smart
unexpected way out of the scrape. The men followed him
fearlessly into the dizziest places aloft, but catch him they
could not. Those on deck roared with delight and appre-
ciation at each new escape, and those aloft chased him all
the harder. At last McKizick saw that the chasers were
becoming annoyed at failure and reckless in their efforts,
so he stopped the pursuit by having the hammocks piped
down.
CHAPTER XVII.
T
HEY wafted onward that night at a snail's speed — a
water-snail's — with the provokingly light airs. Garnet
had the deck in the early morning, and no sooner did he
send the lookouts aloft after day was fairly established,
than a sail was reported. She lay ahead, and so far away
that neither her course nor her rig could be determined.
Later, the wind died away as on the preceding morning,
faint flurries of attempted breeze, which ruffled the water
for a few-minutes and passed away to leeward, remaining
their whole dependence for progress. At eight, a better
sustained and stronger cat's-paw than common set them
ahead a mile or so, placing them so much nearer the strange
sail that they were enabled to make out that she was a brig
standing on the same course as was the Flying Fish. For
hours the two vessels maintained their distance, sometimes
one gaining by a current of air which did not touch the
other ; and again, the loser making up her loss and some-
thing over in the same manner. At three o'clock matters
were changed.
A gentle, but promising breeze had for some time been
working out over the water toward the sloop, from the
northeast quarter. As it had to encounter and overcome
the inertia of the masses of still heated atmosphere which
it met, its progress was slow. The dark roughening of the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 217
glassy water that marked its advance crept out toward the
ship so gradually that the patience of the young sailors on
board was wellnigh exhausted ; and some of them began
to look on the coming wind as an enemy that did not
mean, after all, to keep its promise of helping them along.
Still, it did come. Slowly and steadily it advanced, till at
three in the afternoon the ship felt its influence, and started
forward with new life. Again the waters made a sough
against the bows, and met in curling little whirlpools in
the wake as the ship gently careened, and too gently
glided onward once more.
The brig ahead lay meanw^hile in a dead calm about
four miles away, off a projecting wooded point, from
which she was distant perhaps a mile. She had not a
breath of wind, but lay rocking on the swells, flapping her
canvas, and turning her head successively to every point
of the compass. The Flying Fish kept her place on the
edge of the advancing breeze, with which she moved for-
ward, at the rate of about a mile an hour.
The glare of the fervid sun upon the waters was so
strong, and the mirage-producing power of the heated air
so great, that it was impossible from the ship to see much
of the brig and her motions with the naked eye. But as
the two drew nearer, the glass lent its usual assistance to
great advantage. At four they were within three miles
of each other.
As the brig was the only sail in sight, she was the
centre of interest, and every glass in the ship was con-
stantly fixed upon her. It was impossible that any impor^
tant motion of hers should escape detection and attention*
A little after four. Garnet and Hartley, who had been
taking turns in the use of the best spy-glass, saw three
boats leave the point, and pull off toward the brig. This
they had reported to Captain Merritt. The captain came
up to see for himself. The rumor spread instantly through
the ship, and in a little while everybody was on the spar-
deck, officers and men trying to make out what was not to
10
218 LOVE AFLOAT.
be seen with any satisfaction, and indulging in sanguinary-
hopes.
It took the three boats about fifteen minutes to reach
the brig. They were seen to pause for awhile, so near
together as to be indistinguishable ; and then they sepa-
rated, took positions surrounding the brig, and paused
again. Then a puff of smoke rose up over one of the
boats, and all three rowed up to the brig, and were lost to
sight, unrelieved against her black sides. The interest on
board the ship was now intense, but beyond a little blue
smoke which slowly rose above the merchantman and van-
ished in the air, nothing was seen or heard to indicate the
character of the expedition they had been watching. Ten
or fifteen minutes after the boats closed with the brig,
they were seen to leave her again, and take position in line
before her bowst Their very slow advance, and the fact
that she kept her place near them, showed that they were
towing her in shore.
" McKizick," asked the captain, taking the glass from
his eye, " what do you think about it?"
" There's no manner of doubt, sir. If it isn't La Hem-
brilla*s gang, it's another. I'd like to take in an investigat-
ing committee in the boats."
" Pshaw, man, you're too old to go in a boat. Send a
midshipman," replied the captain with a twinkle.
" I don't feel like I'd ever be too old to go in charge
of a. boat expedition," said the lieutenant earnestly ; " and
I hope you'll give me this one — if you mean to send in."
" I am sorry to disappoint you, McKizick," answered
the captain seriously ; " but I cannot afford to risk my
first lieutenant in a petty affair like this. Don't ask it."
McKizick looked vastly discontented, but with wis-
dom kept his mouth shut until he could speak in a good
humor. " Who will you put in charge, captain ? " he
asked finally.
" Mr. Hai tley. Now, sir, we are not over two miles
and a half off, and the breeze holds — I think it freshens, if
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 219
anytliiiig. We had better get ready. Have the third and
fourth cutters and the gig manned and armed. Let the
men take cutlasses and pistols, only. Put six marines in
each cutter, and four in the gig. Send Mr. Hartley, Mr.
Briggs, Mr. Robbins, and the surgeon, and three of the
midshipmen to me, first thing."
" Aye, aye, sir," and away went McKizick. Directly the
officers whom the captain wished to see were all before him.
" Gentlemen," said he, " I am going to send you in the
boats to get that brig." The middies looked at each other
joyously as if it were too good to be true, but the others
received the intelligence quietly, having had more experi-
ence. " Mr. Hartley, you will go in the third cutter in
command of all. Mr. Briggs, take the fourth. Mr. Rob-
bins, go in the gig, in command of the marines. Mr,
Larkin will have charge of the gig and act under Mr.
Hartley's orders. You, young gentlemen " — indicating
the other two midshipmen — " go in the cutters. Doctor,
is your steward a capable man ? — does he know anything
of surgery ? "
" Well — yes — " admitted Bobus, whose martial spirit
was aroused, and who wanted to go himself, " that is, he
is pretty well-informed; but he is hardly equal to an
emergency like this."
*' I'm afraid we shall have to risk him then," said the
captain conclusively, with one of his half-hidden twinkles.
"Now, gentlemen, this is a small service, but coolness is
necessary. Use your heads, and control the men all you
can. Of course you'll get the brig, but I shan't feel satis-
fied if you lose any men. Mr. Hartley, lay the boats
alongside as nearly at the same time as possible. Use
your own judgment in selecting your points of attack.
Let the marines cover your near approach, and don't open
too soon. When you carry her, stand out to meet us ; but
if you need immediate assistance send a boat.
" Now, gentlemen, go and get ready, and good luck to
you." . -•
220 LOVE AFLOAT.
In ten minutes all was prepared, and the three boats
lay alongside with the crews in them waiting with tossed
oars. The ship was buzzing with excitement, the men
laughing and leaning out of the ports and over the rail, to
joke and talk with their envied messmates in the boats.
The marines were drawn up in line on the lee side of the
quarter-deck, Robbins, full of importance, rectifying the
alignment of his sixteen men every few seconds. Hartley
and the other officers were on the quarter-deck fully
armed, each wearing his sword, with a pair of pistols slung
on the belt.
The Flying Fish was now within two miles of the brig,
and the pirates in the boats could be plainly seen working
violently at their oars.
" W^ll, Hartley," said McKizick resignedly, " you've
got a piece of my work to do, but I guess you'll do it as
well as me. The captain wants you to shove off now. He's
afraid there'll be extra trouble if we give them time to
tow in shore. Drop the cutters to the gangway and
stand by with the gig ! Get your men in, Mr. Robbins,"
he commanded. "Good-by, Hartley. Good luck, old
fellow."
Hartley shook hands with him, bade Garnet, who was
at his side, farewell, ran down into the third cutter, and
shoved off. His boat speedily cleared the ship and shot
ahead, followed by the fourth cutter, and in a moment after
by the gig. The ship's company, without orders but by a
common impulse, darted into the lower rigging and gave
three cheers. The boats crews answered lustily from their
oars, and the seamen on board cheered again.
A little way from the ship, Hartley had his crew lay
on their oars and let the other two boats range up close
astern. He hailed them over the water : " Cutter and
gig there I Keep closed up in line within a boat's length !
Follow me in ! Then the line dashed straight onward
again, the men pulling powerfully, as if fearful the pirates
would escape before they could reach the brig. Hartley
A STORY OF THE AMEKICAN NAVY. 221
made his crew lessen their efforts, for he wanted to keep
them fresh ; and the other boats had to follow his example
to avoid crowding into him. Still they went along at a
good pace, for the oarsmen would every now and then
quicken the stroke in spite of his constant watching.
The pirates continued to exert themselves to the utmost
to tow the brig to the shore, until the boats of the sloop
were within three-quarters of a mile. Then they suddenly
cast off the towline and seemed thrown into confusion and
undecided what to do. One boat actually started for the
shore, but returned in a minute ; and they all three rowed
back to the brig on the side which was away from their
enemies. They were seen, as they leaped on board, thirty
or forty in number ; and they disappeared, hiding behind
the rail. The man-of-war boats never checked their course
for this, but pulled straight on.
About four hundred yards distant from the merchant-
man, Hartley stood up and ordered, " Oars ! " The men
ceased rowing, sitting with horizontal blades and glan-
cing over their shoulders at the near enemy. " Come
alongside ! " hailed Hartley. The other two ranged up,
one on each side, and near to him. " Now, pay attention I
The gig will go under the bows, I'll take the gangway,
and you, Mr. Briggs, the quarter — all on this side. We
must try to get in at exactly the same time. Mind that,
men ! You gigsmen are in the fastest boat : keep back, or
you'll be cut to pieces before we come up. Mind, we
want to go alongside together! — then aboard, and to work !"
The men roared out one irrepressible hurrah. " Keep
abreast just as you are till 1 stand up / then each boat go
to her place, and the marines open fire without further
orders. Keep abreast ! Give way ! "
The excited seamen could not restrain themselves, but
disregarding every instruction, bent to their oars uttering
joyful yells. Fortunately Larkin was able to hold the
small crew of the gig somewhat in hand, so that the three
boats maintained their places in line.
222 LOVE AFLOAT.
The pirates began an irregular rapid fire. Bullets
hummed overhead, skipped on the water dashing up spray,
and occasionally struck the boats themselves, or splintered
the blade of an oar. No one was hurt, however^ and the
singing missiles only raised the men's fierce spirits higher
and made them row the harder. The nearer they got, the
closer did the flying bullets seem to graze; but not a
shot was returned till they were within a hundred yards.
Then Hartley stood up, and the marines began to j^ep-
per away.
The men at the oars gave one wild, shrill cheer to-
gether, as they threw on the supple blades their whole
strength. They toiled silently, but like giants, their faces,
pale with tremendous exertion, their eyes glaring, the
sweat rolling down their gripped jaws. Hartley, Briggs,
and Larkin stood up, and urged them on with excited
words and waving swords. Such a speed quickly took
them over the dangerous hundred yards, and the three
wheeled together at almost the same instant, darting
alongside to their appointed places.
Hurrahing and yelling, the seamen sprung over the
brig's rail, cutlass in hand, and threw themselves upon the
pirates, who were scattered about the deck without
organization. Pistol-shots, shouts, cutlass clashings, and
profanity, made a promiscuous din, though few men fell in
proportion to the noise and savage vigor of the attack.
In a moment the marines followed the seamen with fixed
bayonets.
The pirates, who had lost several men, were dismayed
at the fierceness of their foe, and already almost yielding.
They ceased their weak resistance at the sight of the new
force, and fled precipitately, leaving most of their weapons
behind. Jumping into their boats, which were moored
alongside, they cut the painters and shoved ofi'in a hurry,
while the sailors, leaning over the rail, taunted them and
slashed at them viciously with their cutlasses.
" Wictory ! " shouted a burly Englishman. " Hurray,
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 223
my 'arties, and a hip ! hip ! Ilurray-y-y ! " Everybody
stopped to join in that magniloquent crow.
• As every pistol and musket was empty, the pirates
got away very easily. Robbins had the marines reload
and commence " firing- by file," but it took some time for
them to begin. The men rushed to the boats and com-
menced to jump in, all for following the pirates up, but
Hartley, remembering the captain's injunction, stopped
them with decision.
His attention was quickly called to a conflict on the
brig's forecastle. A negro man stood there swinging one
of the windlass bars about his head, thus keeping clear a
circle around which stood a dozen sailors, cutting at him
with their swords. He was in a fair way to come to grief
for the crowd of seamen was increasing, and they were as
angry as hornets. Hartley ran forward. "Step back,
men ! " he ordered. They obeyed him. " Put down that
bar," said he to the darkey, who now held the bar raised
threateningly, while he glanced about the ring of foes with
sullen ferocity. " You'll be a dead man in five minutes if
you try to fight it out."
" Keep cl'ar o' me ! " responded the negro, sullenly.
Hartley saw that he was in the condition in which the
African has no sense left, except the sense of obstinacy,
and that he would die before he would give up. " Drop
the bar ! " he commanded sternly. The negro only raised
it higher. " Grab him behind, Lewis ! " The darkey
whirled around to strike down the foe expected on that
side, and quick as a flash Hartley sprang upon him. Throw-
ing his arms around him he pinioned him, and in half a
minute the seamen had him tied.
Hartley was then at leisure to look about him. The
oflicers and crew of the brig were all lying aft, their hands
and feet bound with cruel security. It took but a few
seconds to cut the ligatures and release them, but not one
of them could rise till the sailor-men restored circulation
in their limbs by hard chafing.
224 LOVE AFLOAT.
The master of the brig was in a great hurry to get up,
and attempted it so soon that he nearly fell over. How-
ever he managed to totter to the lieutenant. " Shake
hands, capting ! " said he in a weak voice : *' I've got to
thank you for this brave rescue. -I guessed aourjigwas
pretty considerable tarnation nigh up, for awhile. Ef I'd
ben smart I'd a' run back to you this mornin' ensted of
away from you. I hadn't oughter shaved the p'int so close
— it warn't a mite smart in me, but I was in a hurry to
fetch the market, and everythin' hed ben prosperous, and
I was countin' more on the spec I was goin' to make for
the owners in Bosting than anythin' else. I tell you what,
capting, you saved my owners a mighty vallyble cargo in
the old Mercutio, and I reckon you saved Hiram Doolittle —
that's me."
He would have gone on, being apparently a voluble man
under any circumstances, but Hartley left him to see if
any of the men had been hurt. With the exception of
one whose arm had been broken by a bullet and another
who had received a fearful gash in the leg from a knife,
none were seriously wounded ; though bruises and slight
cuts were very common.
By this time the breeze had reached the brig. He had
the towline hauled in and passed out aft to the boats, and
then stood across free to intercept the Flying Fish. He
crossed the track on which she was coming, and hove to.
The sloop swept down slowly, backed her main-yard near
him, and hailed.
On board the Flying Fish all hands had watched the
boats go in, with an almost agonized interest. When the
column paused while Hartley arranged his order of battle,
they cheered. When the boats started in such fine style,
to close so gamely, they cheered. When the pirates
opened fire, and they could hear the popping reports of
their muskets, and see the curling powder smoke, they
cheered again. While the boats made their last spurt, and
the marines fired, and the brig's side was gained, and the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 225
attacking party clambered on board, they cheered wildly
' and continuously. And when they saw the boat flag Hart-
ley had bent to the signal halliards rise swiftly to the peak
iu token of success, w^hat a magnificent crowning cheer of
delight they gave ! They ran about the spar-deck shaking
hands and rejoicing.
Captain Merritt was so anxious to know the results of
the expedition that he would not w^ait for a report, but
hailed. " Brig ahoy ! What brig is that? "
He felt relieved 'when Hartley, who knew what caused
his haste, stepped to the brig*s quarter himself and answered,
"Mercutio of Boston. We are all right, sir."
" Come on board, sir ! "
" Aye, aye, sir."
He was soon on the quarter-deck making his report. The
captain was pleased with the manner in which the duty
had been performed, and did not scruple to say so. He
complimented Hartley openly, in the hearing of the
men and of his brother ofiicers. Hartley felt happy. He
thought, " If Mary could only have seen us go in ! and
could hear my praises ! — it would make her proud of me."
By and by Mr. Hiram Doolittle, having found out
that Hartley was not the " capting," came over in one of
his own boats to return thanks. He was shown into the
cabin and had a long talk, and when he came out it was
with a fixed resolution not to risk his vessel in order to
save half an hour's time by running close to any more
p'ints. He asked to see the ofliicers who had been in the
expedition, and went into both the ward-room and the
steerage to say good-by. All the while he carried with
him a small but seemingly heavy bag. Just before leav-
ing the ship he called Hartley aside mysteriously. " Lef-
tenant," said he, '* there's a hundred silver dollars in this
here bag. 'Tain't much, but it's the best I can do, for I'm
not over and above w^ealthy. I want you to give each o'
them men that helped me out this mornin' a dollar, and
divide the balance among you officers as you calc'late to
10*
226 LOVE AFLOAT.
be correct." Hartley could not repress a slight smile as
■ he involuntarily calc'lated what his share of the lucre
would be. He hastened to assure Captain Doolittle that
they were not allowed to take money for protecting
American citizens, that the country paid them in full for
such services. The grateful Yankee seemed really disap
pointed to hear it, so Hartley told him that if he would
leave twenty dollars it would buy the men a treat, to which
there would be no objection and which they would like
better than money. This satisfied worthy Doolittle, who
. straightway departed into his own craft and filled away
with his bowsprit pointing due south.
The encounter with this gang showed Captain Merritt
that he was far enough to the west. From the description
given by the crew of the Mercutio he was satisfied that
this was not La Hembrilla's party. The inference was
natural that to find the vessel he had been hunting, or to
get news of her, he must go back. He was confirmed by
this in the belief that her secret lair lay about thirty miles
east of the Cobre. Well pleased with the result of the trip,
he ordered the course to be laid for the river.
Sounds of jollity were heard in the. steerage all evening.
The warrant officers were in, and Larkin, who had got a
slight flesh wound in the arm, was telling the story of the
fight. He brought out the ludicrous side of the engage-
ment, moved thereto be the excessive pride of Godolphin and
Young in their first service. He told how, as the three boats
shot up to the brig's side, Mr. Robbins stood up in the stern-
sheets of the gig and commanded in a stentorian voice,
" Fix bayonets ! Prepare to deploy as squirmishers ! "
" And when I got over the bows, gentlemen, and looked
aft, what should I see, rising above the quarter-rail like a
fiery rocket, but the ferocious face of Porp. Never had I
suspected him of such a fierce disposition. Waving his
trusty blade, he uttered a wild yell, and, all alone and un-
supported, threw himself upon the whole body of pirates.
I thought his doom was sealed, and in fact, nothing but
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 227
liis marvellous powers of fence saved him. While con-
tending heroically with a ring of the pirates who were
thrusting at him, he managed not only to parry their stabs,
but when pistols were fired at him he batted the balls aside
with the flat of his sword. But he did not long remain upon
the defensive. With one sweep of his flashing steel he
decapitated two of the pirates ; then rushing upon them, he
began lunging right and left with such deadly force and
velocity that his path was strewn with corpses. The pirates,
fled afli-ighted into their boats and pulled away for dear life."
"Now Larkin — " commenced the annoyed youngster,
amid the chuckles of the party.
" Silence, friend Porp, your modesty is a crime. Valor
must be known that it may be imitated by others.
"He was about to pursue them by swimming, when
fortunately for them, he espied a rind of cheese on deck,
and at once sat down to eat it. Overcome by his exertions
he fell asleep, and there I found him when I got aft. I
awoke him with the greatest difficulty — only the words
* breakfast is ready ' made him stir. All this took place in
four seconds of time."
'''Now Larkin," said Porp, much grieved, "you know
that ain't so."
" Perhaps it was five. Mr. Young was le§s successful.
I missed him during the conflict and asked for him when
it was over. He lay in the cutter, apparently devoid of
life. The boat-keeper told rae that he had fallen over-
board, overcome by terror at Porp's yell, and that it had
taken a lopg time to fasten on to his clothes with the boat-
hook. Finally, he dragged him in nearly dead. We only
saved him by rolling him on a barrel of whiskey and keep-
ing Porp so far away that his voice could not be heard."
" Didn't the brig's folks make no fight ? " asked Thick.
" Yes, the best they knew how. They had some rusty
old muskets they loaded up, but they didn't begin to shoot
till the pirates were on board, and they were to badly
scared to aim very straight. They werq all tied befoy©
they had time to spit on their hands."
228 LOVE AFLOAT.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE following evening found the ship anchored in the
mouth of the river and preparations making for an ex-
pedition. The boats were not lowered, but everything was
got ready to put in them before sunset. As soon as it was
fairly dark, they were called away, and Garnet received
his orders. These were to ascend the stream as quietly as
possible, keeping in the middle of it, to make an occasional
sounding, and to go on till midnight, or till they got above
a seven-foot channel. If he found La Hembrilla, he was to
use his judgment about attacking.
The moon was three hours high when the expedition
left the ship. The boats were pulled with muffled oars,
and their progress was slow and silent, for the current of
the Cobre was so strong that no rapid headway could be
made. They passed through scenes of beauty. The air
was full of vapor, which hung trembling in the pale light.
The night had all the stillness of the tropics. The moon,
as it sank, cast lengthening and peculiarly black shadows
from the tree-crowned hills upon the smooth surface of the
flowing stream. Valleys leading to the river afforded a
chance for the light to stream through and pour itself out
flat on the water. Where the stream curved east or west
long reaches were lighted up.
It was a narrow little river, not over a hundred yards
wide, and in some places the inclining trees so nearly met
overhead that it was like passing under a dark*arch. In
one spot, two blqffs stood up perpendicular, facing and
near each other, The opening looked like a mighty gate.
It was hard to get through it, because the contracted
stream ran very swiftly between the opposing walls.
For three hours the boats toiled slowly up, the only
Bounds being the dip of the oars, the murmur of the cleft
water, and the low d^-ections about steering given by the.
A STORY OP THE AMERICAN NAVY. 229
officers to the coxswains. Toward the close of that time,
a soft and sustained noise, like that of moving waters, was
heard over a hiil ; and it grew momently more distinct.
Turning to the east around a sharp bend, they came upon
a series of rapids, and little cascades, on which the setting
moon was throwing its last rays. It was beautiful, even
in that insufficient light, and they would all have lingered
at the foot of the aqueous slope to admire; but the 'head
of navigation was reached, their object accomplished, and
Garnet gave the order to return. He did not enforce
silence going back, allowing the men to talk and smoke
by way of rest after their hard work. They enjoyed the
swift easy row down stream, and in one hour were back on
board.
In the morning Garnet was sent with the two cutters,
and a supply of provisions to last in case the ship were
called away on a chase, and instructions to make a day's
survey of the stream as far up as the time would permit.
The ship was gotten under way and stood off to the east-
ward toward El Cayo del Pescador.
Soon after, the negro captured two days before was
missed, and a strict search showed that he was not in the
ship. They could only surmise that he had managed to
elude the sentry in the night, and, with his irons on, had
slipped overboard. There was a chance that he had reached
the shore, for the ship lay very near it, and it was possible
for a good swimmer, though pinioned, to go a little way
through the water ; but the chance was so small that they
all regarded him as drowned.
The darkey had been very much frightened after his
sullen fit passed off, and had cried and blubbered ; but he
would not talk. He asked to see Hartley, and at first
seetned disposed to make a clean breast of his guilt in con-
nection with the gang ; but something made him change
his mind.
" I'se much obleeged to you for not lettin' 'em kill me.
Moss," he said.
230 LOVE AFLOAT.
" You had better be," Hartley answered. " If I had
not been there the men would have killed you in a minute.
What do you want ? "
"Will dey hangme?"
" I can't tell about that. Your best chance is to tell
what you know, so we can catch the rest."
.The darkey broke out crying again, exclaiming repeat-
edly, " Wisht I was back to old Moss's ; " but he would say
no more.
When the Flying Fish was hove to off the point of the
key, Hartley was sent in the gig to make an examination.
There was little to be seen. The key consisted almost
entirely of yellow and white and gray sand, piled up in
rolling mounds, with a scanty vegetation struggling for
life here and there. It was nearly circular, and about five
hundred yards in diameter. Hartley went over the whole
of it. He took two of the gig's men, and went first in the
direction from which the pirates had come with the box,
but after awhile their tracks ceased, and he had no further
indication to guide him. He pushed on in the same
direction, however, and in a hollow between two mounds
he found entangled in some low bushes a scrap of paper.
On it was a list of names, written in two long columns.
He read, " John Hackett, James Arrowson, Benjamin
Markley, Tom Titus, Bill Kitt, Alonzo Gomez, Mark Jones,
Antonio Largues, Jan Alsen, Pedro Panza, Peter Devitt,
William Jackson, Jno. Peters," and more. There were in
all about fifty names, and he took it to be a muster roll of
the crew of La Hembrilla. Carefully folding thd doc -
ment, he put it away, thinking it might be of use in the
future. Then he examined the key closely, crossing it
several times, and making a complete tour by the beach.
He finally brought up at the boat. As had been arrang*ed,
the ship was gone, having by this time probably reached
the river, where she went to be near her surveying party.
Hartley was to sail down when he was ready, but, as he
had the day before him and it was still early, he made no
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAYT. 231
haste. Directing the crew to remain near the boat, he
Btrolled back toward the centre of the key, where stood a
sand mound of so much greater dimensions and height
than the others as to be the feature of the island. This
hillock was crowned with the species of coarse tough wiry-
grass, which seems able to thrive in the most barren spots
and is usually found in such places, binding the poor soil
together and giving it permanency against dry gales by
the involved mattings of its intertwined roots. Here
Hartley sat down.
For awhile he amused himself by sketching the wil-
derness of rough rocks and little keys which studded the
western water ; but this occupation could not hold its place
in his mind with the thoughts that came swarming. His
pencil moved mechanically, then became idle.
_ He speculated on La Hembrilla, wondering where her
refuge could lay, and imagined half a dozen combats in
which he himself figured as the discoverer of the pirates'
haunt, the outwitter of their cunning, and their vanquisher
and captor in glorious fight. He recalled the events which
had occurred since they had sailed from Santa Cruz, and
his pulses leapt at the remembrance of the short successful
struggle upon the brig's deck. Again he longed that Mary
had seen him wave his sword leading his men on to victory;
and then he thought of her with a deep tenderness. He
went over heir many perfections, her goodness, sweetness,
vivacity, beauty, each grace of person and of mind ; and
he hugged himself, like a miser counting over his dollars, to
remember that each and all were his. His vanity was
pleased, and his pride rising. Then better thoughts came.
He wondered why he, of all men, should be singled out for
so much joy, and he reflected upon his defects of character
and the means of modifying them so that the dear girl's
happiness might flow straight along without a break.
He lay down upon his back in the wiry grass, shielded
his head frv)ra the sun with the portfolio, and gazed up into
the sky. Strange fancies soon came floating through his
2v2 LOVE AFLOAT.
mind, visions mixed of heaven and earth floated above.
His body was unfelt and he seemed to himself like a spirit
which might fly away when it would. The sighing of the
wind* in the grass was in his ears a sound
" That far away did rave
On alien shores." — Tennyson.
It was the dclce far nientey or he was eating the lotos
maybe, or absorbing poetry from nature ; but whatever it
was, the pleasure was too delicate and ethereal to last any
son of earth very long. An idea stole in unwelcome, a
thing of doubt which broke the charm. A remainder of
his uneasiness about Mary's aflection came over him, and
he instantly arose.
Looking at his watch he found that the men would have
a late dinner, even if the good breeze held, a discovery that
made him start back. Before he left the mound he instinc-
tively took a last glance around the horizon. Something,
a transient gleam of white in the far southeast, caught
his eye. " A sail ? — or a gull's wing ? " he thought. He
gazed intently and thought he saw the speck of white
again, but it appeared distinctly no more.
Dismissing it from his mind, he hurried to the boat.
To avoid a tramp through the loose yielding sand, he
turned to the left, that he might the sooner gain the hard
beach. Three mounds lay near it, in such an exact line
north and south that he noticed their uniformity. The.
northern one of the three was higher and more pointed
than the others, standing up like a captain. He walked
betw^een them, gained the beach, and soon reached the
boat,
hitting the two large sails, the long lean gig lay far
over on her side for a moment ; then, gathering way,
righted and darted off* arrow-like before the fresh wind. A
quick run through her own spray and foam carried her
to the ship, and before long Hartley was comfortably eat-
ing his dinner.
He found Garnet at the smoking place with the other
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 233
officers. All seemed to be teasing Dularge, who was tak-
ing it very sourly. When Hartley appeared he went away.
Hartley asked what was the matter, and after a little
hesitation they told him.
It seemed that Dularge had imagined himself in love
with Mary, and had thought about the propriety of under-
taking her conquest. He made a confidant of Doctor
Bobus, much to the annoyance of the surgeon, who, while he
did not fancy Dularge and did not care to have the keep-
ing of his secrets, had an admiration for Mary and a toler-
able certainty about her affair with Hartley. The inflated
and lady-killing air with which Dularge conveyed his senti-
ments and intentions was still more disgusting to a man
with Bobus's gentlemanly instincts. " You see. Doc," said
Dularge, "I think I've been running loose long enough.
A young fellow must have his swing, you know, but by
Jove ! he has to take the example of old fellows like you,
and settle down some day, you know. Don't you think
so?"
" The earlier the better," replied the doctor dryly.
" Just so. Exactly what I think. A fellow's bound to
marry and settle down some time, you know ; and, if he
finds a woman to suit him pretty well, he'd better sacrifice
himself a few years sooner, for fear of not finding another
as good, you know. By Jove ! the good ones are none too
plenty. Now, Doc, I leave it to you if I'm likely to
come across as pretty a piece, and as rich, too, as Mary
Dewhurst very soon."
The doctor was in his state-room blockaded by the
buzzing tormentor. " Are you sure you can induce Miss
Dewhurst to be your wife ? " he asked, in a tone that would
have informed most men.
" Ah," replied Dularge with inimitable serene compla-
cency, "just leave that to me. I have had some little ex-
perience with the fair sex. I fancy that is all right."
Bobus felt so irritated and contemptuous that he could
cheerfully have kicked him. " If you can marry Miss Dew-
234 LOYE AFLOAT.
hurst, you'd better," said he ; adding mentally, " for she
would make you behave more like a man before other
people." He went on, aloud, in a rather impatient voice,
" Let me pass through the door, if you please. I want to
go into the bay."
" Well ! " thought Dularge, surprised ; "hang me if I
don't believe the old bigamy has an eye on her himself."
He chuckled at the notion of any one else trying to get
ahead of him in the good graces of a lady.
On the morning about which we are writing Dularge
had been observing his lovely countenance in a glass, and
his soul was secretly troubled. He went again to the
doctor ; found him reading in his state-room, penned him
in, and opened on him:
" Doctor, you know I mentioned my intentions with
regard to Miss Mary Dewhurst. Something you said
about a chance against me, set me to thinking about it ;
and I confess I am uneasy."
"Well."
" You see, doctor, if there's anything the ladies go for
it's personal appearance. I think I do passably well on
that score" — he drew himself up with an air — " but you
know the women are so confoundedly observing."
" Well."
" The least little thing out of the way, and they see it
sure. Now, doctor, I have discovered one defect in my
personal appearance, and I want to consult you about it."
"What is it?"
" I never noticed it before, but I think my nose is just
a little to one side — to the right-^— don't you see it ? "
The doctor looked, and though Dularge's nose w«as
apparently in the middle of his face, he answered, " Oh,
yes ; distinctly," hoping to be rid of him by acquiescence.
" I thought so," said Dularge sadly ; " I was afraid so.
Can you do anything for it ? *'
Doctor Bobus was suddenly and very strongly tempted.
His dignity made him dislike practical jokes, and he would
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 235
not usually condescend to play them ; but here was an
opportunity he could not resist.
" Well," he replied, in a dubious tone, " it may be pos-
sible. Is it congenital ? "
« Con— what ? "
" Congenital. I mean have your father and mother the
same distortion ? "
" No," replied Dularge, slightly bridling up. " My
parents are both remarkably fine looking."
" How long have you been in this condition ? "
"I don't know. I only noticed it a little while ago."
" Oh, recent, eh ? It is probably curable then. Prob-
ablv the growth of the distortion can be arrested, and the
organ restored to its normal condition by proper treat-
ment."
" I'm very glad to hear it. Let me have the medicine
now, won't you ? "
The doctor seemed to be musing. " No," he muttered.
*' No use. He would never bear it."
" Tell me what you would have to do, doctor. Is it
very painful ? I could stand a good deal, and it won't do
to let it get worse than it is now."
" Mr. Dularge, the remedy is very painful. I doubt
your ability to bear it. Your case requires what the fac-
ulty term heroic treatment."
" Why do they call it that ? " asked Dularge anxiously.
" Because it requires a great deal of heroism in the
patient to endure it long enough to effect a radical cure."
'* Well, tell me what it is anyhow," urged Dularge, now
grown very nervous. " Maybe I could stand it."
" Oh, it's simple enough. I merely introduce a support
into your left nostril which prevents a further deflection
of the bridge, and sets up a counter-irritation that causes
a gradual return to nature. But the support plugs the
nostril entirely, and its pressure on the tissues and mucous
membrane becomes very painful."
" I've a great mind to try it," said Dularge reflectively ;
236 LOVE AFLOAT.
" it '11 do no hurt even if I can't keep it in. I will. Come,
doctor, fix her up ! "
'• Very well, Mr. Dularge, but please remember it will
take some time, and that I endeavored to dissuade you."
" All right, plug her up. I'll take the risk."
The doctor gravely and deliberately made a large hard
wad of pink cotton-wool, which he stuffed up Dularge's
nose with great care. Then he wrote a prescription, and
sent it to his steward by a servant, who speedily returned
with a small glass syringe full of a brown liquid. The
doctor injected this upon the cotton-wool, told Dularge to
breathe through his mouth and be patient, and dismissed
him. Then the doctor laughed very heartily for ten min-
utes in his own peculiar manner. He always lauded
internally, without noise, and it seemed painful to him ;
so much so that he held in his sides with his hands as if
to keep from bursting.
Dularge went to quarters, and attracted attention by
the swelled condition of his nose, already getting pink.
The captain saw it and wondered, and so did McKizick,
and so did the men. After quarters the ofiicers asked, one
after another, as each met hinqi, " What's the matter with
your nose ? " This was not pleasant to him. He answered
each shortly that it was sore and the doctor had been fix-
ing it for him.
By and by it began to hurt, and he could not refrain
from stroking and caressing it in a manner that excited
laughter and caused further inquiry. He was so non-com-
mitted on the tender subject that curiosity was heightened,
and, as soon as he made an opportunity by leaving the
ward-room, everybody went to the doctor and demanded an
explanation. He at first pleaded the confidence reposed in
medical men, but they urged so hard and the joke was so
good that he had to tell them. He broke down several
times, and was forced to take a turn around the ward-room,
laughing agonizedly and holding his sides. They laughed,
too, when they heard the story. The doctor begged
A STOllY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 237
them to let Dularge alone for a few hours, and take out
their amusement in watching him while he remained igno-
rant that they knew.
Presently he came back with his nose looking more
bulged than ever and grown quite red. He kept putting
his hand to it, stroking it, pressing it, and making wry
faces. He went in his room and got on the bed, taking a
hand-glass with him, and the rest of the mess found fre-
quent occasion to pass his door and steal a glance at him,
as he lay ruefully regarding the swollen member. The
frequent gushes of half-suppressed laughter which he heard
outside made him curious, and he called several times to
ask what was the fun.
All the while the nose w^as becoming more irritated,
and at last he felt unable to endure it any longer. He
was heard to exclaim, " By Jove ! I can't stand it ! " and
then he appeared in the ward-room, holding the organ in
his hand very delicately and looking around surprised at
the merriment which greeted him. He stopped to ask no
questions, but ran to the surgeon's state-room at once.
The doctor was quietly pretending to read a book.
" I say, doctor, this is worse than I thought, you know.
How much longer will it take ?"
" My dear sir, the time is very indefinite. Sometimes
the cure comes sooner, sometimes later. You can never
tell until you are cured," replied Bobus.
" Do you think it will take very long for me, doctor ? "
" I do — a considerable space of time," answered the
surgeon.
*'^ But, doctor, it won't hurt any worse, will it ? "
" Of course it will. Your sufferings are only begun,
Mr. Dularge."
" But, doctor, I can't stand it, you know. How much
longer do you think it will take ? "
" Well, sir, as near as I can say, if you keep the sup-
port constantly in place, and do not unduly excite the
mucous membrane by rubbing with the hand as you have
238 LOYE AFLOAT.
been doing, and do not catch cold, and breathe all the time
through your mouth, and be patient, and the case progress
favorably, it will take — "
" How long, doctor ? "
" About two years and six months."
" Good Lord ! " ejaculated Dularge in despair, " as long
as that ! Why, I can't stand it, you know ! "
A burst of laughter from the officers outside, who had
slipped to the door and overheard, explained it all to Du-
large. Casting one furious glance at the doctor, who was
twisting and writhing in his chair in a convulsion of mirth,
he departed to his room, where he quickly picked out the
wad of cotton with a pin. For a long time afterward all
that was needed to make Dularge stop disgusted in one of
his magnificent speeches was to ask him, "How's your
nose ? "
The cutters returned at dark, Garnet having completed
his rough chart of the river as far up as the ship could go.
The captain now determined to leave the vicinity of
the Cobre for a time, and to try to get information further
east. He thought it likely that the pirates had abandoned
that cruising-ground, temporarily at least, as he had seen
nothing of La Hembriila for several days. It seemed use-
less for the sloop to stay when she was away, and in addi-
tion he thought that orders might be awaiting him in
Santa Cruz, to which port the commodore expected him
to go occasionally. After cruising three or four days
longer without incident they started up the coast.
They touched at several places, most of them small vil-
lages, in each of which careful attempts were made to find
out something of the schooner. Officers went ashore and
called upon the officials, and citizens were invited to visit
the ship. The men were sent on liberty, also, and the
petty officers instructed to pump the natives. It was all
useless. Though the conduct of the people, under their
close watching and frequent interrogation, was sometimes
suspicious, they had nothing to tell, all professing ignorance,
A STOKY OF THE AMEKICAN NAVY. 289
or declaring that they had never heard of such a craft as
La Hembrilla.
In a week the Flying Fish reached Santiago do Cuba,
an interesting place, walled in by mountains, possessing a
fine harbor, and having, in addition, at that time, the rep-
utation of being the birthplace of the yellow fever. It
was formerly averred that the fever always originated in
that city, and could invariably be traced back to it as a
starting point. At that season it was healthy, and no fears
were felt of any bad effect following a visit.
A little Portuguese gun-brig lay at anchor in the har-
bor. She was the image of naval slouchiness. Her masts
were badly "stayed, her head booms curved upward, her
yards were out of square, with some of the braces hanging
in bights, and the lower lifts were so slack that the yard-
arms drooped in the meanest merchant-ship fashion. Her
hull, once black, had grown of an ashy grayish color from
long lack of paint ; and wherever there was a piece of iron-
work outside a streak of red rust ran from it to the water's
edge.
When the Flying Fish anchored, Hartley was sent to
this unique man-of-war to make inquiries, she showing no
sign of meaning to pay the usual official visit. She wore
a deserted air, no one noticing his approach. When he
mounted the side he looked up and down the deck without
seeing a soul under her baggy awnings, but a negro boy
about four years old. The little fellow was very black,
very fat, very dirty, and eyed him solemnly without a word.
His face shone " like the moon in her fourteenth night "
with grease, and his only garment was a short cotton shirt,
almost as black as himself. The deck was covered with a
varied assortment of grease spots of all sizes and ages.
** You are the captain, I presume," said Hartley, politely
touching his cap to the little darkey. The niggeret uttered a
loud wail of fear, and ran off as fast as his chubby legs would
carry him, bawling the while. He disappeared down a
sort of booby-hatch that seemed to lead into the cabin.
2i0 LOVE AFLOAT.
While Hartley was wondering at his reception, a sleepy,
stupid-looking Portuguese came up the ladder with a glass
in his hand. He advanced calmly, and waited to know the
visitor's business. The little darkey had followed him back
whimpering, and now stood silently behind him, clinging
to his legs and occasionally peeping timidly out at the terri-
ble clean stranger. Spite of his crying, he showed no trace
of tears ; water could no more remain upon his oily visage
than upon the back of a duck. .
" Do you speak English ? " asked Hartley.
The sailor shook his head.
"HablasEspanol?"
" Poco," was the brief reply.
" En donde esta el capitano ? "
" No hay. Queda." And.the sailor calmly walked back
to the hatch and went below.
After awhile there came up a half-dressed officer, as
sleepy-looking as the sailor. Seeing Hartley, his lethargy
left him, and he explained that the captain was ashore
and all hands were taking a siesta, according to the com-
mon custom. The vessel was his Portuguese Majesty's
brig-of-war La Madonna de Coimbra. He had heard of
La Hembrilla — who had not ? — but had never seen her.
In fact La Madonna had been in Santiago only three months.
She would doubtless pursue the accursed rover before long
— it was the mission of gallant sailors to sweep the pirates
from off the face of the whole ocean — ^but they had not yet
recovered from the arduous passage around Point Maysi.
Besides, what haste ? The accursed rover was too swift.
Why not wait till she came into Santiago ?
Hartley finished hi§ business as soon as possible, and
returned to the ship as rich as he left. When the mid-
shipmen heard the brig's name, they dubbed her "The
Greasy Virgin."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 241
CHAPTER XIX.
THAT night at about half-past eight, Hartley went np
and joined Garnet, who had the deck. The two liked
once in a while to get together in that way, and open their
hearts to one another. The constant movement of walking
seemed to free the channels of speech, which run from mind
through mouth, by ear, into mind ; so that on deck in the
night they always came nearer to each other than at any
other time. Many a keen criticism of character was
uttered, many a poetic figure expanded, many a hard
friendly word passed, which at any other time and place
would not have been spoken. Hartley saved up his poems
against these occasions, in order to give Garnet a chance
to pull them to pieces.
Another reason why they were more communicative at
such times was that one's face never speaks by night.
Neither of them liked to betray emotion. Garnet especially
detested to show any weakness, and he was a man whose
well-spring of sympathy lay not very deep under his dry
sandy crust.
It must not be supposed that they talked continuously,
however, for the " flashes of silence" were frequent. Only
something very new and interesting ever kept them going
long : a few remarks usually satisfied them, and the rest
was filled with suggested thoughts, which now and then
found utterance. When one of them wandered off on
something else the talk would break out again for awhile.
" Well, Harry, that you ? Glad you come."
"Yes. Come to take a turn with you. We hav'nt
been on deck together for a month."
" No," was all Garnet had to say, and they had a walk
up and down the deck for a bit.
*' Hal,*' said Garnet, " have you any idea how much a
man walks in a year on watch ? "
11
24:2 LOVE AFLOAT.
"No: but I suppose it's something considerable."
" Let's consider it. I have been going over it in my
head. I stepped off the distance from the fiferail to the
boom sheet just thirty yards, and^I have often noticed that
it takes me about a minute to go over that distance three
times. That's about three miles an hour. I suppose a
man walks three-quarters of his watch, doesn't he ? "
" Yes, fully," replied Hartley. " More, on the average."
"Say three-quarters. Six hours in twenty-four — that
would be four thousand nine hundred miles a year, when
you were standing four watches, or six thousand five hun-
dred in a ship with only three."
" Whew ! I had no idea it was so much," said
Hartley.
" You can't make it any less, unless you walk slower.
Just think, I am walking five thousand miles a year for
the good of my country. We ought to have tough under-
standings, Hal."
" So we have, my boy."
" What was Bobbins talking to you about ? " asked
Garnet.
" He asked me who was Charlotte Curdy."
. "Curdy, eh?"
" Yes ; so he pronounced it. I told him he was think-
ing of Charlotte Corday, and gave him the story of how
she stabbed Marat when he was in his bath, and sacrificed
her life to rid France of the monster. He said he had
heard something about it, but thought the name was
Curdy, and that it was Mew-rat she killed."
" Did he appreciate her motive ? "
"Not in the least; but he admired her pluck very
much," replied Hartley. .
" Singular what satisfaction he has in life."
" He saddens and disgusts me."
Then ensued a pause of several minutes, after which
Hartley recounted his visit to the greasy Madonna, and
his reception by the quaint little nigger. He ended by
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 243
saying, " Strange how men can be satisfied with such a
useless existence."
" Just what I said about Robbins. We see the same
thing every day in one shape or another, but I cannot
become reconciled to such — such a — "
" To such an ignoble yielding to the force of circum-
stances ? " supplied Hartley.
"Yes. I can understand that the difference in men's
natures inclines some to idleness : but how can they be
satisfied ? I suppose they get used to it."
" Most of them seem as content as busy men are."
" What is content, Hal ? "
** Retirement, rural quiet, friendship, books,
Ease and alternate labor, useful life.
Progressive virtue, and approving heaven."
" That's the poetry for it. Now what is it ? "
" To have a good occupation, and a sure income, a
sweet-tempered, smart, pretty wife, and a few children, a
love for books and a philosophical disposition."
" If turnips were watches, I'd wear one," said Garnet.
" Well, what do you say it is ? "
"A mixture of congenial work and leisure in propor-
tions suited to the man."
" That ought to account for Robbins's contetitment."
"Why?" asked Garnet.
" No work is congenial to him, and he has nothing to
do. There's your mixture — whiskey, diluted with whiskey,
and flavored with whiskey — proportions suited to the man.
You leave out the wife in your estimate. Honestly, Will,
don't you think her necessary ? "
" Honestly — yes. I have thought it all over, and I am
willing to leap into the bottomless pit of matrimony if I
can persuade Miss Terrell to jump, too."
" Bravo ! good ! You musn't expect her to pin her
apron-strings to your coat-tails, and drag you in. She's
not the woman for that."
24:4 LOVE AFLOAT.
*' I said if I could persuade her."
" You don't mean it, Will ? "
" I dare say I would be a better man, married. But we
are not certain of finding the ladies in Santa Cruz when we
get there."
"That's true, but I sincerely hope we may, on your
account as well as my own. You would fall in love with
Isabel Terrell, if you had a chance to see something of her.
Confound your deliberation, Will ! you just threw away a
week of splendid opportunities."
Garnet laughed dryly. ** They wouldn't have been so
valuable to me as you think, Harry. I haven't your — well,
let's call it your executive ability."
" No. Pshaw ! Better get me to attend to this little
affair for you."
*' On the principle that a man who is his own lawyer
has a fool for a client," replied Garnet, scornfully.
" You'll never help yourself."
" So I had better get help. Exactly. Having had
great experience in this line, you are prepared to execute
country orders with promptness and despatch. It might
be safe to trust you, since Miss Mary is in the same
house."
" You know well enough what I mean. It*8 absurd to
waste good chances trying to make up your mind to what
is clear at the first glance."
" It might not have been so clear to me. You don't
look at it as I do, and there's no use talking. Perhaps I
did not entirely waste my chances, as you say."
" There, you can't pass yourself off for a sly lover.
That is a new role for you ! "
Garnet was more in earnest than his friend could
believe. Presently Hartley broke the silence again.
" Speaking of content, did you ever see any one more
blissfully satisfied that Dularge ? He isn't handsome or
smart, or well-informed, or a good officer or respect-
able in any way, yet he thinks himself all that and more.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 245
He can't even talk, though he believes himself to be
eloquent."
" He lacks the four ingredients.'*
"Of what?"
" Good conversation."
" What are they ? " asked Hartley.
" Sense, truth, humor, and wit."
" That's a tip-top analysis. Whose is it ? "
" Sir William Temple's, I believe."
"Where?"
" Don't know. I never read him."
They walked awhile longer, and Garnet asked, " Tell
me, Hal, what good does your Miss Mary do you now ? "
" She is my * dear under-song in clamor's hour.' "
" Poetry as usual. Wonder if I were to get into love
it would set me to rhyming. Hope not. That would be
Another inducement to try to marry reasonably."
" Well, that wasn't my own verse. I couldn't possibly
lay bare my feelings at the present time, so I just flung in
the first words that came handy. You must excuse me."
"Certainly. I suppose there must be a forbidden
ground in such cases. I cant see where it begins, but I
shall not feel hard if you warn me off."
"Will, I've been a boy in this whole thing. I just
yielded to my impulses and wishes without any considera-
tion for her, or thought about her happiness. I don't
deserve it. I have gone ahead like a boy, and I have been
successful ; but I'm only now beginning to understand and
appreciate what I have gained. I don't deserve it — but I
vow I will, by heaven ! I will try all my life long to
make her happy. Henceforth, I'll be a man for her
sake."
" I am truly glad to hear you say so, Harry. Try not
to forget it all before morning — it is what you need to
remember. If you have found it out for yourself it may
do you good. I speak plainly, but * faithful are the wounds
of a friend,' you know. I believe you are right in your
246 LOTE AFLOAT.
high estimate of Miss Mary. You have fallen on your feet
as usual."
"That's all true, old fellow."
Another pause, then Hartley resumed. " I do hope we
shall find them there. There's a young Englishman named
Shelley writing some very deep and beautiful poetry now."
" IVe read some of it."
" You mean you can't understand it. Never mind ;
study on it. He's in Italy now, I believe. There's a piece
of his begins —
" * Many a green isle needs must be
In the deep wide sea of misery,
Or the mariner, worn and wan,
Never thus could voyage on — '
** Well, Santa Cruz is the greenest island — the only green
one to me — in this whole miserable sea."
" One glass of good whiskey would make the whol^
Caribbean as pleasant as punch, in five minutes."
" You're inclined to scoff at me. Will, you know how
a Cape pigeon flies ? "
" Certainly."
" With a swift, curving, horizontal sweep ; and how
pretty the little things are, and sometimes they come sud-
denly, when you are not expecting them, and cross before
your eyes, and are gone before you can turn your head."
" I've often noticed that."
" Just so with some of our thoughts — some of our best.
We have to look very quickly as they pass, or they are
gone before fairly shaped in the mind, before we have seen
enough to recognize them when they come again."
" How do they come again ? "
"In memory."
" More likely in some fellow's book. There's nothing
new."
" Why, that very thought is its own instance. I caught
it on the wing and showed it to you."
" Like as not a dozen men had caught it before you did.
A STORY OF THE AMEKICAN NAVY. 247
It's a rather lame bird, anyhow, isn't it ? Did you never
hear of flocks of pensive, dove-like reflections, or of eagle
conceptions ? "
" That's downright mean. Leave a man a little self-
conceit, can't you ? "
Garnet spoke slowly. "I'll tell you what sometimes
gets into my head. It doesn't come and go, bird fashion,
but descends on me, solid and heavy, and — unpleasant. I
get to thinking about life; and all my rules of conduct,
external and internal, seem to lose their virtue. I think
about how I go on from hour to hour, and year to year,
trying to keep down faults and live up to my standard ;
and it appears as if all I try for didn't amount to much.
Aftgr awhile I'll be old, and I'll die and be forgotten, and
other men will be in my place doing as I did, to be for-
gotten as I was. I think at such times that I have no
proof of anything better to come, or of any life at all here
after ; and I ask myself, what's the use of it all ? "
"I never suspected that of you."
Garnet took up a small sounding lead lying on the
gangway grating, and poised it in his hand. " Here it all
is, birth, life, and death. I take it up — this lump of lead
is a human soul galvanized by a foreign force into a sort
of life, not belonging to it properly. Now I swing it — so-
fashion — with all my might, and heave it as high as I can."
He acted as he spoke. The lead rose in an arc, and fell
overboard with a splash. " That's a man's slow laborious
rise, and his quick easy fall by the irresistible gravity of-
death. He makes a little splash when we lose sight of
him, but the water gets smooth again directly, and we
don't know how deep he's gone, or what kind of bottom
he rests on."
Hartley was astonished. "Why, Garnet, what made
you heave the lead overboard ? "
" Merely by way of illustration," replied Garnet coolly.
"You are the prosaic one this time; the line was bent.
Quartermaster, haul in the lead ! " he ordered.
248 LOVE AFLOAT.
Hartley was a good deal taken aback for a minute :
then he carried on the figure. " For what you kno-w, that
lead will in time be dissolved away by the water and rise
in vapor, to be carried by the winds where it will be
absorbed in its new forms, and live a better life in beau-
tiful trees and flowers."
"That's too far away and uncertain. Too much he
and • not enough do. I'm thinking about a piece I saw
in a paper and got by heart, years ago. It was signed
*Yonah."'
" Spout it," said Hartley.
" Streams that sweep where thousands languish
On the mountain, in the glen.
Seaward bear each cry of anguish - •
Uttered by the sons of men.
Hence it is that ever Ocean
Hath so deep, so sad a moan ;
Calm, or lashed in wild commotion,
Therefore is its dirge-like tone.
Moaning for the dead and dying
With its ever-voiceful waves :
For the countless forms that, lying.
Whiten in its coral caves.
Earth the broken-hearted pillows.
Rivers tell it to the sea —
Shall not Ocean with its billows.
Their eternal mourner be ? "
« That's good," said Hartley.
" It was called a translation from the Greek."
" It sounds like* the surf out yonder."
" Have you written anything lately ? "
" One little thing. I thought of it awhile ago when
you were speaking of your cui bono"
"Spout it."
" It is a translation from the French," said Hartley. He
then repeated slowly the following lines :
9 .
A STORT OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 249
"•THE DOVES.
" ' On the slope of the hill, down where lie the tombs,
A beautiful palm-tree, like a green plume
Lifts up its head, where at dusk the doves come
To nestle and shelter themselves through the gloom.
But in the morn from the branches they fly,
Like a necklace's pearls loosed from threaded array :
"We see them dispersing, white on the blue sky.
And settling again on some roof far away.
My soul is the tree, where like them, every even,
Fond foolish fancies, in multitudes white,
With rustling and trembling of wings fall from heaven—
But to vanish again with the morning's first light.' "
Garnet listened to him attentively, and when he had
done, waited a minute before asking, "Do you want it
criticised ? "
" Yes," replied Hartley.
His friend was silent again for a minute. He spoke at
last. " You've given me a tough nut to crack, and a rough
one. It's not very inviting to look at. I fancy it isn't a
very sweet one. I guess I'll not tackle it. You know the
faults of the verse as well as I do. I don't believe that sort
of thing will pay, anyhow, Hal? "
" I don't know. It is rough." He went on after awhile,
" You speak of the painful question you are forced to ask
yourself sometimes. I have just the same feeling ; but it
doesn't often come, and then it doesn't stay with me long."
" You constantly show me your weak side. You make
a poorer showing than you deserve."
" How's that ? " asked Hartley.
" You know you love change."
" Yes."
" I see you trying to keep that down before others, and
sticking to things that have grown wearisome, but when
we are alone you fly about, you constantly expose yourself."
11*
250 LOVE AFLOAT.
Hartley answered good-humo redly, " That's a criti-
cism in place of the one you wouldn't give on the poem.
I acknowledge its justice. Perhaps the efforts you see me
making may l5ecome a second nature."
