Beadle's Dime Library No. 157 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

—-- a faint Presen he began to move and tried to stand up, looking round as if bewildered and muttering in Arabic. ‘‘ What cheer, comrade?’ asked Lafangere. ‘‘ Did they cut you anywhere?’ Mo turned his head and seemed to re- cognize him, for he asked faintly: : are you hurt?” ‘*No. We found you down, and my comrade St. George shot.one of .the scamps, I ~ we of two others, and your brother took off the head of a fourth.” Mourad looked round into the face of St. George wistfully. ‘Did you come to my help?’ he asked. ‘You are the lawful head of my house,” was the grave answer of thecreole. ‘ SeeS US, usy brother, as he saw Cain and Abel. Are you nurt badly?” ‘‘A horse knocked me down. I think he broke my ribs,” said the Mameluke in a faint tone. ‘“‘Go on to Alexandria. The way is plain from here. Leave me,” ‘* Not till we are safe within the gates,” said St. Geo quietly. ‘‘ You can ride ata foot pace, and we are not ten miles from the place,” Mourad turned away his head with a con- vulsion expressive of great pain. “T will try,” he said slowly, “but you will have to help me on my horse. They did so, and he nearly fell off in a faint, though the docile creature stepped as gingerly as if walking on glass, and seemed to be con- scious that his master was hurt. Slowly they rode over the plain, Mourad swaying from side to side asif dizzy with the pain, the creole riding close to him and support- me im as tenderly as a mother tending a Nota soul was in sight; for the Arabs had deserted the country since the spread of the news of the battle of the Pyramids, and, in two hours after, they saw the lights of Alexandria glimmering ahead, Then Mourad spoke faintly. — ‘‘‘You are very kind,” he said to St. George. ‘Will you grant me a favor when we go in ‘*T will,” replied the creole unhesitatingly. ‘* Call me henceforth nothing but Mourad. have learned a Jesson to-night, and I feel that I ain not so worthy of the name of St. George as you, who have been a brother to one whom you owe naught but hate.” ‘You mistake,” returned St. George gently. ‘We could neither of us help being born. The wrong lay in one who is de He might have sold me fora slave. Instead, he caused me to be educated as a man, and the Republic makes us all equal.” ‘* Nevertheless,” returned the other, ‘ lew my fF aso None know me save as the Mame- luke Mourad. Let me be that to all the world, and do you continue to make worthy the name you bear,” Still St. George hesitated. “The general knows, and our dispatches men- tion your name. cannot be hidden from the d. : “Tt can,” replied Mourad. “Say” killed by the Arabs. To you I am anid a prisoner, who talks no French. vounded A fight. Promise me.this, or I will turn St. George lifted him up, and Mourad uttered og! peo .” answered St. George; “‘ but here ngere. e is La ‘““He will promise too,” returned Mourad, i for ae % man es the Btn ae and we bree, , can do anything and go any- where. See, yonder comes the dawn. 0. What is it?’ | The flash and sullen boom of a gun out at sea answered bim. : ** It is the English fleet,” said Lafangere: CHAPTER VII. THE GREEK PICAROO ar, Scns 9 ge i f advan en eir unw oes, as Providence, which ‘had hitherto favored the French, were weary of seeing its yifts a On one day the battle of the Py made Bonaparte the master of Egypt; on the next his fleet was destroyed by the almost incredible carelessness of an admiral, who expiated the fault with his life, thirteen ships, captured Nelson, with only or ruined a fleet of fifteen French vessels, of which five were stronger than his best; and in a single day the French saw themselves cut off from and doomed to stay in Egypt for an indefinite time, for the five French shi which escaped from Nelson made off for Corfu, and were not seen again for months, Our three adven who had seen the whole disaster ffom the sbere, were astounded and heart-broken. In one moment to be dashed from the hight of triumph to the depths of de is a terrible a on se man, — to Frenchmen, with r mercuri ons, doubly so. When it was all over "ati = hat oa'the beach, watching the English and French ships, i and dismasted, +e at their anchors, while Vilieneuve made with five vessels that C N. h fleet, under Nelson, A i A ———— had not fired a