| Show I 1 porto bello air G gold I 1 d CHAPTER X continued 12 the silence allence was oppressive ba as we ascended tile tho poop ladder A last babble of latin ended on in an hysterical note 1200 the spanish captain stalked to the far side aide of the deck rumbling curnes und and fixed ills his gaze upon the purple of behind the steering wheel the black flock of religious gathered closer under the treat great glided gilded lanthorn which crowned the high pulpit ilke alko recess intended to protect the helmsman and amongst those shaved heads and shapeless swathed forms the slim grace and sunny blue eyes of moira odonnell were AS patent as the growing fear with which her father met us don decanto has placed tile the conduct of matters in my hands what Is next must you he began lie he gestured expressively toward the vessel teasel beneath us it seems 1 I 1 I find myself tim it nauseating prospect several hundred men and priests and nuns murray aye a cardinal sin ore one ill never have absolution for whatever betide you concern yourself dauee maid bald marmy soothingly 4 we have arranged it differently and to that end I 1 shall net act a part with your our daughter which you must support bye aye to the offering of violence and now tell me where Is the treasure in the lazaret 1 master Saunder Baun dera allf I 1 called my great uncle take fifty men and break out a quantity of tr treasure ensure from the lazaret of the prize aye aye sir air returned sounders saunders and nd the pirates foil fell over themselves in n their alacrity to have a hand in his film business my great uncle concluded the cleaning of hla his sword crossed to the larboard railing and tossed the bloodied handkerchief overboard oh master martin he be hailed the santo mate on the poop of the royal james be so BO good no as to have a whip rigged from the arra arm to sling ailing aboard the treasure which sounders saunders to la break ing out oat 1 aye aye sir air ill attend to it all myself martin assured him my eyes for it a and all the twelve apostles blast em for a lot of A pungent fellow Martl martini nl commented my great uncle re crossing the deck cut but we must play our little comedy here you chevalier are cast tor for the anguished parent I 1 am the aged libertine pet er Is the muto mute with tile th e bowstring be gentle peter robert humpal I 1 scarce know how to describe your role robert you shall we say are to be youth you shall be youthful wantonness and did we adopt all the exigencies of the plot atwould be necessary for you finally to strive with me for the possession of the maid but we will wave that anon play up to me nephew I 1 you too peter I 1 ile he left us and walked with a mincing gait entirely different from h his is real catlike prowl up to tho the black barbed cluster surrounding Ml mistress etress odonnell me a fair piece this I 1 lie drawled too fair to bloom unseen come hither mistress 1 but the maid answered him so BO dauntlessly that it made the blood prickle in my neck A black shame on you old enough to he be tile the fattier father of me and these others here I 1 I 1 I 1 know you for what you are captain rip nip rap and if you will be thinking I 1 am one to fear you it to Is a sorry wakening you will have oh you might better be down on your knees asking pardon for the wickedness you have wrought than plotting fresh evil and threatening holy folk with your dreadful torments I 1 so you recognize me said my great uncle tig tie an honor mistress but I 1 fear you have heard much to my prejudice and I 1 must press pres you to visit my ship and learn the contrary ar v 11 step forward colonel and defend tier I 1 in muttered uttered under wy ny breath to her father ile he had the grace to blush but he acted upon my suggest suggestion lon with a semblance of sincerity sir sir air what le la this boudo you do I 1 he cried bertes certes Cert tes ca there la Is some borne limit to your lawbreaking law breaking I 1 the maid la Is my daughter my great uncle went through his snuff muff ritual with an artful exaggeration which W was a 8 comical to io one who knew him unfortunate 1 he drawled 1 I wish I 1 could sympathize with you sir and to me I robert tobert you will conduct the lady to the jamec for the first time mistress ess odon nellic glance lighted fair upon my face master Orme rodl rodt she gasped best come quietly mistress I 1 snapped mapped she nile flung tier her hands bonds to fend me off and tile the fat monk and the two nuns cast themselves upon us the monk striling qt at my head hi ad with him heavy ind and the nuns nuna scratching and clawing so that I 1 was put to it to protect my eyes they were surely three of the bravest people who ever live d and but for peter they would have worsted aie tile the bit big dutchman waded stolidly sam lm the confusion shoved odonnell ll froni from hla his upset the monk anil pushed re tf nuns nulls out of tile tiie way YOU df at little gal eal bob 1 lie she serij aled wit nil all tile the st irs 0 o her lar luhrine me body but I 1 pinned lier her I 1 anti and heraver her my a by arthur D howden smith by arthur D smith woj U der dorand derand and then her fattier father attacked attached me with tho the spanish captain whose patience had been exhausted by this not last outrage murray drow drew hla his sword and