Another pause, broken by Hartley. " I commenced to
ask, awhile ago, about a strange kirld of a feeling 1 some-
times have. It's as pleasant as yours is disagreeable,
though it is an unearthly sort of pleasure. I feel it only
when I have before me a great expanse of land or water,
with nothing very striking to take my eye. The wind
must be blowing just enough to plash the waves or rustle
the grass gently, and the sun must be shining and I must
be comfortable in body, with nothing to disturb me. When
I have all this I sometimes fall into a kind of trance, which
is the state I mean. My soul seems as if it were free to go
away if it wished, as if it were hanging in the air. My
body is forgotten, though I still see and hear. What I
really see and hear has a sense of unreality with it. The
rustling of the grass or plashing of the water seems far
away, a delicious, dreamy sound. The most genuine things
are those which do not exist, troops of angels winding in
squadrons and columns so long that the other ends
are lost in the vagueness of infinite distance ; or myriads
of white specks darting and dancing about the sky, white
feather-dust mingling in whirling volutes in, confused
tracks hopeless to trace. It may be a sensuous pleasure
after all, or may be the delight of lulled senses, with the
mind dreaming freely in the daytime ; but it seems almost
heavenly. I always dislike to have the trance broken,
though there is an inexplicable satisfaction about a gradual
awakening. I felt this the other day when I went to look
over the key — while you were surveying the river."
" I have a touch of it once in a great while. It's what
the French call reveriCy^ said Garnet. He stopped, and then
went on : " We have talked a lot of nonsense to night. It's
all too fanciful. I don't like it. I don't like these compli-
cated ecstasies and agonies, for they don't amount to the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 251
little end of nothing whittled down to a point. If I must
have emotions, let them come in plain, simple fashion. I
feel out o' sorts to night, Hal. Guess I'll take a blue pill
to-morrow."
A blue pill might have done Garnet good for a time,
inasmuch as it relieves the liver and brightens the mind ;
perhaps it was the best medicine he could take, but in his
case it could only palliate the symptoms of the true disease.
He spoke again.
" See yonder."
« What ? "
" The midshipman of the forecastle leaning on the fore-
topsail-sheet bitt. I'd bet he's asleep."
« Who is it ? "
" Mr. Godolphin. Poor young fellow ! It's hard on a
growing boy to lose his rest."
" There's three bells. As I have to relieve you at
twelve, I'd better not lose my rest. Good night, Will."
A « Au reservoir. "
After he had been gone awhile, Garnet, observing that
Porp remained motionless, in the same position, walked
forward to see him. Porp stood with his head bowed
down on the bitt, as though it were the altar of the sweet
slumber he adored ; while his regular audible breathings
might have passed as a rapt address to the god. Garnet,
instigated by the spirit of fun, first made sure he was asleep,
and then lifted his cap from his head so gently as not to
awaken him, and carried it away. He sent Burke to put it
on the lockers in the steerage.
In a few minutes, the cool air striking on Porp's unpro-
tected head, awoke him with a start.
He thought he had been hailed, and he answered aloud,
" Aye, aye, sir." Then he went aft in confusion to tell
Garnet he did not understand the order.
" I didn't hail, sir," said Garnet.
" Oh, I thought you— I thought I—"
" Where's your cap, Mr. Godolphin ? " asked Garnet.
352 LOVE AFLOAT.
"I doirt know," replied Porp, feeling his head in a
bewildered and helpless manner ; " it dropped off, I guess."
"Better take care you don't drop off, sir. It's very-
strange for you to lose your cap without missing it. Go
get it."
Porp went away, and had a great hunt on the forecas-
tle, of course unsuccessful. He had to go below to borrow
another head covering. When he found his cap in the
steerage next day, his amazement was big, and the mess
was i^uzzled by his persistent story. They agreed together
that Porp had come below asleep, and had got back on
deck without awaking.
When Garnet's watch was over, Hartley came yawning
up the ladder and relieved him with the natural unwilling-
ness to keep awake at night, unless in company, that no
quantity of watch-standing can turn into indifference.
Garnet passed the orders, and then said, as he started to
go below, " If you'll look in the order book you'll see that
you are going to enjoy a great pleasure at four.'*
" How so ? " asked Hartley.
" We are to get under way then, and you'll have the
satisfaction of turning in, as everybody else turns out."
" There is something in that," avowed Hartley as Gar-
net went below.
Little did Hartley think, as he paced steadily out the
long four hours, engaged mainly in happy thoughts and
keen longings for his beloved one, that she was near him,
was even then passing in sight of the shore. And it was
well for him that he did not, for the knowledge would have
made him wretchedly anxious before the time.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 253
CHAPTER XX.
WHEN the sloop left Santa Cruz she left behind her
peculiar feelings of loss, sorrow, vexation, and relief,
in the cottage of the Dewhursts.
Mr. Dewhurst was relieved to have his family again to
himself, while he was vexed to remember that another
man had gained a lien on his daughter, which, though of
latest date, would have priority in the court of love. It
annoyed him to think there could be no appeal, that of
property to which he had such a good and old title he had
been so quickly and irrecoverably disseized ; and he had
no relief in that philosophy which recalls its own pairing
days and resignedly expects the children to follow nature.
" Well, dear," said his wife one day, after listening
with her usual sweet patience to his grumbling ; " we
can't help it. It's only natural for the young birds to leave
the old nest."
" I expect them to go to boarding-school," he replied,
without much sequence ; " and marry, too, some time ; but
to accept a husband so quickly — it takes my breath away."
" John, I won't hear a word against Mary, for that very
thing shows how good she is. She hasn't much worldly
wisdom, but I do hope and believe she has made a good
choice."
He said no more at the time, but was evidently unsat-
isfied.
Mr. Dewhurst was a good man as the world goes, per-
haps a little hard, but possessing many noble qualities.
He had forgotten his own past, which, with jealousy of his
daughter's love, made him selfish. Many another father
has felt the same.
Mrs. Dewhurst was sad. It was a mother's sorrow
to think that her only child would go away after awhile ;
that her one little lamb would look to a stran^r for hap-
254 LOVE AFLOAT.
piness. Yet she felt, also, something of a mother's satis-
faction in the prospect of her daughter's being "settled,"
and she had begun to feel for Hartley some confidence and
esteem.
Isabel loved Mary, and looked forward with dread to
separating from a cousin in whom she trusted and on
whom she depended for companionship. There was a
promise of loneliness which she knew how to fear, for she
had been lonely much of her life. Her reserve never per-
mitted her to show her whole heart, however, and Mary
did not know her own dearness. The . situation made
Isabel remember with bitterness her dependent position,
and led her to wonder if she should ever have a woman's
joy in Joving and in devoting herself to a good man.
Mary was the happiest of the four, for her heart was
out on the seas in good keeping. With a serene compla-
cency would she dwell upon the sayings and doings of the
absent one. Even her tender regrets were all so mingled
with sweet recollections that they seemed pleasures ; and
the other two women unselfishly hid the dark side of their
minds, and let her be happy. Now she was sure she did
love Henry ; or rather, she thought of him so constantly,
that no doubts ever came to trouble her.
A favorite resort of the girls was the summer-house
in the garden, where they would pass hours of the day in
reading, working, and chatting. Hartley was very apt to
receive honorable mention during the sittings ; in fact,
he was always mentioned. How Mary enjoyed making
her shy confidences ! Isabel was usually good, encouraging
her timid cousin, and avoiding the gentle ironies and sar-
casms which were natural, to make her feel the more free.
A part of their talk one pleasant afternoon when they
were in the arbor, with books for an excuse, will show how-
Mary felt.
Mary put down her novel and gave a little yawn ; she
had not been reading with much attention for some time.
Isabel hear^ the signal, closed her book, and waited.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 255
" Bell, have you seen my sacque ? "
" Yes, you've finished it at last."
" Just this morning. How do you like it ? "
"It's very pretty. The braid pattern is a little too
close to give the best effect, but it is very pretty and bears
inspection," answered Isabel.
" I have been dreadfully idle with it. I am really
ashamed to think how long I have been about it."
" You had a good reason, coz.'*
" What was it ? " asked Mary.
" Most of the time you were working on it somebody
was with you, and it's hard to talk and get along fast too."
" That's true, Bell. Why, I commenced it just after —
Mr. Hartley came and I scarcely did anything on it all the
while he was here."
" And trying faithfully all the time. That was working
under difficulties. Don't call him Mr. Hartley, coz, the
other sounds better."
" Do you really think so ? I like the other best, myself,
but somehow, it doesn't seem natural. I'll call him Henry
to you. Bell, but you mustn't let any one know." She
went on, holding up a lapel of the sacque to illustrate, " Just
to think, the whole time he was here I put on the braid
only from here to here."
" That gave you the right to upbraid him for making
you neglect your work to listen to his sea-stories."
Mary looked at her cousin with a dove-like scornfulness.
" Why Bell, I'd be ashamed ! He didn't tell me any sea-
stories," she added.
" What kind were they, coz ? "
" None at all. But I told him one — one little fib about
this very sacque. You know he left his horse here all
night and I was making fun of him for it, for thinking so
much about — about me, you know, he couldn't think of
anything else. And he told me — he said that I knew the
horse was there too, and my not telling father, so he might
be sent back, showed — that — '*
256 LOVE AFLOAT.
"That you were thinking so much about him, you
couldn't think of anything else ? "
" Yes, and I told him a fib. I said I was thinking
about a pattern for this sacque. But, he was right. Bell."
" How did he take that ? "
" Oh, that was too silly to tell. He said — it's too
ridiculous ! — he said I must'nt begin deceit so early in
married life."
" Why, he was doing famously."
" Oh, youVe no idea ! "
"Ofwhat, coz2"
" Nothing," replied Mary demurely.
" Haven't I ? That's a pity."
After awhile Mary spoke again.
" Bell, I'm afraid father means to go away very soon."
" Why ? "
" He has finished his business here already, and you
know he can't endure idleness. I think he is getting tired
and uneasy. It's too bad ! "
" Why ? "
"We have hardly seen the island yet, hardly settled
down in our dear little house. And it's so pleasant here.
Just to think of going back to New York, and the parties,
-and the tattle, and scandal, and everything! I hate it.
I could stay here forever, Bell, it's all so pleasant and beau-
tiful. And the garden — think of leaving it ! and this dear
old summer-house. I can't bear it ! "
" I know, coz. Wasn't I with Aunt Susan when — "
" There, you may laugh at me, Bell, but I don't care.
I have no one else to talk to. It was here — we sat here that
afternoon, and I just love the place. It's all vines and
flowers — you couldn't find another like it in New York."
" Well, I suppose I would, too."
" And then if we go away before he comes back — oh,
Bell, I shall not have a chance to see him again for ever so
long. It's too bad ! He will seem like a perfect stranger."
" You would soon get over the r>>trangeness. But Uncle
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 257
John will take us to the Havana, and I should think there
would be a good chance of finding the Flying Fish there."
" No, Henry told me they were going to be nearly all
the time on the south side of the island."
" Maybe they will get a prize, and I suppose if he asks
he could have the command. He would be sUre to take it
to New York."
" But he told me they always make these middies do
that. It would look as if he was running away from his
place. I wouldn't like that."
" Well, little coz, there's many a chance of meeting."
" I wouldn't mind it so much — but I wasn't good to
him."
Isabel seemed surprised. " Not good to him ! "
"I wasn't kind to him — there, don't smile. I know
what you think ; but. Bell, I didn't do right by him."
"Why? how?"
" I — I didn't give him any satisfaction. I plagued him
with my foolishness. At first I couldn't help — you under-
stand, don't you ? — he took everything for granted, and I —
didn't say — no — but I felt doubtful all the time afterward,
and I was so mean."
" I can't understand. How ? "
" Why, I could see he was anxious, and I wouldn't — it
seems like a wicked pleasure, but besides I couldn't — let
him know how I felt. And I know he felt badly — instead
of my sending him away happy."
" You did just right, and he thinks more of you to-day
for it. You have plenty of time to make it up to him.
Did he ever ask you to name the day ? "
"The idea! No!"
" He will be sure to ask you the next time he sees you.
And, Mary, take my advice, and don't put him ofi" any
longer than you can help."
" Oh, there's plenty of time."
" No. He is good, Mary, and he loves you, and there's
no reason to keep him waiting for his happiness. You
258 LOVE AFLOAT.
will be happier, too. I am not advising you to act against
uncle's and aunt's wishes, but they will let you do as you
please."
" You are in more haste than I am. Bell."
" I am sure it is best. You had better think about it."
"Perhaps you are right," replied Mary, dubiously.
Mr. Dewhurst was getting impatient of his long in-
action. Deprived of his newspaper, his familiar associa-
tions, and his business occupations, he fretted in idleness
as active men always fret. His health seemed entirely
restored, and to his mind, leisure, a perfect climate, aud
the beauties of nature were no reasons for lingering. Day
by day his impatience grew, and his resolution became
firmer to go at the first opportunity.
The opportunity came in the course of time, in the
shape of an hermaphrodite brig, the Sarah and Jane, out
of Baltimore, with a cargo of flour for Havana. A variety
of untoward circumstances had forced her thus far to the
east and into Santa Cruz. She was deeply laden, was a
very bad sailer, and had poor accommodations for ladies ;
but Mr. Dewhurst would have gone in a still shabbier
craft, rather than remain in the island which had become
to him a prison. He made all arrangement necessary
with Captain Dodson, the slow-spoken, slow-moving mas-
ter ; and when the Sarah and Jane left the harbor a week
later she carried the whole family.
Mary left the place which was so endeared to her mind,
with a sentimental sorrow none the less real because roman-
tic. Not only was her aiFection for Hartley now evident to
herself, but she loved the spots where he had been, and the
arbor in which he had so decidedly taken possession of her
was doubly dear. She went alone into the summer-house
to bid it good-by, and she shed a few tears at leaving it.
Perhaps it was partly because she was reminded of the
happy past, the absent lover, and the doubtful future, that
she cried.
The Sarah and Jane ran to the westward with favor-
A STORY OF THE AMEPwICAN NAVY. 259
able winds, making something over a hundred miles a day
and meeting no incidents to break the monotony of the
passage. The ladies spent their time much more agreeably
than Mr. Dewhurst, whose chafing spirit suffered tortures.
They had their sewing and a few books, and they often
passed time in sitting on deck watching the mountains of
Porto Rico and Hayti, by which the brig crept lazily. On
the morning of the eighth day, they passed between Point
Morant and Cape Tiburon, and that evening the wind
shifted dead ahead. In the night the brig made a long
tack toward Cuba, going about off Santiago at the time
when Hartley was standing the middle watch unconscious
of the nearness of his sleeping beauty. They were then
fifteen weary days in beating up to the western end of the
island. They went to bed one night wearied out, but con-
gratulating themselves that in a few hours they would
round Cape San Antonio, and that two days more at the
farthest would place them in the Havana.
Their hopes were delusive. A gale of wind arose with
disheartening quickness in the night, and when morning
dawned the sea-sick party were told that they were many
miles east of the last evening^s position. The heavily
laden brig was pitching very deeply, burying her bows in
the sea at every plunge, and rising painfully, while walls
of green water boarded her, ran aft in floods over the deck
and battened hatches, and poured over the rail and through
the scuppers in constant cascades. The concussion of
heavy waves striking her, the continuous swash of the
water, the howling of the wind, and the noise of the work-
ing timbers, kept the women in a state of doleful alarm ;
beside which, the whole party suffered from a second attack
of sea-sickness brought on by the unusual and violent
motion.
Isabel, more courageous than the other two, ventured
to raise her head above the booby-hatch and take a survey
of the scene. In a second her hair was soaked with salt
spray, and was streaming and whipping at its full fine
^GO LOVE AFLOAT.
length in the wind. She retreated quickly. Her account
of the commotion of sea and sky was not reassuring to
her aunt and cousin.
Mr. Dewhurst took to his bunk, and stuck there the gale
through with a sullen, uncomplaining stoicism.
The strength of the wind increased to such a point that
Captain l^odson got in all sail but the balance-reefed main-
sail, and with vast philosophy let his brig lay to and drift.
He spent most of the time below in the cuddy-hole of a
cabin, stifling the sick ladies with the fumes of bad tobacco,
and telling tales of shipwreck to enliven them.
Four long days and nights the Sarah and Jane plunged
•and wallowed, pitched and rolled, stood first on one end
and then on the other, and drifted rapidly all the while.
Then the gale left her as quickly as it had arisen. In ex-
cellent time, too, for land was in sight on three sides. They
had been blown back on their course the entire length of
Cuba, and were in the bay of Gonaives on the west side
of Hayti.
*' La, suz ! " said Dodson, looking around at the land,
*' I never see the likes. I expect we'd better git a little
sail on her to steady her a bit." The sea was running very
high still, the waves almost glassy in their smoothness; and,
with no canvas out to catch the small breeze, the brig was
rolling fearfully. The imperturbable Dodson, his equa-
nimity in no wise disturbed by lost time or past dangers,
lighted his pipe, deliberately made sail, and leisurely
repaired the damages of the storm. He headed the Sarah
and Jane to the west again, and the wind steadying in the
north, made very fair progress on the old course.
But more troubles were in waiting. Twenty-four hours
brought the brig close to that eastern portion of the south
coast which resembles the sole of a misshappen foot. Like
Hiram Doolittle, Dodson shaved the points too close. In
broad daylight, a handsome top-sail schooner, with long
spars, ran out of a creek a mile or two ahead and stood
down wing and wing to intercept the Sarah and Jane,
L STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAYY. 201
This pretty craft was our old acquaintance La Hem-
brill a.
Dodson called Mr. Dewhurst on deck and pointed out
the schooner. "Purty boat, ain't she?" he asked that
gentleman between two puffs.,
" Yes," replied he ; " but she doesn't look like a mer-
chantman. Is she a man-of-war ? "
" I suspicion she ain't no man o* peace," replied Dodson,
with some gloom.
" What do you mean, man ? "
" I expect that is a pirit."
Mr. Dewhurst looked at Dodson incredulously. " Why
are we going to meet her then ? " he asked.
" Pm willin' to avide a meetin, but there ain't no chance.
He sails two knots to our one."
" We must run back to Santiago."
" No, too fur past," answered Dodson.
" Well, we can fight, anyhow."
" Tain't no use, sir, tain't no use — he's got thirty men on
his deck, and a gun, too ; you can see for yourself with
the glass. And we hain't got but twelve."
" Captain Dodson," said Mr. Dewhurst, " I insist on
your trying to escape. You have your cargo to account
for to your owners, and I promise you I will hold you
strictly responsible for any harm that comes to my family.'*
Dodson was philosophic, as usual. In his wisdom he
thought that the pirates would be unlikely to do more than
stop his brig ; for she was old, ugly, and slow, and would be
useless to them. He thought they might take a part of his
flour, but was willing to pay a moderate toll for the sake
of peace. He felt sure that they would detain his passen-
gers, but that would be an endurable loss, especially since
their passage was paid. Altogether, he doubtless did the
best he could for himself. " I tell you tain't no use to run,"
said he. '* We're most in shootin' distance, and I don't
want to be no target for a big gun. Runnin' away '11 only
262 LOVE AFLOAT.
errytate 'em, and they don't never hurt nobody that gives
up peaceable. Maybe they ain't pirits."
"I shall hold you accountable, sir; you stand to lose
your certificate," said Mr. Dewhurst in his excitement.
" Good Lord ! " he exclaimed, in a piteous voice, " what
will become of my poor wife and daughter ! "
"I reckon," remarked Dodson, with reasuring calm-
ness, " it'll cost you as much as a thousand dollars apiece,
for you to get 'em to the Havana." He explained to Mr.
Dewhurst that ransom was a certainty, but warned him
that he had heard in Santa Cruz that the passengers were
rich, and that if the pirates learned so, the ransom would
be proportionately large.
Mr. Dewhurst was greatly relieved. As his fears for
his womenkind departed, his presence of mind and ability
to think returned. He went down into the cabin and
explained the awkward situation to the trio there, but in
such a manner as not to alarm them. In this he was
assisted by the idea of ransom on which he dwelt. He
explained how necessary it was to make an unpretending
appearance, and then he collected all the valuable jewels
the ladies^ had with them, and tied them up in a box, into
which he placed weight enough to insure speedy sinking.
It was his intention to drop it quietly overboard, as soon
as he was positive the strange vessel was a pirate. For-
tunately he had but a small sum on hand in ready cash,
aud the ladies had with them only simple and moderate
wardrobes. They yielded up their treasures sadly, with
the doubtful comfort that it was better to throw them away
than to be robbed. Mr. Dewhurst left a few ornaments to
avoid a suspicious plainness, and returned to the deck with
the box under his coat.
La Ilembrilla was about half a mile away, with her
head-sheets hauled over, waiting the arrival of the Sarah
and Jane. That gallant craft ran down near her, and, as
if she were, keeping an appointment, or knew that there
was business on hand that would not bear delay, she hove
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 263
to without even waiting to be hailed. Directly a four-
oared boat left the pirate, and pulling rapidly across the
intervening hundred yards of water, ran along side the
brig. The burly first mate of La Hembrilla sat in the
stern-sheets steering, and his four men were Well armed.
As soon as he reached the side of the Sarah and Jane,
Arrowson sprang on her deck, followed by his men. He
drew a pistol, glanced at the forecastle, where the brig's
crew stood like so many frightened sheep, and ordering his
men to stay in the waist, marched aft. " I take possession
o' this 'ere brig," he cried. Nobody answered a word for a
minute, when Mr. Dewhurst asked, "By what authority?"
Arrowson answered with a triumphant burst of profanity,
that it was because he pleased. " You're the cap'n, are
you ? " he asked insolently. " No," answered Mr. Dew-
hurst, "there he is."
Arrowson turned to the unfortunate Dodson, who was
speechlessly smoking his pipe, and poured upon him the
vials of contemptuous invective. He cursed him for a
coward and a sneak ; told him that he had a mind to tie a
shot to his neck and heave him overboard ; reviled him
scornfully for being too chicken-hearted even to run ; and
covered him with nasty abuse. " And you're the cap'n ! "
he exclaimed in sneering scorn. Dodson, who had not yet
uttered a word, made no reply but to blow out his smoke.
Arrowson went on, " A 'ell of a cap'n, hain't you ? " This
being an inconvenient question to answer, Dodson was still
mute. " Speak ! ye dumb stock-fish ! " roared Arrowson in
a rage, and he knocked the pipe out of Dodson's mouth.
" You oughtn't to do that-away," said Dodson in meek
remonstrance, looking regretfully at the scattered pipe
sherds.
"Shut your mouth, you or I'll shut it for you
with a swab ! " cursed the mate, who went on to repeat
his former blessing, if possible, intensified.
While the attention of every body was drawn to this
scene, Mr. Dewhurst managed to drop his little box over-
204 LOVE AFLOAT.
board unnoticed, and had the satisfaction of seeing its
white descending spiral grow fainter and fainter, until the
blue water hid it from sight.
CHAPTER XXI.
¥HEN Arrowson had finished his abuse, he proceeded
to business. " Who are you ? " he asked Mr. Dew-
hurst.
" John Dewhurst. I'm a passenger in this vessel."
** Hany more passengers ? "
" My wife, and daughter, and niece, are all."
" Say, you cap'n, get hevery body lion deck this minute.
Cover the 'atches, boys, when they're hall hup, and let
none go below."
Mr. Dewhurst called his family, who at once came up,
frightened and anxious to be with him.
" D — d pretty gals," said Arrowson.
Mr. Dewhurst tried to restrain his rage at these words
and the chuckle that followed them, by taking them as
a part of the insolence he must expect, and to which he
could only submit.
" Where did you come from ? " asked Arrowson.
"New York."
" What are you down 'ere for ? "
" For my health, and on business for the house in New
York," replied Mr. Dewhurst."
"And hit aint so 'elthy as you hexpected, hey ? That
'ouse in New York will 'ave to stay hempty awhile now,"
said Arrowson, laughing at his own wit. " Come 'ere, you
cap'n feller ! What's your name ? "
"Richard Dodson," he answered, approaching.
" Dods, hey ! Ought to be Clods."
" Dodson," corrected the captain. 9
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 205
** D — n the difference ! What are you loaded with ? "
Dodson told him, and after asking other questions,
Arrowson hailed the schooner for the captain to come on
board. A second boat, manned like the first, soon came,
bringing Hackett.
He was a tall man, stooping and lean, but strongly-
built, with sunken but bright gray eyes, thin straggling
sandy hair and beard, a hooked nose, and the parchment
and brick-dust complexion common among seamen. He
stepped on the deck quietly, looked about him and aloft
with a quick sailorly glance, and joined his li<?utenant. A
low conversation ensued. When it was ended, he renewed
the order to keep everybody on deck, and after getting all
the keys in the ship he went below, having hardly looked
at the prisoners. He took six of his own men and Captain
Dodson, and was gone for an hour, during which time,
seemingly very long, the Dewhursts remained standing aft
together, filled with forebodings.
The search ended, the party returned on deck, and
Hackett approached Mr. Dewhurst. "Mr. Dewhurst,"
said he, in a respectful tone, " I'm agoin' to put you and
your folks aboard my schooner. You can take some o'
your men and get your trunks into the boats."
The ladies were greatly relieved by the contrast between
Hackett 's manner and that of his mate, and Mr. Dewhurst
was moved to reply with some courtesy, ** I am obliged
to you, sir."
In a few minutes the party stood on the deck of La
Hembrilla, and the boats quickly brought over Dodson
and a part of his crew. Twelve of the pirate's men were
put on board the brig, with one of the best seamen in
charge ; and the two vessels'filled away and stood to the
southward in company.
The change was so great, and had been so quickly
made, that not till then could the translated travellers
realize what had happened. For half an hour they stood
gazing on the motley crowd of men from all nations, who
12
266 LOVE AFLOAT.
alternately lounged idly about and sprung to carry out the
orders of their officers; at the beautiful condition in which
the vessel was kept, her clean decks, bright brass work,
shining twelve-pounder gun amidship, graceful taper
spars, and great white sails. Not that La Hembrilla had
much sail set at the time. She had been obliged to take
in everything but jib and mainsail, in order not to run
away from the brig, who carried all her studding sails.
When Hackett returned from the Sarah and Jane, he at
once set the lowly freebooter who acted as his cook, at
work preparing the cabin to receive the ladies. In half an
hour it was ready. Hackett had left his prisoners alone as
before, but now told them something of his disposition and
intentions. "I guess you might jest as well know what I
am goin' to do with you," said he to the party, which
included Dodson and his mate. " I'll land you on Cuby in
three or four days, and keep you there awhile. You'll
have a chance to send over-to Matanzas, or anywheres
else you want to, to raise a little s'thin to pay for your
board. Mr. Dewhurst, you and the other two will have to
take the spare bunks in ,the mate's cabin. I've fixed up my
own cabin to make it as convenient for the ladies as I
could. We don't of'en have such good company, and don't
keep ready for it, so you must allow for us if everythin'
isn't quite comfable. Now, ladies, if you'll just step below,
I'll show you your quarters."
Hackett's tone was one of hospitality, exactly such as
the owner of a yacht might use toward unexpected but
welcome guests. Mrs. Dewhurst looked appealingly to her
husband. " Certainly, my dear," he said, answering her
unspoken question. " Can I see my husband again to-day,
sir ? " she asked Hackett.
" Of course you can, if you want to, ma'am," replied
he. " You and the other ladies make yourselves free to go
and come, just as you please. Come down with us, Mr.
Dewhurst." Thereupon Mrs. Dewhurst, gathering in her
skirts and followed by the girls, went down the ladder after
Hackett and her husband.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 267
The cabin, which had the size of a room fifteen feet
square, though differing much in dimensions and shape, was
a sufficiently comfortable place. The ceiling was only six
feet from the deck, which gave a sense of contraction, but
in other respects it was all very pleasant. The shape of
the room was irregular, being several feet narrower at the
end toward the stern, because the size of the vessel made it
needful to use all her space. On either side a wide settee
ran the whole length of the cabin, with a double covering
of three pairs of broad cushions in snowy linen cases.
There was no sign of war or violence in displayed weapons,
but all looked peaceable and well-meaning.
"Here's our beds," said Hackett, with a slight pride
perceivable in his voice " and here's how to make 'em."
He pulled out the panel in the front of the settee, showing
that it swung out on hinges at the top, and that as it was
brought to a horizontal position, jointed legs unfolded
themselves, dropping by their own weight, and sustained
it with their lower ends resting on the deck. This formed
a shelf as high and as wide as the top of the settee. He
slid out the upper of one of the pairs of cushions upon this
shelf, to whose edge it exactly reached ; the two cushions,
side and side, thus making a nice couch.
" There ! " said Hackett, " that's an idear o' my own,
ladies. That's a good enough bed for any body at sea.
There isn't any thin' under the settees — you can just stow
your dirty clothes away under there, and when we go
ashore I guess we can get some of the women to do your
washin'."
Isabel, who had entirely recovered herself, was much
amused. " It's very nice, sir," said she to Hackett, with a
sweet smile.
" Wa-al — neow — ya-as," replied the gentle pirate,
pleased by the approbation. " You see these here lockers."
He unbuttoned a door of* one of the deep closets he called
lockers, and showed them its contents. " There's a plenty
o' bed clothes in here, pillers, sheets, everythin' you want.
26S LOVE AFLOAT.
I reckon you'd better make your beds yourselves : my man
ain't used to doin' for ladies. 'Tain't worth your while
to take your clothes out o' your trunks, cause you'll have
to pack up again so soon, but you can use the lockers if
you're a mind to."
By this time the ladies had become somewhat used to
their new abode, and the disengaged manners of their cap-
tor made them feel easy. The cabin had a home-like and
attractive look which also influenced them. The sides
and ceiling and floor were painted white, tending to make
the place light, though the only windows were massive
glass bull's eyes set in the deck, above. The trunks sat
against the bulkheads with the keys in the locks, and each
lady, as she caught sight of them, could not restrain a burn-
ing curiosity to know how many of her things were gone.
There was a long gilt mirror against the partition, surely
a token of civilization and a cause for satisfaction.
" I forgot to tell you," continued Hackett. " There's a
little wash-room at the foot o' the ladder — that'n on the star-
board side — on your left hand, there. I'd a little ruther you
wouldn't go into the other one, for it's my signal room.
There's a plenty o' towels — but I ain't got any thin' better'n
a tin basin," he added regretfully. " Well — that's all — no,
here's this screen."
He showed them a handsome crimson curtain, hanging
by brass rings on a rod which ran fore and aft through the
middle of the cabin near the ceiling. It was now slid
against the mirror. " You see, ladies, I just had this put
up sence you come aboard, so you can have it private when
you want to. All you got to do is to slide it along — so.
Here's your side, to larboard, and nobody '11 trouble you
when you've got the screen drawed to."
" Oh, its quite nice," murmured Mrs. Dewhurst.
" It's nicer than the Sarah and Jane," said Mary timidly.
Isabel laughed out frankly and'gayly. "It isn't fair to
compare the Sarah and Jane with your pretty vessel,
Captain — "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 269
"Hackett, ma'am," supplied he blandly.
" Captain Hackett. We shall be a great deal more com-
fortable here, and we are ever so much obliged to you for
taking so much trouble."
" I don't count the trouble, ma'am. I know good
company when I see it, and I like it as well as any man.
I dpn't ofen get it, but I'm willin' to lay myself out when
I do. I took a ship once off the north coast, and there was
a Spanish lady aboard. She was ashore with us the best
part of a month before she heard from her friends in
Matanzas ; and though I done everythin' I could to make
her comf able in my own house, she wouldn't hardly speak
to me."
The latter part of the ingenuous statement was made in
a grieved tone, as though he thought the Spanish lady had
not treated him quite right. " Now, ladies," he went on,
" make yourselves to hum. If I can do anythin' for you
be sure to let me know. You can go anywheres you want
to, but I guess you better keep aft, for my men are pretty
rough. I'm sorry I can't accommodate you down here
too, Mr. Dewhurst, but you see there ain't no room. Call
in, and stay as long's you're a mind whenever you want to
see the ladies."
" I am exceedingly obliged to you, sir," replied Mr.
Dewhurst.
" Captain Hackett," put in Isabel vivaciously, " we
shall not find another way of travelling half as nice as your
vessel. As long as we are with you, you had better take
us on to the Havana."
" Muchobleged, ma'am. I would like it myself but — "
" It would save us a good deal of time, and if it's out of
your way, I'm sure Mr. Dewhurst would be willing to pay
for our passage."
*' Yes, if I could," said he.
" I guess your pa and me had better talk it over. You
must excuse me now, for I've got to go on deck and take a
departure." So saying, he left thera.
270 LOVE AFLOAT.
Mr. Dewliurst's varying expression of countenance dur-
ing the conversation was pregnant with feeling, and would
have amused a looker-on. Surprise at the peculiar situa-
tion, gladness that matters were no worse, vexation at the
attentions a rascal of a pirate was showing to his woman-
kind, amusement at the said pirate's ingenuous pride in his
nice properties and at his lack of conventionality, suspicion
at having to leave the ladies at night, and gratitude for
the unexpected comforts he saw bestowed — all ran through
his mind and over his unguarded face. When they were
left alone he spoke, commencing dubiously, then getting
angry, then laughing in spite of himself. "I suppose we
had better make the best of it. It might be worse — but
I'll have a pretty penny to pay before we are free. The
scoundrel ! what does he mean by talking to you in that
free and easy manner ? — talking about your beds and your
soiled clothes." His face relaxed and he had to laugh.
Isabel joined him heartilyj while a faint smile appeared
even on the woful countenance of Mrs. Dewhurst.
Presently a decently dressed and respectful negro man
came in, made the cabin tidy, and set the table with dex-
terity. At supper, which followed soon, he waited on thera.
Captain Hackett invited Mr. Dewhurst to mess with them;
and he sat down.at the foot of the table — there was no head
but the bulkhead — and did the honors in very good style.
Mrs. Dewhurst was so much impressed by his manner that
she expected him to say grace, remembering only in time
to arrest half-way in much confusion the pious forward in-
clination of her head. The circumstance did not escape
Isabel who, in nautical parlance, had her weather eye open ;
and she had hard work not to laugh out. In after days
she teased Aunt Susan a good deal about it.
Hackett wished to make his guests feel easy, and he was
quite chatty — filling in, himself, when necessary, the parts
of the talk belonging to the others. Among the rest he told
them, taking advantage of his servant's absence, how that
servant had misbehaved. " You see, ladies, Cato belonged
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 271
to a man down in Maryland, that learnt him to cook, and
black boots, and read, and one thing or 'nother — leastways
he had him learnt, for I reckon he was too big a bug to
spend his time learnin' niggers — and he used him for a
body-servant. He had occasion to go to New York, and
like a darn fool — beg your pardon, ladies — he took Cato
along with him. Wa-a-a-al, Cato deserted. My mate, he
come acrost him and shipped him, but I wish he had'nt.
Cato's pious " — he emphasized the word with a slight sneer
— "and then he's slow, and my mate's quick, so he had a
pretty considerable hard time till I took him. He run off
a fortnight or so ago, and somehow joined another party,
and got captured by a man-o'-war — there's a States' sloop
cruisin' off here — I've seen her once or twice myself" — a
faint expression of satisfaction was visible to Isabel's
watchful eyes, though the hard lines remained unchanged
and he did not pause — " and one day when this party I
was speakin of was towin' a brig they had took in shore,
the sloop come along and sent some boats in and got her
back. The men got off in their boats — all but Cato — he
wa'n't quick enough, and he got took. Wa-a-a-1, they
went off and anchored so nigh shore, that Cato slipped
overboard with his irons on, and swum ashore, and come
back to me. He's done pretty well sence I got him in
here." He talked away on indifferent subjects until the
meal was done; and then, repeating his offers of assistance,
went on deck.
The little family passed a dismal evening together,
none of them venturing into the open air. Mr. Dewhurst
left them reluctantly at a late > hour, going to the mate's
cabin, to his own bunk, which he had already examined
and disliked ; and the ladies made up their beds on the
settees and turned in all standing. It is a peculiarity of
ladies at sea to do this on all occasions which to their
minds seem doubtful. If they must die, they desire the
assistance of a decorous costume. These ladies had no
disturbance, further than that caused by Mr. Benjamin
272 LOVE AFLOAT.
Markley, who got too drunk, and persisted in singing
" God save the king," for several hours, in a voice more
powerful than sweet, and distinctly audible through the
bulkhead. In fact, all that was spoken in the mate's room
was more or less plainly heard in the cabin. After he
.ceased his disconnected warblings, they found it hard
restrain their excited imaginations, eager for wildest
vagaries ; and sleep was not immediately possible.
Next morning Mr. Dewhurst was on deck bright and
early. He found the schooner still heading to the south-
ward, in which direction she was accompanied by the
Sarah and Jane. The crew of the pirate were as busy as a
man-of-war's men would have been, and at the same things
which commonly occupied the lawful followers of the sea
at- the same hour. They were scrubbing the paint- work,
washing the decks, polishing the brass-work, and bathing
their bodies in the cool sea-water. The mate, Arrowson,
had charge of the work, and he was so gruff and uncivil
that Mr. Dewhurst thought best to go below again and
keep out of the way. He was assisted in reaching that
opinion by one of the men dashing a bucket of water over
his legs, as if by accident. Hackett came up from the
cabin as he started, however, and he decided to remain, in
hope of getting an understanding. Hackett was not
averse to conversation, but with all his apparent freedom
Mr. Dewhurst found in him a very lawyer-like reticence
on any point he did not care to discuss. To pin him down
to any positive statement about the time in which they
could hope to be free was useless. He slipped away so
easily, so carelessly, in fact, as to arouse the gentleman's
choler at his disrespectful evasions. On one point he was
explicit enough — no money would induce him to land the
party anywhere on the north coast. Mr. Dewhurst thought
best not to ask any questions yet about the amount of ransom
that would be required, contiriing his exertions to getting
some notion of when he should be free, and the points con-
nected therewith. Ho found out nothing positive j and
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 273
directly Hackett, taking the offensive, asked a few simple
questions, the answers to which gave him a good inferen-
tial idea of the weakh and social position of his prisoner.
Where was his dwelling-house? Where was his office?
What was the business of his firm? Did he know such a
man ? Then he took Mr. Dewhurst's unwilling hand in his,
and shook it as one might salute a long absent friend, chuck-
ling discordantly while he shook. "I know good com-
pany when I see it, sir. I am glad I met you, I am now, I
vow," said he ; and then he- coolly walked away to another
part of the vessel. Mr. Dewhurst was mightily chagrined
at having been so easily outgeneralled, and he growled at
himself for being in too much of a hurry.
CHAPTER XXII.
AT breakfast he was mum, but the girls, feeling the influ-
ence of Hackett's homely, confidence-inspiring talk, fell
to chatting. In the course of it, Mary laughingly declared
that she would not have missed making Captain Hackett's
acquaintance for anything. He, much pleased, drew from
her, as reasons why, that she thought gallant corsairs had
not had justice done them by the writers. She went on,
supported and assisted by Isabel, to make a sombre copy
of the pirate of the novel, with his black flag and his coffin-
like vessel, his inevitable plank to be walked, and his love
for all things gory. "Du tell!" inserted Hackett, who
was listening very much interested. Then she gayly put
in contrast the comfort, order, and beauty of all about La
Hembrilla, and she spoke of their own reception and treat-
ment in grateful terms. Hackett insisted that he knew
good company when he saw it, and was only sorry he could
do no more for them.
The fact was that the two girls had made their plans.
Mary had arisen very early after her almost sleepless night,
12*
274 LOYE AFLOAT.
and in spite of the narrowness of the settees has snuggled
down by Isabel. The two whispered together until their
little plot was all prej)ared. That was to unite their forces
on Hackett, to see if it were possible to wheedle him into an
early release, and at any rate to find out his intentions.
They did not know of Mr. Dewhurst's attempt and failure ;
and he, divining that they had an object, got up and lelt
the table to give them free play at the captor.
Isabel took immediate advantage to ask whether " you
and Uncle John came to any understanding ? "
" Wa-a-a-1 — no ! " replied Hackett. " Can't say as we
did."
" But, captain," said Mary, " you told us last night
you'd talk it over with father."
" Yes 'um."
" You said you had better see uncle about taking us
around to the Havana," said Isabel.
" Yes 'um."
" Didn't you speak to him ? •'
*' Wa-a-a-1, yes. We had some talk about it."
" Now, captain, that's too provoking, we are dying of
curiosity, and here you won't tell us a thing," exclaimed
Mary.
" Don't know as I've got any thin' to tell, ma'am. It
would be impossible for me to run into the Havana, and
that's what I said to your pa."
" Impossible ! Oh, captain, I thought from all I'd heard
that you could go anywhere you pleased."
Hackett answered, rather flattered, " That's a little too
strong."
" Now, captain, I know you could land us somewhere
near the Havana if you would," said Mary.
He gave no answer.
" We have been so long trying to get there. Just to
think it is twenty-eight days since we left Santa Cruz."
" Sho ! that's too bad, I do declare."
*' And we thought we would have been in the Havana
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 275
long ago, and nearly ready to start home. We have been
all this time sailing about for nothing, and we were so sick
in that dreadful gale — "
" Ladies hadn't oughter come to sea."
" Yes, we have been delayed till we feel almost as though
we should never see home any more."
" Make your mind easy about that, anyhow."
" Captain, you really ought to take us around Cape San
Antonio. I declare that cape is like the Cape of Good
Hope was to the first mariners that tried to go round it,"
said Mary.
" How was that, ma'am ? "
" It was so stormy, or else they were afraid — or some-
thing — anyhow they could never get around it ; so they
called it the Cape of Storms, and believed there was a
great spirit of the ocean that guarded the way and drove
back their ships."
" Them Portygees are poor sailors, anyhow. I ricol-
lect— "
"Cape San Antonio has been our cape of storms, and
you have been the bad spirit, don't you see, captain ? "
"But you must be a good spirit now, captain, and help
us around. Come now, captain, promise me to do that for
us, won't you, please ? " Mary smiled a sweet begging smile
and Isabel tried to do the same.
The keen, hard-headed Yankee was taken on his weakest
side by the two amateur Delilahs. He hesitated an instant.
They saw it and urged him, gently but hard. His uncer-
tainty was soon over, and he rallied. "No, Miss Mary, I
couldn't do it nohow. I'm sorry to have to say no to y^m."
Mary pouted with an exquisite affectation of ill-humor.
Truly all women are born actresses. " Oh, me ! " she
sighed forlorn and pettish ; " I'd like to know what will
become of us ! " It was not the least like a question, that
exclamation.
"I can tell you that I reckon, provided nothin' don't
come up to alter things. You'll go ashore in about two
276 LOVE AFLOAT.
days from now in a little harbor I know, and you'll get
td'able good quarters in a house there, and you can send a
man that knows the roads over to Havana or anywhere
your pa wants, to raise the money to pay for your board
bill and travellin' expenses. If your pa has got friends
over there, and can raise the money quick, you won't be
very long gettin' away. You must excuse me — I've got
to go on deck."
During this conversation Mrs. Dewhurst had made
sundry and divers efforts to catch the attention, first of
one girl, then of the other. She thought that it would
sound very badly when they returned home and she was
telling the story of their capture to their social friends, to
be obliged to relate that her niece and her daughter so far
forgot themselves as to hold familiar and fearless converse
with the leader of the band. She imagined the whites of
Mrs. Grundy's eyes. But the girls took very good pains
not to notice the efforts they saw her making. She gave
them a gentle lecture which they bore with an abstracted
good-humor.
Hackett told them no more, and would not say anything
further to Mr. Dewhurst. The first part of his statement
proved correct, except that it was little more than a day
till they sighted the land again. Bending the course grad-
ually to the west and then to the north, the schooner made
a great curved track which took her back to the island,
though at a point much west of where she had left it.
Hackett's idea in running to the southward was to avoid
the risk of meeting vessels in the customary highway. He
wished to take the brig into the Hole, and he knew she was
too slow a sailer to risk her falling in with a man-of-war.
Nothing beyond the sense of captivity annoyed the
ladies, except that they were forced by the smallness of the
vessel and proximity of the crew to hear an occasional oath
or vulgarity. Happily they did i^ot ui:;derstaqd much of
what they heard in English, and in other languages pfo^
fanity sounde4 fts nice to them ^s apything else. The two
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 277
mates were the most troublesome ; for their conversation,
which they took no heed to restrain, penetrated easily
through the bulkhead that separated the steerage from the
cabin.
Mary and Mrs. Dewhurst had gone on deck to get the
air, and Isabel was preparing to join them, when she heard
the two ruffians go down the ladder into their apartment.
Their talk was audible by snatches, to which she was forced
to listen for a minute while she was changing her shoes.
" Where's the bottle, Ben ? " " Mum, mum, mum." " Down
with the Dutch ! " "Aye." " Pretty gals." "Big one's
a tearer.'* " Give me the little one ! " " Give me the
black eyes ! " " Blue's my color." — She beat a hasty retreat,
uneasy to know that Arrowson had been looking at Mary,
and that she herself had obtained favor with Markley.
When the high land of Cuba was sighted, the prisoners
were sent below and guards stationed over the hatches to
keep them there. This had long been a precaution of
Hackett's. He did not wish to have the exact position of
his refuge generally known, as it would have been had he
permitted his prisoners to note the landmarks.
The schooner, still accompanied by the brig, stood iu
toward the outer point of the Fisherman's Key, this being
the place at which it was customary for La Hembrilla to
make the land. A strong wind was now blowing from the
east and south. Leaving the key a few miles to the right
the two vessels stood over toward the Hole.
A surprise awaited Hackett almost equal to that he had
given the unlucky Dodson. When about four miles east
of the Cobre his lookout aloft reported a sail as having just
run out of the river. In a minute more he hailed that it
was a large square-rigged vessel looking like a man-of-war,
then that she was standing for them. Hackett was sure
at a glance of what his glass made certain, that it was the
Flying Fish. " Darn the luck ! " said he, '' that darned
sloop is always getting in the way ! " He hauled the
schooner by the wind, and started back for the brig, which
278 LOVE AFLOAT.
had been wallowing along after him half a mile astern;
and he called Arrowson.
"You take a boat and go aboard the brig, Jeames, and
take charge of her. Work back along the shore, and if he
chases you, beach her, and take the men to the quarters.
But he won't trouble you, I reckon."
" Why not me as well as you ? " asked Arrowson.
"He'll be after the schooner. He knows our pris-
oners are aboard here, of course, and besides he has made
up his mind to sink the little gal, Jeames. I guess he
thinks he'll overhaul us in this wind and sea."
" What are you going to do ? " queried Arrowson,
grumblingly.
" Run down to Isla Bella, and dodge him to-night I'll
be back to-morrow and he'll go on around, which will give
us time enough. I want you to take the brig in the
Hole, and get out as much flour as you can on the beach —
it'll come in handy for the men. Cut her masts away and
fetch her out by eight o'clock to-morrow morning, and
have her ready to warp in the channel and sink when I
run in."
Arrowson growled. "The men aboard can do all that
as well without me as with me. I don't want to leave the
schooner."
"Jeames Arrowson," said Hackett firmly, "let's have
no words. If you don't like goin' first mate with me, suit
yourself elsewhere ; but while you stay you've got to obey
orders." Arrowson yielded sullenly, and turned away
to prepare the boat. The brig hove to for him, and he
was soon on board, engaged in trimming her on a wind,
with her head in shore.
As soon as the schooner had picked up her boat, she
filled away and stood ofi" a little free to the southward and
westward, making more sail and dashing through the
roughening sea in fine style. As Hackett had predicted,
the sloop-of-war stood after him at once, neglecting the
brig.
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 279
It was a fine sight. La Hembrilla had a start of about
two miles and -a half, a distance which her captain seemed
willing to preserve. He set every sail he dared, and the
lithesome vessel seemed to feel her danger. She lay far
over on her side, the green water occasionally seething
and bubbling up over her lee-rail, the waves striking her
weather-bow to be thrown upward and break into con-
stantly succeeding showers of diamond spray. The spray
glittered in the sunlight and made evanescent little rain-
bows on board. The long masts strained under their
press of sail, bending like whip-sticks, and the wind sung
in the weather shrouds with a sharp twanging sound which
showed how tensely they were stretched.
The breeze increased. The motion of the beautiful
schooner, lately so easy when gliding along free under
small sail and in less wind, now became a succession of
violent jerks and pitches. Sometimes she would dart
ahead like a bird, and then her way would be suddenly
and entirely checked.
It was not so on board the Flying Fish. Every spar
and rope had been put in its place with the expectation
that storms would test it ; and for her the wind now blow-
ing was only a capfull. Her greater size gave her the
advantage of being able to meet, without feeling, waves
that seriously diminished the schooner's head-way when
they struck her ; and seas, up which the smaller vessel had
laboriously to mount, and down which she must descend,
hardly threw the other out of the horizontal. She, too,
carried all the canvas she could bear. Dashing onward
swiftly, while she careened to the blast with every bellied
sail firmly full, rigid as iron, she seemed a mighty bird of
prey in relentless pursuit of some beautiful small fowl.
Hackett saw that he was losing distance and felt some
alarm ; but he continued to carry on, hoping to keep ahead
till night, when he was sure his resources would not fail.
He closely watched the continued approach of the Flying
Fish, and from time to time calculated whether he could
280 LOYE AFLOAT.
reach Isla Bella before the sloop would reach hira. In
three hours he was satisfied. He would probably be
exposed to the fire of her battery for a little while before
dark ; but at such a distance and in so rough a sea, he was
not anxious. He resolved to show his cabin passengers a
pretty little trick, and sent for them to come on deck.
Mr. Dewhurst, followed by the three ladies, soon appeared,
all of them staggering, and clinging to rail and rigging
in order to keep their footing on t^e steep and violently
moving deck. They were glad to get a breath of fresh
air, and were curious to know the cause of the sudden and
quick movements they had felt below.
Mr. Dewhurst looked out on the waste of waters, and
up at the immense spread of canvas ; and with an amazed
expression, he exclaimed : " Why, captain, I thought you
were going to land us ! We are sailing right toward the
sun I Where are we ? What is the matter ? "
For reply Hackett pointed to the sloop, now only about
two miles away and a little on the weather quarter. Mr.
Dewhurst looked astonished, and so his voice sounded,
" The Flying Fish ! " he exclaimed, in a half-incredulous
manner.
Mrs. Dewhurst was lost in apprehensive wonder.
" What is it ? " she asked.
" It is the Flying Fish," answered Isabel, in a tone of
relief and hope.
But Mary's quick glad cry, " Oh, the Fish ! the Fish !"
was a note of pure joy that nettled Hackett.
" You're mighty glad to see her, ain't you ? " said he
rather roughly. Of course he did not guess at the real
reason of her delight, the sudden thrill at finding her
lover near at such a time, and the pride which flashed into
her mind, as she immediately took it for granted that
Hartley would straightway rescue them, vi et armis, from
their enemies' hands.
She turned to him frankly. "Yes, sir, I am. You
cant blame me for feeling so."
A 8T0KY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 28 1
" Wa-a-a-1 — no," admitted Hackett, mollified by her
bright appealing. " All's fair in love and war, I've heard."
It was a bow shot at a venture, but the arrow struck
the mark. Mary blushed even there, and so vividly, or, at
least, so hotly, that she felt thankful to the strong cool
breeze that excused the freshness of her color. "Come,
Bell ! " said she, " let's make a signal to that slow old thing
to come along." She stood by the tafirail and waved her
handkerchief, and tried to make Isabel wave hers, to help
her keep a good face on it.
" My daughter ! " said Mr. Dewhurst, sternly, " Don't
do that."
" Pshaw ! " said Hackett with a sneer. " Let her alone.
It don't do no hurt?'
Mary obediently put away the offending handkerchief,
but asked her father why he had given the command.
" Because I do not like to see you urge that vessel on,"
replied Mr. Dew^hurst. "When she is near enough she
will fire at us, and you may be killed." Mary turned pale
at that, but quickly remembered, and felt convinced in
her own mind, that Henry Hartley would arrange it in
some manner, so she would have no danger to run.
" Oh, me ! why did I ever consent to come to sea ? '*
cried Mrs. Dewhurst, distressedly. " We shall all be
killed ! "
" Wa-a-a-1 — no," drawled Hackett. " Your pa is right,
Miss Mary ; but I guess I can stow you ladies under the
cabin floor, in the run, if he opens on us. You'll be safe
enough there." He resumed, after another critical squint
through the glass, " I don't guess you'll get aboard that
cruiser very soon. Miss Mary, nor you neither. Miss Bell.
I'll just show you why. Look here at the chart. Here's
Isla Bella, and here's about where we are now. About
eight o'clock we'll be abreast the island. Wa-a-a-1— I'm
goin' to run close to it to windward — there's deep water
right in shore — and you see this little bay like, hei;e, just a
Boit o' little cove — wa-a-a-1, I calc'late w^e'll get nigh it
282 LOVE AFLOAT.
with the sloop about three-quarters of a mile astern, and
what moon there is low down on the other side, so we'll
be in the shade o' the land. I'll run to here " — indicating
the spot — "douse everything, and run in the cove and
anchor so close to the beach, you could pitch a biscuit
ashore. He'll never think o' my comin' to there, for till
you get in a cable's length o' the shore, all the hawsers
and chains he's got wouldn't reach the bottom. Besides,
it's a lee shore and a bit breezy to-night. With the trees
behind me, he'll just suddenly miss me, and pass on by,
and I'll up killick and put bacl^,- and land ye, while he's
still smellin' around the island."
It all turned out as the astute Hackett predicted. A
little before dark the sloop was near enough to begin firing,
and her two bow guns were served as fast as possible
while the light lasted, though with no effect. Hackett did
not fail to remark that the bow ports and rigging of the
headbooms had, since he was last chased, been arranged so
as to permit the sloop to fire directly forward, and he saw
that he could never trust again to her losing distance by
yawing in a chase to bring her guns to bear.
The ladies were hurried below, a hatch in the cabin
floor was taken up, and they descended into the dark ; and
for half an hour they crouched low in the dirty run, half
stifled by the smell of the bilge-water, and trembling with
terror as they heard now and then the faint sound of one
of the guns fired at them by pursuing friends. When the
noise ceased they were escorted back on deck by Mr. Dew-
hurst, and there saw the remainder of the performance.
They ran close by the eastern shore of a large island,
whose dense trees standing high on the low hills, at once
enveloped them in a shade of darkness. The chasing
sloop, whose ghostly sails could be so plainly seen astern,
followed them. When she entered the shade, her lower
sails were suddenly lost to view, only her loftier upper
canvas remaining visible. The schooner ran swiftly along
the weather shore, against which the surf was booming
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 283
loud and high. She-reached the little cove. Suddenly
and silently her sails disappeared, folded away like the
wings of a settling bird. Still obedient to her helm, she
ran into the cove, rounded to, and dropped her anchor.
The trees rose up on the side of the moon, a dense wall of
blackness.
After awhile the form of the sloop appeared, still rush-
ing forward under her lofty canvas, the moonlight shin-
ing palely at intervals on her topgallant sails. She passed
within three hundred yards of them. Mary could see the
phosphorescent foam under her bows, and the lights from
her after ports. She heard a voice give a command, and
she thought it was her lover's voice. It was too much for
her excited spirit to bear. To think that he whom she
loved was so near that she might hear him call her ! and
that he was unconsciously passing her by ! " Oh, Henry !
Henry ! " she cried, and she threw her arms around Isabel's
neck, weeping.
CHAPTER XXIII.
THE Flying Fish ran over to Santa Cruz very leisurely,
being a week on the passage. Hartley went on shore
at the earliest opportunity after the anchor was down ;
and, without waiting to ask any questions in the town,
where he might have found out that Mary was gone, he
walked out to the cottage.
An air of emptiness and disuse hung over the place.
The spirit which presides over the homes of men had ceased
his customary work when the cottage was no longer a
home. Not only did the closed windows, the neglected
flowers, the springing weeds, and the hollow voice of the
ghost of vacancy replying to his knock at the door, all
bear witness and weigh upon his mind, but a nameless
something more was there. He turned, with little hope, to
2S4: LOVE AFLOAT.
the -next house, to ask them if the Dewhursts were not in
town, but they told him at once that the family had sailed
for the Havana two weeks before.