shot during the battle, and the maitre d’armes wept like a child. ‘“‘We shall never see France again,” he sobbed. ‘‘Oh, my friends, why did we ever come to this accursed country, and why does Heaven allow these Englishmen to beat us on the sea, with all the chances im our favor?” St. George who bad been standing gloomily watching the bay of Aboukir, here broke in on the other’s tirade: ‘We have had a heavy blow,” he said, ‘‘ but I was with the general at Arcola, when all hung on a thread, and we beat at last. I am going to France, if you will come with me,” Lafangere made a gesture of despair. ‘* How can we go? Do you not see all our ships are gone or taken?” ** There are hundreds more in the port, I can see their masts.” “ But they are not ships of war.” Mourad, the Mameluke. ——EEEe —_—|_ -— -—- OOOO — explained Mourad, ‘‘and he says how can he sail without a ot He is our man if we pay I know his face. He is a picaroon.” “ A what?’ ‘‘A picaroon. Half these Greeks are robbers, when they get a chance to do it, and escape un- known, by sinking the ship they take in the night. It is their only way to get even with the Turks.” ‘*Tben this man will not be a safe one to take us to France. He may want to sell us to the Turks.” “I have thought of that, and it is certain that we must be on our guard. But, after all, we three are a match for a dozen Greeks, and he has but a dozen.” ‘** Which is his vessel?” Mourad pointed to a low, black vessel, hardly more than a large boat. She had a long, pointed stern, like the beak ‘They can sail, and, as you see, the English | of a stork, a raised cabin at the stern, covered are in no condition to pursue. To-da is our | with gilded carvings, three short, stumpy y time, ‘To-morrow will be too late. They will | masts, two raking forward, the third cocked up have refitted. What thinks Mourad?” The Mameluke, who still looked pale and weak from his accident, bowed head. “1 think you are right,” he said. “If we can find a Greek felucca in port we can get off, The Greeks are devils to risk chases.” ‘“* But we do not know their language,” object- ed Lafangere, determined to be miserable, “ and you are in no condition to go with a broken rib.” Mourad allowed a faint smile to cross his face as he answered: ‘‘A broken rib soon heals at sea and we Mamelukes are used to broken bones. I know their languages here. If you are willing I am ready to go.’ | St, George nodded gravely. “Mourad .is right. Let us depart. To-mor- row will be too late. See. The busy as bees.” In fact they could see the masts and rigging of the crippled English ships black with men, etting up new masts, and rhage igh A repairing faniaere with a vigor and zest that showed they appreciated the perils of their position should a storm come on. They were too busy even to find time to fire at the crowds ef French on the shore carryin off what they could save from two »strande ships, and it is an actual fact that the French flag flew on the deserted line-of-battle ship Ton- nant for many hours, because the English were too busy to send a boat aboard the wreck. “Such are the chances of war,” observed St. George, gloomily, as they passed the Tonnant. ‘Oh, mon Dieu, what will the general say when he hears the news?” " ht we not to go back and tell him?” asked Lafangere. ‘“‘By no means. The news will go fast enough to him and to France too. We have our orders to go to Paris. Let others take this news to Cairo. I go where the general tells me, fur he is the first soldier in the world, as you will admit, comrade.” ‘That is true, comrade. He is.” angere had surrendered at discretion after the battle of the Pyramids, and never was heard to talk of Pichegru again. ‘ They went slowly along the shore to where the tig left their horses and rode into Alex- andria, The city was all in confusion; with a motley crowd of sailors, Arabs, Greeks, Maltese and the rest, talking together with gestures of dis- may at the disaster that had just befallen therm. hey were hardly noticed in the general con- fusion and went down to the port, which was crowded with transports and trading’ vessels of all the Mediterranean nations, but nearly empty of men who had gone to look at the attie, glish are as It was early morning; for the battle of Aboukir Bey had lasted most of the night, and a fresh breeze was blowing