H A M I L T O N KI N G,

H E S M ! G GLER A ND TH E D WA R

BY

T H E O LD S A I L O R,
A ! TH O R OF

TO ! G H Y

A RNS

IN

T O RIES

O SP I T A L

I H

O F G R E EN W C
w.

T H REE V O L! M ES

V OL I L

L O N D O N:

I C H A R D B EN T L EY , NEW B ! R L N GT O N S T R EE

P r m t ed by J

L. C o x

a nd

SON S,

Gr

Linco ln s I nn Fi lds

at

Qu

ee

n S tr

ee

t.

H A M I LTON KI N G
.

C HA P TE R I

li k a c n tan t an d c n m d d il
H
n t ta in d a h
min g j u t
A n d th in
n c nc d h i c t il
"
T h at j a l u y i t lf c ul d
t mi t u t

B ut

e e

er

er e

so e

ow

s o s ee

s se

no

se

ev

re

ev

s r

SH A K SP EA R E

LOW

dwar f as

F ea gh a n

bu t

wild l augh

derision escaped the

disappeared in the gloom

the smuggler did not hear

all his energies he hurried

,

on

i t fo r ,

rallying

his w a y prompted
,

by the hope o f rescuing his cutter and his people

from

t h e imminent peril

aware

by

hich he was well

what had fallen from A nderson hung

,

threateningly over them H is wounds it is true

,

were excessively troublesome ; his limbs were

sore and sti ff with fatigue ; but he felt that he
V O L.

II

HAMILTO N KING

was once more at liberty with the free air

heaven around him and his hear t bounded with

,

gratication whilst anticipating the triumph he

,

shoul d enj oy when the chagrined

commander

posed captive

mortied

a nd

the Spider found that the sup

meant to claim

fo r

whose detention

A nderso n

th e

reward was again

,

at

and ranging over the waters in deance

laws

large

the

of

T he daring s m uggler was no longer to be

seen when the dwarf put a sm all silver whistle
,

to his lips and its shrill sound instantly brought

tw

men to his side

loo king fellows

thing su pe ri o r
peasantry

T hey were stout hardy

,

ell armed and habited some

to

the general run

ha d
,

ho

been watching him ;

must have own to have

posts thus quickly

so

the I rish

exclai med the dwar f

strongly sus pected they

y

H ow is this
ou

uitted
your
q

what were you doi ng here

near me
So near yer honour

reiterated

o ne o f

the

HAMILTO N KIN G

why then it s m eself h a s the nate kn a c k

men ;
of

racing when ye call s

A n shure I ve niver

been from the pos t at the great gate since yer

honour placed me there

T is fals e

ble anger ;
the trees

bo th you

Casey were amongs t

an

Divel a bit M u sth er

C o r na li u s ,

Casey in a positive manner ;

,

of a

taste

in i rr epr es si

replied the dwarf

i not

retur ned
the laste

step have I stirred from the bridge

What ! will you insul t my reason by telling

,

me such a lie

angrily responded the dwar f

H ere were you

Donovan at

T im

on e

post

and you C a sey at another

,

O h divel the post

nour

uttered Casey

the bridge

F ool

ou

in

Shure an it

w as

at

put me

ej aculated

bot h placed at some

and

ho

there at all yer

w as

dwarf

distance from

ou

were

each other

different directions when in an instant

you spri ng up be fore me opposite to where

,

ought to have been

H ow s this 9
.

ou

HAMILTO N KIN G

Ah

then may be

w e

M is th er C o r na liu s,

mistoo k our way

said Casey ;

it s black

dark yer hono u r and nothing to clear our eye

,

sight

T he d w ar f was fully convinced that he had

th e

been watched and that

,

land some
t

o ne

from

the boat ;
fo r

h at this was no time

ou

been at you r duties

o ff

got

he a lso felt

controversy

h im

seen

H ad

the Smasher

and now he is away be

could not have escaped

fore y o u

but

said he

ha d

men

though in what

m anner

is to me a mystery

he can have

Yer honour s sure that the man in the

C a s ev

stopped short

in formed him that he

fo r
w as

his quic k recollection

betraying himsel f

T he man in the what sirrah P demanded

,

the dwarf ercely

,

dispute the matter

l
er
g

ith you

no w

T he smug

rushed past me but this instant and cannot

be very

fa r

him boy s
,

But I have not t ime to

on his way up the mountain

A fter

Remem ber I have promised a hun

,

dred guinea s to the best m a rksman

HAMILTON KING
But M is th er

C o rna li u s ,

imploringly

shure an

remember what s already due

fo r

many a long day

said Casey

don t forget to
d h as

been

an

du e

that little affair

fo r

of

N o no I have not forgotten it

,

the dwarf ;

the whole shall be

your return

returned

fo r t t

m i ng

at

If

the twenty guineas yer

honour sworn to give us

the law

dare

ou

it s the same to yer honour

settle that b u siness at onest

it s best to clear

f,

w e

rather

returned C a sey ;

and be friends

I tell you every farthing sh l l be paid wh e n

a

you come back

exclaimed the dwarf ;

and to

prove my sincerity here is a guinea each in

,

am es t
r

T he men took the gold

eco llect that the reward

of

An
d

two hu nd red pounds

from

government is certain whether he

alive

or

dead

make sure
li fe, he

ma y

now

is

take n

T he best way i s howe ver to

,

f
or
our
man
whilst
s
h
e retain
;
y
ive
you
the
slip
as
he
has
done
g

others and your reco m pen se will then be lost

,

HAMILTON K I NG

But with a cou ple

,

of

balls through his head

or

his heart you

,

ould make him sure enough

th e m o ney

his identity can easily be proved and

,

become your

ow n

A n that s
in

too said

th r u e,

T im

making

all three hunder and twenty pounds

By

the

owers
saving
yer
honour
s
presence
but
it
s
p
,

ou ts nate enough

'

But
or

M i s th er C o r na li u s ,

m a nsh la u gh ter ,

or

folly

m u r dther ,

isn t it

de sea
-

to

shoot at a

inquired Casey with an assumptiono f

ma n

simplici ty

A t an inn o cent man most certainly

,

plied the dwarf ;

prisoner

ho

but

F ea gh a n

re

is an outla w ed

has broken fro m his connement

Besides as humanity
,

may

u
,
y

prompt

at him direct will be an act

fo r if

he i s taken to jail there will

your

firing

kindness ;
a long

be

harassing trial to exhaust his already

,

ea r ied

and wounded frame

an

then a publi c

tion amidst the inhuman gaze

,

thousands

of

ex ec u

as sembled

A bullet well applied will save him

,

HAMI L TO N KIN G

from

a felon s

d,

en

yourselves that

the encount er

m a ke your

ou c a n

st a teme nt

t r a dic ted

with this advant a ge

an

to

ho w

the

au

o w n u nc o n

thoriti es relative to

m
et hi m
o
u
y

th a t

to

t he

in

mountain s tried to take h im p risoner4 a d espe

rate conict en sued

a nd

he fall s by yo ur su perior

valo ur becau se he would

,

O h then
,

it

s rrender

no t u

f th e foreth ought ,

C or na liu s h a s the

Squire

exclai me d T im

By th is

d by that but div el a saint in the

could

ha te

you

at

it

gi ft

alend a r

bot h u nderstand me then ? said the

dwa rf pleased at his pr O Spec t O f succ es s

a nd

Y ou

'

'

let me remind

that

ou

j ustice on your side

ou

have both

la w

and

O ne s enough, yer honour ; we ll be conten t

with the la w without the justice sai d Cas ey?

We re

o ff,

overtake him

M i sther C or na li u s,

and sh all soon

'

"

A way then my lads a w ay ! and

,

double recompen se yo ur

Ow n,

'

makethe

excl aim ed the

'

HA M ILTO N K I N G

excited dwarf

Let the deed be d one and

your future fortunes are made

T he

tw

men immediately hurried away upon

the track which they naturally s upposed F ea

ghan had taken ; and the dwar f eyeing them
,

as they receded again ind ulged in a low wild

,

demoniac chuckle that had nothing human about

,

it

t oo

T he villains

said he

acting as spies

N ow should they destroy the outlaw the

,

chances are that they will quarrel as to which is

entitled to the reward and

o ne

T hus shall I be rid

or both may fall

all events

I must ta ke a force to the mountains ; and

whether

F ea g h a n

of

all three !

lives

or

At

dies these fellows

,

will be found with arms and must be disposed

,

o f.

T hey hav e me

already

much in their power

to o

few

H e paused a

at the tranquil

sk

minutes gazin g
,

then mourn fully uttered

Whoso sheddeth man s blood by man shall

,

his blood be shed

m
.

one has ever fallen by

H e shuddered
my

Yet no

h an ds ; they are still

H A MIL T ON KING
unstained

My heart sickens at the sight

blood ; my v ery soil recoils at the livid h ue

of

O n their heads who perpetrate these

crimes let the guil t f murder rest !

corpse

fo r

H e remained silent
e

ngaged

in

deep thought

several minutes as
,

and then uttered

wretched sophistry

VV r e tc h ed

To answer
Of

an hereafter

P shaw !

to whom ?

church man can x a place

bliss or torment E

to take away that which can

T he outlaw may die as su ch

done ; Beatrice will have it so

a nd

o ut o

the

w a

too ; he stands in the path

it

w a

mu st

of

it

my

ow n

my o w

beau

Yes the boy

,

my ambition

esh and blood

shall be done !

and that speedily

Of

Yet it must be

ti ful child claims it at my hands

the

Yet tis a fearful thing to

but unoffending innocence !

must be put

never be restored

they preach

T he matter has yet to be proved

destroy existence

fo r !

here is it ? What learned

Again he paused

A nd oh !

Beatrice what is i t you have not to answer

fo r

if

in

H a , ha !

H A MIL T ON K ING

10

He

re

entered the little punt and paddling

,

back across the moat

disappeared

at the door

through which he had cond u cted the outlaw

T he harbinger

began
to
spread
its
y

f da

lovely colours over the eastern horizon as F ea

,

ghan

of

lmost exhausted gained the summit

,

the mountain and his spirit bowed in admiration

,

at the glorious spectacle

fe w

minutes

H ere he rested

fo r

and then rapidly descen ded to

O ld M ike was absent A nxiety

H agan s h ut

irritation and scorch ing fever no w raged th rough

,

the sm u ggler s heart and frame as he recklessly

,

bo u nded from

cra g to crag in his descent to

,

wards the cove

shewed

hi m

till the i ncreasing daylight

the basi n unoccupied and he saw

,

the cutter under canvas having j ust quitted

,

t he

entrance ; but the next minute she was shut

fro m

rocks

his
.

si

h
t
b
y
g

the i ntervening mountainous

A feeling o f despair cam e over h im and

,

he sank powerless to the ground

he could not
.

bu t

N evertheless

ommend the mate

pr udence in getting her away

fo r

his

little imagining

H AM IL TO N KING

11

th a t their departure had been the effect

of

trea

chery by the dwarf

A t this moment whilst crouchin g down in a

,

left the sound

came

voices at no great distance

the smuggler s ears

on

whether it was friend

F ea gh a n

foe

or

nable to tell

ho

w as

advancing

of

the recess

crept into the obscurity

which effectually concealed him from Observa

tion

Shure an it s missed him we have T im

said one o f the approaching party in a tone o f
,

disappointment

An

other

an he

fo r

small blame

the rocks as
,

la

if

he

w as

cock

y
-

ou ,

T im

m es e lf to

hould have red

F a ith an

down game

yoursel f Casey

shure an yo u d as good right as

Why didn t you

d

ou

roost up at top there offering a

ue

sai dthe rst

fo r bringing

ne mark

t o w ld

espo nded the

he d no li fe to lose

hen I

lyke a billy goat down

ei n
p
g

A rrah T im jewel
w

that

do that same

re

a re

H A M IL T ON KING

12

Well then T im I tell you again th a t to

,

my thinking it s foul play he d get

,

Casey

He s

what can he want to kill

H o w ld

h i m fo r

your fool s breath Casey

,

settle it with hi s own consc i ence

Ba c cah

och the
,

r a s te

div el

answer fo r it

If

said the

what s that to us

and the

other contemptuously

L et the

responded

B a c c a h faith fully

the

s a rv e

he likes to com mit m u r dther

cess to him we shan t have to

,

B ut it s we T im that ll have to do the

,

j ob

urged Casey

the crime will fall

Well

O f a ll

the other ;
his death

it is on

the fools that iver ! ej aculated

what

inth r es t

or

have

we in

ra s t e

calls

and we may j u st as well blame

our guns as blame o u rselves

affair

We o w nly are what the

i ns th r u m ent s

pen

heads that

o ur

We re paid for it

It

fo r

what may hap

the motive Casey

,

it s the motive ; and ours is to obtain the reward

SO

let us

I hear

o n,

my boy

A nd hark ! it s footsteps

L et us hide and watch who co mes

,

HA MILT ON KI NG
T he next moment

13

F ea gh a n

saw the two

men enter the cleft ; but he was too

the darkness
him

his retreat

Be all ready

on

fi re

continued

his lock echoed

through the place ;

w e

within

them to see

the cock

T im as the peculiar click

fo r

fa r

there s the

m ountain

pat h

sh al l catch him as he turns the corner ;

righ t slap at him with a steady

,

im

I t would be impossible to describe the indig

nation and rage that prevailed in the breast

the smuggler when he saw his premeditated

,

m urderers

ready to take th e li fe

might approach
upon them
r e

any o ne w h o

H e would have sprung at once

but two stout athletic men with

,

arms were fear ful odds a ga inst his exhausted

,

strength ; and power ful as w a s his inclination

,

he nevertheless had prudence to re frain from

that which must have ended

H e be held the m raise their

knelt at the mouth
see the Obj ect

in

r elo c k s ,

the recess

their aim

his destruction

He

as they

co u ld no t

but the ringing dis

charges ca me like thunder claps through the

-

H A MIL T O N

14

KI NG

cavity ; and sp ringing forward with one despe

,

rate effort he hurled the

fello w

over the proj ecting rock and

,

T im

called

ith a lau gh

of

delight beheld the falling body bounding from

crag to crag till the waters

to receiv eit

the cove opened

T he surface was ru ffled

fo r

fe w

minutes and th e mimic waves swelled outwards

,

al l

towards the centre ; then

tranquil as before
th e

He

ho

was smooth and

had contemplated

death o f another was himsel f a breathless and

,

a buried corpse
Without waiting to attack the other

F ea gh a n

spran g down the path way ; and as he passed the

fallen

he

man at whom the miscreants had red

recognize d the person

poor fellow

w as

no t

yet

M ike H agan

dead

~
.

T he

he turned his

look upon the retreating smuggler as a gri m

,

smile ashed over his features ; and the captain

felt

a melancholy bu t consoling conviction t hat

M ike had rightly attributed his

rascal
c

ho

laid peacea bly at

t he

fall

bottom

to the
of

ove and the smile was a last tes timony

,

the
o

H AMIL T ON KING

16
o w nl

dog

fo r

the lo ve

of

Of

Christ kape
,

the

T hat must depend upon your behaviour

M i s th er

Casey

uttered the smuggler ercely

,

but by the vestments

u
o
y

if

attempt to

fl gnaw your
deceive me the creature s teeth sh a

itals

L oo k to him N ep boy ; see to

well lad !

hi m

T he animal s tremendous snarl as he li fted his

,

lips and shewed his terric fangs set the trem

,

fo r

bling prisoner begging

mercy

an he d

tell every thin g

Speak then
.

s h oc

ou

exclaimed

with passion ;

F ea g h a n ,

was it the d warf

as he
ho

set

on this h ellish deed ?

I t s the

a lt h a r

responded the man

C o r na liu s

th r uth ,
;

Captain

F ea g h a n,

it was indeed M i st her

,

T he villain !

muttered

F ea g h a n

But

your obj ect was better game than poor

ow

ld

M ike ?

An that s

th ru e,

too captain
,

acknow

HA MIL T ON K IN G
for

ledged the man

that was meant

I ll tell

fo r

17

shure an it

w as

lf

er s e

O h divel the lie

misch ief

T he black hearted monster

ex claimed the

smuggler ;

y et what could be his motive for

so vile an

act

if

H e paused as
,

his thoughts

were rapidly ying over past events and then

,

suddenly exclaimed

H a ! I have it now

and grasping the fello w by the collar with N ep

,

t u ne close in the rear he hurriedly advanced

,

the spot where poor M ike H agan laid

ra ising the wounded
you M ike

G ently

A n how is it with

m a n,

s a id he ;

to

the

'

Ba c c ah

has sent

a pretty present M ike and sorrow the sowl to

,

wake you

or

il
l
a lloo
p

cry

over

un fortunate man shook his head

M ike oh you must speak

the head

ner

A nother
,

Fea gh a n,

I will have

the

ou

shake

must !

in wild but determined man

T he boy M ike the boy !

in the c u tter ?

T he

Speak then

By the holy saints but

persisted

ou.

Y ou

must know

truth

B ut

ow

I s he gon e
ld man ,

M ike could

an

not

HA MIL T O N KING

18

articulate a word ; he waved his hand downwards

to the cove and then closed his eye s a pparently
,

in deat h

it

H a ! is

so ? what killed
,

T hen will I live fo r revenge ; and every

de red ?

of

li m b and sine w

that hideous deformity shall

su ffer a thousand deaths

do it !

in

o ne

I ll do i t I ll

shrieked the agitated man

A gain the sound

voices was heard

G ood N ep said

then

master s face
may

an

alarm

t hey are friends

F ea g h a n ,

wagged his tail ;

in

his

but friends

continued the sm u ggler taking up the

,

that I had him now within reach o f

this But he shall

.

