Ensign Merrill — page 188: what you’re looking at

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

hot mney the appearance of that ea of trees bidion THE PIRAT rE | CHIEF. the road. It presented too many possibilities for nn ae os ae te he - il m. Ee ambuscades. With the efficient aid of the machine gun the spot could be cleared of men in a very few moments. i” 7 . ate 4 ie? a) pros : ys r Si. ~ : * oe aod oA 1.4" s . — « 7 S oro <. ~ - , : i ‘ ~ - >» *% - é . ‘~~ . la : be A \~ io . ~ ’ a ane prone 7= ® 7 During the pull ashore, however, nothing occurred to b arouse suspicion. The little clearing in which the — houses were standing seemed entirely deserted. Afew — mongrel dogs rushed down and barked at the intruders, but that was all. After beaching the boats Mark ~ ordered his men to form in column of fours, and, detail-— ing several to watch the cutters, marched at the head of the rest direct toward the ruins of the stone house. It was close on to five o’clock. The sum had already disappeared behind the lofty barrier to the west, cast- ing a deep shadow over the narrow stretch of level plain bordering the basin, but as customary at that season of the year, there still remained at least two hours of day- light, | Lhe ensign glanced curiously at the collection of huts forming the stronghold. Aside from the chief’s, now in ruins, there were some fifteen rudely constructed of bamboo and straw. ‘T’he inhabitants had evidently left -ina-hurry. Some of the doors were open, revealing in the interior various articles dropped in the hasty flight. Fires were still burning before several, and an occa- sional pot could be seen, redolent of hofliee rice or glutinous soups. : On one side of the landing was a minature ship-yard, with several small craft in various stages of construc- tion. An old rusty cannon or two lying half-buried in the sand formed the only warlike indication of the peo- ple’s nefarious pursuits. It was a peaceful scene truly. The wreck of the stone hcuse lay piled all over the summit of the little hill. It had beena one-storied Loa eka built of rough undressed pieces, plastered — co om Ghbooks €O —