St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1860-07-26

unt passing Cape Autonlo, he made iume.
diate Preparations to defend his vessel with
the lini,ed means in his power, from the
attack OF the blood thirsty pirates! lie
also by his manly. bearing iLlused a noble
spirit among his 2l.e,i, and they, .ne and
all, declared that in case of an attack from.
pirates, they would rather die bravely de-
Tending their lives, than to give UP the
ship without striking blow, with the Ger
tain prospect Of being ruthlcssiy aud de-
libcratcIy put to death: .,s::... p ,. "a. g..
Captain Mangrove examined the ccndi-
tion oi his armament. The big gun was
out, and put in good fighting order A
heavy charge Of gunpowder was deposited
in the breech, aud then it was fill. d to the
muzzle. with paving stones in lieu OF, can
non balls. l he muskets were fitted wit.
f]ints and rendered serviceablc, aud primed
and loaded il a manner to make them par
ticularly effective, a handful Of leadcn sluys
being substituted for bullets. ..:-
But Captain Mangrove's efforts did not
ston here. He was aware that in case OF
an attack his most igorous efforts must be
made to keep of his assaiiants and disable
them before they could get toothold on: his
decks With his few mcn, the compile
ment Of the ships company being only
seven, all told, and destitute Of pistols,
boarding pixies, and cutlasses, he knew
that whenever the irates climbed over the
sides Of the brig, further exert,ons would
be Of no avail than to sell their lives at
the dearest possible rate:
There was small engine on board the
brig, of "a kind not unfrcquentiy used in
those days for watering gardens and they
were often introduced into shi ps for the
purpose Of wetti"g the sails during light
winds. The value Of such an instrument
in ship when crossing the Atlantic ocean
in the summer season, when dry weather
and gentle breezes prevail, is not duly .ap-
preciated by ship owners This engine
would contain ten or: fifteen gallons of wa.
ter, and worked briskly by two men could
be made to throw stream sufficient to wet
every sail in the ship. .-..,.... ..-...
Captain Mangrove determined to con.
vert his engine, which was never Intended
for weapon Of war, into an engine Of de.
struction. He determined in case band
Of cut-throats should rashly attempt tc
board the Blue Pigeon, to test by means
of this friendly engine, the virtues OF no,
water aud not knowing what time or i'm.
der What circumstances the brig might be
attacked; he at once gave the cook orders
to keep rousing fire in the caboose 1T all
times, by night and by day, until they, en-
tered th' Gulf Of Mexico, and to see tha,
! his coppers were filed with salt water
! he officers and men had their particu
lar duties assigned, to them whenever i,
might he necessary to engage the enemy
and were drilled until they thoroughly un
derstood the duties which would he exact
cd OF them. Mrs. Mangroy. declared sh<
would not be exempted from special duty
ON the approach ot. danger; that she hac
as much. nay more, at stake than any on.
On board, and spitrned the idea Of being
slowed away Ikea piece IT useless lumber
in u state room below, out OF harm's reach
while her husband ard his companions
were fighting on deck, exposing their live.
for her protection. '' .':'
1T sunset the following day, Cape Cor
rinets was in sight from the mast head
But while the, Captain was whispering
comfort to his wife, and encouraging hi
crew with the prospect Of peing able to as
up the strait during the night, and thu!
give the slip to any gang Of pirates VIII,
might be rrowling around in that vicinity
the wind, to his great Notification, dice
away, and it continued light and battling
through the night. Notwithstanding Cap
tain alanSrovc's exertions to gain ovel
towards the Yucatan: shore, as being tn,
safest, daylight revealed the unpleasant
fact th.t Cape St. Antonio was in sigh,
from the deck, being not more than ten ol
twelve miles off: he wind was still light
fir N the eastward, and there was no pros
pect Of fresh breeze. ,....-. .,.~..
To the great satisfaction Of every person
on board the Blue Pigeon, there was moth
ing to be seen on the waters with the ex
ception of a brig far to the northward with
! all sal sails set, steering to the westward:
| Apprehension OF danger from pirates began
| to vanish. and the intelligence Of thei1
bloody outrages was looked upon as myth
But Immediately after breakfast, Captain
Mansrove, on sweeping the horizon with
his glass, discovered dark spcck in the
direction IF the Cape. He kept silent
however, until he ascertaincd beyond doubt
the character Of the object; which become
every moment more distinctly visible. A,
length, in firm, untaltering voice, he an
nounced to the anxious ships company
that ! boat was coming of from the land
This announcement caused quite com.
motion throughout the vessel. There could
be little doubt in regard to the bloody mis-,
sion Of those who directed tie movements ,,1,
Of that dark speck on tho waters. If any
doubt existed. it was soon removed. Tho
boat, as it came nearer, was seep 5tosbes full
Of men and was steering course directly