In

few

be

paid back in his

ow

coin

m i nutes several o f t h e revellers

,

had j oined the debauch

an

cutter s men in getting her

scended the mountain
Fea gh a n,

ho

the smugglers at the

of

cove the previous night

to

the

be false ; the villain the murderou s vil

musket

the creature looked expressively

dog listened but gave no indications

lain !

mur

to

had assisted the

sea t hat morning

T hey were well known

and from the m he learned the part

H A MIL T O N KING
t i c u la rs

further

19

the affray that had taken place ; the

O R a ffer ty fro m

inj ury sustained by

M ike s stick ; the orders which H agan brought

fo r

going to sea

d P eterson

an

s compliance with

that o rder as well as his waiting till the la st po s

,

sible moment fo r the captain s return

knew nothing

B ut they

any child ; none had been seen

by them nor were they in any way aware that

,

children had been aboard

The captain briey

related the snare that had been laid

fo r

him

(though witho u t naming the principal concerned

in it) and then engaged the men to c onvey poor

M i ke and the prisoner to H agan s hut

,

A n we ll take the rascally in former with all

the pleasure in li fe
seizing hold

uttered

o ne

the party

Casey and actually biting

his le ft ear which he spit out amongst his

,

rades excl a iming

,

I ve had f

or

m any

it s the
a long day

s w a tes t

ff

c om

mouth ful

T he un fortunate fellow roared with the pain

and begged most piteously fo r

F ea gh a n

to afford

him protection ; but the outlaw turned from him

H A MIL T ON KI N G

20

in disgust and Casey sunk upon the ground as

,

i fhe w
he

ished to shrink into a senseless mass so that

,

might escape the yells and taunts

s ec u to r s

of

his per

But he was not su ffered to remain pros

they goaded him with knives to make him

trate

get up and H agan having been li fted carefully

,

on the shoulders
s o ner

three men the wretched

,

ri

was dragged along a fter him to the hut

H ere M ike

w as

extended

F ea gh a n

less ; and

on

his pallet speech

questioning the men

ho

had come from the cove found them determined

,

to wreak summary vengeance

A doctor
found

w as

on

the prisoner

too important a personage to be

in that wild district and therefore per

,

sons were despatched to in form the d w ar f

Of

H agan s condition but without stating what

,

had actually occurred

Cornelius

F ea gh a n

longed to get

ithin his power that he might tax

,

him with his treachery : but scarcely had the

messengers

depar ted when a

,

ma n

arrived in

almost breathless haste to give them the

,

gence that a party

Of

i ntelli

soldiers and police were

A MIL T O N KING

coming across the mountain

no time to be lost ; one

21

T here was then

the least suspected

appointed to remai n with old M ike and the

w as

rest taking the prisoner with them str u ck into

,

the most un frequented passes and disappeared

,

I n a very short time afterwards a body

troops and police lled

t he

head was the dwarf

a ffected great surprise

, w

ho

b u t,

and at their

and anger when in formed that M ike had be en

as sassinated

A nd where and who are the miscreants that

have thu s perpetrated one o f the worst o f human
crimes

exclaimed the dwarf

M e s elf dunna ,

look

fused

answered the man with a

,

assumed stupidity and then in as con

m a nner as possible

be

det ai led the

a ffair that H agan had been shot by

,

both
balls
(

men

taken effect) and had been

,

speechless by himsel f and companions

found

some

ha d

tw

whom had gone to in form M r Corne

.

lius whilst others were escorting the prisoner to

the mag i s t
,

a t

H A MIL T O N KING
T he prisoner
i ngly

I thought

what became

O h then it s

mes elf

it yer honour
,

ou

dw

arf inquir
,

said there were two ;

the second ?

on

uttered the

doesn t know the

t h r u th

answered the man evasively ;

but they said he tumbled from the crag and

,

fell

into the wather

T here s more in this than meets the

M r Willia m s
.

ea r ,

said the dwarf addressing the

,

young E nglish o fcer

ho

accompanied him

the man is frightened at so large a force ;

have the goodness to withdraw your
outside

to the

I will q estion him and believe me

u

I know su fficient
o i c er

fro m th e

of

to a full con fession

T he

m en

these fellows to bring them

the force

complied

w as

removed

wretched abode and not a creature w a s

,

le ft but poor M ike

h is

attendant and the dwar f

,

T he latter approached slowly forward to the

pallet

on

which the

ma n

w as

sitting

low and impressive manner uttered

a nd

in a

I m not

HA MIL T O N KING

24

Did he name

fellows

ho

it was that set these

asked the dwarf

to do the deed

on

Divel a name he spoke at all yer honor

,

answered the man with vehe m ence

A re you certain

that ?

of

inquired the

dwarf xing his keen gaze upon the

,

c o u nte

M alone

Sartin s ure yer honor

responded M a
of

nance

I ll take a thou sand oaths m eself never

lone ;
harde

hi m

na m e a living

c r a tu r e,

barring as he

sed he knowed who it was and would take his

,

revenge

A scowl
O

of

contempt passed over the features

the dwar f whilst he still continued to

intense gaz e

on

the man as
,

trate into the very recesses

purpose

of

if

he

his

ould pene

his heart

testing his veracity

said he in a low deep tone

for

the

M alone

did he not name

me

O h divel the name he named at all yer

,

honor

good bad
,

or

indi fferent

boldly

an

H A MILT ON KI N G
d

the

s w ere

ma n

ame you and

T rue true
,

smile

Shu re an why should he

,

ou

both sich

exclaimed the dwarf whilst a

,

we are ofte n apt to speak

than

o ur

so ,

with rmness

our

yet M alone
,

friends

rather

yer honor

enemies

M ay be
nobo dy

fr iends

derision curled his lip ;

of

25

responded the man

but I ll swear he never named

I am sorry

fo r

it

well assumed regret

said the dwarf with

,

fo r

in hopes

w as

should have bee n enabled to discover w ho it was

that employed these men
a

or

whether they

ny private pique against poor

j ust speak

to

M ike

I will

the Ofcer and the n return

,

walked to the outside

to

Smasher

believe
fo r

said he

I ha e
v

9 9 00 reward is o ffered
whose head H

left this plac e

V OL

He

desc ehded to
.

II

He

that the notorio u s

and whom we have come o u t to seek

likely

reason

the hut and c alling

M r Will iams away from the men

had

ca

nnot be

the cove

ha s

fa r

Will

recently

o ff
ou

most

leave a

26

HA MIL T O N

portion

KI NG

the men with me

and,

yoursel f pursue the fugitive ?

,

hall be rem oved where

attendance

il l see

to

it is

h is h a nd t ha t
'

death

to
ou t

taki ng the res t

T h e wou nded man

he

can h a ve prope r

that,

mistaken lenity induce y o u

to

and

do

no t

let a

spare the culprit ;

has smote p o or H agan , I fear

But hasten M r Willi ams ; spread

your men but beware

,

him wherever

ou

ambush

F ire at

may see him that he may

,

o f o ur

longer remain the terror

coast

no

T he y oung Ofcer immediately adopte d the

suggestions and detaching a party
down

he proceeded
dw

ma n

A nd

hey have carried

his men

the mountain whilst

,

arf retu rned to the pallet

dying

of

of

t he

the apparently

so M alone it is Casey
,

do ye think they mean

him mi schief ?

Shure an how is it possible fo r me to tell w hat

,

they mane ? returned the other ;

knows the ways
p

r oc t

him

ho r

of

fo r

he wears

yer honor

the boys and may be they ll

his turning

t r a ith or ;

slit his nose and pickle his ears

,

they ll

that s the one

A MIL T ON KIN G

27

A t this moment a wild unn a tural yell was

,

heard and the next ins tant a man rushed i nto

,

the hut threw hi m sel f before

the

d w arf and
,

clung to his knees ; his cloth es were nearly tor n

from

his back and

,

fro m

ame strea mi ng

s v era l wounds in his head whilst

e

nostrils

either side were split asunder

on

to bot tom

to p

blood

th e

C o r na liu s fo r

fr om

Save me save me M i sther

,

the love

me,

Christ save
,

it

shrieked he and the v oice told them

Casey

h is

was

but

T he

w as

immediatel y

lle d

by t h e party

left behind and they w itnes sed the d warf spurn

,

ing the supplia nt a way

said he

look

you

of

H agan

and he

ou

are a

base murderer my very soul s eem s

Serj eant ! bind

done at once

at your in fernal deed

pointed to the body

murderer

H old o f ye villain

him ,

and let execution be

Casey seemed completely p ar alyzed

heard these invectives and co m mands

be

a s

he

neither

spoke nor moved till the serj eant graspe d his

0

H A MIL T ON KING

28

when once more throwing himsel f be fore

a r m,

the d w arf he
,

cents
ho

ttered in the most piercing

hat you say

set u s

It s

away

or

bind him

take him

ou

er s el

no t

as know s

alarm ;

hi m

gag

in fro nt and let him

,

M is ther C o rna li u s
for
s

screamed the dwarf, trem

bling with either rage

s ure an yer

~
o
a

on

hi m

Dra g

die

O h , M i s th er C o rna li u s ,

manc ing
w

the love

h pa ir

dear , shrieked the man ,

mercy don t
,

dh ri v e

me to de

I ve niver split nor niver will ,

me

sa V e

T he soldiers seized hold

h e struggl ed

to g e t f

ree

I swear I ll tell all

o w nl

him

as

By the bowly cros s

M is th er C o r na li u s ,

ye dare

no t

G ag him I say
,

sho u ted the dwarf as he

,

sta m ped his foot upon the rocky oor with rage
P lace hi m

be

d one

on

ou

crag and let instan t j ustice

th en

It

w as

ld

have said

w ou

r
se
e
y

w as

What more Case y

lost , fo r a gag was instantly

H A MILT O N K IN G

29

thrust into his mouth and he was dragged to

,

the proj ecting crag from which his comrade had

,

been hurled and commanded

,

persuasions no i nducements
,

k neel

to

threats no

no

could en force compliance ; he

ture ,

but no

tor

tretched

himself at full length and though raised up

,

repeatedly yet again threw him sel f prostrate

,

when the parties left him

I t must be done where he is serj eant

,

the d w arf ;
as he lies

dra w your

m en

said

and re at him

I hardly know your honour said the ser

I
ve
been
thinking
that
my
o
cer
f
i
ea nt ;
j

no t

here to command and without any disrespect

,

to your honour I should rather wait till he

,

comes

A m not I a magi strate sir

,

dwarf angrily
,

demanded the

bearing the King s commi s

sion and will you dare refuse

,

to

Obey me

On

my head let the responsibility rest ; I sh all be

ready to answer it

I am discharging a pain ful

duty but it must be done

,

30

AM IL T ON KI N G

Ca sey c o uld he ar this conversation and he

,

la i d in breathless silence listeni ng but casting

,

an i mploring look towards the dwar f

well as

as

his blood stained and m utilated count enance

-

would let him

O bedience belongs to a subordinate sir

and as I am ordered to act
s aid the serj eant
under the civil power I ha v e no alternative
But ma y I no t plead fo r the poo r fellow

A nd become an enemy to yo u r country

serj eant

port your cont umacy

e scape

ou

T he

m en ;

h ut

a nd

know your doom

erj eant turned

the righ t fa c e

halt

march

h u rri edly

aw a

fr o n t

To

he

exclaimed

re

should the fellow

as they gained the

make ready present re

to

his

the

'

Casey

ho

had w a tched the who le proceed

ings shrunk up together as he

,

bring their relo c ks to

as

I m u st

reamed the d w arf ;

sc

if

the

sa w

m a ke re a dy

soldiers

and then ,

wild with a ffrigh t he rol led over till his

,

body was on the extreme verge

of

the crag

the

H A MIL T ON

32

every hole

u se,

enemy

or

KI N G

corner may contain a concealed

Send the corporal with the detachment

and give him positive orders that he allows no

stra ggle but th at every

to

o ne

ma n

his

hav e

musket loaded and his eye upon the alert

fo r

there are spirits in these mountains as untam

able as that

the hyena

I shall follow M r

Williams alone leaving the other portion o f the

,

men at a po int which will command an impor

t

ant pass

t hing

So hasten serj eant

,

be promptly done

and let the

Without hesitation o r questioning the serj eant

,

obeyed and in a
,

deserted

du e

Of

minutes M ike s

fe w

bu t

w as

T he dwarf accompanied by the resi

,

the force descended the

,

m ountain ;

and

leaving the serj eant at the place he had men

t io ned,

he went forward

lone

tracing the downward track

t urned an angle
from

no

But instead
soo ner

he

the rock that obscured him

Observation than he hastily began

,

ha d

to

re

ascend through several clefts and by a tortuou s

passa g e when suddenly stopping before a sort
,

H A MILT ON KI NG
of

33

glacier that shewed a smooth surface outsi de

he looked earne st ly but rapidly around him

he

then gave a bound from his feet cleared the

fa ce

the crag and ent ered

,

pas s age

to t he

t ne

a nd

concealed

secret

cave

T his has been a desperate morning s work !

uttered he to him self as he groped his way

sometimes in d a rkness and at other times faint ly
,

li gh ted fro m holes broken out in the rock

A nd how

desperate morning s work truly

,

stan ds the reckoning ? I released

cau se

he

me

brought to trial and would

so

if

a re
o

F ea gha n be

could give dangerous testimony against

no t

I urged him

if

on

to desperation

fail

to do

T wo men

employed to trace his steps and deprive him

,

f existence ;

his being an outla w would exonerate

them and I should have got rid

of

T he scheme fails as it regards

,

ded with

the

bo y h a , ha ,

my en emy

F ea gh a n,

M ike I trust i s l a id at rest ; and

c ee

if

though

he has suc

H e laughed

ha

I ve yet another tas k t perform and

t he n I can sleep in pea ce Perhaps I might h e
w

ildly

av

H A MIL T O N KI N G

34

spared

on

wretch

he could have only prove

fo r

that I sent him after

Fea gh a n,

though I strong]

suspect they were aware that it was

who re

leased him and he has no doubt heard from

,

Smasher

of

my seeming treach ery

It

th

w a s In

duty as a magistrate to send them after the o u t

law ; but then

gly questions might have bee

asked ha d Casey lived

for

H e is

hooting an assista nt

district

of

in eternit

no w

th

the magistracy

is proclaimed ; he is found with arms

therefore I have but executed summary j ustice

on a W i l ful murderer which my commission em
,

powers me to do

At

all events they can reveal

,

nothing now o f their having s worn fal sely ; thank s

so

fa r ,

to

F ea g h a n

and the so ldiers N ow

.

liams can but ki ll the Sm asher

fear ?

N one but those

ent er ed

He
u

ho

ho

if V il
V

have I

to

may easily be silenced

the cavern which was lighted by

,

s ma ll apert u res opening on a perpendicular face

,

of

the roc k fronting the sea

a midst

if

Once

eal th

H ere I

a m,

an am ple splendid fortu ne

,

c o nverted into gold

H e lo oked

H A MILT ON KING

35

proudly arou nd and then proceed ed onwar ds

,

Silks and velvets

the riche s t quali ties

But

bo y

H e lowered his voice to an

audible whisper

Can H agan have failed in

wher e s
hi s

the

enterpri z e ?

the hut

he is in the c avity at
H e approached where some loose

P erha ps

ails and cotton cloths were spread ; his eye

lightened up with i nfernal delight

rushed

to

set his grinding teeth

sc ious child
.

the blood

his cheeks and su ffused them with

crimson ; he clutched his hands

sleep

fo r

to

gether and
,

ther e lay the

sweetly reposing in a tranquil

T he dwar f did

no t

stir

for

minutes ; he seemed to banquet his sight

pretty

la d

ngers

u nc o n

a nd

frequ ently

several
on

the

the long white

his large but delicate hands

ere

thrust into his black bushy hair and pressed

,

pon his forehead

scarcely breathed ;

But he did not speak ; he

ev ery

faculty

seemed

sorbed in contemplating the deed he had deter

mined

to perform

A t length he cautiously a nd noi s elessly walked

36

A MIL T ON KI NG

away t o another part

the

the cavern and removed

,

slings fro m a tub o f brandy and

,

employed him sel f in ren dering th e rope

m inutes

to and

fro

through the eye so as to cau se it to

,

slip easily when hauled upon

ta i ned,

severa l

fo r

H aving

a sc er

by attaching a weight that no sti ffnes s

,

remai ned he again advanced towards the sleep

,

ing boy

H e then laid aside his cloak and hat

turned up the sleeves

a

ll

of

his coat and stood with

,

his unnatural de formity revealed !

