Show The Adventures ref of a Supercargo BY LOUIS BECKE CHAPTER I There was a faint flush of red ting ing the eastern horizon as Ross peering peer peerIng Ing over the breastwork of the battery discerned the advancing canoes noes they were Ere less than five hundred yards dIs dIstant distant tant and the passage very rapidly As he watched watch a second messenger mes time from saying that had landed and was leading his men into the trap and that he only awaited the tho sound cf r the first shot to tall fail upon them Nearer and nearer came the canoes four abreast and urged along silently but swIftly by paddlers thE paddle blades plunging Into and withdrawing from the water In perfect unison Quickly in the semidarkness they passed the battery and then bore boren borea n a little to port ac thE four lea leading ing ca canoes canoes noes caught ht sight of the barque lying so quietly before them with the ends of f h her r fore and main yards almost the branches of the giant teak tree and ail as That and his savages swept forwArd Ross Roa and his men threw osine the branches and shrubs s that the guns and waited they had ant ot t to walt wait long Suddenly the leading canoes formed in into to single I line the tho second followed and then all elg eight t made a rush at the dark hulk or of the 4 barque arque As they c came me I alongside nl two flared a line Une of If fire burst from the bulwarks and a crashing volley of musketry awakened the mountain ech echoes s followed by a cheer heer from the ship And yells and ands s screams rams or of agony Light up light up shouted Ross and as one or of the huge torches blazed forth there came the sound l or of the bomb guns and the crashing of wood mingled with dreadful cries ns as the he thel l hapless apless wretches In the first eight canoes ca canoes noes tell fell dead daad or dying mid amid the wreck n e of ff their craft crait As the glare from th the battery t torch reh lIt up the dark water ten canoes soot shot out from the beach bEachy said and then the whole of the shore I burst Into light and rev more dearlY clearly the fierce struggle round the Meg J e Standing by the guns ROMS natives watched the at attack tack tak with bated breath waiting for their turn to fire Not yet not yet cried Ross bur our turn will he be when they are coming bark back Ah look at that Castles and the carpenter who were on m the top topgallant forecastle had re reloaded reloaded loaded their bomb guns and tired fired to together gether gl ther at t two fresh canoes which ploughing their way through the wreckage of the first eight had shot alongside unheeding the fire from the rifles The murderous h hail of buckshot t tok Kok the leading Canoe fore and aft and killed and wounded every single one of the twenty savages who manned her herBut herBut But undaunted b by the slaughter the canoe with half a dozen others in her wake swept up their crews yell yelling yelling ing defiance as casting aside their pad paddIes paddles dIes they seized their weapons and tried madly to board only to fall back ad or dying into the bloodstained water or upon the wreckage reck age of their t 11 From the shore behind the battery lattery came the sound of musketry I y daylight enabled and his men ment mento t to pursue their work of slaughter upon t the he landing party and Ute the whole hole air airas was as filled with cries as the tho clamor damor from the barque was answered by savage cries ries of triumph from the shore mingled with the screams of oft t women and children hildren Three separate times did these Uese valo lOUS savages try to gain in a footing on the barque the canoes clustering round hr like bees two to manned by ov over r rf f ft Ity men made a dash duh at her ber bo bows in a few seconds of them m had clambered up on the top topgallant topgallant gallant forecastle armed only with Tubs dubs and da daggers ers and Castles the two white seamen and some of If men were hurled below upon the fore deck where here the poor carpen tr t r and two O sailors were quickly and Castles ail as he rase r b by a blow on the head dEalt him 1 a youthful warrior of about 18 years ears of If age however hoever was shot dead next moment by the second mate who with several veral other men had rushed forward to beat back the board boarders ers r They however fou fought bt with such illsen insensate ate fury that before they were killed or driven over the side the stew steward steward ard w was badly wounded and four of tot the Noan people kilted killed Then crowded with wounded men ment menthe t the he rest of the canoes suddenly drew rr if have gave up the fight and turned sea seaward seaward ward to escape but quickly brought to toa a again ain when the they saw their way barred hy by the ten canoes awaiting them in the thel l Their indecision however Fisted but a few moments for with Uh three of af the largest canoes leadin leading they J i de a rush for the entrance and then from irom the now unmasked ba battery there t me ante two bursts of smoke and flame lid the sharp harp bang of two C of t tf f me le brass p guns and a hail of case shot abot through the naked bodies of ofle he le unfortunate natives the thet t moos to fragments and the ther ate ater r into a seething foam Grace his face with his hand band and andu u led away