Then he felt all the bitterness of desolation and deser-
tion. It was a black half-hour he passed in sombre think-
ing while he walked among the flower-beds where before
Mary had walked with him, and sat alone in the arbor in
which she had made his hours pass so swiftly.
He went back to the town and found out all that he
could about their going. A new fear sprung up in his
mind, a dread destined to weary and worry him greatly, a
presentiment of danger to Mary from the pirates. This
feeling was not decreased by the stories current of the
exploits of La Hembrilla and his own recollection of her
speed and boldness. He went to the ship, burning with
anxiety to be off to sea. A talk with Garnet, who showed
him the thing from the captain's position, convinced him
of the foolishness of trying to influence Captain Merritt,
and he tried to become reconciled to his rack and bear his
pangs quietly. For three days he suffered more from
forebodings and imagination than any one knew. Garnet
alone guessed it, and he felt very sorry for his friend ; but
he saw there was no help but the help of time : and so he
held his peace.
The sloop remained only three days before leaving
Santa Cruz, but she was ten days in getting back on the
south coast. The old seamen wondered among each other
why both Hartley and Garnet seemed so anxious to make
a quick passage, why they did not permit the least little
favorable flaw to be lost, why they were so ready to put
the ship at once on the other tack when headed off, why
they were forever setting light sails and trimming and
bracing, and watching the compass and the man at the
wheel. Captain Merritt saw it, too, and guessed that the
two were trying against each other their finest points of
watchful and patient seamanship in a match to see who
would make most knots in such a length of time.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 285
He was wrong :
" 'Twas love that made the yards fly round."
Satisfied that the lurking-hole of La Hembrilla lay
somewhere along the shore within "the fifty miles east of
the Cobre, Captain Merritt began at that distance a close
and systematic search of the coast, exploring its navigable
bays, rivers, creeks, and lagoons. This work required the
employment of the ship's boats, and of more than one-third
of her crew. While it progressed, in fact, ever since leav-
ing Santa Cruz, Hartley had been making calculations as
to the probable position of the Sarah and Jane. He had
obtained all the information he could about the brig's sail-
ing qualities and her appearance. With the last in mind,
he kept a hopeless lookout for such a looking craft ; with
the other data he figured up her probable run from day to
day, and assigned her a doubtful place on his imaginary
chart. He was very miserable ; far more so than he was
justified in being, since the chance of the Sarah and Jane's
capture was only a chance ; and he would have worried
himself still worse but for his constant employment.
Garnet, as soon as he knew of their coming employment,
let the first lieutenant into the state of Hartley's feelings,
and asked McKizick to keep his friend as busy as possible.
To do this Captain Merritt had to be consulted, also'. He
agreed with Garnet, and for awhile poor Hartley was kept
on a keen jump from one duty to another. He would have
been greatly oflTended had he known how the trio were
conspiring for his good. It was rather an undignified
and juvenile position to occupy — the tool of others to
advance his own interests unconsciously, and at their un-
known mandate.
Every morning the ship despatched five boats as early
as they could be got away. They carried provisions for
the day's consumption, and the crews were armed. Each
boat took a separate place to explore, the first commencing
at the spot next to that last visited, the others going fur-
10*
286 LOVE AFLOAT.
ther along the coast. The ship had signals for recalling
them all, or any one of them, and each boat had the means
of announcing any important discovery or of asking for
help. Under the blazing sun the crews toiled at the oars,
and through thick and gloomy shadows, finding few signs
of human life. Now they searched the recesses of some
winding creek, with shores of black mud thick with
the dirty skeleton frames of the mangrove roots ; now
explored a wide-spread, pestilent lagoon ; now fought
against the current of some bright little river flowing fresh
from the mountains. It was the hardest kind of physical
labor for the men, and the duty entailed upon the oflScers
a care and watchfulness still more harassing. The result
of several days of the work was just nothing — nothing
seen, nothing heard.
Late one afternoon the ship lay at anchor before a
small fishing village. The boats had all returned, and were
hoisted into their places on board and at the davits. The
captain and McKizick were standing on the quarter-deck,
talking and looking at the western sky. The sun sunk in
a bloody splendor behind a low bank of clouds whose out-
lines were very clear cut, and the color of which was a
bright hard yellow. The afternoon had been unusually
still and sultry, an oppressive feeling accompanying every
breath.
" Shall I give the men their hammocks, sir ? " asked *
Briggs, who had the deck. It was not customary to ask
permission to perform a routine duty like this ; but even
young and inexperienced Mr. Briggs could not help feeling
the something in the air, which made the old seamen look
uneasy, and he r-eferred to McKizick as a matter of course.
The first lieutenant, for the same reason, turned to the captain.
"Not yet," was his reply. "I don't half like the
looks of the weather. Send down the light yards, Mr.
McKizick, and then see the boats and everything about
the decks are secure for heavy weather. You'll have to
work lively — your daylight is very nearly gone."
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 287
"Aye, aye, sir." The pipe resounded shrilly, the
boatswain and mates bawled the word, the men ran aloft
to the order, and in five minutes the light yards had been
swayed, lowered, and lashed on deck. Then for a few
minutes the crew were actively engaged in passing the
boat gripes and boom- boat lashings, securing the guns for
sea, and fastening the heavier loose articles about the deck,
which might become dangerous in case the ship should roll
deeply. All this was done while the sky was clear over-
head and the water smooth around; but the heavy cloud-
bank in the west continued to rise, and there was the same
sense of something impending, a feeling doubtless caused
by the still oppressive atmosphere. When the work was
done, the word was passed, "All hands stand by your
hammocks ! "
The men went quickly and quietly to their proper
places, ranging themselves in two long lines, close to the
bulworks. The master-at-arms reported to Mr. Briggs,
" All up from below, sir."
" Uncover," commanded Briggs ; and the long tarpau-
lins were quickly thrown back, exposing the line of white
hammocks. " Pipe down I " The hammocks were rap-
idly served out by the men in the nettings, each seaman
going below to swing his dreaming-bag in its place, as
soon as he got it. The spar deck was quickly cleared.
Garnet, who came on watch at eight, received a warn-
ing from the captain to watch the weather, A few minutes
before twelve, he sent Mr. Maskelyne, the midshipman of
the quarter-deck, into the cabin to wake the captain, and
report that the appearance of the sky was very threatening,
and that the barometer had begun to fall.
Captain Merritt had apparently gone to bed with his
clothes on, for he came on deck on the heels of the return-
ing midshipman. He keenly scrutinized the now gloomy,
cloud-covered sky, and ordered Garnet to call all hands
up anchor, and send for the officers. '* Keep the ham-
28 S LOVE AFLOAT.
mock's "below, Mr. Garnet ; and have the word passed to
sling all clear of the messenger."
In a minute was heard Mr. Thick's pipe, clear as a bird's
note, summoning his mates. The word was passed, the
deep ominous voices calling the sleeping crew to new labor.
By the time the drowsy officers were all on deck, the men,
little delayed by toilets, were already at work. And
they worked briskly, too, for they all knew there was
reason. The topsails were close reefed when they were
loosed, so that a short pull at the halliards tautened their
leeches. The anchor was hove up, catted and fished,- onc^
more severing the sloop's connection with the solid earth,
They all preferred to trust her entirely to her own element
than to try to escape harm by keeping near danger. The
ship was under way.
Yet she had not any way whatever. Still was the sur-
face of the water as smooth as glass ; still was the night
silent, but for the faint rumbling music of the surf and the
low voices of men half-whispering as if in awe lest the
dark might hear, as though their own tones appalled
them ; still were the winds asleep. The starboard watch
was set and the other sent below.
For half an hour more the ship lay motionless, not
even turning as she lay. It was strange to be there wait-
ing, all in readiness as if prepared to fly, and still have no
power to move, to be able only to wait, to wonder in awe,
or perhaps, as with some, to feel injured in having been
deprived of sleep. But at last it came and ended waiting.
There came a faint, sustained bass murmur from the
westward and off" the shore. The sound increased mo-
mentarily in strength and changed constantly in its pitch,
rising by the minutest gradations of the musical scale.
All heard it and listened. It was the wind in the trees.
Nearer and nearer it came, swelling in volume, and be-
coming strangely fierce as its tone grew higher. To the
listeners in the ship it seemed to advance very slowly.
Louder and louder it sounded. Some of those below heard,
9
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 289
and came to put their heads above the hatches and listen.
The rumble of the surf was now lost in the mightier noise
of the coming squall. A slight cold current of air was
suddenly felt, a forerunner, which served to cast the ship
with her head to the south. The tempest was now upon
them and around them, its roar filling all the air. The
sloop suddenly lay over upon her side with her lower yard-
arms in the water, as if she had been thrown over by a
blow or continued push from a solid body, and her hull
quivered and groaned as though it was expressing the
distress of a sentient creature which feared to be over-
whelmed. The officers and men remaining on the spar-
deck clung desperately to rigging, belaying-pins, spars, or
bolts — anything which could give them support on the side
of the steep deck, and waited, unable to help themselves
further. The noise of the wind at this time was indescrib"
ably cruel and exultant ; it gave the hearer, unavoidably,
the idea of a savage spirit seeking to destroy and triumph-
ing in its power. The rain came*at the same time, thick,
almost horizontal, and with stinging velocity.
. For a moment only the stout ship was held down by
the blast ; then, as she gathered way, she slowly, trem-
blingly arose. Nothing parted or carried away, for all
had been prepared for such trying emergencies as this.
She raced away to the southward, twelve knots an hour,
Tinder her close-reefed topsails and foresail.
The squall blew obstinately for some time, and, when
it passed over at last, was followed by angry puffs, that
came at frequent intervals. These became longer, and fol-
lowed each other more speedily. By morning they had
settled down into a heavy gale from the west, the same storm
which caught the Sarah and Jane off Cape San Antonio.
The Flying Fish passed through it with safety and
comparative ease. There wer^ the usual number of small
accidents, and the ordinary amount of discomfort; but
the whole was borne with a rational resignation, and as j|
trial to have been expected. •
13
290 LOVE AFLOAT.
^ The ship butted vigorously and persistently into the
head seas as long as the gale lasted. As each long hill of
water came moving swiftly, solidly onward, she would
charge it boldly. Meeting the wave there would be a
tremendous concussion, a violent bump that checked her
at once, making her thrill and tremble all over ; and a
part of the wave, a very small part, would be arrested and
converted into spray and a broad spread of creamy foam,
while the rest rolled grandly on. Dularge looked over the
bows at the foam, and afterwards declared. over his dinner
of hard tack and coffee, that it resembled a thousand dozen
of champagne let off at once — " quarts, you kaow."
Their dinner consisted of hard bread and coffee, with
water and whiskey for those who wanted other fluids.
They thought themselves lucky to get hot coffee, and so
they were, for ordinary cooking was impossible. The
coffee was made only by patient and long-continued efforts
of the cook to keep the kettle in place, combined with the
nimble gymnastics necessary to keep himself in place.
The rolling and pitching made all hands look carefully
to their footing. The hatches had to be kept covered,
because occasionally some water was taken over the bows,
and because it rained constantly ; and the result was that
the air below became very foul and close. Altogetlj^r, it
was highly disagreeable ; but, as usual, all hands exerted
themselves to be merry, and cheat the weather.
Garnet came down from deck into the ward-room,
during the afternoon, and found Briggs busy trying to
write in the dim light at the dining-table. Briggs had
neglected the precaution of tying his chair-leg fast, and,
getting rather absorbed in his work, he forgot to hold oji
to the table. As Garnet passed, the ship rolled deeply,
and Briggs slid away in his chair swiftly to leeward, fetch-
ing up against the surgeon^ door-sill. The chair tilted,
and shot him under the door curtain, into the state-
room and against the bed with considerable force. Dr.
Bobus was lying down at the time. " Bless my soul, sir ! "
A STORY OF THE AMEBICAN NAVY. 291
he exclaimed, starting up, "what is the matter? Are
you ill ? »
Garnet showed his humorous face in the doorway,
" He was writing to his dulcy, doctor, and, just as he was
about to put down a fine thought about the storm, the ship
gave a lurch, and he slid away and left it all on the table."
"First time I ever heard of sliding away from one's
thought," replied the surgeon. " Hurry back, Mr. Briggs,
maybe it was so heavy that you'll find it on the table
yet." ^
The groaning and working of the ship's timbers, the
howling of the wind, the tramping of the crew, and the
unchecked merriment of the steerage, all came to Garnet's
ears that evening ; but through it all he thought he heard
beside, a still small sound, a very feeble and melancholy,
yet persistent noise. He recognized it as the notes of a
guitar, baneful instrument, and inevitable bore in the ser-
vice. He listened — could it be ? Yes — it was — it was
that sweet old air, " The Spanish Fandango." " Tumty,
tumty, tumty, tum ; tumty, tumty, tumty, tumty " — but
not to anticipate the pleasure of the persons who have yet
to hear this air, it should not be quoted further.
Garnet went to Hartley's state-room, and found him on
the bed, firmly braced in his position, by putting his feet
against the front board. His back was against a dagger-
knee which was somewhat softened by the interposition of
a pillow. He was playing the Fandango, and looked as if
he would go on playing it to everlasting.
" Hang up your fiddle, Hal, if you want me to stay,"
said Garnet.
Hartley laughed, an^ put the guitar away. " Sit down,
Will, there's some whiskey."
" You're quite cosy. Now if we could smoke here, we'd
be all right."
"Yes. Do you think the gale shows any sign of
breaking ? "
« Not a bit," replied Garnet. " Why ? "
292 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Oh, nothing. I thought we possibly might get the
news from the Havana, by going back on the coast."
*' You have no need to hear from the Havana," said
Garnet, positively. " Your Sarah Jane's all right."
" What makes you think so ? "
" I don't know. Well, just look at the small chance of
that particular vessel being stopped. She was not an
inviting prize. I don't suppose really that one ship in fifty
is captured."
'^'^ That's so," answered Hartley, with a forced, uneasy
laugh. " But then she might be the one. I want to hear
that she has arrived. You don't hyiow anything."
*' Make yourself easy. I feel it in my bones, and by
these presents do prophesy — '^
" You have no great interest in her like mine."
"Haven't I?" said Garnet. "Oh, yes. Pon't you
remember that I am to marry Miss Terrell ? "
" Sure enough — if you don't change your mind, and if
she does change hers."
" I shan't change my mind, and I'll make a good try to
make her change hers, next chance I have."
" Yes, but when will that be."
" Within a month, sir."
" Good for you," replied Hartley, who was struggling
hard to hide his worry and anxiety. " You know young
Lord Byron says that * sleep is awful ! ' I'm afraid mine
will be to-night. My bunk is wet — the deadlight leaks a
good deal — and the roll keeps a fellow bobbing about so."
" Going to play your guitar all night for pastime ? "
asked Garnet.
" Yes. I shall go into your room so as to have the
benefit of your company. I know you are fond of music."
" I'm afraid your fiddle will ^^i hurt, if you risk it in
that rash way."
" Oh, music will do you good. It will lull you to sleep,"
said Hartley.
" It would be cruel to make my sleep depend on that
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 293
thing," replied Garnet, with a contemptuous glance at the
guitar case.
" The vibrations of the cat's bowels would, of course,
make yours yearn sympathetically, so you would have
cat-naps."
" There, Harry," said Garnet compassionately, "that's
enough. Let's try for a smoke."
They got their pipes and started out. Just then the
ship gave a very deep roll, and a tremendous crash arose
in the ward-room pantry. The fun in the steerage ceased
for an instant, and then came an uproarious burst of
laughter.
" Hark to the young scamps ! " said Garnet smiling.
Hartley laughed with them.
*' Confounded cubs ! " said the red and wrathful pay-
master, coming half-dressed out of his state-room. " How
they love to hear our dishes break ! I told that steward
to keep the plates stowed. I'll have him at the mast to-
morrow ! " The ship lurched quickly to windward, and Pay
had to run clear across the ward-room to save his balance.
Then came the deeper and quicker lee lurch, and Pay
darted back to leeward, and was lost to sight in his own
room, in a manner so unexpected to all as to excite their
risibilities.
" The celebrated actor. Pay, appears in the role of the
* Injured Caterer,' for one night only," said Garnet, as he
and Hartley went out of the ward-room.
294: LOVE AFLOAT.
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE gale hung on for several days, and all hands were
happy when it left them. The sloop soon regained her
drift, and returned to the place where she had left off the
search. Resuming the explorations, she carried them on
again toward the Cohre.
As they neared that river, the shore presented fewer
openings, and the interior bodies of water which they dis-
covered were more easily examined. Consequently .the
boats crept along the coast much faster than at first.
It so chanced that Hartley was sent in charge of the
first boat that was despatched after the ship had passed El
Cayo del Pescador. The wind was southeast and fresh,
so while the Fish ran on toward the river, he made sail on
his cutter and stood in along the lee of the key. Reaching
the main beach he coasted just outside the surf, watching
very sharply for any break or opening indicative of the
mouth of an interior water. None rewarded his scrutiny,
but the sail was sufficiently pleasant. The light cutter
rose and fell with abandon on the smooth rollers, and the
gentle heaving swing was a delight to our impressionable
sailor. The shallowness of the water made the waves run
the higher, so that in the trough the sails would be nearly
becalmed, while on the crests they would swell out plump
and firm. Then, the cutter would spring to the fresh
quartering breeze. The rocks and shoals lay further out ;
where Hartley had picked his course there was no difficulty
or danger to meet.
Nothing was found until they had passed a slight pro-
jection of rocks, and commenced coasting along the grace-
ful scimitar-like sweep of sand which formed the beach of
a bay. The coxswain of the boat thought he saw a creek
ahead, whereupon Hartley, using his glass, made out water
running up into the land. Though it was a mile away, a
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 295
very few minutes sufficed to carry them into the opening.
It was the prettiest place Hartley had seen in all their
explorations.
A little green hill rose on the right, and on the left was
a steep bluff with a narrow beach at its foot. Trees clung
where they could upon its face, grasses and little bushes
grew in the seams of the rock and on the small shelves.
Even the vertical faces of stone were at this season covered
with green mosses. There was enough of the rich gray
color of the stone visible to redeem it from the weakness
of mere prettiness. It was still ante-meridian, for they had
started very early, and the trees which grew between the
cliff-foot and the water, as well as those which leaned out
from their rocky root-hold, cast on the face of the bluff a
plexus of sunshine and shadows, constantly varying with
the wind's suggestions. A few very tall trees grew on each
side the channel, and high up they held their heads amica-
bly near each other, as though they meant to kiss, one day.
On the right there were some clumps of bamboo, that
feathery leaved plant which is graceful in all its forms and
movements, and beautiful in its tender color beyond the
power of words to describe. [Whoever dies without seeing
bamboo may have to go unconsoled to the discomfort of a
super-tropical country, where they have it not. To come
unexpectedly upon an Indian village hidden in a thicket
of bamboo is to discover an illuminated poem — that is, if*
the sun be shining.]
The boat glided into the lovely channel, but she w^as
soon becalmed, for it was wind-sheltered. Lowering and
stowing away the sails, they took to the oars. They
rounded the point at the head of the reach, and the charm-
ing little oval basin burst upon Hartley's sight, without
any warning. He directed the coxswain to steer to the
head of the haven, where he saw a house. The boat was
run straight ashore, her bow| sliding up on the slope of
hard sand ; and Hartley looked about.
The basin was apparently without any means of egress,
296 ^ LOVE AFLOAT.
for from his point de vice the circumscribing strip of sand
was an unbroken ellipse, and the fringe of trees above it
drooped over it continuously all around the curve.
" Get out and stretch yourselves, men," he ordered,
" Don't go away out of hail."
" There's been somebody here before us," said the bow-
man, leaping out. " See the tracks, Mr. Hartley ? "
u Ye— es."
" There's been a boat hauled up here more nor once't,"
remarked another man, pointing to several keel-marks,
with many tracks about them.
Hartley examined all the indications, told the men to
look about sharp, and walked up to the house. It was a
small, mean-looking, weather-beaten hut of pine boards,
with a window made of an ancient port-sash. The front
door yielded to his push and he entered. There was only
one room, and it liad a floor of earth. In one corner lay a
pile of dirty bedding, and a very old grass hammock was
suspended from the poles that served as joists. Vagrant
rays entered by way of holes in the rotting roof, and
brightened the cabin more than the subdued light which
struggled through the grimy panes of the one window.
Hartley tried the back door, but it was locked, and he
did not feel warranted to force it open. Outside, a thick
growth of high bushes, woven together closely by running
briars, came close up to the hut on each side, and their
dense entanglements were more than he cared to encounter,
without some definite object in view.
Just to the left of the house, at the end of a deep gully,
there was the mouth of a pretty little stream of clear fresh
water. It debouched between high banks, and, where it
ran into the haven, spread out in shallows, rippling and
flashing in the sun, as it ran over snowy white sand.
All was so lovely about him, that he forgot his anxie-
ties and delivered himself c^er to Nature, who after all had
the prior claim upon him, in that she was his mistress
before he had ever seen Mary. If he sighed at all now, it
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 297
was for longing that Mary might be with him to give to
her sweet harmless rival the praise due her various charms.
[Stop, O reader, and picture to yourself that lovely little
lake. It's serenity and beauty yet fill the errant traveller,
who chances upon it, with a sense of rest and peace, with
a feeling that he has come far enough. There is even now
something worshipful and sufficing in its calm. If you
should be called a pagan for yielding yourself in homage
to Nature there, "you might say in deprecation of severity
that the sin woikld not be often repeated, for certainly you
could not often find equal occasion.]
Hartley left the place with regret, and reached the ship,
after another swift sail, at eleven o'clock. He found her
anchored in the Cobre in such a position that it was easy,
as the wind then blew, to get under way and run out.
This the captain resolved to do, after receiving Hartley's
report. His plan was to go over to the* eastward again for
a few days, stopping the search for the present ; and to
return without warning, and send in a boat expedition in
hope of catching La Hembrilla in the Hole, or Hartley
Haven, as they called the newly discovered water. He
agreed now that here was her hiding place.
On running down the river, however, the pirate and the
brig were seen coming toward them, and chase was given
at once. Everybody felt sure that La Hembrilla was
caught at last, and everybody but Hartley was in a high
good humor. He went straight to the captain and told
him there could be no doubt that Mr. Dewhurst and family
were in the pirate. He had recognized the Sarah and Jane
beyond question by her correspondence with the descrip-
tion he had obtained in Santa Cruz, and he was sure that
their friends were now in the vessel they were pursuing.
They would be in great danger if the Flying Fish should
fire. He begged the captain not to open fire, at least not
until the sloop was near enough to make sure of sending
her shot away from the pirate's cabin.
" I am very sorry, Mr. Hartley," replied Captain Mer-
13*
298 LOVE AFLOAT.
ritt with compassion, "but I cannot do what you wish.
I do not know that Mr. Dewhurst and his family are
not still aboard the brig, and you do not know it.
Your idea is probably correct, but I do not know that it is.
I will give orders to aim at the sails, but I must open fire
as soon as the shot will reach. It is my duty, and I would
do it if my own family were there."
And as soon as possible, the bow guns commenced
firing. Hartley watched the arching flight of each shot,
with a terrible anxiety, as long as there remained a doubt
of its striking the schooner. They were his own guns
which were in the bow ports, but McKizick had taken a
notion of working them, for once. Until dusk made the
aim uncertain, he did not draw an easy breath. He wished
for awhile that the schooner could go faster, to get out
of the way of danger. When the darkness stopped the
firing, he felt better again, for he thought that before the
moon set, the Fish would shrely overhaul and capture the
schooner, and his beloved one would be rescued without
further hazard.
Bitter was his disappointment, and that of all, when
La Hembrilla vanished. The pirate was not missed until
the sloop was nearly past the island, for it was all the time
supposed that she was but a little distance ahead, and that
when she cleared the shadow, she would again become
visible. The sloop was put about at once, and ran back
abreast the land. All the rest of the night she blockaded
the coast, with keen eyes on board watching vainly for
the lost prize. The dawn showed an empty coast, and a
clear horizon. Thereupon the captain, much disgusted,
shaped his course back toward the mouth of the Cobre,
carrying every stitch of canvas the ship would bear.
Arriving there in the afternoon, a dismasted hulk was
seen lying among the rocks of the mouth of Hartley
Haven. The sloop ran in to reconnoitre.
The hulk lay so still that she was at first supposed to
be aground. As they drew nearer, however, the officers
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 299
of the Fish saw that there were men on board, and that
she was secured in her position by means of hawsers car-
ried out to the surrounding rocks. Hartley was the keen-
est watcher on board the sloop. It was he who reported
to the captain, that it was the hull of the Sarah and Jane
they saw, that her masts had been cut away, and that she
was then sinking, to his belief, in order to shut up a channel.
:-^ The captain took a careful look for himself, and so far
agreed with Hartley, that he immediately ordered the first
lieutenant to go to quarters, and to have two boats manned
and armed to send in. He meant to tow the brig away
from the channel before she sunk, if it were possible ; for
he thought that it was enough for him to see the pirates'
interest, in order to know his own desirable course.
He could not understand why they had wanted to stop up
the channel, but he was sure since they were trying to do
that, he would try to keep it open.
The battery began firing at once, with the intention of
driving the pirates away, and leaving the men a clear
deck on which to work. Meanwhile the Fish approached
the Sarah and Jane as rapidly as the boats could have done.
The pirates did not long remain to risk the shot ; the firing
was too accurate on that occasion. Taking to their boat
they pulled ashore as fast as they could, vastly annoyed
by the ricochetting •balls, which dashed spray over them.
They were only spurred to exertion. A small boat bob-
bing about on the waves, is a hard thing to hit with a
heavy gun in a moving ship.
When within half a mile, and while still firing, the
quarter-boats of the ship were sent in under Garnet's direc-
tion to warp the brig out of the channel. Before they were
fairly Started, however, a shot cut the" large hawser by which
the bow of the Sarah and Jane was held to the wind. She
drifted back quickly, the sudden strain snapping a small
rope which had been used for a port quarter-guy, and
leaving her hanging by one hawser, carried forward from
the starboard quarter, to a rock off the bow. She immedi-
300 LOVE AFLOAT. . +
ately winded, swung out of the channel, and lay still, with
her head to leeward. The boat party pushed on, never-
theless, but before they reached her, she went down.
When they came to the place, they could row over her,
and could see her by looking down on the shady side of
the cutters. They returned to the ship, now hove to and
waiting, and found the battery secured, and all on board
quiet again.
" Leave the cutters down, McKizick," said the captain,
gleefully. " I think we ought to catch Mr. Hackett this
time."
"Plain as a pike-staff, sir. He's inside, and he was
blocking up the channel to keep us out. But I'd never
have thought it possible to get his little craft in through
those rocks — much less a ship of our size."
"Aye — but he ought to remember the boats, eh,
McKizick?"
" Captain, you must let me go in charge this time. It's
too important a business to pass me over."
" Yes," admitted the captain, " I suppose you must go.
In fact, I don't care to send any young man in here.
You'd better take Mr. Hartley, as he's been there before,
and let him pilot you in. Take the launch, and first and
second cutters, and go as soon as you can get away. I
shall not give you any instructions — but see here, McKizick,
I trust to your age and experience. Don't push things too
far. Give up, and back out in good time, if necessary."
, McKizick was off at work immediately, getting out
the launch and cutters. In a comparatively short time
the three were all ready alongside. Hartley in the first
cutter, and Briggs in the second, and the launch waiting
for Mr. McKizick. That officer reported to the captain,
and received the order to shove off, and in a few minutes
the boats were pulling ashore. It was about four o'clock.
Hartley went ahead in the first cutter, to show the
way by which he had so easily entered the Haven before.
He made first for the point of rocks, and then pulled dowa
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 301
the beach as on the previous occasion. The advance was
silent, in marked contrast to that on the day in which the
Mercutio had been been recaptured in such dashing style.
The only noises were the sound of the surf, and the oars'
measured dipping. In the bright afternoon sunshine the
boats glided along parallel with the white beach and
past its background of foliage, without a word spoken or
an order given aloud. No sign of an enemy could be seen ;
all was ajpparent solitude.
When near the entrance, McKizick checked the column
and gave his directions briefly. As soon as they got fairly
inside the Haven, and saw the position of La Hembrilla,
they were to pull to her as fast as they could and board ;
afterward to await his orders. He cautioned the men not
to stop rowing in order to fire at anything, and he directed
the marines in the other boats to wait till those with him
opened fire, before they began. Then the column advanced
as before, Hartley still leading.
They pulled swiftly up the narrow entrance between
the trees, each officer looking out for signs of a foe in the
bushes or on the bluff, and each feeling that the pirates
had every advantage. The expedition was at the mercy
of even a weak and cowardly force, because a few men
could without risk defend that narrow water pass against
a large body. Perched on the high rocks and hidden in
the bushes, unseen enemies could easily pick them off with
safety to themselves. But the enemy did not show him-
self, and as the boats neared the point whose projection
hid the Haven from sight, all began to feel easier, and
to doubt more strongly that the schooner was there.
Hartley's boat passed the rocky promontory, and
wheeled into the Haven. One glance showed him La
Hembrilla, lying at the other end of the water with
her broadside sprung around, a few men on her deck
standing around w^hat he knew to be a gun, and on
the beach to the right of the schooner, a similar
party about another piece. He stood up and commanded
302 LOVE AFLOAT.^
fiercely, " Give way, men ! give way ! " at the same time
looking back at McKizick and pointing toward the
schooner. At that instant there came, altogether, a puff
of smoke, a bang ! and a round shot skipping past his boat.
It was the signal. A chorus of demoniac yells, a rattling
of small-arms, and a shower of musket balls succeeded,
coming bewilderingly from every side at once. Blue
wreaths of powder-smoke curled up on the cliff-top, or
along its base, and among the bushes opposite. Several
of his men dropped their oars with cries of pain, or sav-
age revengeful oaths, or with the nerveless yielding and
down-sinking of sudden death. The rest, confused and
hindered by their wounded and dead comrades, seemed
panic-struck, some rowing, some backing water, some
wildly firing their pistols at the face of the bluff. The
discordant yelling was kept up all around, and the bullets
pattered fast.
. Just as McKizick rounded the point, in the heavier,
slower laun<}h, the gun was fired from La Hembrilla. The
shot struck Hartley's cutter so fair that it tore out her bows
at the water line and passed through the boat from end to
end, leaving a ragged hole in the stern. She began to fill
and sink at once, and the crew jumped into the water,
some holding on to her gunwale, some swimming to
meet the launch. The yells and cheers of the pirates
were redoubled at this mark of their success, and they
now turned all their attention upon the heavier boat.
McKizick pushed on toward the cutter, which was floating
level with the surface of the water. As he came. Hartley
stood up in the stern, ready to jump on board. Suddenly,
and when the launch was close at hand, he threw his arms
up, fell backward in the water, and sunk.
The launch in a shower of spattering bullets ran along-
side the wrecked cutter, quickly rescued the few men still
clinging to her, and, turning where she lay, pulled back as
fast as possible. McKizick had seen Hartley fall, and knew
it useless to look for him. As the boat pulled away, another
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 303
round shot came from the gun on shore and shaved off all
the oars to starboard close to the gunwale. The remaining
oars were quickly divided and the launch turned the point,
receiving as she did so a parting salute in the shape of a
hurtling stand of grape from La Hembrilla. Briggs had
winded and got out early in the action, and his cutter was
making excellent time down the entrance, pursued by
scattering shots, his marines firing back blindly. When
he saw the plight of his superior he stopped, backed, and
taking his painter, assisted him by towing and by dividing
the fire. Even in the pass they were not out of danger,
for the pirates^made up for allowing a quiet entry by keep-
ing up their fire as long as the boats were within range.
When clear of the shore, the bullet holes in the launch
were plugged in a more efiicient manner, the water bailed
out of her, and* part of the men transferred to the cutter.
There was not a more unhappy person iil the Navy than
McKizick, as he went back to the ship with two boats
instead of three. Fear of injury to* his professional repu-
tati(^, and mortification at failure, he hardly felt at all.
He knew he had obeyed orders and performed his duty
intelligently ; but he was overwhelmed with the sense of
loss to the service and of personal loss in the men who had
died that day. Even the joy of successful combat cannot
pay a kind-hearted man for his messmates; much worse
does he feel to lose them in defeat.
Meantime Hartley was not dead by any means, and the
mourning for him was as useless as it was sincere. When
he stood up in the cutter, whose gunwale was level with
the water, his sudden movement and her lack of stability
caused her to roll. Stepping quickly backward to regain
his balance. Hartley struck his heel on the floating grating
and fell overboard, instinctively throwing up his hands to
gave himself. He fell on his back and sunk. Rising im-
mediately, but so near the cutter he was not distinguished
from the seamen who clung to her gunwale, he struck out
for the launch without waiting for her to rescue him. Sud-
304 LOVE AFLOxYT.
denly he felt his ankle seized with a desperate grip : a
drowning man had caught him. Realizing the danger of
being hobbled in this manner he struggled to reach the
cutter. The attempt was almost successful, when the man,
with a convulsive, violent effort, seized him around the
thighs and threw his whole weight upon him in trying to
climb up out of the water. The pair went down together,
Hartley pinioned behind, striving to twist around and
break loose, the insensate seaman holding on with a vice-
like embrace. Hartley thought his last hour had come.
His eyes were closed, but he could feel himself sinking.
Down — down — down he went, slowly, but steadily. Myri-
ads of thoughts flashed through his mind, involved like the
play of the sparks in some intricate fire-wheel. He remem-
bered home and his messmates, and Will Garnet, and Mary,
and sweet life ; and wondered through it all while desper-
ately fighting to free himself of his destroyer, if he would
ever stop going down. All at once, he recollected that
his arms were at liberty; and ceasing his vain efforts to
break the hold of the frantic seaman, he gave powerfjjj up-
w^ard strokes which quickly brought him to the surface.
Oh, sweet delicious breath !
He had scarcely time to breathe twice before the mad,
relentless seaman, again struggling to get upon his body,
forced him under the water once more. This time be had
better possession of his wits, and quickly arose by using
his arms. He came up by the boat, placed one hand on
her gunwale, and was about to assist with the other his
desperate companion ; but, as he reached down, the sailor
relaxed his hold and sunk. As usual with drowning men
he had killed himself.
Hearing the last discharge of the gun from La Hem-
brilla and the cries of the pirates on shore, Hartley remem-
bered his own precarious, exposed position, and lowered
his head as deeply in the water as he could, to breathe.
He saw the pirates running along the bluffs, gun in hand,
toward the part that commanded the entrance, and it
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 305
darted into his mind that now was the best time to get
ashore and hide, while their attention was drawn away.
He at once stri\pk out quietly but strongly for the beach
at the foot of the cliffs, thinking that his chances of escape
in that direction were better than to swim the longer dis-
tance toward the opposite and lower beach, where the
pirates, with less to engage their attention, would be more
likely to see him. He reached the shallow water, and,
wading out, threw himself quickly in the thick bushes
which grew on the slope of earth between the sand and the
cliff-foot. As soon as he was screened from view, he
crawled up the incline and obtained a comfortable hidden
seat under the trunk of a leaning tree, with a shield of
weeds in front of him.
The voices of the pirates grew fainter, and their firing
slacked. After awhile it ceased entirety and they began
to straggle back along the cliffs in twos and threes, loudly
triumphing over their success. He could hear and under-
stand a part of their talk as they passed above him, and
he gathered that they had not lost a man, while they
^ believed that the loss of the Fish's party was very great.
Once, a gruff voice gave directions in English about post-
ing a lookout, going on when that was done to exult pro-
fanely over the death of the officer who had commanded
the leading boat. It was very disagreeable to Hartley,
though in the mistake of the last rejoicing he found one
sweet grain of comfort.
By and by the pirates were all gone, and the only noise
he heard was from the men on the schooner. Peering
cautiously from his concealing blind, he was surprised to
see that the party on board were preparing to leave her,
and that the gun he had seen on the beach was gone. He
watched them get into their boat, and pull across the few
yards of water between them and the shore. They landed,
hauled their boat up on the beach, and walked into the
old hut. The door was closed behind the last man, and he
806 ' LOVE AFLOAT.
saw them no more, though he thought he heard their voices
again, and watched closely for them.
Then there appeared another gang of ^men, twenty-five
in number, as near as he could count, on the edge of the
cliff abreast of the schooner, and walking away from him.
They stopped near the hut, and descended by sliding down,
one by onfe, the trunk of a slender tree, which grew within
a few feet of the rocks. They went along the beach, some
of them smoking, reached the mouth of the little stream
which ran between them and the hut, and walked, as they
came to it, deliberately into the water without pausing.
Hartley expected that they would cross over to the hut,
but instead of that, they waded straight on up the bed of
the brook.
The last man stopped in the water, and turning where
he stood, hailed the schooner. The hail was answered by
a person Hartley had not seen hitherto, and who had
apparently been left as a lookout. He could not under-
stand what passed, but he heard the two laughing. Then
the man in the brook walked on briskly in the shallow
water to rejoin his companions, and directly the last of
their forms disappeared behind a bend in the high bank.
Hartley was alone and safe for the time. He set himself
to study the situation, and make his plans.
His first idea was to get back to the Flying Fish. He
thought it over, and saw that it could probably be done
with no great trouble, by exercising prudence and patience.
By waiting where he was until dark, he could get into the
water and swim to the eastern side of the entrance, where
he would find shelter in the fringe of trees along the beach.
He thought he could avail himself of their concealment
to travel out on the point. There he could hide till morn-
ing, when the Fish would be likely to come near enough
to see his signal for help.
Almost resolved on this plan, he remembered Mary.
It needed little argument to convince himself that it was
his duty to learn what he could of the pirates' strength and
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 307
position, before trying to regain his ship, and he at once
determined on a role, which, without the influence of the
love in his heart, would have been dismissed with disgust
— the role of a spy. He fell to pondering on what to do,
but with such slight data^ he could not make up his mind.
All he knew was that the pirates had a camp not far dis-
tant, and he had seen how to start to it, but here his
knowledge failed. He resolved, therefore, to remain where
he was until dark, not long distant, and then to ^ip up
the brook as best he might, trusting to luck and the inspira-
tion of the moment to keep him out of difliculties.
In the mean time he occupied himself by taking off his
clothing, and wringing it as dry as he could before putting
it on again. That task completed, he resumed his seat
under the leaning tree, and ruminated. His thoughts
were not agreeable, for the bloody repulse of the expedi-
tion cast him down, and his own position was at best
uncertain, separated from the commissariat ; but the chance
of acting for himself was pleasant, and the hope, of seeing
Mary, buoyant.
When the twilight was far enough advanced to make
the shadow of the cliff dark, and to render it difficult to
distinguish objects within it, Hartley left his snug nook
and worked his way cautiously and speedily along the
slope in the direction of the schooner. Her lookout man
could be seen pacing up and down her deck ; so whenever
there was an open space to cross. Hartley had to avail him-
self of the time during which the man was walking away
from him. Then he would run across the exposed ground,
and drop again into concealment, behind some friendly
bush or tussock. As he approached, he saw a light shin-
ing faintly through the small square window of the hut.
His advance was very easy until he came to 'the place
where he saw he must leave the shelter entirely, in order
to reach the mouth of the brook. This disconcerted him,
for the open distance was nearly fifty yards, and a part of
that was through the water, where wading would impede
308 LOVE AFLOAT.
his progress. He could not venture to attract attention by
the splashing which running in the brook would make.
The schooner was not more than forty yards from the open
place, and it was plainly impossible to traverse the whole
distance unseen. The ground was clear and level up to
the foot of the bluff, and the line of the cliffs ran past the
space in such a direction, that the moon shone on its
whole face. There could be no obscurity and safe passage
obtained by skirting their base. His only means was to
cross the open space.
He had almost resolved to go back and try to scale the
cliff, to force his way along its edge, and, descending
again, endeavor to reach the stream higher up, when he
observed a patch of shadow about half-way between him
and the hut. A tree growing on the bluff thrust out one
long arm, on the end of which was the helping hand, the
tufts of foliage which threw the shadow.
Hartley watched until the lookout had commenced the
part of his walk leading forward and away : then, rising to
his feet he ran swiftly, his footsteps making no sound on
the yielding sand, to the patch of shade, and threw himself
within it, prone. Breathless and excited he watched, as
he lay motionless, for the lookout to turn and walk aft,
and he continued to watch after the man had begun his
approaching progress. He saw with relief that the man
finished the length of the deck without a pause in his gait
or any other indication of the surprise which would attend
discovery. He reached the taffrafl, paused, gazed aim-
lessly about him while Hartley's heart beat a galop^
yawned profoundly, and strolled away again toward the
bows, humming a soft air. Hartley heeded the air little
beyond the assurance it gave him that the shadow was
dark enough to make his form indistinct, and that he was
80 far undiscovered ; and he resolved that, at the next turn,
he would try to get over the second half of the difficult
course. Unfortunately the resolution was a little late.
The musical pirate came aft humming, sat down on the
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. S09
iffrail with his face toward the humbled officer, who tvas
terally crouching in the dust, deliberately struck a light
rith flint and steel, lighted a cigar, and set himself to
smoke. Hartley watched him with disgust and apprehen-
sion ; and for the first time began to wish him at the devil,
or somewhere else out of the way. He knew that the moon
was sinking and that the shadow would move rapidly
along the ground, leaving his Neptuneship out of the little
pond of darkness, high and dry on a bank of light. He
tried to recall how#long a cigar usually lasted, and to make
a calculation as to the time for which the shadow of the
branch would continue to cover him ; but either his mem-
ory failed to serv^ him as well as usual, or else he was too
much worried for mental arithnretic, for the only result he
could reach was to see the shadow in front of him slowly
moving and leaving fresh places exposed in the moonshine.
CHAPTER XXV.
AT last, making a slow and careful twist of his neck to
look, he found that one of his feet was in the light.
He drew it back very quickly — his aversion to the lunar
influence was sudden in one so free from superstition — and
then he painfully began to work his body to the east by
slow contortions. He laughed in after days to remember
that peculiar race with a shadow, but it was no amusement
to him at the time. The shadow was not any too large,
and did not fit him any too well : to keep just in it with-
out exposure, and by very slow quiet movements, was not
ea.sy, and beside he had to watch his smoking blockader.
Suddenly that person rose and again commenced his
deliberate stroll. Scarcely was his back turned before
Hartley was on his feet, running as rapidly toward the
brook's mouth as his legs would carry Lim. Nearing the
310 LOVE AFLOAT.
wat^r he moderated his speed to avoid making a splash.
A glance to the right showed him there was plenty of
time. He pushed on, however, as fast as he could without
noise, toward the angle of the opposite bank of the brook,
reached it, and in a second more was safe behind it, out of
sight from the Haven.
He was almost overcome by the fatigues he had under-
gone, and by the sudden reflex of excitement hitherto
unfelt and sense of peril heretofore dominated, and he
leaned up against the concave wall of dfimp earth for sup-
port while he recovered. As he stood in the cool, rapid
water of the shallow stream, it suddenly occurred that he
had undertaken a task which might prove too much for
him. " If the start is life this, what will it be after
awhile?" he asked himself, and almost wished he hadn't
been so foolhardy ; and then he went on up the brook.
He had to pass behind the hut, the back of which he
had never seen. Just before he was abreast of it he stopped
and listened. There was not any sound within, nor could
he see more, peeping over the top of the bank, than the
light shining through the chinks. He advanced again,
keeping his eyes upon the door, and planting his feet suc-
cessively in the water with care. He passed the rude steps
cut in the bank, and there, within three yards of the door,
could still hear no sound. Reassured, he pushed on more
rapidly, though as quietly as ever.
But hardly had he taken a dozen steps when he heard
the door grate on its hinges and some one walk out.
Turning, petrified and without an expedient left, he saw in
the moonlight a negro walking down the stairs, bareheaded.
The black saw him at the same moment, and called out,
« Wait fo' me ! "
There was nothing for it but to wait. As the negro
came up Hartley saw the uselessness of trying to avoid a
meeting ; and reflected like lightning that he must kill the
negro unless he happened to escape particular notice by
his familiarity with the Spanish language. The negro
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 311
came up by his side and at once exclaimed, " What you
got you* sword on now, fo' ? "
■Hartley had forgotten the sword, but resolving that the
thing which had betrayed should serve him, he drew it and
rushed at the black.
" O mercy, marster ! " gasped the man, recoiling, and as
he jumped back he stumbled and fell. Hartley had the
blade raised for a blow, but the appeal to mercy made him
pause. " I didn't know you, sah ; — I won't tell, sah ! Oh,
Mass' Luftenit, don't kill me ! " pleaded the darkey.
" Get up, man," said Hartley. " I don't want to hurt
you, but if you make any nois# I'll spit you like a toad."
The negro arose shivering and trembling as if he had an
ague fit. " How did you know me ? " asked Hartley, tak-
ing him by the arm and holding the sword ready to stop
instantly any attempt at flight or alarm.
" Put de sword up, mass' ! I swear to God, I don't
want to do nuffin but he'p you ! I'm de man you ketched
aboa'd de brig de time you had de fight at P'int Tresillo.
You save my life, mass' : I'se gwine to he'p you all I kin,
so he'p me God."
Hartley recognized the boy, and was impressed by his
earnest voice and manner. He sheathed his sword.
" Come dis way quick, mass' ; de watch on de schoonah
ain't had no suppah, an his woman '11 be comin down wid
it now, fo' long," said the negro, motioning up the stream.
Hartley hesitated, dubious about trusting himself to such
a guide, and thinking by the negro's own tale he was
going straight to meet the woman. " Come quick. Mass'
Luftenit ! " urged the darkey. " Ain't got no time to
lose, sah ! " Hartley followed him at that, keeping very
close and ready to punish the least sign of treachery.
They went up the winding bed of the brook to where the
waters forked. The negro led him up the right-h&nd
branch and around a bend to a little beach of sand. " Now
Mass," said he, " set down* and rest you'self. You bettah
take you' sword off an' hide it in de brush somewhar about,
312 LOVE AFLOAT.
and put you' coat on de wrong side out. Dem buttons a
heap too shiny." Hartley followed the suggestion of the
sable adviser except that he kept his sword at hand.
The negro went on, " I was jest a-gwine for my suppah.
Ain't you hadnuffin to eat sence dinnah, sah ?"
" No," answered Hartley, feeling that the darkey wag
taking the lead very soon, but at the same gaining con-
fidence.
" Well, mass, I spec' you bettah le' me go git you some
Ruppah — got turkle to night — you mos' dead fo' sumfen to
eat." And seeing that Hartley was about to refuse to let
him go away, he earnestly Went on, " I don' b'long to dis
gang, nohpw. I b'long to Mass' Robert Johnson down on
de eas'n sho', and I wisht I nebber run off. I'se gwine
back soon's I kin — I gwine to leab di s cuttroat gang de fus
chance — I ain't no pirit, I ain't, I nebber know'd whar I
was gwine to, when I shipped into de schooner I nebber
wanted to come nohow— I wants you to he'p me git away
I wants to go in you' ship — "
" What made you run away from us when you were
with us ? " interrupted the lieutenant.
" I 'lowed you^ all would hang me, 'cause you ketched
me wid dem pirits. I know'd you would."*
" What made you fight so hard when we took the brig?"
" Don' talk so loud, mass' — somebody might hee-eh
you. 1 done run away from dis gang dat time — try to
git over to Matanzas and ship. I jess come acrost de
udders, and I hab to go wid 'em. I stayed behind in de
brig a-puppus to gib myself up, and some o' dem trifliu'
sailors tacted me wid dere swords. I hab to fight den.
Mass, you ain't got no reason to be afeard o' ftufiin, I gwine
to do — all I want is to git back to Mass' Robert Johnson's
down on de Eas'n Sho'."
*.* What's your name ? " , .
" Cato, sah — Cato Johnson."
" Well, Cato, I am going t(J trust you. Where's the
camp ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 313
" Quarters up de lef hand fork, sah, 'bout two hundred
yards. You could hee-eh 'em talkin' and singin' if it wasn't
suppah time."
" How long have they been back from sea ? "
" Come back dis mornin', sah. Fotch whole crew an'
ofRcers prisoners, and de passengers — ole gemman, ole lady
— tol'ble ole, and two fine young ladies. I waits on 'em 'at
dere house at de quarters. One young lady, I done tole
her all 'bout mysef, and ax her to try to git Mass' Dewhuss
take me 'long when he ransoms. Tole her 'bout de fight
when I got cotched, and she ax me all 'bout you, dat Miss
Is'bel."
" Miss Isabel ! " exclaimed Hartley, thoroughly aroused,
« What did Miss Mary say ? "
The darkey showed his white teeth in the moonlight,
with a gleam of merriment, but made no reply.
" What did she say ? " demanded Hartley.
" She say * deah Henry,' sah." Hartley was delighted,
but did not pursue the question. "You' name Henry,
sah ? " asked Cato.
" Yes, you rascal : why ? "
"Nufiin, sah ; ony I want to know how to call you
by name, sah. Miss Ma-ay tink a heap o' you, Mass'
Henry." .
" Well, Cato, I'm glad to hear it. See here. I want
to get them away from there and aboard the ship. If you
will help me 1 will give you a thousand dollars when they
are all aboard, and you shall have a passage home."
*' Dat suit me mighty well, mass'. I'se gwing to do all
I kin, anyhow."
" I'm nearly starved, Cato : I want some of that turtle.
Can you get me some safely ? "
"Oh, yes, sah, nobody take notice. Alius takes my
suppah down to de cabin to eat it."
" Can you take me where I can see Miss Mary ? "
" Yes, sah ; on'y 1 spec' you better not go no closter 'n
you is now."
U
314f LOVE AFLOAT.
*' Can you see Miss Mary, and speak to her privately
when you go up ? "
" Yes, sah."
" Tell her I am on shore, and will be up to see her this
evening ; and give her my love, Cato."
"Yes, sah — done got dat, I spec'." The darkey's teeth
were again visible for an instant.
" Never mind, Cato. Kow go along, and get back as
quick as you can."
" Good-by, Mass' Henry. Back to'recly." And Cato
went rapidly down the creek bed, his disappearance being
to Hartley like the vanishing of a kind black angel.
Hartley walked up and down the dry bank to keep him-
self warm ; but he hardly needed the exercise. In spite
of his damp clothing and his hunger, his glowing heart
made him unmindful of discomfort. The thought that he
was so near Mary, that he was to see her so soon, and the
unintended message of love, which Cato had delivered^
they fed and warmed him for the time. He tried to plan,
tried to think, but his mind went constantly back to the
one delicious involuntary theme of Mary so near, Mary so
soon. Even the peril of his position did not present itself;
he did not once more suspect the negro who now con-
trolled his destiny.
In about twenty minutes that worthy returned, bring-
ing a tin cup, a plate, and a spoon, and a small bucket,
from which issued a savory perfume. Hartley, half-
famished, fell upon the contents of the bucket, which was
a thick soup or chowder made of turtle, and ate with
returning strength, while he listened to Cato.
'* I went up," said Cato, " and I seen Mr. Dewhuss a
settin' in de do', and Miss Dewhuss behine him, an I ax
him lemrae git in to git de broom. Miss Ma-ay and Miss
Is'bel bofe in de inside room a-talkin' wid de do' open. I
watch de chance and tell Miss Ma-ay you heah. She got
rale white, and I 'lowed she was gwine to faint away. I
say shoo to Miss Is'bel, and I fotch Miss Ma-ay a drink o'
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 315
water. She felt better den, and tole Miss Is'bel all about
it, and she tole her not to say nothing to her pa, cause you
would sen' word to him when de right time come. Miss
Ma-ay send you her love and say, she's a-comin' to de big
rock, when I whistle Ole Yirginny. You like de turkle,
sab?"
"You're a fine fellow, Cato. I'll stand your friend for
that turtle. You've done well so far, and if you manage
as smartly hereafter we shall all get away without trouble."
" No, Mass' Henry, you can't git 'em away. Dere's
somebody watching de house day an' night. You bettah
not go up dere you'sef. Capen's a mighty hard man, sah,
an dat mate — dat dog, Arrowson — he love to kill you.
Dey all cutt'roat debbils, sah — love to kill folks. You
bettah go back to de ship and fetch all you' men, and 'tact
'em de way I show you."
" Which way."
" Well, sah, de quarters in a holly, like. Got a high
rock wall on three sides, an ony one place to git up — sort
o' narrer stairs in de rock. Dis side ob de holly nex' to us
is all open, sah. You Ian' all you men in de Cobre at de
cove — de creek runs in on dis side cross from de cove —
dere's a canoe in de creek — you Ian' 'em all dere, and fetch
some o' dem big black cannons what I seen in you' ship,
an' you sen' plenty ban's to de stairs to keep 'em from
runnin' off dat-a-way, and take de rest an' de cannons, an
come roun' an' go up de creek, an' you kin ketch all de
rascals in dere own trap."
Hartley got Cato to explain it more thoroughly, and
was surprised at the good strategy of the plan, leaving
out the negro's ignorance of the uses of naval artillery,
and the rough nature of the ground for transporting guns
on ship carriages. He determined to see the place for
himself, and to try, without delay, to effect the escape
of the whole family.
By this time he had eaten all the turtle he could, and
Cato had finished the remains.
316 LOVE AFLOAT.
" I'm ready to start now, Cato."
" Yes, sah ; le' me hide de dishes, Mass' Henry, it's too
resky fo' you to go up dere, but if you is boun' to go, I'll
show you de way. You must be pow'ful still and keerful."*
Hartley followed Cato down to the foot of the stream,
and then up the left-hand branch. Cato whispered to him
as they entered it, " Mass' Henry, if anybody comes down
to meet us, we got to run back whar we was, an' if dey
comes behin' run ahead, an' if dey comes bofe sides I lif
you up on de bank." He walked steadily up the gradual
ascent formed by the bed of the stream, diverging on to dry
ground when the occasional widening of the banks left a
little strip of shore, and now and then pausing to listen.
As they advanced, voices and laughter became audible,
both of men and women ; and after awhile, fitful red gleams
of light began to strike on the branches high above
their heads. With warning hand Cato cautioned Hartley
to silence and vigilance. They listened intently as they
pushed on more slowly.
The sounds grew louder and the light flickered more
continuously on the foliage above. Soon Hartley thought
he was about to walk out undisguised among his enemies,
for he caught glimpses of a fire through the intervening
undergrowth. He could hear the tinkling of a guitar, and
understand by snatches the louder exclamations of the
pirates. Just as he was about to make Cato stop, that per-
son turned to the right into a shallow gully worn through
the bank^ — up there much lower than it was further down,
— and pushed up its narrow pathway between the closely
approaching vegetation on either side. In several places
Hartley, following, had to get down on hands and knees
and crawl under a mass of matted vines which filled the
upper part of this natural covered way.
After going perhaps twenty paces the gully became so
shallow as to be of no more use. Cato dropped on his
hands and knees, and began to bore his way along through
the bushes and vines, closely followed by the lieuteutint,
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 317
who was very glad to have a precedent for his proceeding.
Very soon the thicket became thinner. Hartley would
haVe arisen to walk through it, but Cato motioned him
down with apprehensive quickness. Turning once more
toward the light, the black crawled in that direction, edg-
ing away to the left, until he reached a large mass of rock.
Behind this he stood up, and after peering in every direc-
tion and around its angles with great anxiety, he beckoned
Hartley to come. " Mass' Henry," he whispered in a thick
frightened voice, " Don' make no noise ! "
« All right."
"Look roun' de cornah. Don' show you'sef."
