The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1893-11-17
THE SLAPPING SAL.
A Story Of tho Seas OF Long
Ago.

Fo' ~ tAN t0yS "AtA ITuIICt
power was already broken upon III
seas, and when more Of her threc-decb
ers lay rctting in the Midway tina
were to be found in Brest harbor. Blu
her frigates and corvettes still secure,
the ocean, closely followed ever b.
those of her rival. At the uttermos
ends of the earth these dainty vessels
with sweet names of girls or Of flowers
mangled and shattered each other TO
the honor OF the four yards Of bunting
that Tapped from the gafs.
II had blown hard in the night, but
the wind had dropped with the dawn
ing, and now the rising sun tinted tn,
fringe of the storm wrack as it dwindlet
into the west, and glinted on the end
less crests of the long green waves. Tc
north and south and west lay a skyline
which was unbroken save by the spout
Of team when two of the great Atlantic
seas dashed each other into spray. To
the east was a rocky island jutting out
into craggy points, with u few scat
tered clumps of palm trees and q pen.
nant Of mist streaming out from the
bare conical hill which capped il. A
heavy surf beat upon the shore, and at
a safe distance from il the British thir-
,y-two gun frigate Leda, Capt. A. p.
Johnson, raised her black. g~listening
side upon the crest of a wave, or
swooped down into an emerald valley,
dipping away to the nor'ard under EASY
sail. On her snow-white qua rter deck
stood a stiff little brown.faced man.
who swept the horizon with his glass.
Mr.. Wharton" he cried, with q
voice like a rusty hinge.
A thin. knock-kneed officer shambled
across the poop to him.
Yes. sir"
I've opened the sealed orders. Mr..
Wharton"
A glimmer of curiosity shone upon
the meager features OF the first lieuten-
ant. The Leda had sailed with her
consort, the Dido, from Antigua, the
week before. and the admiral's orders
had been contained in a sealed enve-
lope.
I'VE were to open them on reaching
the deserted island of Sombriero. living
in north latitute Is degrees, SO min
utes, west longitude 90 degrees, 2s
minutes. SOM ricro bore four miles 10
the northeast from port bow when
the gale cleared. Mr.. Wharton"
The Lieutenant bowed stifiy. He and
the captain had been bosom friends
from childhood. They had gone to
school together, joined the navy to-
rether and married into each others
families. but as long as their feet were
on the poop the iron discipline OF the
service struck all that was human out
them and left only the superior and
the subordinate. Capt. Johnson took /
a blue paper from his pocket which
as he unfolded it:
The ihirty-two gun frigates Leda and Dido
A. II Johnson and James Munroe) are
% cruise from the point at which these instruc-
tions are read 10 the mouth OF the Caribbean
Sea 10 the hope OF encountering the French frig-
Ne La Gloire 4sl. which has recently harassed
our merchant ships In that quarter. II. NJ.
'rifaies are also directed to hunt down the ri.
known sometimes as the Shaping
sal and sometimes as the Hairy Hudson,
shicn has plundered the British ships as per
margin, inniciing barbaritics upon their crews.
she - q small brig carrying ten light guns.
one iwenty-four pound carronade for
sarA She was last seen upon the 22i ultimo
Q The northeast OF the island OF Sombriero.
"tsisned). JAMES MONTGOMERY.
Rear Admiral
III NJ ). Colossus, Antigua"
W appear to have lost our consort.'
aud Capt johnson, folding up his in
and again sweeping the
with his glass. .She drew :
after we reefed down. 1t wound
e a pity II we met this heavy French :
ian without the Dido, Mr.. Wharton
h?' I
The Lieutenant twinkled and smiled. y
she has eigh.een-pounders on the /.
IAN and twelves on the poop, SIR" :
ald the captain. "She carries four >
nndrcd TO our two hundred and thirty '
ne. Capt de Milon is the smartest ;
in the French service. Oh, Bobby :
'y, I'd give my hopes of my flag to !
~ my side up against her" He :,
lrned on his heel, ashamed of his mo- !
entary lapse. 'Mr. Wharton" said c
{. Looking back sternly over his shout :
r. get those square sails shaken out ;
id bear away a point more Ia the |,
b
\ brig on the port bow" came q = =
nee from the forecastle. u
"a brig on the port bow" said the q
sutcnant. "
ne captain sprang up on the bull !,
arks and held on to the mizzcn :.
rouds, a strange little figure with !.
ing skirts and puckered eyes. The 9
IN lieutenant craned his neck and y
nispered to Smcaton, the second, -
lile officers and men came popping y
from below and clustering along y
{ weather rail, shading their eyes %
IN their hands, for the tropical sun ~
Is already clear of the palm trees. -
'e strange brig lay at anchor in the ~
roat Of a curving estuary, and it was a.
obvious that she could not ret "
without passing under the guns of 81 !,
E frigate. A long. rocky point to the 81
rth Of her held her in. n
Keep her as she goes. Mr. Wharton, ~ -
9 the captain. Hardly worth while Il
airing for action, Mr.. Sneaton, but -
7 men can stand by the guns in case q
tries TO pass us. Cast loose the ".
and send the small-arm men
70 the ~forecastlc."
Is II Shaping Sal, sir2" a.