aar sick at heart and derng is sheer use useless less butchery he cried Owens and nu 01 steward put down Y your Ur rifles ills 08 sickens me Take away the guns If f these Infernal savages of ours and drive the brutes Oft on shore As the mate Denison and the stew rd ran aJon along the deck railing calling out to the white seamen and their savage avage al allies lies to c cease c firing they heard beard the t two 0 other guns thunder out their messages If f death and the cries of a agony ny from t the h water were drowned In a long ex exultant exultant from people in waiting vat canoes Fourt Fourteen n only out of the entire In lading fleet ot of canoes succeeded in get past tile the battery without being hit when the guns ope opened upon th them m a time and of these Six 4 were cut cutoff off by people the remainder with their crews too exhausted to pad tle more than u ti mile or so in order orear to esea escape their relentless pu punsters ers were run Tun on shore and the sav savages es took to the he bush hiding is in the jungle until nightfall An hour after the din of the combat ha had ceased ed and the crew of at the barque were wre endeavoring to remove the dread dreadful ful traces from her one once spotlessly white decks deck Ross and his wife Ire CAme on onboard n board They found Grace and Denison DeniOn In the cabin abin talking In low tones The Theold Theold old captain as he held out his hand to the American could rould scarcely speak md and his face looked white and d haggard CHAPTER With trembling voice the mast master r of the barque tOld the steward to call the two mates and Castles and as the three men carne below w he be motioned to the steward to bring some om liquor VeIl Vell It is all over said Ross AS bet he o out t some brandy for Grace but lease dont say anything more mere about t just now I daresay rn Ill feel fed all right rl lt presently Dont hurry hurn on oil deck dek M Owens Ill see to the ship awhile and t he c old man left Idt the cabin too up upI I set to discuss the sUbject of the fight with Ross Castles whose head was b bound und UP soon followed him with the two mates and then Mrs Ross went to her own cabin to lie down Denison said Ross I have como come on board to tell you that we have Mr Tim Hogan on aho show a aTom Tom sprang up un from his Alive about and all He may live lIvo through the day but I doubt it He was found lying among the scrub just dust abreast of the ship I had him carried to a house In the town where one of my men is with him Do you want to see him Oh Ob yes indeed I doI should like to know for certain if he really is Tin Tim Hogan Can he speak 1 Yes but hes so badly wounded that I dont think he will be able to say much He told me that he was in the leading canoe and when hen the ship opened fire he was almost the first firstman firstman man to fall and tumbled overboard When lie he came to the surface ho found I that his right thIgh was broken broten near the hiP and as he was trying to swim sim round under the stern he was hit again in the back He held on to the rudder for a short time man managed aged to swim the few yards between the ship shiv and shore and crawl into the thelow thelow low bush undEr the big trees where two of my natives found they had been beautiEs Mr Timis head would now be the admiration of the Intelligent populace or of Noan As AsIt Asit It was we had trouble in getting him into the village when he was recognized recognised Some of the young bucks wantI want wanted ed cd to take him away from us but as I II iI I had bad taken Timis two Colts and looked ugly at them they sheered off but followed us ues to n a house and are waiting outside to see what is going to h I told them that If anyone any one of them so much as put his head inside the door whilst I was away I should know how to deal with him Oh bring some brandy for the poor wretch he asked for it Walking through the crowd of silent I armed natives who were gathered out outside outside side the house and who oo quiCk quiCkly ly aside to let them pass vass Tom and andRoss andRoss Ross entered time the house and the latter motioned to the seaman who was guarding the wounded man to stand at atthe atthe the door The once dreaded Timi lay upon the floor his body from his hig bared chest down don to his feet covered with ith a coarse mat and his head test rest resting testing ing upon a bamboo pillow beside him was a gourd of water His eyes were closed and for a few moments Ross and Tom stood over him In silence thinking that he slept and unwilling to disturb kim him He moved opened his eyes and then with calm indifference looked steadily at his visitors Ross pouring out some brandy into a glass which Denison held knelt be beside beside side the renegade raised his head from the bamboo pillow and told him to drink He eagerly swallowed the li liquor liquor quor and lay back again upon the pil pillow 10 low then he spoke What That are aro those doing outside he said in his hoarse growl growling growling ing tones even when de death th was near are you ou going to let the swine take my head if I can help helD it was the contemptuous reply you are m my prisoner pris prisoner oner But if you were not a dying man you ou would now be swinging singing from the end of the barQues mainyard The man made no answer anser