The Opelousas courier., 1891-08-08
precious freight of the Great Gerret-

cried with sorrow and delight, Anothe
boat being now about to leave the Ship
bow, Cousin Peter put Elsie on his shout
der, and, with his green box under Iii
arm, ran up the Haerp STRAIT As fast as
his burdens would allow.
Poor Flip was considerably out o
sorts. Of a thoughtful, nervous temper
ament, he was peculiarly sensitive to the
rebuffs which less impressionable chill
dren early learn to disregard. The surly
cobbler appeared to him q s'hlaek begie.
e~fsctually barring the road which lead
from infancy to manhood, while Cousin
PETER became the swashbuckler, whose
duty in life it is to give practical illus.
t~rations of the superiority of muscle and
i~mpudence to brain and good manners,
A harsh and stern voice at his side
reused him from his nominations.
"Ho, Dinglegan? Ho, Van Dyck! A
pretty reception, this! Where, think
ye. are the people2 In sooth, genus ig-
navum, quod tecto gaudet ct umbra, as
Juyenal hath it; "a lot of drones that
in the shade sleep away their days."
The speaker was a man of medium
height and somewhat slight build,
whose thin, austere features were at once
those of a patrician and a soldier. Ma
ture did put upon him her stamp of SUI
periority, of which he by no means ap-
peared to be There was a
certain kindliness in his quick blue eyes,
| 1,,t ~ rrar n sort nf lIpnlI1oEc rhiph
gave the impression that behind it lurked
| the power to make a mountain tremble.
This. remarkable man-and than Gov
| ernor Stuyvesant there are few more re-.
markabla id u e-Revoiutionary his
tory-had but a single leg of flesh and
| blood, one side of his nervous frame be-
ing supported by a limb of wood, with
heavy silver bands. In conversation he
had a peculiar habit of throwing in an
occasional phrase of Latin, which might
have proved a source of some perplexity
but for the free translation which usually
accompanied it.
"This is a singular affair."" said Van
Dyek. ttThey must have heard Your Ex-
eellency's guns"
eff not" sharply replied the Director,
with the blessing of COD we'll drill
their earsii'
Flips knees trembled as he heard this
threati but priding himself as he did
upon his loyalty, he felt it his duty to
throw what light he could upon the sit
uation. Fearing that his courage would
evoporate if he thought longer upon the
matter, he fell upon his knees before
the MAJ of iron, his heart beating
wildly, and ratified off d string Of semi.
ineligible sentences about Hogbrook,
the Quakers, the green box and Cousin
PETER, concluding with an expression
of his qualification that the Director
General was not a unicorn; as had been
stated by the ~stowaWay.
In the hustle succeeding the casting of
the anchor Cousin Peters flight had not
been impeded, and that the unpardon-
able rudeness of the people of New AM
serbian in absenting themselves at this
momentous time was in some manner
linked with young Vanderspiegel's pre-
vious arrival began to dawn upon Stuy-
vesant and his aids.
perhaps, suggested Van Dyck, ssthe
scamp has frightened the city with his
unicorn story and they are afraid to ap-
proach Your EXCELLENCE"
The rage that thrilled every fibre OF
the Governors frame changed his pale
cheeks to a crimson hue, but his won
derful self control enabled him to speak
in a tone which was a strange contast to
the tenor of his words.
Evan Dinglegen," he said, s'let this
Vanderspiegel be hanged in chains at
sunriseln
without a trial, my Lord Cover
nor2'
aCertainly not" replied the imperious
Stuyvesant. "You FORGET, Vice Direc-
tor, that / have already tried and con-
victed him.
Dinglesen had learned sufficient of bis
superior's disposition to restrain any de-
sire to argue the matter. Yet he had
felt sorry for the lad from the moment
that hunger had compelled him to reveal
AlI4SClI I lEtEI > GI5GI4utZ NJlH ndu
borne him creditably through the rough
labor to which he had been assigned on
the ship, and had impressed all, with the
exception of The Precious Freight him
self, in his favor. His daily duties done,
the boy had exhibited q very noticeable
desire for s~eclusion, in peculiar contrast
to his sociability at other times; but as
home sickness was not a rare complaint
on board the Great Gerrit no one both
cred particularly about him or suspected
that his little green box contained the
key to his behavior.
ssLet the articles OF ordination be
read" said the Director.
Removing his conical, wide brimmed
beaver hat, Van Dyck took a parchment
therefrom, and, addressing himself to
Flip, whose novel position made him IN
decided as to whether he was standing
on his head or his heels, proceeded to
read the decree of stthe Noble, High
and Mighty Lords, the Lords States
General of the United Netherlands, your
Most Illustrious SoYereigns, = ETC., Great
ing petrus Stuyvesant the Director
General of their majesties' province of
New Netherland.
Tie document concluded, the Cover
nor took Flip by the hand. aNow, my
little burgher, y said he, styou and the
unicorn will see If we cannot find these
skulking subjects of their majesties."
Shaking in every limb Flip led the
mighty mar up the Here STRAIT as far
as the present Wall street, which was the
northern boundary Of the ancient city OF !