Show CA CAPTAIN IN j by CHARLES TENNEY JACKSON copyright by the bobbe bobba merrill AND diel SYNOPSIS under the name of 0 captala faD talo badarac Bai sax arac and disguised jean aa ladette 1 fitte former freebooter of at Bar barataria ataria proscribed returns to the city of new orleans orleana lie he li is recognized by two of his old companions alderman dominique and beluche Bc luche at the gaming earning tablet tables S has won much money from colonel carr car r british officer john jarvis the cites a first bohemian of the arts forts and letters an friend of lafitte tells of 0 a 9 womans comans face and smile As his last wager carr puts up a woman presumably a clave custom compels mazarac to accept the stake he wins his old associates and count raoul de Al monaster accost him as garitte A project of the youthful adventurers of new orleans Is the rescue of napoleon bonaparte from st helena and a ship the Sc raphine has been made ready from do de almonas ter learns that the girl he won at the card table Is white bite ot of high estate and that the matter has been made a byword in the cites resorts saz arse arac finds mademoiselle Le stron a fellow passenger on a river steamer a few days before and with whom he had bad fallen in love Is the girl and in chivalry foregoes his revenge against carr jarvis ad admires m ires mademoiselle leeron tron he Is a witness of the meeting it and 11 d picks up a camellia which the girl had bad thrown unnoticed to ae jarvis Is dangerous he be talks too much in his cups his old associates of the barataria Eara Bar tarla ataria days urge IA labute ii tte to take command of the seraphine ostensibly to rescue napoleon but really to fly the black nag ling and cruise tle the seas he hesitates jarvis Is a witness of the of mademoiselle lespron Le stron but his story Is no not given credence de alm Al monaster ster entertains mazarac Saz arac now admittedly jean gantte at his country house CHAPTER V continued 7 and were he to order these young scions dons of the cites blue blood to bol holystone his decks he would have to land in every isle of the indies to settle fettle the challenges no no sir bonaparte Is safe from these gentry I 1 1 the two gentlemen smiled cut but as they were to part down the banquette of the rue chartres came two figures b we one supporting the file other A short nark dark ragged man whose gold earrings listened glistened under filthy locks struggling to save his basket of cooked crayfish as 8 he steered his com companion pardon on let be growled gorgio the catalan come jarvis the cafe des refugees Ref tor for you man A A ship bai battled led jarvis and being mile much the larger of the two he almost propelled the crayfish era fish seller into the two elegant gentlemen who stepped aside in dis disgust agust to let them pass A ship A rescue old bue buccaneer caneer I 1 ile he lurched to the banquette and tat but there blinking old gor gorgio 10 lo hauled in vain at his sleeve come be up kith alth me but tile towns first bohemian continued to fumble at his clothes clot lies it was nas tills this way they went coralo I 1 am even now on my way to the pollee police to report of the affair I 1 shall opral to the mayor Is not so dumb as to refuse discue to a lady what does he babble of inquired Lang I horrie ainu atily the painter got to his feet ile he was needing bleeding from a gash across his brow As g on liis ills sleeve he laid a crushed crus lied r nd na dirty camellia then down tile the came ha ala or and councilor dominique to fee ee what might be this public scandal and to thern ani jarvis suddenly liis ills 1 I as fumbling along the rue st peter ter in tile lie mud sober as tiny honest man an tae that the fie moon kept diving thaw rue and there came a carriage imbt that filli 1 but ran me down the and a lady screamed she thrust an arm from the curtains a white run irm I 1 reached to touch and 4 fellow althin struck me I 1 got UP later 1 and aal my blossom I 1 swear she ri re i had more camellias in her hair hugh sa th there fools I 1 have told it again I 1 now kow where dil did aou t come upon on tills 1 man an yur sludge said ills honor here tiri as 8 you see dirty ty had howle honie returned the merchant borgio Cor 0 gio tale take allu hit colue alfe and add come to ay n clerk k for ll a dollar frowned downed the ithe ln llo r its drunkard drun tards s talk rome home blustered jan la A lady ehaase C seized al through new away y orleans ln in a galloping streets and you say I lome then romance is sa s1 dead hairsi