Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 482 — page 10: what you’re looking at

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

= s wt Pe a poe tee - e a an . : ope oe 20 6s No, T will take him to the United States and hang him ; He is an American, aod 1 prefer to string him up in the port where I live; but you can give him quarters in my cabin, and treat him as though he were a guest, for I wish him to live.” ‘‘ Yes, sir,” and Lieutenant Hernandez was quiet for a moment, Then he asked: ‘ **Do you think it will be long before you get out, senor?” ‘* It may be a couple of months. ‘““There is certainly no hurry, so I will not hasten and perhaps throw myself into a re- ? lapse, ‘The men are grumbling, senor.” ‘‘Tet them grumble, for it is the Spanish ele- ment only that do so, I am sure.” ask another question, senor?” ‘To explain it, senor, let me tell you frankly that I have fallen desperately in love with this beautiful widow, and I do not care to become my captain’s rival, so I would ask if it is your intention to offer yourself to her?” **T, like yourself, senor, love the Senora Rod- riguez, and, in fact, do not see how it can be that one who knows her could help loving her.’ “ And you intend to offer yourself, captain?” ‘* When a sufficient time has gone by, after the death of her husband, I do.” ‘* Have you any reason to believe that she will 224 you, senor?” ‘** Your questions smack of impudence, senor,” said Captain Sprague, tartly. **T mean only to know the truth, captain,” was the cool reply. , **T decline to say.” ‘Then permit me to give you a piece of ad- vice.” Captain Sprague’s face flushed with anger. His lieutenant saw that he was arousing him to resentment, but seemed not to care that it WAS SO. With calmness of manner and voice, however, the certain asked: ** Well, Senor Hernandez, what is your ad- vice?” “Senor Captain, as I told you, I love the Senora Rodriguez, and thus loving her I would _ not see her deceived. ‘I would not see a great wrong done her by your making her your wife,” “You dare me, Hernandez, because I am helpless now,” said Captain Sprague, with sup- ressed emotion. *“‘T do not dare you, senor, and I only act for the good of the woman I have learned to love __- with an idolatrous passion. “What you are she does not know; but if fe ask her to become your wife, if you seek marry her, I shall betray your secret and thus save her.” Captain Sprague’s pale face was livid now, ge: and his eyes fairly blazed as they were bent up- on his lieutenant. For a moment he could not speak, but at last he gained self-control and said: ‘* Hernandez, I have always treated you well, as you can not deny, and for you now to turn against me I do not understand.” ** A woman has come between us, senor,” was the reply. ‘* Ah! your reason is plain, you seek to gain what you fear I may win.” ee No, senor, I seek only to protect her whom I e Vv *. ** And you would keep your threat to prevent marrying the senora?” m ay My would, senor.” r 4% & ~" he _ “It is base of you, Hernandez.” “Not so base an act to save the senora, as _ would be yours to make her your wife.” ** You hold the power to do as you say, Her- _ nandez, so I yield.” be You will not marry her?’ ‘ b “Then I will kee your secret,” “Yes, for I would not wish her respect of me ‘* Now go on board the schooner, and as soon as I am able to move with crutches, I will sail 7 *. * . 4. a from here.” Hernandez turned and left the room, while upon his lips were the muttered words: _ “No, Senor Captain, you will never have 0 yr» 4~ CHAPTER XX, a A DEADLY POTION, SEVERAL days passed away, after the scene between the rival officers in the Buena Vista fem fe. pte 4. ’ P. 7 wr : ' By*) ~ , oe . mansion, and Captain Sprague seemed to im- prove more rapidly than before. One morning Senor Hernandez paid his ac- - customed visit, and seemed glad to find his cap- ‘ain so much better. **The doctor has left me a new medicine, _ which he says will rapidly strengthen me - mandez, and within a week I shall sail,” said Captain Sprague. Her- I am something of a chemist myself, so I nder what he has left you,” said Hernandez, ’ . ‘s The . tes : , —_— . wy oo es eo Ocean Tramps. and he