Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 206 — page 20: what you’re looking at

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

_— 20 hung over the top of the island, hiding the ‘stars. Consequently, the sentry could not see a small canoe, oe two men only, which glided into the fog while post. Alberto Del Monte, the Mexican. ‘* Now, my captain,” whispered Jean. are in the bay as soon as we enter the fog. stream is straight ahead, the guard-house on the bank.” ** Very good; how’s the tide?” * Rising, my captain.” ‘*Tumble the cask overboard then, but don’t make a splash.” The two stooped down into the bottom of the canoe, and lifted out a small barrel, which they lowered gently into the water. ‘What next, my captain?’ whispered the veteran, softly. ‘Tell me the topography of the valley. I never was in it.” Jean began: ‘* After you pass the guard house, follow the stream for half an hour. Keepin the fog, and no one will see you. The path to Longwood turns to the right about two miles up. You will know it by a group of weeping willows. Miss Mason’s bouse is on the epposite side. At the foot of the path, and again at the head, is a sentry. Within the grounds there.are more. It is a deuce of a place for sentries. That is why Thad to take the ladder to the summer house. Gavroche, being my old friend, helped me.” ** That will do,” interrupted the other, sharp- ly. “I only want the facts. Once in tho grounds, | know my way. Wait here for me till an hour from dawn. to the felucca. I shall bea prisoner, and that will mean death to me. In that case vou know what todo. Divide the treasure and flee.” Jean Martin shook bis head. ‘*No, no, captain; if they kill you, we will avenge your death on the English.” ** As you please,” returned the other, in a tone of indifference. ** But I shall come back. You need not fear for me. I have a feeling that never deceives me,” While he spoke, he stripped off his outer gar- ments, revealing a dark, elose, woolen suit, thrust a long knife into his girdle, and lowered himself slowly into the water. A moment later be was swimming slowly to shore, pushing the cask before bim, till he felt his feet touch bottom, and saw the dim outline of the land through the fog. Then he waited, holding the cask before him, ‘We till be heard a step, and saw the figure of an armed soldier pass by. At the moment the sentry’s back was to him he gave the cask a shove to the beach and stooped down so as to bide his head behind it. The sentry noticed nothing, but continued his beat, and Delmont stole forward as the other receded, till he reached the shore, darted up the bank, and lay down in the long, dry grass to watch what would happen when the sentry came back. He could hear the low buzz of voices, and see a red light in the fog some little way off, and knew it must be the guard-house; but he cared nothing for that, He was only watchin the cask, which had now floated ashore, an was bumping on the beach. Presently the seuity came back, and, as he had expected, stopped at the cask, turned it over, examined it, and finally called out: **Sargent, dear, for the love o’ God come here. Boys, all of yez, quick.” The watcher in the grass heard voices. ‘* What’s the row!” ‘* What’s Paddy McShane found?” ** It’s the say sarpent, I'll go bail.” Then came the trampling of feet, and one of the men nearly stepped on Delmont as he lay there, while they went down to the beach and gathered round the cask that had fleated ashore, “Oh, sargent, dear,” he heard Paddy ex- claim, in tones of anxiety, ‘‘ what d’ye think’s in it? Is it gunpowder, or is it one of them French infernal machines? Don’t go nigh to it; +5 might blow up.” * Blow up be hanged,” growled the sergeant. **Tt’s a cask floated ashore from some vessel foundered ina storm. Powder-would ha’ gone to the bottom.” ‘* Maybe it’s Ollands gin,” suggested another man with a smack of bis lips. ‘If there’s any- thing I’m fond of, it’s ’Ollands gin.” ‘*No it ain’t,” said the sergeant, decidedly, ‘cos they don’t put ’Ollands in them little cheons.” ‘* Bedad,” suggested Paddy, ‘‘ maybe it’s the rale ould stuff itself—potheen, God bless it.” ‘‘It’s sperrits of some kind,” said the ser- geant, wisely, “‘or it wouldn’t float. It ain’t been long in the water, nuther, ’cos it’s clean— no seaweed on it. Well, I suppose we’d better stave it, eh, yea We don’t want it.” He spoke with such obvious irony that the men chuckled, all but Paddy, who said, with t earnestness: **Oh, for the love o’ God, don’t do it, ser- gent, dear. Sure 'twas the Holy