Beadle's Dime Library No. 316 — page 2: what you’re looking at

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

2 | Lafitte’s Lieutenant: pa Theodore, the Child of the Sea, A Sequel to ** Lafitte, the Pirate of the Gulf.” BY PROF. J. H. INGRAHAM. — Revised and Edited By Cot, Prentiss INGRAHAM, _* CHAPTER L A&A PIRATE'S TEMPTATION, HE scene of my story lies among the bayous at, Jike a network, lic between the city of y Orl y of Barrataria, us as the haunt of the: famous Lafitte, he note the early Oo e present century. The time z as one pleasant afternoon, several weeks-prior to the buttle of New Orleans. Adown one of these bayous, and heading for {he Gulf, a long boat was working its way, im- pelled by balf a score of oarsmen, who sent it along at a swift pace with their strong and steady stroke. The uien were in sailor garb, wore red skull- caps, and were armed to the teeth. About them was the air of men who were en- gaged in some reckless calling. In the stern-sheets sat two persons of a differ- ent stripe from the men. One of these was a tall, splendidly-formed man, attired in an undress naval uniform, and reclining at ease upon the cushions of the boat, His face was bandsome, but very stern, and his eyes had a far-away look, as though he was constantly dreaming of a past that was full of sorrow to him. He too was armed, but his pistols and sword were of the finest workmanship. By the side of this distinguished-looking indi- vidual sat a youth whose appearance was most attractive. He was tall, slender and graceful, but his shoulders were broad and his frame sinewy, in- dicating great strength. He, too, was in seaman's garb, such a dress “ was worn by the American middies of that ay. There was a frankness about the youth’s face strangely winning, but it was also full of dar- ing and resolution. = n the bow of the boat, listlessly watching the course abead, as the boat sped along, was a hideously deformed African slave, bed, were Lafitte, “otege and lieu- ero of this romance, and e famous buccaneer ad- Cudjoe, the slave miral. 7 ,. Their destination was the island baunt of Lafitte, where was the rendezvous of bis fleet, and he had just come from New Orleans, where he had been to offer his services, and those of his men, to aid in the he city against the British army, th mtemplating an at- tack upon General Jacksor his army of bastil thered volunteers, A sherk ea British vessel, flying a flag of truce, bad visited Lafitte’s island, and thrcugh officers sent on shore, bad made to the chief most tempting cffers, if he would become their ally in the advance upon New O: leans. These offers had been the rank of captain for himself, in the royal navy, a large atnount of gold, and pardon for himself and his men, Lafitte had appointed a time when the vessel should return for his answer, and then, taking his boat, had boldly gone to New Orleans, where a price was s ding tbe quarters of Governor placed the io? a rea of the British before him. Governor Claib | in the outlaw chief and told bim he would do all in his power for —Lafitte then offering his services to the Americins, Leaving the Governor he bad his return, leaving Theodore, his bc to get the Governor’s answer, after before a council of city officers the rey Th followed after his and com r,and given to himtheG nor’s re y a few moments befor ey are int to the reader, rowing 1 th bayou. . This document Lafitte grasped in hand, awaitin rival of the boat at the cabin of an old Indian, who dwelt alone on the banks of the bayou, a At last the cabin ve al in view, the boat touched the shore, and Lfitte. walking off by himself, read the reply to his cffers. Its tenor was as follows: ‘‘M. Lafitte must regret equally with myself, the decision of the council. * it is against your sineerity, and the genuineness of the Jetters you present as given you by the British officers. P upon his head, and inva- Claiborne, had | Chose borne had placed implicit trust. upon Lafitte’s Lieutenant. “‘ Be patient, sir, and take no rash steps, for I have unlimited confidence in you, and wili consult with the commanding general regarding you, at the earliest convenience. “In the méanwhile remain firm, and your wishes for honor and pardon may yet be achieved.” _ “ And this is the way my offers are received!’ said Lafitte fiercely. ‘‘ My word doubted, myself scorned, and my ‘services refused! By Heaven! as they refuse my aid the invaders shall have it. ‘To your boat, men!” be called out in a voice that rung threateningly, and springing back to he: seat, he was soon again gliding down the bayou, __ As he rowed along, his oe surged wildly ‘through bis brain, and he lived life over again in bitter memories. : He remembered his boyhood upon the Kenne- bec in Maine, where be had dwelt with his brother Henri, and his cold stern father, . He recalled how his father bad ever loved Henri, yet seemed to hate bim, why be never pirate admiral | kne : w, Ps ; ~ Thefl came to their home his cousin Ger- trude, left to the guardianship of bis father, and, loving her with his whole soul, be had be- held her turn with love to his gentle brother, . It had been madness to him, and one night, knowing that Henri and Gertrude had that day ledged their love to each other, he had, in his jealous frenzy, become Cain-accursed, and fled uppalled from his home. Oh! the sorrows, the miseries of the years that bad followed, when he roamed over sea and land, to in the end become known as the Pirate Lafitte. Again he remembered how he had taken from the wreck, the boy, Theodore, and reared him upon a pirate deck, and that over him the noble youth held influence for good only. Some time before he had captured a lovely Spanish girl, the beautiful Constanza Velasquez. This beautiful being he bad loved ardently, and had striven bard to win her love; but Theo- dore had urged him to rélease ber, and told him that she loved another, a noble Frenchman, the an of a frigate then cruising in the ru - His better nature triumphing, Lafitte had re- leased Constanz. Velasquez, to soon after find her again in his power, recaptured by one of the vessels of his pirate fleet. And now, the count, the lover of Constanza, also fell a prisoner into the pirates’ hands. Again virtuous resolve triumphed, and La- fitte decided to allow the two lovers to depart in peace, when the count, fearing to trust in the honor of a pirate, had made his escape with bis ludy-love, through the aid of Juana, an old negress in the retreat of the outlaws, ll these memories for good and bad in bis life came to him as he satin the stern of the boat, with his arms folded and bis head drop- ped despondingly upon his breast—an attitude he insensibly fell into after the first burst of passion, elicited by the result of his application, had passed away, His better resolves held again their influence over him; his anger and resentment by degrees subsided, and he had come to the determination to exile bimself, disband his followers, and ve part forever from a country he was thought too base to serve, I.) “‘T have won the confidence, and, I believe, the respect of one honorable man. This, at least, 1 will endeavor to retain,” be said, ab- ru tly addressing Theodore, ‘ He has he will counsel with tbe general in-chief. I place my canse, then, in the banés of a brave man. Suppose I see him myself? Ha! that will dol— { will! England,” he cried, with energy, ‘thou hast not meade me . renegade yet! nor,” he added, mentally, ‘‘ will you, Constanza, find me recreant to my pledged faith. I[ will not ‘let the prejudiced decisions of a few men thus tugn me from the straight-forward path I have n. “Ship your oars, men!” he added, aloud, as they came to a little inlet, at the foot of a mene. just large enough to contain the boat. The arippin oars rose simultaneously into pn air, and then fell lengthwise upon the thwarts, Cudjoe sprung out, as the bows touched the bank, and secured the boat to a tree, Lafitte, warning bis men not to g away, accomparied by Theodore, stepped, on iibose ore and ascended one of those mounds of earliest ern of” by the Indians, long before the réligious or funereal monuments. From the ence of the former opinion, this congrega- tion of mounds, where our party stopped, bas been denominated ‘‘Tbe Temple.” n the highest of them, according to the tradition of the country, the idolatrous worshipers pre- served a perpetual fire, Some attempts, at one period, had been made to fortify it, traces of which still exited, ‘*Go up the mound, Theodore, and see if you can discover anything moving in either bayou. I shall give the men an bour’s rest, and then start again,” said Lafitte, He stopped on the summit of a small mound, and leaning against a cypress tree, soon became earliest era of American bistory, filled with | h bones, and evidently designed either as Pp wrapped in reflections upon the present crisis of his life, and the probable issue of his plans. Presently, his eye was arrested by a white object, dimly seen in the twilight, rolling along on the ground near his feet. It was globular, ,} and at every turn displayed the eyeless sockets and bideous grin of askull. He gazed upon it with