Democratic enquirer. [volume] (M'arthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1867-1873, 1869-03-03
oyou mistake men i said. opo not,


to the wind. l hereupop determined to
appeal to the men, who were now grouped
to windward, looking anxiously at the last
approaching schooner
iThere goes the black flag" cried tn |
man ON the lookout,
| Immediately sprang upon the main |
lhatch, and with loud voice appealed to |
Tie men.
will you thus allow yourselves to be
made prisoners and not strike one blow in
defence of the flag under which you sallf
Are you willing to have your names des-
ecrated and hooted by the noble stars that
float over this oceanf Come lads, you do
not mean to skulk now. Go to the steward
and he will give you arms for defence II
npur captain will not, / will be your lead
er, and we will not yield an inch, even
though death stares us in the face. 1t is
better to die fighting than to live to be
pirates slave.
"Ayl ayl well fight the piratesP cried
the crew, to man.
Willis seeing perfectly how matters
Stood now stepped forward, and with an
eye on the advancing foe, and another ON
the men, said
Certainly we'll stand by you. You. as
a naval officer, sir, must have command
and act as you please, Meanwhile, | will
90 below and provide arms for you ALL
He went down, and We did not see him
again until he was prisoner
The pirate neared us FAST Ana,fe emlng
that there would be no resistAIi6l Bffered,
boat was lowered, which soon came un-
der our larboard quarter The reception
thew met with was somewhat warmer than
they had anticipated. Being unprepared
for defence, every one, the mate at their
head. were secured and bound. The cap,
tain of the sch ooner, which was now ly-
ing to, near us, saw the proceeding, and
giving appropriate orders, h auled along
side.
Then came the hand.to-hand struggle.
Our men fought with desperation, but at
great odds in favor Of the attacking party.
BY some fatality, Carreba and myself were
combatants His superior power and skill
soon disarmed me, and stood at his mer-
cv But he did not strike. He sheNthed
his cutlass calmly, and, calling to our sail
ors, said:
"Whoever Of you strikes another blow
shall die Lay down your arms and Car
reba promises, upon his honor, that your
lives shall be spared"
Captain" said the pinte chief, now
striding towards me.
sfNN not the captain, sir, l replied.
''YdU arBA4A Where is he?"
"He wen belNW to arm himself some
time since, ee.&haSSnat yet appeared
''Here, Be}pont, go below and hoist out
the grampus from his cabin. What, did he
leave you to fight his battle for him?"
He did"
The chief eyed me narrowly for some few
moments-I Returned his gaze unwaver-
ingly.. o,,
s'What is your name, youngster2" he fin
ally inquired.
/ told him. Again he regarded me fix
edly.
'Are you son of former captain ofthe
old Constitution"
81 am, sir, his only sol.
81 was once boatswain under his COM
mand He was generous brave and just
man. should have been still in the SER
vice were l not-Carreba, the pirate?'
81 am surprised to hear"
'''What2" he interrupted sharply; "that I
was once an honest mann"
THAT you know my father, replied
Captain Willis was now brought on deck.
He was trembling with fear and livid from
the same cause. He almost sank with ap-
prehension as he confronted his captor.
80, sir, you take good care to keep out
of the way when danger comes! What n
brave man you must be to resign your ves-
sci to the care of a striplingw
"Why sir, have an affection of
| the -"
,'Heartl CowardH' thundered the pirate
''an affection of the heartl and absence of
courage that prompted you to take care of
yourself, let what may come to your crew
and ship. Pitch him overheard, boysr'
The captain fell upon his knees and beg
ged of him for mercy.
II have wife and six children" he
urged.
"What pity! six more poltroons to grow
up and disgrace their humanity Whyyou're
the meanest man L ever saw. Not fight!
BahH
He then turned to his own men, and mo-
toned them to go on board of their own
vessel Then again coming to me, he offer
cd me his hand, saying:
"You will not refuse to give me your
hand in parting. Your presence on board
of this vessel has saved her to her owners,
and saved the lives of all with You. The
name you bear is one which / must ever
respect. Farewell, Sir. Bear to your father
my kindest regards"
He touched his cap in salute, jumped on
the rail- and in little while his schooner
was close hauled on the wind far ahead of
us.
As soon as the captains fright was over,
he resumed all the pompousness Of his us
ual manner. He ordered the men to duty,
then turning to me exclaimed: Il think
we fought those rascals finely" arrived
at the island in due time and joined my
ship. This was the last ever saw of Car
reba, the pirate.
/
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