The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-03-07

~oPor meJesIic dullness In many pessaGes of this story the theatrical posing of characters. and the aston ssning conversations unlike anything cnat,tsan cnat human beings In any age-or any tired this book to the distinguished po- sioon of th1 famous novels that every onH knows by name but nobody reads. although conspicuous. are superficial. The moment Cooper reaches dramatic Po,nt, Porns he sfchanEes. his stetely, la. Instantly compelling as are. the light .'rhe water witch" is well worth read these thsre have been few better or more simple and effective in English than the description of the chase of tne smuggler through the Hell Gate.
 On the afternoon of June 3, 171o, the British twenty-gun corvette Coquette sailed from under the tree -cIad hsishts of Staten Island In the harbor Of New York and stood down the low sr bay. bound in chase of an outlaw ship.
 With the exception of her young commander. Captain Ludlow. and a few of his officers, none aboard expected anything of profit. from the attempt The old sailors. including even the sailing master, expressed the opinion openly that 1t were as likely of sue cess to chase the devil himself
 If the tales told in the colony were taken as basis. the belief of the super stitious sailors could be well excused and understood. There were men who said that the famous Water Witch was ss we'll able to sail in the clouds as on the pillows of the water.
 Although her exploits In the Amer icas had been such as to arouse the ha very few men ever had seen vessel or master. and these few kept close mouths. for the Water-Witch was en- ragged in the illegal but highly popu- lar trade of bringing contraband into the colonies
 While the white pyramids of the cor vetts were driving her down the chan nel toward Sandy Hook, swift. light sailing piragua was dancing toward the same point over a shorter course. being able to dart over shoals that the heavy cruiser could mot cross.
 The piragua contained the heavy and valuable form of Aldermen Myndert Van Beverout. one of York's richest mon; the no less valuable and almost as heavy form of Olor Van <Staats. the young Patroon of Kinderhook, whose inherited estate of 100000 acres reach- ed from the Hudson River to the Mas sachusetts line: and the much lighter but far more beautiful form of Aida de Barberie. the niece of the Alderman, In whose figure and form the grace and elegance of Huguenot father had mingled with the h:oorn and healthy beauty of a sturdy Dutch mother.
 They were bound for the Alderman's summer residence. the little mansion of Lust In Rust, meaning Joy in Rest, which he had built at the foot of the great hills known as the Highlands hal tDr utr n a region where all the other land Is barely above sea level
 From the coxy nestling place of Lust in Rust the white skeleton arm of the Sandy Hook reached some miles due east. es If to embrace the lower portion Of the great and beautiful harbor. Sit ting on the veranda Of the Dutchman's Luxurious house one could look across the sandy spur, only few hundred yards wide at this point. and see the heavy turf beating itself into foaming death against the ocean beach; or, by merely turning the eyes, the sight would transfer itself to a bay inclosed by the tree-clad bluffs of Staten Island s1n one direction and by the shining sdaszle of snow-white Coney Island in another, while northward the lordly sea gate of the Narrows hid the town of York that lay beyond.
 It was spot as lonely as 1t was s6eaatifuL With the exception of the fAlderman's dawes. who occupied cab tns near the Shrewsbury River below the house, there were no human beings within many miles
 It was thts loneliness more than the beauty that had inspired the Alderman to select the unique spot. so far from York and so difficult of access. The prominent citizen and pattern of all civic and private virtue was the gen. vWh y, Xyoko Witch and her mysterious captain.
 At that very moment the craft was lying in a cove near Lust in Rust, and when the corvette came to anchor just tnsfde of Sandy Hook to wait for a westerly wind fer sea, the crew of the snugglsr was watching her. not a league away, but completely concealed by the high background with which the tapering masts of the vessel blend- ed perfectly.
 The hull of the celebrated outlaw trader was molded with exquisite art It seemed to float on the water like a sea fowl rather than ship. Her rig waS origantine' the forward and small CT mast having all the complicated ma chinery of a square-rigged ship. with immense spars set across 1t and reach- Ing far over the water on either side. The mast astern rose like the straight trunk of some splendid pine and spread one single, enormous sheet Of canvas that in itself was sufficient to drive the vessel with vast velocity.
 Her blanks were less like the work of & ship carpenter than that of cabinet makers. She had cabins great and Ane enough for an admiral. and her crew had quarters superior to the of- hcers quarters in many a Queens ship.
 Built to carry precious freight in small cOmDass. she needed neither tho depth Of hold nor the breadth of a trader. Unweighted by guns. she could float where a royal cruiser would heave her great sides out of the water and lie dry.
 Her master had not neglected to take advantage of her supernatural reputa- ton. He had mounted @ figurehead of . woman In sea green with a counte- nance so angry and frightening in ex- pression that 1t might well alarm any simple seaman. False lights, spare rtggings. paints to alter her. appear ance quickly and @ singularly skillfal crew all aided her in playing amazing tricks with pursuers.
 Many rich cargoes had the Water Witch brought to the landing place of Rust in Lust. when the alderman s slaves transported them to New York at night. Nobody, not even such guests as chanced to be under his roof, had ever suspected that the substan- ttal and conventional citizen owed most of his wealth to transactions with the outlawed Skinner of th.a