Show porto P 11 am t 0 bello B 0 gold aenk id SYNOPSIS the th story opens in new york about the middle of the bight nth century oan tury robert Or ormerod Orm morod eroc who tells fill the tale ti in talking to peter corlzer Cor laer chief of th the a traders and man ot of enormous strength when darby mcgraw irish bonded boy brings news new that a pirate ship to IB oft off the hook an old sea captain an bounces he be has been chased by the notorious pirate captain rap the older ormerod tolls tells robert the pirate la in andrew murray hla his great uncle comman commanding dinc the pirate ship hip the royal james murray li in an ardent jacobite next day robert nobert and darby encounter a one legged sailor john El silver liver robert nobert meets a young woman from a Sparil spanish sh frigate who la in seeking her father colonel odonnell murray with a force of sailors visits the ormerod house ile he announces his intention of carrying off robert kobert by force it if necessary promising him a great creat future the royal hoyat janiel james and the walrus the latter commanded by flint murrays Mur rays partner in piracy appear murray robert nobert and peter board the james murray hurray joffere flint a share bhare in the loot of A spanish treasure ship if he will cooper co oper ate with him insists robert be left with him as an a hostage while murray in the tha R noyah 0 yai james takes the treasure ship p CHAPTER VII continued A 1 I was on the other side of africa when I 1 first had word prince charles bad raised the white cockade in scotland in the 45 1 I stilled for home as you have heard and was ronny many months too late to be of service but I 1 established touch with friends in france who work for the cause and to BO learned that the good work was wag going merrily on all that la Is wanted for another rising Is money gogoll lie ile paused and it ft slow strange smile mile shadowed hla his face and ho drew a finger across the map on the table 1 I said mald I 1 would tell you a story he be went on but after all ula itts only a dream a wicked old mans dream robert hobert fo eo you think of me I 1 know and your father and peter there and I 1 wonder what t the little maid you spoke with would think or the poor old king who huddles over his brazier for warmth in the dreary palace in rome that Is 19 all he has left of his majesty I 1 or prince charlie who flits back and forth from france to the low countries scheming and plotting and always curbed for lack of foidl cold I 1 gold we stumble for lack of it in every enterprise with sufficient of it you mity may upset kingdoms buy pardons obtain patents and honors and place a 0 definite substance mark you hard and shining and heavy in the hand not such thistledown thistle down RS es dreams dreama tire are made 0 when was the thought born I 1 cannot say flint and I 1 hail had often sought the yearly treasure ship but never had sight of tier her then one day the idea come came to me to utilize my jacobite friends in france and spain A bribe which I 1 supplied procured for odonnell already tin an on the regular establishment of the spanish forces appointment as an inspector of fortifications oti on the ports on the mn a ills his forefinger explored the hatt chart before us ua and came to rest upon a lot dot on the flank of the narrow neck of land which joins the two americas Amerl cas there Is porto bello which was tile the port of the old treasure galleons gal leons pad discarded ns as such by the spaniards after morgan sacked it but later they restored and strengthened strengthen eq ole he fortifications although in the late war our admiral vernot carried it U by ur prise at that time cartagena was the treasure center and when vern vernon n tit tempted it lie wits repulsed repulse with loss two years since the council or of tile the indies decided decide to resume sailings froin from porto bello which ta Is the most advantageously situated of nil all ports aorta on the euln 51 tilia for the collection of the treasure Is seel I 1 ITIs about midway betwixt mexico and peru and the mines of Ver are nt at its ita back door the treasures are fetched south from la vern cruz by it ft ship under tinder escort of the garda costas and transferred at urto porto I hello BOW to the ship for spain which puts forth about the beginning or middle of september this Is a strong ship and well but the spaniards have lave been aught by centuries of experience to incept nu no risk for her her identity Is never known knon in advance even to het captain lie ile sails from cadiz for lie file under tinder sealed orders which lm he loth doth not open until mid atlantic Is ns cd and these orders do but carry mm idin to poro hello bello then how shall you have word vord of tier An soiling fling I 1 broke in swept off my feet by the rush of this thlu amazing narrative rit tive that Is odonnell ti task lie ile will reach bello during durings the summer ond and be so concerned ned for the staw state of f the fortifications that hell refuse 0 t leave until tie lie has pu them it in de ft ff risible condition whilst he Is there to will receive dispatches from spain him home on argent affairs lie will elect to embark upon the treasure ship because she Is large und commodious and ilk likewise dewise safe and thanks to his position he will