Show s t 9 f Wf W Pl Tie Ship Wife l 1 Woman By HUGH PEN DEXTER Author of Kings of the Missouri Pay Gravel A Virginia Scout etc ete 8 Berno Copyright by br Hugh rL I N A A CLOSE OSE CAI CAlt SYNOPSIS Traveling Traveling br by cano canoe on the Ml il on his hll way to In th the early days of th the settlement of Louisiana William Brampton English spy known to Indians Indian and settlers Ulen ra a All me th the White Whit Indian sees lee I a Natches Indian poets pota war tear against Ag the French For his hla purpose h hi h. hastens batten to carry caff th the news newl n wi to French Brampton nets an old friend Jo Jo Labrador Indian In In- In dlan dian halfbreed who sho warns warn him Glenville has bAIl threatened to hang hang- him a as AI a Brampton refuses to turn back lie He falls fall In with Jules JuJu and Matter MaUor on their wa way lo to to secure wi wives vel from a the th Malre Matra bringing women from France rance At At Brampton protects protect a woman from froma a sergeants sergeant's brutality She tells tell him she sh h I Is Claire aarde picked up In a raid In Paris Parl Evidently Evidently Evidently Evi Evi- dently well bred and educated Ih ehe he la ts a mystery to Brampton lie intervenes Intervene to prevent a man English known a as AI Old Six Kin Fin gen Ber following her ber to New Nw Orleans Orlean Or- Or leans lean A Frenchman Franco Francois Narbonne slightly lightly ly demented by stories tic he has tra heard of the riches of the New World Intro duce due himself ac accuse Brampton of treachery but th the Ibe latter laUer secures a respite from depth death by revealing the Natchez declaration of war He tie lieIs Is 1 la to await the of it IL former companion the Fox who will exonerate or condemn him has documents document proving provine Brampton an English spy Brampton receives receive a message meaner from Claire to help her ber reach the English settle settle- menta ments CHAPTER IV Continued IV-Continued Continued 5 Then to tome me Do you ship with us us' us You two are free fleo to go 0 and come come ns as you will I cannot go with you yon I am sorry Barry If It you will 1 ask for tor one one J Jean an boatman you can nn bargain with him to take you to Bayou St St. Jean and from there you youcan youcan youcan can easily make the settlement Monsieur Brampton Is very polite sighed Narbonne I had hoped for your gracious company Come old rat rut we must find this boatman They started toward the fort with the women making sitter after them eager ager agerto to beg bg a passage to New New Orl Orleans which I believe bellive they U thought to be n miniature Purls farts Narbonne waved them aside and they fastened upon Six Fingers and while the old pi pirate rote was busy In fighting them thIU oft the the thel l Frenchman returned swiftly to my side and asked Mademoiselle l elle In black She has gone gone To In Nouvelle NoulIe Orleans I Informed him What do you ou know of ot her Only that I pity her hr Only that she elie Is alone In the world and very very sad Only that she sho Is In great grent fear tear of ot my brother the tho corsair Ho lie keeps kIJS with tae me thinking 1 nm am Interested In her I keep krel with him that he ho may lUny not find her first and add to her fright What a game gamel I I 1 hope to see him die and I will defend him fr from m harm hum until until until un un- til I learn why the little sad one Is afraid of ot him I r regret But If It monsieur monsieur mon mon- cannot go then he cannot annot This last was for tor Six l lingers Fingers benfit benefit ben bene fit tIt as he lied had now got rid of ot the tho worn en rn and run ron buck back with his ears pricked to learn what we weN N were ere Impossible monsieur but I wish well In h endeavors I you ou your sold said And with with n a sweep sweI of ot his cap the ec so- eccentric centric fellow took his his departure and nm went to find Narbonne m might Ight be lie used mad but there was no doubting the kindly ly qualities of ot his heart I slowly made for tur the fort pausing at nt the entrance to recon the square quart It was was now quite dark lark On the left and next to the gate was the go governors q quarters till and through an open window the sound of his Ills measured voice A candle onille was lighted und and I saw standing by the window Passing o on on to the magazine am and guardhouse o on the right end and at the back bock of ot the enclosure I halted before n small adjoining the magazine In which burned a tI candle The room wa was us empty and I 1 entered nt and found 1 what wha whaI hilt hiltI I was teas looking for writing for writing material Those few soldiers who whore who're were re noton no noon not noton on duty were gambling and gossiping In la their barracks The lI lighted lIe candle e evidenced the return of ot the governor go or his superintendent and I nude haste hoste to finish my business For Tor n a HI vu- of reasons 1 I could not explain my in III lr predicament and had to content myself my illy self with saying Mademoiselle Claire There Is much danger sad and yet t there 1 Is no Insurmountable obstacle for a u young joung woman desiring to travel through this country At t present I nm detainee detained here I hope to 1111 leave 0 Ir very 6 soon II when liei my lily bel best t service I will ill III be at lit