Hartley looked. In front of the rock were bushes
higher than a man's head, but growing on ground so much
lower than that on which he stood that he could see over
their tops. Beyond them he perceived, by the ruddy reflec-
tion of the firelight upon its surface, a stream of water;
and, looking between the tree stems for the cause of the
light, he saw a bright fire with a circle of men and women
surrounding it, some carelessly stretched out on the ground,
some seated' on stones, some swinging in hammocks be-
tween the trees.. They were all in easy attitudes and a great
good humor. A confused gabble arose from their mongrel
conversation, and now and then a few lilting notes of a
song were heard. All the while a guitar kept up an aim-
less tinkling mixed with the rattle of tinware from a table
back of the fire, where several hag-like women were clear-
ing away the supper. Over the fire there hung a great
black iron kettle supported on a cross-pole resting in two
forked stakes. The leaves above, reflecting the blaze of the
fire in patches of red and of yellow light interspersed with
deep shadows, made a beautiful though sombre ceiling. A
dull red coal here and there in the semi-darkness revealed
the position of some smoker. It was a wild, strong picture,
framed by the blackness into which it faded.
Hartley was so taken up by the first coup-d'oeil that he
did not see anything more; but after awhile he became
318 LOVE AFLOAT.
conscious of a semicircle of white houses, standing back
from the fire, and showing dimly among the columnar tree
trunks against a black background. The line extended
from his left around toward the right, being lost behind a
dark mass, which another look showed to. be a house in
shadow, the last of the row.
" Dere's de stairs I tole you 'bout," said Cato, pointing
to the right. Hartley gazed in that direction and saw a
wall rising up vertically some fifteen yards distant. As
his eyes became accustomed to the darkness he made out a
broad black fissure running up and down the wall and
terminating in the slope of earth at its foot. " Dere's
de cap'n's house — Cap'n Hackett," said Cato, pointing
awfully to the dark building in front. *'Nex' one's whar
Mass' Dewhuss and his fokes is kep'. Nex' one's empty,
and de nex' b'longs to de mates. All de four-room cabins
belongs to de men."
" Cato," asked Hartley, " Can Miss Mary find me here ? "
" Yes, sah, de ladies been hee-eh befo'. Dat man dere,"
indicating the locality with outstretched finger — " he's de
guard."
" Where ? I can't see him."
" Settin' down by dat tree — dere. He's smokin' a cigar.
Don't you see the light, sah ? " Hartley made out, finally,
a man sitting in the shadow of a tree on the ground, about
fifty yards away.
*' Dat man's de guard," whispered Cato again. " His
business to see dey don' run oif. But he don' trouble de
young ladies fo' he knows dat if they goes out alone dey
can't git away. Dey don' know de country, an' dey' feard
to leave Mass' Dewhuss."
Hartley told Cato to go and apprise Mary of his pres-
ence, and agree upon the place in which to meet him
afterward. The servant, fearful of suspicion and detection,
made Hartley promise not to keep Miss Mary more than
fifteen minutes at first, and then to wait an hour for a sec-
ond visit from her. When that was over he would rejoin
A STOKY OP THE AMERICAN NAVY. 319
him, take him to the cove in the Cobre where the canoe lay,
and put him back on board the ship. Hartley acquiesced
in this plan, though secretly hoping for an opportunity to
get the whole Dewhurst family away with him.
Cato left him, with many injunctions to care, and
crawled away through the bushes as he had come. In a
few minutes Hartley saw him reappear, walking with a
charming innocence toward the fire, and whistling " Ole
Virginny." It was the signal. He again forgot peril,
escape, and all the world but one, and his heart throbbed
with uncontrolled and tumultuous agitation, as he watched
around the angle of the rock the place where he expected
her to appear. Scarcely could he in his eagerness keep
from an undue risking of himself. " Ah, will she come ?
can she be so near ! Can she be coming ? My love, my dar-
ling ! I shall see her — perhaps she is coming now ! Why
doesn't she come ?" So he thought, his soul seeming to flow
out toward her in an ecstatic current of affection.
Isabel suddenly came in sight, walking around the cor-
ner of the captain's house rapidly, and straight toward
him, followed by Mary. His heart stood still. "At last,
at last," was the only thought that found space along with
the welling gush of joy.
Though it was now quite dark, the fire gave light
enotigh to show that Isabel came steadily onward, holding
her head down as if unconcerned, while Mary walked with
a hurried, halting step, and seemed to be trying to look
into the gloom before her.
The two girls reached the brook, sprang over at a nar-
row place, and walked into the bushes in the direction of
the rock. They advanced to its very foot, pausing out of
Hartley*s sight.
He had by this time somewhat recovered himself, and
was starting to meet them, heedless of all dangers. But
even then, when he could no longer think for himself, he
thought for her. Fearing to surprise her too much by an
unexpected apparition, he stopped abruptly, and softly
320 LOVE AFLOAT.
hummed the first line of the air he had heard her sing in
the garden in Santa Cruz.
" Bee in the deep flower-bell."
He heard Mary's slight exclamation, and rushing around
the base of the rock, sprang down on the lower ground.
There in the darkness he found her. There was no shy-
ness or coldness then. Mary knew she loved him, heart
and soul ; her perversity and her scrupulosity were all gone.
She was almost as much overjoyed as he was ; and when
he came forward, she opened her arms to him, accepting
his kisses and returning his embrace in the most natural
manner in the world, with never a thought about the pro-
prieties. Isabel discreetly turned her head, too delicate
even there to watch their joy, but she could not help
hearing it. At first their delight had no words, but their
enfantillages began soon enough. She found herself think-
ing that though it was soft, it was very sweet, the reunion
of this loving couple.
" Short their words and long their kisses,
And their hearts were overflowing,"
Hartley did not think of her, until Mary whispered,
" Speak to Bell, Henry." Then he turned to her, and
taking her hand replied to her murmur of welcome by kiss-
ing her cheek, with the most matter of fact assurance.
Neither did she oppose him. As the parting and separation,
and the strange unforeseen meeting among dangers had made
him and Mary almost as husband and wife, so it had made
him and Isabel seem to each other as brother and sister.
She felt a pleasure in his greeting, and inwardly she wished
" O that thou wert my brother ! " With all her coolness
and reserve, she had a considerable regard for this young
man, who was so spontaneous, so impulsive, so diflferent
from herself. She felt herself vastly older than he, even
then, while depending on him to act for her.
Hartley led the two girls around the rock into a more
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 321
obscured concealment. Isabel posted herself to keep
watch, while Hartley and Mary stood so near^her that
they all talked together. They spent a few minutes in
hurried explanations of past movements, and of the events
which had thus united them. While Mary listened to her
lover's story, and thought of his present situation, she trem-
bled at the risk he had run and had still to undergo ; and she
thrilled with a woman's pride, at his daring so much for
her sake. The girls told him how they had seen the pirates*
preparations for resistance, and had heard the firing and
shouting of the fight ; how their hearts sunk when the
gang returned triumphing ; and how full of apprehension
they had been in listening to the loud boastings of slaugh-
ter, and especially in hearing Hackett's cool recital of the
death of an officer.
"Oh, Henry," said Mary, "I thought it might be you ;
and I was so wretched till that good Cato came."
Then Hartley asked about Cato, and found that the
Dewhurst family were all, like himself, looking upon the
servant as a friend.
Their time had already elapsed, and Hartley thought
they ought to go, lest a longer absence might be remarked.
He told them so, and arranged for them to return in an
hour. "Now," said he, "tell Mr. Dewhurst about this —
not a word to Mrs. Dewhurst, mind — and get his ideas.
If you can possibly get out of this glen, Cato will guide
us to a canoe he told me about ; and we may get out of
the river to-night, and be aboard the Fish to-morrow
morning."
" There are the stairs," said Isabel, leaving her post a
minute. " We are not very closely watched. Perhaps we
can get out of our back windows and escape that way."
" That looks possible," said Hartley, " or a better way
may suggest itself. Remind Mr. Dewhurst that in a pinch
a good bribe might silence any one man who discovered
you. But are you and Mary going to have courage?
Won't you be scared ? Can you stand it " "
14*
322 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Yes," said both. Isabel, went on, " Aunt will be the
trouble — she will be frightened."
" You may have to deceive her," said Hartley. " At
least, to make her think there is no danger. When you
come back you can bring me Mr. Dewhurst's idea, and we
w^ill make our plans. You must go now."
All this while there had been nothing to alarm them
from the gang about the fire, which was a quiet party for
the evening after a victory. They sat, and lounged, and
smoked, and sang, and once in awhile a couple danced a
little ; but there was no drinking and no boisterousness.
The girls had said good-by, Mary with a long and clinging
tenderness as though it might be the last time, and Isabel
with a serene cordiality good for ruffled . nerves, and they
had started away, when a noise arose from about the fire.
A hoarse rough voice was heard giving orders, and there
seemed by the sounds from the men and women to be a con-
fusion of some kind. Mary and Isabel ran back behind the
rock again, in fear, and joined Hartley, who was already
looking for the cause of the disturbance.
Near the fire stood Big Ben, with a paper in his hand,
alternately calling names from it and giving directions.
As each name was called there would be a reply, either
from a little group of men on the left and nearer, or from
some one among those still by the fire. The party on the
left was armed, as could be seen by the glistening of wea-
pons. As others answered the muster, they would rise, and
walk rapidly away toward the houses, and some could
already be seen returning with their guns. The women
stayed by the fire, calling shrilly to the men in the group
and laughing. As near as Hartley could make out there
was a coarse joke flying around about cruisers robbing them
of their lovers for the night. Captain Hackett was at hand,
overseeing the work but taking no active part.
Markley stopped his muster after having called about
twenty-five names, and before very long the last loiterer
had approached out of the ring of darkness and had fallen
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 323
into the group. Hackett drew near Big Ben and gave
some orders which could not be heard. The second mate
shouldered a musket, and calling, " Come on, boys ! " started
down the glen, followed by the armed party strung along
in two and threes, and all silent. They passed with sure
footsteps into the undergrowth twenty yards to the left
of where Hartley and the girls were hidden ; and their
march could be followed for some time by the splashing
of their bare feet in the water as they descended the stream.
When they were gone Hackett came down to his house
and entered it.
All of this had occupied ten minutes more. The girls
again said farewell and essayed to start, Hartley taking his
place to watch them, when they all three heard a keen
little whistle to the left among the bushes. The next min-
ute Big Ben appeared, without his musket, walking in a
stooping, posture within the fringe of undergrowth that
bordered the clear space of the glen, and moving in such a
direction as to pass within five or six yards of our party.
He evidently sought concealment while waiting for some
one else. Mary and Isabel, again seeking the shelter of
the rock, watched from its security his curious movements.
When just in front of them, he stopped, turned toward
the captain's house, and waited. Directly Arrowson
appeared, walking softly that way. Markley gave another
low whistle, and Arrowson came to him at once. "Well,
he growled.
" Are they gone yet ? " asked Markley, in a low, excited
voice.
** No ; Tony says not."
" I'm afraid this '11 make a row," said Markley.
" Too late to think o' that. You got me into it, and
Tm goin' to see it through," answered Arrowson, in a loud,
reckless manner.
" Ssh ! Don't speak so loud. Cap'n's gal might hear
you ! They might hear you." Then there followed further
conversation in a lower voice, which was inaudible, an4
324 LOVE AFLOAT.
finally the two men were silent and stood still, apparently
waiting.
Hartley whispered a question to Isabel, if she were
afraid to pass the mates. She replied that Hackett had
given strict orders, and that no one ever spoke to Mary
and her. He told them, thereupon, to go quietly in, and
they started.
He was somewhat anxious on account of the two mates,
but having inferred from the talk he had overheard, that
they were waiting to be joined by others, he thought best
to send the girls away while the party of enemies was
small. Beside, they had been absent from their house a
long time, and he feared they might be missed.
He watched them as they glided through the bushes,
making a detour to avoid the mates, and not speaking a
word. All at once the men saw them, and started toward
them at a fast walk. The girls heard the men approaching*
and began to run, at which the mates suddenly dashed for-
ward to intercept their flight. Markley caught Isabel and
held her. Arrowson rushed at Mary, but was not quick
enough, for she darted ahead of him, and his hand closed
on air, while she ran on, as fleet ^s a doe, toward the cap-
tain's house. Before he could turn to pursue her, she had
sprung over the brook without a pause, but though she
was now so far ahead, and was screaming wildly, he con-
tinued to chase her. Meanwhile Isabel w^as frantically
struggling with Markley.
All of this passed in a very few seconds, event suc-
ceeding event, as if all had been arranged beforehand.
When Hartley saw the mates rush at the girls, he sprang
forward, with a generous self-forgetful ness, to the rescue.
As he alighted from his leap off the shelf above, his foot
struck a loose stone, which turned and threw him down.
While falling, he remembered that he was unarmed, and
as he arose, he snatched up the stone. Again he dashed
forward, directing himself toward the spot where Markley
had seized Isabel. He came upon them, and saw the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.
reason of her silence. Markley had stuffed a part of her
dress into her mouth, and held it there securely with one
brawny hand. He did not see or hear Hartley's approach.
The furious young man swung the stone at full arm's length,
with all his strength, and brought it down on the back of
the mate's head. It struck with a dull thud, and Markley
relaxed his grasp and dropped like a bullock. Hartley,
seizing Isabel's hand, half dragged, half carried her back
to the rock, where she sunk to the ground almOst faint-
ing. Leaving her, he sprang upon the ledge and looked
around.
Mary was gone. Captain Hackett stood at the corner
of his house, holding Arrowson by the collar, and cursing
him. The mate seeming remarkably meek under the treat-
ment. Hartley took in the situation, and quickly went to
Isabel. He found her recovering, and crying bitterly and
quietly, as if her heart would break.
" Dear Bell," said he tenderl}^ " Don't cry. Kobody
knows about it but me, and I shall not tell. I killed him,
Isabel," he added, with his voice suddenly becoming very
stern. Then he told her to say that Markley had fallen back-
ward against a stone, and assuring her that she was now safe,
urged her to go to the house. She rose and walked away
with sufficient readiness to show that she needed no help ;
but Hartley followed her until she passed the spot where
Markley lay. He heard Ben groaning, which showed that
the rascal was alive after all ; and he hurried back to his
lookout rock, wondering if the mate would suspect how
the injury had come.
From the rock Hartley watched Isabel walk steadily
across the open ground toward the captain, who still held
Arrowson, and poured out upon him the vials of profane
wrath.
"You , you! Do you know what that is?
You dirty dog ! You ! You know a pistil when you
see it, do you ? You ! I've got a good notion
to put a bullet through your heart ! You go to dis-
326 LOVE AFLOAT.
obeyiii' me, do you? You ! Iiiterferin' with my
women prisoners ! You ! "
Hackett caught sight of Isabel.
" You, too, Miss Bell ! " he exclaimed ; " who was it ? "
" Your second mate," she answered, in a firm cold voice,
that Hartley could plainly hear.
" Where is the dog ? " roared Hackett.
" He is lying in the bushes. He got hurt," answered
Isabel.
" The beast ! I hope he's killed. He's no mate o' mine
any more. You go to your house. Miss Bell — here's your
pa comin' now. I'll see you ain't troubled no more. I
know good company when I see it," here Hackett first
noticed the crowd, male and female, who, attracted by the
fracas, had gathered around. " Go to your quarters ! and
stay there ! " he roared. He was obeyed with surprising
celerity. Hackett renewed his attentions to Arrowson at
this, and continued his maledictions with no sign of ex-
haustion.
In the meantime Markley had recovered, and apparently
thinking it best to have his difficulty out at once, rose and
started toward his commander. Hartley watched him pass
through the bushes and heard the fresh volley of abuse
with which he was met when Hackett espied him coming.
Without letting go of Arrowson he rained curses upon
Markley. Suddenly he stopped. " Go in my house, the
pair o' ye ! " he ordered. They obeyed ; and Hackett fol-
lowing closed the door w^ith a bang. In a minute a light
shone out of a back window upon foliage behind the house,
as though some one had brought a lamp from an inner room.
Then all was quiet.
Hartley was excited by the events of the last few min-
utes to a point beyond the recollection of prudence, and a
sudden curiosity seized him to know what w^as going on in
the house. He acted on his impulse. It was easy to reach
unperceived the edge of the low bushes which grew nearly
up to the brook, and from there it was but a few yarda
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 327
across the open space to the captain's house. The light
through the window shone on a mat of tangled vines and
plants which grew with tropical luxuriance up to the back
of the house. If he could reach that shelter he might lie
as near the window as he pleased, and hear all that went on
within. He cast a hasty glance around, saw that the coast
was clear, and springing over the brook lay down and
crawled across to the corner of the house. He found that
instead of having vegetation close up to its wall, a narrow
space had been kept clear, forming a kind of path behind
the house. From where he lay he could hear the talk
within, but not distinctly enough to do more than pique his
curiosity. Besides, in that place, he w\as not at all con-
cealed. So he directed himself to a spot a little further
off where it seemed possible to make an entrance into the
thicket. Crawling in slowly and painfully, avoiding to
rest his weight on a twig, or rustle a leaf, or even to breathe
aloud, he found himself after awhile within a few feet of the
window, hidden under vines so closely intertwined that the
light hardly reached him, and with every word pronounced
in the house clearly audible to his ears. He could see into
the room through openings in the leaves, but the speakers
were invisible. He listened acutely.
Hackett seemed to be having it all to himself still.
" And trusted you, Benjamin Markley, in every way," he
was saying. " I just put myself in your hands, I may say,
and give you an officer's shear, expectin' an officer's work
out o' you and to put dependence on to you as an officer.
And how do you pay me ? You drink like a hog, so I'm
never easy to leave you the schooner's deck at sea ; and
you're lazy and won't half do the work I set you ; and you
pick fights with weakly men ; and you disobey my orders !
No ! shut up ! it's not the first time, and you know it, and
I know'd it all along. You run the schooner off the course
I give and nigh lost her, when you were fetching her down
from York. That's once before, anyhow. Never mind,
Arrowson. I know you was not to blame for that — beyond
328 LOVE AFLOAT.
not tellin' me of it. That's once anyhow, and I know of
every other time."
"Do you think I've got no friends among men I've
done so much for ? "
" I never took no notice at the time, 'cause I hoped for
better from you. You've had fair treatment from me in
every fashion, and you know it — and this is the way you
pay me ! — leavin' your command to look out for itself,
at sech a time as this ! — and me expectin' them boats
in again, as like as not ! — and sneakin' off through the
brush to attack a woman ! — a girl I had ordered you to
keep clear of !
" You^o join the watch, and tend to your dooty. And
let me tell you neow, once for all, the very next time you
disobey my orders, you'll stop bein' my second mate, and
all the discharge you'll get will be a bullet through your
carcass. Go I "
Hartley heard the retreating footsteps of Markley, who
departed without attempting to make a reply. Hackett
was silent for a minute or two and then resumed :
" Jeames Arrowson, I don't know what to say to you.
It's a wonder I didn't shoot you to-night. I was mad
enough. I have sailed too long with you, Jeames, to ex-
pect you to act like this. Markley's nothin' but a dog, and
I never vallied him much ; but you are a smart man,
Jeames. You know I am not to be fooled with, for we've
sailed together a long time ; and you know I'm doin' the
best I can for you all the time, and dependin' on you like
my right hand. And you know 's well 's I do, a business
like ours can't thrive without hevin' one man to the head
and obeyin' of him. And you know the cruisers are
beginnin' to press us neow, and we've got to keep still
awhile. It won't pay neow to go after the girls we got— »
and these here women are big bugs, and if anythiu' goes
wrong with 'em it '11 make sech a stir in the States, they'll
send deown the hull navy to break us out. We've jest got
A- STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 329
to hold on and keep still neow till the sea goes down.
Don't you know it ? "
Arrowson muttered a gruff assent.
" Wa-a-a-1, that's what makes it so hard to tell how to
take you. Neow, Jeames, there's been s'thin', I do' no
what, between you and me for a good while, and I want to
clear it up, I want good feelin' again, and I want to feel
you're backin' me up, like you used to."
"I don't know of no trouble between us, cap, hafore
this," said Arrowson. "I 'ave been *uffy may'ap, some-
times, but there's no 'ard feelin'."
"I'm tarnation glad to hear you say so," replied
Hackett.
" I wanted to let you know 'ow me an Ben come to go
hafler them gals. Ben put me hup to it first, telUn' me
that the big one was throwin' sheeps' heyes haiter 'im. I
laughed at 'im, but I took notice, and — it was so, cap.
And the little one was a watchin' o' me in the same fashion.
We thought if they was willin', it was hall right, and you
wouldn't care. And what's more, if they 'ad been took
separate, there would 'a been no row. Hof course, wen
together, they made a fight for it."
The scoundrel was evidently sincere in his belief.
Hartley could scarcely restrain his anger, and even Hackett
did not seem pleased.
" Pshaw ! " said he, " that's all a humbug."
" I tell you it's no 'umbug," retorted Arrowson. " I
don't see hany reason why I musn't 'ave the little gal.
She's willin'. I'll pay the ransom for 'er, and the old
cove'll be too 'appy to get hisself hoff with a 'ole 'ide to
make hany row."
" There's no use talkin' abaout it," said Hackett decid-
edly. " You're on the wrong tack, Jeames ; she cares
nothin' for you, and she's got to go home. I know you
would 'a paid for her fair and square, and she might 'a
liked you well enough after a bit, like some others in the
quarters neow ; but I tell you, Jeames, you mustn't think
330 LOVE AFLOAT.
about it. How could you manage Juliette if you liad her,
too ? And you know it's agin' rules for any man to have
mor'n one woman at the quarters."
" I don't want to keep her here, and I would manage
Juliette for myself," persisted the mate.
"No use, Jeames. The old uns 'ud make too much
row."
" Why not stick 'era ? " asked Arrowson, coolly.
" Jeames, it's no use. Your idears and mine are differ-
ent, and you depend on't, mine'U fetch you out better in
the long run."
" Maybe so," growled Arrowson.
" They will, depend upon it. Neow, Jeames, I don't
want no hard feelin's. Let bygones be bygones, and if
any of the men come pryin' around, wantin' to know
what was the matter, jest tell 'em to mind their own
business."
*'Aye, aye. It's all right, cap," replied the mate.
Neither spoke again for a few minutes, when Arrowson
got up, and remarked that he would go and turn in.
"Wa-a-a-1, good-night, Jeames, there's no grudge,
recollect."
" All right, cap," replied the mate, moving away.
Hartley observed in the captain's tone toward Arrow-
son, a kind of conciliating deceit, and in the whole talk
he detected mistrust, in spite of apparent agreement.
Hackett arose when Arrowson departed, and remained
standing in the middle of the floor. When the mate's
footsteps had died away, he soliloquized.
" The dog ! he would like nothin' better 'n to kill me
in my bed. It's a good thing for me he's afraid of me —
and better that I keep my eye open to windward. I guess
I fooled him some to-night. Catareeny ! " he called.
" Here I am, John," replied a very sweet and plaintive
voice, in Spanish. " Do you wish anything ? "
Hartley heard the opening of a door, as from an inner
room.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 331
Hackett replied in Spanish. "Do not look so sad,
Catarina, you are not the first woman who ever bore a
child."
" I am not sorrowful, John ; you love me too much."
" Yes, I do love you, my little wife ; but why do you
look so sorrowful ? "
" I am afraid," she hesitatingly replied.
" Do not be afraid," he said. " I will stay '^ith you, and
you will be happy when you see your baby — won't you ! "
" Yes, John. Where are you going?"
" I am going to inspect the quarters ; I shall be back
presently." He went out and closed the door behind him.
Hartley stole a glance at the window, and saw before
him, like a picture, framed in its casing, the girl whom
Hackett had called Catarina. She was very young, in
appearance not over fifteen, tall and slender, and she had
a peculiarly attractive face. At his first glance, the young
lieutenant fell to pitying her. Her face was childish in
every respect but one. It was round and smooth, with
delicate features, large dark liquid eyes, and a soft olive
skin, with color and peachy bloom on the cheeks. But in
her countenance there was an expression of deep sadness,
in painful contrast with its youth and loveliness. As she
stood there Hartley saw at once, her form confirming what
he had overheard, that she would soon be a mother.
She remained perfectly still, reflecting pensively, while
the sorrowful look deepened. Presently she advanced to
the window, and drawing up a chair, she rested her elbows
on the sill and her face in her hands, and gazed out fixedly.
Hartley heard her sigh once and again, and then she spoke
in her low sad Spanish.
" Oh, Mother of God ! Why must John keep me here ? "
She went on brokenly, frequently pausing.
" Oh, my mother ! where are you ? So long since John
took me from you I Does he think I can forget ? O, my
father ! Alas for me ! Why must I stay among these
people ? He does not love me as I love him."
332 LOVE AFLOAT.
She paused in her broken monologue, and sung in a low,
heart-weary tone.
" For love of thee, I lost the love of God ;
For love of thee, I lost my own, you see ;
And now I find myself alone, alone.
Without a hope in God, or love, or thee."
The words turned into sobs as she closed.
*' These hateful women ! They say I am not married !
They laugh at me ! Ah, how I hate them when they
laugh. Juliette called me La Hembrilla. I would send
her far, far away if I could — no, I would go away with John
— far away to my sweet little mother. Alas for me ! alas
for me ! how can I bear it ? Ay, Madre de Dios ! Madre
deDios!"
The poor girl burst into a passionate fit of weeping, and
sobbed as if her heart would break, all the while uttering
unintelligible words. After awhile she very suddenly
stopped, and saying to herself that John must not hear her
cry, dried her tears. She kept her place at the window,
still gazing out at nothing.
Until now Hartley had had scarcely time to think of
his own conduct. He had been pushed by situations de-
manding quick decision, and all his spare moments had
been filled with his delight and his danger. The sensation
of smallness and meanness which came over him now to find
himself an eavesdropper upon this girl, who seemed pure
and pitiable, made him think of where he was. " What
am I doing here, in the night, hidden and listening ? " he
asked himself. " Trying to get Mary away into safety —
anything is allowable for that," he answered himself.
" Yes, but would these fellows make any allowance if they
found me? They would say I had no business here — by
heavens ! they would call me a spy ! A spy ! I am nothing
else. No— my prime object was to rescue Mary. But I
did come to get information, too ; and I have been crawl-
ing, and creeping, and sneaking, and hiding, ever since
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 333
dark. Pah ! Suppose I get back to the ship. How can I
tell the captain and my messmates ? What will they think
of me?"
His reflections were suddenly brought to an end by a
slight startled exclamation from the girl at the window.
At first he thought she had seen him, but he was soon
relieved of that delusion by hearing her low question in
broken English, " Dat you, Jackson ? " and a reply from a
third person who had approached unseen and unheard by
the narrow path at the back of the house.
" Yes 'um," answered a cautious voice. " Peters is
with me. Capen's orders for us to come. Put the light in
the other room, mum, and shet the winder in there."
The girl obeyed and soon returned. " You come so still
I no hear you," she whispered. " What for capten want
you?"
" Do'no, 'm."
" He back right away ? "
" Yes^m. He's lookin' around to see that these devils
ain't hatchin' no mischief, and there ain't no body a-spyin'
on him."
Hartley shivered at the word spy. He began to feel
uneasy lest Mary and Isabel might go to the rendezvous
and find him absent ; for the time that had elapsed since
he had parted from them seemed to him longer than it
really was, because it had been filled w^ith incidents of a
kind to make time long. Beside, he was stiff and sore,
weary of his constrained position, fatigued beyond anything
he had ever felt before. But there was no getting away
yet ; he had no choice but to lie still and to listen.
The two men waited without further word or motion
until they heard the captain returning, when they moved
up to the window, one on each side. Hackett entered the
house, shut the door carefully, walked to the middle of the
room, and asked in a commonplace tone. " Ten o'clock,
Catareeny?" ** Eleven," replied the man she had called
Jackson. It was a signal apparently, for Hackett, without
334: LOVE AFLOAT.
farther hesitation went to the window and sat down.
" Who's with you ? " he asked. One man replied, " Jack-
sou," the other, " Peters." " Right. Anybody see you
sence you got back." " No — "
" That's good. Come close, men, and listen sharp.
The mates have no idea that you are my partners instead
of them. I fooled Arrowson bad to-night — made him think
I was tarnation anxious to be friends with him again.
He's an ugly devil, though, and he'll stab me in the back
or shoot me unawares before long unless I clear out. And
he don't love you neither.
" Wa-a-1, men, I'm ready to quit. Come here, Catareeny,
I want you to hear every word o' this. I'm goin' to take
Catareeny and leave this — pshaw, gal ! there — let go !
Arrowson's welcome to the gang if he wants it, but he
shan't have the schooner, and he shan't — have — you know
what. Counting what's buried, and what's in the bank in
Orleans, there be a cool fifty thousand a piece for you two.
And you've earned it, too — I should never have got along
with these devils without your keepin' me so well posted.
" Wa-a-a-1, let's get to business. No time to lose now.
Take the short road to the P'int and travel fast. Go to
the right, and strike the beach at the open — 'bout half-way
— you know. Look out you don't go past the dry creek in
the dark. The canoe's in the old place. The spades and
paddles are hid altogether in the grass, behind the big log.
You'll find 'em easy enough — they ain't two foot from the
log. There won't be a mite o' surf to-night." Hartley
had heard every word of the low monotonous talk. It was
getting interesting. The captain went on almost in a
whisper, but still audibly. " Dig it up, and take box and
all. Now mind. There's two sharp-p'inted rocks lays
close in shore on the east side o' the key — sb close in you
can see 'em by the starlight. When you find them, strike
back toward the middle o' the key, and you'll come not
fifty yards from the beach to three mounds. The north
one is the biggest, and it rises to a peak, like, and it hain't
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 335
no grass on it. Put the box under again, on the very tip-
top of it— three foot's deep enough— and slick it up, and
git away. Put the paddles and spades and the boat, all
jest as you found 'em. You can get that done by day, if
you push, and you'd better lose no time. The cruiser's off
the coast ; look out she don't see you. When you get
done, go over to Olozaga, as I told you, and tend to that
business with the priest. Then come back and let me
know."
The man named Peters here spoke up in a dissatisfied
manner. " How will we be better off when we shift the
box than we are now, cap ? There'll be no better chance
to get it away then than we've already got."
" Wa-a-a-1, Peters, I have been a mind to let you and
Jackson in my plans for a good spell, and neow I calc'late
I better. In the first place, our lives ain't safe here, as you
know. The gang don't look up to me like it used to.
Arrowson has tampered with the men — and the women
too, for that matter — till I caa't count certain on over
twelve or fourteen, besides you two. Some day the treach-
erous hounds will knock us all in the head, for the sake of
dividin* amongst fewer, and so as to live freer 'n I let 'em.
I ain't a goin' to wait for that time. I reckon some night
before very long, little Catareeny there will slip down the
creek, and find the schooner's anchor up and sail made ;
and we'll jest go off together to Orleans, and sell the boat,
and draw out the money in bank, and divide up."
" But how about the box, cap ? " insisted Peters.
" You don't give me time to get to that. When we
get rid of the men that go with us, you and me will hire a
tradin' viessel, and ship a new crew all round, and come
back here and get it. We can't take it now ; every man
jack aboard would want a shear ; and that would whittle
our pile down tarnation small."
" The cap'n's right," said Jackson briefly.
Peters assented.
Hackett went on, " Now men, you know why Pm in
336 LOVE AFLOAT.
such a darned hurry for you to get back from Olozaga. I
want you to have enough of our men bespoke to work the
schooner, and be ready to go at a minute's notice. You
understand."
"Yes."
"Now start, and make time. You've been here too
long already. Good-luck."
The two men were going, when Jackson turned back
once more. " Cap," said he, " there was something queer
about that fracas to-night. Me and Peters was hid in the
brush by the stairs, and them gals was out there in the
bushes off the end o' your house, for better'n half an hour.
We couldn't see nothin', but we thought we heard 'em
talkin' to somebody. And Ben never fell and hurt hisself.
Somebody done it for him, and he's too big a fool to know
it, or else he's 'shamed to tell."
" Anythin' else ? "
« No."
" Wa-a-a-1 — glad you told me. I'll keep my eye skinned.
Start now, boys —no time to lose. Be keerful till you
are fairly off." The men disappeared in Jthe same imper-
ceptible soundless manner in which they had come.
Hackett kept his seat by the window while Hartley
fervently wished he would go. In spite of the treasure-
trove, he could not help aching with fatigue and chilling
with damp, and the last piece of news he had gained from
the informer's words mingled strong apprehensions with
his exultation. He thought he must have lain in his lair
for two hours, though it was less than one, and he figured
in his imagination the girls waiting in dread behind the
rock and wondering why he did not come. Beside, and
worse than all the rest, there clung in his mind a haunting
phantom even when other thoughts were prominent or when
he was giving his attention to the words in his ears, a con-
stant memory that he was degrading himself by espionage.
As he lay there his sense of humiliation had grown so
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 33?
vStrong that he vowed to himself to make it a lesson of his
life, if further life were vouchsafed.
Hackctt called. " Come closer, Catarina, come sit in
my lap." Hartley heard her dress rustle as she made the
change, then came the sound of a kiss. " Whose little
baby is it ? " said Hackett, with a wonderful tenderness in
his hard voice, and forgetting his Spanish. "Who loves
little Reeny ? " he asked.
The girl cooed a little reply in soft Spanish, as contented
and happy to the ear as the purring of a kitten ; and she
seemed to be caressing her rough lover.
For a little while they did not speak ; then Hackett
broke the silence. " How do you like the idear of leavin'
this place, Reeny ? "
" O, so much. I cannot tell you."
" I know'd you'd be glad of it," he said ; " I'm glad to get
away myself. In one week more I hope to have you out o'
this and on blue water, and you'll never see no such times
again." Then he went on and explained to her how he
happened to be engaged in his lawless calling. He told
her that when he was still almost a boy, seventeen years
before, he had been captured by pirates and forced to become
a pirate himself to save his life. He dwelt somewhat upon
the great value which his hard early life had taught him to
put upon money, and gave this as his reason for adhering
to the new business. He "saw there was money in it."
Then, as his conscience revolted against the cruelties, he
gradually formed a scheme to raise himself to rank among
the buccaneers, and to ameliorate the harsh features of the
pursuit, at the same time that he rolled up his own fortune.
He concluded by saying that, except the ransom system,
which he had got pretty thoroughly introduced, he had
failed. That did good, but in everything else his efforts had
been resultless. He had not made the great amount of
money he expected, and he saw that pirates could not be
improved. His own gang was ready to cut his throat for
holding them in restraint. He meant to go away.an<i,Uy^
15
338 LOVE AFLOAT.
somewhere else, and have a good time. When he had
finished this eccentric account, he waited for a reply, but
Catarina did not speak.
" Ain't you glad to get away so soon, Reeny ? " asked he.
" Yes, John." There was a touch of plaintiveness in
her voice again.
"Come, cheer up, little kitten," said he, jocosely.
" Don't be so scared about the baby. 'Twon*t amount to
much, I reckon."
The girl hesitated, then answered with a solemnity
strange in one so young. " John, I must speak. You have
deceived me, and I have deceived you. I am not frightened.
I do not fear because of our child. I know that you have
never married me — I am not your wife — I am like Juliette.
Wait ! — there is worse. It is five years since you took me
from my mother and father, but I have not forgotten. Ah,
if I could only be with my mother." She began a silent
weeping, her sobs only just audible to the listener outside.
Hackett seemed very much moved by her grief, judg-
ing from his disconnected exclamations. "By thunder ! I
s'posed you'd forget all about it. Don't cry, gal. I didn^t
think you'd care. Don't take on so, Reeny. Stop and
listen, and I'll tell you what I'll do." The sobbing ceased.
" I have been thinkin' about it for some time, and I have
about come to the conclusion it'll be the best thing for us
to get married. The padre in Olozaga '11 do it for me.
And see here, Reeny, if you do really care about seein'
your ma and pa, I know where they live, and I'll take you
there after we are spliced — -maybe in time for your baby
to be born to hum — it's a month yet, ain't it ? "
The only reply which could at first be heard, was the
sound of the kisses which she showered upon him. " There,
Reeny, don't smother me — there, that'll do now," said
Hackett good-naturedly. Then she began to worship him,
and bless him, and in every tone of her voice, she showed
the gladness of her heart. " Come, Reeny," said he ; " we
better turn in. It's right late."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 389
Hartley heard the sound of their steps, and the opening
of a door, and saw on the ceiling the reflection of the light
from the inner room. The door closed, the light dis-
appeared, and he was at last at liberty.
Immediately, he began to turn himself aroimd in his
narrow bed. So stiff was he with the long protracted
inaction, that at first it gave him pain to move, and his
limbs would hardly obey him ; but disregarding that, he
worked his way out of the thicket, through the track by
which he had entered. Once out, he sat up in the edge of
the bushes, took off his coat, turned it, and put it on prop-
erly. " There," he said to himself, " buttons or no buttons,
that looks less like a sneak." Then he sat stiil to con-
sider. What he had heard made him cautious.
The camp-fire was still burning, but it was now very
low, and its light was so small that he did not think he
would run any great risk in crossing the open space
between himself and the brook, in the same manner as
before. He commenced to work along, lying flat on his
breast. But when about half-way across, he heard a light
sound of footsteps, and of rustling leaves before him. He
looked quickly. Two female figures, which at second glance
he recognized as that of Mary and Isabel, were approach-
ing through the undergrowth. They had come so quietly
that he had not heard them until they were almost at the
edge of the bushes. He saw that they would pass within
a few feet of him, and knew that they would be likely in
their nervousness, to give an alarm which would draw
some of the pirates in that direction. He had not much
time in which to choose a course of action. He adopted
the most obvious plan. Rising to his feet he walked
swiftly toward the girls, calling to them as he drew near,
in a low but distinct voice.
They had just reached the brook when they heard him,
and Mary had drawn back to spring over. At his call
she recoiled still further, and uttered a little cry ; but
Isabel, ever courageous and self-possessed, knew him at
340 LOVE AFLOAT.
once, and hushed her cousin speedily. Hartley joined
them, and drawing them back a few feet, threw himself
behind some shrubs, the first beginnings of the under-
growth, just there not over a foot high.
"Sit (fown where you are," said he. "I'm afraid the
look out has noticed your voice, Mary, and it is better for
you and Isabel to stay in sight now. If he comes to look
he may think you two are only sitting out here to talk to-
gether. Isabel, tell me what Mr. Dewhurst says."
" He can think of no better plan than you suggested—
getting out of the back window. The watchman Antonio
appears to be asleep. Cato will help us out and guide us
to the stairs. Aunt thinks we are only going to a town in
the country, and has promised to be brave. She doesn't
know you are with us."
" What am 7" to do ? " asked Hartley.
" Make your way up the stairs and wait somewhere near
the top till w^e come." Hartley was about to question further,
when Mary gave a terrified whisper, " Hush ! " The figure
of a man appeared between them and the fire walking
leisurely toward them. " Antonio," whispered Isabel, and^
then with a considerable presence of mind she pretended
to draw Mary's attention to the stars overhead. Mary
arched her neck and gazed, but could not trust herself to
speak.
Isabel could think of only one constellation — one which
Mary had showed her some time before as Mr. Garnet's
favorite. " Alpha Lyra ? " " Yes. They call it the Lyre,
Mary, but I can't see any resemblance. Perhaps it would
look like one if we had a telescope. There it is — that
bright star. Right there — don't you see ? Well, look
right there, now\ The three stars that make a triangle —
they are pretty close to each other — and Alpha — "
By this time the man had reached the brook and stopped
— Isabel ceased her amateur harping on the beautiful con-
stellation, ajid asked in a dignified manner, " What do you
want ? " -
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 34rl
The man replied in broken English, "Nothing. The
young ladies stay out late. You will get sick." Then
turning about, he walked off in the same leisurely way.
Isabel tried to talk again, but made a lame effort, for
she, as well as Hartley and Mary, was intensely watching
the motions of the lookout. They all felt that there was
something cat-like and treacherous about him. He went
to the door of Hackett's house, opened it without knocking
and walked in.
" That's a bad sign," said Hartley. " Sit still, girls. If
you move now it would look suspicious. I'll try to get
away." He began to creep away, and Isabel resumed her
talk about the stars.
In a minute Hackett came running out of his house with
Antonio following him, and they came over toward the
girls. Hartley had got about fifteen feet away, so far in the
undergrowth that he was expecting to get off without
further trouble, when he heard Isabel give a quiet little
cough. He stopped and lay still.
Hackett's sharp voice was the next thing he heard.
" Good evenin'. Miss Mary ! Good evenin'. Miss Bell ! All
alone, eh ? "
Isabel merely answered, "Good evening. Captain
Hackett."
" You are stay in' out late. I should think you'd be
afraid, after what happened to-night."
" No," replied Isabel. " You forget you promised us we
should not be molested again. We are depending on your
word, captain.'.'
" That's generally a pretty good dependence, too, if I
do say it myself ; but you better not risk yourself out o'
my sight or your pa's, specially in the night time. Besides
it's unhealthy out o' doors here at night. I expect you
better go in."
The girls took this broad hint, and rising to their feet
prepared to depart. "Help me over, captain, please,"
asked Isabel, pausing before the ridiculous little brook, and
342 LOVE AFLOAT.
holding out her hand for assistance. He gallantly aided
her and turned to assist Mary, but she was already across.
Hartley was taking advantage of Isabel's delays to get a
little further off.
"Wa-a-a-1," drawled Hackett, "good evenin'." Isabel
still lingered, however, anxious to give Hartley one more
chance. " Why, captain," she said coquettishly, " you
surely are not going to let us walk back alone after giving
us such a fright. That's not so polite as I thought you were.
You said you knew good company when you saw it." The
indomitable girl actually laughed a merry natural laugh.
" Business before pleasure," returned Hackett, dryly.
He added, in a tone of authority Isabel did not dare to dis-
obey, "You and Miss Mary go into your house right away."
They started in obedience to the command, whila
Hackett advancing, went into the bushes with Antonio.
The two commenced a search, beating across the ground
like a pair of bird dogs. Hartley lay perfectly still, listen-
ing to the rustling and to the drumming of his heart. It
was so dark that he hoped to be passed by unseen, thus
obtaining one more opportunity to slip away further while
they were searching the ground beyond him. With only
this desperate hope he waited. Hackett's turns were too
short and quick to let him move.
But the last hope was vain. Hackett came nearer and
nearer at every moment, and finally, without having seen him,
at all, stumbled over his body and fell down. Hartley sprung
up, but Hackett was as quick as he. The two men rushed
together without a word. Hartley clutching the pirate's
throat and trying to trip him, Hackett trying to master his
opponent's wrists. For a moment only, each kept to the
first attempt. Then Hackett grappled the agile lieutenant
around the body, and put all his strength into an effort to
throw him down. Hartley was too quick, frustrating his
adversary, and at the same time taking a wrestler's grip
himself.
Then the two began to tug and strain. Hackett was too
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 343
powerful for Hartley's fierce attempts to avail ; Hartley-
was so nimble that he evaded strength by activity and
supple turnings. Suddenly he felt a new grasp, however.
The man Antonio, coming up behind, had seized him around
the body, pinioning both arms in his embrace. Hackett
let go his hold, and Hartley heard next the click of a pistol-
lock arid a stern summons to surrender. Feeling at once
the uselessness of further struggle against such a potent
advantage, he remained quiet, relaxing his muscles.
" Do you give it up ? " asked Hackett.
" Yes," was the sober reply.
"It's good for you, you do," his captor grimly remarked.
"Who are you?"
" Lieutenant Hartley, of the Flying Fish."
" What are you doing here ? "
" I was left in the water for dead after the fight ; and I
swam ashore, and followed your men up the creek."
" What are you hanging about here for ? — never mind
now though. Come along ! "
Antonio led the little procession, then came Hartley
following, and Hackett brought up the rear, pistol in hand.
None of them had anything to say.
When they went around the corner of the captain's
house, there stood the two girls, almost dead with fright.
Mary seeing how Hartley was guarded, thought he was
going to instant execution. She gave one great cry, threw
herself upon her lover's breast, and began to beseech
Hackett piteously to spare his life. " O, he wasn't to blame ! "
she begged, " indeed he wasn't ! — he came to see me. O
good captain, don't hurt him ! — don't kill him ! — it wasn't
his fault ! " And so she went on agonizedly.
" Sho ! " thought Hackett. " That's what made her so
glad to see the cruiser yesterday. Thought she was power-
ful interested."
Isabel, carried away by her own iears, and the infection
of Mary's terrible contagious alarm, addressed her petitions
also to Hackett, trying to explain that Hartley had come
344 LOVE AFLOAT.
because he was nearly drowned and starved. Hackett was
outwardly as cool as ice, and perfectly unmoved by their
supplications. He shrewdly noticed inconsistencies be-
tween the lieutenant's statement and Isabel's ready-made
account for his presence, while waiting for an opportunity
to speak. At the same time, he felt a lenient inclination
toward the prisoner, for he judged from Mary's devotion
that she was the only cause of his coming.
As soon as he got a chance to slip in a word he did so,
short and sharp. " He shan't be hurt. Get away, ladies ;
let us move on. There'll be a crowd here in a minute."
Isabel stopped, satisfied at tliat, but Mary still hung on
her lover's neck pleading for his life, and dumb to all sounds.
Not till Hackett ordered her to fall back, and Isabel assured
her that Hartley was safe, and Hartley himself urged her to
let him go, did she relinquish her grasp. It must be avowed
that Hartley did not like her intercession, beautiful as it
was in its love and spirit of self-sacrifice. He did not feel
any necessity for it : it hurt his dignity, and made him feel
degraded in the eyes of his captor. His pride, revolting
from the evening's concealment, had already made him
resolve to die with decorum, and Mary's asking was as
though he were begging for himself. It was a relief when
she ceased.
As they moved on, Hackett spoke to Isabel, in a sar-
castic tone. " Why, Miss Bell, I'm surprised you was
willin' to leave such a fine beau, and ask me to fetch you
in ! I can't see into that."
She could not notice his raillery then. She and Mary
walked along, one on each side of Hartley, until they
reached their own door, which was but a few paces beyond.
Mary thought Henry would kiss her ; but he merely
said, "Good-night, Isabel; farewell, Mary," and strode off,
leaving her looking wistfully after him from her threshold.
Hackett stopped at the next house, opened the door,
and ordered Hartley to go in. He obeyed his captor, who
entered after him and struck a light. Hartley looked at
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 34:5.
the room. It was bare of ornament and of furniture,
except that a single chair stood near the open window,
and there was a candle on the shelf. In the back of the
chair, near the seat, was a Yankee notion in the form
of a pair of leathern handcuffs, fitted to buckle on, and
firmly secured in their place. A similar but larger pair,
evidently meant for anklets, were secured on the loWer
front round of the chair.
" Set down, and put your hands behind you," ordered
Hackett. Hartley obeyed. " Put 'em on, Antone." The
man Antonio went behind the chair, and buckled the pair
of leathern cuffs close about Hartley's wrists. Then com-
ing to the front, he did the same for the anklets, leaving
the prisoner as helpless in his bonds as a baby. " I ain't
got any place to put you to-night, or I'd give you a bed,"
said the captain. " Here, Antone, lend a hand to set him
so he can lean his head back, if he wants a nap," ThQ
two picked up the chair, with Hartley in it, and put him
down again by the window in such a position that he
could lean his head back against its casing. Never before
in his life had he felt such a profound humiliation. To be
lifted about by such people, like so much helpless dead-
weight, was almost too much for his proud spirit. But
still he inclined his head and said :
"Thank you."
" You're welcome," replied Hackett. " I'll put you in
a better place to-morrow. It's so late now you'll get
along very well till day, I reckon."
" What time is it ? " asked Hartley.
" Nigh midnight," was the answer.
" Good heavens ! " thought Hartley, " is it possible that
only eight hours ago I was in the ship ? Can so much
have happened in this little while ? " and he went on with
his reflections, which were too much mixed and confused
to have yet taken a decided character for bitterness or
gladness ; all the while closely watching the mc vements of
the two men.
15*
S4^6 LOVE AFLOAT.
Hackett was looking about uneasily as if afraid he had
forgotten something. He went up to Hartley, felt of his
fastenings, and satisfied himself they were secure. Then
he spoke to the watchman. " Antone, you stay till Arrow-
son musters the relief at two bells, and tell him to put
Mark on here. Look out for both houses. Take my pistol,
and don't let this prisoner get away." Antonio took the
weapon and went outside. The captain followed him to the
door himself and looked out. On what little things do our
lives and fortunes sometimes depend ! Hackett turned
once more and regarded his prisoner, whose head had sunk
back with exhaustion against the window casing, while
the light shone in his eyes. Perhaps it was humanity,
perhaps the economical habit of early years unconsciously
reviving ; but for some reason he walked to the shelf on
which sat the candle, took the light down and blew it out,
replaced it carefully, and went away.
CHAPTER XXVI.
PROFOUKD silence reigned over all, the darkness was
deep, the air motionless. There was no noise of insects
to vibrate on the ear, no sound from the surf, no rustling
from pendulous leaves on drooping limbs. The night was
asleep.
It was a time eminently fitted to indqce and aid reflec-
tion in the waking mind ; and certainly Hartley reflected.
He pondered, at first confusedly ; his thought gradually
taking method and shape. A medley of remembrances,
flashes of some of the evening's scenes returning, momen-
tary kindlings of heat at recalling a past peril, sudden
sinkings of despondency at the thought of his present
situation and prospects, quick spasms of disgust at the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 347
idea of his espionage, "warin flushings of love and delight
in recollecting Mary's welcome, her words, her kisses and
embraces ; an expansive sensation of wealth in the knowl-
edge of the secret burial-place of the pirates' treasure ;
wonderings whether his shipmates were thinking of him,
and devising a plan for his rescue ; regrets that at some
point in the evening, he had not acted differently ; suspi-
cions of Cato's fidelity ; grief at the failure of their hopes
of escape ; presentiments of coming evil, and wild schemes
for self-deliverance — all these filled his mind together, or
in a quick succession, his thoughts changing with the
rapidity and diversity of kaleidoscopic patterns. By and by
his head became clearer j and at last he suddenly brought
himself up in his vagaries by an effort of will. Forcing
himself to attention, he considered what had better be his
conduct and line of defence, in case he should be accused,
as he expected to be, of having played the spy. He went
over the accidental circumstances which had thrown him
into a position to make a choice whether to visit the camp
or stay away, as well as the motives which had caused him
to come. He asked himself whether he would have come
without the attraction of Mary's presence among the
pirates. Now that he was more at leisure, and calmer, he
naturally began to take a view more favorable to himself.
His reason told him that he could not rightly be called by
the name his military conscience so much loathed. His
conduct now appeared no such very blameworthy matter ;
he even concluded he had a right to impart the accidental
knowledge he had obtained to his superior ofiicer. After
reaching this state of mind, his course was plain. He
would boldly declare that he had come to see his betrothed
wife, calling upon Hackett to confirm the statement by
examining Mr. Dewhurst and Mary herself ; and he would
offer to pay a reasonable sum, to be set free with Mr. Dew-
hurst's family. He feared that if the pirates spared his
life, their desires for secrecy would prevent them from
granting him his freedom. Still, he was able to let this
348 LOVE AFLOAT.
matter drop without any great annoyance, and with a mind^
much more at ease.
Then he fell to wondering if there were no chance to
get away, and to puzzling alter some plan of escape. The
man Antonio was not visible, and Hartley knew that he
himself could not be seen in the darkness, even by a person
looking directly where he sat. He tried vainly to slip his
hands out of the leathern bonds. If he could do that
he knew he could unbuckle the anklets and walk away ;
but he found that the wristlets fitted too closely to slip.
The pliant leather clung to its place, and would not move.
Giving up that attempt, he strove with all his strength to
break, first one, and then the other, of the handcufis. He
pulled and strained till his eyes felt as if they would leap
from their sockets, and his hands seemed to be coming off,
and the chair creaked. Then he gave it up. They were
stronger than he.
He yielded for a time, and leaned his head back on the
casing of the window, thinking he would rest a little while.
The fatigue of all the exertions he had made now asserted
itself. His mind went pleasantly to its beloved familiar
subject — Mary — and directly he was blissfully, peacefully
sleeping.
Without knowing how long he had been asleep, or, in
fact, realizing that he had lost himself at all, he gently
awoke again. He was vaguely wondering what was the
matter, and trying to recollect, when he was instantly
brought back to the full possession of his faculties by feeling
something cold and clammy for an instant pressed upon his
check, and then drawn slowly backward. The sensation
made him shiver all over. He quickly turned his head to
see what it was, when he caught the sound of a low unmis-
takable warning " sh ! " At that he held perfectly stilly
fearful of losing some advantage, and listening intently out
of the window and front door at once. In a few minutes
something light appeared before his face. It came closer,
and he recognized the blade of a dirk k^ife, and coujd make
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 3:1:9
out the dim outlines of the hand and arm which held it.
Nearer it slowly came, until it was within four inches of
his eyes, where it was held still with the point down arid
the flat of the blade toward him. There was something
ghostly al>out the apparition, something sinister and malign
ill the pale gleaming of the white steel in the darkness, and
for an instant Hartley felt a genuine terror that prompted
him to overturn himself in the chair and call for help. But
half spell-bound, half using his will, he refrained. He
twisted still further around toward the window and saw a
dark head outside. At once he knew it to be Cato, and his
blood flowed again. He comprehended that the knife was
profiered to cut his bonds, and as well as he could fn that
constrained position, made a gesture of dissent. Resuming
his sitting posture, he looked with the eagerness of fresh
hope out of the door. The sentry was not to be seen.
Cato held the knife still for a few seconds longer, then
seeming to understand why it was not taken, rose up,
leaned softly in the window, and felt for Hartley's hands.
When assured of their position, he slipped the blade be-
tween the leather and the skin, and with a slow withdraw-
ing motion cut the left wristlet in two. Hartley remained
motionless until the right hand also was freed; then, taking
the knife with the greatest care, he cut through the anklets
as more expeditious than unbuckling them, and returned
the knife to Cato. Stooping softly, he took off his shoes,
handing each out of the window; and then he stood erect.
He went to the window with two cat-like steps, fearing
every second to hear a board creak betrayingly in the floor.
He put out one leg, and, bending beneath the sash, advanced
his head and body. Cato took him in his arms, lifted him
slowly out, and set him on his feet. Then, taking his
hand, Cato immediately led the way along the back of the
houses.
When they came to the"^ interval between the house in
which Hartley had been confined, and the one in which tho
Dewhursts were sleeping, Cato pressed Hartley's arm as a
350 LOVE AFLOAT.
sign to follow his motions, and lying down flat on the
ground, proceeded to work his way over snake wise. Hart-
ley followed, the two rising again when they got behind
the house.
Hartley did not stop to indulge romantic feelings, or
even to think of trying to rescue his friends. His strength
was so much exhausted that he knew he would be useless
to anybody else, and doubted whether he would be able to
get himself away. He followed his guide with the same
precaution as before, but without pausing.
At the further corner Cato stopped, and speaking for
the first time, whispered, *' De cap'n sleep pow'ful light."
For alnoment he seemed irresolute, but then he lay down
and bravely advanced again. Hartley following. He re-
marked as they neared the house that all the windows were
open. They reached the corner, and Cato, instead of rising,
went along in the narrow path behind the rear wall on his
hands and knees. They moved almost inch by inch, put-
ting down their hands with a velvety care, and drinking in
the faintest sounds. Under the window of Hackett's room
they could hear the deep breathing of his sleep, but they
relaxed no precaution.
The danger and anxiety and hope that Hartley felt had
again strung up his wearied muscles, and made tense his
nerves. The captain's house passed, Cato turned to the
left, and still creeping along, skirted the curve of the
undergrowth toward the stairs. At each foot of progress
he advanced more rapidly and with greater assurance. It
took but a little time for them to pass over the intervening
ground, to clamber up the slope, and to slip into the per-
fect obscurity of the cleft. Cato took Hartley's hand and
led him up the rough ascent. He stopped at the top to.
rest, out of breath with the long steep climb, and his feet
bruised through his so.cks by the sharp rocks. He asked
Cato for his shoes. " Not yet, sah," was the whisper back.