have bave accurate knowledge some days lu n anit nce of her ter sailing galling date when ne ile hits uia obtained hills fad fact he wl will cony it secretly to one diego calvez I 1 in that mat port by arthur A D H howden 0 aden smi smith IKI copyright by br arthur V I 1 blowden smith service diego by ODon nells help will get out of town and pul to sea in a fast sloop he hath in a little river near where was waa tile the ancient town of nona nom bre de dlos dios so BO that wo we shall have sure tidings of the trini dads coming and be prepared for tier her nut but what of her course I 1 nihed the map there are tareo separate exits from the caribbean into the atlantic you have clapped on to the nub of our oar problem said eald murray 11 twos the piece of information I 1 was waa at most pains balna to obtain the trinidad will head for the mona pas sage I 1 will show you why the first aim of tile tho spaniards la Is to conceal her voyage she soils sails a course which keeps her as much ns no possible in open sens and the best exit for tant purpose la Is the opening between loin iola and porto rico my intent Is that th the royal eRoyal james shall ply ot oft the westerly mouth of the passage from about tho the end of august avoiding all intercourse with shipping and keeping as far out to sea as la Is practicable when diego appears we will restrict the space of our beat and twill bo be impossible for the treasure ship to escape us if she runs runa we can catch tier her and at fighting I 1 can take any don under a ship othe o th allne so much I 1 heard you declare to colonel odonnell aboard the brig I 1 said nut but what comes next you take tho the trinidad and then lie ile moved hla his forefinger over tho the surface of tile the map and brought it to rest in front of a tiny outline sketched in ink on the expanse of sea east of cuba and somewhat to the north of Hi northward of this thin spot stretched the far flung myriads of the bahamas Bahn maH that Is what you have heard flint and me refer to as the rendezvous and spyglass island he answered it has other names I 1 believe some have called it treasure island although I 1 know of no treasure upon it als ITIs said that kidd discovered it and certes bertes others of the old time buc cancers were wont to maintain themselves there we are bound thither now to refit and careen and when we have tile treasure safe under hatches we will return to the island to divide it and concert arrangements for delivering their share to colonel ODon nella nells friends what will flint pay to your fetching in strangers to your hiding place I 1 asked A furrow deepened betwixt my great uncles lambent eyes hell not like it robert he admitted 1 11 I have ODon nells word to betray none of our secrets and indeed itis als to his own interest to keep hidden his part in this affair but flint may well make trouble a determined log dop and a greedy look you boy will you stand by me in the affair for the girls sake if for no other renon reason why not leave her aboard the treasure ship ile he regarded me askance it may be we nye must sink I 1 started up now that ill hal ha nought naught to do with I 1 I 1 ha bal told you id tight it if you butchered the defenseless lie ile waved me back peace pence we cannot carry off MY all tile the spaniards in any case and ile he hesitated odonnell must be protected lie concluded against what wagging tongues I 1 tell you hla his part must never be known the san sIma trinidad disappears and with her the treasure and till all tier lier company theres no other way talce take the treasure if you must I 1 retorted hut but do not stain your hands with the blood of men who have bave not harmed banned you 1 I must slay some of them in till all probability returned my great uncle what difference between that and slaying all I 1 remembered the thrill of reprobation with which even the most devoted adherents of king george had heard of the butchery of the scots wounded after culloden theres but one thing to do I 1 sald said you must make pretense of bearling bearing off the daughter and you can imprison tile the father too a order to sah silence nce ills his objections A fit role for a pirate captain mused my great uncle 1 I el capitan ant and how lie he devoured the virgin I 1 I 1 can hear the stories that will be told in the havana wine shops but I 1 must have my price robert it if I 1 spare such spaniards as escape our great guns gulls and the boarding cutlasses cut lasse lasses will you agree to stand back of me in the division of the spoils with flint ill not become in your piracies pi if t that be your meaning I 1 returned no my meaning 13 plain boy I 1 wish you and peter to help me to get clear of flint with the ODon nells and their portion of the treasure but why return to the rendezvous at all bear oft off with the ODon nells and land anem and their treasure bo be for you deliver flint hla his share net so BO simpie is all that the action with the sai assima trinidad wig require cannonading canno and that will bo be hearil heard probably we shall be seen salling sailing away we may be pursued the surviving spaniards whom you will have me spare will speedily have their frigates after us we must remain under cover for a period very well I 1 said 17 1 I will do what you ask for the maids sake if peter