I 1 shall aha paint t a fish 1 comans womans 8 wid nd shawl bwl on my y ladys ys head end lo 10 0 in ler her eyes yes it was not wh jean T lafatte was feiel y have dreamed reamed 1 l muttered 1 watching hm him covertly con come e balth ath me jarvis ivy dream aki tied nose and nl brow Is that be ile has stumbled nightlong S about evleen titis said gorgio Gt sullenly beed h hind the L daysh lay sh sr seller and 1 the i ro 0 o a Id arla dr ermall la there alert bot glances dances if f andersan Und ersan 81 1111 ing the catalan caa stretch 1 I his beat iti 11 lid to the painter and fury upon un hl h him n a look of implacable olat bl 1 l trUll ted C cn a tn ellias 7 lets see S night why jean last ast silence tool fool whispered gorgio ile he seized upon the fellow he be bore him along with his bull necked strength against ills back he Is utterly drunk murmured dominique come gentlemen lot let us to our morning coffee at masseros Ma speros ile he took the mayor mayors g arm arlu turning him hurriedly A block distant the councilor looked back fiddling with his velvet velm cutt cliff nervously the catalan vagabond was dragging ills his comrade blong along but none save the alderman saw that the hand of the onetime one time buccaneer was under jarvis firm arm that his knife point pressed there until the coat was as torn A word more hissed the crayfish seller and die then lie he whispered mazarac Saz arac and the english woman jean and the wager lie he won who then has a better right to the woman home now get your paint pots and paint a poultice on your broken head 1 I but gorgio had to drag the unconscious wastrel up the studio stairs and there lock him in ere he be went to a whispered conference behind a cabbage stuck stack in the french market markel CHAPTER VI the tha mask Is dropped it was after the heat of that same day that two horsemen rode out from a courtyard of tile the faubourg Fau bourg st marie upon the road count de almonaster Al monaster breathed relief when the river willows hid bid them and the steeds broke into a gallop my blacks are waiting at the ferry he murmured now captain mazarac Saz arac did the plainsmen plainsman plains men teach you to ride come then and the guest led the way in a cloud of dust A half dozen slaves as the two dashed over the levee dismounted and flung rein to the grooms then the scow boat swung off on the muddy mississippi propelled by tile the naked backed oars oam men mazarac stood watching the shores the city was invisible but on the western wes terri bank arose the stately facades of plantation homes among great oaks beyond this w 4 J ll 11 ran that you of the spanish almonas ter 9 of wealth and connections beyond the proudest in the city have chosen to idle unattached glimpses of the grim gray forest W wall all the impenetrable cypress with its vila watery tery aisles leading to barataria Bara Bar tarla ataria the legend haunted even at this early day de Al monaster stepped ashore as the scow grounded and led tile the way across the broad lanini to the big high steps of the coed gallery of the white mansion black boys bo vs dashed das lied for the bridles at tile great glass doors arose a grizzled major domo at your pleasure sir said raoul A drink shall be brought and the bath 1 I have thought it strange sa S a rac smiled absently that you ot of tile the spanish Almon asters of wealth and connections beyond the proudest pro udert ot in the city have chosen to idle unattached 1 I have my dream de Almo Al monaster linster said gravely A boys dream but it does not pass lor for l or six years now the loveliest face that could elbr youth has been bilth lh me jt it was for that I 1 cruised last year about the caribbean ports aimlessly alm lessly seeking slowly train to in to forget all ah well I 1 am trying to be a practical sober nan man financing the new flew sugar proc ess 1 with ith a bow lie he left the guest the stranger ranger looked from tile the greit great aln w dows l an the bardens Kar dens beyond the narrow fields ran a rutted road and jean 1811 tte bulled ailed UP taht rond road had come the clumsy carts c arts ol 01 the smugglers smug lils hj ewt let th the st gulf a d in the sw swamp rendezvous mi leom aind nd brought tile the loot of illis a nil alinea neg nail and jewels taken fram luckless intfen on tle tile h ry nv polo boat from tle the const by curts to the river forest and then at dead of night ferried by other oilier agents across to the warehouses of the city and to pierre La fittes cloaking cloak ing smithy