Show aa on 0 CAPTAIN by CHARLES TENN TENNEY JACKSON br 70 boata macrill COMMY CHAPTER XIV 17 A flower for a ragged follow fellow tile the long longboat bout made boado a shallow pass between two curving reefs of dreary sand ennd rising to wind twisted mangrove clumps at tho the higher points and was bea benched clied in a quiet lagoon the red found them there marooned silent men wandering over tho the waterless spaces and then coining baal near to a shelter canvas which had bad been roped to tile tho bushes for mademoiselle lespron Le stron then tile the last lieutenants i of laotto eat ant apart to discuss the matter tho the lay jay plainly visible west and north lier ber sails balls idle and a shell be beating oft with the morning breeze growled bohon bobon row how much water did drackley ackley Or Cr leavo leave to us ual two casks read bread and the salt borso for throe three days no more we count six muskets ond and twelve pistols pl atola when the indians put on oft from the woods to spy us ua out wo we can hold bold tem era off a bit aye for what theros a river mouth to make magoso thero there Is IB none the spaniards do not hold there Is no cove either cither WOY way where here you would not ond find the rest Is what does tho the captain say to itt it old dominique putted bl hla s long pipe tranquilly what does doea captain S jean ean make ot of repeated bohon to them there Is nothing to make of it returned the alderman eh blen I 1 A little while of uniting wai tinga a day or two old robbers rob bera in the sun eun and without water at that something will be tried leave it to jean that something will be tried for ye all the lady to la at breakfast with the captain ho hd muttered irrelevantly he e has toasted the bread he has made the coffee himself for the english lady name ot 0 gd G d dl 1 1 I have witnessed that I 1 captain Is calling to you observed tho the count now go oil all there to Is a message they went slowly trudging through the sands with dry muttered ests and hopeless prophecies men for the roost most part past the prime of life some flea heavy va indeed with years coming before their captain with an endeavor to assume a sprightly seamans gearing bearing faithful rugged implacable faces adventurers who had given their wild youth to him it Is in my mind to put the eng lish lady and my friend monsieur Monal cur do Al monaster in the th way of annety said chief quietly aulet lv thero there Is a chance for them the rest I 1 and yau you 11 no lie stopped and smiled at them there was a shout 1 I and you Is I 1 jean with them coupe came closer tying tight the bloody silken head scarf about his seal brown skull hla his wound wrecked face took a ghast ly grin they would then still bo be rid of the english woman by some mir aclo allol I 1 lean jean would shabre freo free of his burden of the english woman and bo be with them once again it can be established that monsieur do almonas ter Is of spanish lineage and that mademoiselle lespron Is of a mission that was working in tile the pay of the spanish king 11 went on cup captain tain mazarac evenly if then they cou could id reach a ship it Is probable the they v would find refuge the rest jo abid again the shout of grim humor cut him off the rest why the rest could expect the reef the tropic sun and their capt captain nInI I 1 still thele their dour sour hopeless humor certainly there was nothing for the test rest of them I 1 but now the english woman came OU out t ot 0 the hot little shelter now you ou will listen to me also men ot of the seraphm not she cried suddenly to mo mn us as well as to your captain I 1 surely there Is a way for us after these treacherous mutineers muti put off with the schooner nerl 1 surely I 1 know your you r faithfulness to him and to your ship I 1 what Is there to fear for seamen who serve loyally their master and their ship they listened curiously monsieur tho the captain pushed back tho the iron gray hair from his temple and listened it was as an it if ho he bad biad heard beard it all and had no more answer than they see you yon Is I 1 the girl went on hotly monsieur Sa saedrac Sae arac mirac playing tile tho part of tx tt patriot to his adopt adopted rid coun country I 1 I 1 an english tory can test testify afy to that I 1 the attack upon tile tho genaros surely I 1 can swear to tho the admiralty of my country that it was wag done for m me in all honor monsieur 0 honor sl there was a stir among them ah theo ea the allinee alli nee again old dominique sighed tho the honor of sn mazarac karac the word of captain