Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-03-03

bit warren below. through whose tunnels
Eborra threaded his way-glding under this
followed down a long gloomy passage, and
over miniature mountain pass. Thea,
ducking low again till we emerged safely
on the lovelieSt little sheltered bay, very
harbor in miniature, completely sheltered
from all sight of the and defensed on
the land side from the buccaneers village
Anna clapped her hands at the sight, and
cried out with pleasure at the lovely sand
and shells on the shore. The shells were
not broken to pieces, as on the beach in
front Of the village. by the force of the
waves. but every tiny, turret-like form per-
feet to its last whorl. Some were marked
like starcases, with steps of alternate yell
low and red. Anna bent and gathered
handfuls and finally lapfuls of these muir
muring all the while with a kind of tender
ness. "Ah. that l had you home with me
at the Min house. how happy should be-
And this was the sole comp aint / heard
her make all the time she was the island
In one corner of this fairy paradise, and
sheltered from the wash of any seas by the
great jutting nose of the North Horn, a
ships SHIPS Jolly boat rode at anchor close to a
little natural pier, as taut and trim as if
the lndiaman's crew had just left her.
ran to her and found that she was both
well-kept and well-found, having oars COM
modiously packed under a protecting avn
ing. a short-socketed spar for hoisting a
sail, and all the necessary convenences for
making voyage of some length. A chain
OF stout links of iron connected her stem
harbOr.
I'VE must set sail at once, before the ship
comes back 1 cried eagerly. Where did
you get the boat? and why have you not
escaped long ago."
For the marvel of possessing such treas
ure, and yet remaining in a position of
slavery, troubled me-
But Yellow Jack held up his handles arm,
and said reproachfully. without answering
my first question: This is the reason, sir;
also, whom would Eborra trust except his
weak old mother? And whittier would lie CO.
when there-there-and there pointing
south, north and easD are slaves, slaves
only slaves"
Then he guided US to a small hut built of
driftwood and matched with broad palmet-
to leaves, which stood unseen in a charming
| recess of the rocks.
"Eborra's house, he explained, with
proud and satisfied look. And here. upon
blocks of wood rudely shaped as stools, We
sat and ate bananas and strange fruit
which our guide had brought with him.
while almost at our feet the wavelets Missed
crisply along the beach of bright shells and
golden sand.
The haif-caste stood silent before US a
long time before he spoke.
You Eborra's friends" he said You
not like the others. Suppose Eborra shows
you how to escape, you never sell him into
slavery. Never let cruel white man whip
his mother because she is a witchr
/ could not tell him that still in my own
country poor old women like his mother
were condemned for witchcraft and that,
not so long ago, one had been burned With
all circumstances of civil and ecclesiastical
pomp upon the borough moor of Abercairn
itself.
On the contrary, Anna promised that if
we We're delivered and restored to our own
country, he should be rewarded and cared
for, and his mother also. He turned on her
a look of dog-like gratitude. and, taking
the girls hand, he set it on his head.
'.Eborra your SLAYER he said, gratefully.
Then in fragmentary, but easily under
stood sentences, he told us that, II we did
endeavor to escape. we must go northward; ;
that a chain of islands connected with
the larger settlements of Porto Rico and
Jamaica, where we would find governments
and ships in which to return to our native
land. But he warned US that the voyage
would prove a long and dangerous one
Moreover, the jollyboat would go slow
that if the Corromantee should chance to
return about the time Of our escane We
should be instantly captured.
Still here was a hope, a possibility, and,
! according to my fashion, l began instantly
| to build upon it. In five minutes ! had us
| al! back in imagination at New Minis. my
! Uncle John dethroned, the prince come to
| his own. And the princess
! But Yellow Jack broke in remorselessly
! upon the beauty of my vision. Tonight or
| tomorrow at the latest the Cor-omantee
| will return We must wait till they lay her
ashore to careen her. We need many things
| for the Svoyage. We must find casks for
| water and bring them hither; we mus take
| 0fle0 tongues, smoked Deei-
| How can we get these" interrupted
Anna, unless We steal? We cannot buy
them
| Yellow Jack looked at her in astonish-
| ment.
ut is no sin to steal from the thief" he
| said. They cut off Eborra's hand. Eborra
| take his boat to help him to get back his
| flesh and bones. Will he ever get that
| back?" He held up the stump of his arm
as he spoke. smiling strangely as he did so,
! and neither of us made any further objec-
| ton, SO easily is morality sometimes satis-
| fled.
| 1 asked Eborra how he knew that the
| ship would return speedily. MY mother
| told me she saw it sailing hither. Thought
and took ship. Many people killed. Two
| ships come with much plumber, tonight
/ tomorrow perhapSv
| 1 said to myself that If this proved to be
| true his mother would be witch indeed.
and in my own country might be in even
greater danger than in any pirate isle. ]
thought of Mr.. John Bell.
| We went back, not by the way We had
| come, but through the silent woods-Ebor-
ra. like the guardian demon of the place
humrning his curious song, and the deadly
/ snakes waving their heads at us from the
| boughs. Bright-colored birds flashed across
| us. Strange flowers cleaned amid the dull
| green OF the foliage. Far off we could hear
sound like bell struck in some church
| tower, a solemn note, reverberant and SON
orous-then silence yet more complete, ant
again after space the solemn toll, as il
dead were burying the dead.
Then out of this intenser silence from the
forest edges, where the high woods stoof
up like black rampant wall, there would
come a sudden terrible scream, or laughter
! equally hideous-some bird seized by a ser
pent, or perchance only a bowling monke,
playing bo-peep with his kind.
| An hour afterward, as we entered tn,
village with our hastily seized punches o
grapes and satchels of wild plums, We at
tracted no attention; something absorbing
IN interest had happened. The whole popu
lation stood at gaze. and even my mothe
was on the balcony Of her house. lookin,
] out 10 sea eagerly as any. Two ship
I had been sighted, one with three and thu
other with two masts. They were heading
| directly for the island. And l knew no
| whether Yellow Jacks mother was a witch
or whether our guide owed his provision t
some superior trick Of eyesight.
Il CHAPTER XXXIII.
Jim Pembury Makes n Mistake.
But at any rate We had now something
definite to do. The jollyboat must be pro
! visioned VIII Bowman must be enlisted
I H.