"Dey might hee-eh you walkin', wid 'em on. Come on,
sah."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 35 X
They walked toward the left, in what could be dimly
discerned in the fuller light of that higher ground as a
path among the trees. It lay parallel with the edge of
the bluff, and about twenty yards from it. Over the brink,
Hartley looked into the blackness of the pit below as into
a yawning crater. From the camp-fire one last ember shot
a red gleam, and he thought of it as the solitary spark be-
traying a silent volcano, still and dark, but holding in its
bosom the lurid fires of all hell's passions. As he walked
softly and rapidly by, he saw dimly the roof that covered
Mary, and he felt for an instant exquisite longing and pain
at forsaking her. But then he remembered how great
would be her joy in the morning when she learned that he
was gone, and what she had told him of ransom, and that
he could not help her better than by getting to the ship
and leading back a party of rescue. His heart was light
again.
Soon they had passed the glen, and following the path,
entered a scattering wood on high level land. " Set down
and lemme put you' shoes on, Mass' Henry," said Cato.
He performed that office for Hartley, carefully brushing
off the sticks, sand, and little pebbles that adhered to his
stockings. " Now, ^ah, we got to scratch grabbel," re-
marked Cato briefly, assisting the lieutenant to rise. He
took his hand again and set off at a swift walk. The walk
became faster and faster until they were running. Cato's
hand was a great help to Hartley.
In five minutes or so the path forked, the plain branch
lead off to the right. In the fainter track to the left
Cato turned, reducing their gait to a walk. " I spec' we's
all right now. Mass Henry," he said. " I was in a hurry
cause de reliei goes on direckly, an' dey'U miss you then.
I wants to git in dat canoe and den dey can't ketch us.
Dere ain't no odder boat fo' two, free mile up on dis side."
" Are you sure the canoe's there ? " asked Hartley.
"I know whar she was yes'day, sab."
" Suppose she is gone."
o52 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Swim de ribbah, sah. Boat on de odder side."
" I'm afraid I'm too tired to do any more swimming,"
said Hartley.
" It's narrer at de p*int, an' I'll help you obah. I'se a
good swimmer, Mass' Henry."
Hartley remembered Cato's feat in escaping to the shore
with irons on, and thought this boast was not a vain one.
" But please de Lor', de canoe'U be dere," went on Cato.
" Dere ain't been no 'casion fo' nobody to tech her."
They w^ere now on sloping ground, descending grad-
ually. Hartley had got his breath, and told Cato to go
ahead as fast as he pleased, whereupon the darkey set off
running again, assisting his companion as before. Directly
Hartley caught sight of water through the trees. Cato
left the path, turning to right. A few steps took them to
the edge of a steep slope of earth bordering a narrow
stream. Letting go Hartley's hand, and admonishing him
to care, Cato slid down boldly. The officer followed, and
found himself, after a rapid descent, on the shore of the
creek.
They walked down to where a large tree grew out of
the foot of the slope, inclining over the water. By it lay
a long dark object on the sand. " De canoe," said Cato,
proceeding to cast of the painter by which she was secured
to the tree. He felt in the bottom of the canoe. " Here's
de paddles — all right," he said. Then he listened intently
for a moment. " Dey has missed you, sah ; we better go,"
said he. Stooping down he sent the light craft into the
water with one vigorous shove. " Git in, Mass' Henry.
Set still in de bottom." Hartley stepped into the crank
boat with care ; Cato followed him, and tJ|Jcing a paddle,
propelled her down the creek and into the adjacent river
with vigorous strokes. Hartley tried to assist in paddling,
but as Cato told him he would only skin his fingers, with-
out doing any good if he was not accustomed to the exer-
cise, he desisted, and indulged the delicious feeling that
came over him at finding -himself once more afloat.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 353
Cato directed the canoe straight across the stream into
the gloom of the high trees growing upon the opposite
lower shore. Once there, he relaxed his efforts somewhat,
and began to talk. **' See dat p'int up yondah ? " he asked,
" behind you, sah. Plenty o' water for a big ship round
dere. Dey calls it de pond. Golly ! sah. You mighty
hard to wake. I t'ought I hab to gib it up. You nebber
stir when Antone come in to see you."
"I must have been asleep a long time," said Hartley.
*> Ony 'bout half-an hour. I seed Miss Ma-ay and Mass'
Dewhuss, and make all de 'rangemsnts fo' dem to go —
mighty foolish ting, too, sah — dis ole canoe wouldn't
hardly hole so many — and Miss Mary and Miss Bell done
went out to tell you. When I seed Antone slippin' after
'em, I know'd dere was mischief a-comin' — dat Antone's
pow'ful sly — an' I jess watch sharp. Den I see de cap'n
go out, and hee-eh de scuf&e, an' I hid in de brush behin*
de house whar you was, an' I laid pow'ful low. I seed de
cap'n talkin' to you, an' I hee-ed all what he said. I
wouldn't try to do nuffin' till Antone come in — I know'd
den he wouldn't bodder any mo', for his time was nigh out ;
so I wokened you up. You was pow'ful sleepy, too."
The negro paused awhile, and rested himself by pad-
dling faster. By and by his exertions diminished, the
canoe moved more slowly through the water, and he went
on. "Deep watah on dis side. De ship could come in
here easy on de range."
" What is the range ? "
*' Tree on de p'int up yondah, an' umberell tree on de
sho'. You know de range into de Hole, sah ? "
« No."
" Ebbah notice de big white- wash rock on de hill ? "
" Yes, often."
"Dere's a tree 'bout half-way down to de watah.
Dat's it. Use lanterns at night."
"How do they know on shore when to put the lights
on the range ? " asked Hartley.
854 LOVE AFLOAT.
"Lambrilyer alluz burn a green light. De lookout he
see it, an' he takes de lanterns out o' de box, an' sets one
of 'em on de rock, an' de odder on de groun' by de tree.
Den when de schooner see 'em she burn a red light, and
Stan' in."
All the while they had been descending the stream rap-
idly, under the combined influence of its swift current,
and the negro's skilful use of the paddles. Not a sound
of pursuit had been heard since they left the creek.
Hartley, who had been looking ahead with a straining
gaze for the sea, now observed that the river broadened
to its debouchure. So entirely was his confidence reestab-
lished in his sable savior, that he had not yet thought to
ask where he was going, and the question now suddenly
occurred to his mind.
" Well, sah," was the answer, " it's so dark, dere's no
use tryin' to get to de ship to-night. De watah's sraoovft
now, but s'pose we go out, an' it come on to blow a little—^
we be in a bad fix in dis canoe. We don' know wedder
de ship hee-eh or no — ef she is, it's too dark to fin' her.
S'pose we' go two, free mile off sho' at day, and no ship ?
Cap'n Hackett sen' a boat and fotch us back agin."
Hartley assented to the correctness of this reasoning.
" I suppose we had better lay up along shore somewhere,
and see what we can do in the morning," said he.
"Yes, sah."
" You'll know best where to go, Cato. What is your
notion ? "
" My notion, sah, to keep to dis sho' right on down.
'Bout a quarter dis side of de wes' p'int, dere's a neck wid
brush on it. 'Tain't mo'n forty steps acrost it, an' we can
take de canoe in de brush on top, an' hide dere. Den if
dey come arter us, we can put de canoe in de watah on de
odder side, an' git a long start — dey'U have to go 'roun'
de p'int wid de boat. Dat'll gib us time to git to de la-
goon, sah, and de debbil hissef couldn't fin' dis chile in
dere."
A STORY OF TBE AMEEICAN NAVY. 355
" Then it would be a good place for you to go to die,
Cato," said Hartley.
" He-yaw- w-w ! yaw ! yaw ! Spec' I done laugh too
loud. Yaw ! yaw ! If de cruiser's anywheres about in
d€ mornin', sah, we kin jess go off to her. Dey won't
want to foller us den, I spec'."
Hartley liked the plan.
Five minutes more of paddling brought them to a
a place where the shore was a steep slope without trees.
Cato turned the bow of the canoe to land, and put her
ashore with a few strong strokes of his paddle. They
stepped out, pulled her upon the beach, and taking her on
their shoulders, staggered up the grade. The slope was
covered with bushes three or four feet high, among which
they directed their way. Three times Hartley was obliged
by his weariness and weakness to stop and lay down his
burden, but at last they reached the top. He found him-
self on a ridge, perhaps thirty feet in height, with the
water close at hand on either side. Cato went back for
the paddles, returning to find Hartley lying exhausted on
the ground.
" Dat's right. Mass' Henry, I spec's you is mos' tired to
def. Hee-eh's sumpen '11 do you good — I jess borryed it
from Mass' Dewhuss — I t'ought maybe it would be handy."
" Sumpen " was a flask. Hartley was faintly surprised to
find that it contained as good French brandy as he had
ever drunk in his life, and he took a deep pull.
" Thank you, Cato. That's the very water of life," said
he, handing back the flask.
" Oh, no, sah, that's brandy. Ody-vee, some calls it — jess
like ile." Cato tried the liquor himself. " Now you jess
go to sleep. Mass' Henry, and I'll keep awake and watch.
You ain't got no chawin' terbacker, has you, sah ? "
Hartley fumbled in his breast pocket and found some
cigars badly damaged by salt water. " That's all I have,
Cato," said he, lying back again. " Call me in an hour."
The words were hardly spoken before he was asleep.
356 LOVE AFLOAT.
The next thing he knew, he awoke with a start and
bumped his head. Cato had dragged the canoe to his side,
and turned it over so as to shield him from the dew ; and
it was on the gunwale that he struck his head. "Eh ! " he
exclaimed. " Eight bells already ? Light my candle,
quartermaster. Where am I ? " Then realizing that he
was not on shipboard in his state-room, he crawled out from
under the canoe and sat up.
The light of the morning covered everything about with
an air of cheerfulness. The trees across the river were very
fresh and green, and the stream itself ran smoothly by, with
something suggestive of joy fulness in its fluent motion.
Outside there was in view a part of the familiar ocean
horizon. Oato knelt by him, peering through the bushes,
his broad black face full of good humor, and looking not a
whit the worse for his night's unselfish vigil. *' Time to
git up, Mass' Henry ; sun's mose up, an' I believe I see de
cruiser frough the trees ober yondah."
*' Where ? " asked Hartley, very wide awake all at once.
" Keep down, sah, keep down, dey might see you yit.
Kight in dere — dere's sumpen white." Hartley's quick
nautical glance fell on the sails of a square-rigged vessel in
the direction indicated. He could catch but glimpses, so
it was impossible to tell whether it was the Flying Fish or
not. He watched her slow progress to the westward,
shown by the white gliding behind the trees, visible
through the small opening of their foliage, with a keen
anxiety. The breeze was so light that the craft, whatever
she was, made but little headway. His impatience to see
her clear the eastern point was, or seemed to be, almost
unbearable.
The sails passed on and on, behind tree after tree, their
motion seeming to grow slower and slower to the eyes that
watched it : but at last the vessel stuck her head-booms
out beyond the extreme end of the point against the clear
horizon. Hardly was her flying-jib in sight before the
lieutenant sung out joyously, ** The Fish ! "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 857
" De cruiser, sah ?" asked Cato.
"Yes, that's she."
" How do you know it am she ? " asked Cato.
" By the cut of her jib, of course," answered Hartley
gayly.
He watched until he saw her graceful stem appear, then
her forward guns, then her foremast. She was about two
miles away. " Come, Cato, let's go off," he said gladly.
The canoe seemed very light to Hartley, refreshed by
sleep, and with his escape assured. They carried her quickly
down the opposite slope, launched her, got in and paddled
away, Hartley insisting on lending a hand. Coasting along
the western shore, they soon passed the point and headed
out so as to intercept the ship.
The canoe spun along famously for about four hundred
yards further, when Cato who had been casting anxious
glances back, cried, " Look ! look dere. Mass' Henry ! " in
a terrified voice. Hartley looked and saw down the beach
about a mile to the east, a boat with four oarsmen pulling
to head them off. " Oh, dey'U ketch us ! dey'U kill us,
Mass' Henry ! " said Cato, in a terrible fright. Hartley's
only answer was to direct him to keep the boat's head more
to the south and to paddle his best. By this plan, though
he went in a course which would take him away from the
ship, he brought the pirates more astern, and led them
directly away from the land. His rapid thought had been to
make the chase as long as possible, so as to give the boat that
would be sent to his rescue from the sloop every chance to
overhaul the pirates on their return, in case they succeeded
in overtaking him. He had perfect confidence in the good-
ness of the lookout kept by the Flying Fish, and was sure
that he had been seen already. Nor was he mistaken, for
in less than five minutes the sloop's head came to the wind,
and her main yard swung back. With delight he saw the
weather boat lowered. "They send us the fastest boat
in the ship, Cato ; we're* all right," said he, by way of en-
couragement. " Mighty glad to bee-eh it, Mass' Henry »;"
S5S LOVE ATLOAT.
replied Cato, who was panting aloud, and perspiring
grossly with his more than willing efforts.
A short time showed the correctness of Hartley^s calcu-
lation. The pirates in the pursuing boat saw that he was
decoying them, and though they were gaining rapidly, and
could easily have caught him, they did not like to risk being
caught in turn. They turned their boat and pulled leisurely
back toward shore.
The officer and the negro, as soon as the pursuit was
abandoned, altered their course to meet the coming cutter.
In ten minutes more she ranged alongside the canoe,
^ith her oars apeak. The crew seized the light boat by its
gunwale and held it fast, while the two stepped into the
cutter. Larkin, who was in charge, and the coxsAvain, and
the men, all were delighted to see Hartley. He shook
hands with Larkin, who stammered his pleasure that he
had returned. " Glad you're back safe, Mr. Hartley," said
the coxswain, rising in his box ; and he suddenly astonished
Hartley by shouting, " Three cheers, boys ! An' a hip,
hip, hurrah ! hurrah ! hurrah ! " The hearty ringhig cheers
*were evidently heard in the ship, for the rigging/ was seen
at once to fill with a swarm of blue-jackets. >,-
"Thank you kindly,'my lads," said Hartley . mightily'
touched, and pleased by this spontaneous token. " If you
want to do anything for me, treat Cato Johusor. well. He
got me out of that hurrah's nest ashore."
" So we will, sir," said the stroke-oarsman; uad " So we
will," " Good for you, Cato," and such other expressions,
came from the rest of the crew. By this time the canoe's
painter was secured, and she had been shoved astern. " Go
back, coxs'n," commanded Larkin. " Let fall ! Give way
together ! " ordered the coxswain. The oars splashed in
the water with one sound, and the men bent their broad
backs to them together, pulling a magnificent stroke that
took the boat quickly alongside.
The weather rail was lined fore and aft with eager face^,
everyone looking happy to see Hartley back. He went up
A STORY Ot l-HE AMERICAN NAVY. 359
the side, and found himself received with more than royal
honors. Every officer and man that could get on deck was
there, the officers crowding up to meet him, the men in a
dense mass on the booms and the rail and in the gangway.
Saluting as common, he tried to make the usual brief report
of return to the first lieutenant ; but he found it impossible.
They all would shake hands again and again, some of
them vociferous, some with tears in their eyes to welcome
him back. He could not comprehend how completely they
looked on him as one arisen from the dead. He did not
know how he had already been mourned among the lowly
seamen, whose hearts his skill and courtesy had won ; by
the captain, who had admired his abilities and his faithful-
ness to duty ; among his messmates who had felt the loss of
his genial kindness and friendship, and had looked sorrow-
ing last night at his vacant chair at the table. And least
of all could he see into the heart of Will Garnet, rejoicing
to meet him as a beloved brother returning from the grave.
He did not know till afterward that Garnet had spent the
whole night on deck, glass in hand, watching with de-
spairing hope for some sign of his old friend. Certainly
there was nothing in Garnet's dryly gay words to show
how much he had suffered. "Well, old fellow, back
again like a bad sixpence, eh ? " he said, as he gripped
his hand.
Cato meanwhile stood in the gangway, alternately
showing his ivory in a broad grin, and looking scared.
He could not help remembering his former visit to th«
ship, and feeling, at intervals, rather dubious about Mis
present reception. Hartley did not forget his faithful
ally and rescuer.
" Captain Merritt," said he, " this man, Cato Johnson,
has probably saved my life. I couldn't have got away
without his help. He was in a manner pressed by the
pirates in the first place, and has been trying to escape
from them for a long time."
" I am allowed auother eervant, Mr. H^^rtley," I'esponded
^60 LOVE AFLOAT.
the captain, "and I think we can utilize Cato. Cato, how
are you ? " said he, addressing the boy.
" Po'ly, bress de Lor', Mass' Cap'n."
" How would you like to come in the cabin, and wait
on me
9"
" Kin I git back to Mass' Robert Johnson's, on de Eas'u
Sho', Marylan', sah," asked Cato.
" As soon as there's a chance you shall go," promised
the captain.
.. " Den de 'rangement would be extrawdery suitable, to
•de bess o' my judgment, sah."
*' Very well. Mr. McKizick, see that he is shipped, and
let the paymaster issue him some clothing, and send him
in to me."
" Very good, sir."
" Hoist the boat, and get the canoe on deck, and fill
away, sir."
*' Aye, aye, sir. Mr. Briggs, run up the cutter, and get
in the canoe, and fill away, sir."
" Aye, aye, sir. Hook on third cutter ! Lay aft to
the boat falls ! Main-topmen, get a whip on the main
yard ! "
" Mr. Hartley," said the captain, " come in and break-
fast with me at eight o'clock. Mr. McKizick and Mr.
Garnet, may I have the pleasure of your company, also ? "
^' With pleasure, sir."
The captain went into his cabin, and Hartley followed
Garnet down into the ward-room, himself followed by his
impressed messmates. He was the hero of the hour, and
his adventures were an object of great curiosity ; but there
were certain parts of tliem which he could not divulge to
a mess of irreverent and scoffing bachelors. He knew he
could not tell a straightforward story without preparing
it; and, as he was determined not to bungle, he put off the
assaults at once made upon his reticence, by declaring it
was " no great shakes ashore — he was too tired.. to talk-rr-
;jjie was 11} a huri:y^::-h.e..had..tQ.batho and ishift, to -go into
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 361
the cabin for breakfast." So saying, he ran away laughing
into his state-room and closed the door.
A bath was a great refreshment. He protracted his
toilet until he heard the bell strike eight, when he emerged,
a very different looking man from the shrunken and
sandy person who had come on board three-quarters of an
hour before.
Garnet and McKizick were waiting for him on the gun-
deck, and they went into the cabin together. They sat
down at once to the table, w^here Hartley distinguished
himself again. Cato, attired in navy blue, made an efficient
servant. He had insisted on beginning his new duties Tm-
mediately.
When the meal was over (which was not very soon, as
three of them protracted their breakfast, to give Hartley's
unappeasable appetite a fair chance), the captain brought
out a box of cigars, and they lighted up. " Now, Mr.
Hartley, let's know what you've seen, and where you've
been," said the captain.
Hartley went over the events of the night as briefly as
possible, laying special stress upon the things which were
of military importance. When he came to give the reason
for going up among the pirates, he hesitated, blushed, and
stopped. " Well," said he, stammering in a very embar-
rassed fashion, " the truth is, that the young lady I'm
engaged to marry was up there, and I knew it, and I have
been very anxious about her ever since I found out she was
in their hands. I thought maybe I could get her and her
family away."
" Most excellent reason, Mr. Hartley," said the captain,
with a twinkle; "I suspected as much. Mr. McKizick,
rescuing female American citizens from the hands of bloody
pirates comes under the head of public service, doesn't it ? "
" Of course, sir," replied the first lieutenant, with a grin.
" But I don't believe your messmates would take that
view only, if you should tell them," continued the captain,
twinkling broadly with fun.
16
362 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Trust me for that, sir," said Hartley rapidly, in great
confusion.
" Well, go on, sir."
He went on with his recital, told of the disaffection that
existed in the gang, mentioned its force as nearly as he
could, described the topography of the country, pointed
out the ranges on the chart, and in short told nearly every-
thing but what had passed between Mary and himself.
He dwelt very lightly on his hidings and creepings — they
hurt his pride yet. " I then took up a position in the rear
of Hackett's house," was his manner of phrasing it^ — and
he forgot to mention what he had heard about the buried
money. Before he left the cabin, he remembered it, but
the almost irresistible repugnance which lies in every man's
breast, to sharing such knowledge, sealed his mouth. He
felt that the treasure was his by the right of discovery,
that no one else could have any claim to know or divide.
How strange is the power which " hid treasure "of all
kinds has always had over man's mind ! It is more than,
and different from, the common vulgar power of lucre. Per-
haps its part of secrecy and mystery is what enslaves us.
When Hartley had finished, there was silence for awhile.
He had so completely given his knowledge that no one had
any questions to ask. Presently the captain requested
McKizick's opinion as to the best course of action to follow.
He was strong for sending in a boat party immediately by
way of the Cobre. Hartley agreed with him cordially.
Garnet, on being asked, agreed, except as to time : he
thought it would be better to wait till night. " Well,
gentlemen," said the captain, rising to break up the sitting,
" I think much as you do. We had better wait till night,
however. Mr. McKizick, let it be known in the ship, if you
please. You and Mr. Hartley and Mr. Briggs are to go
again, and let Mr. Larkin take the doctor, with an armed
party in the gig, in addition. Mr. Hartley, get the doctor
to excuse you from duty ; you must have some sleep and
rest." They left the cabin and went below.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 363
Hartley turned into his bunk, and Garnet came in and
sat with him, to hear the parts of the story his friend had
thought best to omit in the cabin. Garnet was greatly
interested, almost nervous, in listening to the story of the
attack of the mates on Mary and Isabel ; though Hartley
remembered his promise, and said nothing about the actual
personal contact with Markley, which had so terribly cut
Isabel's pride. The anxiety passed into thoughtfulness,
when Garnet heard of Hartley's intervention, and Isabel's
escape.
One thing was not mentioned between the friends — the
treasure. It would have been a pleasure to Hartley to
share the secret with his friend ; but a thought had occurred
that kept htm silent for his friend's sake.
As Hartley's speech became rather languid after awhile,
the careful listener told him to stop talking and go to sleep.
The command was soon obeyed. After his deep regular
breathing showed him to be in the land of Morpheus, Gar-
net sat long, watching him with something like a maternal
satisfaction. The joy he felt was none the less deep
because his quiet nature allowed him no expression. It
was strange that his mind should then find another subject
still more fascinating.
Hartley awoke at four in the afternoon, and found the
ship still standing off and on. Preparations were making
among the boats' crews for the expected expedition. Men
were getting the yard and stay tackles ready, grinding
cutlasses, getting up whips, bringing up weapons and boat
anchors, examining oars and tackles, and doing all they
could at the moment to be in readiness. He noticed an
unusual and severe quietness in all their looks and actions,
an absence of the jovial hilarity usually prevailing on such
occasions. He could not understand it, until he learned
that while he slept, the burial service for the dead at sea
had been performed, and the bodies of seven brave men,
victims in the unfortunate attack of the preceding day, had
been committed to the deep. This explained the stern
364 LOVE AFLOAT.
silence, and the resolution apparent in the faces of their
surviving shipmates.
The captain waited until the hour between daylight and
full moonlight, the time of dusk and the greatest obscurity.;
and then, the ship being off the river, ran up far enough to
be screened between the points, and there cast anchor.
The preparations for the expedition to leave the ship
began at once, and went on in a marvellous silence. The
heavy yard purchases, and the stays, hooked to the triatic,
were swayed quietly aloft into place, the yards were braced
and secured, and soon the boom boats were out of the
chocks and lying in the water alongside the ship. With-
out delay, they were armed, equipped, and manned ; and
they left the ship in line, with Hartley leading as before.
The fresh and willing men propelled them against the cur-
rent at a good speed. Keeping in the shadow of the tree-
lined western shore, and pulling muffled oars, they ascended
the stream almost noiselessly. When opposite the little
creek down which he had escaped, and which he recognized
without difficulty. Hartley diverged from the previous
course, and pulled straight across the stream, followed by
the other boats. They entered the creek one after another,
and ascended it a little way without incident or stoppage,
though it was so narrow that the oars nearly touched the
shore on either hand. Just above the leaning tree Hartley
beaghed his boat, the others following, and doing the same.
The crews landed, boat-keepers received their instruc-
tions, and word was quietly passed by the officers among
the men to preserve perfect silence, follow their leader, and
keep their arms sheathed. Hartley showed the way up the
steep bank, the men scrambled up nimbly, and in a minute
more the whole force was moving in a long serpentine single
file along the path toward the glen.
Hartley was at the head of the column, with McKizick
just behind him, Larkin in the middle, Briggs and the
doctor bringing up the rear.
The line undulated along in the winding pathway, pass-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 365
ing through the shadows and across the patches of moonlight
with a gentle brushing sound of footsteps, and without a
word spoken. When they reached the point at which the
path forked, Hartley whispered to McKizick that it would
be well to leave men there to watch, McKizick stopped,
the man next behind closed up until he could go no further,
and so it went along the column till all had halted without
a word of command being given, and the line had con-
tracted to one-third of its former length. Then Larkin was
detailed, with three men, and instructions to hide just in
front of the forks on both sides of the path, and to be pre-
pared to stop any runaway pirates who might try to pass
that way in escaping. This done, McKizick whispered,
" Go ahead ! " to Hartley, and the column again lengthened
as the men one by one resumed the march.
No further incident occurred until they were close upon
the glen. The men were again halted ; the three officers
consulted together, and word was passed along how to act.
The four men in the rear were to stop with the doctor and
and guard the head of the stairs. The others were to go
quietly and rapidly down, those first reaching the bottom
to wait for the rest, and for further orders.
As it was planned, so it was executed. The men ad-
vancing again, very hurriedly now, soon choked up the
stairs in their efforts to get down first ; and, as each one
emerged from the lower opening, he was quickly put into
a group forming by Hartley and McKizick.
But, while they had been moving along the edge of the
bluff toward the stairway. Hartley had been struck by the
stillness of the amphitheatre below. No sound of voices
reached him, and there was no fire to be seen in the usual
place. Mistrusting this quietude, and fearing that the
pirates had seen the movements of the ship, and were lying
in ambush prepared to give them a hot reception, he said
nothing but watched all the more closely.
When half the men were down, McKizick, impatient of
delay, spoke aloud, "Show the way, Hartley!" Then,
366 LOVE AFLOAT.
drawing his sword he waved it in the moonlight, cry-
ing, " Come on, my lads ! Revenge your messmates ! "
and sprang after Hartley, who was already running to-
ward Hackett's house. The men followed close after,
shouting.
Hartley fully expected to be greeted by a volley as he
turned the corner. At the cool repellent quiet he met, he
paused, more checked than he would have been by an
enemy. The men following stopped also in astonishment,
and the shouts died on their lips. For a moment there was
a silence, broken only by the panting of those who had
been last to get down the stairs, and w^ho joined the party
singly and breathless.
" What does this mean, Hartley ? " asked McKizick, in
a bewildered, helpless voice, at length.
" I don't know, unless there's some devilish trap about ,
it, sir," replied he. " Let's look around the houses."
" Lead on."
Hartley wxnt first instinctively to the door of the
buildinor in which he knew the Dewhursts had been lodored.
It stood open, and he entered it with McKizick, the men
waiting outside, and beginning to talk wonderingly. The
light entered the windows enough to show them that the
house still contained its furniture, and seemed to have
been lately occupied. The beds w^ere made up, the chairs
stood about, and the three trunks sat against the wall.
Hartley stood confounded, staring about him with pei*-
plexity, and feeling as if he had lost something valuable.
He was thinking of Mary.
" Come, let's look on farther," said McKizick, going
out. " Keep together, men ! " he ordered.
They walked along the semicircle and looked into
several of the houses, but nothing rewarded the search
except the discovery that all the buildings seemed to have
been lately occupied. The wind sighed softly among the
branches of their leafy roofs, the limbs swayed gently, the
little stream gurgled and flashed in the moon, which looked
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 367
down with steady goldenness. But no sight or sound of
man's making met their eyes or ears.
Suddenly an idea struck Hartley. "McKizick," said
he excitedly, "keep the men in the middle — don't let them
touch a thing — I'll be back presently. This way, third
cutter's I " His boat's crew leaped forward to obey him, and
followed him in single file as ,he ran toward the under-
growth at the point where the stream left the glen.
Unquestioningly they dashed into its shallow waters, and
before McKizick could recover himself enough to ask a
a question, they were all out of sight among the bushes
that lined its winding bed. Hartley was down the stream
in two minutes. Dashing through the shallow waters over
the hard sand bottom at its mouth, he stopped and threw a
hasty glance around the Haven. It was empty — La Hem-
brilla was gone !
The men were coming up rapidly ; but without waiting
for them to arrive, Hartley darted off afresh along the
firm southern beach, shouting, " This way, lads ! " Two
or three of the foremost caught up with him, and together
they dashed over the sandy curve, followed closely by the
rest. They reached the promontory, turned it, and ran
along the western shore of the entrance, with which some
of them were sadly familiar. Under the bending branches,
under swaying palm tops, in the shade of the. cliff they
raced along. They reached the edge of the low surf,
which rolled gently in, with a lazy want of sympathy with
their haste. They paused and gazed. There to seaward
■ — not a mile away — with every sail set in the light breeze,
standing to the southeast — there was the vessel they
had so long and vainly sought. The schooner had again
eluded them. '^
Hartley did not need any time to consider, but turning
instantly, he called, " Come back ! " and started away as
fast as he had come. In ten minutes from the time he so
unceremoniously left, he rejoined the first lieutenant ; and
his men had all returned before he had told the news.
303 LOVE AFLOAT.
" The d — d scoundrels ! " growled McKizick, in a voice
that showed how much he thought himself injured. " What
a trick ! There's only one thing to be done, Hartley, and
that's to get back the way we come, and quick, too. Come
along, men ! " he shouted.
The seamen obeyed, sheathing their drawn weapons ;
and sooji all were up the cleft, in column on the high land
above. " Now run ! " shouted McKizick. Off they started,
pell-mell.
By the time they reached the forks, the whole party
was out of breath, and going along panting at a rapid walk.
The apparition of the party left behind at that place, rising
and coming forward from their luding-places, gave McKiz-
ick, who was in the lead, a violent start. He had forgot-
ten them. Larkin reported, "Got a prisoner, sir."
" Prisoner, eh ? Take care the d — d scoundrel does'nt
get away, and fetch him along as fast as you can. Put him
between two and trot him, d — n him ! " growled the
irritated officer.
They reached the boats, shoved them off, and tumbled
in promiscuously. " A race for the ship ! " shouted McKiz-
ick. After some confusion and collisions caused by haste
in the narrow creek, the boats gained the clear water of the
river, and a race it was. The strong rowers soon took
them down the swift current to the ship.
McKizick gained the deck, and found the captain wait-
ing for the news. Briefly he reported their ill-luck and
Hartley's discovery ; and instantly he received the order
to get in the boats and get the anchor.
In a short time, and with the precision that obtains only
in a well-drilled man-of-war, the boats were stowed, the
anchor was up, sail was made, and the ship ^vas running
down the river. But though the time was relatively
short, it was all too long. When the Fish cleared the
point, the closest scanning of the horizon by the best eye
revealed no trace of a sail.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 369
CHAPTER XXVIL
AT one o'clock, when the man Antonio was relieved,
Hartley's absence was discovered, and reported to
Hackett without delay.
The captain hastened to the room in which the prisoner
had been confined ; and the first thing he did was to feel
with his hand if the chair yet retained any warmth from
Hartley's body. It was quite cold, an assurance that - his
flight had not been very recent. Questioning Antonio, in
whom he had perfect confidence, he found that Hartley had
certainly been there half an hour before. He stopped the
relief guard, just on the point of setting out for the bluffs by
the Haven, and detailed them in squads to search in differ-
ent directions. He did not despair of catching Hartley,
and would not omit any means of doing so, so great an
importance did the ex-prisoner suddenly assume in his
eye^ by decamping with exact knowledge of the quarters
and the band.
One small party he sent to seize the canoe, and watch
the point near by ; another was to patrol the shore of the
river ; another was sent to follow the north shore of
the Haven around to the sea, and push the search in that
direction ; another was detailed to follow up the right-hand
fork of the wood path ; and several messengers were de-
spatched to carry the news to piratical haunts, and to vil-
lages near by.
Orders were sent to Big Ben to man the boats of La
Hembrilla, and go outside and watch the beach; while the
remainder of his party, except a bare lookout, were to re-
turn to the quarters. As each party set off, it was cautioned
to spread its force and to hunt silently, so as not to alarm
the refugee ; and when the rest of Markley's watch came
back to the quarters, they w^ere set to hunting over the
i6*
3T0 LOVE AFLOAT.
glen itself with torches, so that if Hartley were hiding
there he might not be overlooked.
All this while, Hackett had not missed Cato. He knew
that the prisoner's fastenings had been cut, and supposed
that some one in the gang had been bribed to do it ; but
his suspicions had not rested on any one man. Cato had
been so submissive and useful since his return from his
escapade down the coast that no thought of him at first
presented itself. But when the party who went to seize
the canoe sent back word that it was gone, Hackett at
once recalled Cato's former dissatisfaction. Inquiry failed
to produce him ; no one had seen him for some time, and
he was not in the hut. Hackett, like a sensible man, called
in his beaters, which was easily done by signals in common
use among the men, and gave up the attempt for the night.
But he had two boats remain outside, with orders to keep a
very bright lookout about dawn. We have seen how
Hartley escaped, in spite of this last precaution.
The pirate leader felt very uneasy. Just as he thought
himself secure from the outside enemy, and safe in his secret
plan of forestalling the bloodthirsty and disaffected band
by flight, a single false move had altered the appearance
of the game much for the worse. To his reflecting mind
that move had been to blow out the candle in Hartley's room,
and perhaps he was right. Now the outlook was bad.
One of the enemy's oflicers had been in the glen and had
seen — ^he was disposed to think — everything. That oflUcer
had communicated with prisoners, and then, guided by a
keen negro who was perfectly familiar with the details of
the place, had made his escape by a route that laid open
its weakest point. Hackett felt that his security on shore
was immensely lessened, and his retreat by water indefi-
nitely postponed. He lay awake all the rest of the night
pondering.
By morning he had decided. On the certainty in his
mind that the cruiser would soon send a party up the
river, he based his plans and proceeded to give his orders.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 371
The right-hand fork of the wood-path led up in the
country to the roads, and was the usual means of commu-
nicating with the towns. About a mile beyond the fork
was a rude bridge across the creek in which Hartley had
found the canoe, the stream up there being reduced to a
mere brook ; and near the bridge was a spring of fresh
water and an ancient uninhabited building.
Hackett, keeping a sharp lookout on the Flying Fish,
had the women leave the quarters immediately after an
early breakfast, and take up their line of march for the
bridge, bearing with them as many cooking utensils as
they could carry, and taking their children.. Having dis-
posed of these impediments, he divided the men into two
parties. One, composed of ten men whom he knew to be
faithful to himself, he sent to the schooner, with orders to
get her ready to go to sea at any minute ; the other con-
tained all the rest of the gang, which he put under Arrow-
son's command.
The orders the mate received, were to move enough
provisions to the bridge to last for several days, together
with bedding and other necessaries ; to make a camp by the
spring; to be very vigilant in guarding the prisoners ; and
to remain in the new locality until further instructions.
Hackett explained to Arrowson whence he expected the
the attack, and that he did not think the band strong
enough to resist it successfully. Besides, though he did
not say so, it was a kind of fighting in which there was no
profit, and to which he did not believe his men adapted.
No one knew better than he that they were cowardly as
well as ferocious, and that they would not sustain a fair
open combat against equal numbers.
He explained that he was getting La Hembrilla ready
to take her to sea, and save her from the certain destruction
that would follow if the United States forces found her
moored in the Hole. '
He urged strongly upon Arrowson to keep a lookout
posted in the high trees over the glen, beside ^ sentry at
372 LOVE AFLOAT.
the fork of the roads, one on the cliffs, and one at the
mouth of the creek. This would insure his keeping prop-
erly informed of the movements of the enemy.
Finally he adjured the mate to care for the comfort of
the Dewhurst family, and of Catarina, whom he left as an
especial trust. Arrowson listened and assented to all.
Not without many misgivings had Hackett resolved to
pursue this course. Utterly suspicious and mistrustful of '
Arrowson, and believing that he had tampered with the
fidelity of many of the gang, he dreaded putting Catarina
in his power, and was loath to leave Mary and Isabel, in
whom he had taken a curious interest, to his tender mercies.
So strong was his dislike, that he took the fir^t occasion to
speak privately to Mr. Dewhurst, warning him to take care
of the girls ; and he fully explained the gravity of their
situation to Catarina, that she might enlist in their favor
the moral forces which women everywhere use against men.
Catarina spoke to Juliette, Arrowson's quasi wife.
Hackett would have been glad to put the prisoners and
Catarina on board the schooner and to sail at once from the
scenes of brutality and danger of which he was tired ; but
the two men whom he had sent to rebury the treasure had
not yet returned. He feared to leave them, lest, making an
easy excuse of abandonment, they should appropriate the
hoard. His cupidity would not permit any step to risk the
dear-bought gold.
He hoped that the great confidence he was showing in
Arrowson, and the command he was giving him, would put
the rascal in a good humor, blipd him, and serve to delay
an open outbreak. He deceived himself. Arrowson, who
had a very correct idea of his chiefs character and methods,
was not to be so easily hoodwinked ; and the disaftection
and treachery in the gang were far greater than Hackett
imagined. Already it was an understood thing among
many that the captain and his friends were to be slain on
the first opportunity. The pirates were weary of his dis-
cipline, tljey longed for greater license, they wished to
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 373
divide their gains among fewer, and they were now greedily
jealous of the money their leader made by purchasing from
them individual shares of spoil.
In the morning the Dewhurst family found out from the
attendant who took Cato's place that Hartley had escaped.
Their joy was great at this ; and though Mr. Dewhurst was
at first inclined to grumble because he had gone without
taking them, he soon agreed with the girls that Hartley had
done very well ; and he began to look for the blue-jackets
with whom he expected the young lieutenant to return
immediately.
Poor Mrs. Dewhurst's dismay, wonder, and delight, at
learning for the first time that Hartley had been a prisoner,
had met and talked with her daughter, and had escaped
so easily and mysteriously, was funny to both girls, who
felt very light-hearted. Their gayety changed into appre-
hension when they learned they were to move their quar-
ters, and saw the gravity of Mr. Dewhurst's face.
Hackett watched a chance when the Fish was standing
across the easterly stretch of her blockade, and escorted
the Dewhurst family and Catarina over to the bridge. He
could ill be spared from the glen, and he was anxious at
leaving when the sloop might at any moment send in her
boats to a fresh attack ; but he was pretty sure she would
wait till dark, and he was very anxious to go.
The way was a lovely path, winding over rolling ground,
amid a luxuriant tropical vegetation ; but the novelty and
richness of the scenes through which they passed were
lost upon the strangers. Their minds were too much
engrossed with foreboding care to enjoy, or hardly to
notice.
As they walked along, Hackett signed to Mr. Dewhurst
to let the ladies precede them, and soon after, taking
advantage of a curve in the path which hid them from
the advance of the party, he stopped suddenly. *' See here,"
he said, with averted eyes and uneasy face, "I can't take
you along, and I can't bring myself to like the idear o'
874 LOYE AFLOAT*
leavin' you. Take these." " These " were a pair of short,
double-barrelled pistols. "Hide 'em," said Hackett.
" They're loaded. Here's some ammunition. Keep your
eyes open — watch Arrowson. If you get a good chance to
go the cruiser, go! and I wish you'd take my wife with
you if you go."
Mr. Dewhurst, surprised as he was at this fresh proof of
what seemed goodness in a man so bad, did not ask any
questions, but hastily put the weapons out of sight. He
was a good enough judge of men to know from what he had
seen that queries were useless. Hackett would speak if he
had anything more to say. Surprise was followed by in-
creased dread of the future, as the ominous meaning of
Hackett's gift and words came into his mind.
Every now and then they met little parties of the pirates
going back to the quarters for another load of provisions,
after having ..deposited those which they had brought.
Their broad hats, high boots, gaudy shirts, and colored
sashes stuck full of knives and pistols, formed dashing gay
costumes which made the freebooters seem in unison. with
the rich careless nature about them. Even their lazy stroll,
as they puffed their cigarette smoke in blue wreathings on
the warm still air, seemed to accord with the tropical calm
of the woods. In one of these parties Hackett saw a
Spaniard, whom hfe summoned by the name of Pedro, and
bade to follow them.
They had not been loitering in their walk, and now they
were approaching the bridge. It was a charming view that
met them there. There was a space clear of undergrowth
of perhaps forty yards in diameter, a circle with the bridge
for its centre, and divided into irregular halves by the stream.
Large trees grew about, affording a perfect shade and a
place to swing hammocks. A little spring ran out from
under a mass of gray rock on the further side of the brook,
with which it speedily mingled its waters. On the side
they stood upon, off to the right of the bridge and opposite
the spring, was an old house with two rooms, which showed
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 375
the marks of age in its decaying and tumble-down condi-
tion. Grasses waved from its sagging roof, and plants
grew up between the planks of its porch-floor. The bridge
itself was rude but picturesque, one of its heavy rustic rails
being entirely hidden from sight under a thick cover of
flowering vines, whose long arms hung swaying down to-
ward the water. To give life to the scene, the pirates'
women were moving about lithely in their brilliant colors,
busy at slinging hammocks, spreading cooking utensils out
on the ground, gathering sticks for fuel, and other of their
new domestic duties. Their children were wading in the
brook, splashing the water, and swearing in soft Spanish as
each pretty new stone or shell was found.
Hackett led the pa;*ty to the house. " This is your room
— altogether," said he. '* Make yourselves to hum. Mates
have the other room. Your things '11 be over. Pedro '11
tend to you if you. want anything before your boy comes.
Good-by. Take good care of yourself, Miss Mary, and you,
too. Miss Bell. Mornin', ma'am. A Dios, Catarina." So
saying, he kissed the girl and went away, leaving her in
tears. »
All that day the men kept coming into the new camp
w^th little loads of provisions. They would drop their
burdens with a worn-out air, and then sit down to rest,
smoke, gabble, and trifle away the time. The consequence
of this indolent manner of working, was that at night the
pile of provisions on the porch of the old house was ridicu-
lously smp,ll, while as for bedding and other necessaries,
there was almost none. The Dewhursts and Catarina
reposed that night in their clothing, all on one soiled quilt
spread out on the floor.
Through the day the girls had a great deal of talk with
Catarina, who was at once an object of pity and admiration
and a distraction for them. Her timidity was attractive, like
that of a gentle fawn one might find alone among wild woods.
When her confidence was gained, she talked a great deal to
them in her broken English. Mrs. Dewhurst, who saw her
376 LOVE AFtOAT.
** condition," objected very strongly to the growing in-
timacy, but the girls took their own way. They seemed to
feel that mother and Aunt Susan was so much out of her
sphere that her judgment was not very valuable; and this
was true. Mrs. Dewhurst's life had been one thing always,
and the annoyances, dangers and apprehensions to which
to which she had been subjected had almost broken her
down. Used to run in the good deep old ruts of convention
so long, her stiffened mind was terribly shaken by the
great jolt that sent it so far out of its accustomed track.
The girls being young, elastic, and full of rebound, were
able to bear the changes better. They liked the naive
child-woman's ways, and before the day was over they
liked her.
Hackett kept a good lookout on the motions of the sloop.
By sending a man into the top of a lofty tree, he was con-
stantly informed of her situation. Consequently, he knew
as soon as the Fish entered the river, and he lost no time in
getting the last party away with a final load of provisions.
He sent word to Arrowson to observe the motions of the
expedition, which he was confident woujd soon be on shore ;
and he ordered the man who stayed behind to light the
range to keep an eye on the visitors. Arrowson, in Ijis
pride and conscious power, paid no attention to the message
he received; and we have seen how the sentry left by
Hackett fell into the hands of the seamen as he was hurry-
ing to inform the mate of their presence.
But the chief knew nothing of this, because be had not
waited to run any risks, but, while the sloop lay up the
river where she could not see outside, had swept the
schooner out of the Hole, made sail, and stood out to the
light breeze setting from the northwest. He first ran to the
southeast, because that course would probably prevent him
from being espied by the cruiser, and because he thought
that if she should see him she would be deceived as to his
intentions. He meant to run out of sight in that direction,
and then stand to the southward to Tsla Bella, where he
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 377
would wait a few days. He expected that the quarters
would be burned, and hoped that the sloop, after doing that,
would leave him a clear coast, and the chance he longed for
of deserting his gang with the schooner.
CHAPTER XXVHI.
THE Flying Fish was put before the wind, head southeast,
and all the studding-sails set. With her long booms pro-
jecting far out over the water and holding the great sails
by a hardly visible support, she seemed like a splendid
aquatic bird with wings, milky-white in the moon, extended
to catch the breeze. ' ;
But after the first half hour, twenty times as much sail
would not have availed to drive her at any great speed.
The officers saw to their sorrow that the little wind they
had was becoming less ; and the men damned it freely. In
vain did certain old salts stand with their faces aft, and
softly, alluringly, whistle by the half-hour. Boreas was coy.
Uselessly did they stick their knives into that side of the
mast on which the breeze was desired : it would not come.
At midnight Quartermaster William Johnson pulled his
sheath-knife out of the spanker mast, where it had been
sticking three hours for the good of the service, and sigh-
ingly remarked to Bill Burke, who came to relieve him,
that " when he sailed with Thomas Ap Catesby R. Jones,
£ir, he never know'd it to fail." Hartley had turned in at
ten, sorrowful, fearful, and reproaching himself for not hav-
ing made at least an effort to get Mary away when he had
the chance.
Afterward, all night long, in the moonshine and in the
hazy darkness, the ship continued to move along in the
same torpid manner, scarcely holding steerage way, scarcely
seeming to move.
378 LOVE AFLOAT.
Hartley came on deck at four, to keep the morning watch.
He found in the order-book instructions to wake the Cap-
tain and the first lieutenant at that hour, and to report to
the captain the bearings of the laud and whether anything
was in sight. He noted down the bearings, with surprise
to find how close in they were, sent them in to the captain
by the midshipman of the quarter-deck, and had McKizick
called.
The first lieutenant came on deck himself directly, being
one of the old-fashioned kind who liked to oversee the ship's
work from daylight till dark. He saluted, glanced around
the horizon with the unavoidable habit of an old officer, and,
like Hartley, was surprised to find the ship so close in shore.
The Fisherman's Key was only about two miles distant,
bearing northeast on the port beam.
" Hello ! " exclaimed McKizick. " There's more current
than I thought."
" We've made so little it has had a fair sweep at us,"
replied Hartley. " I'm afraid we have a slim chance of
seeing the schooner again soon."
" It doesn't look like it, that's a fact," responded Mc-Kiz-
ick. "I believe the rascals have cut out to take some
other place for their headquarters, and we'll have all this
work over again, and more, may be."
"It seems very much as you say," remarked Hartley
ruefully. " Did you get anything out of that fellow Mr.
Larkin caught ? "
" Not a word. The captain had him in the cabin last
night and tried to pump him, but he wouldn't talk. He
didn't understand any English, or French, or Spanish, or
he pretended he didn't, any how. He's a d — d Portygee, and
we haven't anybody in the ship that knows their lingo. He
no intendy nothin'. I'll take good care the rascal don't get
away like your darkey did."
The two were walking up and down the quarter-deck
while they talked. Presently McKizick began again :
" There's something more than we know about that key,
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 379
Hartley — something queer. You recollect how we found La
Hembrilla hove to there the first time, with her boat in ? —
and the box ? and how we saw her stop there again ?
Then you picked up their muster-roll when you went over.
Well, night before last, when you were ashore and we were
looking ouj for you, the captain took a notion you might
have got down this way, and he had the ship run down here.
We made a long leg to the point there, and hove to and
watched, and we saw a light bobbing around in the middle
of the key. We couldn't make it out, but thought it might
be you ; so we burned a port-fire. The light was put out
or hid right away, like somebody was scared, and we didn't
see it any more. We would have sent in a boat to over-
haul it, but concluded you was further west and didn't
like to lose any chance of picking you up. There was a big
lot of port-fires expended on your account that night,
young man."
Hartley's recollections gave him a ready explanation of
the light. He had no doubt that it was carried by the men
Jackson and Peters, whose instructions to change the place
of the treasure he had overheard ; but his invincible un-
willingness to share the secret still kept him silent. Bread
eaten in secret is pleasant.
McKizick was possessed by thoughtfulness for some
minutes. " I'll do it," he spoke out decidedly after awhile.
■ "Do what?"
" Send a boat in. We're almost dead in the water now.
and shan't lose any time by waiting, and maybe we can find
out something. Maybe there's somebody over there watch-
ing us now. I'll see the captain."
So saying he ran below, returning in five minutes.
** Man the third cutter, sir," he commanded. The boat was
called away and got ready.
" Boat's ready, sir ; who shall I send in charge ? " asked
Hartley.
"Take charge yourself, sir. I'll relieve you. Go in
and find out what you can. If there's anybody on the key
380 LOVE AFLOAT.
bring him off. Be a little careful in landing. Choose a
spot where there's no cover near the beach — there might
be another ambush, you know. Shove off! "
Hartley left the ship and pulled in shore. Rounding
the point, he landed on the southeastern part of the key, at
a spot where the sand extended back from the, beach in a
low flat field for some distance. He took half the boat's
crew, and sent each man separately across in a different
direction, with orders to come back as soon as he had
reached the opposite side. This done, he walked alone
along the eastern beach. The two pointed rocks were
there, close to the shore, plain and unmistakable, and off
to his left, toward the middle of the barren islet, were the
three mounds. He went directly to the furthest one, and
ascended its yielding slope. On its peaked top were foot
tracks, and the surface of the soil showed the marks of
recent disturbance. Evidently he had heard correctly
— there was no mistake — this was the spot — and beneath
him, he thought as he stood on the summit, within three feet
of him, lay a rich treasure. He was inclined for an instant
to call his men, dig it up, and take it back to the ship ; but
he remembered his previous silence, and the thought of his
embarrassment at having to account therefor deterred him.
He did not believe the government would divide it as
prize money : if it should, there would be very little for
each one ; and his own plan for securing and using it
promised good results. As before, he held his peace — of
course.
Half an hour later he was again on board the ship in
charge of the deck, performing his duties mechanically,
and forgetting the buried treasure, like all other things,
in fears, hopes, and plans for his beloved Mary.
By this time the breeze had failed entirely, and the ship
rolled in a glassy calm. So she continued till nine o'clock,
when a fresh cool wind came up off the sea and caught her
sails aback. Her head was boxed off, the yards trimmed
sharp up, and the pleasant sound of parted murmuring
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 381
water was again heard, the life- like careen again felt, as she
danced away merrily, full and by.
On the very first stretch off shore, a sail was reported
in the east. The orders then were to work over in that
direction, and many curious, hopeful eyes watched the dis-
tant speck with eagerness. It fast grew larger, coming
directly toward them, but before they could make out her
rig, the advancing vessel took a sudden alarm. Shifting
her course to the south, the glass revealed, as she swung
around, that she was a schooner. Even the lookout on the
topsail-yard could make out no more than that, which left
to all hands the hope and supposition that she was La
Hembrilla.
This put life into the crew. They were all disappointed
at the failure of the effort to punish the slayers of their
messmates ; and here was a fresh chance. Nevertheless, it
was to be another di appointment. The stranger sailed so
badly that, in spite of her laying closer, the Flying Fish
overhauled her fast. By two o'clock it was apparent to
everybody that she was nothing but a dull and badly
scared merchantman with a deck-load. When there was
no longer a shade of doubt, the pursuit was stopped, and
the, ship put before the wind. This evidently inspired the
schooner with fresh confidence, for she resumed her old
course again, coming down wing and wing.
Captain Merritt explained to Hartley and Garnet, who,
with the first lieutenant, had been watching the schooner,
his reasons for running back. " Just as like as not, gentle-
men, that Hackett, who is a very sly dog, is playing a fresh
trick on us. You saw him standing to the southeast, Mi*.
Hartley, but none of us know how long he kept that course.
Perhaps he has run away in this manner, expecting us to
believe that he has abandoned his old quarters. I think it
more than likely, and I believe he is not apt to come back
at once. He will give us a little while to make sure he is
gone. Now I am going to try his own tactics on him. I
am going to run the ship up the Cobre to-night, if the wind
382 LOVE AFLOAT.
holds, and hide her there ; and to-morrow we'll establish a
regular look-out station, after we take a look at his village,
and make sure he isn't already back. We'll prepare to re-
ceive him as he did us ; eh, gentlemen?"
They all fell in with Captain Merritt's idea at once, and
Hartley was particularly well pleased, as it seemed to him
the veiy best chance he had to get some news of Mary.
He did not believe Hackett would abandon all the plunder
left in the quarters without once returning to see what could
be saved. Beside, nobody knew where else to look after
the pirates. It was much the better plan to make sure they
were gone before commencing to search for them elsewhere.
He thought he would like to be assigned to constant duty
as a lookout ; it seemed to him that he would be far happier
watching, glass in hand, for the coming of the vessel that
carried Mary, than in doing any other work.
They set the studding-sails to make the most of the
sea-breeze while it lasted, and ran back to the northward
and westward, the wind failing by degrees, as it had in
the night.
Hartley and Garnet spent the afternoon together on the
gun-deck by the bridle-port. Out of its inclining square
they watched the play of light upon the waves, the spark-
ling blue waters, the land they were approaching. They
talked of the many and varied incidents their cruise had
afforded them, of their future hopes and plans, of their feel-
ings, and by turns they were silent, as the impulse seized
them. Never l^efore had Hartley been allowed to look more
clearly into his friend's heart of hearts, and recognizing its
purity and faithfulness it seemed to him a holy of holies.
He revered Garnet for the time, and felt ashamed to think
of his own capriciousness in contrast.
Hartley, of course, spoke about his fears for Mary's
safety, dwelling painedly on the attack made by Arrowson.
" Harry," said Garnet, " I'm not sure that I'm not as
anxious as you."
" Why ? What do you mean ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAK NAVY. 383
" On IsabePs account." It was the first time he had
ever heard Garnet speak of her by her Christian name.
" No," said Hartley, " you haven't the same reason that
I have."
*' I believe I have."
" What ! you don't love her ! " said Hartley bluntly,
turning to look at his friend in amazement. Garnet was
blushing.
" To the best of my knowledge and belief, I do," was
the candid response.
" Well, I declare ! How did it happen ? I am per-
fectly astonished ! "
" It happened as usual, I suppose. I saw her and liked
her, and heard her talked about, and thought of her — and
perhaps your example was infectious."
" You have never spoken to her ? "
" Not a word. I'm by no means sure she would accept
me."
"She would, she would," affirmed Hartley, eagerly.
Then he added fervently, " The Lord take care of her and
give you a chance to ask her."
" Amen," replied Garnet, half seriously, half in his ac-
customed dry tone. Presently, as if afraid he had shown
himself too openly, he commenced on an entirely different
subject. " Did you ever hear Robbins talk about religion,"
he asked.
"No. Why? What does he believe ? "
" He is a fatalist — a perfect Turk."
" How do you know ? "
" I overheard him talking to the midshipmen in the
steerage one night. He goes in sometimes and drinks with
them, but I don't think his influence will do them any good.
