Roving Jack, The Pirate Hunter — page 24: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

mT eee, assesses eet esne SPE TFG BE © 20 ROVING JACK, THE PIRATE HUNTER. —— He threw himself down against the wall, and buried his face in his hands, crushed by despair and dismay. : At last he roused himself from his stupor, and glared wildly round him, TH5 The stench grew more and more oppressive and the darkness was intense. All at once there arose from the floor at some distance from him a greenish: lambent flame that flickered faintly, and threw’a ghastly light upon the awful scene. Transfixed with’ awe, our hero glanced around, The place was a very charnel of dead bones. : On all sides, and in all attitudes, were strewn the mouldering bodies of hapless crews who had been murdered by the fiendish pirates; many of them were still attired in their naval uniforms, but this only rendered their appearance more grim and horrible. But whence that spectral light illumining the ghastly scene ?* It. lapped along the floor, and in its fantastic waverings resembled the flare of ignited ether, At last it “settled at the feet of a lank and hideously-grinning skeleton propped against the opposite wall, glinting on the gilt buttons and bur- nishing the tarnished fringe of the gold epauletts. Then it spread about the dread relict of miserable humanity and flamed upwards in an unconsuming blaze, playing rounl the smooth: bare skull and creeping into the hollow-eye sockets, As Jack, with fascinated gaze, eagerly watched this skeleton spectacle, he was surprised to see a packet of letters on its knees which had evidently slipped from the breast-pocket, Impelled by a strange but irresistible impulse, our hero crawled across the cavern, and hastily snatched the papers, He opened one of them, a saffron-coloured docu- ment, and, in faded writing, read by the grizzly light the following words— ‘To the Lady Annabel Tremaine, *‘Barfleur, Normandy. ** August 10th; 1716, *‘My HONOURED LADY,—These to apprise you of the safe arrival here of your ladyship’s little danghter, Violes——”’ Sudden, blinding darkness blots all, The corpse-light had expired, and the place was once more buried in the deepest gloom. Overwhelmed with surprise at the words he had read, suggesting as they did such strange surmises, our hero sat pondering deeply, almost forgetful of the surrounding horrors, Presently he was startled from his reverie by a quick, stealthy, rustling, RATS | ; Tumbling and squeaking among the rattling bones, a legion of these detestable vermin surged round him, : One darted right across his’ face, inflicting a sharp bite upon his cheek. “It is a well-known fact that dead bodies in advanced stages of decomposition emit certain. foul gases, which, occa- sionally appear in’ a state of combustion, flickering round the corpse ina faint blue flame. This natural phenome will account for many of the strange tales told of “ corpse candles?’ and “ death lights ’’ seen glimmering around graves in old and dank churchyards, A similar ]:\minate gas is engendered by miry swamps and marshy fens, iil is often descried by the belated traveller dancing before. Lim on his dark path as if luring him to follow, and wluch is considered by some guper-, stitious country folk to b uw certain tricksy fire-sprite, called ‘© Will-o’-tho- Wisp,” or ** Jack-o’-Lantern,” eeeeeeeeeeeeeEeEeEeEeEeEeEeeEeee—eeee—e—e—e—_— ey and away they go round Jack shrieked and staggered on to his teet, sup- porting himself against the wall. Aes Goaded to a pitch of madness, he snatched skull, and sent it clattering along the ground, Squeak, squeak |, and a terrific scampering. Jack hurled another skull, and another, and another, till he sank with,exhaustion. & He fainted. ) 9 How long he bad remained ‘in a state of’ uncon- sciousness he could not telly but as his senses re- turned he felt,sore, cold, and his tongue was parched with a burning thirst, ! Ig os He groaned bitterly, and bowed his aching head upon his breast. | as No hope, no deliverance ! cruelly lingering. . His mind wandered, and he feebly muttered, his incoherent prayers. 3 | Now, the darkness seems peopled.with dusky but yet visible forms, shapeless, yet living; they sur- round him, and seem to gloat over his dying agonies. “Tam going mad!” muttered poor Jack, in a hoarse, harsh whisper, as he raised his fettered, up a and death so slow, SO swollen hands to his head. | “ Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha-a?’’ the cavern resounds with demoniac laughter. “ Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha-a ?’ roar the echoes, A mystic blue light dawns in the place. The skeletons move ! . They rear themselves on their gaunt shanks, and clack their bony hands together, ‘“‘Tam mad, mad!” gasps Jack; horror !” ' A surging, solemn swell, as of the mighty breakers roaring along a rocky strand is now heard, and, to its wild organ-like music they..dance—the grim, gaunt skeletons !—they dance slowly and.grotesqvely at first,,and they wave, their, long,; fleshless;arms, Inviting him to join their awful revelry; Jack now loses all sense of fear, | He laughs insanely at their grim antics, Now they whirl round him faster and faster and faster, till he becomes dizzy. One of them is taller than the rest, and seems to be their leader, He is mantled in a) heavy,\‘black velvet pall, fringed with white lawn. He pauses in the dance, and, approaching the captive, seems to proffer him assistance, a Jack holds out his chained wrists. The spectre touches them with the hard tip of his bony finger, and an electrio thrill darts through the captive’s shrinking veins, |: The steel manacles are shattered and’ lash to the ground like broken glass. , | | _Jack shouts in mad triumph, and ‘then ‘points to his scorching lips, and sues for drink, 4 “Oh, horror, The spectre presents a skull into which he has poured some ruby liquid.’ * Jack takes agreedy draught, | d Then, with a horrible ghastly chalice to ‘his feet, His face and hands are smeared with—blood Fi “Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha-a |’ ‘scream, he’ dashes the nd again, whirling dizzily, dizaily, deftly, nimbly, tossing wp their » limbs, and nodding their faceless heads, |” A delightfnl ‘sensation of languid, repose now Ehoo com <S yell the death spectres,. j ointed . (CO)