Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1899-06-15

"Flusned with victory and nerved
with strength by thoughts of the golden
hoard below, my fellows were not to be
resisted, and save for a party headed
by the Spanish COMMUNICATIVE re-
treated beyond the break OF the poop
and held the after castle in spite of all
our efforts to dislodge them-save,
say, for these few, the whole crew was
beaten below, and we thought the ves-
sci our own But this pestilential hand
full kept stubbornly at bay, and so,
when, firing at length Of their resist
ance, they called for parley, we staid
our arms for moment, being willing
to make truce and grant them quar-
ter.
'But the knave commandment, aping
an insolence that would have sat ill on
his betters, must needs dictate terms to
us-to us, who held his ship and his
shipmates' lives at our swords mercy.
Il yield to pirates on no terms what
ever quoth he. Get you gone, and
your lives are spared, quoth he, 'or
stay and press your present advantage
and l will rid the world of your thiev-
ish hands and minds forever, even at q
large cost to myself and my following.
And ye have not left my ship before this
minute glass hath drained its sand
swear to you on my honor as a caballero
that / will send you and the Santa
Catarina and myself and my crew sky
ward in one smoky shower Beware,
accursed English picaroon A volcano
! l.. A ~ I
glass. If in a minutes time you and
| your robber band have not made re-
treat, l fire my magazine, quoth he.
His speech was in Spanish, and but
few of my lads understood it. For my
self, l never thought the fellow would
be as good as his threat and so, unwill-
ing to be worsted by mere bravado, or
dered couple of main deck culverins
to be hauled in loaded, slowed round
and trained so as to sweep his defenses.
Thou truculent braggart, quoth /,
down on thy marrow bones and sue for
quarter, or blow thee and thy handful
of ironclads ont through the stern ports
and into the seal But scarce had the
words left my beard when there came Il
and we were all shot skyward together.
"Beshrcw me if the knave Spaniard
had not been az good as his word
For myself, | fell into the water
amid shower Of other solids, unhu<t
by twice miracle, and gained tho
snow with some trouble and there | was
joined by five and twenty of my fellows
/ oil Will hai ,eip ol
and dented The remainder of the crew
had gone skyward in pieces that no
surgeon, be he never SO skillful, could
join.
But worse remains to tell and
surely gentlemen of fortune We're never
entreated so evilly. The port side of the
galleon-that furthest from us--was
blown completely ont, and she founder
ed incortinently; foundered. | declare
upon my manhood, before we could
spoil her of anything; foundered with
out yielding us a solitary piece Of eight,
no not maravedi; foundered in 200
fathoms Of water in latitude'-
"Stopl" interrupted DR.. Tring sharp
ly.
ing "We're just coming to the point,
said he.
"Exactly" was the reply, but for
the present we will allow the precise
latitude and longitude of the treasure to
Femain secret, or, better still, commit
eur bloodthirsty ancestor s figures to
memory, and | will do the same, and
then you can destroy that part of the
manuscript which contains them, and, -
added the doctor, laughingly, "even in
your dreams remember that there may
be listeners waiting to steal the secret,
if you but whisper it. "
At these words Captain Colepepper
sprang up, and, Selling the other s
hand, wrung it hard for fully minute,
laughing Historically all the time 1t
is, moreover, to be recorded that thu,
doctor leathern face was at last sur
prised into betraying an emotion; for
under that grip he WINGED with pain
lyon agree?" cried the captain,
when his delight allowed him to become
coherent
Yes, was the answer; ~ do
Wen have try for the Spaniards
gold Colepepper "
"Hurrah!" shouted the captain. II
thought you would. We shall be mil
lionaires, doctor!'
"Or paupers captain, said the doc
tor quietly
TO BE CONTINUED.