Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-04-13
Lang Syne," as he had many a time seen it


started for walk.
There we're only two houses of note at Barn.
! combe-Iusculum house and Barncombe hall
| the residence of Sir Hercules Adams an Exeter
| merchant OF great wealth and acknowledged
position. whose brother was Ranger of Ex-
| moor. and whose family had lived about Totnes
| and BoWdon for centuries. Sir Hercules was
very grand and very proud. and very high and
| mighty generally. His hall was sort of select
world of Itself, shut in by broad acres of wood
land strictly preserved and jealousy defended
by an army of keepers and an array of traps
! and sprlng-guns and th1Rderingiy worded no.
tee boards-against the incursions of the
| vulgar.
! Toward one of the keepers lodges Briggs.
! junior, went He knew every one around
| keepers. gardeners. cOachmen, footmen,
! grooms with their wives and children-7and was
! universal favorite. for. although he was but n
| little ten-year-oid schoOfboy. there was scme-
thing about him which just as it Disguised the
! high and haughty. endeared him to the poor
| and simple. There was not one of them who
would not have done anything to please the
| CHEEKY little man.
! 1t was getting dark as he reached the lodge.
! and nature was dank and dismal enough: but
| through the red curtains of the lodge there
streamed forth CHEEKY light. and the silence
! OUTSIDE was broken by sounds of song and
laughter proceeding from within.
| Briggs, junior, hesitated; for although only
| Briggs. junior. lie was little gentleman. and
| had gentleman reluctance to intrude where
| he was not wanted.
| However. lie knocked. and on receipt of a
CHEEKY Come i'm timidly pushed the door
/ open.
I'm sure l beg your pardon" he stam-
/ mered, as he found himself confronted by a
! party OF men. women. and children. seated
! round round a roaring fire, with table laden with
/ dessert handy.
Come in. sir. Come in, Master Briggs.
junior, sir. and WELCOMED" said half-a-dozen
! voices VERY glad to see you o. Christmas
/ night SIR. No. sir; no intrusion. Come in.'
80 Briggs. Junior, entered. not little gbashe d
at the attention shown him, and deposited him.
self on the very edge OF chair which was set
III the very center of the company.
| Il onIy came Ill TO ask after the little girl
VINO tulAbled into the Black pond this morn
ing" he said
That was Miss Doris, SIR" replied the head
| keeper, but was You the young gentleman
that pulled her out, sr?"
WAY Happened to be-but, Morris you
! won say anything about it to the squire will
! You: Saia Briggs. Il was trespassing you see,
! and he might"
! IF so be Squoire knew as how it was Won
what pulled Miss Doris out. sir, he'd do and say
what do; he It shake your hand and call you a
] regular out-and-outer, that he would Souoire
be strict man, but he's just, and he dew love
| Miss Doris
And Mr.. Morris shook Briggs juniors hand.
and every one else followed his example, and
then glasses were filled with port-wine negus
I
first time in his life.
she's all right, SIR" said the keeper. when
the ceremony was concluded. WET through
and q bit queer, but all right"
You won't say anything about it though
pleaded Briggs, whose terror of Squire Adams
was only second to his dread of his school,
master
Then they settled to singing and STORYTELLING.
put DrlSgS was all eyes and ears for his neigh
Dor who was home on leave from the fleet of
] DlsrnOIth. and FOL OF, so l..
and adventures, and sang such rafting song
about capt. Edwards and the bold Benjamin.
.! that Briggs. junior, felt an irresistible
longing 20 start there and then for Dartmouth
or plymouth and offer his services,
Il tell you what, sir" said Bill Morris. the
quartermaster, you're cut out for sailor
you are. sir. Your father died for his king
and country, nobly a tightn gin the foe. as
the poem says, and you're the one to take his
place"
But they wouldn't take such youngster as
me-" said Briggs, Junior.
"Lor. wouldn't they, though? Glad to get
,em. Young blood, that's what they say, young
Dlooa Is what we wants. Why shipped aboard
the Boyne, Capt Hughes, before / was YOUR
age; ay, and got my first wound before l was
lii my teens"
And Briggs, junior pondered over this, al
though he said nothing
SO they went on talking and laughing and
! singing and storytelling, until supper-time
and Briggs, junior, would fain have babe them
good-nlght but they would not hear of it, and
SO ne sat down with them, and made as good a
supper as if he had had no dinner at all.
After which it suddenly occurred to him that
he was was only school-boy at Tusculum house.
and that his bed time was clock
so he rose, and pointing to the clock in the
corner, which proclaimed the hour to be 10.
limited at immediate departure, adding that as
ne mad received already one thrashing that
day he ran very fair chance of earning a
second. He got away from the lodge with a
good deal of difficulty, and saturated with Bill
Morris sea stories. felt brave enough until he
came III sight of the great black, lightless mass
of Tusculum House. Then his heart sank. and
he could not help wondering if Duncan or
Jervis, or Nelson. any other of his pet
heroes ever felt as he did now, before thew
went into action.
Of course he did not make for the front door,
but crept round to the kitchen entrance
Pretty Susan answered his feebly tap at the
door.
"Oh, Master Briggs, junior, sir" she said.
''master is in way abont You. He came home
an hour ago, and he says, says he. is Master
Briggs in bed? and SAYS, Yes, sir: / believe
So But. lor'! he goes up to the bedroom and
he comes down again using language frightful
"Has Master Briggs returned home yet?"
was at this moment roared down the kitchen
stairs.
In answer to which, our young gentleman
presented himself. We draw a veil over the
last act of the Christmas day. Suffice il to say,
that the same descriptive monosyllables with
which we opened this chapter might fifty
close it,
At 10 O'Clock next morning a liveried servant
from the Hall presented Squire Adams COM
pliments. and he would like to see Master
Briggs, junior.
But search as they might, no Briggs, junior,
was to be found.
CHAPTER II.
On the morning of December /, 1903 the Old
Noll, privateer, ten guns, seventy men, Com
mander Briggs, sailed into Dartmouth harbor
bringing in tow three French vessels Consid-
ering that she had been reported sunk off Saint
Kits with all hands, and the name of Briggs
had been expunged from the list of the living,
her arrival caused no little excitement and re-
joicing.
Most famous of privateers was the Old Noll:
most famous and fortunate Of captains was her
commander. She had been out six weeks and
during that time had fought eleven pitched
battles. had sunk the famous French priya-
teers, the Susanna, of Calais, and the Grande
Turk, of Saint Maio, and had taken TWENTY
three prizes, of which she had sunk, burned or
taken ransom for all but the three she now
brought with her. She anchored in mid-chan-
mel amid salvos of artillery and loud cheer
ing. and ten minutes later a small gig put off
from her, out of which leaped on to the quay a
smartly-built, brown-faced young fellow, in
whom IL would have been hard to trace anv re-
sembiance to the poor little school boy we left
at Tusculuum house thirteen years ago.
He hurried through the crowd who wanted
to shake hands and congratulate him-his pass
word being fifty prisoners below deck
l.