His reputation for bravery makes them look up to him, but
he hasn't anything to teach them they ought to learn. One
night, as I was getting ready to go on deck for the first
watch, I heard voices in the steerage raised pretty loud, as
people are apt to talk when they get into argument. I paid
384 LOVE AFLOAT.
no attention till I started up the ladder, when I noticed
that Kobbins was there, speaking excitedly. It made me a
little curious, and it was so loud I thought it public prop-
erty anyhow, so I stopped and listened. They were argu-
ing about predestination and election. It was hot, I tell
you. Bobbins was holding that our actions were all laid
out for us beforehand, and that we are neither responsible
nor able to help ourselves. Larkin was insisting that we
are all free agents, and the mids were putting in on both
sides. Of course, neither could bring forward any proofs,
so the argument consisted of nothing but warm assertions.
*ril be d— d if it is!' said Larkin. 'I'll be d— d if it
isn't ! ' said Robbins ; and he banged the table with his fist.
I thought that if they w^ere taken at their word, one of
them at least, would be in a bad way hereafter and I came
away. I heard some of the young whelps laughing as I
came up the ladder."
" I dare say that's the secret of Robbins's courage,"
remarked Hartley.
" What ? "
" Why, his belief. He thinks he won't die till his time
comes, and when it does come he can't help himself, and
that he can't be held to a future account for actions he
wasn't able to avoid."
" I dare say."
After awhile Hartley asked Garnet how Dularge was
getting along in navigation.
" Oh, so, so."
" Does he bore you much. Will ? "
" Well, it's more instructive to him than amusing to me,
I must say," was the reply. " Teaching him is quite a dis-
traction. How universal is the reign of law ! " he added,
after a pause.
" As how. Will ? "
" Look at Dularge. How big and important he is on
ordinary occasions ! How little he gets, in a tight place ! "
" That's so ; but what does it prove ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 385
"The space occupied is inversely as the pressure," quo-
ted Garnet.
" Correct," replied Hartley, smiling. " Hence we infer
that Dulargo is principally gas. If so, why not ? "
By six o'clock the ship lay off the river, and it was again
perfectly calm. While she rolled slowly on the long ground-
swell, tfie officers scanned the horizon for a sign of the craft
they had been hunting. Nobody wanted to see her just
then, but no one would have been surprised had she appeared
in time to spoil their new plans.
The sun went down in a crimson blaze of glory, which
spread high up over the sky, fading away by imperceptible
transitions into scarlet, red, rose, and pink, finally passing
into blue. The sea was stained in the west with a bloody
tinge. Every sign betokened continued fair weather.
At eight o'clock the land breeze sprung up. The yards
were trimmed, the sails hoisted up to a taut leech, and the
sloop stood into the mouth of the stream under royals.
Now appeared the utility of Garnet's survey of the river.
With his chart spread out on the signal chest aft and
lighted by a deck lantern, the captain superintended the
movements of the ship and directed her course. The wind
blew from the west of north, as usual at night, so that they
were able to stand up the channel close-hauled. At first
they could hardly stem the current, but the breeze steadily
freshened and momently the speed of the ship increased.
From the bight opposite the creek the channel lay two points
more to the eastward, conforming to the trend of the shore,
and the ship was kept away two points free, without, how-
ever, touching a brace. With still greater speed she shot
up the reach toward the point a quarter of a mile above.
All hands had been called to bring ship to anchor before
they entered the river, and the anchors were all ready for
letting go. Now the gear was led out and manned prepar-
atory to shortening sail. A heavy kedge had been pre-
pared to let go from the fore-chains, with a strong hawser
rove through the chock in the bridle-port and bent to its
17
383 LOVE AFLOAT.
ring, and a buoy attached to the inboard end of the haw-
ser. Special hands had been detailed to attend below, un-
der the direction of Mr. Harrison, the gunner, who had re-
ceived careful instructions.
The sail was all kept on the ship, however ; not a sheet
or halliard was started. In silence, broken only by the
quick rush of the water under the bows and the song of the
leadsmen in the chains, the sloop rapidly approached the
point. They reached it, and over it could see to the left a
broaden] ng of the stream, like a little lake, where it turned
sharply to the west.
" Drop the kedge, McKizick," said the captain; and the
little anchor splashed in the water at the order that fol-
lowed.
They ran on past the point, and the ship's bows pointed
directly toward the bank of the cove opposite, into which
she seemed bound to go.
" The helm, McKizick ! " said the captain, short and
sharp.
" Hard-a-starboard ! " commanded McKizick. The wheel
whirled round in the hands of the quick quartermasters,
and the ship came swiftly to the wind. " Hard-a-starboard
it is, sir."
Now the sails were in a flutter fore and aft. " Snub
her ! " roared McKizick down the main hatch. " Haul
taut ! Shorten sail ! " Up ran the courses, down rattled
jibs; up went the topsail clews above the yards, down
dropped topgallant sails and royals. In a moment's time
the spanker was the only sail set.
The men below attending the hawser now kept it fast,
checking only enough to prevent it from parting, and the
ship swung round in a circular curve, of which the hawser
was the radius, as a weight may swing horizontally at the
end of a line. Quickly her head turned to the westward,
soon it was due west. " Steady ! Stream the buoy ! "
ordered McKizick. The helm was righted, and another
splash was heard as the remainder of the hawser and the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 387
buoy fastened to it to facilitate its recovery were cast over-
board.
Running now into the deep lake-like pool above, where
the current was nearly lost in the volume of the water, the
ship held her way well. " Starboard ! Stand by the port
anchor!" was the command. Still the sloop ran on in the
placid pond, but by degrees her headway ceased.
" Let me know when she goes astern," said McKizick to
the leadsman.
" Aye, aye, sir." " Very little way on her now, sir."
" Lost her way, sir." " Going astern, sir," were the suc-
cessive reports that rapidly succeeded. They were now
about one hundred yards beyond the point, and close to the
southern shore.
" Stand clear of the port cable ! Let go the port
anchor ! " ordered McKizick.
The heavy anchor dropped with a dull plunge into the
river, and the chain was veered to fifteen fathoms. The
ship lay secure and motionless in her new position, per-
fectly screened by the trees on the high shore from sight of
any vessel passing at sea. It was nine o'clock.
As soon as the sails were furled the hands were released
and the hammocks piped down. Directly the decks were
clear of the crew, who were weary of their labors and very
glad to turn in for a solid night's rest. It was thought
needless to set an anchor watch.
The officers stayed awhile longer on deck to enjoy the
charm of the night and the lovely scene. The basin in
which the sloop lay was about four hundred yards long and
one hundred and fifty wide in its broadest part, and had all
the appearance of a miniature lake. The high trees on
shore waved their dark arms as though beckoning or warn-
ing. Off the glossy leaves of some kinds the moonbeams
glanced as from little mirrors, making shining patches on a
dusky background. Along the south bank a narrow black
shadow fell on the water like the border of a land of mys-
tery. For a few minutes it fell quite calm, or seemed so
388 LOVE AFLOAT.
there, and the glassy level water reflected the heavens
above without a tremor, so perfectly that it seemed as if
one could leap over the rail into bottomless space, and fall
eternally. " An opiate vapor, dewy, dim," filled all the
air, and bathed the faces of the charmed watchers with a
cool and grateful moisture.
The captain stood aft talking with McKizick ; and see-
ing Hartley, who had the watch, walking the deck with
Garnet, he called them both.
" I was just saying to Mr. McKizick that we had an
uncommonly snug berth here," he remarked, as they
approached.
" We couldn't have luffed around without the kedge,
sir," said Hartley, " and that makes the place good beyond
suspicion. Hackett will never dream of our coming up
here, I suppose he thinks it impossible to get so large a
vessel this high up."
" Exactly so. The concealment is perfect, but the un-
likelihood of our coming into such a place is better yet for
our purpose. Mr. Hartley, you are pretty well acquainted
with the nature of the country, — where do you say put our
signal station ? "
The four officers proceeded to discuss and settle a system
of signalling intended to convey through the air from some
lookout station at the river's mouth, the appearance
and movements of La Hembrilla, should she return from
sea. This took them some time. When they had agreed
upon a plan, there was a pause for a minute. The captain
broke it, speaking in a serious tone. " Gentlemen, all
these plans and schemes of ours depend on one thing, which
is unlikely but by no means impossible. That is, that
Hackett may get back to the Plaven with his band before
morning. He may be there now. In such a case, our sig-
nal stations and all that would be nonsense. We must
know first thing if he is there ; .'ind to find that out I have
reserved you, Mr. Hartley, as being specially fitted by your
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 889
superior knowledge of the ground. It may be a dangerous
duty, but I know you will not shrink from it.
" I wish you to take an armed boat's crew and a mid-
shipman, and leave the ship at four o'clock in the morning.
You will land at your discretion, and proceed with caution
to see if the enemy is in his village. By no means under-
take to communicate with the prisoners. As to the num-
ber of men you take along, use your judgment, but leave
enough to pull the boat across the river and out of the
way, in case you are captured. In that event, you and the
men with you, must discharge your fire-arms as a signal,
which must be repeated by the men left in the boat. If
there is no enemy present, you will hoist your colors in
returning to the ship, but if you have found him, leave them
down, that we may know and lose no time in commencing
to get ready. Are my instructions clear, sir ?"
"Perfectly so, sir."
" Then I will bid you good-night. I will see you off in
the morning, sir ; " and the captain went below.
As soon as he was out of hearing, McKizick began.
" Hartley, I'm d — d sorry about this. Briggs and Larkin
are too young and inexperienced to send, not to speak of
Dularge at all ; so it lay among us three. I tried to get the
old man to let me go, but he wouldn't hear a word. * Mr.
Hartley knoWs the ground best, and he's quicker than you,'
was all he would say."
" Why, McKizick," responded Hartley gayly, " I have
no objection. I'd as lief go."
" By ," said McKizick, earnestly, " if those chaps
happen to be back, it '11 be no fool's job, I can tell you.
It's very well to be willing to go, but you must take care
of yourself."
" All right, old fellow."
" Well, I'll be on deck in the morning, before you're
off. After all, they probably won't be back. Good night."
McKizick went below, and left the two friends alone
together.
390 LOVE AFLOAT.
Garnet had resolved to stand the watch out with his
friend, having a strong presentment that it might be the
last. " This is a serious business, Hal," said he.
Hartley, now that he was alone with his friend, as-
sented to the true view of the case. He was fully im-
pressed with the danger he would run by falling again into
the pirates' hands : he had not a doubt they would shoot
him if they caught him. However, they probably were not
back. He looked at the matter cheerfully, and determined
not to be scared by nobody.
Garnet directly agreed with him, though still advis-
ing him to caution, and the two fell to discussing the pros-
spects of setting the Dewhursts free.
After awhile, in passing the binnacle light, Hartley took
out his watch to observe the time. Garnet paused by his
side, waiting for him to resume the walk. The quarter-
master of the watch was at the taffrail, looking through
the glass from force of habit, though there was nothing to
be seen. Not a sound could be heard, far or near : the
stillness was absolute, and they involuntarily waited with
sharpened hearing for something to break it.
Hartley noticed that it was eleven o'clock, and he was
just about to put the watch away, when his quick seaman's
ear caught what seemed a familiar sound. '* Did you hear
anything, Will ? " he asked in a startled manner.
" Thought I heard something rattle like a block, or
running up a jib."
" S-s-h ! hark ! Stand still, quartermaster ! " In a few
seconds the unmistakable sound of a voice in command
came to them clearly. The words were distinct, though
not loud, " Steady as you go ! "
The two walked to the taffrail, and listened again. A
faint noise came to them, which became louder from
instant to instant, a noise like that of running water.
" A vessel coming up ! " said Hartley astonished.
" Yes," dry and matter of fact, from Garnet. " What
in the world can it be at this time of the night ? "
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 391
" Don't know."
The noise continued to increase till they could plainly
hear the lapping and rush of the water under the bows of
the coming vessel, which now seemed to be just out of sight
around the point.
Suddenly a thought struck Garnet like an inspiration.
Turning to the quartermaster, he ordered him in a voice
that brooked no delay to go down the fore-hatch, and keep
the men from coming up. " Mr. Young, go below, and keep
still — at once, sir ! Hal, go to the main hatch and keep the
men below — don't show yourself — quick ! " Hartley obeyed,
wondering, but without stopping to ask questions, for he
saw that Garnet had an idea. Garnet threw the hood over
the binnacle lamp, and joined Hartley at the main hatch
behind the mast.
In a moment after, a schooner under gaff-topsails and
flying-jib, came from behind the little cape below, glided into
the cove with a strange stillness, and went in stays very
near the opposite shore. Filling on the starboard tack,
she gathered way and passed the ship like a phantom, with
all her sails palely glimmering. She stood on up the reach,
tacked again at its head, and disappeared around the bend
above. It was La Hembrilla.
CHAPTER XXIX.
WHEN Arrowson was left alone in command of the
greater part of the piratical band, he did not fail to
see the advantages offered by the situation, and he resolved
to profit by them. He had a feeling of mastery which
elated him and filled him with a cruel satisfaction, the
greatest mental joy of which his savage nature was capable.
Throughout the day he showed his delight by his con-
duct. He was brutally, jocosely sarcastic, when once or
392 LOVE AFLOAT.
twice he took occasion to speak to Mr. Dewhurst, and he
ventured to pay Mary an insulting compliment, which her
father dared not notice, for her sake, though it made his
blood boil. In his manner toward the men, the mate
affected a jocular, hail-fellow-well-met style, intended to be
ingratiating. He derided Hackett, complained of the
smallness of the plunder under his rule, pitied the men
for the dog's life they led, and regretfully alluded to the
good old times they had all seen. It took very well. He
was touching them in what he well knew to be a re-
sponsive place.
He further showed his contempt for Hackett by neglect-
ing all instructions. He set no lookout to watch the move-
ments of the cruiser, and consequently remained in igno-
rance of her expedition's visit to the deserted quarters. At
night he gave such careless, indifferent orders about guard-
ing the prisoners, that a correspondingly perfunctory watch
was kept ; and the officers and crew of the Sarah and Jane,
finding that their guard slept soundly beneath the trees,
arose and departed.
In all this. Big Ben was Arrowson's shadow. Before
going to bed, the two rascals had a j^rivate consultation.
They expressed mutual dissatisfaction at their present loca-
tion, and united in cursing Hackett, who indeed, could have
hardly pleased them by any action in the world. After a
good deal of talk, they agreed to defer any further attempt
on Mary and Isabel for the present. The girls stayed per-
sistently near Mr. Dewhurst, which was one obstacle, and an-
other was found in the handsome quadroon woman, Juliette.
Since Catarina had whispered to her, she had been furiously
jealous, was swearing dire vengeance, and was making
Arrowson very uncomfortable. She was one of the few
things he respected.
Furthermore, a lingering remnant of the charm with
which a physically courageous man like Hackett always
sways other men less brave, still remained in Arrowson's
mind, exciting fear. Markley would not venture any at-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 393
tempt alone after his mysterious punishment before received,
and the matter was dropped for the time.
They were no more successful in making a plan for de-
stroying their chief. They plotted enough, but ended by
putting it off till they could see their way clearer.
When Arrowson was awakened in the morning with
the news that the Sarah and Jane's crew had escaped, he
received it with indifference. He had never liked the
trouble of ransoming prisoners, preferring to plunder them
at once of what they had worth taking, and to save further
annojiance by turning them adrift or shooting them ; and
the disappearance of these impecunious men was a relief, in
that he had no longer to feed and guard them. He did
not, like Hackett, find fault with, and punish the watch, but
passed their negligence over even making the excuse that it
was " no wonder that they went to sleep, for they had been
nearly worked to death." He saw how he might turn the
event to his own purposes. He had passed an uncomfort-
able night on the floor, and felt more than ever dissatisfied
with the bridge for a camp. The escape gave him another
chance to show his contempt of the chiefs authority ; and
if that person should press him for a reason for the dis-
obedience, he could say that he left the bridge because it
was so difiicult to keep prisoners, and he feared the Dew-
hursts, also, would get away. So, without waiting even to
prepare breakfastj he gave orders to remove back to the
quarters.
The band were well pleased with the new order, for the
quarters was their home ; and they, too, had missed their
creature comforts. They set themselves with alacrity to
gathering up their effects, and in half an hour the whole
gang was ready to march. The women carried little chil-
dren and cooking utensils, the men had loads of provisions
sl^ng over their shoulders in the hammocks. The Dew-
hursts and Isabel were placed in the middle of the party,
which soon set off with that peculiar absence of speech that
accompanies early morning and empty stomachs.
17*
394 LOVE AFLOAT.
The prisoners had additional reasons for silence in their
apprehensions and in wondering why the captain's orders
were thus disobeyed. Mr. Dewharst was wellnigh discour-
aged at the fresh change, and at groping in the dark for
understanding ; but he only hugged his pair of pistols, and
hoped for Hackett's early return.
The mate was not with them. Carelessly arrogant as he
was, he thought it well to reconnoitre the ground in ad-
vance' of the party's arrival ; so leaving Markley in charge,
he had gone on by himself. Everything in the glen had an
undisturbed appearance, showing no sign of the visiJ|^tion
of the night before ; and Arrowson was completely deceived.
he waited in his own dwelling for the arrival of the band,
employing the silent opportunity in studying out a course
which would receive their support, and when Markley
reached the glen, he found that Arrowson had fresh devil-
try ready. After a short talk together, the two mates sep-
arated, and strolling about, spoke earnestly and low with
individuals here and there.
After breakfast was over, Arrowson called the pirates
together, and bade them follow him. He led them down
the brook to the beach of the Haven, and there made a
speech.
" I wanted you to come down 'ere, lads, 'cause there's
them habove 'ad best not 'ear what I 'ad to say.
" You've halhsailed long enough with Jim Harrowson,
my 'arties, to know what sort of a chap 'e is. What 'e
thinks 'e speaks hout plain, 'e does, and 'e don't sneak
around watchin' folk, and keepin' 'is mouth shet tight like
a hoyster, like some as 'e knows. 'E don't trade with 'is
friends and cheat 'em, and lay hup the money. 'E's afeard
'e might take the schooner and go hoff some time, and for-
get to come back hany more, like a bloody dog, and go
'ome, and be a big bug on 'is money, and leave 'is hoW
brothers to 'old the bag. 'E don't work men nigh to death,
while he shirks and gets rich 'isself. 'E never 'andcufFs
nobody down in a chair. 'E don't shet down on the grog.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 395
'E goes for a good time, and for men that works 'avin' hall
.the money, and liquor, and women, and fandangoes and
fun, they wants. That's Jim Harrowson, my 'arties."
The gang had been listening intently and silently, even
those to whom English was strange seeming to try to read
the mate's meaning in his face. They were a wild party,
standing there so still in their gaudy dress, armed, whis-
kered, and with every sign of villainy in their looks, as
they glanced at one another.
The mate commenced again with a lie. " But I never
called you down 'ere to tell you that. I wanted to say
sommat about the hingots and stones in our box."
The audience showed suddenly a new and stronger at-
tention, leaning forward, and crowding up closer. " We
hain't none of hus seen that box in a good spell. Maybe
somebody might dig it hup and carry it hoff. I want to
make sure it's hall right. I think it's too far from the
quarters. I'm going to send for it, and fetch it 'ome, and
keep it 'ereafter where we can hall see it, and know it's safe.
That's what I wanted to say, my 'arties. Who goes in the
boat with Markley ? " • .
Such was Arrowson's address without its profanity, and
it had a powerful effect. Its allusions were perfectly under-
stood, its substance was quickly explained to those who did
not understand English, and in another minute the whole
party was volunteering. Those who were still friendly to
Hackett, saw that it was prudent to dissemble, and they
offered their services with the rest.
The mate picked out four stout fellows to go with
Markley, giving them orders which sounded more like ad-
vice, to take the boat which had been left on the beach on
the morning preceding, at the time of Hartley's escape, and
to start for the key as soon as possible. The five left with-
out delay, entering the woods to reach the boat by a short
cut across with which tl^ey were familiar. The rest of the
gang stayed awhile, talking excitedly in various language
and then went up the brook toward the quarters. A'
396 LOVE AFLOAT.
son let them alone, satisfied to let the leaven of treachery-
work. He was more than satisfied, for he felt that his
influence had been increased, and while he was putting his
genuine suspicion of Hackett to the test, he had taken a
step nearer a position in which he would be able safely to
glut his hatred and his lust.
The boat started about the time the Flying Fish got
the sea-breeze, after she had lain becalmed off the key, and
Hartley had made his morning visit. While the pirates
aj)proached the sand islet, the sloop was leaving it in the
opposite direction in chase of the merchant schooner, and
neither saw the other.
That day was passed by the Dewhursts in the eimui
and wearing anxiety, which had not become less in the short
time in which they had been on shore. Had Hackett re-
mained with them, they doubtless would have felt more
weariness and less apprehension ; the mate's conduct had
precisely the opposite effect. Only forty-eight hours had
passed since they had been conducted blindfold up the
brook, and thus with all secrecy introduced into the glen,
without ever having seen the Haven or 'the shores around,
or having any idea where they were ; yet that little time had
produced a great effect upon them all. Mr. Dewhurst lost
his self-control, and let the women see his worst fears ; Mrs.
Dewhurst wept, and prayed to her God for a deliverance
more speedy than was due her weak faith ; and the girls
dropped their well-maintained deception of gayety and ease,
for the pitiable truth of terror and expectation.
At five in the afternoon the boat party returned from
the key without the plunder for jvhich they had gone,
fagged out by the long row in the sun, sulky and angry.
When they appeared in the glen there was an immediate
bustle and assembling of the others, who plied the returned
men with questions. Until Arrowson came, they got only
short and sour replies.
To him Big Ben reported ip substance, that they had
reached the key ^t qoon, and had gone straight to the place
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 397
where the treasure had been buried. Having forgotten to
take spades, they carried along their^ oars instead. The
sand looked as if it had been lately disturbed, and there were
tracks all around. They had dug down with the oars, and
had found that the box was gone. Then they tried to
follow the tracks but had found so many, indicating that a
considerable party had been on the island, that they had
become confused.
When Markley had finished his brief recital, the whole
band remained for a minute motionless and speechless, as
if stupefied. Then each man, bursting into imprecation,
looked at his neighbor with a suspicion in which was
mingled dread. Each suspected the rest: each sought in-
stinctively for a victim : each feared that he might be sus-
spected himself. For a short space, that was a curious
spectacle which was presented by the gang. Calling them-
selves brothers, and united as strongly as they could be by
the tie of common crime, their bond of union was proved
in that hour only a rope of sand. In the fierceness of their
sudden passion and distrust, each seemed ready to plunge
his knife into some other's body.
But presently they fell to talking, questioning, wonder-
ing, uttering the deepest maledictions, and swearing the
most furious oaths of a dozen tongues. They buzzed like
a swarm of angry hornets disturbed in their nest. By
degrees the name of the captain was heard, and soon the
gang had again swayed close together around the mate,
who stood in their midst, the image of sullen, silent malig-
nancy. At last they were all looking at him in their
clamor.
Arrowson lifted his clenehed hand in the air above his
head, and a hush fell upon them. The women outside the
crowd came closer, ceasing their shrill clatter, and every
eye was fixed expectant upon him. He spoke to them in a
rising voice like the growl of thunder. " What ought to
be done to the man that took it ? What does the dog
deserve ? How shall we punish him ? "
398 LOVE AFLOAT.
" Death ! Death to the traitor ! Death to the cap-
tain ! " cried they in answer.
" Aye — death ! " spoke the mate. " Will you swear
it ? " he asked, rising to his full height and glaring upon
them like a fiend.
" Yes ! We swear it ! Death to the traitor ! death to
the thief! death to the captain !" shouted the savages
vindictively, brandishing knives and pistols in the air.
" Who has done it ? Who took it, I say ? " demanded
the mate.
" The captain, the captain."
" Aye — the captain — aye. Who do you say ? "
" The captain ! " yelled the chorus in unison.
" Aye, and he shall die for it. Sharpen your knives, and
load your guns. When he comes back,' be ready; and when
I give the w^ord, kill him, and the sneaks with him, like
dogs."
" Death to the captain ! Down with the tyrant ! "
roared the gang.
Arrowson, who was now purple in the face from fury,
went on in a wild strain, denouncing Hackett with horrid
blasphemies, and still further inflaming the gang. When
he got tired, or when his wrath hatli spent its force, he
suddenly stopped, and went to his house, followed by Mark-
ley. The motley and bloodthirsty crowd kept up its hoot-
ing for some minutes longer, and then dispersed among the
quarters.
This ominous scene was watched from their windows
by the Dewhursts and Catarina, with feelings that can better
be imagined than described. Catarina, half-crazed with
fright, made an attempt to run away down the brook, with
some wild idea of watching for her lover's return and
warning him. She was rudely seized, and shut up in the
same house with the Dewhursts. " Keep a good lookout,"
said Arrowson to the men he had put on guard. " Don't
let any of 'em slip off. We'll need 'em by and by, maybe."
At dusk the men Jackson and Peters came quietly into
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 399'
the glen. They were known, or suspected, to be employed
privately by Hackett, which would have been enough in
itself to make them hated : but now they were looked upon
with especial suspicion. Their arrival was reported to the
mates, who at once went out to the fire, by which the new
comers w*ere standing. The pirates seeing Arrowson go
out, left their houses, and rushed together around the two
men with an avidity which boded them no good. They
gathered in a ring about the mate and the spies.
Arrowson asked Jackson where he had been, and what
he had been doing. Jackson had a story about Olozaga,
and business with the priest, all ready and pat. The mate
listened impatiently, interrupting with incredulous sneers,
and when he had done, asked him flatly if he had been on
the key during his absence. Jackson denied it. Then the
mate put the same question to Peters, and received the
same answers. He continued to question them, browbeat-
ing and bullying, as if hoping to force them into some
admission, and all the while growing angry. At last he
addressed Jackson. " You 'ave been on the key, and *dug
hup the box, and carried it hoff"; you know you 'ave."
" Oh, no, Captain Arrowson," replied the spy, with a
humble, cringing deprecation ; " ask Peters. I haven't been
there at all, sir." ^ ^
" You lie, you dog ! " thundered Arrowson, in a sudden
frenzy, striking Jackson in the face with his fist.
The pirates around gave a yell, and threw themselves
like a pack of wolves on the unfortunate men. In five
seconds their bodies, riddled with stabs, lay lifeless on the
ground. The slayers, unappeased by so speedy a vengeance,
swarmed over them, and struggled for the near places ;
while for a minute longer they continued to cut and stab
the corpses. They suddenly drew all off at once, and re-
treated, muttering, to their houses, leaving the two bodies
BO mutilated as to be unrecognizable. '
Arrowson, who had taken no more part in the massacre
than to look on in ferocious enjoyment, ordered the dead
400 LOVE AFLOAT.
Spies to be thrown in the Haven, and went back to his
house, remarking by the way to Markley, that he " was
afraid they had served out those chaps too soon, they ought
to have starved them awhile first, to see if they really knew
anything about the box."
A few minutes afterward Markley reappeared, and col-
lected a party of eight or ten of the strongest men in the
gang, and had each provide himself with a stout lever.
Branches of trees and pieces of firewood from the pile near
the great kettle served their purpose. The party then
went over on the hill-side to the big bowlder that was one
of the marks in the schooner's range, and laboriously pried
it three feet away from its old position further to the south.
This was done by Arrowson's direction, with a view^, of
course, to wreck the schooner. The stone moved, the party
returned ; and the usual lookout kept for La Hembrilla at
sea, was sent to the station.
Arrowson had hesitated about taking measures to sink
the schooner. He did not like to destroy her, for she was
fast, :and well adapted to his purposes in all other respects,
but he was decided thereto by two reflections — that per-
haps Hackett would be drowned, and himself relieved
from the necessity of fighting a man, whom, in his cow-
ardly heart he still feared ; and that in case Hackett did
get ashore again, it w^ould be best for him to have no
retreat. Arrowson dreaded the captain's keenness and
readiness for emergencies, as well as his courage, strength
of hand, and quickness of eye.
That night the band held orgies. The unhappy pris-
oners lay awake long, listening to the noise of the drunken
revellers, and preparing in difi*erent ways, for the diflTer-
ent dooms they now thought themselves likely to meet at
any Jiour.
A STOKT OF THE AMERICAN NAVT. 4.01
CHAPTER XXX.
HACKETT ran La Hembrilla ofF southeast, and, before
the Fish was clear of the river, had got out of sight.
When he felt well assured of that, he changed the course
to the southward, steering toward Isla Bella.
He left the Haven with so heavy a heart that the easy-
success of his little stratagem had now no power to cheer
him. He was too anxious to think about it, too much dis-
tracted to plan in his usual cool foreseeing manner. All
that he could think of was that he was exposing Catarina
to danger, with every hour he left her in the mate's hands,
and that delay in getting his informers on board made it
possible that the gang would discover the removal of their
box. Saving the prisoners was a secondary but a strong
consideration. He did not mean to abandon tliem if he
could avoid it ; for now that he had resolved to quit his
evil ways, deeds of blood had become more repugnant
than ever. The idea of leaving the young women to the
fate waiting for them was painful to him. But with all
his dread of the consequences of staying away, he could
not as yet make up his mind to go back. His natural
caution, fostered by early education and increased by the
later years of a life of vigilance and danger, held him back
like an iron hand. He could not risk a meeting with the
Fish ; he could not give her any chance to hurt the
schooner, his only retreat. As well run alongside the
cruiser and surrender, as to trust himself on shore with no
way of escaping, for sooner or later the gang would rise
and kill him.
He would not risk a meeting with the sloop, though he
saw with a tormenting clearness of apprehension, how very
necessary it was for him to return without delay. He
thought that if he could get back undetected it would be
easy, between carrying things with a high hand, and
402 LOVE AFLOAT.
allaying suspicions, to get the prisoners on board, with
Oatarina and the spies, and take a sudden leave. Never
once did it occur to this singular man to do what would
have been Arrowson's first thought — get the treasure,
abandon everything else, and go.
In truth, Hackett was never meant by nature for a
pirate, for he had a heart, and even now at forty, the re-
mains of a conscience. Accident first put him into the
nefarious life, cupidity helped to retain him, and his im-
practicable scheme for bettering the manner of carrying on
the business, joined to the difficulty of getting away, had
bound him fast. He had too many of the domestic and
social traits to make him fitted for his lawless occupation*
or to let him be at peace therein.
The result of the opposite forces acting on his mind,
was naturally a compromise. When he got twenty or
thirty miles off the coast, he was so fairly balanced, that
he hove the schooner to and waited.
Lying inactive in this manner was the one thing which
he could not bear. He watched for the Fish until three in
the afternoon, and finally concluded that she had either
gone on to the eastward in a vain chase, or else had, failed
to leave the Cobre at all, not having seen his sudden flight ;
and that he might safely venture back.
He started back with the intention of running into the
Haven, but he soon saw the unwisdom of the plan. It gave
the mate too good a chance to retain him against his will,
for one thing. He was too weak-handed to sweep the
schooner out through the gauntlet of the narrow entrance,
in case Arrowson chose to guard it ; and he knew that he
would in all probability have to depend upon the sweeps, for
the Haven was a pitlike place in which the wind could
seldom blow. Beside, for what he knew, the cruiser might
have left a party on shore on purpose to let him enter, and
cut off his retreat. All the while his mind grew clearer
and easier as the miles of blue water slipped away behind
A STORY OF THE AMEEICAN NAVY. 4:03
the swift schooner, and as he felt that he was returning to
action, to be near Catarina, to secure the treasure.
He resolved to begin the attempt by stealth, prepared
to finish it by force and authority if needful. He would
first see if the sloop-of-war lay in the river. If not, he
would run up the stream as quietly as possible, and anchor
abreast the bridge. There he would be concealed from the
gang, and secure from th6 suspicions of the cruiser, whose
absence would indicate that she was still searching for him
in the southeast. He would take all his men across to the
bridge encampment through the Woods ; and if there were
a chance, he would get the persons he wanted away and on
board the schooner by stealth. He knew that Arrowson
was careless at all times, and expected that he would be
doubly negligent while insubordinate. Then the gang
would probably be sleeping soundly, tired by another day's
labor at transportation. If his presence were discovered,
he would have ten well-armed ready men on hand to sup-
port him against the surprised band, five or six of whom
he was sure were friendly to him. With a dash and a
bold front, he could scatter the crowd into the woods, and
before they recovered, could get away with the people he
wanted. " Once let me get 'em in the schooner," he
thought, " and Arrowson may whistle for me. Musketry
won't stop me from going down the river, and they've got
no boats."
While he thought and planned, he kept La Hembrilla
over to the westward, so as to approach the river from
that side, and make it unlikely he would be seen by any
lookout the mate might keep, or by the cruiser in case she
still lay in the Cobre. He got the land breeze at nine
o'clock, being then below the horizon southwest of the
river-mouth, stood over to the Cobre at once, looked in,
saw nothing of the ship, and entered boldly. The breeze
was fresh and favorable. La Hembrilla ran up fast, and
as each hundred yards was left behind, the captain breathed
more freely, to think he was still undiscovered. As he
404: LOVE AFLOAT.
had expected, the mate had not posted any lookout on
the creek. He knew it, for such a one would have been
sure to hail. After- the creek was passed he felt almost
gleeful. Arrowson would have had a guard there if any-
where on the river.
He was now so sure, that he relaxed a little, and ven-
tured to set the flying-jib, so as to give the schooner better
way through the water, and insure her going about
promptly around the point above. He had taken her up
the river before, and knew that the swift current setting
around the point made it rather a bad place for tacking.
The men on board knew it, too, and were all waiting at
their stations before the schooner reached the place.
In their interest and slight excitement, their attention
was fixed upon their own movements ; so when La Hem-
brilla shot past the point into the swift current that swept
around it, no one saw the silent sloop-of-war which lay so near.
An idea struck Hackett, that it would be better, instead of
going about in the rush of the current, to stand on into the
comparatively dead water of the cove, where staying would
be a certainty, and w^hence one long stretch would carry
the schooner through the reach above ; so he delayed
putting down the helm, which he had taken into his own
hands. The njen were surprised at that, and looked at
him instead of elsewhere. They ran into the cove, and
went about so near the shore, that the flying jib-boom
almost brushed the drooping branches of the trees. This
left the sloop behind them, and gave the men still more to
notice at home ; while Hackett, usually so quick to see all,
was absorbed in his duty of helmsman. The schooner
actually had her sheets trimmed on the other tack, before
a soul on board saw the sloop.
Hackett, startled as he was, almost by instinct pursued
the only course left him.. He saw that he had not room to
turn, while a hundred yards above the river was wide;
and he was sure the man-of-war could not clear away her
battery in time to stop him on his quick return. His crew
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 405
were silent with dismay, as they were borne smoothly past
the unforeseen foe.
The pirate captain, cool as an iceberg and steady as a
mountain after his first shock of surprise, scrutinized the
Fish with closest attention as he passed. His eye ran
keenly along her rail, for above it he expected to seethe
head of the officer who would give the alarm. Thanks to
Garnet's forethought, there was nobody in sight. A
second incredulous searching gaze, convinced Hackett that
he was unseen ; the man-of-war was asleep.
" I am darned ! •' was his mental exclamation. " I
never saw such a cruiser. I believe I could go alongside,
and whitewash her, and none of 'em would know it before
eight bells to-morrow morning." He quickly changed his
mind about going back, resolving to stick to his first
intention and go on up the river. So he steered the
schooner straight on up the reach, to the intense wonder
of his men, all the while listening intently for any sign
that he had been seen. When they tacked again, and
stood out of sight around the point above, he was perfectly
sure he had not been noticed. " By thunder I " said he
aloud, as he wiped the sweat off his brow, and relinquished
the helm to one of the men ; " that was the biggest fool
thing, and the cutest trick I ever done in my life." He
went on as if thinking aloud. " But that was tarnation
smart in them tellers — hidin' up there — if they hadn't
gone to sleep. I never give 'em credit for so much sense.
But heow in thunder did they ever get that heavy ship
around the point."
Without waiting to puzzle about that, he ran La Hem-
brilla about two hundred yards further on and dropped
her anchor off the next point, in a favorable place for get-
ting under way quickly. The head sails and gaff-topsails
were quietly hauled down, the foresail and mainsail left
standing, and then Hackett called all his men aft, and
explained his plan.
" Boys, I've said nothin' to you about it, for you have
406 LOVE AFLOAT.
been able to see as much as me. Our band is all broke up.
Arrowson has got every Dago, and Greaser, and nigger
against me, and he means to serve me out along with them
that stay friendly to me.
" There's forty-six men, all told, in the band since that
boy Cato left. Three was sent to pass the word when the
navy officer got off the other night — that's forty-three.
We are eleven of us here, and all good men. Jackson and
Peters are ashore — that's thirteen. Jones, how many more
will side with us ? "
The man addressed began to count on his fingers: Nils
Olsen, Jan Olsen, Got Bauerman, Jerry Mason, and maybe
Kelly and Sims."
" Well, split the difference and call it five. Eighteen
of us, and most every white man in the band. Most every
American, and Englishman, and North Countryman in the
band. Nigh all the rest Dagos and Greasers. Eighteen
of us, and twenty-five of them. I think we can lick 'em,
boys."
" I can whale any two Dagos myself. The niggers is
purty stout," said the man he had addressed.
" Wa-a-a-1," drawled Hackett, as unconcernedly as if he
were stating a very trifling thing ; " we're goiu' over to
the bridge, boys, and maybe we'll have to lick the whole
bakin of 'era before we get back. Get your knives, and
three or four pistols apiece, and lower tlie boats as quick 's
you can."
" What about that cruiser, cap'n ? " asked one of the
men in a very dubious tone.
" He'll keep," chuckled Hackett. " None of you saw a
livin' soul on his deck, did you ? They're restin', and I'm
thinkin' that before they wake w^e'll be out o' this, and off
to sea wnth our shippies. I guess we all know where's a
bit of a box we'll stop and git, too, if Arrowson ain't been
too quick for us."
The men were delighted at the prospect of excitement
which Hackett held out to them, and they were more than
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 407
pleased to think of stealing the hoard which Hackett so
slyly held out as a bait. That settled their determination
finally.
" Any of you want to take your gals ? " asked Hackett.
Only one man answered yes — a German who had a Spanish
mistress, to whom he was attached. The rest verified by
their silence the old saying of sailors finding a wife in
every port. It would be easier to get new ones than to
take the old ones away.
" Well, Franklin, you can fetch her. Now, boys, get
armed quick, and let's make a start."
In a short time the whole party were pulling on shore
in the dingy and the remaining boat. They landed, and
stood ready to follow their captain. They were the pick
of the band for size and stature, and with their belts full of
pistols, they were a formidable looking little force.
Hackett stopped long enough to explain his intentions
briefly. We'll go over to the bridge, boys. Jones and
Franklin go in with me, the rest stop outside in the brush
till I call. If I call, you must scatter and run in whoopin'
like there was ten thousand of you, and shoot around lively.
Don't wait if you hear me call, and don't pull a trigger till
the muzzle is against a man.
" But I'm goin' to try to get the prisoners and our
boys awake and away, without stirrin' the rest. Arrow-
son won't have any watch, and if anybody sees us movin'
about, they'll think we belong there. I'll call the prisoners
and my wife. Jones, you wake Jackson and Peters, and
send 'em right down to to the boat. Franklin, you call
your gal, and the rest of our fellows. Come on, and keep
quiet now."
They started in single file without speaking, through
the woods half-lighted by the setting moon.
It is needless to say, that Hackett did not speak his
mind out clearly to the men. He cared for nothing but
his own results, and so he attained them, was ready to
abandon all the men with him, as well as those who
408 LOVE AFLOAT.
remained faithful on shore. In fact, he would very much
have preferred to start to New Orleans, with only the
Dewhursts, Jackson, Peters, and himself, to sail the
schooner. He could get along after a fashion with that
little force, and it would enable him to take the treasure
with him. If he got away with others on board, he would
have to leave it behind, or else divide it among all. His
secret idea now was to go just as soon as he got aboard
with the persons he wanted, and leave those behind who
happened to be late in getting to the river bank. This
was not as cold-hearted as it seemed, for he knew they
could all make their escape in the night, and join other
bands.
He meant to run out of the river at once, feeling posi-
tive that the Flying Fish would not have time to prepare
for firing while the schooner ran past her from the point
above. Once past, he would be perfectly safe : it would
take the ship at least half an hour to get ready to follow,
and in that time, with anything like a good br6eze, he
would be out of sight.
All this Hackett turned over in his busy head, as the
party wound through the woods. They knew the direction
in which lay the bridge, and had no difficulty in getting
over the half mile.
Arriving at the edge of the circle, Hackett motioned
the party to cover, and, taking Franklin and Jones, crossed
the creek, and made a detour so as to enter the circle
from the opposite side, behind the old house. The moon
was down, and it was now very dark among the trees.
Hackett whispered to his followers, to wake the first man
they came to, and ask where Jackson and Peters had
swung their hammocks. Then he advanced with a light
tread to the old house, and, softly opening the door,
entered the room he had assigned to the prisoners. He
had brought a small dark lantern along, with his habitual
foresight, expecting to use it in this very place. Now he
lifted the slide a little, and let out a bar of light. Moving
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.. 409
the lantern slowly, he searched over the floor with the ray.
He found nothing. Then he lifted the slide higher, and
tried it again : the same result. He drew out the slide
entirely, letting the full light shine into the apartment,
and he saw that it was empty. For a moment he stood
stupefied ; then he was filled with fears for Catarina ; then,
returning to his common-place practicalness, he replaced
the slide, and left the house to look outside. He walked
down to the bank of the creek, and strained his eyes in
the darkness to see the hammocks swung among the trees ;
and presently he heard steps on the bridge, and the voice
of Jones saying :
** Cap'n, they've cleared out ! "
Hackett could not believe it at first ; but alter he had
walked around the place with his lantern open, he had to
yield to his senses. " The darned fool ! " he exclaimed.
" What does Arrowson mean by going back to the quar-
ters now ? The cruiser '11 nab the whole gang." A sud-
den train of ideas sprang into his mind, suggested by his
own words. He thought, " The cruiser hasn't sent in yet
— her position proves it. I'll run by her, and if I'm not
seen, I'll heave to outside, and send the boats in on the
beach, and warn the gang to clear out, that a party is right
on them. My coming on them suddenly in that way, with a
warning. and with authority, will at once dispose them well
toward me and overawe them. I can take advantage of
the confusion, and get my folks all away. Even if the
cruiser sees me, I may be able to lead her oflT and dodge
her — but then she won't try to follow me at all on such a
night as this." He started back immediately in the
greatest haste, calling on the men to come along. They
followed him as fast as they could in the darkness, and in
a very short time they were all back on board the schooner.
Without waiting to weigh the anchor, the^ headsails
and gaff-topsails were hoisted, the square topsail set, the
cable cut, the vessel cast, and they were quickly standing
down the river.
18
410 LOVE AFLOAT.
The pirate, though hoping and believing that his luck
would again take him past the ship unseen, prepared as
if he were going by under the fire of her guns. There
wa§ little to do. He simply sent his men below after they
had trimmed the sheets on rounding the point above the
ship, and took the helm himself.
The schooner sailed smoothly with the current down
the gloomy river. Never had it looked so narrow to
Hackett before, as now while he stood at the helm. In
the darkness, the trees on the bank seemed to approach
each other, and the indistinct hull of the man-of-war,
appeared to fill up the channel. He closely scanned the
black mass as he approached it, and with high satisfaction
to see no light and to hear from it no sound.
Smoothly and fast the schooner neared the ship, and
still there was no noise, no unwelcome hail, no person to
be seen on her deck. At last — it seemed a long time to
him — she reached her, the bows were abreast, the fore-
masts passed each other.
" Commence firing ! " commanded a loud voice from
the spar-deck of the sloop-of-war. A long red tongue of
flame darted from the side of the dead vessel. The stun-
ning boom of a great gun came with it, there was a crash
of splinters, and the schooner trembled to the concussion
of a round shot. Another followed, then another, then
several nearly together, every shot striking the hull of the
devoted vessel. Loud voices followed in command.
" Sponge ! Load I Look alive with the port-fires ! Bear
a hand, marines ! " and as La Hembrilla still glided on, a
bright light suddenly filled the air.
Hackett turning to face the ship clearly visible now on
his starboard quarter, shook his clenched fist at her, and
shouted defiantly, "Aye, fire away, you damned cowards!
One man against a ship — but you haven't got me yet !
Fire-"
His voice was drowned in a volley of musketry, and a
gust of bullets pattered on the water and struck the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 411
schooner. " On deck, men ! " roared Hackett. " On deck
and jibe her 1 '* The pirates darted up obedient, swearing
wildly. Still the schooner ran on, as though she bore a
charmed life. She reached the point, her helm was put
over, her sails jibed, and she stood on down the river.
From the ship, Hackett heard at intervals the thundering
orders of the first lieutenant. " Hoist away the headsails,
fore topsail, topgaln't sail, and royal ! Sheets to the mark !
Slip the cable 1 walk away with the spring !" He heard
the short rattle of running chain, and directly the sloop
appeared around the point in full pursuit. The schooner
had less than half a mile the start.
Hackett had by this time regained his coolness. He
made a rapid inspection of the damage done, and found to
his joy that the spars were unhurt and the vessel still tight,
though several shot had gone through her. She was almost
as well fit for sea as ever, though riddled and defaced, and
he did not despair.
But the ship left him no peace. The ominous tongue of
flame darted again, followed by its heavy boom, this time
from a bow gun, and a shot whistled through the air.
" Never mind, lads ; the stern of a running vessel is hard
to hit on a dark night," said he, with a laugh. "Steady as
you go, Jones ! "
Another boom, another harmless whistling shot followed.
" I care a darned sight more for them stuusels than I do
for the guns," said Hackett. " The cruiser's loftier' n us,
and gets the wind better over the trees." The sloop had
just set all her starboard studding-sails, which Hackett had
observed. He watched her closely.
Boom! went another gun, and the shot skipped past on
the water, throwing the spray on her deck. " Better," re-
marked Hackett, calmly; "try it again." Boom! came
his answer, this time completing itself by a sharp crash aloft,
and a sound of splinters falling on deck. The peak of the
schooner's mainsail dropped, and her gaff-topsail fluttered
loose like a misshapen banner. "I veow ! This won't do.
412 LOVE AFLOAT.
Go up there, Franklin, and let me know what was hit."
The man obeyed, and presently he sung out that the peak
halliards were cut, and he thought the gaff was struck.
Hackett knew there was no use in trying to repair the
injured rope, so he ordered Franklin to stow the topsail,
while he went himself to get a new rope, which could be
rove as peak halliards. By the time he had it ready, he
could clearly see that the ship had gained on him ; and two
more shots came whistling by. He could not reeve the new
halliards without lowering the gaff, which would deprive
them of that part of the mainsail left standing, and reduce
the schooner's speed still more. Seeing that he had nothing
to spare, he held on, hoping against hope for something to
free him from the persistent and gaining enemy.
By this time La Hembrilla was nearly out of the river.
Hackett knew that her course was nearly run, unless he
could get her into the Haven ; for otherwise he would soon
have to choose between surrendering or beaching her. With
little hope of a reply, he had the usual signal to light up-
the range burned. To his surprise and joy, the green light
hardly commenced to hiss, before he saw the two lanterns
appear. This comforted him for a minute, though it showed
him only how to escape from one enemy into the hands of
another. He soon gave up the hope of even the poor
chance which that afforded. The ship was steadily gain-
ing, and her shot were coming closer as she did. He saw
that very soon he must run ashore or lose the chance
to do so.
Closer and closer crept the ship. A shot entered aft,
and travelled nearly through the wretched schooner. Still
Hackett held on. Nearer came the ship. She was now so
close that the gurgle of the water under her bows could be
heard. Her lofty spars towered in the night air with sail
piled on sail. Still the bow guns kept up alternately their
pitiless flash an,d boom. Shot after shot struck the schooner's
stern, or whistled over her deck, cutting ropes in its pas-
sage, or dashed its spray on the fleeing pirates. Hackett
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 413
Stood manfully to his course, however, until the ship was
within two hundred yards, and his men began to insist im-
peratively on his beaching the schooner and giving them a
chance for their lives. He ordered the helm put over, and
the schooner had begun to pay around toward the shore,
when suddenly a thrilling cry rang the air from the deck
of the pursuing vessel. " Man overboard ! "
In an instant there followed a thunder of commands in
a voice Hackett remembered, and a confusion of smaller
sounds. He saw the chaser swing around to the wind,
with her studding-sails flapping.
" Put her back where she was — on the range, Jones !
That saves her ; but I'm tarnation afraid she's too much
shot up to be worth saving." The little schooner resumed
her former course, and it seemed to Hackett that she ran
faster as he breathed more freely. - ■ . ^
But his troubles were not over yet. Peering ahead
with the glass in his usual wary manner, it seemed to him
that the schooner was not on the right track. He had so
often run through their dangerous water path, by night
and by day, that he knew that particular half mile wonder-
fully well. He knew in what directions he ought to hear
the washing of the waves on certain rocks ; he knew how
the crest of the hill ought to bear. He seemed to have,
just there, a sixth sense which marked the way for him
by many signs. To-night something seemed wrong, and
it did not take him long to suspect. " Jones," said he,
addressing the helmsman, " we're too nigh in shore,"
"There's the range, captain."
" I believe that devil Arrowson has put the lamps on
wrong. I hear the surf too plain, and I missed the wash
on the big flat rock." He ran toward the bows with
his glass, and levelled it. It revealed an obscure, shapeless
something in the water, not fifty yards away. " Hard a
larboard ! " he commanded, with a quick decision. The
schooner responded readily to her helm, and just in time,
for as she passed the rock her bottom grazed its sunken
4:14: LOVE AFLOAT.
part. " Hard a starboard ! Steady ! Steady so ! " were
then the orders. The helmsman chose a star in line with
the fore-rigging, and steered the schooner by it, as straight
as a bullet flies through the air.
After the last peril, they reached their difficult destination
without further harm. Lowering the sails in the entrance,
two sweeps were manned, and the vessel slowly propelled
to the centre of the basin, where her anchor was dropped.
The pirates along the shore, attracted to the beach by
the firing, watched the pursuit with eager delight, sure
that the cruiser was about to capture their recreant leader ;
and when the chase was so suddenly given up, they con-
tinued to gaze at La Hembrilla, the wounded one, as she
ran along, expecting at every instant to see her strike the
rocks. To their wonder and disappointment, she passed on
unharmed, and entered the Haven.
La Hembrilla had escaped out of the subtle ambush of
her legal foe ; she had passed through all the dangers of
the close hot chase, had detected and avoided the snare of
treachery, and lay once more, as if at peace, within her old
resting place.
Arrowson placed a man in the hut to keep watch, and
hurriedly drew oflT his forces to the glen.
Hackett waited till dawn, and then set to work to mend
the injured gaflf, to splice cut rigging, to reeve new running
gear, and to repair other damages, as far as possible with
the means at hand.
He was resolved upon his course — as fixed as adamant.
He was a desperate man. Those with him, seeing the
straits into which he had been forced, and believing that
his fate would be theirs for weal or woe, made up their
minds to stand by him to the death.
At about ten o'clock the repairs were done. Hackett
and his men, armed to the teeth, got into their two boats,
and pulled boldly and rapidly ashore, through the heavy
rain then falling. He landed, had the boats hauled up on
the sand as was customary, and passing through the hut
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 415
just vacated by Arrowson's spy, went on up the brook
and entered the glen.
He saw that he was expected, for men with arms in
their hands stood looking at him and his party from the
door of every house. Arrowson, followed by a dozen
pirates, strode forward to meet him.
CHAPTER XXXI.
HARTLEY gazed at the schooner as she sailed past in
that silent, mysterious manner, with feelings at first of
astonishment and stupefaction, then of pleasure at having
the long-sought dextrous buccaneer securely blockaded.
He remembered, too, that (as they all supposed) the
Dewhursts were prisoners on board ; but he had no time
to think either of their danger or their rescue. La Hem-
brilla quickly disappeared around the wooded point above,
and brought his thinking space to an end.
" Kow we have him," he exclaimed. " Will, see the
hammocks cleared away, and the men by the guns.
Young gentleman ! " addressing the midshipman of the
watch, who was now peering curiously over the hatch
combings, "tell the captain that La Hembrilla has just
run by us up the river, and I am clearing away the battery.
Then call all the officers — quick as you play ! " ' The
quartermaster, who now came running aft, was interrupted
in his wonder-struck report, by an order to assist Garnet.
In half a minute more the ship was in a buzz of re-
strained and repressed excitement. The men learned from
the quartermaster that the schooner had gone by, and they
rushed at their work with a feverish haste and quietness,
each in his station hurrying through his allotted part of the
preparations for battle. Meanwhile, the half-dressed, but
4:16 LOYE AFLOAT.
very wide-awake officers joined their divisions, and made
the work go on all the more rapidly.
Hartley was presently relieved by McKizick, and went
to take command of his own guns on the deck below. He
could not help thinking, during his busy oversight, that he
was perhaps preparing harm for the girl he loved. He
attended only the more closely to his duty, but he could not
shake off that consciousness.
When the guns were all ready for firing, which was
very soon, the word was passed along from man to man
that everybody was wanted on the quarter-deck. The crew
pressed up the ladder from the dark battery below, crowded
aft in a body, and waited.
Captain Merritt was on the other side of the deck, and
he walked to the capstan and addressed them in a low
but distinct voice. " My lads, this is the only good chance
we have had ; — we musn't lose it. I want you all to keep
quiet, and not give that fellow notice we are getting ready
for him. We are going to get everything ready now, and
nobody must forget himself and sing out.
" Mr. McKizick, the topmen will loose the sails, but
keep them stopped up on the yards ; and they will see all
clear aloft for sheeting home and hoisting. Then they'll
lay down without orders, and the captains will report all
ready to you.
" The afterguard will get up a five-inch hawser and
pass it out of the after chock. The forecastle men will carry
it forward and bend it on to the chain for a spring. The
armorer wdll unshackle abaft the compressor. All the gear
must be lead out or laid down clear for running. Let the
men go at it, sir."
"Aye, aye, sir. Lay aloft, topmen. Young gentlemen,
you can keep out of the tops to-night. Afterguard, fetch
the end of a five-inch hawser up from the reel, and stick it
out aft." The crew went so vigorously at the work, that
in fifteen minutes it was done ; and they were sent below
again to stand by their guns.
A STOET OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 417
There they waited, talking in whispers, and peering out
of the ports up the stream for a sign of the schooner
returning.
The lights of the ship had been all extinguished, and
the battle lanterns left unlit, the better to deceive. The
officers of the gun divisions. Hartley, Garnet, and Briggs,
stood together, impatient, in the paler gloom by the main
hatch, one of them letting fall now and then inconse-
quential but anxious words. It came over Hartley's poetic
mind in one flash that it was an atmosphere tremulous as
with conspiracy which he was breathing in that whisper-
ing darkness. He was too much dreading for Mary,
however, now that he had time to think and feel, to
linger over any mere fancy. He trembled to think of her
prolonged peril, and the idea of the schooner's trying to
pass down the river again under the sloop's fire filled him
with sickening apprehensions. His shaken nerves and dis-
tempered imagination presented to his eyes the bleeding
body of his dear love, torn and disfigured by the merciless
missiles of her friends, perhaps of her lover himself. If he
could have known that Mary was not in the schooner, he
would have been spared what he in after years looked back
upon as the most wretched feeling of his life.
Finding that the pirate did not immediately reappear,
Captain Merritt permitted the crews to sit or lie down
about their respective guns, and the officers to go on the
Bpar-deck, so they would not be wearied out in waiting,
while at the same time, every one would be ready to go to
his station at a moment's notice. The men by degrees
dropped off to sleep ; the officers talked, and yawned, and
nodded ; the lookouts watched the bend of the river.
