The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1897-03-03

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20 years old, were discharged In Val
paraiso from the whaling bark Golcon-
da, of New Bedford, with a hundred |
and ten dollars apiece in gold ''condors"
in our pockets. All the romance of |
whaling in the South Seas and its at
tendant dangers which had filled our
lmaginations when we shipped as green
hands at the "19Oth lay" had been eff
fectually dissipated by the greasy real
titles of blanket and hawse pieces"
cutting up in the "blubber ROOM" |
down scraps and trying out" sup. |
plemented by ten hours pull in the
boats every other day, poor food. and
rough, if not brutal. treatment, from
the officers.
So, as we stood that morning on the
jetty, blinking the money in our peck
cts and watching our old ship disappear
In the ofiing we felt, indeed. "monarchs
of all we surveyed"
/ At last she was hull down. and turn
ing away with signs Of relief, we clat-
tered once more up the ill-paved street
/ to the COnsul's office, where we had
been paid off, and inquired of him
when we could take passage for home.
4 We learned, much to oar dsappoint-
ment, that there We're no ships in port
bound for the States, nor would there
be any, except an occasional whaler,
for six months to come.
1--WE must resign ourselves to the in
evitable," said Jack, "and the next
question is, Where are we going to
stopT
The Consul assured us that an Ameri-
can named Henderson kept the only
decent place in town, outside of the
rough sailor boarding houses, and rec
commended us to go there. We found
Henderson a good fellow, who gave Us
large room with two beds In It, and
after seeing our chests safely slowed
away, we strolled out to look at the
town, and incidentally to get work.
After walking about the city for an
hour or two we descended to the first
or commercial street to look for work.
Being young, persistent and fairly well
educated, we We're lucky enough to find
] employment with two English firms.
/. branch houses of London and Liverpool
traders. Next morning we went to
work. and for couple of mouths our
lives moved on, TRANQUILITY enough. In
the evenings after supper we smoked
our cigarttos, and managed, with the
aid of an old grammar, to learn little
Spanish. Occasionally. on moonlight
3 nights. we walked out through the
. town, but we never went far as Hen
9 derson warned us that il was no un
/. common thing for stranger to be
8 found in the outlying parts of the city
I with his pockets rihed and a dagger
!, wound in his breast
One evening my superintendent dis
: covered that a mistake had been made
in the outward manifest of the shiI
Lord Palmerston, and noting that SHE
was lying "off and on" with her an
chor atrip, ordered me to board her as
soon as possible before she squared
away for old England, and reetify the
error. So, without delay, | hurried tC
the jetty, embarked, and in half houl
climbed up the side Of the Palmerston
My business detained me longer than
had anticipated, and it was fully
o'clock before l stepped to the side. Al
the tide was on the ebb, my boatmal
had to land me at the nearest point, an,
figured that had about four miles t
walk home
- 1t was moonlight, but here and Their
the dark shadows seemed to invite tn
assassin, and as | hurried on, | cas-
many an anxious glance behind me.
had reached the outskirts of the cit
and was congratulating myself, whe
suddenly, from under an overhangin
"balcon" a woman darted forth an
-, clutched my arm, crying out in pteou
accents:
"Por ell amor de Dios. Senior Anne
lcano Por Ell amor de Diosm (Bor tn
- love of God. Senior AmericanD
"Que quiere conmigo, Senorita
what do you want with me, ladyO
replied as | stepped under the sol
er. tary lamp on the corner and looked ;
her more closely. She was dressed
somber black and the mantlla she wol
was so drawn over her face that b,
ISL one eve was visible; that single or
;sl, however. shone with singular limpidi
and beauty.
- She was evidently greatly excite
and as she went on in her yoluble Spa
lsh. gathered from the little | kne
RI of the language that her father was
m ing al the point of death in hou
near by and she wanted me to go wi
es, her to his assistance. Why she want,
ril- me to accompany her, | could not u
I'LL derstand therefore | asked her wi
m, She did rot appeal to her own people
its. She replied that she and her faith
were strangers. who had but recent
.,. come from Santiago, and that the
were so many ''ladrones," or robbe
1t among her own people that she dar
. aie not trust them, and In still more III
old ent tone, begged me to go with her.
Truly, she who hesitates is lost"
as | thought of Fenderson's warnir
the lateness of the hour, and the wo
f. ans singular persistence, and falter'
undecided, she dropped her mantil
Il and in an instant every scruple h
- vanished. The light from the moon
4 lumlned face perfect in Its clas
s. beauty. and as Innocent as that of
q Madonna, and as saw the girls te
81 stained cheeks (she was only about