Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 407 — page 2: what you’re looking at

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

2 a ————aE ee ee — — eee ee ——EEE mvoonlight’s rays fall upon the white-caps, tossed ‘up by a fresh wind, causing them to sparkle like diamond sprays, The trim look of the craft, caused herto be set down at once as a yacht, belonging to one of the plantations upon the coast; but a clearer look upon her decks revealed the fact that she was crowded with men. She was gliding along under easy sail, a black crew standing ready to obey the orders of her commander, while amidships were gathered a number of dark-faced men, all armed and in uniform, Aft stood a group of half a dozen men, four of whom wore the uniform of officers, the other two being attired in the garb of Cuban plan- ters, One of these latter was at the helm, and the moonlight revealed him to be a mere boy in years, scarcel as re , and faultless in feature as a woman’s, He had the air of a young aristocrat, was handsomely attired, and his dark face, resolute and fearless at all times, now wore an expres- sion of strangely commingled sternness and sor- row. His large eyes were bent upon the sea ahead, alternately with his vessel, and his hands clasp- ed the helm with a grip that seemed to keep down pent-up emotions of the deepest kind. The one who stood by his side, and also in the dress of a planter, was a handsome young man upon whose face was also stamped sadness mingling with stern resolve. Near these two were the four officers referred to, one of them wearing a dark, undress uni- form, and his bearing indicating that he was no ordinary personage, The others werewyoung men, and upon the faces of one and all rested gloom. ‘*This is no easy channel to run, Senor Iso- dor,” said the elderly officer, addressing the young helmsman. ‘*Tt is considered dangerous, Senor General; but I have gone in and out so often that I keep the channel intuitively now, and really was not thinking of my duty,” responded the youth, ‘‘ Heaven knows how you can after what you witnessed to-day; but it is fearful to run in here and learn that, when we expected to find an army to welcome.us,.and-to bring them hope by our presence and the munitions of war we bear with us, that we arrive in-time-to learn that our leaders are cruelly put to death by the Span- iards, our retreats have been broken up, our Patriot bands dispersed, and General Lopez, upon whom so much depended, has, with his whole expedition, been scized by the United States Government, in the moment of nearing success, and earried back to.an American port, ‘Tt is fearful, Senor Isodor, fearful indeed,” and the dark face of the Cuban conspirator general became stern as death. | ‘‘Though we fail now, Senor General, Cuba will yet be free,” was the stern response of the yo helmsman. As ven grant it! and I believe that it will; but what are we to do wit. the erms and muni- tions of war which this yacht bears, for we dare not run into New Orleans or Mobile with her thus loaded?” - ‘*No, Senor General; but they are well pack- ed, and.my advice is to land and bury them.” ‘‘ But where, Senor Isodor?” ‘Upon one of the Chandeleur Islands, where once I landed two years ago while on a pleasure cruise, ‘‘Tt is an island that is very dangerous. to reach; but one of my» crew, Bueno, was a Miss- issippi siave once, and having a cruel master he ran away from him and took refuge on this island, having gone there in a small skiff. ‘He stayed here a year, and then attempted to make his way to New Orleans, when he was picked up by a Spanish trading craft, whose captain took him into Cuba and sold him, ‘I was in Havana at the time with my father, and saw him up for sale, took a fancy to him, and father bought hizn. ‘*That was eight years ago, and he has been the most faithful servant I have ever known, and he will pilot us in to the island.” ‘““The very thing, Senor Isodor,” said the genera: who had listened to the story of the Cuban youth regarding his faithful slave, and he ded: ‘‘T have noticed Bueno during the cruise to the island, and have been struck with his intelli- gence, fearlessness in danger, and able seaman- ship. Cit will be the best thing that we can do to bury the arms on the island, there to await a second uprising upon the