your com colic arrive nt at New dew V e Orleans Orlean during luring the nl night ht I may 1111 send word b h ba by bya a whoso host o passport port liall be lit th the words 1110 White Indian nn anti and l he ho wit will bring you on to in lop me It will willIe be Ie nI necessary s for im tilt to start 11 north h Immediately 1 1111 I II respectfully your jour attention to I the Indian ludian womans woman's dress which Is III I Ion on Men to woods und and I 1 year jour rC respectful I set lInt III Win t a i was hurriedly rereading II It l I t rm i CJU of tit help d. d t As 1 I sat there with the message before me I 1 knew some lame one wae behind me Picking g up the q quill I dipped It In Ink Ink and began writing r To his excellency Monsieur Philippe d de V Governor of Canada anada Monsieur I find fine myself most unJustly nn- nn Justly Justly I of ot serving the Interest ot of f the English colonies to the hurt of ot France ranee You your excellency who have lave been so well acquainted d' d my activities and and who I Hatter flatter myself Kaye bave lave always given me C limn con n- n I In estimating That po paper per If you please Monsieur Brampton rang rang out the cold voice of ot v III e. e With assumed surprise I wheeled about Tl The e muzzle of ot a flintlock pistol of large bore was was resting on on the sill of ot the window and behind It was the stem stern Implacable and and- suspicious and suspicious countenance coun coun- of ot the governor As 1 I twisted to o face the lute window my nay body masked the he table My lily hand gathered up the themes mes message to the young oung woman and as asI I brought up liP my foot shoved ed It Inside my moccasin Why why why your excellency I This Is s Intolerable You aim at atme atnel me ravel nel I I protest protest- protest protest- Enough Monsieur rampton I sharply Interrupted the governor Where his hla gracious majesty's affairs are Involved I cannot stand on tile the punctilios of courtesy courley poth loth hands hands' hands wh where re I can see lieI them Sergeant bring he has hns been writing I have hu It your excellency all that he has written said the sergeant The pistol vanished and entered the small office omee and without n a glance at me took the sheet of paper paper i I n I ll V I i ii I 1 I i That Paper If You Please Monsieur Brampton Rang Out the Cold Voice of and 1 held It to the candle I and waited walled and la in less than thana a a minute I 1 had the satisfaction of seeIng seeIng see see- Ing tug his lips pursed In chagrin the paper on the table be lie said You may go sergeant After Suarez had tad departed the governor governor governor gov gov- sold said Id to me It was a n disagreeable necessity Had you ou come como t td to my quarters to do your our writing my suspicions might alight not have hn been aroused But nut entering here as If It to escape espionage espionage- lie Ile ceased censed speaking and drummed his fingers un on the table laving having till up- ell as liS near to an apology as he heaired cli cared aired to do Hut what good could such a memo mem rial do you OU 1 Lung Long before I It could l lie be e delivered and antI should have passed on your case In no event does Monsieur have Jurisdiction over If Innocent you will not have hate long loog to Walt wait If guilty your our petition petition pe pe- could uld help you jou o none nOlle Your excellency Is In the rl right ht o oit it h as ns you always are I 1 sighed end am amI I 1 began hegan feeding the petition Into the candle That Is finished rd he said It If you will dine with frith me ate we the shall be serl ser e served Id I'd at once onre I ruse rose and bowed h and stood aside for tor him to precede me through ough the door dour I feared I 1 should hove have no opportunity op op- of speaking to Narbonne bu buas but butas as ns we walked toward the governors governor's quarters I heard the Ibe well well known voice olce raised In a n spirited harangue the au an bring being a II group of ot grinning sol aol Biers lit et at the gate and his companion w were re Just outside the gate and Impatient to he be off oIT That and Six Fingers ha had struck their bargain was shown by the boatmen's lingering although In grea great lI nce r rII II glimpsed ed me ale ot ou the th tilt edge of ut the circle anti abruptly ended his talk an l pressed I 1 forward to Irl greet t me ate stood a 11 few puce ahead of ot me and I I kicked up my toon tout too n nut nud D tl retrieved cd the ant and d it In ill my 01 hand I J regret tl I o ho your com coin puny nr r lie he cried rk 1 Monsieur Narbonne I nm am always nys t rull to do tio Ii you u u a service I l' l heartily l I I replied piled and at some other time tilDe It w. m may y be my good my-good good fortune to have you fOU command me meo Arid And I extended my l hand ne and Id g gave ve him a warm English handclasp handclap I L felt feltIs his Is hand Jerk as the wad of paper pres pressed rested ed Into the palm lm Undoubtedly the he fellow was mad and yet on subjects sub sub- apart from the Mississippi coun coun- country try ry he could be sane sane- enough My nerves erves ceased Jumping as I felt him bum p palming aiming ui the paper It U has been een good to lo meet you fOU mon mon- mon mon- slew r he somewhat stiffly returned Till we meet again at