The Portland daily press., 1880-03-31

You lind him now
member of your shy-lot,
winch you would not have found
Had he been bound
Apprentice to pilot.
Frederick, whose exaggerated and mistaken
sense of duty is his most prominent character
istic, feels himself bound in honor to work,
heart and soul, as pirate, until his indentures
shall have expired. when he proposes to atone
for his sinvountary association with such pesti-
lent scoundrels by sweeping them from the
face of the earth. These indentures are with
in half an hour OF their decease at the COM
menceInent of the piece. The pirate king re-
grets the decision at which Frederick has ar
rived, but cannot conseientiously blame him.
Ruth, Frederick's former nurse. who has, it
appears, worked her middle-aged way into
his boyish heart inplores him to take her
with him-a suggestion which is heartily in
dorsed by the pirates, as Ruth is not popular
with them. The pirate king then sings his
great song, which runs something after this
fashion:
Away to the cheating world 60 you
Where pirates all are well to do
But will be true to the song sing
And will live and die pirate king
The second verse runs thus:
When sally forth to seek my prey
help myself in regal way,
l sink a few more ships tits true,
Than well-bred monarch ought to do
But many a king on a firstclass throne,
Must somehow manage to get through
More dirty work than ever do.
Though Pm pirate king!
1t is, it is a glorious thing
To be pirate king
1t is, it is a glorious thing
10 be pirate king!
Frederick hesitates to take so decided step,
explaining that, although he loves Ruth dear
ly and believes her to be fine woman, yet as
he has seen no other woman'S face than hers
for sixteen years, it is just possible that he
may be mistaken. Ruth assures him that she
is really an attractive person. and Frederick is
satisfied. Unfortunately, however, for Ruth IS
some twenty in number, among them the
daughters of a Gen. Stanley, stroll to the pi-
rates haunt, with view to picnic, and Fred
erick has, for the first time i'll his ife an oppor-
tunity OF comparing Ruths mature attractions
with those OF younger and prettier women.
He furiously reproaches Ruth for the decep-
ton she has practised on him, and Ruth leaves
him broken-hearted as the young ladies enter,
climbing over the steep rocks by which the
scene. is enclosed. Frederick, apprehensive
lest his pirates dress should alarm them, con-
ceals himself in the cave, but is eventually
compelled to reveal himself, owing to the fact
that the young ladies, believing themselves to
be alone, propose to take off their shoes and
stockings and paddle" The young ladies are
much terrified to learn from his own lips that
he is pirate. but are somewhat reassured on
learning that he is on the point of giving up his
profession and intends to lead a respectable
life for the future. To that end he implores
their assistance:
Oh, is there not one maiden here
Who does not feel the moral beauty
OF making worldly interest
Subordinate to sense of duty?
Who would not give up willingly
All matrimonial ambition
To rescue such an one as
From his unfortunate condition?
The young ladies, however, are not prepared
to make such sacrifice.
Alas! there's not one maiden here
Who seems to feel the moral beauty
Of making worldly interest
Subordinate to sense of duty.
youngest daughter Of the twenty. comes for
ward and declares that she is prepared to de-
vote herself to Frederick's reformation Fred.
erick is overioyed, and Mabel's sympathet tic
sisters, in order to give the young couple an
opportunity of arriving at satisfactory under
standing, determine to shut their eyes to what
is going on and talk about the weather. y
Accordingly they sit at the back OF the stage
and commence an animated discussion as to
the prospect of "a warm july" while the low.
ers indulge in love duet. Frederick and the
young ladies are on the point of departure
when they are surprised by the re-entry of the
pirate king and his followers, who seize the
young ladies, whom they propose to marry
there ard then through the agency of
A doctor of divinity
VIM iooluco III tHc
a course of action which is arrested by Mabel
who warns the pirates of It's probable conse
quences:
Hold, monsters! Ere your pirate caravansary
Proceeds, against our will; to wed us all,
Pray bear IN mind that we are wards in chancery,
And father is a major-general.
This announcement is followed by the en-
trance of the major-general, in the full uni
form of his rank, who Introduces himself in a
patter song in which he describes himself as
possessed CT every accomplishment under the
sun-except the practical details of the mill
tary calling:
know our mythic history, King Arthur's and Si
Caradoc's,
answer hard acrostcs, I've pretty taste for para
dOx;
quote in elegiacs, all the crimes of Heiogabalus
In comics l can floor peculiarities parabolus.
can tell undoubted Raphaels from Gerard Dow
know the croakiing chorus from the 'Frogs' O.
Then can hum fugue of which I've heard the mu
sizes din afore,
'Pinafore."
can write you out washing bill in Babylonic Gu
neiform,
And tell you all the details of Caractacus' uniform.
In short, in matters vegetable, animal and mineral
| l am the very model OF a medern major-general!
| Having introduced himself, the major-gen
| eral is Mortified to hear that the pirates pro
| pose to marry his large family ON the spot. 1
suddenly occurs to him, however, that one
popularity of these soft-hearted pirates is tha
| they make rule of never mOlesting an or
phan. "They are orphans themselves, an,
know what it is" Awaiting himself Of thi
fact, he appeals to them as an orphan to spar
him and his daughters, something like this:
| General-O men of dark and dismal fate!
| Forego your cruel employ,
| Have pity ON my lonely state,
| / am an orphan boy.
| An orphan boy.
| Chorus-An orphan boy.
General-An orphan boy.
Chorus-How sad to be an orphan boy!