Virgin herself / he was nodding at bis | | The two men were Jean Martin, the one eyed | cannoneer, and Albert Delmont, alias Don | bung with a musket butt. If Ido not come, go | ee | plete success. remember, no firearms. —-- sent if to us to keep up our spirits. ’Twould be temp’in’ Providence to spill a drop.” The sergeant laughed. ‘* Who'll go and get the tin cups?” he asked, at which there was a general rurh for the guard-house, as the old soldier said to Paddy: ‘*Come; roll her along and we'll knock in the We'll only taste what it’s like.” ‘*Ayah wisha, is that all?” cried Paddy; The | “and bedad it’s meself that'll take a good | strong taste, or ’m a Frinchman.” Then the listener smiled to see them roll the cask up to the guard-house, for in it were twenty-four gallons of a havid with a pint of laudanum, and be knew that English soldiers, once beginning to drink, never stop short of beastly intoxication. As he had expected, it turned out. The men tasted, pronounced it good, and finally shouted for the sentry on the bank to come down and try it. One taste all round, and the bonds of disci- line were loosened. The sergeant tried to exert is authority, but was cajoled into allowing ‘‘ Just one good dram all round;” and in this dram he drowned his own scruples. The post was not likely to be visited before morning, and he had an idea he would be ‘“‘all right” by that time. He and the men set in to drinking and telling stories, and within a quarter of an hour from the time the cask was set on end, they were all fast asleep. Then Delmont went boldly up, shook and kicked them all round to make sure that they were really drunk, and then proceeded to call in Jean Martin, with whose assistance the whole party were stripped, tied neck and heels in the guard-house, and their guns made useless by throwing away the flints and wetting the charges. “And now,” said Delmont, ‘‘draw the canoe up on the beach. I didn’t expect such a com- We can help each other. But If we die, we die: but a single shot throws away all our chances.” ‘*T have obeyed orders so far,” returned the old cannoneer, stiffly, ‘‘ and I don’t think I need lessons, Master Delmont. I cannot shoot, for the best of reasons. I have no pistol.” “So much the better,” returned Delmont. ‘It is time we were in motion, if I am to see the emperor to night.” Jean Martin coughed. “That is not likely,” he muttered; but the young man stopped bim. **I have accomplished that before,” he said. ‘‘ You didn’t believe we could find the treasure. I found it. You did not believe I could make a rocket beat a gun. You've seen it. Now I tell you I shall see the emperor to-night, and rescue him if he be able to move.” ** Ah, that is it,” said Jean, with a si: h; ‘* but if you had seen him as I saw him, my captain, you would abandon all hope. Ah, it is ter- rible!” Delmont stopped. ‘‘Hearken!” he said. ‘If his majesty tells me with his own lips that he‘has given up life, I will believe it: but the man who conquered Europe alone shall not be shut up by England an hour longer than he pleases. To-night shall give him freedom. Now lead on and show the way.” Jean Martin stepped into the little stream and waded boldly up, i ib. the bank for about a mile and a half through the fog, when be stopped suddenly. The jingle of horse furniture was audible, coming their way. Both men threw themselves down in the grass, and saw a party of horsemen ride by. As they passed, Martin pinched Albert. They could see the outlines of the horsemen, and the one-eyed cannoneer whispered: “It is the officer who guards him. He has the eyes of alynx. Weare lost. He will come back and search, if not raise the alarm at once.” Albert shook his head. ‘* We are not lost,” be said. ‘‘ Lead on to the path to Longwood at once.” They passed through the fog till Jean said: “There is the sentry. He will see usif we go anv further.” ‘‘Stay here, then,” said Albert; and with that he went down into the grass like an Indian, invisible in the darkness, and crawled close to the sentry, who was pacing mechanic- ally to and fro, humming a tune to himself. The young man crept up to a tree at one end of the sentry’s beat and Martin saw him rise up behind it. The sentry came forward and turned his back me — his walk when Delmont put out his ead. Two steps more and the Frenchman came out from the tree, made one silent stride after the sentry and threw something at the back of the man’s head with all his force, making a sound like the slap of a cricket ball caught by hand. The sentry fell forward on his face