island, which will soon come, I am sure, as General Narciso Lopez is — ' over sixteen, while his face was | OO ————————————————— — ————————L-=sses~sss=~sssssssssssssssssssssssesssssssssssssssssessssseneestete a 4 The Boy Insurgent, not the man t6 drop a scheme in which he has placed his life, fortune and sword,” ‘** May it come soon, senor, for I have regis- tered a vow, after what I saw the few hours I was on my native island, that must be kept,” said the Cuban youth with fierce energy. ** Sail ho!” suddenly came from forward. ‘*See! Bueno is on the alert, general, for that was his voice,” cried Isodor Christobal, and then he called out: ‘*'W hereaway, Bueno?” ‘* She’s creeping out from under the shadow of Rocky Point, Senor Isodor,” was the response of the negro, who did not speak in the dialect of the plantation slave of America. ‘Ay, ay, I see her,” and calling to Bueno to " Wy: he rw ae Pee ; Me | bs A ee «SL toy) a Oh Pew ‘fe ee that her first shot to come to was not heeded and the iron hail rained thick and fast around the little vessel. But not a shot touched a spar or the deck, and, while seeming to bear a charmed existence, the Cloud flew on like the very wind, steadily increasing the distance between her and her pursuer, ‘* That is one of the fleetest vessels in the Span- | ish navy, Senor General, and yet we drop her,” take the helm, for he knew the channel, the’ youth turned his glass upon the strange sail. ‘* It is a craft I know well,” he said slowly. ** Well, Senor Isodor?” queried the general. ‘it is the Spanish brig-of-war El] Moro, and her captain and officers have often been zuests at Villa Vista, my father’s home, when the have anchored in the plantation harbor; but it is different now, and they would string me up to the yard-arm without mercy did they cate me.” ‘Tt is catching before hanging, Senor Isodor, as ae say in the United States,” said the general. | ‘“Yes, senor; but she is fast, and so is the Cloud, so it will be a close race for life. ** Ho, boys, set on the Cloud every stitch of canvas that will draw, and we'll soon be out of the of the island, where we’ll catch the breeze in full. **See! the El Moro creeps along under full sail, hoping to run close upon us unobserved,” and Isodor pointed to the Spanish brig, which, in ee shadow of the land, looked like a phantom crait, “She is gaining, Isodor,” said the young Cuban, who stood near the boy. ** Yes, and will until the crew gets the Cloud dressed up in her best, Senor De Soto. ‘* She carries a hundred men, I believe, Isodor,” again said the planter, Leon De Soto, ‘+ About four-score men, senor; I think no more.” ‘*And we are two-score,” was the significant reply. cy understand you, Senor De Soto, that in spite of all odds, if it comes to it, we must fight.” ‘* To the death!” ‘Ay, to the death, and with the knowledge that Spaniards show no quarter, no mercy must be given or asked,” and Isodor spoke with sav- age earnestness, ‘‘ Yes, it is better to die with arms in our hands than by the gavrote,” remarked the gen- eral, and he added: ‘‘ I will get my men ready, and tell them that it is to be give and take no quarter.” ‘* Wait, general, for I have strong faith inmy beautiful little Cloud, that she will run away from the Spaniard; but if he should cripple us, mg eh etn escape, then we must fight to the bitter end. ‘* See! she feels the sea breeze better now, and is surging ahead into an e#ght-knot pace.” ‘* And there shoots the Spaniard out into the full moonlight, and he sees that he is discovered and that we are flying.” ‘* That proves it,” was the reply of the youth- ful helmsman, as from the bows of the Spanish cruiser burst a red flame, followed by the deep boom of a heavy gun which sent a solid shot fly- ing over the flying yacht, which, with her white by l on many sails well bore out her name of ou CHAPTER II. A DOUBLE DANGER, THERE was now no doubt, in the minds of any one upon the insurgent yacht, that the Spaniard meant to captue them. All knew that where Cubans were concerned, rising to throw off the yoke of Spanish tyranny, that they showed no mercy, and, to be taken, with a cargo of arms on board, which they had intended to land upon the coast, but for the fateful tidings of the disaster which had be- fallen their fellow Patriots, that they would be quaéitly swung up