Year: 1861

v
this instant, with no sail set but with her bare spars,
those blood red mass and her crimson hull contrasting
with the snowy foam, came again the pirate. Close
by their wrecked hull he Sped close that they could
his flashing eyes they glared through his helmet
| bars on scudding with bending spars. As he swept
on, they heard hollow laugh from his lps-and he
shouted:


REST We till the morrow then come"


The next moment he was gone; and yet the echo of


his voice and its fearful threat rung ke the death kne
of hope in their ears They forgot the death shout of
their iated crew-they forgot that they in a
shattered sinking hu-they heard only that terrible
yoice-"Rest ye till the morrow, then come"


Still howled the gale above their heads, yet drovcthe
eddying clouds along the warspirs Of the storm; but
their waterIogged, sparless hull pitched and heaved
with dead weight as the waves tossed and tumbed
about them No longer did they dash on and leave the
huge rollers behind And it pitchy dark above
and around them when some long, ragged fash Of


lightning would break from the dark clouds and throw


its urd glare over their shivered shattered hull And
when it did, what picture for painter did it lumne.


The farthest aft upon the wet deck with her dshev-
eed hair made gosser by the spray and streamngOut
over her fathers barred breast knet Blanca, one hand
casped to her brow to shade her eyes from the glare


the other encirclng her fathers neck and half hid
den in his long white hair vi n hung heavy and @
close to his neck Her pale lips moving in sIeft
prayer that prayer which though spoken in breath is
1 the surest of all to reach ''our Fathers ear And
upon one knee, with one arm elaspng his daughters
waist the other clngng with the strength of despera
/ ton to the netting Bianca's father. His brow
wore the same anxious look but his eye bent only on
her. showed that of her alone he thought for her alone
he feared


The two helmsmen clung vet to their useless helm,
/ their weatherstaned faces calm and composed calm
with the dead apathy of despair calm with the lnowl
edge that they must die, and with the determination to
meet their fate as became And the young captain
4 he who upon the wreck of his first command,
stood near them, cain too they, but looking sadly
upon the poor girl, who knelt so hcplcssly at her
fathers side. Little cared the young and manly brave
for himself yett painful to think that She young
pure and beautiful must soon become the prey OF the
ravenous shark, or still more ravcuous pirate.


The night wore on, and with it the gale seemed to
abate and though the spray still swept wildly their
| decks, the sea was getting smoother.


Then the captain again spoke Of hope to that mser-
able father, for, said he:


"If the pirate has been blown far to leeward he may
not find again, and we may yet keep our strained
hull above the water until some friendly sail, sent by
! Gods holy mercy, may cross our path


And vet there spar left upon the galeons
deck whereby hoist signal of Distress to raise
| scanty sail to move her the water. Still hope
that last blessed boon of heaven which cngs to the
soul when all things else have fed cheered up the
mans heart and determined him struggle to the last
| The two mariners who had so despairingv cung to
their helm raised their hands they hear their brave
captains words and their eyes too grew brighter if
they felt that their time had not surely But that
greyhared father looked sader still upon the fra and
beautiful chldof his hert-those words, rest We till the
morrow then | come had sunk into his very soul He
had marked the wild CLEAN of those eyes, which like
living Goals of fire had glared from beneath the blood
red plume upon his daughter and he knew that the eye
of the pirate had rested her beautiful form. lie
rather preferred to that form sink then in the dark
and gloom beneath those boiling waves than that
again those eyes should glance upon it. Slowly
owly-heavy passed away the hours Of night; and
yet they feared the dawn could come all too soon.
As that hour approached the clouds began to melt
away here and there star looked down upon them,
if to take last pityng glance at the doomed and fate
stricken being. The waves sank down, ana the foam
began to give way to the glorious blue of the
The storm over the elements, tired Of their own
fury had sunk down to rest and quiet calm came up
the water and in the sky And soon the east began
to grow bright and then the upper edge Of the
up from the blue line Of the horizon As this illumned
the water with eager and srainng eyes the poor sur
vvos of the wreck gazed around them to if their
dreadful foe yet in sight and when they found that
they alone upon the weary waste OF waters,
though they upon sinking, fral and miserable
wreck still they thanked their God for his mercy Not


speck in sight the pirate had been swept far to
eeward and they hoped yet to be free from him, even
if death were to come upon the ocean through storm or
starvation


And thus it vas with then, anita the sun had reached
the centre Of the heaven They lay motionlcss upon
the Tranquil sea- and murmered no. But at noon, the
water began to gently ripple as southern breeze
moved softly overit bringing the balmy air from Cubas
howery isle unto them. But again the cheek of the
young captain grew pale, and his brow gave forth
shade Of anxious care for the breeze blew from the
direction which they had been forced to take during
the night. And often did he, ascending the highest
part Of the deck, bend his eyesght to the west At last
spec appeared in sight, and as time wore on it re
solved into sail upon which he gazed with aching
heart for though he could not distinguish it. yehis sad
beart forboded it to be the pirate.


The gaze of Blanca was riyted en- the face of the
Young captain, when he first discovered the sail in the
southern horizon and if she could read the sorrowfu
thoughts that arose in his heart then, she cried


Gle is in sight-he comes! o. say, Don Edmundo
is it not SOP


Lady hope not; yet there is sail in sight to the
southland A few hours, ay, an hour more, will de-
ternine whether it be friend or foe"


The father of the pale girl looked down upon her and
sighed vet he spoke not She removed not her gaze
from the captains face for there if in mirror she
felt that she could read the character Of the approach
ing vessel Not long had she to watch for Change
Shadows in his eye his broad chest heayed heavy
sigh and he looked sadly down upon the maiden and
sadder still he lifted his eyestoward the fast approach
ing vessel


is it not he?" she asked, family.


at IS alas ii is' said the captain; and then the
father started his feet and looked with eager gaze
upon the yet distant sail But there could be mis-
take she indeed the pirate for her black flag could
even then be distinguished hoated close above her
snowy sails


His cheek was pale his form quivered with emotion,
and he turned around to his daughter once more
While he clasped her in his arms it seemed as if his
agony was too deep for utterance and drop by drop
tears rolled out upon his checks.


weep not, my father" cried the fair girl, I've can
but die and there is bliss above"


$50 Young, so beautiful, SO goodlh murnured the
father as he looked upon his child and then again his
agony seemed to choke his utterance.


The two mariners who had survived, and the captain,
now looked at the fast approaching SAIL which but too
plainly showed her character then drew each their bat


e-blades, hoping for success, but determined to
die with naked steel in their hands, and to die not un
avenged The father, too, drew his knightly sword,
and the face of each Of those four told that they
would die as became brave warriors, The firearms Of
the vessel were all disabled by the wet and Storm their
steel alone could be used and against such odds but
instant There was no escape before them; all was dark
and hopeless.


Swiftly like some red-beaked bird Of prey, the pirate
came upon them his full sails swelling with the balmy
southern breeze Soon she that the helpless
ones on board the galeon could distinguish the form Of
the dreadful Rinard he stood in her bows gazing up
on his helpless victims.


As he bore down toward the motionless wreck, and
got abeam of her with one wave Of shand his helms
man brought his ship up to the wind and laid her close
alongside OF the wreck, only afew fathoms 10 Tn~ard