Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1901-01-24

| upon being able to row the Scourge out
of danger, as we had already rowed
| her up alongside a prize in calm, but
| now, as fortune would have II, an un-
| lucky round shot entering in at an open
! port had hit the six sweeps as they lay
| lashed on the deck and had broken ey-
! cry one of them into two. And so, with
| the decks becoming more of a shambles
| every minute, we stood our ground and
/ fought the guns like furies. and though
| our pieces were outnumbered by more
! than two to one we hoped by serving
| them twice as quickly to return as good
! or even better than we got. Besides,
| every shot of ours found billet some
where in the Spaniard's hull, while
| many of his, through the greater eleya-
| ton OF his guns, few harmlessly over
| the little Scourge. Had it been other
| wise we could never have hoped to
| keep her afioat.
While we were still a cables length
| from the cnemys stern a strange thing
| happened. \ sailor ran on to the poop,
| leapcd overheard and SWAN as though
| for his life toward US. Spanish shot
| pitted the water round him like thun-
| der drops in pond. but as he held up
| his hand as if appealing to US for as
sistaRce we engaged his assailants and
made them think rather of their own
skins
Tie swimmer meanwhile came up
alongside and. getting his fingers into
| the main Chains. scrambled on board.
| Though vastly changed by the hard
4
o-nized him as Saul Dickory. one Of
| the Bristol Merchants crew, and hot
| though the fight ragged around us we
suatched Il moment to press the hand
| Of n comrade Of the old days.
He had. so he said, been serving in
Spanish ships ever since his capture at
| the mountain ravine, leading a dogs
| life, while doing two mems work. and
until now had never seen chance of
escape Further. he had an offer to
make US Give him n light line, and
| he'd jump overheard again and make 1t
| fast TO a ringbolt on the don's stern,
and then we might warp ourselves up
and board through the cabin window.
But for the love O heaven he inn
plored us, keep the Spanish sharp
shooters busy while | swim. | can
| hear the splash O. their bullets round
my ears now"
Alec. however, refused to allow him
to make this attempt for fear of the
sharks, observing that we should be
| able to do as much for ourselves with
| the graphing iron in half an hours
| time at our present rate of drifting.
But" he added, 81 am afraid that
Don Miguel has still too many men for
my small handful to tackle"
AYE, captain" replied Dickory, that
| he has There are higher 800 than 200
aboard yon galleon who can still hit
| good heavy blow. though there's near
as many besides wi their toes turned
up. But once get inside the big cabin,
an you can clear it an hold it ag'in the
| lot O en-
"But want the whole ship, sirrah."
Saul Dickory shook his head you
| can't do it, captain" he declared de-
cidedly. "An If you try the big waves
will be rolling over every man o US
| tomorrow. But you do what's as good
you can lay your hands on the store
| y dollars"
without taking the ship? How"
"The hatch o. the treasury Is in the
cabin floor, an you can strike out the
cargo into this queer craft Of your'n
without a blessed don o 'em being
| able TO stop you"
And this in the end was what we
did. The mermen, or Neptune. or the
| current, or whatever agency had
charge Of our heels. swept the two YES
| sells nearer and nearer together till Mt
last n couple of cleverly thrown grap-
piles caught hold and our bulwark
ground against the galleons square
stern.
Her crew had no intention Of letting
us set foot in their stronghold without
n tussle and did what they could with
freballs and Grenadoes, cold shot and
naked steel to stop us. But with n
ladder of boarding axes driven into
their timbers we scrambled up ana
soon had a footing in the cabin.
Hemmed In by the packed masses
behind, the front rank had the alter
native of fight or fall. They fought
long and desperately, and then they
fell, for they expected no quarter and
asked none. We on our side fought as
furiously as they, stabbing with short
ened weapons where there was nc
room TO swing them and thrusting
many foe through the open portfolios
into the sea. 1t was n bloody conflict,
for not until two-thrds of the cabins
defenders lay dead and dying did the
Spanards suffer themselves to be driy.
en- out into the waist.
We ourselves had lost Jan Pengony,
his friend George and three others kill.
ed outright, and two more were Sc
sorely wounded that they died there
on the cabin floor. Scarce one of us
but had his red cash to show.
But IL was no time to groan or lick
our wounds. The two doors under the
poop were closed and barred with fur
niture piled up against them. loaded
patareroes were thrust through the
lOopholes to command the waist, and
the hatch of the treasure room was
cleared of bodies and thrown open.
The pieces of eight we found snugly
slowed In oak chests. and while half a
dozen of us stood ready by the swivel
gun lIt rest iuuub All HuSle lutl COulu
TO hand up the treasure and lower 1t
through the windows on to the
Scourges deck below.
But rapid rs were our movements
Don Miguel had no notion OF allowing
us to spoil his ship unmolested.
Scarcely had we got into the swing OF
work than he and n strong party with
him mounted the poop again and com
menccd annoying the little craft whose
bulwarks were grinding against his
ship far below. They hurled down ev-
erything weighty and unpleasant that
came to hand, md finally they dropped
Il barrel of powder, which on bursting
scorChed several of our lads so severely
that they cried to us I'm the galleons
cabin that the deck was too hot to hold
any longer
At this Alec leaving me In charge OF
the cabin. returned to his own vessel
and hailed the poop above.
Don Miguel, ahoyr
The tall Spaniard appeared above,
gritting bis yellow teeth with rage.
"Don Miguel. If you do not cease from
annoying my people you shall have
something else to think about | swear
/ 20 you that If you do not permit me to
finish my task uumolested I'll sweep
I GaE