The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1899-05-27

tndt nc wore lOIdkt cap anu carried a cav
airy saber instead Of a cutlass His face, too,
| lacked the true sea tan, its fair complexion
| showing the effects OF unusual exposure TO
sun and wind What his rank might be /
had no idea, and speculation was lost in the
| quick retort that naturally rose to my lips.
WHO are you, sir. TO tumble aboard
prize OF his majesty's in this fashion? Ye
stand in need OF lesson in marine manners
as well as marine matters. DO We hope to
| judge OF crafts cargo by a squirt at her
hatch cover, or OF a man by the cut Of his
| Jbg Think not TO deceive yourself or me!
| / know my rights, and also know the differ
ence betwixt the cry of sea bird and hen
| hawk"
III i had any doubt as TO the official posi-
ton OF the officer, it was set at rest by the
| subdued laugh that came from the group
about us. Piqued by the sound of mirth
| from those he had no power TO punish, his
face turned to an ugly red, and, lifting his
saber as though TO cut me down, he shouted.
You lnsolent dog! will make you sweat
| for this! Lay hold of him, some Of youl
| Tie the villain up! Damnationl are you all
cowardsg" he continued, as there was a
shuttle of feet, though no one approached me.
There is no telling what might have been
the upshot of this dispute had there been
no interruption, for the fellow seemed deter
mined to use his saber on me. But, fortu-
nately for one of us, we were joined by an
other officer, whom l afterward found had
come from the second boat.
"Hold hard, Scammelll You are not
handling one of yoa- own dragoons What
is this all about, You fly the signal of a
prize, sir," he continued, turning to me ;
''how comes 1t you are alone? Who and
what are your"
Il am Captain Jack Lounsbury, bearing
instructions from Sir Henry Clinton, as that
cockatrice might have found ere this had
he used a smooth tongue. This is my prize
/ "a Yankee schooner laden with lead for
! New London, and taken by me single-hand-
cd. There lies her skipper, and all but one
i Of her crew arc overheard" And with this
! pointed TO the body Of my mate
! | had hardly spoken when two marines
came aft with the negro Stole betwixt them
He was trembling like sail in the wind,
and hung his head as though he had lost
all strength TO lift it, l was looking for an
exposure on the instant, but the officer
waved them back with a motion There was
an unspoken but plainly shown respect for
me in the demeanor OF the crowd as il spread
away. The two officers stood for a moment
in undisguised wonder at the recital of my
! proves, giving alternate glanccs at the body
and myself, and then the last conner, who
was plainly the one in authority, spoke
you alone did this? BY St. George,
Scammel, you came near getting into a
ness | promised to show you a sea scrim-
mage, but not the kind you were Matching
Let us have further warrant Of these facts -
he continued TO me. "Who was.he!' point
ing toward the scupper, "and when did this
happeng Let us come by the papers"
Wonder fellow is Donald Thorndyke, the
master till / overcame him." | answered.
IL shipped as mate. II you will so below we
can come by the whole matter" ! replied,
not caring to extend my yarn with the negro
within hearing. "Or, better, we can take
what we there find and go aboard before
your captain, where the whole matter may
| be boiled down at one sitting
'Iwould be saving of time, certainly"
be answered, "but wei hear the yarn while
/ the schooner is being searched; of course,
you understand the Importance OF the form"
| And he turned TO a sea corporal and gave
him the necessary orders. Now, sir. | am
at your service" he said, crossing the deck
toward the cabin companion. Hesitatng
there, he seemed to hang in the wind for an
instant, and then strobe over to the body.
did you shoot him." he asked, as lac bent
ever the PROSTATE form.
'Nay, | struck him." i answered.
Faith, then" he returned, sizing me up
with side glance, I'D sooner take the
chance eli n bullet than blow from that fist
! il you struck in earnest! Did he wing you
at the onset?"
"Nay, nay; twas a niger striving to knife
me in the back. Let's below. Mayhap ye
have a doctor aboard who will fix up bad
! cut"
Through all this was conscious of the eve
! of Scammell fixed on me. Whether or not he
was suspicious of me, or whether he was still
boiling under the dressing had given him,
there were no means of telling ! saw plain
| ~ the resentment he made little effort TO
conceal, and felt that had made an enemy
who would be mighty glad TO cross swords
with me on the slightest proyocaton. He
was % or 80 in years, or about my own age,
and was under me not two inches in stature
which is speaking well for him, as ! stood
three inches above six feet, unshod BY
weight and Drawn | well overmatchcd him
! (as ! did most mem, especially in the latter
! quality of physique, but he made a typical
dragon officer, and would be a formidable
antagonist in any field.
| might hope for little mercy il ever fell
| into the power of this man. for mercy was a
! quality which, strained or unstraincd, he
and his fellows had naught TO do with. This
! | made sure of on getting into the cabin,
where in course of conversation 1t turned
out that he was captain in DE Lancy's
/ Loyal Legion, IA body Of tory cavalry half
frcebooters and half in the regular service
| had heard OF them, as who has notg Be-
twixt New York and Philadelphia and the
country surrounding both places they were
terror, the malignancy equaling Il not
surpassing the rapacity OF Tryon himself
| itched to get my fingers on him then and
! there, that there might be one less blood
] sucker above ground, but policy held me from
/ committing an act which probably would
| have at once wrought rum TO my plans and
/ left my poor mother without son. was,
therefore, bound to treat him with ciyility,
which 1 did when a word 10 him was neccs-
sary. but | fancy we each knew the other
was but skipping over the thin ice Of polite.
ness.
! Being "a il were, in the cnemy's lines,
followed the bent Of the lieutenant, and