The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1880-04-07
THE YOUNG DESERTER.
BIZ WILLIAM CoMsTooK.

hlntS now ana then thrown out that DIS
real name was Stanley, and that he was
the scion Of q noted English family. It
was said that very early in life he had
quarreled with his bigh-born relatives
and left them. Since then he had pur-
sued rowing life with little prospect
of ever being other than poor nurs-
ling of the storm" wearing out his life
on the rolling billoWs, and finally sink
ing into an obscure grave, unhonored
and unknown.
At least Paul seemed to have no am
bition to be anything more than an act
i've and enterprising maintop-man, first
on the yard in storm and the last to
leave the post of danger, whatever it
might happen to be.
He was still quite young, not more
than Is. Had he no mother-no sisters
-no brother? Had heno yearning for
the companions of his childhood?
If SO, he never mentioned them. 9th
er young seamen would sometimes
speak of kind sister, a brother or a
sweetheart whom they had left behind
them, but Paul Edwards YVES silent as
the grave in relation to his antecedents
and the people among whom his early
years had been passed. One might have
imagined that he was a child of the
sea, one who had never been on shore
at all; for he never made mention of
the land or anything that grew upon it.
All his thoughts-a1 his conversation
were of the sea.
This might have continued to be the
case with Paul Edwards till old age
blunted his faculties, and the wheel at
the cistern could no longer turn round,
if nature had not implanted in the two
sexes mutual regard. if feminine
beauty had not an attraction which
nothing else earthly can withstand.
We lay at Callao. The crew had lib
erty on shore. A part of them went at
a time, spending forty-eight hours in
Callao and Lima.
When the maintop-men took their
turn on shore, Paul was of the number.
In the evening Paul and several 9TH
ers visited the theater in Lima and wit
messed the performance of Rola" -
avery different play from our Pizarro;
or. the Death of Rolla."
When, In the last scene, the High
Priest OF the Sun stabbed himself with
an arrow, there was a general laugh
among the audience, as the suicidal &C.
clesiastic had been from the first the
persistent enemy of Cora.
But Paul could easily distinguish
from this general merriment a slight
cry as of terror or sympathy, and, me-
chanically turning his head to see from
whom it proceeded, his eyes encoun-
tered the loveliest features that he had
ever looked upon.
1t was the countenance of q young
Spanish beauty from which the mOmen-
tary trouble was just passing away, like
a thin cloud from the morning star; and,
as if suddenly recollecting that what
she had witnessed was only simulated
suffering, her features were Lit up bya
smile. She would, probably, have said,
if questioned on the subject, that she
was laughing at her own folly.
Paul did not speculate ON the subject.
He had simply witnessed Spanish
beauty in two phases sad and the
mirthful. All this passed in amoment,
and yet on the mind Of the young top
man it left an impression never to be
The immediate result was that when,
at the end of their forty-eight hours,
the maiatopmen returned to the ship,
Paul was not among them. At first it
was surmised that he had been robbed
and murdered, as the officers averred,
one and all, that he would never be
deserter.
But scarcely two weeks had passed
when tall Spaniard or Cholar came
off to us in his canoe and obtained an
interview with the Captain of the frig-
ate.
"That man is after blood money"
said Bill Regan, Captain of the main
op, after having watched the motions
Of the stranger few moments.
Scarcely had the informer left when
the boatswain's whistle rang through
the ship, and the name of W s.
was loudly called.
W s. made his appearance in
the gangway, and the Captain conferred
with him long time.
As 1t was remembered that Paul Ed
wards was last seen in the company of
this W S., the crew inferred
that the Cholar in his canoe had come
on board to inform against Paul. and
had mentioned the fact that W
s. knew where he was concealed.
Be that as it Inay, the master-at-arms
and a boatswain's mate went on shore
that very day, and returned in the
evening with Paul in their company.
Every one sympathized with the cap
tured youth; even the junior officers
seemed to be sorry that he had not
made his escape; but martial law knows
no mercy, and young Edwards was i'm
ironed and thrust into the
brig-a place on the forecastle, between
decks, where prisoners are kept and
guarded by marine.
It was soon known that Paul Edwards
had obtained an introduction to the
young Spanish beauty whom he saw at
the theater, and that her charms had
tempted him to desert. A shipmate of
his, named W S., had pointed
out the place where Paul was concealed
though not before a native called
Paola had come on board and given
such information as led to the capture
of the unfortunate lover. This Paola
was the tall Spaniard of whom have
spoken, who came off in his canoe, and
who Bill Regan suspected was "after
blood money" He had given the in
formation which led to Paul's capture,
and had received his reward in Spanish
dollars, and that was the "blood money"
of WHICH the Captain of the maintop had
spoken.
Paul and several other offenders were
soon tried by a court-martial, and Paul
was sentenced to receive three dozen
lashes with the cat-o'-nine-tails for de-
sertion.
Paul received his punishment, and,
he never WINGED, it was evi-
dent thas he would not soon forget
hose who had betrayed him.
Paola lived near the shore, in a mud
walled house, to which was astached a
small garden. His mates of the n'sin-
top noticed that whenever Paul cast his
ewes in that direction he slowly shook
his head and gritted his teeth.
On the Fourth of July we fred ma