and la still while Delmont beckoned eagerly to comrade to come forward. Martin ran up and Delmont whispered: eater wonders than One Eye, the Cannoneer. ‘*T stunned him with a stone, but he will come toin a moment. Gag him with his bayonet. Cut his belts off! Quick!” With the rapid dexterity of sailors they tied up the sentry into a helpless body and hid him behind a tree just as they heard the jingle of horse-trappings again in the fog, coming ata gallop. Delmont seized the sentry’s musket and shako and said, hurriedly: ** Hide! only one is coming. I will hold him in conversation. Stun him asI did when you get achance. Here’s the stone: this is the spot to strike.” He placed his finger on the back of Jean’s neck where the spinal cord leaves the brain, mer is ‘* Hit hard when you see your chance. Hide.” A horseman rode out of the fog. CHAPTER XVI, THE INTERVIEW. THE approaching horseman was Captain Ger- vaise, who had been down to the bay, found the guard gone, and had at once used his patrol there and ridden off up the valley for more help, suspecting evil, but not what bad happened. As he came tearing up, Albert Delmont cocked bis piece and called out: ** Halt!” He was well aware of bis deficiency in the English accent, and that it was impossible for him to hide his own, but he also knew what words to avoid, Gervaise pulled up bis borse at once. erying: ‘‘For God’s sake, sentry, no useless formality to-night. Im Captain Gervaise. I passed your post, going out. There’s a French plot going on, and I must get up to Longwood.” Albert only answered: ‘‘ Halt!” and raised bis piece as if to fire; for he knew the other could see the outline of bis form, Gervaise, impatient and anyry, retorted: ‘*What’s the matter? Don’t you know me? Have they changed the relief, while I was out?’ ‘* Yes,” said Delmont as shortly as he could, imitating the English accent. ‘Then why the devil don’t you go on? Do you want to keep me all night?’ And his horse made another step forward, when Albert shouted fiercely: And this time Gervaise obeyed, thinking he had to deal with a surly old soldier, who de- lighted in the night privileges of a sentry to bother his superiors. ‘* Well,” he asked, presently, as Delmont stood silent, thinking over what words to use next, ‘* have you nothing more to say?” Alpert suddenly remembered the Irish soldier, and the fact that Irish and French alike roll the letter R, which the English almost drop. ‘* Get off de horrrse!” he ich in a ve respectable imitation of a thick brogue, whic deceived Gervaise, who replied: ‘* Why the deuce couldn’t you tell me before to advance and give the countersign on fcot? I'll see your sergeent in the morning, and give you a couple of dozen to teach you sentry duty, my fine fellow.” Albert, seeing him advance on foot, knew that his time had come, The night was not so dark but that Gervaise, on a close look, could note the absence of white cross-belts; so he backed into the shade of a tree as the captain came for- ward, and halted him again within ten feet, so menacingly that the British officer recoiled, saying: ‘Good Heavens! Are you drunk? What do you mean by this conduct?’ Delmont saw the form of Martin steal up from the foot of a tree bebind the other, and feared that the one-eyed giant would execute his vengeance too soon; for it was important to him to get the countersign if possible. So, pretending to be drunk, he growled out, pointing his piece: ‘*Countersign! Dam! Halt!” Gervaise, fully convinced now that he had a drunken Irish recruit to deal with, spoke the word in a low voice: ‘*Salamanca, you rascal. Now let me pass, or it will be the worse for you,” Delmont, affecting to be satisfied, threw up his musket, and said, thickly: ‘‘ Pass! Pass!” : Then Gervaise, thinking his time bad come at last to punish the man’s insolence, strode for- ward and seized the musket, which Albert al- lowed him to do designedly, while the officer peared into the supposed sentry’s face in the gloom. The action brought his head forward to the desired angle, and Jean Martin, right behind him, brought down a round stone like a hammer at the nape of the officer’s neck, repeating the blow per with such success that Gervaise dropped without uttering a cry, paralyzed and senseless. } They seized him and carried him down to the stream in the fog, strip off his uniform, stuffed a wad of pieces of his own sbirt into bis mouth, bound him securely, and left him there, breathi heavily, while Delmont so gree dressed himself in the British officer’s clothing, S ComiGcvoe (E(o)