took up the bottle of medicine and went to the window with it, There he appeared to examine it carefully, tasted it, and placing the bottle back on the table, remarked: “Tt is beyond my knowledge of medicines to discover what the drug is.” ‘¢ Well, I have only taken it once, but it seemed to help me.” **Tt doubtless will, senor, but you think of sailing soon?” ** Within ten days.” ** And will go to the States?” ‘Yes, I shall first go to a nortbern port and hang Belmont the Buccaneer. ‘* How does he seem?” “He accepts his situation calmly, but his wound gives him pain, [ am sure, though he does not complain.” ‘“ Well, have the schooner in full readiness to sail at any time,” was the reply, and a silence fell between them for several minutes. ** Have you seen the Senora Rodriguez of late, Hernandez?” asked Captain Sprague, after awhile breaking the silence, ‘**T meet her now and then, senor.” ‘You have notsaid aught to her, I trust, to carry out your threat?” ‘My threat, senor, was to be carried out only if you meant to marry her.” The commander made noreply, and soon after his lieutenant departed. The following day Senor Hernandez called earlier than usual, and he asked the servant who met him at the mansion door: ‘‘ How is the captain this morning?” ‘¢ He seems not so well, senor, and is preparing to depart. ‘‘T was just going abroad the vessel to give you this note,” aS lieutenant grasped the note eagerly and read: ‘““SznoR:—I have determined to sail to-day, so have a boat’s crew come ashore for me with a litter at noon. SPRAGUE.”’ Upto the room of his captain went the lieu- tenant, and his face wore an anxious look as he entered. ‘“‘T have just received your note, senor; but this is sudden,” ‘‘ Yes, Hernandez, and yet I feel that by go- ing I save my life.” * {ndeed, senor?” ‘¢ The truth is, I believe the plantation over- seer is in love with the senora, and thinks me in the way. ‘*He came last night and stayed quite awhile, and after he left, L took a dose of that medicine, and it did not taste the same and affected me strangely. ‘“T do not wish to charge him with putting poison into it, but he certainly tampered with it, and I have decided to go,” **Get your doctor to give you another bottle, to carry along, and destroy the other, senor.” ‘*T will, for I think it benefitted me before it was tampered with. ‘‘ But have the men come for me at noon.” The parting between the senora and her guest was a kindly one, and Captain Sprague said: ‘*T know not how to thank you for all your kindness to me, senora; but you rest assur- disturb you, as I shall hang him upon reaching an American port.” ** Ah, senor, you have more than repaid the little I have done for you, and I hope that should you again cruise in these waters you will not pass Buena Vista by.” ‘No, indeed, senora, for I shall drop anchor here to tell you that Belmont has met his just punishment.” Thus Captain Sprague and the Senora Rodri- guez parted, and borne on board his vessel by half a dozen of his crew, the schooner soon after stood out to sea. For some reason Lieutenant Hernandez seem- ed out of sorts, and after several days he became really ill, and appeared to be greatly alarmed about himself, while Captain Sprague steadily improved, elmont the Buccaneer, white-faced, silent and suffering from bis wound, had been remov- ed to quarters in the ward-room, and Captain Epeegte had his sick lieutenant brought into his cabin. One night, when the schooner was dashing along under storm-sails over a seething sea, and the wind was howling fiercely, Hernandez start- ed up in his cot and said: “My God! what ails me? ‘‘T feel as if my breath was leaving me.” Captain Sprague was lying upon a lounge, reading by the light from the cabin lamp. He felt no anxiety for bis vessel, as his second officer was in charge, and he knew him to be a skilled seaman. ‘Perhaps a drink of brandy will relieve you, Hernandez—take this.” ~ The captain raised to a sitting posture, poured out a glass of brandy from a decanter, and the lieutenant eagerly dashed it off at a draught. A moment after he gave a loud cry of pain, but it was unheard on deck, and only heard by the man in the cabin with him, - > 5 t ¥ ed that