I n one hand h eheld the running noose whilst

,

th e oth er retained the slack part

of

the slings

now converted into a single rope whilst both

shoc k with the t r emo r o f his whole frame Slowly
,

he
of

bent down over the ch ild with the intention

,

passing the noose ov er

fellow ,

hi s h ea d

but the little

probably disturbed by dreams moaned

,

and turned himsel f round yet without awaking

,

T he coward shrunk b a ck

a nd

stood in breath

less silence concealing the purpo sed engine

,

de struc tion behind him ; but after a few minutes

,

f
,

nding that the lad still slept he agai n stoope d

,

H A MIL T ON KING
over him
t he

T he ush

37

delight had faded from

dwarf s cheeks which were now sp rea d with

,

a pallid hue approac hing to an ashy whiteness ;

his large full eyes glared wildly
yet he remained

fo r

some time as

on

if

his victim
irresolute

convulsive spa sms contorting his features and

,

of

giving him the appearance

I t must be done
not longed
in

fo r

a demon

whispered he

Have I

an opport unity like this here

lone

gainst me ? Why then do I delay

secret with
,

me ye en ds
,

restless spirits
c

eye

no

bear evidence

N erve

hate !

to

evil !

my

A id

arms ye
,

H e darted on the

hil d clutched him by the throat and whilst

,

his horrible laugh

answered in shrill echoes

w as

through the cave the noose was passed over the

,

head

po wer

f
to

the struggling
cry

o ut

It

w as

tightly round his neck

not su fcient nerve
fo r

to

bo y ,

ho

had not the

drawn quickly and

but the monster had

retain it in that position

his trembling limbs refused to perform the

offices Of strength ; his eyes gr ew glazed and

dim,

and the child

w as

stoutly wrestling

to

get

IL T ON KING

38

HA M

free

But suddenly the dwarf caugh t the child

,

be

in his ar ms ;

tightened the noos e with all the

power he was able

g

u la tio n

w as

t he

exert

to

rapidly going

o u

work

strain

when walking
,

as fast as his trepidation wo uld allow he gained

,

the hole which formed the passage

to

cavern that
sea

H ere then
,

full

w a s o v er

o w ed

be

with water from the

lowered the body to the

length o f the rope retaining the end clutche d

,

tightly in his h a n d s
th roes

of

th e

lad ;

It

bend ov er
gony

f the dy ing

purpose

be

with the death

dwar f did

an d

no t

less

dare

to witness the expi ring

in nocent ; but when about

,

up

to c ompl ete his sanguinary

b eheld a fea rful com motion in the

w a ters below ;
shrieked

be czame less

The

th e r oc k ,

to ha ul the body

s ho c

but th ey

violent as li fe e sc a ped
a

the outer

a nd

a voice s houted or rather

,

vill in
urder
M
a

in u r der

T he

words reverberate d through the cavern ;

dwarf quitted his hold
the dead body

the rope

the child

into the liquid element

an

ed

descend ed

t he

an

heavily

H A MIL T O N KING

4O

but

as

this impeded their progress they relea se d

,

his arms

d shi fted

the strap to his neck

an

th a fe

You

his guards

o the wo rld !

exclaimed one

an it s shooting at honest

of

m en

you d be ! Bad scran to your u gly mouth that s

,

ly

ow n

to

dt hr i nk

spoon mate !

he

A nd

lugged him along by the strap so as nearly to

,

throttle him

A isey J emmy
,

l
o r in l
p
gy
h etth er

cronies than we are now

dhio u l

im

baby

responded the

Come along
to

an whose fault is it we re
blarney

besa c hing

share

ttered Casey

other ;
till

times has been when we were

O ut ! ye
s

aisey

id

yer and none

,

Small mercy wou ld

me and us to change places

,

you a purty villain

cronie s

no t

no w

your
y

ou

Ar n t

Well Jemmy an what if I o w ns my fault ?

urged Casey
if

ith

er s u a mv e

accents ;

I con fess my sins and promise

,

to

do

what

bet ther

in future ?

O wn yo u r

fa ult ,

is it you mane

aid

H A MILT ON KIN G
Je mmy

with a look

M i s t her

of

41

contempt ;

then

Casey you may spare your tongue the

,

seeing there s

t h ro u ble,

A nd

that same

tion it ; may
that any

be

ho w

won t take speci a l care

i sn t m uch

it

come to your share

don t min

w e

fo r

the futu r e

for

as

occasion in li fe

no

of

future

as ull

surely cannot intend to murder me

You

J emmy said the prisoner in a tone o f depreca

tion
N o n y o u cannot mane that O nly

think

my poor fatherless babes and the

ther as bor e em
the wail

o,

the cries

Ca sey

c h ildther

and

the woman who owns em J emmy

,

the

By the bowly but its

thought

mo

er self

said the other reproach fully

,

fo r ,

should have

that when you turned

much did ye sell your sowl

th r a i to r ,

H ow

ye born rascal

Casey thrust his hand into his pocket and

,

produced the guinea recei v ed from the dwar f

T ake it

the prisoner

emmy
,

take all I have

ly

o un

exclaimed

give me a chance once

more ; do take it Jemmy in regard o

,

ship then

fri nd

H A MIL T O N KING

42

T he man keenly eyed the gold whilst

stru ggling with s om ething like repugnance at
,

the Offer ;

for

thank you
sh al

it seemed the price

Ca sey

oc

blood

No

an I won t touch it

h,

l I Darby ?

I ts lawful coin

an what
c o u nte

wards
J

of

fo r

rfa te,
t he

answered his comrade,

shouldn t

Casey ;

priso ner

w e

take it ? I t s no

he extended his hand

to

to

receive the guinea bu t

,

emmy insta ntly prevented his design by seizing

it him sel f

T hr u e fo r y o u my boy

the money s good

said J emmy as he

money and lawful mo ney

clapped the guinea into his mouth

s

weet

to

You ll befri end

ttered Casey

and entreaty

in

vexed w ith

no t

it ull be

a voice

t a s h te

then and let m e

o

o,

mingled suspicion

th e

dh io nl

growled Darby

having been the rst to secu r e

the golden prize

w e

me

Your sowl to

think

the belly however bitter to the

is it sell ourselves do ye
,

wou ld ? T he guinea s ours by right

HA M ILT ON
o

captu re

by deed

no t

KING

gi ft

of

43

What more

have you P

Sorrow

the

sc u r ra

me no harm

c h ildther

and ve

H o w ld

to put yer

B ut shure boy s yo u ll

sava ge

fo r

her

'

o n u s,

said J emmy

what shall us

e re qui t

of

s ter ri nes s

us

do

the

he

id

illain

h im

out

o suspense

O ch murther bu t it s p u tting
,

w e

be Darby
,

if

hi m

into

said

he swings

Bother !
ther let

h im

to swing

do

J emmy laughing in reckles s glee at hi s

natural j oke

the
wi th

suspense

him ?

swing why not

to

retu rned Darby

if

it at onest and put

a w ife

tongue an d don t think

ue s

c o mm e t

all

your r Og

T he sooner

A rrah D a rby ,

better

and me the fat her

answered

Ca sey deploringly
do

h a ve I le ft

h
g

u ns

ej a culated D a rby ang rily ,

,

swi ng

wh y

or

no t

th en give

and make my mark

to

O ch Darby but
,

swing ; an

him

if

he

ai

s no t

a regular di s charge

it
it

the broth

of

a boy

HA MIL T ON KING

44

you

d make fo r

M ay ye live

to

lawyer sa id J emmy laughin g

rise from the bar any

how

T hey now entered upon an open space wh ere

nature had formed a sort
where several

amphitheatre and

their comrades

ho

had b een

unencumbered in their ight had arrived before

,

them

I t s here we are then

and

th e

boys to th e fore

s a i d Jemmy ,

N early a dozen men were th us a ssembled

or

rather grouped toge the r in small p a rties de

,

bating upon some knotty point ; and knotty

deed
the

it

was

fo r

their

ow n

personal sa fety

subj ect each contendi ng

,

fo r

in

w as

a di fferent

course to be purs u ed as the most effec tual

avoid colli sion with the troops
well aware wo u ld
but

in

they

A t l a st a fter s ome general

,

debate it was decided to separate and steal

,

th e best

w a

they could

A n what
former ,

that

ppenny

11

ere

be sent to the mountain s

no t

strong force

ho

w
,

to

w e

do with the rascally

d beth ra y

exclaimed

o ff

his

o ne o

ow n

brot her

the men

in

fo r

HAMILTO N KING
Do

him ?

id

45

bellowed Darby

as he

thrust his hand into his breast and withdrew it

agai n instantly
e

ho

so n r , w

then seizing the wretched pri

looked the very image

despair and

with a sharp ra zor like

u nable to resist

w as

kni fe he severed the rem ai ni ng ear from Casey s

head

A piercing shriek arose as the blood

gushed out and the man springing at Darby

,

caught him rmly in his ar m s and hurled him

,

with violence to the cra gy ground on whic h

g

they had been standing ;

bu t

Casey was instantly

secured and Darby writhing with pai n and

,

uttering i mprec a tio ns once more gained his feet

,

He grinned

ith sa vage

er c enes s

on the

m a n,

and whilst his comrades held the mutilat ed

,

wretch s a rms the barbarous vi llain with a

,

ish

tive
he ;

glee proceeded to slit the nostrils

I ts purty you look

and shure your

cut

faith ,

but

the cap

M is th er Casey , said

c h ildt h er

wouldn t know

their d a ddy this blessed morning

w as

end

o ne

nostril

but this side is gri nning at the other

w e

mus t sarve them both alike

and

46

HA MIL T O N K ING

he

performed a similar opera tion

no stril

t ha v e

nose

your s my dar

Of

it s a beauti ful crat u r ye make

back to look

the

at

and

he

his un fortunate victim as

,

st ream ran down his face and rendered

,

him a hideous and revolting spectacle

At

oppo site

drew
re

the

Divel another plot ye ll ever smell

h!

on

again with that

lin :

this moment the repor t

f r e

arms close

to their retreat came in pealing ech o es to their

,

ears and the next instant almost as if by magic

,

the place was deserted except by the mutilated

,

Casey

ho

shrank in between two rock s dread

,

ing that he mi gh t be taken

fo r

one

of

the rebels

and red at by the soldiers T here he remained

.

till the din

f war

had rolled further a way when

,

'

creeping o u t he hurried back to M ike s hut

,

m et with the fate which h a s

T he

ring

a nd

lready been described

that had been heard was

from

some o f the men belongi ng to the d eta c h ment p f

M r Williams
.

of

ho

had fallen in with a

the sm u ggler s party

F ea gha n

h imself

m ongs t

Th ey h a d

hom

few
w as

come u p on them

HA MIL T ON KI NG

5O

possession
ni t

f
or
y

to his

the lad wo uld o ffer a fair

o r tu

pp

keeping the d w arf in constant subj ection

ow n

will as he believed himsel f

to

only depository o f the secret

w

be

the

of

the child s birth

hich had been revealed to

hi m

by H agan

be

supposed was already numbered with

the dead

But now he held in his arms he

whom
feared ,

the breathless corpse

the child

deep

anguish and bitter resentment stung hi s s pirit

almost

to

madness ; he did not attem p t to

pursue the d
him to do

s o

arf

though revenge prompted

lest by leaving the

bo y ,

he might

th row away the only chance that remained

resto ring animation
from

of

H urrying to the place

whence the lad had been so recently taken

aliv e and well he laid him on th e cloths

,

sickening sensation
he

l most

overpo w ered him

looked in the face and

,

though

s tr a n

lation had swelled and bloated the features yet

,

he i m mediately recognised
V ehement
o

a nd

N ed Jones

wild was the unnatural laugh

the smuggler b ut it was only momentary

H A MIL T ON KIN G
fo r

51

the idea ashed upon his mind that pro

'

ba bly H amilton had already been sacriced

'

Rushing back to the entrance cave he explored

,

every part which he was well enabled

,

through the
foiled

t ra n s pa i enc y

in his

fearful

do

the water ; but

expectations

returned to the store cave

to

d,

he again

wearied

an

with exertion h e drank a quantity

,

o ut

brandy

threw himsel f upon some canvass and in despite

,

severe pain from the smarting

of

his wounds

caused by the sal t water was soon in a heavy

,

but feverish sleep

T he soldiers having raised their young o fcer

who

w as

desperately wounded in the breast they

,

bore him up the mountain towards M ike s hut

but near the spot where the serjeant had been
placed they encou ntered the dwarf without his
cloak

or

his face blanched with

hat

every limb

and

his body quivering with affright

T hey would have in formed him

r enc

fear ,

the occur

es that had ensued after he had le ft them ,

but he

w as

not

s u i c ientl

collected to attend to

HA MIL T ON KI NG

50

posse s sion
nit

f
or
y

to his

the lad would O ffer a fair

o r tu

pp

keeping the d w arf in constant subj ection

will as he believed hi m sel f to be the

ow n

only depository o f the secret

Of

the child s birth

which had been revealed

to

hi m

by H agan

be

s upposed was already numbered with

the dead

But now he held in his arms he

whom

feared ,

the breathless corpse

anguish
a lm o s t

a nd

the child

deep

bitter resentment stung hi s s pirit

madness ; he did not attem p t to

to

pursue the
him to do

dwarf

so

though revenge prompted

lest by leaving the boy he might

,

th ro w away the only chance that remained

restoring animation
from

of

H urrying to the place

whence the lad had been so recently taken

al iv e and well he laid him

,

on

the cloths

sickening sensation almost overpo w ered him

he

looked in the face and

,

though

s t ra n

lation had swelled an d bloated the features yet

,

he i m mediately recognised
V ehement
o

N ed Jones

and wild was the unnatural laugh

the smuggler b ut it was only momentary

HA MIL T ON KING

51

"
the idea ashed upon his mind that pro

fo r

bably H amilton had already been sacriced

'

Rushing back to the entrance cave

explored

be

every part which he was well enabled

,

through the t ransparency

foiled in

his

fearful

tb

do

the water ; but

expectations

returned to the store cave and

-

he again

wearied

with exertion he drank a quantity

,

o ut

brandy

threw him sel f upon some canvass and in despite

,

severe p ai n from the smarting

of

his wounds

caused by the sal t water was soon in a heavy

,

but feverish sleep

T he soldiers having raised their young o fcer

who

w as

desperately wounded in the breast they

,

bore him up the mountain towards M ike s hut

bu t

near the spot where the serjeant had been

placed they encou ntered the dwarf without his

cloak

or

hat

every limb

of

his face blanched with fear and

,

his body quivering with affright

T hey would have in formed him

the occur

renoe s th at had ensued after he had left them

but he

w as

not su fciently collected to attend to

D

H A MIL T O N KIN G

52

the detail though he eagerly caugh t at the

in

d eath

form ation

relative

F ea gh a n

The serj eant spoke

the supposed

to

his cloa k and hat

him o f the loss

to

but his explanations were

eva si ve ; he shuddered when he looked upon

the inanimate lieuten a nt and com m anding the
,

party

to follow

four

ith all spee d he took with

,

th e police force

fo r

protection

ried as fast as nature wou ld

mountain
Tw

al

hur

low across the

di fferent scenes the result

a nd

h im

ture may

no w

be presented

to

f this

a dv en

the rea der

the

rst is a neat and quiet little bed chamber with

-

imple furniture

an

white draperies ; the

bed,

according to the F rench fashion was in a

,

re

cess across which a cu rtain was drawn ; the

,

evening

s un

w as

shining through the rich ivy

that clustered over an Old fash i oned proj ecting

-

window with diamond panes and their sh a dow s

,

chequere d the carpet

T here

w as

elegance

a degree

i n the

on

the oor

of

the room

taste and frequently

,

arrangements

of

the apartment

HA

MI L TON KING

though there was nothing costly

the attainment
o

life

there were

tw

cover ed with green silk

even beyond

or

in

a person

53

the middle class

ets

of

boo k shelves
-

which being partly

undrawn displayed several choice volumes in

,

ri c h mis s al binding
a nd

few

exquisi t e pai ntings hung in gilt frames

against the walls

white ;

water colour drawings

a nd

the toilette was delicately

by itself in a small recess with doors

tood an altar with white satin coverlet upon

,

which

w as

Of

a representation

the cruci xion

exquisitely carved from solid ivory

an

embla

z oned mis sal laid open before it at a pra yer

,

the

guilty and aficted

T he

fo r

most p rofound stillness prevailed broken

,

only by the slight rustling

of

the ivy leaves as

,

the gentle bree z e played amongst them

wa rbling

of

some bird that

its evening h y mn

abo ut twenty years

w as

or

the

chanting fort h

A young female apparent] y

,

of

age was seated in a chair

,

near the bed and her languid eyes and swollen

,

cheeks bespo ke her the child

of

sorrow whilst
,

HA MIL T ON KING

54

the handkerch ief which she held in her hand as

,

it rested
s

her knee in d icated that grief was

on

till occasionally forcing those ebullitions

strength

of

its

hich ease the heart and keep it from

,

utterly breaking

Within the bed lay

o ne w

was deeply and

ho

hea v ily breathing though with quickness that

,

mani fested a parched and

a matter
not

of

fevered frame i t

w as

doubt whether he was sleeping

his eyes were glazed over

bu t

of

xed with an unnatural glow

or

staring and
,

redness over

a ll

his nostrils distended and dilated as he

respired and his teeth were set fast as

,

v u s iv e

derly ,
of

agony I t was
.

an

in con

care fully ten

,

affectionately watched by the niece

father O F o g ha r ty ,

w a s

F ea gh a n

if

under whose roo f he then

having been found at daybreak insensible

in

the garden fronting th e house, w ith a halter

in

his hand and the dead body

,

his side

a c hild by

take the other picture (the

time four and twenty hours earlier than the la st )
We will

no w

HA M IL T O N KI NG

56

brilliantly i lluminated that

made fully manifest O nly

i ts

o ne

to give a nish o f perfection

to

splendour was

thing was want ed

the whole

was neither mirror no r glass in the room

there

A nd here upon a couch that was canopied over

,

laid a misshapen being whilst crouching

,

him

and

a r x io u sl

habited

Over her head

s

in

bu t

ear

watching his countenance

through dim and rheumy eyes

female

w as

grey serge

a very aged
hood passe d
be

beneath it could

see n a

canty mob cap from which descended a very

,

long straggling h ai rs as white as silv er

few

H er checks were wrinkled and shrunk

open mouth display ed

no

her

teeth and her whole

,

appea rance would have corresponded with that

o

the

tion

of

ba g s ,

midnight

M acbeth

ho

divined the eleva

the kingly dignity

to

were the dwarf and the woman

,

h im in his in fancy

These

had nursed

ho

Death s eeme d to have passed

corse li ke hands over the face
-

his

co ld

and

M r Cornelius
.

hich was a shy pale whilst his full dark and

,

HA MIL T ON

K ING

57

expressive eyes see med starting

from

their

sockets as they restlessly wandered over vacancy

Sometimes his delicately w hite hands were spread

be fore

vision

if to

his sight as
,

shu t

some horrible

o ut

and then starting from his recumbent

position he uttered a wild shriek

,

the hideous

fo r

spec tre was still palpable to his mind s eye

though the v isual organs were closed

A nd

she

will

the dwarf ;

no

come to me

no t

even to

no t

me,

exclaimed

ho

sacriced

happiness here and p er i lled salvation hereafter

,

to raise her

to

what had I to

fool !

would look
eyes

the estate she

Of

love

do

ished

pon this hideous deformity with

,

or

warm desire

H ence

the dying contortions

its wri thing limbs
,

o ld

end

devoted worship
th roes

Of

ghastly

with beauty ? Who

hence I say and drag her hit her

A way

O fool

ha

f th at

an

force
of

ld

hag

let her

innocent

see

look at

blackening features

her hither

to

witness the

my heart in the death

tis there again pale and

,

my soul sicken s at a corpse tak e

H A MIL T ON KING

58

it away you infernal wretch

take it from my

sight and give me drink

wine wine but

no poison in it !

and he shrunk together

the couch at the very thought

T he woman made

him

on

no reply but still

,

continued crouching down and rocking herself

,

to and
opened

fro ,

when the door

a nd

a lady most magnicently attired

the apartment

of

wal ked towards the couch

of

the su fferer

Stately in person with a gure as perfect as ever

,

modelled by the master hand

w as

of

nature

a nd

a face proudly grandly beauti ful the lady looked

,

upon the dwarf as she stood by his side

am here Cornelius
,

what is it you require ?