on the rue bourbon came the winking merchants to watch the slaves work the forges while they slyly murmured to the proprietor 1 I hear that a ship from balboa strangely foundered in yucatan strait what pray Is the price 0 of brocade and silver plate at monsieur lafitteau Lafit tea red house nt at grand terre dogs muttered the master now 1 I respect the roughest ugliest ro scoundrel of my ay own band more than the smug merchants who enriched themselves on our traffic covertly protecting us while they printed pron ted eager to denounce us when hen our last ship was brixen from tile the gulf the liquor decanter was on a highboy of 0 heavy rose rosewood the adventurers melancholy eyes lighted as lie he examined it the great four post bed tile the table and the mirrors loot from tile isle 0 pines I 1 recall gambles Gani bios sweating blacks poling it from the swamp to be sold to a city factor it turns up at de almonas tees and I 1 am entertained with it I 1 ills his laughter had hardly ceased when hi he joined his host nt at dinner never a more well appointed guest had count raoul greeted than the last sea rover who sat across the board beyond the golden candelabrum monsieur mazarac raised a hand lie he held a glass before him As to the wine young sir I 1 could swear there had been mischief in the gulf again raoul laughed ardently ill if ever sir one of my uncles ships which bring our wine from bordeaux had fallen your way all the wars of bonaparte had been noth nothing ng to 10 the uproar he would have ratsie raised if come smiled the guest 1 I 1 would forget it all it if we let you be signaled the serving men to withdraw now I 1 am delegated by your own oun worthy companions for thistle this the napoleon plot Is not that adventure enough more mazarac smiled distantly 1 I am done with adventuring I 1 dream of a plantation in the indies in louisiana even if again granted amnesty my presence would be a sore spot let any thieving brawl come in the ports and at once old men fire are charged with it they are peaceful men now scattered on the coast hunters raisers of truck and fishers let the dead past lie ile my friend I 1 am an evil legacy 6 and I 1 am forty two and yet the lady of the packet boat mused raoul strange 1 to her mazarac Saz arac the gamester to you lafitte the outlaw and yet the older man stopped ills gaze out the glass doors to the starlight and bet et Mons monsieur leur mazarac what if you of all men brought napoleon Na triumphantly out of exile to tile the new world what proud lady of all louisiana would not be thrilled by the name lafitte I 1 now that Is ridiculous frowned the other man she an english tory an intrigue to aid bonaparte e win her approval lie ile laughed ali ah well a lovely lady for whom I 1 would have fought and I 1 had to turn aside in silence I 1 am lafitte that Is the irony of it at forty two discredited a fugitive under a mask anc and i she smiled upon the man diio vho Is the knave in either role I 1 did not challenge colonel carr he concluded pointedly 1 I saw that raoul repressed his curious note we knew you went to confront him ile he shrugged rugged th come my captain jean 1 1 I too have greatly loved and lost now tills this alfair affair Is of the sea and men would iou ou not listen you heard last night your old wild fellows chuckling with ith it the guest stared hard at him napoleon the devil they would care for himl tooth and nail on the firby merchantman loot scurry spend list fist fuls of gold in the ports of south america and then the yardarm yard arm for them aall all monsieur the world has shuffled shuf lied off our gentlemen of fortune it Is tile the english woman holds you from us said raoul and then saw aw the black line deepen on ahw th others brow the host bit his lip and then upon the silence there came rapid footsteps A doorman was expostulating at the brond broad gallery there was a scuffle an auth but I 1 shall enter fellow out of tile the door de AI Al monaster hod arisen by the silver laden hiden board with a hasty basty glance at his guests impassive face under the golden candelabrum alien aben the burly grizzled hohanness Joh anness charged from the galhn hallway ay ile he turned althour greeting erecting staring at Saz mazarac arac you captain see sec I 1 have fought for youl you A customs custon iq guard I 1 think it was went vent down bv the cutlass nez coupe bolion and I 1 stopped them from the first ci but the dragoons are here I 1 and that he Is in reality jean lafitte turned arned up from the dead J TO BE |