The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1888-05-23
MY PRETTY PIRATE.
by JULIAN RALPH.

scarcely be classified, but by little ex-
ertion may get into flowing gutter,
then into river, and so become some
day as much of the Atlantic a' any other
drop. | had been trying to be musi-
clan, had given that up to be concert
singer, abandoned that to rn my tai;
ents toward poetry and newspaper writ
ing and such, until l joined a merry
crowd of Bohcmians and lived as they
did. Their gatherings and the
money my father left me both
ended together. | had written some
jokes for minstrel troupe, and when
nothing else suggested itself | applied
for place in the company TO black up
and sing mournfnl ditties about graves
and red roses in the first part, and do
ban jo act later on. The troupe came to
grief out West, and the best | can say
of what followed is that | got home to
New York without walking. No sooner
hal / reached Broadway than | went
into new business. | became clown.
The first acquaintance | met offered the
opportunity, saying he was going to Cuba
with circus and that there was need
for one of those useful butts whom the
ringmister pcrpetually cracks with his
whip, and whom it is the business Of
everybody in the sawdust arena TO NAL
treat and deride often with perfect
Justice, used to think before / put on
the cap aud bells.
Come - he was kind enough to add,
''you need have no doubts, you are a
natural, instructive, true-born clown.
And even ii you were not you can initiate
any and every clown you ever saw. So
pocket your pride, take sixty dollars a
week, learn your songs and twenty very
white haired aud round shouldered old
jokes, and come along"
The hackers and managers were Gu
bans and lived IN the Saragossa hotel in
| fast Fourth street while they were fit
ting out for the voyage. went to live
there, also, for everything that | under
take do with intense enthusiasm, and
| detcrm ned to learn Cuban as quickly as
! possible and astoniSh every one by sing
! ing n song or cracking some jokes in
that language. In due time we set sail
on journey never shall forget We
voyaged in sailing vessel, through q
summer sea, beneath perpetually cloud.
less sky. We stopped at Mas ,au, and
showed there with great success, to float
aftelward for days in b'ue pathways, be
tween white isles fringed with palms.
1t is id c for me to dwell, even for this
loving instant on that experience. and
yet 1t was dreamfui, SO poetic, so utterly
certain never to be repeated in lis sensa
tions, now that | am older and more
pract cal, that | literally tear myself
from the recollection. There were many
| more days of it to come when we skirted
the bold eastern palisaded end of Cuba
and then clung almost within the inhu
cnce of the breakers as the good bark
with the maddcningly unpOctic name
of "Thc Obiiah Lawrence, crep'
past the forest clad heights, the VIII tt
edged bays and curves and tho
laughing plantations OF the gem of thu
Antilles. The journey was interrupted
by long Stands at Guantanamo. st
Jago and at CienfIgo'. 1t was bold o
u TO visit these places then for the great
revolution was in progress and c, cry
thing was unsettled, but never did rasl
experiment meet with richer reward
We played at Colon, in the heart of tn,
island, and then we reached Matanzas
where our vessel was to pick us up anC
take us to Havana.
Let me say that up TO the moment W,
left the vessel on the other SIDE of Cub,
had constantly sought the companion
ship of my cornet. | had natural gif
for paying musical instruments, and thi
beautiful cornct was the main thing
had saved from the wreck of my fortunes
Upon it improvised what thought WA
a sweet, pretty ara hymn tune, | sus
pect it sounded like-and | often, in sol
itude, blew Its soft, liquid notes from
out the bell like throat of my cornet. |
was always in solitude, or very softly
that played il, for | deemed il extrava
gantly sweet and meant some day to ii
a hymn to it, adapt psalm to its notes
or in some way utilize it to give me fam
as | conceitedIy thought. Alas! at Glen
fucgos my cornet was stolen aud neye
had tie heart TO play the tune on an
other instrument.
One day in Matanzas l was spendin
some idle hours on an American man-oi
war, whose officers had formed my &C
qlaintance. A steamer from New Yor
slipped into the harbor just at dusk, an
cast her anchors close to the war shiT
There was the usual noise aud hustle, an
the little harbor boats that swarm lik
which passengers are put ashore, oil
tanned their loads-and faded away in tn
twilight. At one moment, three c
these little boats were moving almo,
side by side across the water close aster
of the vessel l was on. | could scarcel
elieve my ears; l did not credit whs
they tod me-yet, there could be II
mistake, for it was repeated and carrie
back TO me in long drawn whisper 4
melody-my comets offspring, my ow
absolute and unqsestionable invention
my pretty hymn tune.
/ leaped into my small boat an
ordered my man to pull after the othC
vessels. Then l saw that / could not d
more than guess at which boat the me
ody had proceeded from. changed m
command and pulled for the steamer
Alas twenty-five women had come o
her no one knew which were in tha
particular trio of boats, and all ha
Spanish names. knew that, for l copie
every one. After looking them over I
see if perchance any girl or woman ha
ever known was among them, and find
ing none, l determined to keep the lis
and endeavor to discover how, in all tn
catalogue Of mysteries, any one, particl
larly Cuban lady, happened TO kno'
my tune. In leisure hours that followed
I sought information about every lad