This was the situation. The guns were all loaded,
primed, and aimed, so as to strike the hull of any passing
vessel. The lights had all been put out or hooded, and the
ship was gloomy and still. Each man was at his station,
or very near it, ready for a call. The marines were lying
down on the spar-deck, with their loaded muskets stacked.
IS*
4:18 LOVE AFLOAT.
Port-fires had been prepared, so that they could be lighted
with the least delay, and the neighboring parts of the
river illuminated. The sails were loosed and ready for
setting, without showing it, and everything was prepared to
let go the chain, and to whirl the ship's head around with
the quarter spring. So all waited.
Hartley did not grow weary or yawn, any more than
Garnet did : he could not. He watched for the appear-
ance of the schooner with the same dreadful impatience
that a man might have felt who, in an oarless boat, drift-
ing down a swift winding stream lined with unbroken
vertical cliiFs, listened to the sound of the cataract he was
approaching, strove vainly to guess its distance, and longed
to reach it soon. Without avail were Garnet's efforts to
cheer him up. Hartley felt the insincerity of his friend's
professions, and wondered how he could so stoically bear
the prospect of harm to Isabel whom he professed to love ;
for he could not but know there was danger to the schooner,
and to all she tried to carry by. And so his minutes
dragged, apprehension giving them a treble length.
We have seen how La Hembrilla ran by, and received
the broadside. When she came around the bend, she was
instantly seen, and the word ran through the ship electri-
cally. Every man was at his station in ten seconds, keenly
alert, breathlessly still. The officers and men on deck
were hidden below the rail, all waiting, and enough watch-
ing. The marines crouched down with thei/ muskets in
hand. The quartermasters, squatted behind the wheel,
were ready to uncover their lamps and ignite the port-
fires. Sheets and halliards were led along; clewlines,
clewgarnets, buntlines, leech lines, downhauls, and brails,
were all clear for running.
Worst of all to Hartley in those few minutes while La
Hembrilla stole softly down the dark stream, worst of all
was to see his gun captains, hardly visible in the darkness
to less accustomed eyes, showing their grim and eager
willingness by their quick changes of position and tense
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 419
watch upon the coming victim. It was impossible to
miss the schooner: no aim would be necessary: only-
fire the gun when she came abreast the muzzle, and
the shot must strike the mark. His guns would be the
first, the very first to be discharged : he might be the one
to break his own lovely idol. In a terrible whirl of feeling
he waited. He could not prevent what was to come ; he
could only stand still, choked by his emotion, unable to
speak, hardly able to breathe. He still hoped that the
schooner might, at the last moment, take the alarm and
go back up the river, to receive only their uncertain port
broadside ; or might change her course, and run by them
on the other side, which would give her a slightly better
chance. But when through the open bridle-port, he saw
by her white sails not fifty yards away, that she was still
coming, the last hope fled, and a horrible fascination crept
over him. His affections and moral forces were suddenly
paralyzed, benumbed by the long terrible strain upon
them ; and for the time he was mad. His dormant destruc-
tiveness awoke, he felt the instinct of carnage which lies
within the best of us men as a part of our brute nature ;
he was possessed by a frantic desire to rend, tear, destroy.
The sound of the forward gun awoke him. Feeling as
if he were about to go mad indeed, he left his division
and staggered aft among the guns to Garnet. He found
him exhorting the captains to steadiness. Hartley seized
his arm with both hands. Garnet turned to see what was
the matter, recognized his friend, but heard only a groan.
Seeing his condition. Garnet made him go on deck, and
himself returned to his duty.
By the time Hartley reached the quarter-deck, with a
wild purpose of calling upon the captain to cease firing,-
the last shot had been delivered, and the schooner was
clear. In the blaze of the port-fires. Hartley saw the
pirate captain standing alone at the helm of his vessel,
and he observed the fewness of the men who came on
deck in response to the call for all, He was able to reasoi^
420 LOVE AFLOAT.
that if all the pirate's crew were not there, the prisoners
also might be absent; and this hopeful element of doubt
mightily relieved -him. He ran to his station, and assisted
in getting the sails set and the ship cast, with a feverish
hurry, as though all his chance now lay in overtaking th^
crippled enemy. As the yards mounted to the mastheads,
and the sails spread their broad surfaces to the breeze, and
the chain rattled out through the hawse-pipe, and the
men ran away with the spring, and as the ship swung
quickly around, and filling her canvas stood down the
river — all in quick succession — he felt an unreasoning glad-
ness, the relief of action after a terrible suspense. He
would at least learn the worst, and end his doubts.
But when the firing was recommenced in the pursuit
down stream, he was again miserable : and though greatly
relieved by his new doubt of Mary's being on board the
pirate, he was glad when Garnet came forward, and told
him the captain wanted him on deck. Garnet was ex-
tremely depressed himself by the possibility of the Dew-
hurst family being in the schooner, and of their receiving
hurt ; and though he looked at the chances against both
possibilities, and was never in one of his friends ecstacies,
he was suffering. He felt more deeply for his friend than
for himself, however. He had told Captain Merritt of
Hartley's hard situation, between love and duty, which
was reason enough to a humane man like Merritt for
making a temporary change.
The seamen grew fiercely excited, as the sloop con-
tinued to overhaul the pirate, and they looked with savage
delight to her capture or destruction. It was only a veiy
agreeable hunt to them.
Captain Merritt, who stood aft with the first lieutenant,
did not expect so much. They were full of admiration
for Hackett's daring in attempting to run past again, and
for the unblenching courage with which he had stood to
his station, exposing himself alone to their fire. His
scornful taunt, also, hurled ftt them as so&n a# ^h^ glinf
A STOEY OF THE AMEEICAN NAVY. 421
would let his voice be heard, made them respect him. He
had proved himself no mean prey, brave as well as wily ;
and neither of the two experienced officers expected to
take a man of so much resource and resolution a pris-
oner. When La Hembrilla put her helm up and started
to run ashore, Captain Merritt said, " There he goes,
McKizick, just as I thought. The best we can do is to
knock his schooner to pieces to-night, and send the boats
in to her in the morning. Stand by to shorten sail and
heave to."
At this moment only two of the crews were busy
below, the bow-guns only being in use ; and the rest of
the men were all on deck, watching the schooner from the
best places to see her. A crowd were on the forecastle,
several of whom had taken their stand on the head rail.
When La Hembrilla kept away toward the beach, the
movement was noticed and all ran to leeward to watch her.
One of the men on the rail let go his hold for a moment,
when he was pushed from behind by another man crowd-
ing in to get a place. Overbalanced, he stretched his
arms backward, and craned his body in vain. Seeing he
must fall, he very sensibly leaped as far as he could into
the sea, so that the ship might not run over him. The
men who saw him spring were all paralyzed but the old
captain of the forecastle, who kept his presence of mind
enough to cry loudly, " Man overboard ! "
McKizick was not in the least flustered, and gave
exactly the right commands. Without hesitation, and in
a matter-of-fact way he asked, " Will you drop the buoy,
captain?" Then he thundered, ^^ Silence! Silence, fore
and aft ! Clear away port cutter ! Mr. Thick, take
charge and go ! Quartermaster, hard-a-port ! Let go the
stunsel tacks and sheets ! Flow headsheets ! Port main,
starboard cross-jack braces ! Brace up ! Haul out the
spanker ! Forecastle, there ! Haul up the foresail ! "
As all the officers were on deck, there was quick guid-
ance for the somewhat confused crew, and the first lieu-
422 LOVE AFLOAT.
tenant's orders were carried out almost as fast as given.
Captain Merritt, who was satisfied that McKizick knew
what to do as well as anybody, and was willing to trust
him, ran to the quarter and with his own hand pulled the
toggle igniting the port-fire, and then dropped the buoy
almost at the side of the man in the water. He was a
good swimmer, and quickly gained its support. McKizick's
tremendous demand for silence subdued the rising clamor,
and gave the crew their wits like magic. The ship came
swiftly to the wind, and lay directly with her foretopsail
to the mast, and the studding-sails flapping and ballooning
all abroad. By this time the men could see by the
brightly blazing port-fire that their messmate was safe.
Coolness was entirely restored. Thick was lowering the
cutter already, and soon the. man was pidked up and
brought back, none the worse for his involuntary bath.
The schooner had been closely watched all the while,
and though, when the boat returned, she was so far ahead
as to make further pursuit useless, still Captain Merritt was
very well pleased. He knew that with the Flying Fish
outside La Hembrilla could not possibly escape from the
Haven in her present crippled condition, and beside, there
were signs abroad of an approaching storm. If she should
try to run away in that, she was sure to be caught, judging
by the chase to Isla Bella. " No," thought the captain,
" he is bottled up safe enough for some time ; and mean-
while we'll have our chance at him." He ordered the ship
to be kept off and on in short stretches, had one watch
sent below, directed a sharp lookout, and went down for a
nap, much better pleased at the prospect of taking the
schooner alive, than he would have been merely to de-
stroy her.
It was about three o'clock. During the remaining hour
of night it was darker than usual, for the sky was deeply
overcast by low hanging clouds which shut out returning
day. The ship stood backward and forward in front of the
entrance to the Haven, like a sentry on his beat. The
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 423
omens of ill weather became more numerous, and their ful-
filment began. The wind backed into the south and blew
in vicious pufts of gaining strength, with heavy passing
showers. Day found the sloop under her three topsailtJ
only, buffeting a rising sea, amid gloomy and angry ap-
pearances of the sky.
At seven o'clock, in spite of the rain, now almost con-
tinuous, most of the officers and many of the watch below
who had been permitted to sleep in, were on the spar-deck.
There was a general feeling that something must happen
now, which brought them, careless of health and ease, into
the open air, where they could watch the weather and
the old man, the captain, whose will must decide their
action.
He was up, also, engaged in earnest talk apart with
McKizick.
The rain and wind and sea naturally had in many
minds their usual depressing effect, leading some to think
that nothing would be attempted, and others to look with
doubt upon the success of any effort made with such bad
presages. Habitual croakers found the occasion to their
minds, and wielded dismal prophecies with great effect.
At seven bells was a sudden stir among the men. and
a concentration of all eyes upon the quarter-deck. The
captain had sent for the officers.
Hartley and Garnet came first, and while waiting for
the rest the captain began to talk to them.
" Well, Mr. Garnet, all our fine plans for signal stations
and for passing news along have come to nothing."
" So it looks now, sir."
" It was a daring thing in Hackett to run by us in that
manner."
" It was gallant, sir. It's a pity such a brave, able man
should be thrown away in the life he leads."
" I agree with you. If it hadn't be6n for your quick-
ness he wouldn't have made the attempt. Evidently he
thought we were all napping."
424 LOYE AFLOAT.
'* Yes, sii', but I don't see that we are much better off
for capturing him than if he had stayed up the river."
" Wait awhile, and you'll see. I am going to send a
good force in the back way again, and keep the sloop out-
side to head him off, if he tries to run."
" I see. You are going to put him on an equal footing,
a fair fight ashore or an even start afloat."
" That's it. He shan't have the chance to ambuscade
the boats again ; and if he tries to come out he'll be sunk
in the channel. The race shan't begin, if I can help it."
Turning to Hartley he remarked, "You'll not have to
make that reconnoissance now, Mr. Hartley, and I'm glad
of it. You'll go in with a force instead of a boat's
crew, sir."
" Thank you, sir," was all Hartley could say. He was
very thankful for any chance to help Mary, if it were not
too late, and he wished in any case to know the truth as
soon as possible. It was the only soothing left for his
nervous distress and well-founded dread.
" I know something of what you must feel, Mr. Hart-
ley," said the captain kindly. " Don't let your anxiety
make you rash. Excuse my speaking of it here, but we
are all friends, 1 hope."
Hartley could only murmur his gratitude as the other
two officers came up. They were Larkin and Lieutenant
Robbins. " Well, gentlemen," said the captain cheerfully,
" we're all here now. The boats will go in after breakfast —
launch and three cutters, Mr. McKizick in command in the
launch, Mr. Robbins, you will take your men and go with
the first lieutenant. Mr. Hartley will have the first cutter,
Mr. Garnet the second, Mr. Larkin the third. Let's see —
Twenty in the launch, twelve — ten — ten — sixteen marines
— four coxswains — four officers — and four midshipmen —
just eighty all told. That will do. Mr. McKizick, you had
better let Mr. Robbins keep his men back at first as a
reserve. You may have a desperate fight and need a bay-
onet charge to scatter the enemy.
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 425
" Your first object, remember, is to rescue the prison-
ers ; your next, to break up the gang.
" If they are all on board the schooner, or if you drive
them there, force her out of the Haven by firing at her
from the high grounds ashore, and I will look out for her
with the ship. Don't try to carry her by boarding, in any
event. When you have dispersed the gang, or driven
them to sea, burn the houses and come back to the ship.
"Gentlemen, I'll not remind you that this is a chance
to distinguish yourselves, for I want you to be prudent.
Use your heads, and don't lose life without need. A bold
rush may be wise and save bloodshed — but maybe you
had better surround them and fire down upon them.
" Detail four midshipmen, sir ; and let those go who
have had no service."
The officers moved away, seeing that their instructions
were complete.
At half-past eight, as soon as the men had done their
breakfast, the ship was headed to the westward, and every-
body went to work to get ready the boats and arms for
the projected attack. To hide their operations, the ship
was hove to around the point behind which Hartley had
escaped in the canoe. They dared not stand close in, be-
cause the squalls were becoming too strong and long to
make it safe to risk her near the lee shore. Everything
went on swimmingly in more senses than one ; for the rain
was now very heavy, and a sheet of fresh water an inch
thick was washing backward and forward over the deck.
Taking advantage of the cessation of a light squall, the
boom boats were lifted one by one from their resting
places on board and lowered into the sea, and the loaded
fire-arms, with their supply of ammunition, was placed in
them, carefully shielded under tarpaulins.
When all was ready the crews and officers of the expe-
dition took their places, and the ship gave her boats a
tow-line and filled away. She stood deliberately into the
mouth of the river as far as the captain could venture, with
4:26 LOVE AFLOAT.
the four boats trailing along behind her. As she hauled
her wind, they cast off the tow, and passed on up the
stream under oars. With the wind astern and a following
sea, the current was little felt. They made good way,
reached the mouth of the little creek in due season, ran out
of the swell into its calm waters, and disembarked.
The column was quickly formed, with the officers dis-
tributed through it to preserve order and silence and the
marine guard bringing up the rear. As before, Hartley
found himself in advance, with the first lieutenant. The
men were cautioned to shield the locks of their fire-arms
from the wet, and the march was begun.
In a dismal stilhiess they tramped along the familiar
narrow path. The trees dripped volumes on their heads,
and in the open spots the rain was blindingly thick. The
wind moaned fitfully in the wet foliage : the sound of the
Burf was a hoarse and menacing monotone, as inescapable
as though proceeding from within each hearer. Little rills
of discolored water trickled in all directions over the
humus under foot. The branches of the trees hung down
despondently with their heavy drenching burdens, and
made deep shades beneath. The air was full of spray from
rain drops turned into vapor by the squalls, and vision was
limited all around by the misty presence. All about the
party was gloomy, cheerless, discouraging : no one felt his
nerves thrill and his blood run hotly with excitement and
expectation. No man could avoid the influence of this
contrary phase of tropical nature. The elements seemed
to be laboring to restore the balance quickly, after the
previous unusually clear weather.
Hartley had the same reason for depression as the com-
monest Jack in the party, and more. To him, like the
rest, it seemed that no bright success of arms could happen
on such a day ; but, beyond that, he had his gloomy per-
sonal anxieties. Garnet showed no discouragement in his
face, marching along as coolly attentive to his duty as if
it were a common occasion and he were not soaked to the
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 427
skin. McKizick was perhaps the only tolerably cheerful
person there. As for the middies, they were *' swaddled in
gloom."
There was not a very long time in which to despond,
for McKizick stepped so briskly that they soon neared the
glen. As they approached, a faint sound of voices, raised
as if in dispute, was heard, becoming more distinct each
instant.
McKizick stopped the column when within about
thirty yards of the brink of the cliff, and motioning
Hartley to follow, advanced to reconnoitre. They peered
over the rocks together. In front of them were the houses
over whose tops they looked, and a break in the trees
revealed the source of the sounds which they had heard.
In the open space where Hartley had seen the fire,
there stood, a few yards apart, two small groups of men,
armed and apparently watching each other. Between the
groups were Hackett and Arrowson, loudly and angrily
talking at one another, and each supported by the men at
his back. Their words were audible to the two ofiicers,
who saw at once that it was more than a common quarrel.
They listened.
" You damned traitor ! " — Hackett was speaking — " I
took you up and made you, and this is the way you pay
me ! Settin' my own men against me ! You "
" Where 'ave you 'id the box ? " interrupted Arrowson.
"That's another of your tricks, you lyinVdog, to tell
that, when like 's not you stole it yourself ! Listen to me !
I am going to punish you for this."
" 'Ow ? " demanded Arrowson, with an insolent laugh.
" By main strength. If you want to get off easy, lay
down your arms and surrender."
" Ho ! ho ! By main strength ! Ho ! -ho ! " laughed the
mate, pointing at the little knot of men behind the captain.
Hackett's reply was a loud command. " All you men
that stand by me, lay along here ! " and in obedience to
the summons, eight or ten men, variously armed, came
428 LOVE AFLOAT.
darting under the trees toward their captain. Ko effort
was made to check or molest them, but immediately others
ran into the open space and joined the mate's party, giving
it clearly the superiority in numbers. At this, the voices
of the disputants dropped, and for the next minute their
quarrel was carried on in a tone the officers could not hear.
Hackett seemed to be insisting on the strength of his
force, pointing to it, and talking earnestly; while the
mate's replies were short and sulky. McKizick thought
that if the rogues chose to fall out, he, as an honest man,
would stand still and let them fight.
Suddenly a slender figure, clad in drenched white,
which clung to her body and plainly revealed her form,
appeared at the front of one of the houses on the left and
advanced hesitatingly toward the captain. When she was
about half-way between the house and him, some one
seemed to tell Hackett she was coming. He turned toward
her, and called in a solicitous voice, " Go back, Catareeny,
go back ! This ain't no place for you ! " The mate
laughed again ; and Catarina obediently began to return,
though frequently pausing to cast back fearsome glances
at her lover.
Something the mate said directly after seemed to
anger Hackett. He commenced speaking loudly and
vehemently. " Go away ? go away, and give 'em up ?
You fool ! " Catarina stopped, at the sound of his voice
and started back to him. " No ! " thundered Hackett,
" I'm captain here yet, and I'll prove it. Why do you back
up that fool, you men ? The cruiser's outside, and with
him for a captain, you'd all be nabbed inside o' two days.
It's him has stole the box." There was an instant's
pause.
"Jeames Arrowson, this is your last chance," said
Hackett slowly and severely ; " will you surrender ? "
" No," bellowed the mate, putting his hand to his belt,
and stepping backward with the instinct of danger. Hack-
ett levelled a pistol at his head and fired — but just too
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN KAVY. 429
late — the crack of the mate's weapon preceded his by the
tenth of a second.
Under the blue smoke Hartley saw the unfortunate
leader sink upon his knees, and fall forward heavily with
his face to the earth, while Arrowson remained erect and
laughed like an atrocious fiend. It was the glimpse of a
moment. Then came a wild short scream of vengeance
and despair from Catarina, who was within six feet of
Hackett when the fatal shot was^ fired. She darted at the
mate like a pale fury, her hair streaming, her right arm
raised, a knife in her hand. She stabbed him in the shoul-
der as quick as lightning, and lifted her hand to repeat the
blow. Arrowson sprang at her with a fierce oath, mastered
her uplifted right arm with his left hand, and, holding her
off, struck her a crushing blow on the head with the barrel
of the pistol he had just fired. McKizick saw her instantly
droop and sink ; saw the mate hold her up from the ground
by her arm while he struck her repeatedly with the pistol
barrel, heard his shameful execrations, saw him flinsr the
limp body to the ground and spurn it with his foot ; and
he sprang to his feet convulsed and pale with rage. *' Oh
God 1 " he groaned. Then in a voice of vengeance he
called out, " Follow me, men ! " and started on a swift run
toward the cleft.
In those two minutes the men had been working for-
ward, full of curiosity to know what was going on ; and
like their ofl[ic r they were half wild to revenge the poor
girl they had seen so brutally slain.
McKizick reached the steps first and ran recklessly
down, followed closely by Hartley. The first lieutenant
did not wait for the others, but dashed at once, sword in
hand, around the corner of Hackett's house and toward the
pirates. His men were not far behind him.
The pirates were all commingled, yelling, stabbing,
firing, hacking. Swords were clashing, women screaming,
wounded men groaning ; and the elements lent their unno-
ticed aid to the discord, in pouring rain and moaning wind.
430 LOVE AFLOAT.
It was a scene more fitting a world peopled with wild
demons than one filled with men. Unobserved by the
absorbed combatants, McKizick and the foremost seamen
fired indiscriminately into the melee^ drew their swords
and attacked. McKizick strove to hew his way ipto tho
centre where he saw Arrowson, anxious to avenge with his
own hand the foul murder of the girl. Every second fresK
seamen arriving supported him.
Meantime where was Hartley ? Not yet in the fight,
though second in the field. He remembered the injunc-
tion of Captain Merritt about the rescue of prisoners — he
remembered it with ease — and when he reached the foot of
the stairs, he ordered the first man he saw behind to come
with him. Running with all haste to the prisoners' house,
without any attention to the combat, he set the man as a
guard, with the simple order, " Stay here ! " and tried to
open the door. It was fast inside. Such was his anxiety
and dread that he could bear no suspense. He set his
shoulder against the door, gave a powerful efibrt, and burst
it open. He rushed into the room with his drawn sword
in his hand.
There stood Mr. Dewhurst in the middle of the floor,
resolute as an old lion, holding poised above his head a
chair which he had seized as a weapon. Behind him the
three women cowered in mute terror in the corner.
Mr. Dewhurst put the chair down when he saw Hartley,
and his face lit up with joy as he stepped forward extend-
ing his hand. Hartley did not see it, did not see him, had
not seen him at all. He ran past him, caught Mary in his
arms, never dropping the sword, and strained her to him
without a kiss, only exclaiming, " Thank God ! thank
God ! " In a second he let her go as quickly as he had
seized her, and darted out, crying, " I must fight ! " " We
shall watch you ; " called Isabel warmly after him, and he
heard her, and his blood leaped joyfully in his veins, and
he seemed to hear the blare of martial trumpets. He
sprang into the fight like a lithe panther.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 4:31
Mrs. Dewhurst, the picture of dismay, asked faintly,
** Oh, pa, what does it all mean ? "
Mr. Dewhurst looked at her and the girls, uncertain
for one instant, then cried, " By George ! " caught up the
chair again, and ran after Hartley with the unique weapon
as fast as he could. No one would have thought him old
then. Though he came of good fighting English stock he
had never fought before ; and now that the fumes of the
spirit of battle were in his head for the first time, he was
easily intoxicated. The stifihess was gone from his joints,
and the slowness from his muscles. He pushed into the
front rank of the seamen and wielded his chair like a Tro-
jan. If he slew no pirates, at any rate he knocked one
down, and he entirely demolished the chair in a very short
time. Then he went back for his pistols, before unthought
of, but when he returned the fighting was done.
It was an afiair of three minutes. When McKizick ran
to the attack, the pirates had already killed and wounded
a dozen of each other. At first they did not notice the
coming of a foe common to them all, and for a little while
the seamen helped in their self-destruction. Perceiving
the fatal error, they made common cause, but it was too
late. Not above thirty men left able to fight, found them-
selves surrounded by sixty seamen who were thrusting and
slashing so vigorously after having discharged their pistols,
that the pirates could do little more than defend themselves.
Robbins took advantage of this. He formed his men
near the brook in one nice rank, dressed them to the right,
brought them to a ready, and watched the battle with
patience.
McKizick could not reach Arrowson, who kept himself
persistently near the centre of the pirate band, and satis-
fied himself by yelling instead of fighting. It was Hart-
ley's bad luck to meet that rascal.- As he came up he saw
that the pirates were surrounded, and that the encircling
ring of seamen was thinnest on the lower side near the
brook path. He' placed himself there and went to work.
432 LOVE AFLOAT.
Being a good rapid swordsman, he quickly disabled his
first opponent by a cut across the right shoulder ; and he
turned to help a little sailor man, who was rather over-
matched by a big Spaniard who fought with a clubbed
musket. Just then he caught sight of Arrowson pushing
that way through the pirates. He thought in a second of
the insult to Mary, and he divined that the mate was about
to try to escape. He resolved to punish him ; and when
Arrowson reached the front rank, he found himself con-
fronted and engaged by the lieutenant. The mate had no
choice but to defend himself, and he did so in such an
able way that Hartley should have taken his measure
better, and have been more careful. Instead of that, in
his excitement he exposed himself.
They exchanged half a dozen swift cuts and parries,
when the mate made a feint at Hartley's leg, and then, as
quick as thought, a powerful vertical cut for his head.
Hartley raised his blade to parry, but was a trifle slow.
His guard was too low and not firm. The mate's blow
beat it down, cut through his cap and hair to the skull,
and brought him to his knees, half stunned. Arrowson
raised his sword, and made a second blow to finish him.
CHAPTER XXXn.
PROVIDENCE was watching over Hartley, as it had
been for years, in the person of Will Garnet. He had
kept cool, as usual, had seen Hartley arrive, and had come
around to look after him. His quick guard saved Hartley,
and his lightning-like return occupied Arrowson and gave
his friend a chance to crawl away. The mate parried the
riposte, dropped his sword, and sprung at Garnet so quickly
as to take him by surprise, struck him a heavy blow in the
chest, and knocked him down. He ran straight on tpward
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 433
the brook path, calling, in his powerful voice, " This way-
lads ! follow me, lads ! the schooner ! " The pirates heard,
and dropping their weapons as useless weight, darted after
him in a row, disregarding the slashings of the seamen
Avhom they passed. The men, bewildered by this unex-
pected flight, did not at once pursue, and before McKizick
could speak, the voice of Robbins was heard.
"Aim! Fire! Tlecoyer-arms / Forward, double-quick
-^march/^^ One or two of the flying pirates dropped to
the volley, and the rest disappeared down the brook. The
marines followed pretty closely, with Robbins shouting to
" Close up ! " and the whole mass of seamen ran after the
marines. With no one to guide them who had ever seen
the place before, and unacquainted with the brook, they
got into a confusion almost inextricable, choking up the
narrow places between the banks, and losing time by each
man's trying to force himself ahead. The consequence
was, that when they reached the mouth of the stream,
Arrowson had his men in the two boats, and was half-way
to the schooner.
Everybody commenced to reload, which was an opera-
tion of difficulty in the pouring rain. A few scattering
shots were discharged without effect, and there was loud
swearing about wet powder. Arrowson cut the remaining
cable and swept out, making no delay to hoist the sails
inside. The seamen ran along the bank, and each one who
could get his weapon to go off fired when he pleased ; but
the pirates stuck to the sweeps, and before many minutes
were able to hoist the foresail in the mouth of the entrance.
La Hembrilla forged ahead safely out of range.
Mr. McKizick went down to the extreme point, and '
saw to his joy the Flying Fish under double-reefed top-
sails, right off the end of the channel. The wind had
freshened to a strong gale, and she seemed to have all the
sail she could carry. While he looked, there came a dim
red flash through the scud and rain, and the dull boom
of a heavy gun succeeded it. ^*A11 right, you find old
434: LOVE AFLOAT.
barky," said he ; "I must go count heads, or I'd love to
stay and watch you."
He took tho men back with him, leaving some, however,
scattered along in a chain to pass the word up to him, if
the schooner should try to return. On the way he met
Garnet, who had picked himself up, and, instead of joining
the pursuit, had stopped a few men to secure prisoners,
protect the rescued ladies, and help the wounded. By
running down the brook he succeeded in collecting six or
eight men from the rear of the pursuit, and he insured
their presence by fetching them back with him.
He now reported to McKizick that all the women and
children had decamped while the fight was going on, and
were now scattered in the woods. The man whom Hart-
ley had posted as a sentrj over Mary had not left his sta-
tion to try to stop them, though several of the less severely
wounded pirates had escaped with them.
" But how about Hartley ? Where is he ? Did I hear
he was killed ? " asked McKizick in great concern.
" He is only scratched. He got a slight cut on the
head," answered Garnet, without a word of his own part in
Hartley's salvation.
*' Well, I'm glad of that, now," remarked the worthy
McKizick as he splattered into the brook. " He has been
so much cut up worrying over the risks his sweetheart run,
that it would be hard for him to get knocked over now.
She's a mighty pretty girl — and we couldn't spare him in
the ship."
" I couldn't spare him, anyhow," said Garnet. '* He's
in good hands now. . The Dewhursts have him, and can't
do too much for him. When he got away he managed to
creep in to the ladies, and give them one more good shock.
He was bleeding like a pig, and so used up he fainted away."
" Aye, aye. A man in trouble's all right when once the
women take him in hand. I'm almost afraid to ask you
how many of our men we have lost."
"That's the best part of it. Bobus examined tho
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 435
wounded before I left — glanced at them — there's six, and
some of them frightfully gashed ; but he says there's not a
dangerous wound in the lot."
"But how many killed?"
" None at all, and we needn't lose one of the wounded."
" Good ! " exclaimed the first lieutenant joyfully. " The
old man '11 be tickled to death."
" There he goes now," said Garnet, as one of the frequent
reports of the sloop's guns came to their ears. " Where is
the schooner ? "
" He was standing out when I left. The old man '11
stop him. What a pity we didn't get that fellow that
killed the girl ! Is she dead ? "
*' Yes, poor young thing, she's at peace. You didn't
know that Hartley overheard that Hackett planning to
take her before the priest and marry her, and take her
home to her parents to live. She was his mistress, and
they were very fond of one another. I hope the brute that
killed her won't get away.'*
" Little fear of that — hark ! Hear the old Fish speak to
him ? One comfort. Garnet, he won't dare beach her now,
for there's an awful surf, and he knows he'll live longer to
surrender and take his hanging."
They had now come to the glen, and as they stepped
into its circle, the sun burst out through a rift in the clouds.
The flooding silvery light struggled through the foliage
overhead to pour downward and lie upon the earth in
bright patches. Innumerable diamond rain-drops sparkled
in the leaves. In one instant, nature, approving the vic-
tory, ceased to frown and cheerfully began to smile.
The aspect of the glen was sombre enough, however.
The marks of the contest lay about plentifully. The wet
soil trampled into mud, scraps of half-burned paper wad-
ding, scattered weapons, blood stains, and the bodies of
fourteen pirates, bore saddening testimony. All the
wounded had been removed to the houses by Doctor
Bobus, who was then busy dressing their hurts ; and the
436 LOVE AFLOAT.
seamen were showing sailors' respect for the dead by car-
rying them into the deserted quarters. The corpse of poor
Catarina they had reverently and tenderly placed on the
bed in the house in which she had lived. Not a rough
seaman among them but felt a divine pity for the mis-
guided unfortunate creature in her tragic ending.
Garnet went back at once to the house where he had left
Hartley in the hands of the ladies. They had put him on
the bed in the outer room; and, after the surgeon had
sewed up the cut in his scalp, they had washed clean his
bloody locks,' expended the last precious drop of hoarded
cologne water on him, put fresh pillows under him, and, by
the usual refining feminine touches had taken away all
hospital appearances and given to the room a look of home.
Hartley, happy fellow, was doing extremely well. As he
half sat, half lay on the bed, propped up with pillows, he
looked pale and tired, but serenely blissful. There was a
great calm in his so long agitated spirit, high tide of
peace in his satisfied soul. The waters of contentment
seemed lapping the uttermost shores of his being.
When Garnet entered, he smiled languidly and ex-
tended his left hand — he would not disengage his right,
for Mary held it and softly stroked it. *' I have to thank
you for this, Will," said he, in a slow, weak, contented tone.
" I can just remember that you came in somehow."
" Pshaw ! I just happened along, and had nothing else
to do at the time. I might have been in better business
than looking after such a graceless scamp ; mightn't I, Miss
Mary ? "
"I think it was the best business in the world," said
Mary, turning her lovely blue eyes on Garnet, and frankly
showing they were full of tears ; " you couldn't have found
anything better to do — and I love you for it," she added
impulsively, as the drops brimmed over.
" That's too much pay for a little work," said Garnet,
rather uneasily.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 437
Mary went to him and took his hand. " Ah, how can
I thank you ? " said she.
Garnet looked bashful and fidgety. He replied with
hesitation. " You think too much of it — I did very little
— only held up my sword — besides," he w^ent on steadily,
" besides, I was serving myself, for I care as much for that
boy as you do."
Hartley gave a satisfied little laugh from the bed.
" Thanky, Will," said he, " I'm not a bit obliged to you.
It's no more than I would do for you. Come here, Mary
— before I get jealous. Will — speak to Mrs. Dewhurst."
Garnet found that he had forgotten Mrs. Dewhurst's
presence, and turned about to greet her. She was by no
means aggrieved, being too happy in her freedom, rejoicing
too sweetly over Mary's joy, to imagine petty slights.
Garnet spoke to her, assured her that the Flying Fish
would now take her safely on her journey, and then Went
with a sort of mingled impatience and dread to Isabel,
whom he had not forgotten. They clasped hands silently,
and their eyes met. He saw she had been weeping.
*' What are you crying for ? " he asked simply, speak-
ing low.
She murmured back, motioning with her head toward
the lovers, " Poor Catarina ! she loved him so." He saw that
she remembered others then as always, and would not mar
their perfect joy by bringing up sad thoughts.
Just then Mr. Dewhurst bustled in importantly, carry-
ing a bottle. " Here, my dear, the doctor says I may give
him a teaspoonful of this brandy in half a glass of water.
A fine man, that doctor ! Where's a spoon ? Where's a
glass ? How do you feel now, Harry ? That's right,
Mary ; that's the medicine he needs."
Perceiving Garnet, he put the bottle down, and wel-
comed him cordially with both hands. Then he began to
hunt about the room fussily, talking delightedly the while.
" A glorious victory, my dear. Where's a spoon ? The
band 's entirely broken up and dispersed. Any water here ?
438 LOVE AFLOAT.
Lieutenant McKizick says we shall all go aboard the Flying
Fish as soon as the weather and other circumstances will
})ermit. Hold the glass, ray dear. He intends to burn all
these buildings. There — that's enough. I can guess at
the brandy. We shall probably catch the schooner, too.
Here, Harry, my boy, drink this. You give it to him,
Mary. He'll find it easier to swallow. Gently ! Don't
move too suddenly."
Garnet made up his mind while Mr. Dewhurst prattled
on, and asked Isabel, " Will you come out with me ? "
She looked at him with some surprise. " I want you to
show me the place where you and Miss Mary saw Harry
that night," he added, explaining and somewhat beseeching.
She arose, and followed him out.
" Don't look that way," said he, the minute they got
outside the house. " Look dead-ahead." He wanted to
spare Isabel the sight of a desperately wounded pirate
whom the men had found in the bushes across the glen,
where he had crept to die, and whom they were carrying
into the house.
" Take my arm," he added. " This excitement may
have worked on you more than you know." She accepted
liis proffered support, and they walked on together till
they came to the brook.
" It was just over there," she said.
" Come and show me. I want to see the very place."
He assisted her across the streamlet, and they entered the
undergrowth, reached the great rock, and climbing up the
shelf, walked behind it.
" It was just here," said she.
" Miss Terrell " — he spoke straightforward, but in a
voice so shaken, so different from its usual quiet dryness,
that she felt impelled to glance at his pleading face —
"Miss Terrell, I have had only one friend since my mother
died, and I am about to lose him now. He is going to
marry your cousin. Somehow I've learned to care more
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 4:39
for you than I ever did for him. Won't you make up the
loss to me ? Won't you be my wife ? "
She was silent for a full minute, and then replied in a
low tone : " I am not sure of my feelings, and I'm afraid
you are not sure of yours. I like you too well to risk
doing you a great injustice."
" Isabel, you mustn't fail me now. I know I love you.
I am not asking you to be my wife because I am excited.
I made up my mind to ask you the first chance."
She made no reply, and he went on presently : " Tell
me, can't you feel for me as your cousin does for Harry?"
"No, not like that. I couldn't. in years. I respect
you and I do like you. I don't know — " she stopped.
" Don't talk so," he urged. " You and I are both
alone in the world, and we are a kind who wouldn't require
so much in each other as they do. We could be happy
toijether as married friends."
"But we ought to love one another," she said, her
sweet even voice beginning to break.
" Yes, and I do love you. Can't you care enough for
me?"
" I am not sure — that — I do not — " she stammered, with
a deep blush. " I don't quite know."
" Then why not try me ? " he pleaded.
" I could not try you except all my life long,"
"Dear Isabel, that is what I want."
" But I should be only a burden to you."
" A burden ! a burden to me ! " he cried. " Why, how
can you — " he stopped and caught his breath. " I forgot
— I ought not to have asked you— forgot — I am too poor —
it was not right for me to ask yon to leave your comfort
for my sake." There was decision and returning calmness
in his tones. He was surprised to hear Isabel speak quickly,
*' Mr. Garnet ! " and looking at her, he saw that her face
was animated and her eyes sparkling with tears. She held
out her hands to him. "Take me for what I am worth,"
said she. " Who could refuse such a man ? "
440 LOVE AFLOAT.
" What ! " he exclaimed, astonished, but grasping her
hands. " Is it true ? Do you mean it ? "
" Yes, I do. I am safe to trust you."^
" You will be poor."
" What db I care ? "
He looked at her with a countenance radiant as the
morning, and she answered his look with no shamefaced-
ness. " And will you give me a kiss, Isabel ? " he asked,
with a slight ring of doubt remaining in his voice, and as
if he had hit upon a sovereign test for the truth.
" Yes, William," she replied demurely, dropping her
eyes. She was a true woman after all.
Garnet drew her toward him, and in a very unlover-like
manner satisfied himself with the proof. It was the virgin
impression from a divine plate, destined to wear as long as
he lived, and to remain in his eyes forever fresh and uri-
blurred. He ought to have been satisfied.
" Let us go back," said he after a time, during which he
had for once been soaring. " McKizick may need me."
And he added simply, after he had started to go and had
stopped to look about lingeringly, " I like this place."
Isabel had to smile. He was not like the lovers of
whom she had read, all sighing, and flames, and passionate
outpourings. She liked him all the better that he could
already look away from her to the objects about her. She
was the more complimented that he showed her she had
made the spot pleasant, that she was already able to stir
his affection indirectly. Yet she could not restrain a gentle
smile at the odd simplicity of his words. He saw it, and
his good homely face looked handsome, illuminated by joy
and by his smile responsive. " What are you laugh-
ing at ? "
" I couldn't possibly explain," said she. Then she be-
came serious, and added, " I tell you honestly that I
do believe I care for you, but it is not as Mary does for
Henry. But I honor and respect you so much that I am
willing to trust to the future. Anything lacking now will
A 6TOEY OF THE AMEEICAN NAVY. 441
be made up hereafter. I think I only need to be with
you a little."
"I am perfectly satisfied with that," said Garnet. She
took his arm again, and they walked back to the house.
*' I must tell them," he said, when they reached the door.
She made no reply. They went in and found that
Mr. Dewhurst had subsided into a chair, and was trying to
talk to his wife, and not to watch the young folks.
"Mr. Dewhurst," said Garnet, as dryly as usual, " Isabel
and I are going to be married — some time."
" Lord bless my soul ! " exclaimed the astonished gen-
tleman.
" Bravo, Will I " cried Hartley from the bed.
" O Bell, I'm so glad," said Mary, starting up to go to
her* But Mrs. Dewhurst was first and her motherly arms
were around Isabel in a warm embrace. " You have chosen
well, Bell," said she ; " he is a good man."
Isabel's face w^as scarlet as she laughed back, " I had
no choice, aunt. I had to take him to be rid of him."
She added in a whisper, " I know he is good," because her
aunt was looking as if she did not quite understand the
other remark.
" Well, I declare ! " ejaculated Mr. Dewhurst, who
seemed just to have caught his breath again. "I never
heard of such a thing ! "
" I know I haven't much to ofier your niece, sir," said
Garnet ; " I have only my pay and a very little I have
saved, but with economy — "
"Of course, of course," interrupted Mr. Dewhurst.
" It isn't that. You can live on your pay well enough.
At one time Mrs. Dewhurst and I hadn't half as much.
It beats everything ! You navy men have such a dashing
sudden w^ay about you. I was always a friend to the
naval service, however. Well, I declare, wonderful, won-
derful ! Give me a kiss, Bell." Mr. Dewhurst was so full
of ruminations of the fight, and of his daughter's happiness,
and of sudden pride in his son-in-law, that he was not able
19*
442 LOVE AFLOAT.
to take in the new idea at once in all its magnitude. Nev-
ertheless, he found time to renew secretly an old resolve,
that his sister's child should never want while John Dew-
hurst was able to help her.
Garnet was as happy as a king, in his success with Isa-
bel, and in the acquiescence of her relatives. He did not
feel entirely at his ease however, and was glad that duty
took him outside to McKizick. The first lieutenant met
him with the piece of news passed up by his chain of run-
ners, that La Hembrilla had tried to get away to the east-
ward among the rocks, and that she had struck on a reef.
" I've sent Robbins with his men down the beach to cap-
ture those chaps if they manage to land, but here's little
hope of the poor devils getting ashore. The gale is going
down, but the surf 's as high as ever ; and there never was
a boat could live in such a sea."
It does seem hard for them to be drowned that way
after such a good fight," replied Garnet charitably. " I
don't know but it's the best thing though. A thousand
deaths would be none too much for that fellow who killed
the girl — Arrowson's his name — and by what the captain
said this morning, I doubt whether we could do anything
to him if we captured him. If he only claimed to be a
British subject, it wouldn't help him any, but if he's sharp
enough to appeal to the Spanish authorities for a trial, he
would get off". The captain says that by the law of nations,
Ave have no right to make prisoners ashore, and he risks
his commission every time he lands us. I have no use for
a law that prevents the capture of pirates wherever found."
*' I've set Larkin to work with the men and what tools
he could pick up, to dig the graves. There's a plenty of
provisions, and a little too much liquor. Had to put a
marine over it."
" Pick a crew of the best oarsmen, and take the third
cutter and go off the ship, Mr. Garnet. Report to the
captain what we've done, and say I think we can get out
to-night if the wind keeps going down, but I'd like mighty
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 443
well to see the ship up the river. If we can't go out, and
the ship can't come in, we can stay to-night in the houses
well enough. Find out if he wants any services over the
graves, and let him know about that poor girl. You
know " — dropping his voice — " her baby was dead. That
Arrowson killed it when he killed the mother. The doctor
told me." The worthy fellow sighed.
" Well, go off, and get back as soon as you can. I'll
signal the ship so she'll stand over to meet you. Stay —
here's a list of drugs and things the doctor wants."
"Before I go, McKizick, you must congratulate me,"
said Garnet.
" What for ? "
" Miss Terrell and I have made a little matrimonial
arrangement."
" The devil ! Well — I congratulate you," responded
McKizick doubtfully. " You're taking a heap o' trouble
on yourself, I know that by experience — but I suppose you
know your own business best." ' . .
Garnet ran in to tell Isabel he was going, and to say
good-by. The new interest she showed, embracing just a
little sense of property in him, was a novel and delightful
sensation. He took his picked crew off down the wood
path with his heart singing and the world looking lovely.
It did not require much time to reach the mouth of the
river, for the eastern shore now made a good lee ; but once
beyond the point, the hard work began. The sea was
running high, and the head wind was still strong enough
to make its opposition felt. But the men were stout and
cheerful, the boat a good one, the officer encouraging, the
sun shone brightly, and the ship saw them and was run-
ning down to meet them. They gained yard after yard
with a slow celerity, which was speed only in view of their
obstacles. The boat tossed and swung between heaven
and earth, riding loftily on the crests, sinking deeply, lost
to sight in the valleys of the trough, in a variable, surpris-
ing, giddy manner, fit to make a landsman despair, an4
4.4.4: LOVE AYLOAT.
wish he had never sold his farm to go to sea. The sloop
hove to as far in shore as she could, and so near them,
that with the aid of her drift, they were not long delayed
in reacliing her lee. It was a delicate thing to board her,
for her massive motions, as well as her rock-like solidity,
threatened the safety of the bobbing boat. Garnet accom-
plished it with agility, and directly the cutter was hooked
on and hoisted to her davits, crew and all. The ship was
filled away, and Garnet went into the cabin with the cap-
tain, to make his report.
" Sit down, Mr. Garnet. You look tired, but I know
you've been successful."
*' Yes sir ; very successful," answered he, w^ith a lurking
smile. He took a chair and went on to report in his terse
realistic manner, which left little to the imagination,
though so few words were employed. Hartley's explana-
tions to the captain, of the topography, made the task all
the easier. Agreeably to the wish of McKizick the narra-
tor spoke of the peculiarities and beauties of the glen and
Haven in such a manner as to provoke curiosity. He also
spoke of burying the dead, and told Catarina's story, and
declared that it was a shame for her delicate body to be
put under the ground like that of an animal ; and finally
he gave McKizick's message about coming into the river.
Captain Merritt at once said he would prefer to go in,
because he saw that loaded boats could not pull off that
day, and he did not wish the men to sleep on shore, in that
place. " Beside," he added smilingly, " I want to make
the ladies feel comfortable and safe, and Mr. Hartley — it
would hardly be right to separate him from Miss Dewhurst
and make him uneasy now. He has seen a rough bit of
service lately and has gone through a good deal on her
account."
" You may count me in wnth him, sir."
" What I Oh, no, Mr, Garnet, you are too solid an old
bachelor to be affected like your friend,"
"Anyhow, I haye the s^me right to want tp S(30
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 445
the ladies safe on board. Miss Terrell has given me
her word."
" I congratulate you, sir. Miss Terrell is a sterling
young M^onian. A good wife is a treasure from the Lord —
and makes a man none the worse sailor, say what they will.
I see I shall have to go now — if the wind serves — let's take
a look. I'm heartily glad we had no loss of life," he added,
as they went on deck again. " That first attack was a bad
business for us." A look at the compass showed them that
the wind was now to the east of south, and blowing much
less violently. " That will do very well," said the captain.
" Put her head northwest by west, Mr. Briggs, and get the
foresail on her."
While the ship was paying off on her new course, he
began to tell Garnet about La Hembrilla. " You see the
schooner has broken up already, sir ; not a stick left. Give
me the glass, quartermaster." He took a steady look
through it at the shore. " The marines are hauling up the
bodies now, pulling them out of the edge of the surf up on
the beach.
" She struck on that reef over yonder, just this side the
surf now. When she came out I was watching for her, and
I made out our men running down to the point and firing
at her. She tried the usual channel first, but she had to lay
up too fine to fetch out. Besides, we were making excel-
lent practice at her, considering the sea. When she went
about, I expected she would run back and surrender ; and I
was glad of it, for I thought likely the prisoners were
aboard ; but instead of that she ran off to the eastward
among the rocks. I suppose those fellows knew some light
draught channel through there, but it was the maddest
looking attempt I ever saw. Directly I caught the trick.
They hoped to run through that," waving his hand toward
the confusion of rocks around which the waves still raged
and foamed — " and get a good start by going inside of Pes*-
cador while we tacked twice to go around outside. I
opened on him again briskly, and between the sea and our
416 LOVE AFLOAT.
shot, he steered a wretched course. They nearly cleared
the reef, and they might have escaped us after all if they
had. When I saw the surf catch her, I stopped firing at
once. Her day was evidently over. Every breaker hove
her further in toward the rocks. They tried to hoist the
mainsail to give her more way, but they didn't begin soon
enough. A big wave picked her up, sir, like a feather, and
carried her in on its top, and threw her on the reef. It
fairly flung her down on the rocks. Then every wavo
broke clean over her. A man had no more chance for life
th^n a baby."
While they talked, the ship ran swiftly before the wind,
rolling broad semicircles of foam out on the water before
her bows. Soon the river mouth was gained, and she stood
in. Directly she was in a comparative calm, rising and
falling with a dignified motion, on the dying swells of the
outside surges, but still sailing swiftly. The sails were
clewed up and the anchor dropped, off the creek.
Captain Merritt took his prayer-book, and went ashore
in the gig at once, leaving Garnet in command of the
ship, with instructions to furl the sails, make all snug, and
defer the men's supper till the shore party returned.
Garnet walked the quarter-deck with Briggs, giving
him rather a disconnected account of the fight, and secretly
longing for the face in which he could now seek his
responses. His heart was with his treasure.
That did not prevent him from performing his duty,
however. When the wounded men were brought off, he
actively assisted the surgeon to get them on board. He
had a cot slung, put whips on the main-yard and stay, and
unshipped the main hatch ladders. One by one the hurt
men were gently lifted in the air, swung on board, and
lowered below, where they could be carefully carried into
the sick bay. Hartley did not come with the rest, Dr.
Bobus stopping a moment to explain that he was well
enough to be up and walking about.
At about six o'clock a dense smoke rose above the tree
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 44:7
tops, and blew inland in black clouds. This continued in
full volume for half an hour, when it began to die away.
Then the captain appeared at the water's edge, with his
boat's crew and the ladies, and shortly the whole expedi-
tion followed. Garnet saw that Hartley was carefully
helped into the gig, in which Mr. Dewhurst and his family
also took places, and after that he had no eyes for the rest
of the embarkation. He watched the slender white boat
as she came, dart-like, toward the ship, before her gay
white-ash breeze. Soon he made out Isabel, and then he
saw her only. It was a wonderful satisfaction to find that
she was looking back at him.
He had had the side ladders shipped for them, and he
went down on the grating to help them out of the boat
If Isabel was not very demonstrative, Garnet still found a
sufficient pleasure in her sweet thanks for his small services,
and in the warm grasp of her hand. He met his betrothed
uncorrupted, and his pure fresh manhood was therefore
sensitive to feel and to enjoy her slightest favor. The
restraint of years had now a delicious reward ; though to
one like him it had been its own reward all along.
When they were all upon the spar-deck of the sloop,
the captain took off his cap and bowed. " Friends," said
he, " when you visited us in Santa Cruz, you were very
welcome ; but the welcome we gave you then cannot com-
pare with the present. It is a pleasure I cannot express to
have you safe on board, and to think that I have been the
means, through my gallant associates, of getting you here.
This ship is your home for the present, and we will try to
make it a happy one."
" My dear Captain Merritt," said Mr. Dewhurst, " you
will have to imagine how glad we are to get here. We
thank you, sir, and the brave officers and men who have
fought for us, and saved us — we thank you from our hearts."
" We don't deserve any thanks," responded the captain.
" We have only done a very agreeable duty. Besides, I
believe that some of us have been serving ourselves as
4:18 LOVE AFLOAT.
well as our country." His eye twinkled as it rested on
the two friends, who were in near proximity to the two
young ladies. " But come below — you must be w^eary —
come into the cabin." They walked off, leaving the two
friends somewhat disconsolate ; but at the hatch the cap-
tain stopped to call back to them. " Gentlemen, I shall
expect to see you in the cabin after supper. Mr. Garnet,
send the carpenter's mate in to me, and tell the first lieu-
tenant, as soon as he gets aboard, that I want to see him."
What a jolly crowd there was around the ward-room
table that night at supper ! What spirits they were in,
and what cheerful talk they had, and how they laughed at
the tiniest little jokelet ! McKizick, when the meal was
over, insisted that all should drink to his sentiment, and
sent his own bottle of particular Scotch whiskey around.
*' Gentlemen ! " he cried, " here's — at home or abroad, fair
weather or foul, peace or war — Success to the Service ! "
" To the new service, too, Hal," w^hispered Garnet slyly.
Hartley saw the point and — smiled.
Then they all went up on the gun-deck and smoked ,a
pipe — to our two friends the pipe of peace — while the
merry talk ran on. Already the men were dancing, singing,
smoking, yarning, and laughing on the deck above, enjoy-
ing rest and the proud sense of success after labor and
fight. Already the uproar of the boisterous midshipmen,
celebrating the victory by keeping Saturday night on a
Thursday, could be heard at intervals from the steerage.
McKizick hadn't the heart to stop them then.
Hartley and Garnet did not linger long with their
lively messmates, but took their departure early, and steered
a straight course' aft to the cabin door. Dularge watched
them with envious eyes, for he was still waiting an oppor-
tunity to captivate Mary.
" Will, old chap," said Hartley jocosely, on the way.
" It's not surprising for me to be going on this errand, but
you — I can't quite take that in — its unnatural."
" I'm a good man to-night, Harry."
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 449
« Sure of that ? How do you know ? "
"I feel good. There's so little meanness left in me that
a million times as much wouldn^t make a fair target for a
sermon at ten paces."
" Why, you must be happy ! "
" Happy ! happy 's no word for it. I feel like — a whale."
" * Very like a whale.' Look out, or you'll be spouting
in rhyme next."
" And I owe it all to her — no, a part to your advice
and example."
" Hush ! here we are. Orderly, tell the captain Mr.
Garnet and Mr. Hartley are here." The orderly came back
in a minute and showed them in. They were met with
cheerful hand shakings, none less than cordial. Hartley
was at first the centre o^ attraction, all asking after his
wound and urging him to be careful; and then they joined
in a pleasant talk, all together. That did not last long,
however, because directly Hartley forgot etiquette, and
drew Mary apart into a murmured conversation, mainly in-
teresting to themselves ; and Garnet followed his example.
The old folks did very well without them, for the young
couples were walking over a delightful part of life's journey
just then, which their manifest joy brought freshly back to
the memory of their elders. Full of sympathy, they let the
young folks alone in peace. The captain said to his guests,
in a whisper, " It must be a satisfaction to you, since your
girls have to go, that their husbands will be two of the
best young men in the service." They could assent then,
with no selfish thought of loss or sorrow in giving up their
maidens. The times had changed. The cabin was a very
quiet room to have seven happy people talking in it;
though loudness is, after all, no sign of joy.
When -eight bells struck, Garnet got up reluctantly and
said he must take his watch on deck. He could not keep
his eyes off Isabel, who seemed to respond to his unex-
pressed wish. She arose also, and blushingly declared she
450 LOVE AFLOAT.
would like to go, too ; she wanted to see what the lonely
watches sailors complained of were like.
Captain Merritt smiled at her. " Miss Isabel, I'm afraid
you will never find that out ; for when you go to see, the
loneliness must depart."
*' Thank you," answered she. " You mean I should be
company of some kind, even if bad. But may I go ? "
*' It is against the rules," said the captain, still smiling ;
" but at a time like this we must treat resolution and let
up on the rules. We may never hav6 another chance."
Isabel threw her shawd on and went out with Garnet,
who took advantage of the occasion to tell her, " The desert
were a paradise, if thou wert there." It was a pity, but
this was not the last time the regulations were invaded in
the well-governed ship during tl^e following weeks.
This was the first chance Garnet had had to talk for
any time openly with Isabel. He relieved the deck, and
then cleared the coast by sending the middy on duty to
keep his watch on the forecastle, out of ear-shot. He had
no mind to be overheard and reported in the steerage by
an irreverent youngster.
Garnet was too sensible, and remembered Isabel's dec-
laration of partial feeling too well, to run any risk by
speaking out all he felt. He meant to let her see him as
he truly was, without disguise, and to wait for fuller love
to ripen if it w^ould. She understood it and liked it ; but
he was, nevertheless, pleading for his affection in many a
•way which she alone recognized. His unwittingly tender
tone was a caress that pleased her, his watchfulness for her
comfort, a support she accepted. He was well satisfied
that the splendid creature he loved clung to his arm,
w^alked by his side, listened and answered. He knew that
besides love there are other things equally noble, which
must count much through life to all true souls, and that
might well serve as mirrors, in which he and Isabel could
see each other's heart.