T he dwarf gazed upon her exquisite

ness

lo v eli

his eyes were brillian t with pleasure

glow o f c rl ms o n spread over his feat u res

trice

said she in a cold haughty

,

and un feeling tone ;

s a id he in a voice

Beatrice

am

returned

Bea

thrilli ng harmony

how my very soul adores you

not come sir to hear love speeches

,

th e

haughty female ;

they were ever

HA MI LT ON KING
di sgusting

me from

to

and

ou ,

59

know my

ou

aversion to them was never concealed

here Co rnelius as your wi fe
,

pact which united us

to

full the

am

com

O h talk n t thus cruelly and coldly Bea

o

trice ,

implored the d w a rf and his voice was like

,

th e moaning

an aeolian lyre
devotion

to

the wind amongst the chords

have I

proved my utter

no t

your wishes ?

I t is a part o f

ou r

contract sir

answered

the lady pre ser v ing the same unfeeling and dis
,

cordant tone approaching

,

gru ffness

al

and what have

on my par t that is un fullled

T rue

true Beatrice

the dwarf ;

ou

could

he rt
a

ou

could

ship

did

longs

for

fondnes s

ou

to complai n

of

very true ! groaned

have adhered most faith fully

to your solemn pledge

oh

most to masculine

it

is unbroken

Yet

tell what was passing in my

o u see

its silent yet intense wor

,

you know how my very soul ardently

o ne

endearing expression

o ne

loo k o f

HA MIL T ON

60
T he

if

lady listened with the same

features ,

as

K IN G

nmov ed

though she dre w hersel f proudly up

the

of

onscious

inuence

of

h er beauty

over the humbled being before her as he s poke

,

of

the worship

dulcet
h er
Is

ailings

f his

heart ; but when in th e

,

distress h e tried
,

to

sympathy she eage rly stopped him

,

sheer folly sir ; I never knew but

,

o ne

that I
,

T his

A endi sh sm ile like

could love and he

the triumph

awaken

fa llen

angel curled her lip

,

features

and ga ve a fearful expression to her

But y o u ha ve revenged me Cornelius and I am

,

grateful

yes very grateful

,

T hough

her man

ner indicated any thing but a corresp onding

feeling

with her utterance

O h ! Beatrice how have I toiled unceasingly

,

to win
on

o ne

smile that could beam with gla dness

my spirit !

H ope still

plead ed the dwarf

a nd

lured me

o n,

passion

ould s often your obduracy and

nance

bade me trust tha t my ardent

p g

re

Y ou

speak

of

impossibilities sir
,

retu rn ed

HAM ILT O N KING

I listened to your su i t with loathing

the lady ;
and

knew it

ou

61

Of

A mistaken feeling

u po n a nother induced me

to

listen at

revenge

a ll

fo r ,

however harmoniou s the music the instrument

,

was my aversion
and became

I acceded to your requests

y ou r

wi fe whilst every impulse

,

my nature eve ry faculty

attachment
F eag

ha

no

no !

th e

of

the eyes

my mind

every

n Were y

No

of

my soul belonged to M auri ce

I gnorant

ou

this ?

shrieked the dwarf ; whilst

nurse even in their dimness

,

betrayed a savage ferocity as she xed their

,

a nd

earnes t

basilisk

aze
u
o
n
the
beauti
ul
f
g
p

woman

T he priest joined o u r h an ds continued the

lady

but not

z ant to the
w as

o ur

fa ct

lost to me

T he tenderness

fo r

hearts and you were cogu i

ever

a ffection

T hen weal th grandeur

,

mag nicence opulence and a title became my

,

ai m ;

nd

richly have you gratied me ! Would

f
I
ts
orm
i
s
per
ect
its
f
y
beauty matchless ; yet I cannot loo k upon it
ou

see

ou r

in fant

H A MILT ON

62

KING

with a mother s eyes or a mother s love

it is not

in o u r contract

O bdurate woman !
he

xed

uttered the dwarf as

,

his earnest gaze

pon her

heavily h as the curse fallen

o f o ne,

w ithering curse
blood
Stop

my head

the

whose tongue will never

Beatri c e I have persecuted my

curse agai n !
ow n

on

oh how

sir

have stained my soul with

the

said

lady

energetically ;

your con fessions would best suit the ears

you r spiritual adviser

I admit that

most arduously per formed my bidding

complied with my requests

it

y
,

ou

or

have

rather

is in the bond

Cornelius ; but your taunts and your

er sec u

tions are breaches which become more and more

,

di fcult

to

Y ou

endure
spea k

of

your love

fo r F ea gh a n

released him through your entrea ty You kno w

.

not the holy s entiment

of l

ove

and the dwarf

w rapped the velvet coveri ng more closely round

him ,

and clutched something that

beneath

w as

concealed

H A MIL T O N KING

64

whilst the dwarf wi t h eyes nearly s tarting fro m

,

their
s

ockets looked wildly

on

the supposed

pectres till horror overpowered his reason and

,

he fell backward

on

his pillo w a raving maniac

F ea gh a n

Whatever was

insane visit to his enemy

or

purpose in this

how he had gained

admission must rem ai n mysteries

,

fo r

H e stoo d

several minutes sternly looking at the dwarf

,

gave a scowl

beauty

contempt at the prostrate

muttered the word

then slowly returned by the

had come

Revenge
w a

and

in which he

Beatri c e M ackenzie was the daughter of S c otch

parents but born in E ngland at a period when
,

her fat her was a subaltern

in

the army and

,

mother marched with the regiment ;

poor and often in
nexio n

di fculties ,

her

bu
t though

their near

c on

with the head o f a leading H ighland cla n

rendered them almost insu fferably and certainly

,

most ridiculously proud

,

hour

F ro m the earliest

her birth Beatrice had

,

k no w n

no

other

home than the cheerless and con n

ed apartment

HAMI LTO N KIN G

allowed as barrack

a cc ommoda

65

tion,

t he nu

or

com for table and conned space afforded by cheap

lodgings

L ieutenant M a ckenzie was a remarkably hand

so me man and his
,

her

he always styled

as

extremely beauti ful ; but there

w as

leddy

cold reserve in both that rendered their

ac

w as

ua

tance anything but agr eeable whilst their

,

sum

t
i
o ns
p

e
a nd

by

men

of

in
a s

dignity and ex a ctions o f respect be

word and a j est

am

After fteen yea rs

ongst both ofcers

o

har d

serv I ce a s

lieutenant in a ddition to seven years in the rank

,

of

ensign M ackenzie was elevated to a cap

,

t a i nc y

in the same regiment and ultimately be

came its major the increase O f pay and the supe

,

rior accommodation enabling him with more

c ili t

to

to

him

sustain the character tha t

w as

fa

natural

F or this p romotion he was indeb ted

t o the

urpassing beauty Of his daughter when pre

ented in

the

the regiment

vice regal court at Dublin where

-

w as

then doing duty ; but the ex

HAMILT O N KI N G

66

treme haughti ness

the young lady kept the

youth ful and gay at a respectful distance whilst

,

her coldness o f manner nipped at once the young

germ
forth

view
age

affection which spontaneously sprang

,

in the w armth O f admiration at a rst inter

It

of

life

is true there were men in the middle

w

ho

would have been proud

of

such

commanding beauty in a wi fe ; but these were

generally place hunters o r a ficted with poverty
-

scorned them a ll

and

Beatrice

of w

ealth and title saw in her person every thing

to

admire bu t

to

love

in

her repulsive manner s not hing

Still Beatrice remained

reigning toast

of

for

m a ny month s the

Dublin and incessant were the

,

compliments she received from

w

hilst gentlemen

arm hear ted I rish

-

N or

this species o f adulation

a ll

w as

fo r

classes

of

t h e,

she insensible to

it inated her pri de

and hardened the natural obd u racy

H er parents viewed with ill repressed

-

her heart
g

ra tic a

tion the homage that was paid to their child and

,

though her education had been

bu t

scanty yet
,

HA M I LTO N KING

67

good natural abiliti es and a perfect self c on

-

dence rendered her worthy o f the regard o f those

w

ho

valued external accomplishments and native

dignity beyond the so ft yearnings

and affectionate heart

a humane

M iss M ackenzie was in her eighteenth year

when the regiment
part

bli shed

the county

ordered in to the wildest

w as

Cork and the major esta

his quarters in the town

of

Bantry

Beatrice felt this a

sa

dour and security

a m etropolitan city to the

m o u nta mo u s

ch a nge from the splen

district and barbarou s manners

which every where presented themselves

Still

the same admiration was experienced and

an

intercourse was soon opened with all the great

families

in the neighbourhood

I t was whilst o n

a visit to an ancient baronial castle that

th e

young lady entered the drawing room j ust as

-

the twilight shades

a nd

of

evening were closing in

the gorgeous splendour

glowed

on

the verge

rich reection

on

of

the setting sun

the hori zon casting a

,

the beauti ful ly stained glass

HA MIL T ON KIN G

68

the ca stle

ea sements.

T here

was but little

pany present and Beatrice walked to

,

com

o ne o

the

indow recesses to vie w the brilliant spectacle

fo r

adamant indeed must be that heart which

fu s es

re

and rej ects the inuences and hallowed de

v o tio n w

hich the glorious sunset

ev ening is calc u lated to inspire

an autumnal

Withi n the same recess but partly concealed

,

by the man tling curtain s sat (as

s he

thought)

person whose features were unknown to M iss

M acken z ie ; b u t the large and expressive eyes

th e

were xed upon her in

wor ship

She spoke

silence

of

inten s e

the rich tints that hung

upon the sky and the magni cence presented b y

,

the rainbow mixture

she was answered by a

resplendent c olours and

,

lo w

ounded like the brea th

mongst h a rp strin g s

st

dulcet voice that

f

heaven sporting

A thrill

of

ex ta c

range s ensation such as she had never before

ex

perienced passed through her bosom

,

large but piercing eyes were riveted

co untenance with a look ap p roac hing

thos e

to

on

her

do ra

H A MILT O N KING
fo r

tion ;

fore t h e
mor
sh e

the rs t time in her li fe she shrank

gaze

man

a nd

came over her w hole

fr ame

I ntently did

be

an

weaving its mystic

around her ; yet the fascination

u i s i te,

be

an unaccountable tre

li sten to that s weet harmonious voice

enchantment seemed to
w e

69

w as

so

ex

that had existence been the forfeit she

,

co uld scarcely have clo sed her ear s

T he room was lighted up but still the pair

,

remained within that pleasant recess watching

,

the falling shades as they deepened

on

the land

scape and cast a mourn ful gloom over the fading

,

splendour O f the west

moralizing theme s

I t led the conversation to

the brightness

of

hope

treating before the moody melancholy

quited affection
of

look

the sm ile

f friendshi p

u nr e

and the

love yielding to the funereal darkness

a threatened tomb

fe

of

We will return

to

the company

said the

lady presenting her hand to her impassioned

,

admirer

w
,

ho

would have still lingered in that

recess where he had

r s t

drank the intoxicating

H A MIL T ON KING

7O

draugh t

love that lled his frame with new

and never before felt sensati ons

-

light

Sang u ine

in

lived years in those

exquisite de

his temperament he had

,

fe w

minutes

delicious

H e pressed the so fthand

en

the lady

j
to his lips nor did she seem o ffended at the free
o

m
ent
y

dom though it hastened her departure

,

T hey

stepped forth from th e recess into the bright glare

the room

M iss M ackenzie turned to look

po n her companion

those piercing eyes were

keenly xed upon her ; but a cold sick shudder

ing like the plunge into icy water caused her
,

to draw a tremulous respiration

an

repulsive horror was pourtrayed

on

evidence
her

c o u nte

nance when she behel d the hideou s deformity

Cornelius the d w arf and suddenly she withdrew

,

her hand as
,

if

shrinking from his gentlest touch

T he humbled being saw in an instant that the

s tructure he had been erecting was at once laid
prostrate and in ruins : there
the proof o f utter hopelessness
ci

ro c a l

w as

as

no mistaking

it respected

re

regard and he was in a moment hurled

,

72
O

A MIL T ON KIN G

hersel f she could not help cherishing

outla w
denied
w as

of

entiments

attachment which she ha

to more honourable men

impervious

B ut

her fascinations

to

fo r th

Fea gha

he

look s

upo n her commanding beau ty with an eye

di fference amounting nearly
,

T his was something new

to

of

ih

total disregard

to

the proud girl

w
,

had been so universal ly u sed to the ad miration O f all

T he smuggler treated her with becoming cour

but w ent not beyond the bounds o f distan

tesy

politeness and M is s M ackenzie felt piqued tha t

,

her charms should fail

B esides , th ere w

as

an air 0

roman c e in her detention that corresponded with

her haughty notions

fo r

it seemed to render her 0

great person al importance in her o w n estimatio n

A t length she was restored

to

her friends ; but

not til l she h ad conceived for the o u tlawed smug

l
er
g

a passion as powerful and as permanent

her nat u re would admit

c eeded

N ay she e ven ex
,

what might have bee n expected from

so ha bitually frigid
Smasher again

f
, or

as

She determined

the romance

to

o ne

see the

her regard w a s

HA MILT ON K ING

73

heightened by his situation as an outlaw and by

,

the anecdotes

his gallantry and bravery which

she had heard since her return

She did meet

h im ;

Fea gha n

but

expressed

but little pleasure at the interview which had

,

bee n obtained through the instrumentality o f the

dwarf

ho

still worshipped the divinity his

mind had creat ed though at a humble distance

,

M ore than once she sought the handsome smug

l
er ,
g

who remained perfectly insensible to her

blandishments though he c onducted himsel f with

,

studied politeness and respect

found

brave

She had at length

a man young handsome and daringly

,

ho

did

no t

care

fo r

her

T he vanity

which characteri z ed her dispo sition was hurt

the sel f esteem which formed a
-

t u re in the operations o f her

r o m inenb

d, w
m in

as

fea

wounded ;

and the grea ter were the efforts she used to shake
o

ff

the

the trammels with which she

till every faculty and feeling

V OL

to

II

enveloped

she becam e embarrassed in its me shes

m ore

devoted

w as

the outlaw F ea gh a n

her heart

w as

HA MIL T O N KING

74

C H A P T ER I II

th i e

T he

ho u

h a ve b o un d th e tr u e m en no w c o ul d
r o b t h e t h i ev es an d
o m er r il y to L o n d o n
g
ar g um en t fo r a w eek lau g h ter fo r a m o n th

an d I
it
ul d b
an d a g d j
t

w o

oo

v es

es t

fo r

e v er .