forced the th spaniard back and peter slung odonnell over his shoulder na as easily ills as I 1 had tho the maid 1 I got effot him jia ja he announced to murray my great uncle sheathed his bis sword carry him along lie he said banco in he be la is so BO much concerned its as to hla his laughters fate we will permit penult him to watch it afterward it may be he can afford us some additional amusement me a most persistent fellow I 1 P A line of pirates staggered across the decks bricks backs stooped beneath burdens of portly casks aud and ironbound iron bound chefs wire wrapped and padlocked each a B dangle with leaden seals impressed M with the lie arms anna of the span sh king they leered nt at my writhing captive but they all looked quickly away as my great uncle descended to us 8 can you manage tier lier alone he asked roo me curtly ill manage tier her or go overboard with her I 1 barked lie ile smiled the right spirit ind bladl I 1 tut tnt tut mistress as silo elio wrenched a liand land free and dug nt at my eyes you concern youri yourself elf for nothing we have but played at a game observe your fathers attitude the greater his shamel she hissed that lie he should have suffered you rou to take me alive 1 we are friends urged my relative lowering his voice tie TIB but a pretense we make Fri friends endal I 1 ah you ore are friends to the powers howera of evil be patient a little longer moira pleaded her father from his perch on peters Fh shoulder ill e explain rp a in lf she went of a sudden entirely limp and burst into a passion of weeping oh padre padre to think of you a coward 1 als ris worst of alili odonnell swore helplessly I 1 climbed hy by way of a cao nade 0 on n to the larboard bulwarks bulwa holding mistress odonnell with one arm while I 1 took a strand of rigging with rith the other and even as 1 I collected myself to jump the gap that separated the two vessels she twisted free of me and would have slid over elde to be crushed to death most likely for the two hulls bulls were continually grinding together I 1 caught tier her in the nick of time letting so go my clutch upon the rigging and was near to being dragged down with tier her teetering back and forth as aimless as a feather blown by the wind so that what with her struggles struggler and my own loss of balance I 1 gritted gritter my teeth and jumped most precariously hit bit or miss and I 1 am bound to admit landed upon the james bulwarks bulwa rather by good fortune than skill I 1 dropped to the deck in no very pleasant mood an ill recompense for one that hath been nt at pains to I 1 caught her in the th nick of 0 tm time spare your fat fathers tiers reputation mistress I 1 growled na as surly curly as any pirate of the crew you might ha bal been my death she looked at me too surprised to answer nt at once and before she lind recovered herself my great uncle an anil tl peter joined us ua peter still placidly acidly r il currying carrying colonel odonnell like a lour flour sack back murray east cast it a swift glance of appraisal around his ship we have come through very creditably he remarked martir let me know as soon as tile the prizes treasure Is I 1 all aboard 11 ile he turned to us the curtain Is ready to fall upon our comedy will you accept my arni mistress tresa odonnell 7 A glass of wine and n bite of bailors Bai sal lors fare will taste better than roberts It ear car will ch your hunger promoted you to nibble 11 1 fie 1 e ie fie my laasi silo she stared at him with utter litter horror yet su bufred fred ill him to place her hand upon its arm the spirit ivas gone out of her extin exhausted by the struan she b had been subjected subject el to slip she ws ina a butterfly d on 11 tho thorn rn colue of th tin sensation mut must have affected my relative for or he patted the limp hand on lit bla arm with a truly paternal kindness come come me did I 1 not say the comedy was waa endert he chided her you are as safe here as in your spanish convent but the deck la Is too public for our revelations we will seek the to cluelon of tile the cabin and there tharo the complete tale shall bo unfolded for your reassurance with your father a witness to gumport it IL she hook book be 1 I 1 I 1 know adow not what you menn to be sure ho he agreed but you soon shall ahall peter good friend take three steps within the companionway hr and d there deposit colonel with decent propriety upon the two lambb nature intended for ills his locomotion co ah I 1 excellent I 1 allow me mistress mistreat I 1 don ben gunn clunn and the two negro lackeys ushered tile alie party to their mistress odonnell sank into hers with a weariness Fj that was pathetic she wag quite regardless of her surroundings reter peter took his accustomed place fit at the opposite end and I 1 sat eat beside tier her let roe give you it a gl glass of tills this aqua vitae my loss ings said maid by great uncle u n c I 1 e eulica for fatigue and the migraine see I 1 taste it myself ala T Is quite bulte nil fill right you too chevalier excellent I 1 perhaps you will pass the flask to muster master cornnor yonder and master blaster ormerod yonder my nephew but I 1 believe you and your daughter have had bad previous acquaintance with him 0 odonnell ODo muttered something none too civil but tile maid stirred bestirred be her