Is willing ja i assented peter murray caught my hand in a quick firm arm clasp Go good otil I 1 he cried twill be the first 0 ninny many times we stand shoulder to shoulder ah robert I 1 hal ha dreamed a splendid dream and any man who helps in n its achievement will not have lived in vain well take this gold and build an avenue of victories for the kings ride to whitehall what will we not do we well I 1 rouse the claymores cla ymores from the hills I 1 well carry the irish brigade to london town I 1 well fetch home the wild geese from their haunts of exi ile alel well ha the beacon fires ablaze e from end to end of the three kingdoms Kingdo insl 1 and the white cockade over nil all I 1 therell be no talk of pirates then 1 twill be my lord duke of jedburgh Jed burgh marqula marquis of Cobble law and earl and karon baron broomfield aye and an english peerage to boot well weil ride high rolert robert aye with the high highest esti 1 ile he broke off short and the glow in hla his eyes charred out not a bad vision for a wicked old man to dreamed drea hoy boy remember it when you hear the crowds a cheering us in the strand CHAPTER VIII the island one day was waa like another aboard the royal hoyal james although to a landsman the routine of dutle duties work and varying weather was charged with unending interest my great in the afternoon there thera was wa a pike and cutlass drill uncle held his pack of wolves on a short leash and exacted from them all the effic efficiency tency of it man o wars company each morning he be inspected the ship chip from stem to stern stem accompanied by tits hla off leers find and he was waa not slow to administer rebil rebukes kes for shortcomings or oversights later in the forenoon the men were exercised fit at the great guns and in fit the afternoon there was pike and cutlass drill the watch was rigorously maintained sly my great uncle was particular that I 1 should be well garbed and forced upon me several suits of ills his abundant wardrobe drobe which were given the necessary by a former j journ journeyman eyman tailor who had haid escaped from newgate on the eve of execution execute for the murder of a scolding wife lie ile would have bave done clone ns its much for peter also but the dutchman refused to ile be parted front from tits salt stained blick buckskin skin shirt and leggings and ari an odd figure collaer made in all conscience striding the decks of the royal james in the costume of a n forest runner even to the knife and hatchet hung bung on either thigh to the west of the Bermo othes within sight eight of which we never cattle came we encountered the walrus again flint having had substantially the same experience as is ourselves and thenceforth we continued continue la A 1 company we were eleven weeks out of new york when a cluster of rocky peaks konred above abote the lie heat haze dead ahead sly my great uncle after it a single squint through ills fits object glass handed the instrument to roc me tile the island he said td id know those peaks anywhere the double lins lens etched distinctly it a rugged spread of land shelving up out of the sea from a succession of yellow beaches on the east to a series of small smal I 1 I 1 hills 11 ll 11 8 which wh 1 ch culminated in a range of considerable height along the westward side running almost due n north 0 r 1 b an and it BOU south t h the interior seemed to be heavily fore forested i the trees climbed the mountains to within the last lagi few hundred feet of their summits which were hare bare rock precipitous ir in the case of cf the mid most and highest a cloud hung giant which dominated the island nearing its shores I 1 descried the tangled masses of trees which clothed roost most of its surface A few conifers shot up to goodly stature but the greater part of the forest growth was waa gnarled wind tortured dwarfs misshapen abor abortions tiow of trees the whole effect of the place seen from offshore was sinister and forbidding repulsive na as the silent ferocity which emanated from the blind man pew my great uncle turned over the conduct of the ship to martin and crossed to where peter and I 1 stood staring about us starboard master Martl martini nl called my great uncle as ile he jo joined ined peter and me starboard your helm belm if you please aye on to flits shoal here we shall have three fathoms and less to careen in bid thera them drop the anchor martin bawled tin on ord order er A whistle piped and there was a great clatter and rustling of rope running loose a mighty splash that drove the birds in tumult into the air and the royal hoyal james swung to her cable close under unde r the lesser islands shore ny my gren great uncle waved one hand over the bulwark skeleton island this Is called robert he said 1 I tell you because you demonstrate so BO grew gome an interest in the more horrifying episodes of our past but I 1 regret I 1 must confess that I 1 know of no DO authentic detail to account for the no lature pirates have a way or of naming darning a spot to stilt themselves without rime or reason it tile the fancy once moves them may we land I 1 answered ignoring his gibe suit stilt yourselves he returned with a shrug 1 I must have all my men busy aboard here however and can spare none to guide 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