H ENRY 1 V

W H A T a strange compound

stubbornness

and perversity is the human mind

and

fr e

quently does it happen that the Supreme Being

in the plenitude

of

his

o m ni sc 1 enc e,

mortals to inict punishment

on

allo w ing the m the free exercise

worldly wisdom and desires !
kenzie

h o felt

permits

themselves by
o

their

ow n

T hus M iss M ac

an aversion to the dwarf amount~

ing almost to hatred and detestation

ubmitted

to coax and even to atter him so as to sec ure

,

his agency in procuring interviews with a

ma n

who whatever were his lawle s s d ealings

w as

HA MILT ON KING

75

disgusted with her boldness and want

cacy
from
w as

and the woman

ho

of

deli

would have shrunk

the dishonourable proposal

a monarch

madly sacricing reputation to lavis h her

uncoveted regards upon an outlawed smuggler

and a rebel to his king

T housands wou ld have felt supremely

nou r ed

ho

by a smile from the prou d beauty but

,

di sregarding her ardent admirers she looked

,

only with pleasure

an

on

o u tc a s t

with a price u pon his head

fr o m

society

and at length that

outcast spurned her from him ;

fo r

his affections

were undeviatingly cemented

to

the simple

minded but

c o ndin

niece

nor could all the temptations

Beatrice induce
his delity

to

him fo r

A nnie

his aged tutor

or

o ne

allurements

of

moment to forget

I t was then when stung

al

by unrequited passion

the

most to madness

beautiful

woman

contemned and despised by the only man she

had ever loved determined
,

on

revenge and
,

fo r

his purpose formed that contract with the dwarf

E

HA MIL T O N KIN G

76
w

hich sub sequently led

the chief evils

to

his

existence and she became the prompter to his

,

acts

gard

guilt and vengeance

fo r F ea gh a n

co u ld not be subdued and

,

nion with the dwarf she became the

after her

mockery

of

the scorn

Yet still her re

the gay and fashionable world and

,

those in humbler li fe

T hus situ

ated splendour and magnicence became her

,

the residence o f her

aim

evidences

h u sba nd

her aspiring mind

displayed the
she ruled in

everything uncontrolled and as she sought no

,

lo nger to be loved she left no means untried to

,

excite envy

fancied

T he delighted Cornelius
blessed by the acquisition

su ch a treasure

but as time progressed he longed

dea r m ent s fo r

himsel f

fo r

softer

en

a more congenial communion

quiet and j o y in the heart

and like the parched
O f her his very soul loved
s

pirit

fo r

a home

wretch

ho

is perishing

fo r

thirst his agony

,

grew more acute as his conviction s became

stronger that such enj oyments were lost to

perhaps

fo r

ever

him

HA MIL T ON KING

77

Still his hopes were reanimated

bride gave promise

of

hen his

becoming a mother

of

he fervently anticipated that the sigh t

fo r

her

in fant would work a change I n the feelings

the wi fe

She gave birth

a girl

to

but the lady mani fested

derness

fo r

no

indications

lovely

babe perfect in form and fair as alabaster

,

of

ten

her child ; it is true she had its wants

supplied ; b u t she would no t nourish it from those

natural so urces which H eaven had bountifully
dispen sed to her

She

that it

sa w

w as

wel l

attended to but she gave it no caress o f maternal

,

sol icitude

or

ev en

no , no t

duct
ever

to

fondness,
fo r

and she never nursed it

a minute

whilst her con

her husband was more overbea ring than

T he spiri t

of

Cornelius was nearly

whelmed by disappointment yet still blindly

,

in fatuated her presence overawed him in his

,

most savage moods and all his resolves faded

,

a w ay when he contemplated her maj estic person

and ga z ed

i th

rapture

on

her heavenly

c ou nte

H A MIL T ON

78

K ING

ance forgetting that it concealed

an u

and degenerate heart

S uch

n feeling

the pos ition

w as

of

affai r s at the period now recorded when F ea

,

ghan

in

the deli riu m o f fever entered the room

,

and the results too k place as already described

B ut to return to the little chamber at the

humble abode

f father O F o gh a r ty ,

anxiously watched by the eye

of

smuggler laid unconscious

,

ing aroun d

him

fo r

re bel

affection the
,

all that was pa s s

T he priest well knew the

penalty to which he was liable

a

Of

where

fo r

harbouring

whose apprehension G overnment had

proffered so large a reward yet his heart yearned

,

to w ard s his former pupil and he could

,

him

the r ites

of

humanity

N one but his o w n

i mm ediate servants were aware

introduction to the house and
,

the priest
gery he
,

w as

f Fea gh a n s

course

sus

no

himsel f well acqu a inted with sur

ashed and dressed the wounds

outlaw and he
,

could be entert ai ned as to the manner ;

i
c io n
p

ber

deny

no t

Of

w as

laid

in

A nnie s

ow n

the

cham

what had a ctually occurred they

ere

8O

t er a ble

deligh t

AMILTO N KING

she fondly cheri sh ed the hope

as

that a restoration

the precursor

of

a change from imminent danger to a prospect

of

to

u ltimate recovery

reason

I cam e here

H ow

w as

not ask ; it is enough

I w ill
me to know w here I
Fea gh a n,

said

fo r

am to rest satised I

safe

am

he paused

yet there are con fused recollections

that bewilder me
no

companion

and h e sh uddered
,

do

that

ou

were

al

no t

to

me I must
,

one when they

discovered you i nsensible in the garden

wo uld inquire what has become
y

ou

carried ?

had I

disturb yourself by asking

no t

ou

the past

said the kind he arted

questions ; but as you have put it

tell

Did I come alone

Rest aisey my son

priest ;

/
R es t a i se

f the

again my
,

Y ou

burthen

so n

it lies

in

consecrated gro u nd masses have been said

fo r

its repose
Ha

dered
no

fo r

ha

father

no ,

A nnie

it was u ntimely cut

shuddered

murdered
,

no t

by me

O ff

F ea gha n ;

mu r

but not by me
.

I t is

no

dream

HA MIL T ON K I N G

81

the chil d was brought hither and by my

then

hands ! B ut where is the other

boy ?

he glared

wildly around him and then laying himsel f back

,

on

the pi llo w

my

top

sai d he

thoughts are sadly deranged

m ust

think

father, for

give me

A n may the F ather

my son

f M ercies forgive y o u ,

uttered the aged priest as his hands

,

m a n,

were once more spread over the w ounded

to impart the remission o f g uilt as far as he

was temporally concerned and to implore wi th
as

if

the energy o f his spiritu a l cap a city the

,

i
f
f
t
rom
g

on high which leadet h the sinner from the errors

o

his ways

But rest aisey M aurice ;

,

mus t not talk now

y

ou
y

A nnie here will watch over

o u , a nd

M ay the G od

of

H eaven bless her

slowly

but fervently articulated the smuggler as

,

pressed her soft hand to his lips

in the midst

of

be

O h father
,

guilt when remorse sat heavy o n

,

my soul how have I longed

,

fo r

the days

of

H A MIL T ON

82

KI N G

ea rly youth and innocence when you were my

,

kind preceptor and

,

What

A nn i e

will ever be M aurice

he

do

the affectionate girl ;

harde
lady
get

returned

ye thin k I ve

no t

scorned that great and beauti ful

ho w yo u

me and can

fo r

w as

ou

suppose I will

fo r

it

A nnie , A nnie ,

anguish

said

F ea gh a n,

you must not

feelings of

regard

for

dare

me ; I am a

in a tone
no t,

man

cherish
f

rime

an outlaw a wretch proscribed an d you are all

,

innocenc e and simplicity

M ay the Go d

H eaven stretch forth his hand betwee n y o u

of

an

harm

T he priest

m ade

a signicant motio n fo r

maiden to be silent and then

,

language
mind

in

th e

the sublime

Scripture he soothed the troubled

,

his p a tient and ad mi nistering a com

,

posing draugh t left him to the operations o f quiet

,

repo se

Fe a gh a n slept

sou ndly fo r several hours

and then awoke greatly refre shed

no t

allowed

to

converse

fo r

but he was

the priest was

his

H A MILT O N K I N G

83

do ctor and Annie w a s his nur se and they were

,

incessa nt in the discharge

of

their several duties

well knowing th a t nothing bu t quiet could pre

serve

hi m from

forced

a relapse

T his regulation

'

eu

by mildness as it was dictated by kind

ness produced the desired effects and in a

few

days M au rice

H is

F ea gh a n

convalescent

w as

rst act a fter the preliminary rites was that

,

con fession ; but nothing was concealed

fro m

fo r

her to

A nnie that it
hear

w as

requisite

or

delicate

H e visited the grave in which N ed Jones

had been secretly interred and after a consulta

,

tion amongst th e trio it was arranged that he

,

hould proceed to Bordeaux (where he expected

the cutte r would wai t fo r him ) for the purpose

of
s

ascertaining the fate

of

H amilton and
,

ible rescuing his men from peril

,

m ined

li fe

at

once

abandon

to

his

if po s

he deter

fo r

illegal mode

O h ! M aurice
temptations

sa id A nnie

let not

th e

the world induce you to forget

me ; other faces may smile upon you but the

,

HAMILTO N KING

84

smile will

no t

come like mi ne

war m from my

heart M aurice and embal med with

,

Remember my
,

ways nd

h a v en

s o n,

my

tears

that here you may

peace and calm

the priest with earnest solemnity ;

al

uttered

and when

O h that I ha d
wings like a dove fo then would I y away and

be at rest call t mind my s o n that I am a

your heart is ready to exclaim

r

m m l s ter

that Saviour who said

H e that

cometh unto me I will in nowise cast

,

hi m

o ut

O h never never A nnie will I forget

cease to think
turned

F ea gh a n

you as my guardian angel

I V ha te v er m a y

or

re

betide me

still I will cherish your memory in my heart

an

should it please P rovidence

heal th and respectability then

,

to
,

A nnie ,

c o me to claim your promised hand

fat h er,

res tore me to

I will

A nd

your blessing be fore I depart and

,

no w
o

h !

may it rest upon my head as a safeguard fro m

nemies without and the stil l more subtle enemy

wi t hi n

T he young man kneeled

a nd

A nnie took up

HA MILT O N KING

85

a similar position by his side whilst the aged

,

priest

ttered his fervent benediction

his voice

sometimes full bold and clear and then again

,

shaken by tremulous emotion to childish weak

fervid

ess as

mind

fo r

recollections came across his

he loved the m both

When the bless

ing was over a silence prevailed

,

minutes at the end

,

arms round
breast

Fea g

neck and wept upon his

A s soon as calm

outla w bade them farewell

f

restored the

w as

quitted the house

his generous benefactor

above two

which A nnie threw her

ha n s

fo r

a nd,

mounting the

priest s horse galloped hastily away

,

to control his

feelings

A fter a smart ride

a

the inn where he

t he

coach

wards

he

fo r

dition

of

u nable

w as

three hours he put up

,

to leave the anim al ; and

Cork coming

shortly a fter

took his place inside to proceed

,

wards with the intention

E ngland

ou

crossing over into

What however was the pain ful con

,

his mind when j ust previously to start

,

ing he beheld by the light

,

t he

coach lamps

H A MIL T O N KING

86

it was dark ) the features

passengers w ho had descended
f
o
r
(

and recognized the face

w

ho ,

of

with an armed escort

several

fo r

the

refreshment

L ily bu r n,

Captain

conveyi ng two

w as

prisoners heavily ironed to the metropolis, by

,

w a

Cork

H augh

fellows

hem

exclaimed the

venue captain addressing his captives

,

re

Sorry

to be obliged to keep you in limbo very sorry

,

fo r

th e

liberty

the subjec t is a great b oon

i t

but can t help

positively can t

have anythi ng to kee p the

throats ? eh lads spe ak
,

dy

fo g

Will

out

some whiskey

H e held up a bottle

ou

your
bran

or

T his is w hiskey

returned

the pri soners who by his voice

F eagha n

i mme

afeard

Why Captain
,

L ily bu r n,

knew to

dia tely

it ull taste
g

r o m m etter , o r

be

the

T om G raves

h ighg ro mm et ter

am

or

I suppose there s nothing else to be

y

ou

fetching

lo w

o
t
g ,

as

I ll

a glass o f whiskey whilst they re

the brandy

fo r

o ut

the

some sich excise consarn ; bu t

thank

o ne O f

88

KI N G

H A M I LTO N

nates close to him yet dared not put a single

,

question

L ily bu r n,

however had taken his

,

th o u g hl th e

sea t right opposite to him and

,

dark

ness was too dense to apprehend detection

F ea gh a n

too k the precaution to mu fe his

et

fa c e

in a shawl handkerchief and to gather his cloak

,

closer about him

together

himself and the revenue captain

of

sisted only

T he insi d e passengers con

ith another individ ual habited

dress o f a n ecclesiastic

F ine night sir

,

the outlaw

L ily burn,

addressing

keen thoug h ; keener I

V ery

the

said

in

think than it is in E ngland at this season and

,

I m sel do m mistaken

in

sir are you a native

I reland ?

I am sir responded
neath his

m u i e,

ch

m atters

P ray

su

F ea gh a n,

speaking be

so as to disguise his voice lest

,

h is

fellow pa sseng er

ni s c en c e s

o f the past

sh o u l

indulge in remi

Delight ful country sir

,

charming peo ple

only they ve such strange ways

said

L ily bu rn,

showing it

delivering his senti ments in

ea r

H A MI LTO N

nest
of

P lenty

of

89

hospitality and all that sort

,

thing ; but then

ma n

KI N G

fo r

duelling sir
,

L ord ,

hardly dare open his lips bu t a challenge

,

is thrust dow n his throat

Yet what otherwise

,

is to be expected ? M en who have w a rm hearts

are seldom provided wi t h cool heads

I trust you have not met with any

nienc e

from my countrymen sir

,

considera tely

i nc o nv e

said Fea gh a n

I should regret that one who

appears to be so humane should su ffer fro m

ational peculiarity

I nconvenience ?

M ister

have

your name

Bless your heart

Lily b u rn,

M aj es ty revenue c r u iz er the Dolphin

m ine,

no

said the outlaw as a spice

,

of

his former daring recklessness crept over him

!

is

F ea gha n,

gal Court a t D ublin

,

a poor lieutenant with leave o f

,

absence to pay suit and service to the

t er es t no w

Captain o f his

A nd

the pleasure of knowing

no t

mine is

ou r

Captain

V ice Re

N othing done Wit hout

Lily bu rn

nothing

in

You re very right M ister Piggl n responded

90

H A M I LTO N KI N

the captain
sir

very rig ht

as one o f

favour

it

is the c u rs e o f favour

poets says

our

smuggler

it is the c urse o f

but

ou

S ha kspea re

po sition

presents the very reverse

S ha k s pea re,

sir ?

N o no M r
,

never mistaken in such matters

,

Say
answered

but
.

him

Im
y

ou

turning to the third passenger

why that you ve got him quite pat

t he

P at sir
,

P iggin ,

What do

I think there is something ambi

meant by that te rm

tain angrily

individual in a strong I rish accent

and with an extrem ely rough voice

uo u s

readily

Bless your hear t I have

at my ngers ends
?

I quoted the passage right

F ig gin

L ily b u r n ;

nswered Captai n

believe me sir

said the

have misquoted the pas

T he pardon s granted M r

say sir

L ily b u rn,

granted

Captain

that preferment goes by service

P ardon me

sage

fo r

exclaimed the cap

though generally good tempered

-

he was apt at times to be a little ch oleric when

insinuations wer e offered that were hostile to

KI N G

H A MI LTON

his sel f conceit

-

But the stranger made no

said Fea gh a n in a tone o f

who and what your prisoners are ?

Ma y I ask

quiry

91

in

T hereby hangs a tale M r

,

F igg in,

eplied
,

that they are smugglers

mention ,

H owever

the capt ai n with cautious reserve

I may j ust

charged with having red upon and killed in an

action som e

his M aj esty s servants in a

schooner called the Spider

L arge

rewards

have bee n set upon their heads and it has been

,

my good fortune to catch these two who I am

,

taking to Dublin that the

,

L ord L ieutenant

perso nally be sensible o f my zea l and

everything M r F iggins
,

Of

tain

interest is

interest is every thing

said th e smuggler endeavouring

,

to draw the other forward to a narration

That will come out on the evid ence sir

,

L ily b ur n ;

I did not
o ff

course you picked them up ashore Cap

L ily b ur n,

plied

may

re

bu t I may j ust tell you that

,

o re but too k them

ick
t
h
e
up
ash
m
p
,

a sinking boat that had been swamped

H A MI LTO N KING

92

P oor fellows they were

i n mournful

utte red the outla w

recked then

accents

To be

wrecked and made prisoner s was doubly hard

A ll that , sir will be detailed

t ai led

hen I am under examination

amply de

returned

but M r F iggins there

the revenue captai n ;

can be no harm in my hinting that they were

T he

not what is technically called wrecked

fact

is sir their vessel was

,

he paused to listen

to some commotion that appeared to

lace
outside
p

be

t a king

T heir vessel was what sir ? exclaimed

F ea gh a n

impatiently

and forgetting in his

anxiety the necessity there was

conceal ment

fo r

You seem over h asty M r F iggins

,

mured Captain

Lily b u rn ;

mur

but I attribu te it

to you r national pec uliarity as you j u st now

,

called it as well as your h u manity

,

P ray accept my sincere and ear nest apolo

gies sir
,

s ai d the outl a w happy to nd that

,

his indiscretion had not betrayed him

You

do ind eed do me no more than j ustice when you

,

H A M I LTO N KING

93

attribute my vehemence to a hu mane anxiety

ascert ai n the fate

the rest

of

the cr ew

is

very laudable too M r F iggins

A nd

laudable,

Lily bu r n ;

assented

to

very

but sir there

,

such a thing as being too communicative

though in genteel society one may have

but

little t o fear ; and from your appearance I should

write

ou

down gentleman for

,

to be deceived in these matters

I m

not very apt

T here s no tell

ing however what ears may listen and you

,

the adage M r F iggins

k now

a still tongue

makes a w ise head

Your reasoning is correct sir
,

the smuggler

answered

though we in the army are not

so very scrupulous in attending to the rule

Still puncti li o , sir, is decidedly best in all the

a ffairs o f li fe p articularly amongst those who

,

bear the king s commission it saves u npleasant

nesses

I very much admire the gentlemen o f the

army M r F iggins
,

and had I

no t

r eturned M r

L ily bu r n ;

commenced my career in a

H A MI LTO N KING

94

line I should

di fferent

a soldier

P ray

h ave

most

certainly have be e n

you been

engaged

much

sir

I presume you mean in I reland ? replied

F ea gh a n

Why nothing but a few skirmishes

,

Whiteboys

with the

are hung

who as a
,

m atter

o f course

shot as occasion serves

or

by we had a tolerably smart a ffair

,

in

By

the

pursuit

of

a notorious character they called the smouch

no

no t

the smouch

not it either

the snatch

L ily b u rn,

inquired

eagerly

no that was

P ray where was it

i f y o u can tell me where it happened

I may probably assist your memory

I t was somewhere on the coast abou t Bantry

Bay

7
,

returned the ou tlaw ;

was a rebel and a smuggler

and the fellow

B ut a polite gentlemanly man M r F ig

,

gins ? said the captain

whilst the third pas

senger m a de a curiou s sort

a noise but whe

,

ther a gru nt or an ill repressed chuckle the

-

sound was very odd

Lily bu r n

paused

fo r

H A MI LTO N KING

96

captain ; he died a double death

drowned

shot and

3)

