Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 148 — page 19: what you’re looking at

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

eo One-Armed Alf. The morning dawned clear and bright, and filled the hearts of the fugitives with hope and romise; and they would have continued on in daylight had Muggins not discovered the fresh trail of a party of Indians whom North was afraid were in search of them. So they sought a hiding-place in a little wooded dell where they decided to await the coming of night in which to conclude their journey. They had been concealed but a few minutes when the dull thud of hoofs broke sudden! upon their ears, and the next moment they saw a horseman sweep out from the distance and down apast them away into the gloom of the woods again with the speed of the wind. Three of the L.ttle party recognized the borse- man at a glance. It was Captain Philip St. John, and the horse he bestrode, Captain North recognized as that of the commander of the English army, General Brock! zr ery arose to Hellice Arvine’s lips, but the romptness of the shrewd whisky-trader checked its utterance. The pounding of other hoofs had arrested his attention, and warned him of approaching danger. ; The next instant a squad of English cavalry swept apast them in swift pursuit of the yom American, the earth fairly trembling beneat the tramp of the iron-hoofed cliargers. CHAPTER XXIX. A RIFT OF LIGHT. As Darcy oy ag stood alone in the Specter Skiff, deserted for the second time by Hannah, that mysterious woman with masked face, some- thing of the truth to dawn upon his be- wildered mind, A rift of light began to break through the cloud of mystery that surrounded the little bark. For the first time he noticed that the bottom of the boat was a few inches above the surface of the water when it should have been several inches below. This led to the discovery that there was a false bottom in the craft, with two doors in it, one St Spomee |B and the other down intoa hold below. ese however, had been kept concealed hitherto by flakes of ary moss that carpeted the bottom of the boat. By some means or other this had become displaced, dis- closing the doors leading into the hold beneath. And even while he s regarding one of these with mingled surprise and curiosity, he saw it thrown quickly one upon its noiseless hinges, and Hannah, the Maid of Michigan, spring up from the hidden chamber baneath, into the oO boat, Quickly closing the door, she turned and started violently when she found herself face to face with Darcy Mayfield—saw that the secret of the Specter Skiff was a secret to him no longer. But, as she recovered from her momen- tary confusion, a peal of soft musical laughter rippled from her lips, and she said: “So at last, Mr. Garfield, you have solved the mystery of the Specter Skiff, 1 observe, which you will doubtless admit is not much of a after all.” ‘* But 1 will admit, Hannah, that it is a de- cidedly clever arrangement—this Specter Skiff. I now see where you were concealed when I was brought aboard the craft by the two Eng- lish soldiers, Kruler and Belden. But is it sible that you are alone here upon this lake hs ‘‘ Tt is not, sir,” she replied, speaking in a low tone. ‘‘I have a brother and a friend in the cabin below, who have been on the boat all the while. And I shall now call them out, for see- ing you are much better I am going to tell you a secret— the one I promised you.” She raised one of the trap-doors and spoke a word or two, when two men made their ap- pearance from below. One of them, like Han- nah, wore a mask; the other did not, for he was an entire stranger to Darcy. He was a little, wiry old man, of some seventy years, with snow-white hair and whiskers; a thin, sharp face, but high, intellectual forehead ; keen black eyes and large, expressive mouth—all of — bore striking evidence of foreign nation- ality. ‘“ Let my friends be seated. and I will intro- duce them, by and by, to Mr, Garfield,” said Hannah, The two men sat down. “* Not “re. ago, Mr. Garfield,” said the masked woman, ‘‘ | listened to your story of your life troubles, brought about by the machinations of one Joshua Pellington, of England: and of the subsequent attack of the Indians on your home, and the mysterious disappearance of your wife and her brother during the attack. Now, I will open my story by asking youif you bave any idea what became of them?” ‘*T presume ar were killed, though I have lived in hopes that Maria and her brother are still alive, and for two years have I and their brother Charles been hunting the peninsula of Michigan over in hopes of finding them among the Indians, or, at least, some clew to their whereabouts.” “Then Charles Brad esca death on that fearful night?’ Hannah ingu ; ‘* Yes: though he was aterrible sufferer by it; but he will make himself even with his enemies yet. He knows every face that he confronted on that terrible night.” ‘‘He must have a powerful faculty for re- taining faces in ——— replied Hannah, turning her eyes to avert the strange, wild that Darcy had suddenly fixed upon her; “ ut, Walter Garfield Nabe have you changed your name to Darcy May eld!” ‘* Simply to carry out the work I have before me, and to elude the suspicions of my enemies.” ‘* Were you ever married under that name?” ‘*No, never! No woman can ever fill in my hearé my adored Maria’s place.” ‘* Have you hopes of ever meeting her again?” ‘“*T bave.” ‘‘ Then your hopes shall be realized.’ Hannah said, her tone altering to a low, tremulous key; ** Walter, 1am your Maria—your wife!” “Ob, great Heaven! Is it possible—my dar- ling wife?” he cried, starting up. She tore the mask from her face and ad- vanced toward him. ‘‘Thank God, dear Walter,” she murmured, as she felt herself again clasped ‘to the noble, manly breast of Walter Garfield, her husband, whom she had mourned as dead. The meeting of husband and wife was one of rapturous joy and mee wt pe that can better be imagined than described. Not until that mo- ment did Walter Garfield, as we will hereafter know Darcy Mayfield, know that his wife was living, although Hannah’s voice at times sound- ed strangely familiar, and during their sojourn together she had uttered words that led him to suspect that she knew something of Maria at least. On the other hand, Maria, as we will now call Hannah, the Maid of Michigan, recog- nized her young husband before he was taken aboard the boat by Kruler and Belden. After the first raptures of the re-union were passed, Marie said: ‘This man, dear Walter, in the mask, is my brother Amos.” The young man threw aside his ‘mask, and, altho time had wrought greater changes upon his facé than Maria’s, Walter recognized him at once. ‘* And this man,” continued Maria, turning to the little old man, ‘is Anselm Foretti, by birth an Italian, and at heart a noble old man. For forty years he was private secretary to uncle Garvon Lessingford, and soon after the death of the latter at his home in Englard, Mr. Foretti was discharged from service by Sir Joshua Pel- lington, who was appointed administrator of uncle Lessingford’s estate. Mr. Foretti is a me- chanic, also, of no mean ability, as the construc- tion of this craft will bear witness.” ‘* Indeed,” said Walter, taking the bony hand of Floretti, ‘‘ I am happy to meet the man whose skill, displayed in the Specter Skiff, has proven a terror to the red-skins and a mystery to the whites.” ‘*Thanks, thanks, young man, for the compli- ment,” replied Foretti, speaking English per- pr ‘Well, now, dear Maria,” continued Walter, ‘**T want to know all about how it is that you and Amos are here alive, and I have not known it before, and yet been with you upon this boat two or three days.” ‘It would e me a week, Walter, to tell in detail all that has transpired with us since that memorable night when the Indians swept down upon our happy home near Erie. I can, how- ever, tell ron in substance the story now. They all seated themselves upon the thwarts of the boat, when Maria began: ‘We were taken prisoners that awful night and carried over to Canada. m there we were conveyed to England by Sir Joshua Pel- lington, who claimed to others that we were minors under his See cee mor After we ar- rived in England, he promised me my freedom if 1 would marry his son Rudolph. His object in this was to get a direct hold on the Lesrsing- ford estate, to which I was sole heir. But I refused to comply with his request, and for so doing was kept a prisoner a long time, and would probably have been a prisoner to-day but for Anselm Foretti here. @ suspected some villainy on the part of Pellington when he dis- charged him, and so he—Foretti—kept a close watch upon all of his movements; and when he discovered that Amos and I were prisoners, he Jaid a plan by which we escaped from his power, and fled to America. ‘‘As soon as we had landed in this country we began searching for you, dear Walter, and brother Charles. After several months’ search we got onto the track of a person whom we had reason to hope was you. e learned that the man was a bunter in the Territory of Michigan, and so made our way into these parts; but, be- fore we could accomplish anything, we heard, to our surprise and terror, that Sir Joshua Pel- lington was upon our trail. This stopped our search, and we were compelled to take refuge in em obscure place, where the idea of the Spee- ter Skiff was first suggested to our old fnmend and companion’s mind, by vague stories of Reged canoes and areas spirits haunting the waters of Michigan, and