She told him about what had been done at the glen
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 451
after he had left. " Mr. McKizick asked us to see if we
could find out anything about Gatarina from her things.
He wanted to know her name, to put it on a head-board ho
was preparing for her grave. Henry had told us about
what he overheard, and how he suspected she might be
of good family ; and we thought maybe we could find out
who she was, and send word to her relatives. Aunt and
Mary and I went to look in the house she had lived in.
Oh, Will, she lay there so sad. Poor child ! She was
only a child, but she loved that man so much. And to
die so ! " She stopped with her voice full of tears, and
was silent for aWhile. " The sailors had made a coflin for
her before Mr. McKizick gave any order, and she had on a
pure white dress. Mary and I went out by the great rock,
and gathered some wild flowers, and put them on hei
bosom; and Mary took off her little jet cross, and placed it
in her hand. Then we helped aunt to examine the bureau-
drawers, and the chests, and the wardrobe ; but none of
her clothing was marked with her name. There were some
books on a shelf, but they all seemed to belong to Captain
Hackett except one, a small station book in Spanish — a
prayer book — that looked old and worn, as if it had been
used a long long time. But there was no name in it. She
had handsome gowns, and French gloves, and ribbons, and
pieces of uncut silk, and India muslin, and velvet, and
two beautiful caraePs-hair shawls, and a great many jewels,
but not a sign to tell who she was.
" When we were captured by Captain Hackett, he was
very polite and careful of our comfort ; and he seemed to
take a liking to Mary and me that he kept up as long as he
lived. He had some real good traits, Will. He loved
Catarina, and was tender of her, and Mr. McKizick told
ns how bravely he acted. He was very brave for us once,"
She turned pale and shuddered at the recollection of the
night on which the mates had attacked Mary and her.
" Perhaps Henry told you. When we were on the schooner
he talked to us about Catarina a good deal. Once he said
452 LOVE AFLOAT.
she had got a notion she wasn't married to him, that made
her unhappy. He said the marriage was not regular, but
declared God would own it ; and he begged us if she asked
anything about it, not to worry her."
" Did you promise ? " asked Garnet.
*' No ; but when we saw Catarina, and saw how sweet
and unspoiled she was, we resolved to keep up the deceit
if she came to us : but shcnever asked a word."
'* He was right. God w^ould own love like theirs, if
men wouldn't," said Garnet.
" It was wonderful to see her devotion to him, and
how" good and sweet she was after living among such
people."
" Did you go to her funeral ? "
"Yes, all of us went, the officers and all the sailors.
Mr. McKiziek is more tender-hearted than he looks, for he
would not lay her in the glen with the pirates. When he
came in to tell us all was ready, and ask us to go, he said
to me we would have to go up the steps in the rock, for
he didn't like the idea of burying that pale pretty little
thing along with the pirates, but up on the cliff she could
watch over the place she had lived in, and it was lighter
and clearer up there. When we went up, the sailors were
already filling up one grave. Mr. McKiziek hadn't told us
he meant for Captain Hackett to lie by his wife. I believe
he thought that in some way they would sleep better, side
by side. Is he that w^ay ? ""
*' Yes, I have noticed it many a time. Did the captain
read the service ? "
" Yes, and he read it beautifully. Poor, sad little girl !
Some of the men and officers were crying. Forgive me —
I can't help thinking about it, now that I am so happy.
^' When we came away the head-boards had been put
up, and we passed close by them. On one was, 'John
Hackett, a brave man,' with the date ; and on the other,
* Catarina, wife of John Hackett.' Oh, it's too sad to
think of. They loved one another so well, and now that is
A BTOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 453
all gone, and all each has in this world is a piece of
board, which will decay in a few years."
" We cannot tell," said he. " Perhaps because they
loved much, much will be forgiven. God may be more
merciful than we are taught, Isabel. Such things as you
have been telling me, make me feel like a Universalist for
the time. It would make me very mournful, to think that
a part of my punishment in a future world would be to
lose the remembrance of you, and be forgotten by you."
" It does seem as if we were forced back upon such a
belief for consolation, sometimes. Somebody we love dies,
and it is not satisfying to be told that at the last moment
he may have repented enough to be saved. We want to
feel sure of it. There was my dear aunt, who died two
years ago. She was a sweet and good woman, but nothing
could induce her to talk about religious matters, and she
did'nt belong to the church."
They talked on together till nine o'clock. The sky was
now clear, and the wind had fallen to a moderate breeze,
further kept away from them by the high land and the
trees upon the eastern shore of the river. A mellow
gibbous moon rode high in the zenith, giving the greatest
light and casting the least amount of shadow. The breeze
was pleasantly cool and moist, but it sighed sometimes
aloft in the ship's rigging, when a fresher breath than
usual passed over the rustling tree-tops. It sighed sadly,
as if it held the complaint of the voiceless slain. And the
continuous rushing boom of the organ surf, played a long
anthem for the dead, the yearning lament of the sea for
its lost children, no more to roam the sunny wave.
454: ' LOVE AFLOA.T.
CHAPTER XXXIIL
TXTEXT morning when Mrs. Dewhurst and the ladies went
-L^ on deck after breakfast, they found the good ship at sea,
ahnost out of sight of land, and running along to the west-
ward with an easy swinging roll, under a cloud of canvas
before a quartering breeze. Everything was in a condition
of almost painful neatness, from the pale deck, fuzzy from
the holy-stones, and the snowy paint fresh scrubbed, to the
glistening guns and the shining bright work. Since early
dawn the men had been at work; and they had in the five
busy hours of labor picked up the anchor left up the river,
as well as the kedge, got the ship under way, and holy-
stoned the spar-deck.
Mr. Larkin met the fair party at the ladder, and assisted
them up with the greatest gallantry. Mr. Maskelyne, the
midshipman of the quarter-deck, at once volunteered to
bring up chairs, but they preferred to stand, and he got
only an introduction — which indeed, was the astute young
gentleman's object all the while.
The crew were enjoying their after-breakfast smoke.
There was no sign among them of the hard service through
which they had been, except that now and then a bandage
or an arm in a sling would be seen. The tars were jolly
this morning, haw-hawing at accounts of the late fight
given by some forecastle wits, and chaffing messmates who
had been so unlucky as to bring away wounds as souvenirs.
Our two friends were smoking on the gun-deck, and
watching. When they saw the girls appear they made a
shallow pretence of finishing their pipes, and they went
away together directly. No one in the party they left
behind was deceived, except Dularge, for by this tim6 the
relations of the young folks were pretty well understood by
nearly everybody. Indeed, Garnet had meant they should
be, for he hated mysteries on their own account, and knew
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 4:55
how much a matter-of-fact and suitable publicity weakens
the sense of the ridiculous. A meaning smile went around
the group. " Hartley's the luckiest fellow," said Briggs.
'' How so, Mr. Briggs ? " asked Doctor Bobus, who did
not smoke and therefore talked the more.
"He's always in luck. Anybody can see the impres-
sion he has made. Such a beauty, too — I call it a wound
well paid for."
" Oh, Mr. Briggs," said Bobus, with aged wisdom,
" you're young and sentimental yet. You look only at the
rosies and posies, and love and dove part of it. I admit
that it is a very pretty thing to see two nice young people
honestly in love — don't misunderstand me, sir — especially
when they are so devoted and good-looking a pair as our
friends ; but may be a man might wish after awhile that
his wound had been fatal before it had attracted the atten-
tion of that particular woman. 1 mean no personal allu-
sions, sir."
"Pshaw, .doctor," said McKizick abruptly, " stick out
a little more slack. A dry old medico is about as unhu-
man a creature as walks on two legs."
Bobus answered warmly. "You didn't listen very
well to what I said, Mr. McKizick. I consider that the
affection of the sexes furnishes our chief inducement to
effort and our greatest happiness in life ; and I said a min-
ute ago that I admired the pretty sight of two such lovers
as we have on board. But still, a young man might wisely
use a little judgment in his choice."
" Judgment be d — d ! I've no use for any young fel-
low that's cold blooded enough to go looking and picking
over the points of the girls as I would a ship's. If all the
young men waited to marry on judgment, and till they
had just the right woman — why, there's one woman for
every man, you know ; and who would support the old
maids, then ? not the d — d old bachelors ! what would be-
come of the population of the world ? " Doctor Bobus
456 LOVE AFLOAT.
replied retractively, and as if borne down by a weighty
rush of argument :
" There's something in that — something in that, I admit
Still you can imagine that such an indiscriminate trusting
to nature would make some men unhappy."
" Oh, the devil take the hindmost. Any way you put
it, the natural way is for the greatest good of the greatest
number."
" Yes, doubtless so, doubtless so. Still a youngster will
make none the worse husband, for thinking what kind of a
wife he will need, and what kind of a mother the babies
will need, and whether he will be able to provide for the
mother and the babies."
Dularge put in. *'I would do as McKizick says at
general quarters."
" How's that ? " asked McKizick.
" Cast loose, and provide. Paint 'em lead color, and
turn 'em out to pasture. . Ha ! ha ! ha ! "
Kobbins spoke contemptuously. " What's the use of a
man's marrying, anyhow ? "
The doctor answered him. " In some peculiar cases, it
is best not, sir — the man serves the world best by remain-
ing single, and is much more comfortable beside — there's
no use, as you say. Yours may be such a case."
'' I believe you."
"I don't see what you and Briggs are driving at, doctor,
talking about Hartley's luck, and young lovers, and all
that," said Dularge.
"Is it possible you have not observed anything, sir? "
" Why, what do you mean ? " asked Dularge, surprised.
" We all think Miss Dewhurst shows a preference for
our friend Hartley."
" Oh, pshaw, that's all in your eye."
" No, sir-ee ! You just notice for yourself," said Briggs,
earnestly.
" Well, I must say I can't approve her taste."
"I fancy," answered Bobus coolly, "that your dis-
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAYT. 457
approYal won't change it, at any rate. We all think she
has manifested the best of taste."
" Yes, by Jiminy," spoke out McKizick. " If we were
all as fine a fellow as Hartley, we would find ourself im-
proved."
" I wish I knew how to do my duty as well as he," said
Briggs.
" Dularge, Hartley's a brick," said Robbins.
" He's a gentleman in every sense of the word, and I
wish him joy," said the paymaster.
Dularge recollected other occasions when he had been
victimized by a combination among his messmates. " It
won't do, gentlemen. This fish won't bite. You can't
fool me. I'm going to put in an appearance, and pay my
little addresses myself."
The party burst into a shout of hilarity, which turned
into laughter so hearty, unaffected, and prolonged, that
it forced a conviction of the truth through Dularge's dull
pomposity. He stood reddening furiously, until McKizick
got his breath enough to exclaim exhausted ly, " Well,
you're the d — dest fool, Dularge ! " whereupon he walked
away very angry and ashamed.
A man-of-war is not designed with reference to the
comfort of her rare passengers, and least of all to that of
ladies. When ladies are taken from port to port, as does
sometimes happen, preparations are made for them, even
to building new rooms by changing the position of old
bulkheads. This had not been practicable on board the
Flying Fish, and, beside, Captain Merritt did not expect
his guests to remain very long. He supposed, as they did,
that they would leave the ship in the Havana, so he merely
turned over one of his state-rooms to the ladies for a pri-
vate apaitraent. The carpenter's mate widened the bunk
so that it would hold two persons comfortably, and a cot
w^as slung above for the third.
The cot was the source of much fun to the girls. They
insisted that Mrs. Dewhurst should Bleep in it, declaring it
20
458 LOVE AFLOAT.
was the highest, and therefore most honorable place, that
they were afraid of it, that they were natural bed-fellows,
and could not and would not be separated. Mrs. Dew-
hurst refused positively to have anything to do with the
cot. To her it seemed impossible that she should swing
about in that loose kind of a bed : she showed fear and a
just indignation at the proposal. The roguish girls teased
her a good deal, but at last Isabel climbed up, and was
repaid for solitude by the pleasantest bed in the world.
Mr. Dewhurst declared that his cot in the ward-room was
better than a feather-bed at home.
The wind which had started them on their passage con-
tinued favorable, though it became very light, until the
ship rounded Cape San Antonio. Then, of course, the
breeze remaining in the same quarter, was dead ahead.
Little cared the contented souls on board — at least, those
who lived aft — for their lazy progress was the poetry of
sailing. Mrs. Dewhurst felt a mother's satisfaction, now
unmixed with regret, in thinking * of her daughter's glad-
ness, of her happy choice, and of the fact that Mary could
be near or with her after marriao^e. Mr. Dewhurst watched
the two couples with many a quiet chuckle, and many a
bit of old-style good-natured raillery. He found a con-
genial companion in Captain Merritt. They talked poli-
tics, differing enough on important questions to make argu-
ment spicy, but never losing temper or omitting courtesy.
They had each learned a good deal of worldly wisdom,
and could even apply it to their own actions.
As the others were in no haste to reach port, so
the two, captain girls, with their respective lieutenants,
were entirely willing to remain at sea for an indefinite
time. They lived in the present and had no wish for any
better life.
The sea air, and walking exercise on deck, and happi-
ness, together, gave the girls fine appetites, brought the pink
back to Mary's cheek, the richer scarlet to Isabel's. They
got prettier every day ; and, with bloom and softness of
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 459
outline, returned to them their agaceries and coquetries,
charming little nothings which count for so much with
men. In them Mary was a natural adept, Isabel's disposi-
tion preventing her from going very far in that direction.
She had a rare vein of humor which now cropped out in
stingless witty remarks. It was a perfect delight to Gar-
net to hear, and supplement her saying with some dry sly
thing of his own. They amused each other without effort,
could not even feel bored, though they passed much time
together, and of course interested each other extremely.
He thought he had read his book, and he was now admir-
ing particular parts ; she was still conning hers, and was
approving very heartily as she perused. In the matter of
binding, to which he was by no means indifferent, he
thought he had much the best bargain.
The discipline of the good old sloop went from bad to
worse. It soon became a common thing to see the ladies
with a circle of officers about them, all sitting on the sacred
quarter-deck in chairs. Captain Merritt had somebody in
to dine with his guests almost every day, and once or twice
Hartley and Garnet enjoyed the pleasure of taking break-
fast with him. When either of those officers had the first
watch to keep, it was a certain thing that till ten o'clock a
young lady would be sitting on a signal chest aft, well
wrapped up, while the other young lady assisted by the
other friend acted as a sort of sea-chaperon — at a suitable
distance.
The girls learned to eat their dinner wherever they
found themselves at dinner time. They were invited to
dine in the ward-room along with Mr. and Mrs. Dewhurst,
when two days out of the river ; and they had such a
pleasant time that afterward they easily yielded to the
entreaties of the admiring officers, and made the dark
apartment seem light with their gracious beauty.
But their dinner in the steerage on the seventh day out
was the great public event of the passage.
The middies hadj one at a time, timidly and otherwise,
460 LOVE AFLOAT.
managed to be introduced to the young ladies, who had
treated them with such nice tact as to make the youngsters
all willing to swear by them. The bashful were talked to,
drawn out, and encouraged ; the bold were made to feel
that a reasonable distance must be kept : so the girls
gained respect and regard.
The midshipmen, as usual finding out anything worth
knowing in the ship, discovered the feelings of two of the *
watch officers, as well as its reciprocation ; after which they
looked upon Mary and Isabel as belonging entirely to the
service, and imparted to them a large quantity of nautical
knowledge which no lady should be without.
It was Young who proposed that they should have their
fair shipmates in to dinner. All the others laughed at it,
at first, and Larkin outrightly pooh-poohed it. However,
Young stuck to it, argued that it would be impolite to
let them leave the ship without attention, and dwelt upon
the standing and reputation it would give their mess ; till,
one by one, all came around to his side except Larkin. He
told them that while he agreed with Mr. Young about the
pleasure of the thing, and while he very much wished the
ladies' company, he found a severe practical difficulty. He
was the caterer, and he knew they had precious little food
fit to set before ladies. Young replied to that by saying,
that Miss Mary and Miss Isabel were ladies, and they
would be satisfied if assured the dinner was better than the
hosts had every day, and the best to be had at the time.
He, furthermore, gallantly volunteered to act as caterer
himself. Larkin thereupon ceased his opposition, remark-
ing that he would like to see them, but knew they wouldn't
come, and he would not be responsible for the dinner.
Mr. Young watched sharp for a chance to hail the
ladies when there was no authority in sight to advise them.
They seemed to be always attended when on deck, however,
and the best he could do was to speak to them when he
saw them sitting aft with only Hartley and Garnet by.
He was tired of watching and dodging about, thinking,
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 461
with youth's sensitiveness to ridicule, that he had already
been noticed ; and he determined to depend upon the well-
known kindness of the two officers. So he advanced to
the group blushing, cap in hand. His modesty, or bashful-
ness, gained the girls' sympathy, and his original invitation,
" The midshipmen wanted to know if the ladies wouldn't
eat dinner with 'em in the steerage to-morrow," struck
Hartley and Garnet so comically as to kill their opposi-
tion. The girls glanced, each at the proper man, and read
encouragement in the amused eyes of their lieutenants ; so
they accepted at once, and Mr. Young retired triumphant.
They all had a good laugh at it, but could not think of
receding after having committed themselves.
The next day, a few minutes before the appointed hour,
the girls were on the half-deck very prettily dressed, for they
had " saved their chests " through all their captivity. Mr.
Larkin and Mr. Young appeared and escorted them below.
It was a trying time for all the middies, because the
fame of their courageous hospitality had gone abroad, and
the ship was full of fun at their expense. Larkin had
thrown himself into the breach when he found that the
guests were really coming, and " done his level best " to
make the dinner a success. He got provisions from every
mess in the ship, made flying visits to the galley, held con-
sultations with the captain's cook and his own about new
dishes, obtained glass and crockery from the ward-room
mesp, borrowed Cato Johnson to help wait on the table,
and, in fact, performed wonders, all things considered.
Still, he and all the rest were very nervous when the hour
came, and almost wished they had not tried to be so
sociable.
The steerage was very narrow. When the table was set,
with the chairs in place, it was necessary, in order to reach
one end from the other, to go out of the door at that end
and clear around to the door at the other end. As they
had arranged to put the young ladies at opposite diagonal
corners, Mary had to go in at one door, and Isabel at the
4C2 LOVE AFLOAT.
Other.- This separation looked frightfully awkward at
first, and made the youngsters still more nervous. There
"was one dreadful moment of suspense after all were seated,
in which no middy dared look at another or at the guests.
Then Mary's bright voice asked some pleasant question
about when they would get to the Havana, and Isabel
made some quiet easy remark, and the stiffness vanished
magically. After that it was very pleasant for the
youngsters. . The visitors chatted cheerfully about things
on which their hosts were informed, told them something
about the glen and the pirates, asked for knowledge on
matters of seamanship, displayed a charming ignorance in
wondering at the ability of the midshipmen to tell the
ship's position with no land in sight, and were delighted
with the neat steerage, and the nice dinner. The lads were
brimful of enthusiasm and pride.
And when the dinner was all done, Larkin surprised his
messmates, and surpassed himself, by bringing out two
bottles of champagne — real Sillery mousseux. Though
they had always thought him wonderfully smart, never
had they so much respected him as when he produced
the wine. They admired the strength of mind which had
enabled him to keep it so long, and to keep it a secret, and
for him to bring it out at such a happy instant proved
him to be a remarkable person. The talk flagged a good
deal while the glasses were placed and the corks popped.
The youngsters were too deeply concerned, to be able to
keep their eyes off the bottles, as Mary and Isabel saw to
their great amusement.
Larkin explained, while watching the servant, " We
don't have champagne every day, ladies — only on great
occasions. It was a lucky notion I took one day, when we
were fitting out in New York. It occurred to me that
nobody could tell w^hat would turn up. (Steward, don't
you know better'n to use a corkscrew ?) So I bought those
two bottles, and fetched 'em off without letting the fel-
lows know anything about it, and stowed 'em away in
A STOEY OF THE. AMERICAN NxWY. 463
the back of my locker. If I hadn't kept it a secret, they
would have worried it away from me long ago — for Satur-
day night, you know — and you would have had no more
than the general benefit of it. (There, steward, don't try
to fill it at once — wait a bit ! ) " There was a sweet silence
for a minute.
"Gentlemen, I will give you a sentiment — please stand
up. The health and happiness of our fair guests all their
lives long. May they never forget the Service, and the
friends in it who love them."
Isabel answered the gallant toast from her seat,
blushing and smiling, for it was funny to her, at the same
time that it was manlier than she expected, and then it
touched her by its sincerity and enthusiasm. "You are
very kind, and you have given us a very pleasant enter-
tainment, gentlemen. You need not fear that we shall
ever forget you, for we saw how bravely you fought for
ufi, and we can't forget that." Then she and Mary arose
and courtesied out in the grand style, and were escorted
back to the cabin door. As they went in they heard three
cheers from the ecstatic youngsters, who had to let out
their trejnendous feelings or burst. McKizick stepped in,
laughing, and begged them to " moderate their transports."
It took them the whole of ten pleasant days to reach the
Havana. They found the fever already begun, and no
American men-of-war in port. The captain learned that
the commodore was across at Key West with the flag-ship
and that another vessel of the squadron had been ordered
to touch at that place preparatory to goipg to New York.
He decided to run over at once, and urged upon Mr. Dew-
hurst to accompany them and ask a passage home in the
returning ship. This invitation Mr. Dewhurst, in view of
the fever on shore and his determination to run no more
risks from pirates, was very glad to accept. x\ccordingly,
after a stop only long enough to lay in fresh provisions, the
Flying Fish carried her passengers to sea again.
The same gentle delightful airs as before retarded their
464: LOVE AFLOAT.
progress, so that they were over three days in sailing the
ninety miles.
Those days were not all delightful. The premonition
of parting crept over the young men like the warning
chill before a gusty squall, from the hour in which they
sailed. It reminded them of the future, and set them to
thinking ahead with care. The girls, also, lost something
of their gayety, and became thoughtful ; but, as if governed
by a common wish to put off the evil day, each of the four
abstained from laying down the burden of the heart before
the others.
Meantime Isabel had fast been learning her betrothed;
and, what was happy for both, as she looked into his honest
manly soul, she could not help loving. She had just then
no obje|Jfc,in life but to love him ; and since she began by
doing so unawaa^, and since she earnestly wished to make
him happy, and felt constantly in his»presence the virile
strength of his passion, all the more potential with her that
it was restrained, it was no wonder that siie daily, hourly,
grew toward him, and around him. The old figure must
come in again. She was a strong vine trained to stand
alone, as the vine sometimes is, and able to hold up her
head in the world without aid ; but when she found her-
self transplanted near to this sturdy tree, which offered at
every instant a natural support, and one which could not
cause her to respect herself the les^,'the true nature of the
vine asserted itself. She leaned instinctively that way,
sent o«t clinging tendrils of affection, and soon had so com-
pletely trusted herself to the tree that she could never exist
again without it, except in a lowly trailing among the
ashes of mourning. Her power of lonely life within her-
self was gone, she loved, and she found the new communion
and dependence sweeter than honey dropping from' the
comb. Garnet saw and felt it, and his manhood stirred
within him in proud gratitude to think that he would be
through life the protector and support of his dear one. It
was very sweet to this strong reticent man, to find himself
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 465
appealed to, looked up to, clung to, and beloved. He
noted the steady change coming over Isabel, and nothing
in it pleased him more than a certain shyness and timidity
that he began to see.
The second evening after they had sailed he had a chair
taken up for Isabel, after supper, as had become their cus-
tom. They Avould choose a place, apart from the others
of course, and sit the evening out in conversation. Hartley
and Mary could always be found not far away, engaged
likewise. On this particular evening the moon, now past
her full, had only a few minutes before lifted her oval
disk of gold above the water when Isabel came up. The
other couple followed her, and walked to their accustomed
sitting place.
Garnet placed Isabel's ch^r where she could see the
water, and sat down onjthe rail. For awlyle they watched
the line of bright gl»^«fngs upon the waves, so aptly called
" a floating bridg/«l:>f light," by one of our own poets ;
and, then, comniencing with short remarks, they insensibly
quitted the beauties of the night to drift away into talk
and thoughts of one another.
All they said in those two hours might be of interest
to us — it certainly was to them — but what they said of
chief importance was toward the close. They had been
talking upon the art of living happily with others, upon
which they perfectly agreed. Garnet spoke. " I am glad
we think alike, for both of us are apt to carry our belief
into practice. A difference in such an important matter
might make trouble." She'had no answer, and he went on
slowly. " I believe we shall be happy together, Isabel. I
think I can satisfy you, my darling." She trembled with
the strangeness of his endearing words, for he had not used
such before. " I think of my life, and I do not act rashly
to wound others or to make them respect me less. You
will not expect too much of me. Shall I be able to satisfy
you ? " Still she had no answer for him. " Yes, I know
we shall be happy. I know on what I have to depend,
20*
4:66 LOVE AFLOAT.
your truth, and charity, and goodness, dear treasure that
you are ! "
She answered with a lightsomeness w^hich would not
have deceived a child, in the day time when it could see
her face. "Will, you praise me too much. You won't
believe all that after — after you know me better. Maybe
you don't believe it now ! Flattery, Mr. Garnet, must be
offered in such a delicate insinuating manner, that the
receiver never suspects, or else it must be presented so
openly as to carry the impression that it is sincere.
Now—"
" Isabel," interrupted he, " you know I meant all I said.
I have no motive to flatter you. You are trying to turn
me off one side for some reason of your own. Well — I'm
too stubborn to go."
She had no answer ready for this direct speech, and he
resumed after waiting a minute. " My darling, we are
nearly at the end of the passage, and I can't bear to think of
parting from you. It will be two years and a half^dr three
years till we meet again. One of us may die in tijlat time,
and leave the other alone. It would be sad to think I had
found my mate, and lost her before — before she was really
mine. Probably we both shall live, but why should ^e
throw away the right to call one another husband and wife
for these three years. I would rather write to iny dear
wife, than to Miss Terrell. Had you thought about it ? "
" Yes," she answered simply, now serious enough.
" Then you see it as I do, I know, and it all depends on
one thing — can you say you love me. If you can you will
consent to marry me in Key West."
She w^as silent till he began to think she was not going
to speak at all ; but at last she said, "Give me your arm,
and walk with me awhile." They arose and promenaded
the moonlit deck, walking from the main-mast, and at
each turning aft, entering the shade of the spanker.
By and by she put her right hand into his. No word
was spoken, but Garnet had the answer for which he had
A 6T0EY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 467
longed. He gave her hand a grasp which spoke his tri-
umph and his joy. Even that grasp was symbolical. Even
the happiness of this kind man was as usual at the expense
of the woman's pain. He almost crushed her hand in his
strong grip, but she, woman-like, did not mind it and did
not complain.
When next they passed into the shadow of the sail he
glanced about to see if they were unobserved, drew her
toward him, and they exchanged a swift silent pressure of
the lips. It was her first wife-kiss, and it seemed to awa-
ken her. From that instant her duty, so dimly seen five
minutes before, became plain enough. " How could I
think of letting him go ? It is impossible," she thought.
After that, well did she know she loved him. She looked
upon her affection as upon a new found sea, with wonder-
ing guesses at its wideness and its depth. And after that,
she showed her feeling frequently and unavoidably. When
he was in sight she followed him about with pure wifely
eye^l^ming affection. She was offended at Mary's mak-
ing S)it2^^ harmless little joke about Garnet's beauty, and
maintained that he was a handsome man. She sought the
pettiest pretext to get his company, and loved to do him
trifling little services. She suddenly became more attrac-
tive, tenderer than ever before in speech and bearing, her
loftly distant manner leaving her in a great degree. Her
pride seemed melted away ; so that when she found herself
doing with eagerness the same soft little things for which
she had once laughed at Mary, she laughed contentedly at
herself, and told herself she didn't care, and went on doing
them.
The day before they reached Key West it began to rain
early in the morning and kept on raining all day — a dull,
soul-deadening drizzle, without intermission. Garnet was
to come on deck at six for the second dog-watch. The
girls were dining in the ward-room that day, with Mr.
Dewhurst, the dinner beginning as usual at five. They
generally sat an hour and a half at the table, but it was
4G8 LOVE AFLOAT.
customary for the officer of the next watch to finish his
meal in time to relieve the deck punctually at four bells.
Garnet left the table at five minutes before the hour, and
went into his room to draw on his water-proof suit, where-
upon Isabel excused herself, saying, ** she wanted to see
aunt (I) " As they were not ceremonious in the mess, but
all felt free to go and come as they liked, no one particu-
larly noticed her going, except Mary.
When Garnet reached the half-deck on his way up,
Isabel was there waiting for him, full of concern. He was
not a handsome man at his best, and clad in a yellow oil-
skin suit and sou'-wester he looked undeniably ugly ; but
he appeared to Isabel as an Apollo. She immediately
beckoned him away from the hatch. " O Will, I don't like
you to go out in all this rain ! "
" It wouldn't hurt a baby, dear girl."
" Yes, it would. You'll take cold."
" It's a warm rain, and I shall be perfectly dry in this
oil-skin."
*' Are you sure ? " She took his oil-soaked cotton sleeve
between her thumb and finger to feel it. " It isn't thick
enough, is it ? "
" I have worn it several years, and have never been wet
through it."
" Well — then go along with you. Oh ! will you be in
the cabin this evening ? "
" Yes."
"Then go to your duty, sir, and don't stop wasting
your time talking to me. Go let poor Mr. Briggs get his
dinner."
The happy look in her eyes corresponded with her ten-
der savagery no better than her fond tone matched it.
" Thank you, my dear," whispered Garnet, who under-
stood her very well.
While they had agreed so well on the preceding night,
Hartley ^nd Mary had been talking, too ; and so much of it
was to the point th^t they succeeded in reaching the same
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 469
conclusions about a wedding in Key West that Garnet and
.Isabel had reached.
Next day the four found themselves of one mind. As
usual, the men were sent forward to the assault, the two
women remaining timidly behind, half-ashamed half-glad
that the momentous point would soon be settled, dreading
to get their wish and fearing they might not. Mr. Dew-
hurst received the request of the lieutenants kindly, thought
it a highly natural and proper one to make, consulted his
wife, spoke to the girls as a matter of form, and said, " Bless
you, my children," very cheerfully.
And so they sailed onward
" Unto the bridal day, which was not long."
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE reader once before, lending himself to my guidance,
paid a flying visit of imagination to the south coast,
that he might become familiar with the locality in which
our friends met their adventures. Will he, after a lapse of
twenty years, return ? To revisit those places may prove
a pleasure. If it invite retrospect and force a saddening
comparison to see the lovely spots again, it will at least
satisfy curiosity.
We enter the mouth of the river first, passing on either
hand the black and the red buoys placed to mark the chan-
nel. On the end of the western point is a lighthouse, a
slender yellow tower of stone, with the keeper's hut at its
base.
We gaze around as before, and far away to the right,
blinking in the horizon under the hot sun, we see the dunes
of the Fisherman's Key. On this side of the islet is the
same mingling of shoals, reefs, and smaller keys as before.
The rocks lift their rough tops as of old amid their encir-
470 LOVE AFLOAT,
cling bands of foam wliich rise and fall on the swaying seas.
The shoals mark their places by the patches of paler water
above them ; the keys are mere little knolls of sand. The
game sharp clean curve forms the shore of the mainland
and cuts the water with its keen edge ; and tlie same rich
foliage, here feathery, there massive, clothes the slopes of
the hills, hides their asperities of line, and fills their inter-
lying valleys. We look up the narrow stream which runs
low among its hills and trees, and we see the supplement
of the light-house in a picturesque little village on the
western bank just above the peninsula. There is a wharf
projecting into the river, and a merchant bark lies there,
lazy and still. Decidedly, we will not pause to look at the
hamlet : its sight jars upon our memory.
We pass on by and stop on the other side of the river,
to land at the little creek. Here, too, the hand of man has
been thrust in to disturb our associations. A rough
wooden landing just below shows the marks of use, and has
two or three fishing-boats moored by its sides. We cross
it and go on up the path, now broad and clearly marked,
by which Hartley fled and the seamen advanced to the
attack. The trees look older, but otherwise the same.
After awhile, when we think we should have reached
the glen, the way seems unfamiliar ; we look about us, go
backward and forward, and are at a loss. Searching shows
that the path of to-day swerves to the left of the old
direction and passes by the glen at some distance. We
find the natural amphitheatre at last, surrounded by a dense
fringe of undergrowth extending to the very edge of the
bluff. In some places plants lean over the brink, or vines
hang downward into the air.
We seek the graves of Hackett and Catarina ; but
either our recollection is at fault, or all trace of them has
been effaced by the eroding forces of the sun and the rain.
We find the cleft defended by a thicket of bushes,
woven together by interlacings of running briars. We go
down the rough steps, slippery with moss and green ooze.
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 471
between the gray walls which no passing shoulder has
brushed for many a day. Entering the glen, at first noth-
ing can be seen, for the undisturbed vegetation is higher
than the eye, and luxuriant with the richness of the soil:
but when we reach the centre there is still a little clear
space preserved by the shade of the trees. Here we can
see the old gray enclosing walls, and mark the sites of the
pirates' houses, whose ashes, enriching the earth, have
given at each place a stronger growth to the bushes and
a ranker green to their leaves. Through the foliage, on
the northern side, occasional glimmers of light reach our
eyes, vagrant beams, which, having found the deeply con-
cealed brook, have been turned back by it to tell us it is
still there.
The place is wild, and strange, and lonely, thus relapsed
into the desolation of victorious nature. No foot of man
treads here, no eyes admire the loveliness, no voice, in
merry song, or careless call, or angry curse, resounds within
it as of yore, echoing and reechoing in a thousand sharp
arrests against the rocky walls ; by night the reddening
camp-fire burns no longer to illumine the spot with its
cheerful light ; the smoke ascends to mark the place by
day no more. Gone with man's occupation is its life.
The stillness, the tangled richness of dumb vegetation, and
above all", the contrast, fill us with dreariness. Our hearts
sink, and gloomy images push themselves upon us, crowd-
ing into our minds with the recognition of sad change, as
through an unguarded door. Let us go away !
Down the stream, then — we know the path. This is
easy enough. The rains of twenty years have cut a deeper
channel for the brook, a kind of sepulchral tunnel, with its
thick arch of meeting, mingling foliage above, its watery
floor below, and its light dimmer than it was when we last
passed this way. We follow it on mechanically, old recol-
lections thronging back upon us ; we reach the end before
we notice our progress, and we emerge into the sunlight at
the mouth of the stream. And what a relief it is ! The
472 LOVE AFLOAT.
same old lovely scene ! No, not quite the same, for the
hut is gone, and near where it stood are several little dwell-
ings of fishermen. Their boats are lying on the beach,
and their nets are spread out on the sand to dry. The
men themselves lounge listlessly in hammocks under their
sheds, content to smoke in quiet and to watch the beautiful
oval basin. That is unchanged. Even as we saw it so
long ago, still does its glassy mirror reflect the green above,
drooping from the cliffs, or rounding the hill curves. The
same band of clean sand beach encloses the ellipse, the
slender bamboos yet wave their feathers in the air.
We pass out through the narrow entrance under the trees,
whose hea'ds have now met, whose arms are linked, through
whose swaying tops we see the sky, from whose lofty limbs
pendulous parasites hang over the water in rich festoons.
We reach the outing, and once more our horizon is free.
Away to the east, friend, threading our devious way
among the tortuous channels of the reefs. Away to El
Cayo del Pescador !
A beautiful schooner lies at anchor off the point as if
waiting for us. She looks familiar — surely we know her.
The graceful lines, the sheer lifting enough forward to
raise her billet-head with a saucy air, the taper spars, the
slender yards, the immensely projecting head-booms, the
very colors of her paint — all remind us of something.
Can it be La Hembrilla, whose fair form we saw hurled by
a relentless surf upon the jagged teeth of the reef? She
who crumbled away so soon, beaten into fragments by the
sea, and scattered by the gale? She or her ghost, you
say — an apparition like the Flying Dutchman, but return-
ing in bright sunshine to the haunts of her short life. No,
for hark ! You can hear the voices of children.
She is the yacht "Flying Fish," built by the same
builder, upon the same model, as was the lawless sea-beauty
we knew so long ago. Her owner and sailing-master is
our old time friend, Henry Hartley, out of the navy for
many years, and now, attracted by an awakening of his
JL STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 4Y3
love for the se,a, and by fond memories, revisiting the
scenes of his vivid wooing. His family is with him, some
of whom, in fact most of whom, are strangers to us.
Everybody is on deck, for it is now only six o'clock, and
the balmy breeze has dispelled the mid-day heats. The
crew of eight or ten men are getting the boats ready to
hoist out from their places in the waist. They are a sturdy
seaman-like set, dressed in a uniform resembling that of
the navy, and directed by a young officer in blue coat and
brass buttons. A very ancient person sits on the hatch
amidships, smoking a pipe, mending an ensign, and watch-
ing, with a contemptuous expression, the work going on
before him. His round, hairless head shines like a billiard
ball. Who can he be ? We have seen him before, surely ?
He speaks in an undertone to one of the sailors near by,
but we can hear. *' Pilot boat fashion ! Yacht sailorin' !
Humph ! I bet my head to a Chiny orange, that Thomas
ap Catesby R. Jones " — enough ; you recognize William
Johnson, the quondam quartermaster. Superannuated in
the service, and refusing to quit the sea to " rot in no Sail-
ors* Snug Harbor, and have his backy stopped," he had
fallen year by year through various degradations of the
merchant service, till even the coasters would not ship him.
By a mere accident. Hartley at last picked him up in the
greatest destitution. He has now an honorary billet in
the yacht while she is at sea, in which position his chief
duties are, to smoke, find fault with everything, and spin
his endless yarns. When the yacht is laid up, he is one of
her watchmen ; and many a time in the winter, he rides
up to Hartley's house to puff his pig-tail in the basement,
and regale the wondering Bridgets with tales of the sea.
They think that Thomas ap Catesby R. Jones must have
been a very great man. When Hartley's friends see the
old man in the yacht, they joke about him, and wonder at
such a useless piece of furniture being kept; but Hartley
has made up his mind that the pensioner shall end his days
in peace.
474: LOVE AFLOAT.
Hartley himself stands aft, a somewhat portly gentle-
man, active still, elegantly, yet fittingly dressed, and with
a look of comfort in his cheerful face. By him is a hand-
some, matronly woman, whose attitude is unconsciouslj^
graceful, whose dress shows study and taste, and whose
every word and look and gesture is refined. She seems at
this instant without a single care, her face beaming like that
of a child. Her rich blue eyes are undimmed, her hair is
bright brown and plentiful, and her cheek is smooth and
pink. She might be thought too girlish-looking at first
glance, but her mouth has a firmness in its lines which
redeems Jier whole face. It is Mary Dewhurst Hartley, the
happy wife.
But " who are these, this bright array " — we could
nearly add, " this innumerable throng ? " These are the
children with their two nurses. Hartley has a family.
From the charming rosebud of a daughter sixteen years old
down to the baby of six months, we count six heads,
descending in height by regular steps ; and this is not all,
for there is a seventh, a sailor-son just turned nineteen, who
is now in the steerage of a cruising ship in the Indian
Ocean.
A woolly and gray head bobs up the companion.
" Want me to go asho', sah ? " — ** No, Cato ; nothing to
eat on the key," answered Hartley. This is Cato Johnson,
whom Hartley bought from " Mass' Robert down on de
Eas'n Sho'," and set free. He is Hartley's general factotum
at home and his steward afloat.
The officer reports the boat ready, and the little ones
who have been romping about the decks, requiring watch-
fulness to keep them from climbing over the guard of net-
ting, are gathered up and one by one carefully passed down.
Mr. and Mrs. Hartley take their places last, and the boats
set oflT.
When the two lieutenants returned to New York nearly
three years after their marriage, each found a lusty boy
baby waiting for an introduction to papa. Hartley had
A STOEY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 475
pined and longed for Mary all the rest of that tedious
cruise, and had greatly lost heart in the service. His bliss
in reunion and the sight of his wife's happiness, with her
entreaties and the precious baby, assisted by his remem-
brance of past delays and his repugnance to a new separa-
tion, led him to take a step, long contemplated, and which
changed the whole tenor of his life. He resigned his com-
mission. This he could well afford to do, for his pay was
but a small part of his income. He looked about him for
occupation, examined several things, found none congenial
to his tastes and ideas, and gradually drifted into the pur-
suit of literature. In it he discovered his profession. He
studied and wrote, and seemed content. Though he never
achieved the shining distinction his friends expected from
his brilliancy, still he gained a respectable name, and in
certain matters was regarded as an authority. His courtesy
and goodness of heart, and ability and wealth, made him
beloved and respected. His house was a favorite place for
the meeting of beaux esjjrits. He knew all the artists and
the writers, and many a poor fellow struggling along the
hard road to travel had a lift from him in cheering words
of praise and hard silver dollars. The babies who came
along at regular intervals were very welcome to both father
and mother, who loved children and had plenty of house-
room -as well as heart-room for them. In the course of
nature Mary had inherited her father's property, and the
steady rise in real estate and rentals afterward increased
their wealth and gave them more income than they cared
to spend. Perhaps they were passing through life with too
much ease. Perhaps in Hartley's inmost soul lay a regret
for his abandoned career of hard work and usefulness ; but
if so he sedulously kept it to himself.
Garnet clove to his profession. He might have given
it up if he had chosen, but would not. His life's course was
laid out, and no inducement of love or wealth or ease could
swerve him. At this time he had reached a point of small
independence by economy and careful investment, but he
476 LOYE AFLOAT.
might have had fifty thousand dollars and his liberty six-
teen years before. He refused his friend's proffered gift,
through pride.
When Hartley first withheld the avowal of the secret
burying-place of the piratical hoard he little thought what
a burden of doubts and scruples he was assuming. Naval
education and associations had rather sharpened than
blunted his sense of honor. He found himself by the death
of Catarina, Hackett, and the two informers (which last he
learned from a captured pirate,) the sole possessor of the
secret. He never thought of appropriating the treasure to
himself, in fact that would have been impossible to him.
His idea of bestowing it without explanation upon Garnet
seemed for a good while the correct course ; but after a
time the sophistry of the reasoning by which he had per-
suaded himself 'became evident to his unwilling mind.
After that, his conscience was very uneasy and annoying ;
and he once even resolved to let the treasure lie and rot
ratli^r than soil his hands. But its ghost was not so easily
to be laid. Frequently would arise in his mind thoughts
of the hoard, magnified by his imagination, and sj)arkling
in its hidden grave. At last he made a business trip to
Havana, hired a conveyance overland, visited the key alone
from Olozaga, and found the box at the first digging. He
had it carried by two unsuspicious darkeys over to the vil-
lage; there packed its contents, consisting of silver, with
some gold, and a number of set jewels, into a spare trunk ;
and returned unmolested and quietly home. But there his
troubles began again. He found himself unable to dispose
of his ill-gotten goods without attracting the attention so
long avoided. He was finally driven to his lawyer, in
whom he confided and who helped him. The attorney
could see no impropriety in the way Hartley had acquired
the jewels, but thought it madness to propose giving so
much money away. He assumed the whole business,
appearing as the principal in disposing of the gems in
Europe ; and after having paid all expenses and pocketed
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 477
a handsome fee, he handed over to Hartley a balance of
cash exceeding fifty thousand dollars. After all this was
done came the main difficulty of all ; Garnet would not
have it. Touched deeply by what he thought so rare a dis-
play of friendship, he still steadfastly refused the money.
It was gall and wormwood to Hartley, not only to have it
refused, but also to see that undeserved gratitude. He
knew that an explanation would not help the matter, so as
a last resort he set Mary to work to persuade Isabel. Mary,
who was ignorant of the black source of this damracd-up
stream of wealth, who was in fact ignorant of her own busi-
ness matters, supposed the money came from her husband
and herself, and generously urged upon Isabel to make
Garnet accept it. The result was that the two women
arranged a compromise, to which, after some further modi-
fication. Garnet consented. The money w'as left on inter-
est in trust for Isabel in case of Garnet's death. If they
both lived, their son was to have it, provided they thought
him worthy ; and if Isabel were to die, judgment was to
be left to Garnet alone. Hartley was glad to have the lucre
out of his hands on any terms.
As the years rolled on, and the Garnet grew older, he
learned to think with an ever-deepening satisfaction that
his wife and son were secured against fate ; and his heart
remained warmly recognizant of his old friend's goodness.
Hartley could not remember the transaction without
disgust ; but time gradually blurred the whole impression
and gave him ease. It was the only secret he ever had
from Mary.
The boats have rounded the point and reached the
beach. There is no surf to-day, and the landing is easy.
The men jump out and pull the bows up on the sand, and
the party disembark.
" Don't go out of hail^ men," says Hartley. " Maria,
you and Ellen walk around on that side with the children,
but don't go far away. John, you and Isabel must keep
478
LOVE AFLOAT.
the little ones out of the water or the sharks may get your
brother and sisters for tea. Hear that, babies ! Come,
my dear.
Mrs. Hartley takes the offered arm, and they walk along
the eastern beach in the long shadows of the sand mounds,
talking softly of the old times. They had just been over
the familiar ground resurveyed by you and me, reader;
and you must imagine how keen had been the feelings
aroused, how fresh the memories evoked. Like us, they
had entered alone the deserted glen ; like ours, their hearts
had been oppressed. They had sought without success for
the long-levelled graves of Hackett and Catarina ; and
Mary had wept to think again of the sad young life so
sadly closed, so utterly vanished from earth without leav-
ing one tangible trace. They had found a pensive sorrow
in the place of the expected joy ; and they were still mel-
ancholy.
They walked slowly along the beach, talking over the
events of their stormy days passed in this place, smiling
with regretful faces at their fervors of joy and fear, thank-
ful for the present calm, admiring the evening sky and sea.
Their hearts were very soft, and under the influence of the
scene and its memories they felt again the tenderness, the
inexpressible longing, of youth. They were filled with
yearning aspirations for a vague good, which they could
not comprehend or direct. Each was conscious the other
felt the same, and their spoken communings died away.
On the mainland, long shadows of trees lay across the
slopes. The valleys were dark, the western hill-sides
bathed in a soft spiritual glory of golden light. The waters
on the right hand lay smoothly black behind the island
and far out to sea. Two rocks raised sharp points above
the water near the shore ahead. They reached them, and
Hartley turned with his unquestioning wife toward the
centre of the key. Not far away arose three mounds in a
line, north and south, the northern one being most pointed
and highest. They walked to it and ascended it, pausing
A STOKY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 479
upon its top to look at the lovely view. A sudden impulse
seized Hartley, and he spoke.
" This is the very spot— yes — I must tell her. Mary, I
have had a secret from you for twenty years." He went
on to tell her about the treasure.
She made no answer when he had finished, but stood
motionless, gazing away from him with her eyes full of
tears. " Forgive me, Mary," said he, and she laid her arm
about his neck and kissed him.
Now, friend, let your errant fancy, mate to mine, leave
these old scenes and fly swifter than with wings of the
sleepless sea-bird over the leagues of water, over a mys-
terious continent, to settle upon a frigate in the Indian
Ocean. She is near the lonely islands of Amsterdam and
St. Paul, as she ploughs her steady furrow to the northeast.
We will not stop to observe her beauty, or her warlikeness,
or to make the acquaintance of her company, not even to
see young William Garnet Hartley in the steerage ; bttt we
will pay the visit we came to make.
We enter the cabin of the captain. There he sits by
the table, over which swings a lamp. He is smoking an
after-supper pipe, with the old deliberation, and reading in
a book with the old slow thorousfhness. His face in
o
unwatched repose shows himself.
There is the same honest, humorous look in the eyes,
the same firm reticent expression about the mouth. Here
and there a gray hair shines like a thread of silver among
his brown locks in the lamp-light. There are lines of care,
and responsibility, and thought, on his forehead, but they
give nothing stern or harsh to the aspect of his good coun-
tenance. He looks older and — strange thing ! — now almost
handsome. Fidelity, tl'uth, and justice, have been so long
with him now, that they have become a part of him in
every way, and have expressed themselves in his face, soft-
ening and refining it into a worthy mask.
He seems to grow careless, his attention relaxes, and
480 LOYE AFLOAT.
by and by he shuts the book and lays it down. Then he
muses until his pipe is almost out. Something pleasant is
in his mind — for see how tender his face has become ! Was
not that a beautiful smile ? He glances about as if fearful
of being seen, and takes from his breast a little oval case.
He opens and looks at it with fond eyes. Let us look. It
is an ivory miniature portrait of Isabel. He kisses it.
Come away, friend, we have seen enough.
Captain Garnet is a truly happy man. He loves his
work ; he thinks his profession the finest in the world ; he is
intelligent, well-informed, and up with the spirit of his age ;
he sees the good in others, and takes pleasure in helping
them in trouble ; he has a high name as an officer, is every-
where respected and esteemed, and ah ! by a few choice
souls how he is beloved ! It is a devotion they feel. But
all this is almost as nothing to give him sweet thrilling
pleasure, compared to the love which Isabel bears him, and
which he knows and feels. He has to leave her for long
absences of years, and the parting seems almost to snap
his heart-strings each time, as if it had grown to its sister
heart. That is bitter hard to bear. He has to stay away
long, with no communication but infrequent letters, to
endure all sorrows alone, to suffer apprehensions for her
safety. He thinks of the baby daughter which was born
and died when he was away from home, and he grieves for
Isabel's lasting grief. He sometimes becomes very sad and
lonely, and finds that books cannot interest a mind, or any-
thing distract a heart, which longs for the consoling bosom
of the beloved.
Yet he is happy, for he is made of heroic stuff which
can endure all things for the sake of an idea ; and in his
bitterest moments there comes with sweet relief to his mind
the remembrance that she whom he loves is waiting for
him at home, ready to welcome him with an affection fresh
as a bride's. If the partings are sad, the reunions seem
almost too joyful for this world. Deep in his soul, hidden
from men, there lies continually the steady bliss of loving
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 481
aud of being loved, and this is his earthly reward. The
sense of duty done goes far to pay him for separation, but
the sense that he is loved is his duty-sweetener. He thinks
of his lost child as an unseen link to heaven. He rejoices
in the good health God gives them. He is proud of his
wife's lasting beauty, and he is very proud of his son, who
is full of manly promise.
Dear friend and reader, have patience with me still,
for I cannot let you go till I tell you my vision — my vision
of the present day — to my mind the most reconciling, spirit-
assuaging sight I have ever seen.
There is a small cottage on Staten Island, perched upon
high ground whence it commands a wide view. A covered
veranda extends along the south side, among the diamond
lattices of which there clamber vines in flower. In the
turf of the sloping yard roses are blooming, and other
flowers are scattered around in beds. The setting sun
shines in at the western end of the porch through the
leaves, and falls upon the floor in a changing play.
An old man is walking uj) and down this veranda,
into the sunshine and back in the shade, with a slow but
firm step. There is a reminder of the quarter-deck in his
methodical promenade. He stands erect, and holds up his
head, but he is lost in thought and is looking at nothing.
His hair is as white as snow, but abundant and beautiful,
making me think of a crown given for a long life's purity.
His eyes are bright and clear like a young man's, and his
cheek is still touched with a ruddy tinge. Seams and fur-
rows run all over it, but there is no mean line among them
all, for time has truly marked his face w^ith what it found
within. It is old Admiral Garnet. At eighty-two he is
still a healthy vigorous man, and his wife at seventy-four is
as hale and sprightly as himself. They have to be careful
at their age to keep free from aches and pains, but they
take the care and live in comfort. They can still enjoy
food, and have the sense of sight so well preserved thatout-
21
482 LOVE AFLOAT.
Bide nature still gives them pleasure. They sleep sweetly
and soundly, though with the frequent awakenings of age.
Sometimes in the night he will involuntarily put out his
hand to feel if she is there by his side, thinking half dream-
ingly at first that he is away from her at sea.
These two are an enviable pair even in their far ad-
vanced years. They love each other with a devotion touch-
ing to see, and they can never be happy many hours apart.
Though so old they are not weary with life, for they have
used its joys without waste or cloying, without untimely
weakening the powers of pleasure. Each has been so busy
in faithful work that they have hardly known ennui. Still
with all persons they can sympathize, and for " every inter-
est they have a sense," still they watch the onward move-
ment of the world, still do they love.
Yet, while life is pleasant, they have not any fear of
death. With a perfect trust in their Saviour, they cling to
his guiding hand, ready to ford unshrinkingly the shallow
mist-enshrouded streamlet which lies between them and the
next land whenever he shall lead them to the water's edge.
Contented with the world, they have for themselves but
one prayer— that they may leave it together.
But listen ! a prattle of young voices mingled with
older tones comes from within. The old admiral stops in
his walk and turns with a pleased look. A swarm of merry
little ones rush out and precipitate themselves on grandpa
with various tales to tell him and requests to make. Grand-
ma follows serenely smiling, more beautiful than ever with
the loveliness of a sweet old age ; and then comes Mr. Gar-
net, the eminent lawyer, with his dovelike little wife.
They all sit down on the steps, and the children cluster
thick around their grandfather, each clamoring for a near
place. He sits for awhile unmindful of the little ones, gaz-
ing off on the bay as if lost in the thought of distant days.
His hand rests upon the hand of his wife, who looks into
his face with tranquillity and fondest love.
Ah, friend J when you and I get old, may it be like
A STORY OF THE AMERICAN NAVY. 483
this I Through such a green old age, sweetened by affec-
tion, with our dear ones near us, may we too pass trust-
ingly into the life beyond !
Oh, William Garnet ; w^ould that a heart strong, true
and kind, like yours, beat in ten million breasts throughout
our land ! Then should our country's flag, no longer
flaunting idle boasts, wave with the dignity of strength in
every port, on every sea. Then should we sway the world,
the chosen nation of the Lord.
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them which is useful only to medical students. 4th. The exclusion, so far as
is possible, of strictly technical terms. 5th. The adaptation of each book to
Us particular purpose, the smaller work preparing the scholar to understand
the full development of the subject ya the larger one. 6th. In the larger work
•the science of Physiology is brought out as it now is, with its recent important
discoveries. Tth. Some exceedingly interesting and important subjects are
tuUy treated, which, in other books of a'similar character, are either barely
hinted at or are entirely omitted. 8th. These works are not mere compilations,
but have the stamp of originality, differing in some essential points from all
other works of their class. 9th. in beauty and clearness of style, which are
qualities of no small importance in books for instruction, they will rank as
models. 10th. The subject is so presented that there is nothing to offend the
most refined taste or the most scrupulous delicacy.
Elements of Anatomy , Physiology, and Hygiene,
By Prof. J. R. Loomis, President of Louisburgli University,
Penn. Beautifully illustrated with original drawings. Re-
vised Edition. Price $1.25.
" I have examined with some care the Physiology of President Loomis. It
seems to me clear, concise, well-arranged, and in aU respects admirably
adapted for the pui-poses of a text-book in schools and colleges. It has been
used by the classes in this University with entire satisfaction."— ^ez). M. B.
Anderson, D.D., President of Rochester University.
- PALMER'S BOOK-KEEPING.
Palmer's Practical Book- Keeping, By Joseph H.
Palmer, A.M., Instructor in New York Free Academy. 12mo.
167 pages. Pri.ce $1.
Blanks to do. (Journal and Ledger), each 50 cents.
K.ey to do. Price 10 cents.
Any of the above sent by mail, post-paid, on receipt qf price.
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