Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1901-01-17
sut into open mutiny."

What will they haveT he answered
impatiently. But sailors are the same
all the world over. | make not the
slightest doubt that Shem, Ham and
Japheth growled among themselves on
deck whenever Captain Noah was in
his state cabin. But let our lads say
what they want, and l am ready to
listen. 1t is not as if they were hired
for set trading voyage to n certain
port and back again. with thumb
marks and crosses duly set against an
agreement and bounty money pocketed
and Guzzled before the anchor was
tripped. | am their captain only by
election and hence to a certain degree
their servant"
How if they depose your
Then | shall serve under the new
tGptain. Who is it to be-yourselfY'
"Yeu know me better than to think
that" said warmly.
Yes, Jack, do. But who else is
there!"
willie Trehalion."
willie Trehalion would never take
the cross staff from my hands. Be
sides. he does not know how to use 1t.
But what about the old man? He has
the ear of many of the crew, and from
what hear was a shipmaster before
he fell into the hands OF the Span
iarGs."
81 can we'll believe that" said l.
1t was only the other day he took the
cross staff in those twisted fingers of
his, shot the sun, ciphered out his reck-
oIing on the slate and, turning round,
oh, ho, oh, Master Toppv he chuckled.
He's a lubberly navigator who cannot
find his position to a matter of three
minutes And then when | had gone
over the work afresh and found that he
seemed to be right 'Ah, ha, ha, Master
Topp. you're a better scholar with
cudgel than with pencil! More weight
in the forearm than in the head, eh?
Stick to the sea long enough and you'll
blunder stout ship ashore yet before
you're hanged And he would have
added more in the same strain, but
didn't wait to hear IT,"
"Ah." laughed Alec, ''the old mans
infirmities protect his skin from the
trouncing of John Topp's fist and the
old mans wit Is too sharp pointed to
take p trouncing from John Topp's
tongue"
Maybe" said | silkily, but / have
no fancy to be taught by daft man."
"Why not, IL he knows something
which you don't? Put your pride in the
powder room, Jack, along with the 9TH
er touchy explosives, and remember
that every man on this earth has some
thing to teach. At least, so l have
found. The hummer chap from STRAIT
ford says that there are sermons in
stocks and stones and good in every
thing"
where's the good in a SpaniardY
asked slyly.
ITO till land and build towns for her
majesty's lieges some time to occupy
and for the present to gather gold for
you to plunder."
Right said l. Then let US set
about the plundering. l tell you this
profitless cruise must cease or there'll
be powder burning within the walls of
the fortress. The mems sulks will come
to a head shortly IL you don't give them
sop to their greed"
Alexander Ireland got up and paced
the cabin, pIucking at his short red
beard in irritation.
"The devil seize you all for set Of
unhung robbersw he cried passionately.
Not one of you has : spark of true pa
triotism in him. From this spot l have
destroyed vessel after vessel of the en-
emy, and without losing a single man.
And why? Because their crews have
nothing 20 fight for. But intercept q
rich plate ship and in one fight we may
lose half our ships company, and then
it will be 'Hurrah for England, while
yet the Scourge has men enough to sail
her there Well, so be it. As my
hounds Will not hunt dry scented any
longer | must flesh them"
you speak confidently" said ], half
scared at his vehemence, "as though
you could point out the course Of fat
prize without further search"
"And so | can," he answered quietly,
and, unrolling chart Of the main, he
skewered it on to the table. "See here!
The vessels coming empty from the
east touch no land before reaching here
and so make for this strait in happy
ignorance of our presence. Not so those
that are full of treasure and homeward
bound. Every port on the coast has
been advertised of the pestilential Eng
lishman's whereabouts, so they steer a
point or two to the northward of the
regular course and pass by the other
side of Margherita, near that same FL
Pueblo del Norte which we harried
three months ago. Now, IL we creep
round the eastern end of the island l
warrant wen be within gunshot Of
some hulking gold wagon before we're
couple of Sundays older"
"Then," said l, ''in the name Of all
that's sensible do itW
The captain laughed shortly. NO,
I'll leave the matter in your hands,