The St. Johns herald., 1900-06-02
ltess of imneriaI Tnnis.

spot which once witnessed the fines
 battle fought there since the fall o
 Carthage. the memory of that day
 work will never die while one man o
 Anglo-Saxon blood remains to keeI
 alive the instinct of courage and fai
 play. and standing up against th'
 strong in behalf Of the weak. It Is we'll worth while for anyone
 however he may hate war and blood
 shed in general. 10 look back and set
 Tnat was done here on a certain
 hne spring morning. two centurie!
 ago
 IL Is the 3d of April. 1853. and the
 whole city of Tunis is in an uproaf
 Wild faces. Iivid with fear or bIsrI with rage. crowd the narrow. wind ing. gloomy streets. which echo with
 the ciamor Of countless tongues, the tramp of feet. fhe chatter of horse.
 hoofs and the rumble of artillery. wheels.
 Hundreds of swarthy figures. sword in belt and matcn-Iock on shoulder are swarming over the decks of the nine huge wsr-gaIIeyH which lie moOred close under the forts of Go leita.
 In the forts themselves crowds of men are hard ai work running out !eavy guns. billing up cannOn-bnlls. filing po~der-chestB. or laying Sand- bags along ihe ramPartA as an ad- dItiOnal shelter; and all eyes are turned wairhfully toward the en- trance of the bay. and the five great hue-uf battle ships that are gliding Ihfo Ii. with the black mouths of iOadrd cannon gaping hungrily through theIT open ports. and the red crO>A of England not yet altered Inio the uniOn jack-futtered jaunt- Ily af the niIzZen
 BIgb Oh ibr poop of the English flag ship aisLCS tall. handsome man. in The uniform of British admiral His tire face R perfectly calm. bui close observer would notice iha, he wears ihe same sci. stern look that il wore when he held launioniOwH years ago, aRaInti ihe braveSi of Charles I.s cava- iiers.
 In truth hard fight against over wheimIng OtdS Is nothing new io Rob Prt Flake. the worthy fOrrrhnner of Rodney and Nelson: and ;hr cause in whrh he is ;o fight to-day might well nerve any mat iO GO his best Wonder, behind those battrriep that frOw [. upon hIm from behind the shore are ihou- EanGk of hrisfisn rnptIvrh many of them EnR!Ishmru like himself "hainPd. ragged. half-,'arved blis- tered by iht >rorrhinR sun and scanned with ihe scars of whip and branCing iron Anc now. after years of hicPous boLdaRe among brutal pirates. which have made the memory O: home and friends. and ihe hof.r nf ore day return ing 10 them, seem dim and distant as half-forgotien dreams. their weary eyes see once more the waving of Eng lish tags over a fleet coming 10 their rescue.
 Well may the haggard faces brighten. GesI ie the curses and blows of their Savh-e taSku aHierS. When AGu. 4l B.aLe came here three weeks ago with dra.anG for the "SurrehGrr of all Chrls; .an raptjves." and saI.ed away agn.n with TO ahswpr save m inSOlent defiance from tLe bey of Tunis and his pIr,.tP cl.';s. there was many q heavy heart am" E the prisoners. But 10 day he ID h. re sTain. no longer 10 threaten. but 10 d"; and the message whicL he br'ugs ti.Ih time is one which
 
 "DULt tLee be troubled, lad" says one of'the aGmIrafs crew to 6 curly haired boy who is looking wiStfuiiy to- warG ihe shore. We'll get thy father out of t:.eiI claws yet. never fear!"
 The boye face glows al the words. and there Is fight in his clear blue eyes which shows tha, if fighting is 10 be done to-day he will not be hindmOSt.
 Ten weary y'arS have passed since stout lem JaU U%son, struggling for life on a dis asied wreck, wuA seized by thesp pI .ess roverS; and the son. who | was a chl.d of five when he disappeared, l had come back aS boy of IS. 10 take 1 part in his rescue.
 Onward come the great floating cas- 1 ties. in a grim silence which awes the | fierce AraOs in spite of themselves. Suddenly there comes rattle and a splash. as all five ships cast anchor at once. Then a boat is seen gliding shore ward from the admiralS vessel with flag of truce to give the over-confident fore il iS too late.
 But instantly there comes a pun of white smoke from the nearest port. and l heavy shot xplashing up the water close 10 the boats bow. showing what an an- swer the message of mercy has to ex- pect.
 Then Blake'E face is seen to darken ominously. and with his wonted tug of repressed anger at the point of his long. black whiskers. he gives the word 10 open fire. Then up through the still mir rises the stern cadence of the old Puritan battle-psalm. to the sound of which CromweR's Ironsides had swept the beE; of the royalist soldiers from many ha=d-fought field. God Is our refuge and our strength.
 h straits a present aid: Therefore. although the earth be moved. We will not be afraid.
 hills amid the sea be cast,
 Though waters roaring make And troubled be: yea. though the hiils By swelling seas do shake"
 Instantly sea and shore and sky were wrapped in one thick gust of hot, ktifling smoke. while the warlike music was drowned by the roar of 500 cannon.
 Fire. smoke. yeils. groans. curses, pelting shot. crashing timbers. falling stones. deafening csnnon-ihunder, all at once.
 Far away in the desert the wandering Arab stopped to listen to the dull boom