plantation on I 1 shall go In m much for tor silkworms using the be Indian girls and children for tor the delicate task of ot caring for the worms worms And with one of his exaggerated bow bows he was backing toward the suI sul- ten len en pirate and the Impatient bo boatman de was charming He lIe referred In no way to to my dubious positIon po- po and he extended to me those little Ittle attentions that are so natural In his its race And which I am nm forced to believe beleve be- be leve lieve must spring from an Innate kindness of ot heart Only once was my personal standing Involved In our table talk alk talk and that when I ventured to ask Is there any objection to my IDY visiting visitIng visit- visit Ing ng Mobile while waiting for report De Be patient a bit and perhaps we can cnn go there thero together Meaning of ot otc c course urse If If it gave me a clean clean slate Ills Ilia manner discouraged further requests requests requests re re- re- re quests and asIf to a avoid void a r recurrence of ot the subject he entered on a lively discourse upon the the English and the French Drench manner of ot occupying a country country coun- coun try ry ryThe The priest was the first of the French to visit aborigines and the trader rader was first of my people he sold salt This led him Into warm praise of the Je Jesuits whom he greatly admired although although al- al though hough he lie readily admitted they never exercised the same Influence over oyer the lower ower river Indians as they did over the he Canadian In referring to Father Dayton driven In by the and to Father Father Father Fa Fa- ther Foucault by the lie he revealed 10 the Inexorable side Bide of ot his nature hl his blood for tor blood Judgments judgments Judg judg- ments meats by reminding me with much relish how he paid liberal rewards for forthe forthe forthe the murderers' murderers scalps It was his one strong point In his management of ot the Indian tribes tribe for which they knew hIm as ns the Iron lion Hand d. d As blood for blood was the aboriginal point of ot view the policy always had their respect even nn when demanding toll He Ite sneered nt ot Cadillac for tor not suspecting suspecting sus sus- that the silver found fn the lake country was wag carried there from front Mexico o and In the tile next breath he expressed expressed ex ex- pressed absolute confidence In all nil of ot Laws Law's plans He lIe pictured Law finding a bankrupt empire an unpaid army and a starving peasantry with the billets billets bil bil- bil lets going to a discount or of seventy seventy sev sev- enty nty per cent und and then boasted bonsted of ot how bow the magician had eliminated or changed these evils Now the peasants pens pens- ants could make fortunes Luxuries Luxuries' were within the reach of ot all who w would uld reach for tor them regardless of former poverty po France was feverishly fe pros pros- Paris Carls was the center of the world And he firm in his Ills yet was conviction conviction ti tion n that the future of ot Louisiana Louisiana lay lay In la agriculture not In mines and he be insisted that the colonists should be selected with this thou thought ht In view I refused a bed In his quarters for tor I Iwas Iwas Iwas was his prisoner Nor did I I. I care to be bo too much under his his' thumb should I discover an opp opportunity of at escaping So n after Ctr his courteous good night nights I J went to the barracks where Sergeant Su Suarez rez sullenly showed owed me a 11 bunk Very soon Mon I decided my outdoor life lite hind had unfitted me for tor sleeping under cover O I took my y robes and want w nt outside outside out out out- side anti arranged my may bed under the oaks onks As I lay down three figures me and took up positions beten between be be- tween t me nut and the shore the woods wood's to the north and the woods to the west Doubtless there were sharp between me me and the woods nt of the east cast This espionage rS was extremely Irrl tating It accented the th the d nger ot my being In when the Fox arrived My Uy report on Canada so idiotically idi Idl- confided to the I Fox ox was my death warrant That one slip left me mo powerless to face the tell fellow w down did dd he lie return How ilov t completely he tad hud deceived de de- me was w-as shown by my Iny trusting the data care The danger from the tile Fox had seemed rather remote until the sentinels sentinels senti sent nels eels surround me that night then It closed about me and smothered me and I remained awake for hours tryIng try try- In Ing to arrive at some ser sensible plan for leaving r New Orleans und anti keepin 1 my appointment the girl When the sun rose I had single step sep I would give the Impression I was Interested In oln That would be he my illY 10 log cal haven ha It t to escape sc p That runt morning I hn mutated 1 In my stay R ay of ot questioning questioning different men about len the till time It rook look to 10 make the I port rt und and like Hav Having ing hug sown this Seed seed 1 I Visited the office ollre when It was empty and tit the wall maps wull-maps maps as if It wishing to refresh my nay recollection Finishing there I returned to the tho and talked with n a fellow who wIIO owned a I smell ve e reesel Bel 11 called a flute ute I naked asked Mm him If It h he er e made |