St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-12-20
THE WIDOW AND The SEA CAPTAIN.
New York Recorder.

ihE WiUJW AMI HE SEA Jar lain,
New York Recorder.
In January, 1864, the East Indiaman
Calabar arrived at Pondicherry, the lit
tie French possession on the Cor oman
del coast. She was touching at the
principal ports in the Bay of Bengal for
cargo, and took in POndicherry more as
a matter of form than anything else.
There was not much freight to be
picked up there in those days, but it
was delightful place to spend short
time ashore.
The Widow Dumaurier kept hotel
there, and Capt. Kennedy, the command
er of the Calabar. was rather sweet
upon her. And in good soOth there was
no reason why he should not be. 1t is
true that he had a young wife at home,
but London was long way off, and the
sight of that, charming and coQuettish
little woman who always looked as trim
as though she had been lifted tenderly
out of Partisan handbook mad its natu-
raj effect.
The rustic of silken skirt makes the
blood Jingle in the veins of sailor who
hasn't heard the seductive sound for
many moons, and Nine. Dumaurier
knew how TO use her charms to the best
advantage. Her husband had died two
years before and had left very few
rupees behind him. She found 1t rather
a hard struggle to keep up the hotel, but
having plenty of brains in her pretty,
bird-like little head she succeeded.
laax oh, al
but TO save her soul from per-
dition she couldn't help mild t1irta-
ton now and then, but she always
brought you up with a round turn if
anything resembling a grand passion
was suggested. Her heart was alOft
with poor Pierre, TO whom she was de-
voted; but still she smiled bewitching
smiles at the civil officers of the govern
ment, who used to desert their own
bungalows for the superior fascinatIO rs
OF the Hotel Dumaurier and sip their
eau sucre or their absinthe on its spa
ciOIS verandaS.
Sea cap aims made the hotel their
headquarters, and there was scarcely
one that put up there that the widow
had not promised to be- sister to.
Somehow she continued 10 keep the old
salts in subsection, and they were found
regularly at her table d'hOte DaSking in
the brillancy of her chances like moths
round the glare of fiaring lamp. JOvial
fellows these as rule. The champagne
cork was heard to pop merrily at these
little baEquets and the widow made a
good living ont of the hotel.
The Calabar as soon as she had let go
her anchor was surrounded by flOtilla
of MasOOIah boats, each manned by
about twenty men and steered by
10 l,t- IN ~
sternpOst. They are constructed spe-
cially for Bleaching in heavy surf, and
scientific naval architecture has pro-
duced no craft better adapted for the
purpose. Their plankS are dashed to-
gether with yarns of kyar and there is
neither bolt nor nail used in their build
ing.
While the sailors were alOft furling
the sails the fellows from the Masoolah
boat Swarmed up the ships dark sides
and took possession of the main deck.
The costume of their crews was simple.
A turban, loin cloth and silver chain
composed their full dress. In the tur-
bans, twined gracefully round their
half-Shaved heads. they carried among
other things little tin box of chunam
and cOpious supplies of tobacco and
betel nut. When they wished TO enter
the seventh heaven of delight they rolled
up in an aromatic green leaf whose
Tamil name have forgotten piece Of
betel nut. shred of tobacco leaf and
about half a teaSpOOnful of chunam or
lime. This they chewed with rare en-
ioyment. 1t isn't half bad, but the taste
requires cultivating.
The captain was besieged by the own
ers of these boats, dressed in more pict-
uresque and plenteOus clothing than
the cTeWS.-One wanted 10 supply the
ship with fresh meat and vegetables;
another desired bumbOat privilege land
a third said he was a Christian all the
same as the skipper, and solicited a
subscription to native church.
Well, boys. on that beautiful Sunday
afternoon when we tumbled down from
aloft, after giving the sails good. snug
harbOr furl, strange sight awaited US.
Just abaft the foremost were groups of
natives, with their wares temptingly
displayed in baskets of quaint form and
design. The tribes on that coast are
all born with commercial instinct and
can give points to q Hebrew or native
of the Nutmeg state.
Then arose a chorus wild and bar
barrie: "You buy banana, sahib; good
pOmeloes, sahib; guavas, mangOes-all
fine, sweetr'
Under the longbOat's lee n couple of
snake cnarmerS were DuSy with their
wiles. One had a wooden instrument
modelled after the general fashion of a
flageOlet out of which he evolved a
weird and quaint melody in minor
KEY, calculated to produce melancholia.
The snakes seemed TO like it, for while
he piped they danced. The other fellow
tied a big snake in festOons around
his neck, another around his waist and
looked important. all the time saIaam-
ing and begging for annas-thongh he
wasn't above receiving pice.
On the other side of the boat were
two jugglers who had set up an toppO-
sition show. These were to my juvenile
eyes fakirs of high degree.
"Malum sahib," said one of them to
me, producing large and luscious
mango from his basket, you eat"
ate il. and it was delicious.
"Give back stone, sahib."
I returned the kernel.
He placed it on the deck and covered
it with strip Of cotton cloth. There
was no deception. Then one took hold
of an instrument of torture called TOM
tom and began to beat it while the other
intOned a weird chant. They sat on
either side of the mango kernel and the
cotton cloth, which was never touched
by them.
While the tom-tom was loudest and
the song shIillest l noticed the cotton
cloth rise up nnIii it assumed the shape
of tent about nine inches high. There
was wild finale and then silence. The
cotton cloth was drawn away and