Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 277 — page 16: what you’re looking at

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

? / * Ve ? \ me we ey ee eee ee “What is that? What—what—who is it, Brown?” ‘The Pomona frigate is signaled in sight, my lord, that is all,’ said Brown respectfully, and not a little puzzled at the unwonted quiet of bis master’s manner. ‘She that we have been a-looking for, this three months, my lord.” Lord Gowrie nodded his head gloowmily, and muttered to*himself: “Ay, ay, and now she comes too late. “Send Captain Ferris to me,” he said to Brown listlessly, and the worthy messenger departed, to spread the news in the kitchen of the Governor’s house, that ‘my lord were a- getting Vill (poorly, he said) and that he were a-losin’ of bis temper fast.” The news of Lady Jane Blair’s flight bad been kept a profound secret from the whole household. Ferris bad seen to that. Lady Jane was so much accustomed to doing things out of the common way, that no one had marveled at her sudden disappearance. on the previous night, and had readily accepted the excuse, offered by the aide-de-camp, that she had gone off on a trip, with one of the revenue boats, commanded by an old saiior, who bad known her as a child; and people contented themselves with a shrug, when they talked of Lady Jane, and the observation:— , ‘Well it is a nice thing to be an earl’s daughter. One can do so many things, without impropriety.” o the old earl was brooding over bis loss, and wondering how be could ever face the sneers uf bis London acquaintances, when they heard of the way in which the Yankee had fooled him. He was trying to make up his mind to face the inevitable, and go on board the schooner, to legaliza the marriage of his daughter, who otherwise would be in a worse state than ever, when he was. roused by the news of the coming of the Pomona, and sent for Ferris in his listless despair, not thinking of anything else but surrender. ) To him thus sitting, came Ferris, with a look on bis face that made the earl ask: “ What is the matter, Ferris? Ata time like «this, I see no cause for smiling—grinning, J call it, like a Cheshire cat, sir.” Ferris smoothed his face out to answer: ‘True, my lord; but we have better uews vow. The Pomona isin sight. Does your lord- ship know what that means? The Pomona isa Frenca prize, and one of the fastest frigates in the navy. She can catch that schooner for us, and that is why I smile, my lord.” The earl looked up, as if he began to see a ray of light in the prospect. “Do you really think so, Ferris?” he asked, in a searching, anxious tone of voice, that showed how deeply he was moved. ‘Do you really think that we could undo the miscebief ‘ if we caught the schooner to-day? Consider that—” ‘* Consider that no one knows of the escapade of ber ladyship but me gies my lord, and that / am willing to overlook it, if | can get ber to- day; and then, reflect that if we catch this Blair, we can hang him’ for violation of the laws of war, I tell you, my lord, we never had such a chance in all our ves before to avenge the past and secure the fusure as now,”* Tne Eaglish officer was full of excitement as he spoke. He had been insulted by Lady Jane, and beaten by Bluir so completely that he was wild for revenge, and he saw the chance thereof in the coming of the swift frigate, Pomona. ** All we have to do, my lord,” he continued, rapidly, “is tosignal the frigate not to come in, but to pursue the schoover outside and take her at any hazard.” , + inf? But can the signal be sent to him in time to catch the schoover?’ asked Lord Gowrie, ina listless, doubtful way, that showed how he was broken better than anything else. ‘Jane is e, and all the frigates in the world cannot bring ber back to me. Ob, Ferris, | was so fond of that child! I was so proud of her, with all _her faults! She never would have done this if the scoundrel had not used force. [ am positive of it. To think that a Blair—a Blair of Blair- Gowrie, should haye run away with a Yankee, a common sailor! Go, Ferris, go from me, Do what you please; but do not ask me to do any- thing. 1am overwhelmed with this whole busi ness.” Ferris cast a glance of contempt at the earl, as the old nobleman sat there, with bis head bowed on his hands, and the aide-de-camip said, as he left the room: ‘Very good, my lord. I will do what is best and report to you after I have made a suc- -ceas.”’ -Toen Ferris left the room and went up to the semapbore-stetion, where he found the watcher at hs post, looking through a Jong telescope at the sea, on which reposed two sails only, One of these was the little schooner Saucy Jane, that lay in the cffiag, right opposite to the port of Kingston, and was “ standing off and on,” in nautical phrase, waiting for the jane of time which Blair bad named to Ferris terms of the night before. v4, c ‘The semapbore-telegraph of those days was a ee ee eel ——— ee ucy Jane, Privateer. . ee a Spe B - P great improvement over the old methods of | ‘Run away with—never mind that, Rogers. ee — _——_—_—_—_ communication; but a great way behind the telegraph of our times. It consisted of a series of towers, in plain sight of each other, each provided with a powerful telescope and a skeleton at the top, by means of which the signals were transmitted from one to the other as fast as the watchmen could read them and send them on. The semaphbore-man at Kingston was a ser- geant of arullery, who had been invalided, and sent to his present post for an easy berth in bis old age. His name was Rogers, and he rose, as soon as he saw the captain enter the signal room, to salute aud say: ‘*{| wish your honor a very sir. “Opal see you well, sir. in’, your honor.” Ferris nodde | in his lordly way. ‘* Yes, Rogers, my good fellow, a fine morn- ing, as you say. Ah, how long do you think it will be, before the Pomona gets in?” ‘Your honor ean see for yourself, if your honor will take a squint through the glass,” re- plied the sergeant, respectfully. “The wessel ain’t lifted her topsails yet, from the port, sir; but she ain’t over fifteen or twenty miie off, your honor, I should say.” The captain took a look through the glass of the old sergeant, and beheld on the broad -blue field of the ocean, a large ship, close-hauled to the northeast trade-wind, coming tor the port of Kingston, at a very rapid pace. She was direcily outside the schooner, and seemed to be coming to pounce on ber, una- wares, when Ferris said to the sergeant, in a thougbtful way: . ** Rogers, do vou think those people on the Yankee schooner can see the frigate yet?” Rogers considered a moment, before he an- swerea: ‘* Think not, sir. We’as the’ight in our favor, and that is what deceives your bonor into think- ing that ere frigate a good deal nearer than she is. No, sir, they can’t see her yet from the mast-ead of that ’ere schooner, let alone her decks,” ’ ‘*Can you signal the frigate?’ asked the cffi- cer, to which Rogers replied: ‘* Cervnly, your honor; done it a’ready. She give meer number through the glass. That’s ow I knows it’s the Pomona, your honor. She shows a power of canvas, your honor, for a wes- sel of ’er size,” ° Ferris looked Jong and earnestly through the glass at the frigate, As Rogers had said, she did show a great deal of canvas for a vessel of her size, thougb that was considerable. The Po- mona was a new frigate, of the class called ‘‘thirty-eigbts,” because they were supposed to carry that pumber of guns; but generally had so many extra carronades and “ chasers,” of one sort and another about them, that they had from forty to forty-two or four guns, all to:d. Her bull, low and black, was almost hidden in the enormous spread above her, and the breadth of the sails was just as remarkable as their hight above the water, She was stillata great distance; but not too great to note the rapidity of her progress. ‘* She’s a comin’ like a race-’oss, your bonor,” said Rogers, in a token of admiration. ** I've ‘eard tell that the Pomona is able to give away her topgallant-sails to any wessel in ’is pe ty’s navy; but I don’t believe that. IL’ope she’s fast enough to ketch that rascally Yankee schooner, that give us sich a settia’ down, yes- terday, your honor.” Ferris stirred ill-temperedly, as be replied: ‘* Confound it, Rogers, you needn’t remind me of that, all the time, I’m not likely to forget it, without your sticking it down my throat. Yes, I hope she is swift enough to catch the infernal pirate, and 1 sbould like to be on board of ber when she overhauls the schooner, 1t would not be so one sided as the other day, when the scoun- drel would not fight me fair; but took to his confounded long guns and cut me to. pieces, without giving mea chance to fire a sbot, or strike a blow.” Then he turned to the telescope, and gezed at oe distant frigate, murmurivg to himself audi- ood-morning, ery tine morn- I y: ‘* She’s too far off to signa) to. She would not understand what we meant,” Rogers heard him, and beramed respectfully, ‘* Ahem, your honor; I think J could signal to her, if your honor wants it. Your honor ain’t used to the flags like | am, and there’sa many a one that can see much better than me, your honor, ascan’t ’old a candle to me in signalin’.” ‘Do you mean that you can signal to that frigate outthere, and make her understand your signals?” asked Ferris. * Cert’o sure, your honor, and your bonor shall see it yourself. What is it your honor wants to say to the frigate?’ Ferris thought a minute, and then replied: ‘Tell him that a Yankee privateer is boyer- ing right in sight of the port, and has abducted the Governor’s daughter. Can you say all that?” Rogers scratched his head. ‘‘ | sin’t sure, your honor; but Pl try. What's abducted, your honor? I ax th> question ’cause I never ‘eard the word afore.” eee ee - Fg Pa 4 & -—s —_— Say the schooner is rigbt in front of the port, and will stay here all day, and that if he will sail round under the horizon so that the Yankees cannot see him, he will bave a very fair chance of catching ber and making a good prize,” Rogers listened attentively. ‘* Pll tell him all that, your honor; but it will take a long time.” ‘‘Start to werk at once then, and I will wait!” replied Ferris, he old sergeant then went to work, with bis curious skeleton of wires and Jaths, and contort. ed the framework for some half an hour; the aide-de-camp looking on in silence, till at last he announced: ‘The frigate sees me, your honor; but. she don’t seem to understand me qs well as I could wish, Howsomdever, she says she’ll ke'ch the schocner (sve understands that much, your honor), an’ she’s a- goin’ about, as your bonor sees,” Indeed, the captain could see through the glass that the frigate was changing her course, When first seen, she bad been close-bauled on the starboard tack, with the wind at the north- east, and consequently heading tothe north. As soon as the comnu.unication of the semapbore- man had been made, she let ber bows fall off from the wind, and weut off to the west, as if she did not intend to land at Kingston at all, For some time the two spectators watched her, and noticed that she was gradually edging up closer to the wind as she sailed, in a manner that showed thai she was acting witb a distinct purpose. At first she was ‘‘ going free,” as it is called, with the wind on her starboard quarter, and she held this course for nearly balfau hour, All of a sudden she was observed to shift her sails slightly, so as to bring tre wind a little more abeam, or to the middle of the ship. This brought her bead to the northwest, and she heid this course for anotber balf-hour, at the expira- tion of which she made anotber sbift of the saiis tbat brought-the bows of the vessel again on ber origival course to the north, and headed her tc- ward a part of the coast to the west of Kings- ton, This last course sbe kept steadily till the watchers in the tower could see that she was getting under the sbelter of a point in a line be- tween her present position ana that of the American schooner, that still lay idly on the ocean in front of the port, waiting for the Gov- ernor to come aboard. ‘* Tell me, Rogers,” asked the officer, earnestly, “if you think that point out there is bigh enough to hide the spars of such a large vessel as that from the schooners decks?” Rogers considered a little, and at last an- swered: “* | ain’t sure, your honor, but I think as ’ow that ’ere pict is cailed two 'undred feet ‘ighb.” That is enough, Rogers, they can’t see her from down there. She will be able to get with- in a mile of the scoundrels before they do. Such : chance has not come tome in all my life be- ore. The officer was full of excitement at the idea of what was to bappen, and could hardly have patience to watch. The interest of the situation, however, com- elled him to look out sharp, and he saw the rigate baul her wind and makea series of short tacks under the shelter of the shore, in such a manver as not to expose her tothe view of the little schooner, that still lay, with perfect un- suspicion, in full sight of the port. . loser and closer came the great ship, behind the cover of the bigh projecting point, till all at once she abandoned her former plan and stretched out openly. Still she did not appear to be noticed on board the schooner till she bad made a good mile more out to sea, and Ferris said aloud: ‘‘The lookouts must be all gsleep, I think, or they would bave found out a “ail in sight long ago. Then, when the watchers began to wonder what was the matter with her, the Saucy Jane seemed to throw off her lethargy and fell off to the wind on the pert tack—that is to say, with the wind on the left side of the vessel—so as to bring her head to the eastward, and hoisted her topsails, which she bad furled while she was waiting for the visit of the Governor, ‘She runs ot last!” cried Ferris, exulting? “Now, my Yankee friend, we will see W you are made of in about balf an hour.” They could see that the schooner was lying much closer to the wind than the frigate.- CHAPTFR XVIL. THE DUEL ON THE SEA. _ THE schooner did not appear to bein anything of a burry to get away from the fiigate that he following her, though she spread her sails to flee, She did not crowd on all she could, but ap- peared to be trying what sbe could do in the way of sailing with ber ordinary canvas before y. at she tried any experiments On increasing her speed. ts "The frigate, when sbe was first discovered from the decks, was about two miles off, and had the disadvantage of be to leeward, SU <€om C | > eo - : IJOOKS- ECOM © % yy Pd . a $ , ore, | ee AP ee ia ‘