The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-07-06
A ST. PIERRE PIRATE.
Martinique's Unique Buccaneer,
Who Murdered at Sea ana Married
A&hnrR

Martinique's Unique Buccaneer,
Who Murdered at Sea ana Married
Ashore.
From the New Orleans Picayune.
They are nearly all dead now, but
here and there along the American
coast can be found an old salt, laid up
in ordinary, who when he first began
his seafaring life cruising to the West
Indies in rum and-molasses hookers,
heard many tales of the pirate named
Audain. Indeed, it is likely that a few
remain who have seen the smooth ras-
cal.
A more remarkable combination of
audacity, pugnacity and hypocrisy was
never seen in the West Indies than
Audain. He came originally from Bris-
toll, Eng, where he left a wife, but
whether to mourn or rejoice over his
absence is not known. He reached
Martinique some time near 1920, and
landed at ST. Pierre. after brief So
journ at ST. Thomas.
ST. Pierre was then noted for It's res
taurants and hotels kept by women.
There was Betsy Parker, lone of that
numerous tribe of goodnatured hos
tesses whom West Indians rejoice in
cunning and obsequious to whites as
if negroes, and as proud and despoitc
over negroes as if they were whites
for light colored mulattoes, every one,
they were. Some were handsome and
willowy like Betsy Parker; some hand
some and rotund like Hannah Lewis.
but all employed cooks that were un-
surpassed and all knew how to mingle
the juices of lines and pineapples with
good rum and just how much Madeira
should be poured into the gashed side
of a guava Well-shaded hotels We're
these, and the dining tables stood on
verandas overlooking yards or courts
filled with tropical foliage and flowers.
Audain stopped at the house of Dolly
MichauX Dolly was accounted the
shrewdest and richest of her class, and
there is no doubt that she outweighed
the largest of them. Audain was often
heard to say during his career that
more than any other feature he lad
mired bong poine in a woman" Very
likely he told the truth, and was,
therefore more or less sincere in his
admiration for Dolly Michaux. At any
rate he won Dolly's heart and a most
liberal share of her wealth.
Then, without open break. he man.
aged that Dolly should grow weary of
him, when he slipped away to Dom
mica, and at Roseau announced that
Because he asked no salary from
the people, and because he was a
fluent tall1er Audain soon commanded
a considerable congregation. How long
this kind of work lasted is not re-
corded, but after few months Au-
dain built, with money he had obtain
ed from Dolly, a small schooner of
wide beam and shoal draft, which sail
ed ostensihly on a trading voyage to
Martinique.
AS it happened, this schooner re-
turned to Roseau on a Sunday, while
Audain was preaching She was slow
ly towing dismasted bark, and when
Audain saw the two vessels round the
weather point and head for the anch-
orage he broke off his sermon and
poured forth an enthusiastic song of
Thanksgiving.
The bark was deeply laden with
Martinique sugar, rum and other val
liable products. The crew had disap-
peared-"lost undoubtedly in the hurri-
cane that dismasted her. said the cap
tain of Audain's schooner, and every
body believed him.
OF course the wreck was taken be-
fore an admiralty court, and a large
sum was awarded. Audafh and his men
for salvage. But when the schooner
crew obtained their share of the pro-
ceeds they got drunk TO a man, and
some of them said things about the
! discovery of that dismasted bark on
the high seas, and of a steel-and-
powder gale that had DESTROYED
the crew, instead of the plain
West Indian gale the captain had mem
toned.
The talk did not amount to evidence