Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1877-01-19

creamy glove upon it, the simmer OF lace
and glitter of gold at the wrist, and the
soft, white flesh beyond! had he seen
the like! Never had he felt such a touch,
or been spoken to in such a tone.
ooh. amt I in for it now!" he muses.:
and then he looks up into the lady's race.
He saw an expression there that he did
not understand. He had seen anger IN
the faces of those who had caught MN
suddenly. Triumph-he knew the look OF,
when after a long chase he had been ia
ken. Scorn-that was common; plenty OF
that at all times. This was pity-so he
could not make it out at all. A Hebrew
inscription would not have been more n
Ineligible to Dick.
There was no chance fora bolt now. The
lady, the gentleman who came with her,
the captain Of the steamer and It's chief
officer, formed a semicircle in front; be-
hind was the bale Of cotton against which
he had rolled himself up for protection.
He sits up, drinking in that strange ex-
preston which at once scares, puzzles, and
pleases him, till a sort of sleepy, faint feel
ing makes him close his eyes.
'sHe's going to faint" says the lady. Il
kneou he was hurt. Oh. see how he is bleed
ing!''
He is bleeding badly. Big dark drops
are trickling fast down his ragged sleeve,
which will soak 10 more. These came from
an ugly tear Caused by a nail in the wharf
planking) on his arm, just above the
elbow.
.sDon't you look, Mrs. Austen, !" says the
captain; "I1l have him attended to. Oh,
Quartermaster! come and carry this boy on
board, and give my compliments to the
doctor, and ask him to plaster up his cut"
Dick has no power to resist. He is cars
ried on board, muttering, "Come, I amt
done nothing to yoaE"
A cold lunch is served under the awning
on the main deck. The other ladies and
their escorts arrive, but the meal is delayed
by some of the crew bearing square. heavy
boxes, which jingle as they are lowered
through d trap-duor in the deck, partly
under the lunch table.
"Mexican dollars" explains the captain.
ssWhat a lot of money!" the lady re-
marks
"Not so much as you suppose, u tidy
sum. Each box contains two thousand
dollars, and there are fourteen of them,
Ell, Mr.. Mansfeld?" This to the officer in
charge, who confirms the count.
They have got to their first glass of
champagne when the doctor joins them.
";Nell. how's your patient?" asks the
captain.
"All right; and clean, for once in his
life, but rather weak" is the medical res
port upon the Rat.
"Poor child" signs the lady. "What
ought he to take?"
81 should prescribe something to eat,''
the doctor replies, helping himself to a
slice of tongue.
"Captaiu, I should so like to give him
some dinner"
It is unnecessary to say who speaks, and
the skipper would indeed have been a
stern man if he could have resisted the
pleading of those mute brown eyes. The
uuartermaster is summoned again, and ap-
pea1s leading Dick, who walks ''groggy.'
1t has begun to dawn pom him that he is
not going to be abused. and he gees along
there "like a little cock-o'-wax," as he is
told.
"What is your name, little boy?" asks
the lady.
'Dick."
''Are you hungry. Dick?"
"Ra-ther!"
'Only rather?" in a tone Of d%isappoint-
ment.
"'Rather,'" explains the captain, Sin
that tone, means very"
The lady takes a plate and fills it with
cold chicken, stuffing, salad, bread, and
what not, adds q knife and fork, and gives
it to Dick.
The knife and fork are NO use to him
He squats on the deck, and eats with Ma
lures implements. He has no idea Of gas
tronomic combinations, First he eats the
chicken, then the stuf1ing, then the salad,
UilC4 UllC OlCod, cIld Uu1o oOIO, OohOo q
long breath, and looks up with a look that
says more. as plainly Is Oliver said the
word. More he gets, from the same kind
hand, which he watches with dimly aWak-
ened feelings of delight. Gloved, it was a
wonder: bare and glittering with costly
rings, so white, so small-it bewildered
him. why did every one do what she told
them? How could she keep all those gold
things? She couldn't lick" any one with
those hands Dick unused.
The plate is full again, and he turns his
attention to it's contents with apparently
undiminished appetite.
II should keep some Of that for to-mor-
row, if l were you," observed the doctor.
"Then you'd be a fool !" Dick replied
with a scott. 1.-THE big fellows on the
levee d take it from you before you'd gone
two blocks! Tomorrow amt here, but
the grub is, and so I'm a-going to get out
side it while I can"
There is a general laugh at this philoso-
ply, and the lady asks if he may have a
glass of champage.
EYES," the doctor says, "but I think
he'd prefer whisky"
"Whisky +? a child take that !" she ex-
postulates.
"Try him." replied the doctor.
He is tried, and losses off three fingers
deep of raw Bourbon without winking.
"That's soothing like !" be observes,
smacking his lips.
This feat somewhat lessons the lady's
sympathy. Dick "gets outside" his grub
without further comment, and is walking
off when the captain calls him back with
"a
"Why, you young rascal! are you going
without saying thank you ?"