The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-01-15

msbego ten by piracy on the high seas, and
that the last of my days might yet be passed
in Execution Dock
So l betook myself to my old craft of the
shippi' G business, being part mate and part
owner, for held some fifteen-sixty- fourths
of the ship. But now l went out to the East
Indies, and not to the West Indies, being de-
siroas to put the whole compass of the earth
between me and the evil days of John Nor
gan; and traded honestly, and not without
prosperity. Indifferently honest was l; for,
alas, how the potency of our old habits chngs
to us most closely! For dealing with these
Chinese barbarians and their junks we Chris
tians did not make much ado about cheating
them in their business, OF, for the matter of
that, cutting few throats if it came to a
fight; and, indeed, the hard life that had
led told very much upon me, and made me
an old man before my time. And in these
East Indies 1t was my sad chance to be
wrecked, not on such sweet, delicious is
land as that cayo of which 1 spoke. and
whose woods and streams I sometimes see
IN my dreams, but upon a low sandy bar be-
meath torrid sun, from which and others
were fetched off, when nigh to death. by a
companion vessel that had been searching
for its consort And coming home in a very
weak state, there were two great shocks
which happened to me, and which at that
time could hardly bear. For going to God
sons bank in Lombard street upon my route,
l found with infinite dismay that the said
bank had totally disappeared. The offices
were turnedi into gay shops with warehouse
overhead. They had very little money of
mine then; and, indeed, my purpose was not
to draw money, but to pay it in. But though
had no money there to speak of, still there
was my precious casket, which had been in
charge for so many years. And how the
thing happened l never rightly knew.
Whether it was by bankruptcy or roguery
that the bank had stopped, or whether, as
| heard rumor, the bank had transferred
its business beyond the seas, knew tot; for
l was weak and ill, and had neither time
nor temper for the business, until first l
should come to my home. And, indeed, l
was sick and tired of the sad history belong
ing to that casket, and was not without
fears that it might, even yet, bring me into
trouble. And when l came home to my
house below Penbole Heights there was vet
greater shock and trouble for me. For
your mother, my son, was gone, and you
were left, weak, wailing babe, in her place
She had died in giving you birth. My wife
left a message that she hoped that 1 would
not bring you up to seafaring life. And
perhaps, in the tossing of my dreams, had
used strange words which had let her too
much into the secrets of the past, from
which pure and quiet woman would natnr-
ally shrink.
leave these lines for you, my boy, who
will not be able to read them until I am
dead and gone, that may give effect to
your mothers thoughts respecting you, and
that you may know and avoid the hardships
and temptations of a seafaring life.
HENRY DELoRN1E.'
Thus ended this remarkable a, d memora-
hlo laffor xuhi oh Sc, a..
OF very curious circumstances which hap
pened afterward.
remember so we'll the first Christmas eve
that spent with the Delormes after the
memorable summer evening in which we
first read the pirates manuscript. 1t was a
pleasant Christmas eve, but Flora looked sad,
and Jack found out that things were not go
ing very well with the Delormes; the short
supplies OF money were shorter even than
had been expected, and that there was much
difficulty in meeting those bills which Christ
mas always brings with it. So Jack and
each contrived a hamper, he of fish and of
fowl and game, which we sent them with
the compliments of the season, and we had
in return been duly invited to partake there
OF on Christmas eve. By this time was
following very fast on the precedent set by
Jack, and if / was not formally engaged to
Fanny, was very much on the way to it,
Those dear, genial old Delormes thought it
the most natural thing in the world that
young people should fall in love with each
other, and come together in good time, and
had no idea in the world that their two love-
ly daughters were, in fact, disguised prin-
cesses, and were a great deal too good for
the likes of me and Jack.
Somehow our talk that Christmas eve went
back to the manuscript of the old repentant
pirate.
How should like some of the old ras-
CARS damon Is to put in my hair to-nightr'
said my Fanny.
"My mouth watered when he talked about
the Silks" exclaimed Flora. "They have
gone into dust anyhow
And only to think, " said Jack, philosoph-
ically, "of that little beggar of child to
whom he left the letter being the great-great-
great grandfather of you young ladies.
And eletter itself being read about once
in hundred years. said Flora. "Papa,
dear, wouldn't you like to give your children
their little parties?'
Diamonds" said Jack, "are all rubbish.
The difference between diamond and coal
is an accident of an accident You may set
1t on fire, and it will go off in thin vapor
and rather pungent smell"
"Still if | had them, said Delorme pere,
you gentlemen should not smoke them
away, nor you girls wear them in your hair
would buy an estate with them. l knew q
diamond necklace sold across jewellers
counter for twenty five thousand pounds.''
At this moment sudden flash Of inspira-
ton darted through my mind.
suppose that casket of diamonds is still in
existence, all fastened up and sealed, and
waiting for the representative Of the proper
owner to claim it,
But" said jack" the diamonds have
been turned into money hundreds of years
ago, and the money has been all spent. And
of course the statute of Limitations would
bar all claim"
Beside" said Flora, 81 have got hold of
the idea that the famous letter may be no
real letter at all. 1t may be som body indulg-
ing in an attempt at British felton,
Il never heard OF any one impugning the
authenticity of the letter, said Mr.. Delorme.
''The letters all right enough"
Hitherto had only known of the letter
through the copy. now asked and obtained
a sight of the original. The obscure charac-
tiers, so quantity formed, left no doubt of
the comparative antiquity.
That night fell into a strain of thought
upon the subject. The letter was doubtless
genuine. The contents were precisely as
true, though written two centuries ago, as if
written only forty-eight hours ago. At that
time there was in existence a casket con-
tanning diamonds belonging to Henry De-
lorme. At the present time was there any
chance OF the diamonds being in existence,
or a. chance Of the Delormes ever getting
that casket in to their possession? Evident
ly the original Delorme had thought that his
banking house had failed. But he had also
suggested another and more favorable ex-
PLANTATION, e., that the bank had only
shifted its quarters. Then l had won
derful idea OF the permanence of English in
stitutions. A great Frenchman once made a
journey to England for the simple purpose of
ascertaining whether the bread and beer be-
queathed to travellers past ST. Cross, near
Winchester, five hundred years ago was still
given away in accordance with the ancient
bequest. Such is the English genius for
leaving things alone that if the casket had
never been asked for it might have slumbered
undisturbed for any conceivable time Of
course, however, there were two considera-
tons which initiated strongly against any
illusory hopes There was the fact that God
sons'bank had disappeared. Then again, if it
had disappeared only to revive in another
direction, of course the cellars would have
been Systematically overhauled, and treas
ure of this sort would, in the course of time,
come into legitimate possession of the bank
Was it possible, by any rare concentration
OF circumstances-such as might happen in
fact, though they might be too daring in
fiction-that these diamonds might yet beior
existence. and that nv darling FANNY miuht