T h e thir d pa s s eng er a g a in grunted o r

A re you ill

i nquired

annoyed at the noise

L ily bu rn ,

chuckled

who seemed

but no reply was made

T he gentleman I presume is fast asleep and

sno ring though I must own I never he a rd so
,

strange and unnatura l a snore be fore and I am

,

not apt to be mistaken in such thing s

as I

saying there was

w as

him ,

destroy

as

and water to

n ! uttered F ea gh a n with vehemence

,

fancy he beheld the wreck o f his lovely

little craft and became regardless

,

sir

in

A y,

and the same elements conspired to

sink his cutter

fi re

u enc es

co u se

A y,

'

it was indeed d

responded L ily

burn totally mistaking the cause

,

th e

e x c la

mation whilst the third passenger gave a louder

,

grunt than befo r e ;

and t h en went down
It

was

she was blown up

sir

ith great di ffi culty the outlaw could

HAMILTON K I N G

97

repress his feeli ngs and probably some ebullition

,

would have ensued but the driver

,

pulled suddenly
heard

the report

of

the coach

f fire

arm s was

the third passenger threw open the door

bounded into the road and gave a shrill whistle

,

which brought nearly a hundred armed men in

white frocks around him and calling to the
,

guard he ordered them to

,

wished to save their lives

su rrender i f they

T he escort saw in

inst ant the utter uselessness of resi s tance ,

an

fo r

the road was completely blocked up by trunks

of

trees cars overturn ed and whatever could be

,

made available at a short notice

fo r

a barrier

they complied with the demand and gave

,

their ar ms

L ily b u r n,

still ;

what the devil is all th is ! shouted

when the vehicle fi rst came to a stand

by

m
eri
y
m e

II

the horses

h O pe,

halloo

j ump out ;
V OL

H e hea rd the shot that

a turnpike

levelled one
w a

H ow

hy

Eh

M r F iggins
.

bser v m g

the

m an

ou

h a t , h igh

will stand

his fellow passenger

s going to run

wa y

H A M I LTON

98

the coward

and he cocked one o f h is pistols

F ea gh a n,

giving the other to

t

KI N G

hat he was unarmed

when he learned

We are surrounded

ob served the outlaw ;

L ily bu r n,

Captain

T hey shall have my li fe first M r F iggins

.

eturned the Captain

tand by me sir
,

t he

sir

o r no t
,

ith energy

say th e word yes

honour o f the army and

ou

fo r

our
commission
y

T he se fellows will run the moment they

P ardon me Captain
,

Lily b u r n,

said the

muggler detaining him in his seat

,

kno w but little

of

are attacked and here goes

s

will

of

these are a band

Whiteboys come to rescue your prisoners

r

su c h

you

the courage and desperation

men A ny resistance
.

on

you r part would

prove whol ly u navai ling

death
of

d dra w

an

down certain

pon your head as well as upon the head s

your

men

M y li fe is my country s and so ought yours

to be M r F iggins
,

as he broke from

e to rted

F ea gh a n s

Lily b u r n

hold ;

ercely

I know my

1 00
it

HAMILTO N KIN G

locked up

uttered another as he picked up

the key and handed

,

had j umped out

A n,
s

ho

the

to the passenger who

the coach

dhi v il

may you be when yere

,

i ng into the coach at

who still retained

F ea gh a n,

Oh

that

to

walk

lame

it

inquired a stout brawny fello w look

c r aped

his seat

that is a wounded offi cer too

exclaimed

Lily b u r n,

in the

goodness o f his heart trying to preserve his com

pa nion from molestation
An

fli sh er ,

and not u se hi s

th

ro t t er s

luck to me i f I don t carry him then

,

third approaching the carriag e so that

,

to prevent unpleasantness alighted

,

bad

said a

F ea gh a n,

T he spectacle was wild in th e ex treme ; in front

glea med u pon by the lighted lamps and seen

,

dimly

through the reek fro m the heated horses

was the barricade and the dead animal

,

lofty

bank ran up on the right hand covered wi th

pl a nta tion and on the left was the sloping des
,

cent

i n t he

a rather steep hill the v alley being lost

,

distant gloom and the shade

,

of

the moun

tain that rose

AMI L TON KING

10 !

the other side o f it Behind all

on

was darknes s though agai nst the faint light

m ass

the sky could be disc ern ed a

f m oving

bodies the glimmering from the lamps

,

as

they

threw out their radiance plainly showing their

w h ite smocks

Round the body

the coac h

were uncouth beings armed with reloc k s pitch

,

forks

scythes

spades

and numerou s other

weapons engaged on the work o f plunder

,

seated

the bank were P eterson and

on

hil st
T om

Graves from whose legs the shackles were being

,

removed and during the operation it was with

,

extreme di fculty they could keep away a

ble look ing N ew foundland

do g

that would have

almost smothered them with caresses

Down Nep

d own ,

Grav es soothingly
,

sentl

then

let s get out

we ll talk
o

said

T om

you pre

to

the darbies N ep and

,

poor fello w how na tral

shipmate

boy

ld

ow

no

to

k now

an ow

ld

But where s your m as ter N ep

,

H e s gone

ow

ld bo y

gone

never get su ch a nother N ep

,

fo r

ever and yo u ll
,

1 02

HAMILTON

KI NG

T he pr isoners were released and

,

F ea gh a n,

L ily b ur n,

and the guards were placed under

surveillance whilst a council

w as

held as to

what should be their future destiny

T heir

fellow passen g er in the coach had headed the

main body and retreated along the road as hav

,

ing some other i m mediate object in view leaving

,

about a dozen behind them to decide the fate

the captives which
,

death

be

soon announced to

T his is playing vengeance with the liberty

the subj ect M r F iggins said L ily burn

composedly
tice

w as

rough law sir and rough j us

,

rather vengeance

or

I wi ll

no t

plea d

fo r

rebels against the King

my li fe to rebels sir

I venerate and who have no respec t

,

fo r

the trial

by j ury or the privileges granted by M a gna

,

Charta besides sir I

utterly useless
longing

fo r

ou r

physiognomy sir
,

s ee

L ook

li ve s

a
n
,

it would be useless

at those cut throa t faces

-

never was deceived in

take my w ord

fo r

it M r
,

HAMILTO N KIN G

1 04

particularly grati fi ed at the cal m

F ea gha n felt

sel f possession o f the revenue captain and the

,

total absence

unmanly fear

P eterson and

Graves were ind eed earnestly imploring

,

Whiteboys to spare the lives

the

their cap

but such was the s tro ng hostility prevail

t i v es ,

ing at the ti me against the revenue and the

troops (some o f the rebel s having been taken
only the day previous and hung o ff hand upon
-

the branches

trees) th at no intercession pre

,

vailed and two

or

v a nc e

three o f the Whiteboys

towards their prisoners with ropes in

their hands

I told you so

sa id

L ily bu r n

come with the halters ; you see

taken

ad

here they

never mis

Im

I t s discreditable though to die like a

,

thief when a ball through the heart would

,

answer every purpose

them to take

ff

look at that rope

their neck cloths

-

said the captain

Be my conscience
s

T he men commanded

bu t

it s

L et

me

s th r o n

enough

eeing as it h ung Jack H agarty yesterday

HAMILTON KING
s

1 05

aid the man presenting the rope ;

oh tunder

never fear my j ewel bu t it ll

,

enough

safe

ho w ld y o u

A llow me my friend to suggest

,

said the

captain as he carefully inspec ted the noose

,

j ust allow me to say that this is

man s knot ; you see it will

ignorant

years at sea

a hang

render easily

no t

he demonstrated his assertion

an

no t

Im

no t

these matters having been many

,

and seamen

curious in knots

ou

must know

I cannot endure

thing done lubberly

No w

to

a re

see any

learn something

my friend and you ll be able to ascertai n that

'

all s ship sh a pe when it comes

turn

and the matter

your

to

fact man cast

n o o se and then renewed it

s ec u n dem

utte ring as he returned it

T here

ow n

of

the

a r te

m,

I am pleased to witness so much prese nce o f

mind

said

F ea g ha n,

and trust it will have

its e ffect upon these savages

No w

ray
er
p

then exclaimed the man

or

ou

ma y

j ust squeeze
F

out

sa

a short

a c ouple

HAM ILTON

1 06

KIN G

but let them be close together as time is preciou s

,

us hav ing other work in hand

to

lo w

put the halter round

L ily

b urn s

Here s a basis f the moralist

or

and the
neck

fel

the

uttered

captain a dj usting the rope and turning to F ea

ghan ; he talks o f the precious nature o f time
,

i f it is
to us

valuable to him what m ust it be

so

T he outlaw had not fol lowed the example

resignation set him by his companion

fo r

of

he

had stood unmoved without complyi ng with the

,

mandate to take
his collar
w

ho

ff

You d

his neckerchie f

betth er ,

an

uttered the fellow

was appointed to ma ke his last toilette

Ay

Figgins

let u s

it

is o f no use resisting
L ily b u rn ,

said

die

undo

L ie u tenant

graspin g his hand

like men and more like gentlemen

,

for such I am su r e we are though you did not

,

exactly second my attempt at defenc e

sir

I m

not easily deceived when

gentleman

fr eema sonry

there is a sort
a

But

look upon a

brotherhood

HAMILTO N KING

1 08
do g

instantly recogni zed his voice and making

,

bound towards his master leaped upon him

o ne

in joyous play fulness

A n who may
c er ,

be M is th er king s o ffi

ou

that takes upon y o u to command free men

said the apparent principal among

stru tting

bo ldlv

An

who am

the outlaw

to

L ily b u r n

looked

on

returned F ea

ghan in strong I rish accent whilst

,

rebels

Shamu s

I,

t he

with amazement and

,

Graves

T om

recoiled in superstitious dread ;

it s

es elf

shall answer the question as the brute baste

as

has done afore you Shamus

,

he Gr a m m a c h ree ,

H urro o
Sha mus

an

ho

be

I says
,

yelled

divel the bit less than himsel f

should I

am

our
sowls
to
glory
y

H urroo and hurroosh you t

-

Who

murthering

cut and shu ffled

bo g

in

der ing o ma dha u m s

un

t h r ot ter s ,

an

away

he

the I rish dance twirling his

,

switch (about the dimensions o f three stout

broomsticks rolled into o ne) to the astonishme nt
,

of

his barbarous comrades

HAMILTO N KING

Well

j y
pray
es t

commission

H ave
facing

u
o
y

L ily b

Captain

bearing his ma

ou

L ily bu r n

said

no recollection

P
u rn

of

my f atures
e

su ffered much ; yet

y

o r,

ou

added

ou

I have

fo r

he laughing in recklessness
,

L ily

1
b u rn a lia

M r T ooley by all that s abominable

mind

My

did m isgive

me

vexed at the imposition

thi ng
no t

it su ffice

burn that
,

fo r

the kind all along

ea sily deceived
L et

uttered

ou

fo r

L ily bu rn ,

I suspec ted some

No

no ,

no

the present Captain

,

your men are saved

,

In

L ily ~

re

as he fondled his huge

animal and then gras ped the h a nds

,

subordinates P eterson and

,

as i f

But how was you saved P

a nd

turned the smuggler

cannot have forgotten

must remember the

.

their light upon his countenance

I m paler and thinner than I was

me ?

as to thro w

so

returned the sm u ggler

towards the coach lamps

the whole

T o what

I attribute this change P

may

a ll

this is a moral revolution at

events M r F iggi ns ; and

1 09

Tom

Graves

his
.

tw

1 10

HAMILTO N KING

am

more

happy to see

sir

ou,

sai d

than I am at having regained my

T o m,

liberty ; but both are a god send and so I ll

-

j ust log

em

down in the same reckoning

the poor cra ft sir

,

thing

the cutter

si r, ~

poor

and he hung down his head in sorro w

Well well T om
,

that by and by
by

B ut

added he with a mourn ful

shake o f the head

shall tell me about

F ea gh a n,

said

the man s earnestness

ou

much moved

A t presen t we must

have other matter s in han d ; the coach m ust be

released and Captain

,

Li ly bu rn

ent forward on their j ourney

and his men

T he Whiteboys no soone r were awa e that

r

the noted Smasher was amongst them than they

,

prepa red implicitly to follow his directions and

,

though at rst there was some murmuring rel a

tive to allowing the revenue men their liberty
especially as they were considered already

con

dem ne d by the rule o f reta lia tio p yet they u lti

mately con sented to his wishes and set about

,

to

clear away the barricade whilst the driver o f the

1 12

HAMILTO N KING

a man who so much respects the liberty

subject ough t to be

I E O I Ce

em

to

l
i

c a tio n
p

ot hers

or

the

to witness the ex

o f his principles whether applied

,

brough t nearer home to him sel f

I n a j ust cause M r T ooley or M r F ig

,

gins

9
,

responded the revenue captain

me onl y in a j ust cause

,

mark

M y detention

f your

men was a point o f duty ; their release and my

capture is a rebellious outrage
tinction sir
,

M r T ooley
.

my

Oh,

there s the dis

I know so mething o f the law

F ig gi ns ,

and am seldom wrong in

views u pon such subjects

A t all ev ents you are about to procee d u pon

your j ourney

F ea gha n,

said

and there fore

,

your only inconvenience is the loss o f two noble

fellows ,

who instead

being sacri fi ced to what

call
broken
laws
will
hence
f
orth
probabl
y
y
be a gain to their country H ad the y disobeyed
ou

orders I should have shot them for I nu tinv they

preserved disci pline and I alone
,

I can t

de s a c tly

to

blam e

understand the gentleman

ttered old T om taking

,

am

ff hi s h a t

wit h

be

HAMI L TO N KING

coming respect

113

I t s true he has been good

to us and we ve had plenty o f grub and no bad

,

fa g

treatment ; but to my thinking when the

,

end o f a rope was to b ring u s up all standing it

-

was

like fattening a mou se

so m u t

o f the cat
had

N ow look ye here
,

us stowed away

ot

j ail or any other j ail

,

in

ar n t got

no

fo r

the j aws

Suppose you

the h o w ld o f Dublin

wh at

then P why we

should have been had afore the

big

wigs who
,

reg lar proper notions o f the rights

and privileges o f the free trade though many

,

em encourages it to sarve their

Well we should have been had

consarn

ow n

on

selves

and the

the Spider overhauled again us ; and

not knowing as I said the rights and privileges

,

of the free tra de they d ma ke ou t the defence

,

o ur

lives and liberties to be an act of piracy

when

L ord

love your heart it ar n t no

,

more like piracy than a

o f stu ff is like a

pope s mitre

t ub

But that ar n t all

clench the end this here way

o

fo r

they d

supposing any

the man o f war s men lost the number of their

-

mess they d bring

,

in

var

dic k

wil ful mur

HA MI L TO N KING

1 14

der instead

fo r

accidental death ;

points our guns with m alice

and don t k now

ho

we never

f
w e hits so that i f they gets
on a

th w

o re

a r t,

in

the way o f the shot it s their own faults not

,

ou rn

and besides they never think

wounded on our side

Rather

to night T om
-

h im

this

taking

is

long a sermo n to be nished

too

No w

be killed and

ma y

into their calculations who

to

said

F ea g ha n,

to remain silent

as he motioned

T here s some force in the man s argument

said

L ily bu r n,

b u t if

who dearly loved a controversy

there is any one thing I can do better

than anoth er it is j ust to show the fallacy

,

reaso ning

of

his

T o a mind like yours M r T ooley

,

or M r F iggins only a very shor t time will be

.

required to force conviction

Which short time my dear sir able as I
,

know you r appeal would be I cannot

,

you

to

employ as you

respect fully
Captain

is

said

F ea gh a n,

Sel f pres ervation you know

-

ermit
p

L ilyb u rn

T hey say is the rst law

nature M r
,

HAMILTO N KI N G

116

patiently though he could not but be amused

,

the per tin a city o f the pompous little man

at

A nd now , sir , I must bid you farewell Shou ld

.

any poor devils o f smugglers hereafter fall into

your hands remember that your li fe has been
,

saved by an outla w ed rebel this night and treat

,

t hem

with generous humanity

In

every thing consistent with my duty to

my sovereign M r F iggins
,

nue captain not

eturned the reve

little affected

B ut there is

thing sir in which I wish to prove to

,

the correctness
di fcult
said
y

fro m

ou

it

di sc er nmentk

my

ou

and how

is to deceive me in such matters

the rst moment I saw you that

,

was a man

education

an

a gentleman

an

Y ou

L ily bu rna lia ,

forget the

sa

id F ea

ghan laughing as he opened the coach door

-

and let do w n the steps

N o no I don t
,

but none but a man

s

sh all never forget i t ;

wit could have devised

uch a stroke o f policy

argued

L ily b ur n

HAMILT ON KING

1 17

H owever I have most cordi a lly to thank

,

ou

for your kind intervention and shall certainly

,

make it k no w n at head quarters ; not but I m

-

thinking the only p romo ti on they

s

Would

be de

iro ns o f bestowing o n you you would be equally

,

desirous o f dispensing with

A h ! my

men are

all aboard I see : there s coachee with his signal

,

for sailing
la w

He exten ded hi s hand to the

which was grasped with eagerness

bye M r T ooley
.