guam a to ux admiralties admiral ties that hla his men were good and truel true I 1 for me mein in nil all honor dy by you all honorable men again she elie was puzzled ed by their stir and murmur tho the gri grim m rubbed ribbed their heads lu in doubt them selves balucho walked away and began to cut at tho the grass with his saber idly nez coupe coups joined him feeling of his wreck of WHOSO enose the english woman know knew she was falling failing with them monsieur was looking nt at her pityingly monsieur do Almonn monaster almonaster Al ster with folded arms aims quietly attentive hla his calm taco face unreadable this lull dull impasse was cut through with a shout gorgio on the highest duno dune was pointing sea ward she la IS coming in I 1 she Is making tho the inlet wl tide and air Is I 1 the seraphine Seraph lne was moving then them thero there was mother another shout above her in tho the misty offing another salt pall showed dimly and slowly under way tho the spanish frigate sirl cried bohon standing in close us as ehe dares daree to tb look the schooner overt drackley ackley Or Cr must ha but hammered her rodder on tho the bar last night I 1 see aeo a false rig over her end ashes fouled hos hes her up in the wooded river out a 0 the kings big gansl guns I 1 de Al monaster almonaster Almon asier shrugged rugged Bh it meant means the end of flight or hiding for those marooned on the open reef ali ah well 1 ho be glanced about Ma mademoiselle demol our honorable gentlemen may well look aghast I 1 ile he laughed but to the chief he muttered monsieur Saz mazarac arac we might as well build a fort in the sands bands and sell our lives dearly it if not the spaniards it will be the campeche campiche Cam peche savages coming out upon us it if not them starvation and the sun in a fow few days there Is no water on this reef monsieur ISIon its I 1 mademoiselle had listened do de at al mon asters tone was light as it if b both oth the gentlemen were affecting a d debonair nonchalance for her sake alon monsieur Soza acs shrug was of delicate dissent to discuss their lives live s end in her presence then lie he smiled distantly YOU toil will recall tho the instruction I 1 once gave you were to be my prisoner monsieur in event the sera Seraph lue was taken on the seas you were to be as one held to an unlawful affair against your willil will il do Al monaster flushed to his eyes monsieur eurl I 1 do you think that I 1 he stopped bazanac could not offer him life lightly in her presence presen col 1 undoubtedly the spaniard will re nc copt you and mademoiselle Le stron monsieur dominique also a municipal officer of now new orleans there Is no reason why alie spaniards should not receive and protect you and you the younger man could not help thea V whispered Q question U es tion 1 I tako take it that the spaniards will attack the tha seraphine in those choso woods wooda and leave leava no soul living on lier her I 1 assume that tho the mouth of every scoundrel on her will be closed by death ther then you with mademoiselle lespron to tho frigate and say that you were marooned by the buccaneers bucca and claiming protection why tb the as spanish p a n governor at merida arvern cruz must know of carrs pl ot I 1 surely he would welcome mademoiselle Le lespron stron and her ft fri lenda endal I 1 why are you not monsieur also my friend and protected with me the girl calk cried wonderingly asit it is ig ind indeed ed a fair story an intrigue to save us all I 1 why did I 1 not think tile the spaniards would protect us when the they V will F suppose that I 1 a am in still in the plot of carrs purpose ID to aid their schemes messieurs I 1 can safeguard you all to vern vera cruz with that pleat plea I 1 they ill all heard her but a silence fell tile girl looked eagerly from one weathered fac faco to another of monsieur acs fow few followers suddenly monsieur mazarac badarac laughed again aloud and clearl clearly v 0 ho O arose and adjusted his necker neckerchief chic f there was a gasp a grumbling bewilderment and then laughter from all the old buccaneers bucca they slapped each ot other her on the shoulders grinning knowingly at their chief my compliments to thu the lucyl shouted Joh hohanness anness but the climate 0 vera cruz my lungs aro ara de dell licater catel and I 1 merd that I 1 night might have a humor ol 01 othe the blood were I 1 therol theral mocked bohon my ormy head complained the BOUT Nea coupe tho the rest of it mag might h t go a at sight of the gover governors ebe att in mademoiselle turned to the