The Chipley banner., 1897-10-02
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y
/ or an hour The place was full OF the
cultural shouts OF men and the shrieks
of women, the scream OF the maiden and
cry Of the mother losing her little one
the wall OF the captive and the moan OF
the dying down in the shadows; and
men ran here and there struggling with
-shrouded forms, or dragging by
Ieel or ha strange shapes into dusky
corn RS, and the fires blazed and the
sparks feli-and then, presently, be.
cause there were no more to kill, tho
noise died down until presently silence
relgned, broken only by the laughing
and shouting OF my men, and thus we
gathered in the hall, relit the lamps,
br' he'd off the remnants of the earlier
evening supper and laiG out for our
selves all the best we could put our
hands on. And fierce, wild revelry my
fellows made OF 1t. The hot blood OF
rapine and pilla0e had got into their
veins and they heated 1t h CHER with the
strong, abundant drink from that Brit
ish chieftain's hiding places, until they
were more like tawny, handsome band
of furies than mortal men-gods! ]
think I never brought such crew OF
devils to that shore before. They made
the rafters ring with their wild pagan
hymns; they danced and shouted and
ate and drank, while the pale captive
girls stood hudd ing In the shadows or
waited trembling on them, and the wine
and ale went streaming down the floor
among the blood and litter, and the
torches fared, and the dogs howled out
side. Oh, 1t was strange, wild revelry
and went on for half the night time.
1t must have been near the dawn and
most OF the maidens 10y swoonlng upon
the floor between weariness and terror,
and half the rovers were drunk as
swine, when they fetched In the dead
chieftain, setting him, pale and bloody,
In he chair, and putting q cup into his
hands while the ribaldest fellow there
made song and sung 1t to him. Then
next q cry arose-who started 1t know
not, but may God forgive him-for the
English Il flanklln's daughterl We had
not seen her-she was not among the
captives-a now q hundred buxom
fellows were on foot hunting with torch
and lamp high and low In every crack
and corner OF the burgh to find her.
Unhappy damsel, they hunted futil, ly
everywhere until they came to the
small round tower on the cliff verge;
there the strong oak door was barred
and shut from within, and wild yell Of
drunken pleasure tod their quarry was
at bay.
What was 1t that made me Just then
30 sick of all that revelry and sat like a
black foreboding on my sou2 know
not, but turned, and, weary OF the
glare and tumult, slowly left the burgh
and walked down to the beach, where
lay my ship, just as the men were maxi
ing ia mound Of sticks and heath and
timbers about the door Of the doomed
tower that held the 8 lent princess.
Climbing on board ! gave orders to
those who had stood by the Wolf to
make all ready for the sea, then threw
myself down listless, strangely sad, and
chilly as one in ague, by my place at
the tiller to await the com n9 Of the
pillagers. And presently, one by one,
the sons OF the creek came reeling down
the path, singing as they stumbled
down the darkness and carrying bundles
and bags. and furs, and cups, and
weapons in sheafs, and dragging falter-
ing slaves, and surly, snarling dogs In
leashes, and so at last when they were
q on board but one, that one came run
ming down the path, and before he had
lot hal way to US the burgh was all
Illuminated with q rosy light, and look
ing up we saw that the lau ching villain
had fired 1t in twenty p aces, and not
only the dwellings hut also the great
mound of fuel his friends had built
against the tower door.