a know nothing after all

seat

Good

good bye ; A nderson will

have the laugh at me again ; but then

-

out

s i r,

Lily bu rn

he s

took his

A s a matter o f precaution yo u have been

,

deprived
attacked

all m eans

said

F ea gha n

defence should you be

,

and as the district

is in a ver y troubled state I have written a pass,

,

which i f molestation should occur

,

ou

have

only to present to prevent unpleasant cou se

q

uenc es

a nd

he held out a slip

paper

which he had been writing with a pencil

T hank

o u

th a nk you

on

retu rned the

HAMI LTO N KING

1 18

other taking t h e document ; and as he threw

,

him sel f back in the vehicle as

door ,

the

he heard him utter

closed

F ea gha n

Smasher

or

no

Smasher he s a per fect gentleman and there s

,

no mistaking it
A way
u

drove the co a c h

T he party gathering
,

the plunder promptly quitted the scene

action leaving a scout to in form their comrades

,

o f the cause o f departure

F eagh a n

no w

learned

that the third passenger o f the coach was well

known to him as a man o f independent property

who had become an amateur leader o f the White

H e had been I n the neighbourhood f

H all and had ascertained that L ily

O Co nn

b oys

or

burn was there with two prisoners w ho m he was

,

about to conduct by l a nd to Cork

in

deance

o f the recommendati ons to take them round in

his cutter

But

Lily b u r n

could not believe

there was any difference between travelling in

I relan d and travelling in E ngland :

declared

a nd

as he

he was never deceived in such mat

ters he was allowed to have his own h eadstrong

HAMILTON KING

1 20

be

it

le ft u ntried to apprehend the m

he thought

ould therefo re be most advisable to quit that

part
sale

the country without delay and as Kin

w as

the nearest sea port a car was procured

-

immediately at the next hamlet

arrived about

daybreak

an

they

upon the precincts o f

the harbour where several home w ard bound ves

-

se ls were riding having been driven in by stress

,

weather

s her m a n

p u nt received the

three and they boarded a West I ndiaman tha t

,

was preparing to sail

sel f as the mate o f a
a

nd

F ea gh a n represented

brig

him

that had been wrecked

his two subs as seamen o f the same vessel

all wanting a passage to E ngland , for whic h

they proffered their services to n a vigate the
ship

T he

West I ndiaman was short handed

-

and such an o ffer was v ery acceptable ; no ques

tions

ere asked no suspicions entertained

and the outlaw accompanied by Pe terson and

,

Graves and his fai th ful N eptune had in a few

,

ho u rs the satisfaction

seeing the

O ld

H ead

o f Kinsale far astern as they proceeded with a

,

favourable breeze for the British Channel

HAMILT O N KING

C H AP T E R

H a r k ! t o th e

c ras

h in g

h elm ,
A

b n
or

re

nd

e aw ay

f m

h er

ro

in

roa

ill th e

re

o c ea

A ND
on

a nd r

is

no t a s h r e

is

now

il
th ful

a s ts

; th e

par

a nd

sw

il
r

of

th a t

l n tl e

re e

ss

p l a nk
T

w ra

her

a nd s a

th e

a le

of

IV

1 21

ibb e d i d e
s

ea c

s tr

u gglin g

r e t,

d o f h er b r a v er y o n th a t d a r k w il d

n lef

T o m,

said

deck in their watch

F ea gh a n,

as sitting

I must crave in forma

tion relative to the fate

of

the Blue Bob

of

wh ich I have only heard some few particulars

by ts and starts
Ah

poor thing

gr oaned

o ld

T o m,

she

hardly ever held up her head again after she

lost yer honour ; and that same morning when
ow

ld

black M ike came down to order us to sea

V OL.

II

1 22

HAMILTO N KING

and M uster

R a per tee,

like a devil s babby all

,

brimstone and blue blazes it was a melancholy

,

time for them as kne w wh a t a good cra ft was

and had any feeling

In

their hearts

I t was H agan then that brought the orders

,

for going to sea P

quiry

said

F ea g ha n

in a tone

f in

I t was sir and he got em

,

answered T om

the owner

but there was M uster Rapar

tee mad groggy besides a broken collar bone

-

and the people all mops and brooms

How

so m

ever M u ster P eterson go t her out and as I have

,

already to w ld y o u we shortly

a r ter w a r

o ne

o f the boys for the young

,

H ammy
come

of

w as

hi m

sho u ting for him

nu

What

B o r do a k s ,

waiting some time in expectation

ing we took in a cargo and
,

starting

M uster

R a pa r tee

t
o
g

w as

of

missed

they called

in course we never knew

made a beauti ful passage to

ds

ha d be

but we
and

af

ter

your com

all rea dy

fo r

ashore with his

traps laid up in sick quarters so M uster P eter

,

so n a nd

ot

H ammy to live and me ss with a

1 24

HAMILTO N KING

observed the outlaw as i f communing with his

,

ow

though ts ;

but go

o n,

T om

T here was a pretty breeze upon

as we passed the Cordovan lights

continued

T om

quarter

o ur

and we kept close along shore that we

-

migh t step into any o f the small ports

as we d been chased ; but the wind

if

so be

dropped

by

the time we were inside o f Bellisle and then it

,

fell ca l m

fo r

a couple o f watches and

,

spru ng up dead again us

o r L O ri e n t ,
f
p

wanted to work

Quiberon Bay

but M uster

thrash her

al

M uster

a r er w a r

ds

P eterson

or run int o

R a pa r tee

would

on g shore ; and though I own he is

a good seaman yet he arn t got the delicacy o f

,

the thing in working such a sweet hooker as the

he d no tenderness no r disk ri m ma ge

Blue Bob

ment to relieve the cra ft in the heavy s q u a lls

but forced her smack through all however much

,

the spars complained

I V ell,

or

the t imbers moaned

yer honour we kept her

,

at
it
y

o nn a tr a ll

straini ng her frame w ork and nding spells

-

the pumps till we got up to Q u im perla y ;

,

fo r
but

HAMILTO N KING

1 25

M u ster B a pa rtee was never hat you may call

w

altogether sober
g i ve

1 11 ,

an

he swore he

though it blowed to p m a w ls

spikes with the points do w nwards ;

we was retching

ff

and

ould

no t

dmarlin

an

d there

an

burying the p oo r

o n,

thing under the green seas as would have

sw al

lowed her but that she was still lively and strug
,

gled again it raising hersel f

,

of

upon the com b

the sea and shaking hersel f clea r o f the spray

,

like a

m a rm a id

Ah

she was a precious creature

apostrophized

F e a g h a n,

Tom,

as recollections

lovely vessel came across his mi nd ;

of

his

she

ha s

stood under us in ma ny a dark and trying hour

O

ld boy and I used to please mysel f with the

,

idea that she was proud

of

carry n us securely

over the foaming waters and through the con

,

i c ting

elements where larger vessels must hav e

perished

A nd d ye thi n
k she warn t proud

honour P
dent

of

appealed the boatswain as i f

,

the fact

yer

c o n

When did she behave so

HAMILTO N KING

1 26

well as du ring a strong gale and a heavy sea P

and to have such an

o nna tr a l eend

the fellow s perverseness

F ea gh a n,

with a strong expression

but then it cost him his li fe

A nd good right too sir
,

at last !

excl ai med
o

Tom

f bitterness

returned Graves ;

he alone had su ffered it would not have

if

much matter ; but there was them inno

been

o w nl

cents sir who

,

obeyed orders

smart

active men throwing their limbs in the air a

,

leg here and an

if

there as

ar m

the craft

been laden with h uman fra gments

ha

oh

d
it

was
A y,

said

ea

s eq u el

ld

early

boy I m fully sen sible

,

but heave

it

the

head T om
,

and I should like to have

ou t

I m

s u c k w ell,

thi nking it s lost yer honour

,

his capt a i n s meaning

in the craft

said Graves not comprehending

T hen
that

h
an ;
g

watch is
the

everything went down

So I suppose

T o m,

so

I suppose

re

H A MI L T O N KING

1 28

nate and it seemed as i f the doom o f the pretty

craft was already fated T he strange cutter we
,

knew to be the Dolphin and therefore we didn t

,

care

for

her provided we could keep clear

the

frigate ; but once under her guns and it would

,

be all over with the Blue

Bob

A nd yet I have been under a frigate s bows

T om within hal f musket shot said Fea gh a n

proudly
H er shot went over and over us

bu t

they w ere bad marksmen and except a rope

,

in

two stra nded and some do z en holes

or

sails I clawed

ff

uninj ured

A nd

the

pray how

did you go on ?

A rter all we could say

swain

M uster

to the wind

R a pa r tee

he s a id

rejoined the boat

wouldn t bring her

she had bea t her enemies

afore by running and she should beat em again

,

But M uster

R a pa r tee

warn t yer honour to

,

watch ever y heave and set o f her

keep her steady in her course

bows ,

and to

H e didn t know

so much o f the ways o f the craft as yer honour

and consequently he acted a very foolish part

in

beari ng down right slap into their teeth when he

,

HAMILT O N KING

might have

clear

ot

hours and mayhap

,

em

no t

to

1 29

i nda rd

never see n

fe w

in a

no

m ore

on

H owsome er away we went almost righ t

v

afore it and the people began to grumble and

,

then to threaten ; and

at

last he

bring the cutter close at it

to w ld

T he

em

to

u a r e sels

were lowered and the sheets hauled in in

,

no

time ; but j ust as we began to creep from em

,

the full e ffects

the gale became

strainn the poor

on

arent ,

c r ea t u r

in

and we found her

mast head badly sprung j ust under the eyes

-

the shrouds and it kept twisting round at every

,

heave

so

that we expected to see th e whole a

wreck without the slightest hope of get ting

,

away

i t held so long is my wonder !

H ow

I t was a good s tick

t oo ,

said

F ea gha n,

mourn fully ;

but nothing can stand against the

wear and tear

a heavy sea and a strong wind

E special ly wh en there was no necessity

it yer honour
,

somever we
,

ot

ob served the boats w ain

fo r

H ow

up some handspikes and tried

,

to sh it as well as we could and shi fted s o me

,

1 30
o

the blocks

AMILTO N KI N G

below

but all was o f no use ;

down it came after drawing a w ay from em

,

fo r

about three hours ; and had it bee n only an hour

or two later when darkness spread itsel f over
,

the ocean they migh t have passed u s by with

,

out seeing
l
et e
p

us

A s i t was there we l aid a

,

com

wreck to be ga z ed at by the enemy then

,

out about two miles dead to

ther to

lo o a r d

or to

inda r d

loo a r d

But whe

was no matter

no w

we d only a bare pole standing without a rope

,

yarn to kiver its nakedness and every part

,

decks was strewed with the sails and gear

th e

I saw it was a done j ob and there was no use in

,

staying

to

be taken i f so be as there was any

ch ance o f esc ape so P eterson and I lowers down

,

the cocktail from t h e after davits without being

-

bsa r v ed,

clear
e

f,

and sliding over the taffrail we got

,

and pulled away

ri

ght in the

Wind

P resently M uster R a pa r tee c aug ht sight o f us

and hailed
a

for

us to come back

but

we couldn t

gree to it at no price so he orders up

,

t he

1 32

HAMILTON KIN G

back again and saved three

o f fourteen

out

A gain

all that remained

M uster R a pa r tee red

at us and not content with the muskets he got

,

the six pounders to bear

-

but though the shot

danced past us they never touched ; and having

,

now four good h ands and a cockswain we soo n

,

widened our distance and began to make sure

,

getting

when an

O ff,

o n uc

ky

shot struck us j ust

of

under the counter killed one

,

fo r

we were soon striking out

T he illain

the men and

,

lives

our

F ea gh a n,

exclaimed

of

with

ve

hem enc e, the black hearted villain ; wh a t good

P
could your capture do for him
-

N ot none in the world yer honour

,

s w er e

the veteran ;
'

ly

ow n

t h ough t all hand s ough t

same brush

an

I suppose he

be tarred with the

to

H a ppily fo r

u s howsomever the
,

boat didn t sink so that we were able to cling

,

to her sides and buoy ourselves up with the

,

oars

Well sir th ere I was as happy as a cat

,

without claws and a bull

And there laid th e craft

do g

in her wake

I loved soon to be a
,

HAMILTO N KIN G

1 33

B ut I was mistaken

sir for whilst I was looking at the poor thing

prey

the P hilistines

fo r

ready to make a child o f myself at the thou ghts

o

f parting ,

the

ai r

a sudden blaze o f light shot up in

there was a no I Se like thunder

the

ters became convulsed

spars and limbs and

,

headless bodies and burning sails and

,

other

di ent s ,

al

re

went

w a

l o ft

m any

together and

then descended into the ocea n in a thousand di f

ferent

directions hissing and smoking as they

,

fel l ; then the waves rolled on as smoothly as

ever
c r ea

T he Blue Bob had gone down and the

that

tu r

o ne

hour before had loo k ed so

,

bea uti ful and brave was buried beneath that

,

elemen t she loved to sport in

cloud

of

her pla c e
Do

smoke like a funeral

f in ta r ment

it

occurred by accident

inquired

at the earnestness o f the

It s

on

o ssi

ble

hung over

think that

ou

or by design T om P
m oved

ai l,

hilst a black

F ea g h a n ,
o

ld man

for me to say sir

,

answered

Graves in a tone o f melancholy sadness ;

,

much

may

HAMI L TON KING

1 34

hap they warn t over

are ful with the car

t r idg es

O r,

perhaps

in desperation

O R a ffer ty ,

determined not to fall into the hands o f those

from whom he expected no mercy

magazine hi msel f

I t might be
but I

so ,

observed
sir

red the

F ea gh a n

ret u rned the boats w ain

ignorant which way it was done and

,

so is M uster P eterson

T he Dolphin picked

us

up and mayhap there was some others saved

,

fro m the craft as I seed the frigate s boat

out

but I rather think not the thing was

,

As
u

fo r

to w

ld

su dden

so

you already the Dolphin picked us

,

and then a fter speaking the frigate bore up

,

Bantry Bay I believe

ou

knows the rest

P eterson I sup pose knows the persons with

,

who m he le ft the boy P said the outlaw inquir

ingly

I should think so sir ans w ered the boat

swain
I c ould nd it o u t easy enough i f I

was ashore in the city but I arn t much head

piece to r ecollect outlandish names

HAMI L TON KING

1 36

G r eatly to the disappointment o f the outl a w

who hoped they should be obliged to put into a

western port the wind continued fair up the
,

Channel T hey took in their pilot o ff Dungeness

.

and proceeded

fo r

the T hames and the rst

,

shore the s mugglers touched was the landing

place at E xecution Dock T his t hey ascertained
.

from the waterman who landed them in

,

an

swer to thei r inquiry as to what part o f L ond o n

it was

F ea gh a n

com

gave his subordinates a

m
rehensive
look
but
it
served
the
p
,

fo r

a j oke

w hen seated in a snug parlour at a public house

-

they were taking a parting glass

P eterson declared his intention o f returning

to h i s

native i sle directly but gave the ou tlaw

,

very clear directions as to where he would nd

young H amilton Tom Graves started for F olk
.

stone ; and

F ea g ha n ,

havi ng procured cash

fo r

some good bills he held belonging to M r Cor

.

nelius removed to the

,

VV es t

end previously to
,

taking his depar tu re for Bordeau x A t length a

.

vessel direct

fo r

the Garonne was a dv eft i sed he

HAMILTO N KING

bargained
course

of

his passage

fo r

a few day s

1 37

embarked in the

and by the expiration o f

the week landed at this op ulent

,

from splendid city

Without loss

though far
of

time he
,

hastened to the street accordi ng to the dir ection

,

he had recei v ed when a gens d armes arrested

his steps and demanded his passport T his was

,

a requisite it

ha d

never entered i nto his mind to

obtai n for when captain

,

necessa ry

of

a vessel it was

un

he was accordingly unprovided with

the document and as strong j ealousies were the n

,

existing in the south o f F rance he was take n

,

be fore the mayor who committed him to prison

,

till he could be sent

I n vain

F ea gh a n

ou t

of the country

pleaded in his

and told a narrative

of

ow n

behal f

the real circumstances

that had brought him to Bordeaux ; he was in

,

their estimation either an E nglishman

,

or

an

A meric a n imbued with a revolutionary and r e

publican spirit becau se he was destitute o f pass

,

port

I n vain the outlaw endeavoured to get

some one to proceed

to

the house

M adame

HAMI L T O N KING

1 38
B rienot

the
person
with
whom
(

H amilton h a d

been left) and inquire fo r the child : no o ne

dared o ffend the au thorities and the money he
,

offered for the purpose was construed into an

attempt at bribery and

he

w as

conned more

closely than ever T he schooner he had come in

.