captain hotly what Is this josti they tawa mun no disrespect he mo to tha grinning 14 mw with a serious affection now set get you gone fellows 1 see that our wine and little water la Is stored from the sun work the longboat closer in on the til tide loss arac V they shouted in hoarse laug laughter liter and went to obey him lie ile saw the hurt pride in her eyes and tho old wonder at hla his evasion she turned to do Al Almonn monaster ster with a pathetic little gesture of despair a at t the moods of monsieur sn mazarac Saz arac she could not understand she eat drawing figures in the sand and when she bho raised her dark eyes to watch tho the tall figure out by the sun wash on the shoals the young man saw the great tears in them which she presently wiped away she blie dried lier her eyes with a final res rea sob Mon monsieur stour do you know well once he came for mo me it was on the staircase of a court the clotel orleans and ana very late he was going from me and ho he had been all chivalry ile ho turned away allow ing colonel carr to boast that mazarac would not fight because he wished to spare my name ile he isaid ald ah ab it was a silly thing f for or mo me to dol do I 1 but I 1 dropped a flower to him as he be left and another man stumbled from the shadows and picked it up another man echoed do de almon aster that was before you iwa come to me raoul on the seraphine Seraph lne As to the other man that was no matter I 1 suppose a beggar in the courtyard caught my camellia I 1 dont know it was silly to throw a hower flower to Ba bazaine nc the river gamester I 1 was hot with shame afterward at doing so BO but if ho he had caught it AI ah 4 well I 1 I 1 thank leaven heaven ho he never know knew it I 1 after I 1 found myself in his handa bands upon the Seraph inot the ragged fellow who caught it stared up once and then hurried after monsieur mazarac Saz Suz arac at the area arch he turned it ap feared he tried to poso pose as aa a lover and then lie he tell fell over hla his own foot or something very absurd absurdly lyl I 1 A ragged fellow muttered do monaster almonaster AI Al like one of these old tattered followers A ghost of a man fading into moonlight 11 1 A shout arose from the exiles who wh 0 were dragging the longboat nearer in the shoals monsieur mazarac had paused halfway half way to fo them lie he saw what had hitherto been hidden by a low spit of sand armed boats had bad drawn inshore coming from tho the distant spanish frigate without doubt they had crept unnoticed by the refugees on tho the reef until they were fair in the brenk break of forest wall th there ero the last glimpse of the Sera phinell snowy sail do you see monsieur do almonas ter said the 60 chief of the exiles quietly it was as I 1 reasoned the schooner will NOW be taken this night it la hi what one would greatly brently desire tho the dons will have no quarter iter tor for crack leys men there la is no escape for de them in in the river jungle after the affair sir you are to go 91 0 with mademoiselle a and nd parley with the spanish captain and you mademoiselle cried again breathlessly and sprang upon the sands sanda you and your men cannot stay hero here to diol die I 1 monsieur gazaras smiled with a high serenity the sea Is wide Ma mademoiselle demot lespron Le stron wide and far aar la Is the way ao to its secret places I 1 have a mind I 1 suld this onceco once to yo you U 0 little place in the soa eoa a secret place where a 6 secret brei may bo be bur burled lel dademo mademoiselle s el 10 1 1 returned he turned t to p the younger man you yon will make ready to go monsieur when the hour comes there are two black men of our company who can pull the tha long longboat bout for you under a flag of aruea two black serving men who not find tho the air of vera cruz conducive to a fatal malady the rest of us I 1 fear must do without the ministrations i rations of the spanish viceroys vice roys physician yh as ad long as WO we can possibly it a day 1 ay or so BO more ere erd the doctor calls for uel ua his smile still lingered when do A Al monaster camo closer torn by a wild Mite rams which he himself could not fathom jean he whispered I 1 1 I have not spoken the choice Is hers between you and we roe and she ahe might save you fro from M Muil murillos Mu llOS melt meal she might plead with the viceroy that she loved you eyen even lafeete of old me black flag I 1 that la a jest murmured bazaral absently worthy of john jarvis who played the down clown to betray me a plea for lafitte life to murillo iff 1 TO BE BB CONTINUED |