filling the hearts of the savages and settlers with terror, g the necessary implements and material at a set- tlement, Mr. Foretti constructed the boat; and it has proven a greater success than we had an- ticipated. For nearly a year we have been 19 cruisin and down the eastern coast of this lake, su ng on game from the forest and lake, with an occasional supply from some set- eee where Mr. Foretti or Amos would go ‘*Never until. about one week ago did we know that you were certainly alive and living at Point Michigan under the name of Darcy Mayfield. I also learned that you were married again, and this is the reason that I did not make myself known to you when I first met you on board this boat. I thought, if you had given me up as dead, and was married to another and living happily, [ would not break in upon your home, but go away and—” ‘“* Heaven bless you, sweet Maria! No woman but you has or ever will occupy a place in m heart,” interrupted Walter, clasping her to his. breast. : ‘*] thank God for all this, dear Walter. Everything tells me you have suffered at heart in the past three years, as I bave. But I hope our darkest night is over, and a bright dawn of a happy future is beaming upon us. You say brother Charles is living?’ ‘* He was, the last time I saw him, though he may not be now, for I was dragged away from his side in the midst of a desperate, deadly con- flict with British and Indians.” ‘“*Oh, I pray God will keep him aliveas he has you, dear Walter. Charles was always sucha noble fellow, so strong, so brave, and kind- hearted. But—” and she turned to the old Ital- ian—*‘ what is our course now, Anselm?’. The old man took a pocket compass from a om pouch at his side, and having consulted it, said: ‘*Sou’-sou’-east.. We’ll soon sight Jand.” ‘What part of the coast?’ “Five leagues to the northward of Point Michigan.” ‘“*] am giad of that,” said Walter; ‘‘for I am anxious to know how the good settlers at the Point are getting along, and what became of Charles Bradbury.” ‘* Heavens, look there!” suddenly cried Amos Bradbury. The exclamation was occasioned by sight of a small vessel, flying the English colors at its mast-head, which put into view from behind a dee to the north of them. ‘*Holy Father!” cried Anselm Foretti, in ac- cents of surprise and terror; “it is the Rover, Sir Joshua Pellington’s own vessel and priva- teer! We must work or die now, my friends!” He had scarcely uttered the last word when a cloud of smcke was seen to puff out from the privateer’s bow-gun, and the next instant a cannon bal] went skipping along the surface of the water so close to their boat that a shower of spray was dashed over them. And now began an exciting chase over the waters of Michigan, between the famed Specter Skiff and the glish privateer, the former cormmanded by Hannah, the Maid of Michigan, and the latter by her persecutor, Sir Jos Pellington. CHAPTER XXX. A FRIEND IN NEED. IN the deepest silence Captain North and his. three companions remained in the thicket while the English soldier galloped on past them, into a = of the distance in pursuit ef Captain i Dn. Oo **Oh, I a Philip will escape!” cried Hellice, with ber hands clasped over her young heart. ‘*His chances are good, Miss Arvine.” said Captain North. ‘‘ He is mounted on one of the fleetest horses in the English army—that of General Brock; and how he came by the ani- mal is a question to me.” ‘“Tll bet a royal ole spasm from my lost knowledge-box that they’ve let the Cap give them the slip in that whip-pe-slash way,” said Jabez Mu ‘Then is evident that Brock is not far de The away with his army,” said Hellice. **In coorse it are,” replied Muggins. bull English army is on its way toward Detroit, this blessed minit, while Blackbird and a gol- smashbin’ lot of Indians are skinnin’ out for Chicago. Oh, gorry, I tell you it’s gorin’ to be a rantankerous hot ole time. Hair and claret will fly like all Jerusalem; and wken we git these ’ere little honey-buds safe and sound as a hound’s tooth at the P’int, oh, won’t ole Jabez go in on his muscles with— “A whoop tee doodle, whoop tee doo—”’ ‘‘Hist! Easy, friend Muggins,” said North, in an undertone; ‘‘too loud ony rae bring the very dangers down upon us t we bave come bere to avert.” Pane: pard, Cap. This old tongue of mine is a mighty unruly thing—bard to manage, but I'l] hold her now or bu’st,” The maidens could not re a smile at the man’s unconscious rudeness of language: for his quaint humor and odd expression did much to keep their attention diverted from the depress- ing thoughts that their surrounding dangers at times engendered. The day d by on leaden feet, and when the shadows of night at last fell, the little stole from the thicket and resumed their w ward journey. GOMERVOOKS EO