self and her eyes examined me again with the mingling of horror and stupefaction pe re faction which governed her mood ilow how come you here she asked yoi YO you are you also a pirate 1 I RM am a captive as surely as aa yourself I 1 returned aye more so no A cap captive I 1 she exclaimed her interest fanned alight but mire surely ly you my great vincle uncle interrupted her please mistress ODonnel lf I 1 our duj tale la Is sufficiently complicated let us not make lit it more difficult to comprehend by confusing it at the beginning with side issues first that there nifty may he be no misunderstanding anding itts true that I 1 am he who la is known na as captain calta in kip rap she shrank away from him in n a renewed access of terror I billave llave already told you that y you 0 u have no cause to fear me he we went nt on gently and to prove that I 1 to 0 you I 1 will add that I 1 am an outlaw what la Is colled called a pirate although I 1 detest the word myself because beca use I 1 am a jacobite I 1 believe to too 0 1 I may claim your father as my friend ile he looked inquiringly at odonnell the irishman drained his glass ris true lie he assented this gentleman Is one andrew murray who was as out in the 15 and was afterward in trouble in new york province on the score of intrigues with our friends and the french moira ile he hath bath been a good servant to king lames james but for why will you have been the death of nil all the poor folk on the trinidad she cried tim regrettable that spaniards had to dle die lass answered my great uncle lowering hla his voice to a proper depth of emotion but I 1 call to your mind that spain has not helped the good cause as she might when there was a bonny chance of fetching the stuarts home that Is god gods g truth she admitted with quick passion but 1 I am thinking itis not 11 you talk nonsense motra moira blustered tier her father Is it not better that this treasure should be employed to recover england and all the lands pertaining to the english crown for their rightful rulers who will assist in the restoration of the true falth faith than it should be poured into tile the pockets of the kinglet favorites at madrid why lass there are great lords aye a n prince of tile the church no less that set the seal of their approval to what we do the people of spain will be think thinking thanking ing us for tile the usa to which we turned their treasure tr ensure and then well pay it back he added with a happy inspiration odds that we will 1 indorsed endorsed Indor sed my great uncle a million and a half pounds to royal spain aye or to an england that waxes grandly under wise stuart rule she was silent ills suave nin manner niner conveyed subtly an implication of the importance he attached to her approval I enild w auld not inflict a dose of the mitt erial philosophy of agn upon one to young and charming my imy dear lie he went on but poi possibly you yon will forgive me it if I 1 indicate to you the regret I 1 table circumstance that the ideal jr IB seldom attainable in order orde r to anre the means for re rc king kinf james and whitt what your father so BO quaint the true faith in the british isles it hath bath been necessary for a gentleman of questionable legal status myself associated wit with others of yet more dubious antecedents and repute to procure the death of divers spanish perso persons n S who of themselves had never wrought any anny harm barm against us or the cause we served tim b by y pre chely such contraventions of precedent and lettered laws that epochal events are brought about I 1 trust my renso reasoning ning Is clear odonnell emptied it a glass ditl an all ImPat impatient lent growl that masked mask d tin an oath you are arc wasting oliue murray al urray violin 1 Is 19 9 11 hio anti and my daughter but vant int I nt ali die th thinks ilik 0 tills this ven venture ture I 1 g s of considerable onside rable to 11 1 I was ine CM my great uncle protested compelled in the beginning of our acquaintance qua latance to give her a wrong tm tin pre salon of my iny character and I 1 am extremely desirous to have ter her good opinion nut but why Is master blaster ormerod a cap tive alvet why does he be any I 1 am a captive if s you are not a captive returned my great brent uncle at least I 1 say that under the impression that ng as your fat fathers tiers daughter and a devout jacobite you yon would not whatever your per person sonni nl feelings might be undertake to interfere with our plans 1 I arn wondering are you all road the she said bold blankly yon may well say any sot eol I 1 exclaimed tho the truth Is this mistress finster murray buth besides hla his own ships co company ann a second band of pirates the which are restless beneath hn hh thumb lie desired me to be ills hla lieutenant to help him blin hold them in restraint you them bravely aboard the trinidad 1 cho said that wn wits to save enve you I 1 I 1 dec declared I 1 aided troth and im saved she nhe echoed yes you and your father said paid murray gravely colonel odonnell risked everything on this coup of ours to protect him ess it should never be known he ans privy to it we lind bad the choice of two menns means to that end one was to sink the trinidad with nil all hand except yourselves the other was to arrange to remove the two |