out of the- port toward France, ) ‘* Now,” quoth the Gascon, “‘ the question is, how shall we get to sea? Here are ships, but where are the sailors? and we have no money.” “Let not that trouble you,” interrupted Bt. George. “The general gave me an order for funds on the master, and we can sell our horses for two thousand francs each to the offi- cers.” ' ‘*T propose then,” rejoined the Gascon, whose spirits seemed to be rising with the a of goin to France, “that we divide our labors. will sell the horses and got the money, while you two procure the ship. uy ‘““An excellent idea, see a man I think I know, yonder.” They gave up their horses to Lafangere who led them away to the quartermaster’s office, where he knew be could them at advantage, taking with him St. George’s order. Then the other two walked along the quay to where a slender, swarthy Greek was standing at the steps, with a Turkish pipe in his mouth, a? ; ee eto tise in some language oura : man in so a St. Geo did not understand, and the other mc his shoulders and made an indifferent reply. ‘*T asked him if he had a vessel ready to sail,” | a behind the cabin, on the very end of the stern, two long yards tapering and set at an angle to the decks, and a general outlandish and pictur- esque appearance that suggested the Orient. ‘That is his xebec,” said the Mameluke. ‘I know her well, for I have seen her before. She can sail like a witch, pulls twelve sweeps, and all she needs is a gun to make her a regular picaroon.” “But what does she here?” ‘*Oh, a peaceful trader, of course, since the French camein. Master Nikolai has the repu- tation of eg a spy if he can get goons? pay.” “Yet you think of going on his vessel.” ‘“* Tt is because he is such a rascal.” ‘** How is that an inducement?” ‘*An honest trader would not take the risk Nikolai will, for money.” ‘*How much shall we offer him?’ ‘Half to start and the other half when he puts us ashore at Marseilles.” ‘* But if he tries treachery on the way?” “He will not.” “ Why not?’ Mourad smiled sarcastically. ‘*He knows me too well. I have seen him before. I once bad him bastinadoed.” ; ** What is that?” ‘‘ Beaten toa jelly. He thinks I am still a Mameluke who has deceived the French, and that I want to go to Stamboul—Constanti- nople.” ‘Indeed? Why do he tell him that?” ‘“* Because he is such ascamp. If I told him I want to go to France he would take me to Constantinople. If I tell him I want to go to Stamboul, he will think it a very smart trick to take me to France.” While the two were thus conversing apart, the Greek who bore such a slender reputation mnewed his pipe and cast furtive glances at em. He knew not exactly what to make of them on account of their Mameluke dress. He saw them apparently on friendly terms with the ench, and wondered who these men could be. Deserters possibly. Mourad took care to keep him from talking to St. shag! whom he cautioned to use no French before Nikolai and to go and intercept La. — before the worthy Gascon came in to Then he returned to the Greck, and the fol- abc dialogue ensued: aes a ou cannot sail without a cargo, you can at least take passengers to Stamboul.” ~ ** Perhaps, if I am paid well enough.” “What do you call well enough?” ‘Ten thousand piastres each. * You shall have it when we get there.” ‘That is not enough.” ‘* Why not?” ‘“‘] want to see the money now.” “You shall pare half. We will give you fifteen thousand piastres as we leave port, and fifteen more when you land us where we wish to 4and,” ‘ | | ‘* At Stamboul?’ ‘It may be somewhere else.” The Greek looked more interested. He began P airee ale tied tas phrt people,” he said yu are then important e,” he in a whisper. “Who is with you?” ” “Tf you promise not to tell | will say it.” ‘‘T swear by the cross of St. Basil~ ‘*That is enough, Do you know what has just happened?” “Yes. The English have beaten the French fools and the fate of the army is sealed.” ‘You are wrong. The French hold 1 t. They have beaten the Mamelukes; taken ; and Mourad Bey has fled.” : The Greek looked amazed. : ‘* How am I to believe all this?” “It is true. We have fied through the French lines, I learned their roy em and we . but what I really want is to take the news to Stamboul and implore suppose-—” ' Nikolai stopped ang Mourad watched him. ne pLeie eo! ==> t .--) + mind between