Belmont the Buccaneer shall no longer ““Great God! I believe I am dying!” and he tried to get off of his cot. Put the effort was too great for him, and he fell back exhausted, while he breathed un- easily. Then Captain Sprague moved toward him and took a seat near, while he said in a low voice: ‘* Hernandez, you are dying.” ‘“No! no! I must not die, for my work on earth is not done yet—no! no! I will not die!” ** You have not the control of Hfe and death, Hernandez!” ‘* But what ails me?” and the man’s voice grew fainter, his breathing harder, ** T will tell you.” ** Do you know?” ¢< Yes.” ‘** Wor God’s sake call the surgeon!" ** He can do you no good.” ** Would you see me die without the effort at least on his part to save me?” ‘** He can do you no good, Hernandez, for you have simply taken your own poison,” ‘‘ Taken my own poison?” almost shouted the man. 4c Yes.” ‘* What do you mean?” ‘** 1 mean that I gave you the medicine, poi- ie. you, which you meant that I should ake, The man seemed to be wild with frenzy at these words, and yet he could not move, for upon him was the poison doing its deadly work. ‘*T saw you, Hernandez, take the medicine og the table, which the doctor left for me to ake, ‘‘ T saw you, by the aid of a mirror, put a powder into it, when you walked over to the window that day at Buena Vista Plantation. ‘‘T did nov touch it, for I knew that you meant to kill me. ‘* T have given it to you to build you up, and you see its effects were deadly, as you meant they should be, ‘Knowing the poison, you are aware that you will be a dead man within a few minutes!” Captain Sprague had spoken calmly, and yet with suppressed emotion. The dying man glared at him, but he could neither cry out or move. At last he said: ‘* You have avenged yourself, senor, and you get rid of a man who could betray you, and Be, you will make Senora Rodriguez your wife. ‘** You have triumphed, Senor Captain!” The last words were uttered in a whisper al- most, and a moment after a convulsive chill ran through the form and Hernandez was dead. Then Captain Sprague made his way up the companionway as best he could into the schooner, pitching as she was, and called out: ** Send the surgeon here! I believe Senor Her- nandez is dying!” The surgeon came; but Senor Hernandez was dead, and the man of medicine and surgery diagnosed the case as an attack of heart disease. CHAPTER XXI. AT THE YARD-ARM. In a seaport town on the Massachusetts coast, there still stand two old homesteads which were once the admiration of the citizens of the little place. ; They were nearly a mile apart, and situated back upon a ridge which overlooked the town and commanded an extensive view of the har- bor and ocean. One of these homesteads, the nearest to the village, and situated back from the main high- way, a stage-road running down into the town, was known as Beacon Hill, It had been the home of the Sprague famil for generations, but was, at the time of whic I write, the property of the only living repre- sentative of his name in that part of the coyntry. The family were a seafaring people, and the elder Sprague had amassed a snug fortune and owned a. fine clipper ship, of which his son be- came master when he reached the age of twenty- one. With the death of his father, the war broke out between England and the Colonies and the young sailor gave up bis sbip and turned pri- vateersman, and he won considerable fame as @ daring commander, So it was that, with the master away, Beacon Hill was elosed and left to the care of a couple of old and faithful servants, The other home spoken of was of even grander pretensions than was Beacon Hill, and it was known as Overlook Manor, its master also be- | ‘eee nee ing a sailor, but one who had settled down toa life at home, baving married and given up the ~ sea. S, was Brent, and he was a stern, reserved man, whom the townspeople seemed to of, Upon a pleasant afternoon, some weeks after the death of Senor Hernandez at sea, in the cabin of the armed schooner, a vesse] was head- jung in toward the little port of G—~. 4 — The name of the master of Overlook Manor stand in awe > ~~, + os su* 5 - + = a Z / ; pe ae Seat Ay x . 7 -— ———- lt ~% , + i ae “ ~