The Lehi banner. [volume] (Lehi, Utah) 1891-1917, 1898-05-17
How His Grew of Cripples Reoov-
cred In q Night.
One Day Late the Schooner Hester Sailed
Into Bristol Harbor with Rum.
Molasses, Sundries and
=, "Cinq Hommee."

The only words that Capt. John
Dickey, of the Bristol schooner Hes
ter, had understood were ICING hom-
mes"
"Five on EN-" he muttered. That's
odds for the frog-eaters."
And in the depths of his gloom he
fell to cutting off pipeful of tobacco.
Truly, Capt. John couldn't be very
sanguine. He had sailed from Boston
several days before, bound for Bris-
toll town, or ancient Pemaquid, with
general cargo for the storekeepers
of the settlement, and alas! French
privatcersman had overhauled him
away off the mouth of the Kennebcc.
The Hester had fed, but her fight
was about as nimble as the scuttling
away of an old hen foundering through
q barnyard to escape tormenting dog.
The Hester was all right for conveying
rum, molasses, and other necessaries-
broad of beam and tight of seam. But
she couldn't run away. Her blunt nose
bumped against the waves, her heavy
sides smashed clumsily down upon the
brimming swell. The tough old bird
spread all sail and bowled along, like
Brahma scudding before the wind
with tail spread, but up came the pri-
vateeersman, his frisky nose dipping,
his clean sides flashing back the CLINT
of the wave, and the spume whizzing
through the lee braces.
"Schoonaire, ahoi!" shouted little
man from over the taffrail, his lSnurly,
red nose cleaning from under his cap.
The pursuer had edged up on the Hes
ter's quarter, and Capt. Dickey and his
men were surlily eying the small
craft.
"What do you want?" roared back
the captain, hoarsely, just as though
he didn't know all too well.
The man with the knurly red nose
screamed back:
"Hcaf' to; stand by for bot'!"
Capt. Dicl<ey didn't haul around at
once, however. He turned to Mate
Constant Judkins.
"S'pose we've got to, JUDI" he re-
marked, gloomily. Course you know
what it means. We're gobbled."
"Yes, and it's jest as well to be COB
bled whole as piecemeal," remarked
Mate Judkins, carefully throwing his
quid to lee.
This was wisdom. So in moment
or so the Hester came slapping and
changing and foaming around into the
wind. Not moment too soon, for the
privatcersman's long Tom had taken
n rather determined squirt at the main.
mast of the schooner.
Then Capt. Dicl<ey, listening atten.
lively and with saturnine face, heard
a gobble of French, in which he dis
tinguished "cinq hommes," and that
alone, for he wasn't linguist.
"Sank 'om," he growled; ''wal, come
along and sank 'om more il you want
to-"
Constant Judkins listened to the
soliloquy with puzzled face.
''If may be so questioniferous,
cap'n,T he asked, who's this ere Sanl,
Orm who is coming aboard?"
The captain didn't smile. 81 heard
EN- say in We've lingo" he explained
that they're going to put five prize
men aboard us, and the Lord only
hhOWo Niti 2 butJ to.
The crew of the Hester were four
the skipper, the mate-Ozarias Hodson
A. s., able-bodied seaman, and Berual
Joquith, cook and before the mast.
Now, as the captain STROBE forward
front of the house to see about throw
ing over the stern ladder, he saw
Ozarias Hodson sitting on a rope coil
in the waist, with head tied up.
what ails your" snapped the skip
per.
''Toot'ache. sir, and dum'd bad, tool"
Ozarias evidently was more distract
ed by toothache than by privateers-
man. Berual Joquith, who had had
the lively suspicion that the privateers-
man would pop few shots at them by
way of exercise and practice, lodged
out of sight into his sanctuary.
just as Capt. Dickey threw over the
stern ladder a thought struck MIN.