The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-10-05
"Y.o,t agree ?" cried the captain.


our efforts to dislodge them-save, /
say. for these few, the whole crew was
beaten below, and we thought thieves
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 a parley, we staid
our arms for a 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.
i yield to pirates on no terms what
ever quoth he. Get you gone, and
your lives are spared, quoth he, cor
stay ana press your present advantage
and will rid the world of your thiev-
ish hands and minds forever, even at a
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 caballero
that | will send you and the Santa
Catarina and myself and my crew sky
ward in one smoky shower. Beware,
accursed English picaroonl A volcano
is undertook At this instant turn the
glass. If in minutes time you and
your robber band have not made re-
treat, I fire my magazine quoth he.
His speech was in Spanish, and but
few of my lads understood it. For my
self, 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 l.
down on thy marrow bones and sue for
quarter, or l blow thee and thy handful
of ironclads out through the stern ports
and into the seal But scarce had the
words left my beard when there came
roar from underfoot, the deck heaved,
and we were all shot skyward together.
"Beshrew me if the knave Spaniard
had not been as good as his word!
''For myself, / fell into the water
amid shower of other solids, unhurt
by twice miracle, and gained the
snow with some trouble, and there / was
joined by five and twenty Of my fellows,
all with their hides more or less singed
and dented. The remainder Of the crew
had gone skyward in pieces that nc
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 furthest from us-was
blown completely out, and she founder
ed incontinently; foundered, I declare
upon my manhood, before we could
spoil her of anything; foundered with
out yielding us solitary piece of eight,
no not a maravedi; foundered in zoe
fathoms of water, in latitude"
"Stop!" interrupted DIR. Tring sharp
ly.
The captain looked up from his read
ing "We'rs 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
remain a secret, or, better still, commit
your bloodthirsty ancestors figures to
memory, and 1 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 others
hand. wrung it hard for fully a minute,
laughing Historically all the time 1t
is, moreover. to be recorded that the
doctor 8 leathern face was at last sur
prised into betraying an emotion for
under that grip he WINGED with pain.
"You agree?" cried the captain.
when his DELIGHT allowed him to become
coherent
eyes" WIS the answer; 81 do.
Well have try for the spaniards'
gold. Colepepper. .
"Hurrah" shouted the captain. II