surprise, but did not move; and a fascina- tion seemed to chain him to the spot, and fasten his eyes upon the loathsome object, It came nearer and nearer, and now struck with a hollow sound against his foot. He was about to recoil from fearful contact, when ‘the head and claws of a crab were protruded from the cavities, as if to ascertain and remove © the obstacle to its advancement. As he thus discovered the cause of this stran locomotion, with a smile of derision at this ‘bumiliation of his species, he raised the skull with its inmate and gazed on it for a moment, with a lip, in whose expression bitterness was mingled with contempt, “And this is MAN! the image of God! the tenement of immortal mind! Poor crab, little dost thou know what kingly throne thou hast usurped! Well, why not a crab as well as apa | rue skulloen walk ~ Poatgs full as well, and to as goer purpose this is our end!” he added, “to become thus at last!—a habitation for reptiles! And shall J too come to this? Shall this head, now throbbing with life,” and he raised his band to bis temples, ‘‘ which can think—plan—originate—at last be no more than this?—so helpless as to be borne about by such a creeping thing! Where is that conscious something, which once supplied this crab’s place? Who bas displaced it? Death?—and what is death+—Methinks it were better to be like this glaring ball, than tobe as lnow am! Here,” he continued, placing bis band upon it, ‘‘here is no sense of F ieee | eveuts; of: joy or suffering; of trea ship; of despair or ambition; of praise or in- sult. See—I can place my foot upon it, and it rises not against me to avenge the insult! Hap- py, happy nothingness! Butis it nothingness? Although the mind lives not in this glaring shell, which, withcut tongue, discourses most eloquently to the living, may it not exist some- where? Here I see it not, it is perceptible to no sense. Yet reason—hope—fear, tell me it is not extinct. Heaven never made man for such an end as this! There must be deeper purpose than we can fathom—a cause remoter than we can reach, why we were made. Eternity !— thou art no bugbear with which to frighten children, I feel—would to God I felt it not!— thou art a stern and fearful reality. ‘* Well, my boy, saw you aught?” he inquired hastily, resuming bis usual tone and manner as the youth appeared. ‘*No, monsieur. The night thickens so fast that it is impossible to see far down the bayous. I think we shall have a storm.” ‘“‘There is no doubt of it, if the heavens speak truly,” said Lafitte, gazing upon masses of clouds drifting low above their heads, increas- ing in density and blackness every moment, and gathering to ahead with that rapidity char- acteristic of storms in this climate. ‘¢Theodore, tell the men to spread the tar- paulin over the boat to shelter them from the rain, The youth communicated the order, and was returning, when a flash of lightning, accompa- nied by a peal of thunder, loud and abrupt, like the near explosion of artillery, gleamed in the woods, and rove to the roots the cypress against which the chief leaned, with the skull still extended in his hand, and laid him pros- trate, and as senseless as the shell be held, upon the ground. With an exclamation of. surprise and terror, Theodore sprung forward, and kneeling by bis side, called loudly upon the crew to aid in resus- citating him. They bore him to the boat by the command of the youth, who, recollecting the hut of a fisherman situated about a mile be- low the’Temple, ordered the men to resume their oars and pull to that place. CHAPTER II. THE PIRATE S REPLY, Wira the bead of his friend and benefactor upon bis Jap, and in great agitation of mind, Theodore guided the boat through the bayou, bis course lighted by the lightning, which now became incessant, **Ho, the boat!” shouted a voice from the bank, as a flash of lightning showed them the fisherman’s cot, in a bend of the bayou, “Grand Terre!” replied Theodore, ‘*Grand Terre it is,” answered the man. who challenged, coming from behind a tree. An English musket was in bis hand and an old can- vas cap on his head, covered with the signs of the cross, painted in red and black colors. He also wore a blue woolen shirt and a pair of duck trowsers, cut off at the knee, leaving the portion of his legs below it bare. His head was gray and bushy, and an opulence of grizzly beard and whiskers encircled his tawny face, which was marked with arched brows and dark lambent eyes, a sharp aquiline nose, small mouth, and thin lips, displaying when parted a row of even COUMNG OOo) gs) ery or friend- ——n =>