Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1900-02-14
CHAPTER I.
"'TWIXT THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP
SEA"

"'TwIXT THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP
SEA"
thank God | am no coward, else that
which ] am about to write would be I'M
written for loss of subject matter. Nor do
| make boast of my bravery, seeing 1t is
a thing born in man and not OF his own
making For, as it i'll becomes a woman to
take to herself the credit of her beauty
flor the reason that it is fashioned by a
power not her own, so 1t would appear
yainglorious in me to laud myself for not
playing the part of child when necessity
demanded the action of a 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 I'M
Just pride in the matter, for my size and
strength are things | owe to a cause higher
than myself, and as for my wits, why, they
are but those God gave me, and they
worked as He saw fit to have them.
These things I say in self-justifcation for
what follows. ] have known fear, but,
thank God! not the fear that paralyzes &C
| ton. In a measure i 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 a sea under
|
as ever fell to my lot to see. | say we,
meaning the schooner Phantom, short
handed with two blacks and a mate, and
myself, Donald Thorndykc, master, bound
from Norfolk to New London with a cargo
| of scrap lead to be turned into bullets. and
five hundred pounds in good British gold
secretly built into the bullihead 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 Ill. as by chance
might be encountered betwiXt the two
ports.
And there was no small chance of such
an encounter, as enc may we'll know by
glancing at the history of the united col
cnies in the year of grace l17S.
1 had been held long in Norfolk for the
lack of a mate with knowledge of naviga-
ton, being myself by no means blue
water sailor, only dodging about the coast
in years past on the laudable mission of
besting the kings customs-a practice which
had been winked at by the authorities up
to the time of the breaking out of hostihties.
And this profession injured neither credit
nor character, for such the unjust
commercial laws with which parliament
had comprised us that the term of SNUG
gler" bore no opprobrium in those days.
More was it title of virtue in the mind
Of each good coloniSt, and to this trade was
! bred by my father, who stood to be as
stanch and God-fearing man and one
above a mean act ever listened to a
parson or issued orders from a quarter
deck Until two years agOnc he had been
my compass, ruddcr, nainstay 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 fit 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 captains room
of the anchor Watch tavern, damn his
glorious majesty for being pig-hcaded
Dutchman with a 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 tina
| time. The war had absorbed such talen
long since and the traders were at dis
count, owing to the risk with no chance TO
prize money. So it was with great satlsiac
ton that at last | met with one, JON
Lounsbury, a man had slightly known i
Westchester before the war was Well OF
= He being set to get cast, was wiling TO ac
as mate on my own terms; and, though
knew him to be of shady character, and wit
y morals to be SPOKEN about behind one
: hand. | was glad enough 10 get him. e:
peciaIlv as he seemed loud against til
\ king. and, when he knew what was unde
I nv matches, so well pleased TO be able t
pilot a load of metal on its first trip towar
the vitals of his maiesty's hirelings.
And thus it was that on the 18th of Jun,
I ITS. we were, as / said, little northwar
5. of the Delaware capes, with small win
z due east and on the starboard bow, and tn
. land low, blue cloud over the schooner
- taffrail.
= 1t was smothering hot in the cabin, whel
z had but just finished listing up the To-
The clock had barely gone three whe
- Lounsbury hailed me from the deck in
~ fashion not to be borne, being neither r
= spectful nor seamanlike, and at varian,
u with his usual custom.
z Below there! Thorndyke, Lay I
8 herei"
Now, l made no profession of being a p
q tient man, especially in the face of inju
@ tice or bold disobedience; and, as dsrespe
q on my own quarterback has SAVIOR of eac
q was not far behind his words when
q stepped out of the companionway.
u A negro was at the Wheel and the ma
= was striding the weather side of the de-
Q with a spyglass under his arm, pipe
4 his teeth, and a very easy, self-satisfed S
q to his countenace.
e He was a short, burly man, bearing
y heavy bronzed face, and having smile t
meaning of which might be anything. H
'ed light blue eyes were always half closed,
,,os manner to be called squirt in anoth
the man, but his actions had been bluff, goo
Ing ing natured and open, and the fellow had hit
,ers erto always shown sense OF respectful
orts NOR in our intercourse.
ini, As strobe up to him, l marked him slt
had his little eyes around to take me in fro
'o of their corners, but he made no move to ia
ign or give me particular notice. guessed tn
wa. that something untoward was in the win
ST. and took the shortest way to arrive at t
bottom of it.
- "Mr, Lounsbury, I'd have you find it &C
venient to address me as captain on my oy
vessel, and bear yourself with decent
spect in so doing"
For an answer he turned his back to n
and spat over the rail, then facing abe
| again. burst into a loud laugh look