and then he looked at Tom was regarding him intently Well Tell young fellow felio he be growled what the are you looking at At you ou TIm Hogan Hosan was the quiet I answer aner Ah and his fierce eyes glared at atthe i ithe the supercargo o as with a great effort he gat t UP ah who ho are you I am the son of man YOU mur murdered murdered dered man manI My I name is Deni Denison on said Tom slowly do you remember it Something like fear crept Into the wild eyes and the clenched hands bands trembled Hogan breathed heavily for fora a moment then sank back again Well Nell now Is your chance to get even een wIth me That haD chap at the door will 11 lend you his rUle rifle Come hurry dont stand looking at me meI I am not a murderer Tim Hogan I could have shot you days ago when you were ere within a dozen yards of me and you murdered your father in cold blood You were there and the viets eyes blazed I I was as there as I said ag t a dozen I yards from you and saw an heard all allI you did and said And the moment I I saw you I was as certain that you ou were I the man who killed m my poor Door father I who 00 was always kind to the convicts Timi dosed closed his eyes far a few mo moments I ments mants I am sorry I did It he muttered Then he signed to Ross to give him some more brandy I Ross looked lit jit Tom who took the I glass half filled it with brandy and andi ande i e was about to add water from the gourd gourdI when Hogan stayed him I Dont put Dut any water in it iti r i to me neat neatI j I Again Ross raised him and this time j I it was Tom who held beld the glass to the cruel mouth Thanks young fellow he said in inI I softer tones Look here hen Im done for forI I Im sorry for what I did at atI Huon Bank BankI I I Tom made no answer be beyond ond an In o 0 his head bead as he be turned Ills his face away ro rose e and stepped outside Into the blazing sunlight followed by Ross I Telling the seaman who was guarding the door to fire his rifle if any of the waiting natives tried to get into the I place Ross Roos with Tom then sought out who was in his own house awaiting to receive them He told them that in the fight with the landing I party he had only lost ten men but butI I I that party had been almost annihilated only a score or so of them I I succeeding In escaping i himself I 1 hd had been killed by u n a spear thrust and andi i the chief WWi was anxious for Roes and andI I Denison to come and see his head but butI I Ross spat in disgust and sternly told i him that whIte men did not like such sights I Returning g on board the barque th they y yI found that Grace was just about to toI I I tow her further in up the bay for the water aU all around was alive with sharks and the spectacle was so horrifying that even een native divers shuddered shuddered dered as they manned the boat and took the ship in tow At sunset sent off word that Timi was dead and buried r rOld Old has been mighty smart in burying him remar remarked d Ross to Captain Grace I guess that Ir Tim Timothy Timothy othy Hogan is shorter by a head than when Denison and I saw him this morning CHAPTER For six weeks after tho fight Ross Rom continued to work the pearl D beds with I VEry satisfactory results t then en the I rainy and staD stormy Y et tin in and as thing could 1 be e lone during the four j months It would last the barque was made ready for sea again The four brass guns had been brought on board and mounted on the main deck gun ports Porta cut in the Uie but bul bulwarks works had presented them to Grace together with an enormous quantity of yams and as many pigs and as much poultry as there was room for on the decks Furthermore he had promised Ross that he would guard the pearl shell beds most carefully should hould any other ship attempt to work them during the six months that he Ross expected to be away awayA a wa waA A few fern days before the barque sailed the survivors of expedition with their wiveS and children came to Noan made their submission to and begged him to spare their lives He satisfied at the terrible slaughter that had ben inflicted upon them and anxious to please Ross and Grace who pleaded for mercy too to be shown to his enemies graciously permitted them to live Uve and being an astute old savage quickly provided a number of his young oung unmarried men with wives from the female prisoners Early one Sunday morning the barque lifted anchor and stood out of the little bay accompanied by a fleet of canoes and Pat remained on onboard board until the last moment and the savage old warrior actually wept when he bade Ross floss goodbye imploring him to come back as soon as possible for forlie lie he now had the most intense admira admiration admiration tion for tor the tho American and was really sincere In his expressions of regard As soon as the ship was outside she brought to still surrounded by canoes filled with natives all yell yelling yelling ing out their farewells and thEn to tople please se the old chIef the four guns were fired in a parting salute and every na native native tive stood up and waived his paddle in acknowledgment as the Meg Mog Mer Ier riles filled again and stood away to the westward before a steady breeze By sunset she had rounded the western west western ern end of the great island and nd then to the delight of Grace and |