to the yard-arm, or be taken to Havana and suffer more cruel torture by the iron yoke of the garrote. It depended then upon the fleetness of the Cloud, if they escaped from the Spaniard, and if their brave little vessel was crippled, it would depend upon themselves whether they would die with arms in their hands or ignominiously at the yard-arm, or by execution in Havana. As the cruiser came into view in the moon- light she began to fire rapidly, when she saw ———— said Isodor, the young Insurgent, with admira- tion of his craft. ‘* True, and yet you do not seem to carry the sail you might, on this craft, for she stands up, now as we get the full force of this twelve-knot breeze, as many a craft could not under much less canvas.” “Yes, Senor General, the Cloud will stand much taller masts and longer spars to spread one~ third more of canvas than she at present carries, ‘But she was built for safety, rather than speed, and after a model I myself cut out, and which so pleased my father that he had. her built for me. ‘‘ If she was a trifle longer, and carried more canvas she would be more servicaeble, and, if the Patriots intend to make another effort to free Cuba, £ will then have a vessel after my own heart, and one which will defy pursuit. ‘‘Ah! the Spaniard is improving in his prac- tice,” and Isodor Christobal spoke without a chango of voice, although the shot that caused the remark killed one of the general’s aides and two of the crew, after which it cuts its way through the bows and plunged into the sea. Having gotten the exact range, the Spaniard now improved in his fire, and did considerable execution, but nothing that checked the flight of the Cloud, which kept steadily gaining, until at last the shot fell short, 20 longer reaching the decks, With her sails cut through in pumerous places her spars splintered, her bulwarks shattered and decks torn, while half a dozen men had fal- len under the fire, the Cloud flew on, the Cuban boy still standing firmly at the.helm, his face grim and stern. Leon De Soto and the general: were amid may doing all in their power for the wounded, and the black crew, with one of their number dead, stood at their posts. Suddenly, and seemingly out of a clear sky, there came a deafening peal of thunder, while the glare of lightning accompanying was blind- ing. ® The storm’s been coming up for some time, Senor Isodor; but with that worse one astern, I didn’t say anything about it,” and Bueno SOEaIeS to the Spanish vessel as more to be dreaded by far than the elements. ** We will hold on as we are, Bueno, until the last moment, for in the storm the Spaniard will have the advantage: % ‘¢ But stand by the halyards to Jet all fly at a moments’ notice,” answered Isodor, and Bueno, a tall, copper-colored negro, with an erect form and Herculean build, went quickly forward. For half an hour longer the Cloud held on un- der full sail, dropping the Spaniard further and further astern, until she was barely visible upon the sea, for the heavens were now overcast and the darkness was deepening each moment. ‘Stand by to let fly all!” cried Isodor, in a voice that went to the furthest end of the yacht, and the crew answered in chorus; ‘* All ready, senor!” ** Let go!” With a wild fluttering, like huge birds wound- ed in their flight, the white sails came down while the yacht crept up into the wind and laid under bare poles. ‘‘ Get that canvas furled, boys! ‘Quick! or the hurricane will carry it from us!” shouted Isodor, and every one sprung to obey, and soon had the yacht stripped to meet the tempest. Down upon her rushed a wall of water, driven by the hurricane, which in southern latitudes rises with such velocity, and often sends an un- prepared vessel to the bottom. e yacht met the shock by bounding into the air, as though to leap over the wall of foam, and then plunging deep beneath the waves. Her decks were swept by a flood of waters, and here and there, with a shriek of wild d ir some poor unfortunate was torn from his hol and borne off to perish in the mad sea, A bounding lurching, diving and rolling mo- tion followed for awhile, and then the yacht be- came more steady, and faced the blow, the worst of which was over. | It was full an hour before the tempest abated, and then a sigh of relief went up from all, while ' the general said: