Willmar tribune., 1899-06-21
CHAPTER l.
"'TWIXT THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP
SEA

CHAPTER l.
"'TwIxT THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP
SEA"
l thank God l am no coward, else that
which | am about to write would be un
written for loss of subject matter. Nor dc
! make boast of my bravery, seeing it is
a thing born in man and not of his own
making For, as it i'll becomes woman to
take to herself the credit Of her beauty
(for the reason that it is fashioned by a
power not her OWN, SO it would appear
vainglorlous in me TO laud myself for not
playing the part of child when necessity
demanded the action of man. And, fur.
thermore, if in the following seem to
make much of my quickness of brain and
power OF arm, let me here disclaim all un-
just pride in the matter, for my size and
strength are things | owe to a cause higher
than myself. and us for my wits, why, they
are but those God gave me, and they
worked as He saw fit to have them.
These things | say in selfjustiication for
what follows. ] have known fear, but,
thank God! not the fear that paralyzcs ac-
ton. In measure ] felt it when | first
openly lifted my voice against the king,
and, later. the very day on which my story
opens.
We were then somewhere northward of
the Delaware capes, with as fair sea under
and above us and as fair though hot sky
as ever fell to my lot to see. [ say we,
meaning the schooner Phantom, short
handed with two blacks and mate, and
myself, Donald Thorndyke, master, bound
from Norfolk to New London with cargo
of scrap lead to be turned into bullets. and
five hundred pounds in good British gold
secretly built into the bulkhead of the cab.
in. This latter with the schooner, being
the sole property possessed, were further
protected by double set of clearance pa
pers the false especially forged by my own
hands to deceive such of the ships of his
gracious majesty George III. as by chance
might be encountered betwixt the two
ports.
And there was no small chance of such
an encounter, as one may well know by
g'ancing at the history of the united col
Gnles in the year of grace l778
| had been held long in Norfolk for the
lack OF mate with knowledge of naviga.
ton, being myself by no means blue
water sailor, only lodging about the coast
IN years past on the laudable mission Of
hesting the king $ customs-a practice which
had been winked at by the authorities up
to the time of the breaking out of hostilities
And this profession in jured neither credit
nor character, for such were the unjust
commercial laws with which parliament
had coIDpassed us that the term OF 'smug-
gler" bore no opprobrum in those days.
More was it title of virtue in the mind
OF each good coonist, and to this trade was
| bred by my father, who stood to be as
stanch and Godfearing a man and one
above a mean act as ever listened to a
parson or issued orders from quarter
deck. Until two years agone he had been
my compass, rudder, mainstay and entire
trust but the coast fever of the tropics
had cut him down, and no more would
meet his brig fresh from Jamaica some
where off Shore and fill up with contraband
goods to be distributed as my Judgment
saw lit. No more would he greet my
mother and sister in the long, low kitchen
hard by the heights Of Gay Head and talk
OF our getting to be forehanded. No more
would [ hear him, in the "captain's room"
OF the Anchor Watch tavern, damn his
glorious majesty for being a ig-headed
Dutchman with ring in his nose, or de-
liver TRADE in good set terms against Butte,
North, German, and the rest, who were
leading him to the loss of his American
colonies. That was all in the past Now
was ripe for my.voyage and home.
But it was by no means an easy matter
to come by navigator of any sort at that
time. The war had absorbed such talent
long since, and the traders were at dis
count, owing to the risk with no chance for
prize money. So it was with great satisfac-
ton that ut last l met with one, John
Lounsbury, a man had slightly known in
Westchester before the war was well on
He being set to get east, was willing to act
as mate on my own terms; and, though
knew him to be of shady character, and with
morals to be spoken about behind ones
hand, | was glad enough to get him, es-
pecially as he seemed so loud against the
king, and, when he knew what was under
my hatches, so well pleased to be able to
pilot load of metal on it's first trip toward
the vitas of his majesty's hirelings
And thus it was that on the 18th of June,
ITS, we were, as / said, little northward
Of the Delaware capes, with small wind
due east and on the starboard bow, and the
land low, blue cloud over the schooner's
tatfrail
1t was smothering hot in the cabin, where
| had but just finished listing up the log.
The clock had barely. gone three when
Lounsbury hailed me from the deck in a
fashion not to be borne, being neither re-
spectfu nor seamanlike, and at variance
with his usual custom.
Below there! Thorndyke! Lay up
here!"
Now, l made no profession of being pa
tient man, especially in the face of MUS
tice or bold disobedience; and, as4disrespect
on my own quarterback has SAVIOR of each,
] was not far behind his words when l
stepped out OF the companionway.
A negro was at the wheel, and the mate
was strding the weather side of the deck
with spygass under his arm, pipe in
his teeth, and a very easy, self-satisfed set
TO his countenace.
He was short, buriy man, bearing a
heavy, bronzed face, and having a smile the
meaning Of which might be anything. His
tight blue eyes were always half closed, in
manner to be called squint in another
man, but his actions had been bluff, good
natured and open, and the fellow had hith.
erto always shown sense of respectful hu-
u,or in our intercourse : ! +. .E
As strode up to him, I marked him slew
his little eyes around to take me in from
their corners, but he made no move to face
or give me particular notice, II guessed them
that something untoward was in the wind,
and took the shortest way to arrive at the
bottom of it.
"Mr. Lounsbury, I'd have you find it con.
venient to address me as captain on my own
vessel, and bear yourself with decent re-.
spect in SO doing"
9sS For an answer he turned his back to me,
and spat over the rail, then facing about
again, burst into a loud laugh. looked
at him as though he had suddenly been
bereft Of wit, at which he sobered down,