was rea dy to sail again and the disappointed

,

vexe d and dispirited smuggler was compelled

,

to reimbark for E ngland without obtaining the

,

slightest in formation

fo r

the obj ect

had un dertaken the voyage

which he

T he schooner quitted the Garonne with a fair

wind bu t the weather was o f that portentou s
,

character that indicated a gale

A lthough

running close along shore the land could be but

-

very dimly seen and at length the haz e was

,

dense that it was necessary to haul further

to keep clear o f the rocks
the
Barges
(
)

a nd

ff

so

o ut

d O lo nne,

Sable

to run outside the I sle

d Oy e

G n ll y p in t d I l D i e u n th e En g li h h t

nd th u
th
i l nd f G
i t n f m ed in t

I l d O ye
G od i le
b ei n g th e c r r e c t n m e
e

er a

g n by th
i ve

s a

o os e

F r en c h

s e

ra

a r s,

s or

1 40

HAMILTO N
h

w es tz nor t

K ING

west ; but light with occasional pu ffs

,

that by their peculiar angry sound conveyed a

,

warning to the seamen there was no possibility

o f mistaking
mate

of

T he master was in formed by his

the change and was promptly

,

on

deck ,

and got a cast o f the lead but found no ground

,

at eighty fathoms
m ust

be

Judging by this that they

well out from the land he continued

,

on the larboard tack imagining that as the tide

,

was setting to the northward he should thus

,

make a weatherly board

T he lead was kept

going at in ter v als o f a quarter

schooner having bu t little

w a

y );

hour (the
but still no

an

bottom even wit h a hundred fathoms

,

A t midnight a sudden squall that nearly laid

the vessel on her beam ends came like a erce

-

herald spurring with hot haste to announce the

approach o f the gale

F ea gha n was prom pt

in ren

dering his assistance ; the s ai ls were reduced

or

taken in and every moment increased the fury o f

,

the storm

T he swell no longer moved lazily

in undulating waves

sometimes as

if

aroused

HAMILTO N KING
from s t u po r

they
p

c
r
li
n
u
,

no w

et u o u sl

1 41

their
heads
with
mimic
f
oam
g

dashed with raging wildness

tossing their hoary crests

In a n ,

im

as i f

defying the mighty power that rushed howli ng

over them with a war whoop
-

T he exertions

of

of

desolation

his passenger somewhat

so ftened the asperity

of

and he deigned to ask

F e a gh a n

the schooner s master

several questions

concerning the coast though the outlaw had

,

studiou sly avoided e v ery thing that could lead

the other to suspect his real character
the few words he had

ttered by way

Yet

re

commen dation were

,

s u fc ent

seaman a conviction that

to impart to a

F e a gh a n
of

well acquainted with that part

was pretty
the world

But still conceitedly condent in his

,

o w n re

sources the north countryman determined to be

,

guide d solely by his own j udgment

Whereabouts do
inquired he
o ut

of

ou

imagine us to be P

the smuggler ;

w e

must be well

from the land as we had no sou ndn in a

,

hundred fathoms at the last cast

1 42

HAMILTO N KING
That

the shore

fai r

s no criterion o f your distance from

F ea gh a n,

returned

for right in

t he

way into Basque roads between the Chasse

,

ron light and the Baleine tower is one hundred

,

and twenty fathoms

I t is not so

my chart

on

said the master

and they descended into the cabin where he

,

produced a book
name o f

old

m aps ,

known by the

the Quarter Waggoner

scarcely a

rock or a sho a l or a sounding being laid dow n

,

correct
spot

You

see

said he pointing

there s no such depth

I do

s ee,

returned

know that it is incorrect

this

water here

F ea gh a n ;

but

again

the

al

so

With such a haze as

'

ou

to

cannot see y our way to

ru n

back

A s i t is we are setti ng bodily in with

,

the flood tide

for

Basque Roads and by keeping

,

her away we shall soon be enabled to get under

shelter

I have a di fferent opinion

other ;

bu t will get another cast

and they returned to the deck

returned the
o

the lead

1 44

HAMILTON KING

knocked away her rudder ;

ly

s ta nt

on

deck

a ll

hands were

in

expecting im mediate death

and terric was the scene as th e breakers rolled

over and nearly buried the vessel beneath the
,

ponderous mass
deck

of

waters th a t fell

pon her

but she still continued to oat though

,

bulwarks booms
,

boats ,

able were washed away

strike again

and every thing move

She did

no t,

however

the panic su bsided and as the

,

master had slunk below directly after the shock

F ea gh a n

issued directions to man the pumps

and free her from the water she had shipped

whilst others took in the foresai l and fore stay

-

sail
u

he knew by the li g ht they had struck

pon

th e

extreme point

a nd

f O leron ,

the gale

having come round to the north west the only

-

chance was a long dri ft and the tide

,

ting

out o

Basque Roads

no w

set

H appily she did n t leak much and by d int

o

hard pu mping she was freed from water and

kept free

d th o u gh dra ggm g

, an

wave driving her

nea lf r

along shore every

in yet he did not wholly

,

despair o f sav i ng the people should the gale abate

,

HAMILTO N KING

1 45

T he vessel being pretty snug again the mas

,

ter came on deck and O nce more resumed autho

,

but the manner in whi ch he had been em

rity

ployed whilst below was speedily made evident

by the rolling
ance

his eyes and the thick utter

his speech

of

he

was brutally drunk

Who has shortened sail

exclaimed he

dressing the mate in as loud and threatening a

voice as he could command

H ow

dare you

sir ta ke in the canvas without my orders

T here were superior orders to yourn

turned the mate in a tone and manner o f

,

ance

re~

de

orders there were no disobeying u nless

,

you wanted to make the schooner your cofn

A nd whose orders may they be you v a ga

,

bo ne P

demanded the master highly exasperated

,

and approachin g the mate in a menacing atti

tude

T he orders
ordinate
o

f th e

would

bolt ropes
-

H eaven responded the sub

ou

Besides when

his station it s ti me for

,

V OL

II

had the sails blowed o u t

,

h
r
e
qt

an

o ne

man quit s

to take it

HAMILTO N KING

1 46

I t was at my recommen dation the

shortened sail

said

F ea gha n

m ate

T here s great

di fculty and much greater danger in ba la nc m g

,

a vessel s canv as

fo r ,

a fter falling

ff

the wind

and gathering way she i s likely to have her

,

bows bea t in in coming to agai n against the sea

-

Still

if

the men will but wor k hard by lashing

,

main boom the j ib boom and the maintop

mast together we may contrive something o f a

t he

rudder

an

keep her aw a y for the Garonne

A nd what pilot will there be to take u s in P

inquired the master with contempt

,

Will you pl a ce the craft in my hands P said

F ea gh a n,

with co nsiderable sternness ;

I know

every channel as well a s the p riest kno w s the way

to his own parish ch u rch

I have always found great talkers t be

li ttle doers m uttered t h e master scorn fully ;
o

then turni ng to

here the steersman ought to

have b een he voci ferously ex c laimed

,

her away
s

tarboard

a nd

ou

Keep

get the head sails u pon her !

-

lubber do

Notwi thstanding

the distressed con d i ti on i

1 48

HAMILTO N K ING

summary punishment as the sea had swept ev ery

,

thing away

M utiny
striking
r

his

shouted he

mutiny by

hands vehemently together

Y ou

ascally scoundrels you shall bring up at E xe

,

c u tio n

Dock every soul

hang in ch ains
dogs ;

in

you

Blackwall Reach

he made

You shall
d die

an

like

attempt to go down the

an

companion ladder but fell from nearly the top

-

to the bottom

H e means mischief said the m te ;

shut

the comp a nion hatch and fasten it A nd now my

-

lads

I ve

knows

every reason to believe our passenger

which

ar e

the a ft most braces in an admi

ral s ship Will y o u

.

an

ca n

a
,

obey him ? A t

ll hands , fo llo w m y example ,

ll

do better ourselves

events till
,

w e

nd as we

T his proposition was immediately greed to

a

and a

charge

subm itted to

to take

I es t

the vessel every one promising

,

cit obedience to his orders

an

F ea gh a n,

The

hesitated ; at last he said ,

,

i m pli

outlaw smil ed

I con sent , but

HAMILTON KING
y

ou

1 49

will nd me a roug h hand to dea l with

remember it is your
to the pumps

ow n

seeking

I t must not be supposed that

in a tranquillity resembling that
lour ashore

N ow away

a ll
o

this passed
a q uiet par

N o ; the gale whistled fearfully

throu gh the rigging and howled aloft whilst

,

the sea roared and raged below

T he noise was

almos t deafening and those who spoke had to

,

raise their voices to a pitch above the storm

though the wind descen ding out

of

the try

sail kept the words from being inst a ntan eously

,

wa fted away to leeward

T he pumps were readily mann ed and

,

mate with a party

,

clea r

fo r

of

hands

t he

the anchors

ot

letting go and hauled up a range

,

both cables along the deck

the main boo m

was then launched over the stern the j aws being

,

se cured by means o f a stout hawser that pas sed

,

under the counters and the ends brought

,

board ; guys were placed at half way

-

in

the

length and at the extremity o f each rove throug h

,

HAMILTON KI NG

od

a ff r

a bloc k lashed upon the boom so as to

,

a very fair p u rc hase and thu s the spa r extended

right away from the stern post T he v ery
,

rst

trial proved its

tility ; and had the

w ea

ther been more moderate would have serve d the

,

purpose till they

into the Garonne

ot

A s it

was howe v er they did not dare to strain it too

,

much and every sea m ad e it quiver

,

The foresa il and forestaysail were onc e more

!

set and they enj oyed the satis faction

that they deepened their water

drawing

ff

th e land

an

were slowly

while their temporary

rudder acted beyond their most sanguine

t a tio ns
O

Th e cou ntenances

proposed to

et

descended t h e
dia tely

appeared

and agitated

fo r

ec

T hey were

h asty refreshment as

r un

ex

the men were

nce more animated and chee r ful

ordere d to

nding

F ea g ha n

for the Garonne ; the mate

ompanion la dder

but im me

on

deck

gain his face pale

,

he had found th e master lying

,

in the sam e spot w h ere h e h ad fa llen a b r eathless

,

corpse

HAMILTO N KING

1 52

I shall act as I

up as skipper here ?

ou

please

N ot till the men have recalled their

dence from me
A sk

what i t is M r Barber s Clerk ;

ou

been bundled

you re a bit o f a Jonah

so

quic k

you wouldn t have

or

of

out

the mate angrily

Bordeaux

re

my men shall hence

forth obey me and me only

,

them say as much to my hearing and

,

I m content

F ea gh a n ;

responded

your taunt mark m e fellow

,

o ne

L et

proudly

I m ready to resign the command

in an instant

t o r ted

F ea gh a n,

exclaimed

the m

I tell

c o n

o f his terrible looks

and as

fo r

and he assumed

have kicked fty

better men than ever stood in your shoes before

I d my breakfast in the morning

,

P art

o f the crew were attending the guys

during the discussion

but as the parties were

well forward they could only make out that

,

something was wrong without being able to

,

scertain the cause

I n a short time the other

HAMILTON KING

1 53

hands came up and the mate informed the m

,

that the master was dead

t hat he now took

upon himsel f the command but had been

sisted in his duty by the pa ssenger

insulted him
authority

and wanted to usurp

ho

had

th e

sole

My lads

said

the stri fe

of

F ea gh a n ,

the elements is

no t

it seems that

su fcient to call

every man to his station but that human pas

,

sions must al so have contention and whilst the

,

angry breath

the A lmighty is

of

the puny voices

I wi ll

no t

ou

the waters

his creatures mu st be heard

in quarrels with e ach other

be ; and as from

on

T his ought

to

no t

I received my command

yield it up but into your hands

so

If

your new m a ster how he came so he must him

sel f be th e bes t to explain

new master

ca n

but I m sa y i ng
do

save you let him

,

then tr u st to me ; and though it is

power

to

so

no t

if y o u r

i f no t

in mortal

command success yet nothing shall

be wa ntn

on

my part

to

place

ou

in safety

This long and to them learned harang ue

,

w as

H AMILTO N KING

1 54

lis tened to with earnest attention : but with ou t

'

replying they

al l w

th

ent aft clinging to the ropes

,

at had been secu red to the

way o f rails

s ta nc

heo ns

by

T he mate soon j oined them

and they continue d in consultation whil s t F ea

,

w
ay
han
ascended
the
f
ore
rigging
to
look
a
g
-

to leeward along the land that he might try

,

and make out the beacons

for m s

t he

the river that

eastern boundary to the isle

of

O llero n,

the river Seudre a narrow creek running into

or

the main
o

T he principal object he was desirous

accomplishing was i f practicable to get the

,

schooner i nto one

found

preferable to going

Whilst thus engaged

broken

these places should it be

sea

be

fo r

the Garonne

beheld a tremendo us

r u shing with vengeance toward s

them and he clung convulsively to the shrouds

,

A gain i t rose with still mightier power , curl

ing its huge head and roaring as

,

in

its haste

its summit cascaded like an impetuous torren t

leaving beh i nd a bubbling and a hissing foa m

A third time it li fted its enormous mountain

1 56

HAMILTO N KING

to ribands
u

the vessel had bee n forced to bear

by the weigh t

the billows

the forestay

sail had no counterbalancing power abaft and

,

accelerated her motion

before the wind

the

le ft to perish and
,

she was soon careering

drowning

F ea gha n

wretches were

alone rem ai ned

of

all the gallant spirits that had quitted the

Garonne the morning previous

some time the outlaw remained in the

Fo r

rigging his energies in a great measure para

,

lysed at the aw ful spectacle he had witnessed

then descended to the

he

deck

to obtain

food and brandy ; but the ca bin was full the

,

dead body
fro

of

the

m aster

w as

washing to and

shuddering sickness came over him

he

experienced a dread ful feeling

on

the deck and therefore agai n took his station

in

t he

of

loneliness

course

shrouds alo ft and watched the wild

,

of

the hand

the schooner ,

hich unrestrai ned by

,

man rushed onward in her deviou s

,

track and as i f maddened by the storm pursued

,

her own impetuous way

E very momen t brought

HAMILTON KING

1 57

her nearer to the land upon which the sea was

,

brea king

to a dreadful height

she struck and

,

reeled upo n her side as the recedi ng wave

re

coiled

on

the

o ne

approa ching

li fted up and borne further in

ti mbers fell heavily

went by the board

on

was to

be

seen

w as

then her crashing

the beach

her

masts

she roll ed over and over

and in less than h al f

her

A gain she

an

hour

no t a

vestige

HAMI L TO N KING

1 58

C HAP TE R

n g

ul n p l e e y u h n u
th e
p l d ub tin g l y
m n t mu h
I
d
p l
i d my u n l
T by
i n th in g f th t k in d ; b t I u pp
G d
ul d n t l
h im i th u t n
n m
h
n
h
t
t
ee
y
A

ro

or a

c or

B!

so

as

ea v e

v er s e

c or

o ra ,

r,

sa

e a

c e

ose

or e

It

thread of
and rst

S TE R N E

me

w o
or

ha s

is now necessary to resume the dropped

ou r
of

narrative attached to H amilton

all it would be as well to give a

brief account o f the individual to whose care

he had been entrusted

In

o ne

of the small dwellings that contras t so

strangely with the large and magnicent ware

houses abutting upon the quay where the river
Garonne rst washes the city
lodged M adame

B r ieno t,

of

Bordeaux

oor,

upon a second

her window commanding a pretty prospec t

of

the vine clad hills upon the opposite shore and

-

HAMI L TO N KING

1 60

soon a fter the birth of a daughter he embarked

fo r

his native land where he hoped the taint

,

blood and colour would pass unknown and

,

sequently unnoticed

of

con

But this he found was

not to be the case so he retired to the neigh

,

bo u rh o o d

Bordeaux where in a sm all neat

,

chateau he lived in blessed retiremen t and edu

,

c a te

his child

M adeline was indeed a lovely

girl with all the pride

,

with the vivacity

the Spaniard blended

the F renchwoman

grew up she became the admiration

gallant youths
was married

to

of

Bordeaux and
,

at

the

a tting age

a y oung o fficer o f small fortune

,

but the representative

w

As she

an ancient fam ily

hich had in former days borne exalted titles

and inhabited splendid palaces

But property

must fail where double the amount of income is

ex pended every year
de

a nd

the young M arquis

fo u nd himsel f at the age

of

eighteen

with scarcely any other resource than his com

m ission

as a lieutenant

and a small annual

HAMILTO N KING

stipend from the royal purse

1 61

he th erefore

wisely dropped his title and assumed the family

,

name

B ri eno t

nexceptionable in character handsome in

person

D on

on ac c ount

hi m

P inz ier o

Juan
o

woul d

no t

his poverty ; the

rej ect
had

D on

wealth enough derived fro m his West I ndia

,

e states and the affectionate

to the beauti ful M adeline

former resumed his title

stroke

B ri eno t

on

T his was a bold

as the M archioness de

fo r

he hoped

his child would

never be remembered as having

descents was unknown

united

condition that the

poli cy in the Spaniard

'

w as

by

how many

the dark blood

negro race within her veins

of

the

But human foresight and human precaution

are

o fti m es

bafed

bv

the decrees o f fate

M an

fancies his schemes are immaculate in the wis

do m

that planned them

c eiv es

he raises wha t b e

con

to be an adamantine ba rrier against mis

fortune

a nd

he di es full of condence that no

attack can inj ure the structure

be

has rai sed

1 62

HAMILTO N KING

Alas !
'

ho w

very o ften does almost the last b reath

that departs his body d estroy the whole

toil

th e

a nd

years i s cru mbled with electric like

force to d u st

Juan departed this li fe

Do n

and his body was interred wi th much pomp at

his native place in Spain ; the

D onna

did

no t

long surviv e him and the young M ar q uis and

M arc hioness took poss es si o n o f the chateau and

,

lived for som e time in the enj oyment o f every

.

thing that could ren der existence desirable

A storm

however was literal ly gathering

agai nst them

d

va s ta t e

fo r

a hurricane in one night de

their es tates in Saint Domi ngo ; and as

,

they had not lived very frugally at home they

,

became involved
cu

in

embarrassment and

diffi

and the M arqui s resolved to embark

lties ,

with his wife for the colony to see what could

,

res cued from the wreck

be

O nce

more sinking

his title they arrived at the island in safety ; but

,

to his great

m or tic a tio n

he found the marriage

between Don Juan and his partner was doubted

an

that although a still further remove had

,

1 64

I IA M I LTO N

Alas

KING

that ti me never came ; for shortly a fter

M adeline s departure he sickened and died and a

,

month after her arrival at Bordeaux the afflicting

news was brought to her that she

w as

a widow

T hus was she left in a sta t e bordering upon

de stitution

fo r

the sa le

the chateau would

sc a rcely do more than pay the creditors

T he

young and lovely M adeline shrun k from the

worl d and was j ust kept above actual want by
,

a small pension from the royal purse

Several

suitors both honourable and dishonourable pre

,

sented themselves ; but she re fused all out o f r e

,

pect to the memory o f her husband and though

by title and rank a M ar chioness yet she

,

con

tented hersel f with the lodgings above named as

M adame

B r ieno t

Kind , a ffable , and comely , she was universally

-

respected and every

,

act

o ne

was read y to per form an

attention to the wido w so that she slipped

,

over the roughs

li fe with greater ease

com fort than could have been expected

si

der ing

an

c on

the circumstan c es in which she was

HAMILTON KING

placed

1 65

T hus years glided away her rooms

were the

bea u idea l

neatness and taste as far

,

as her extremely limited means would extend ;

nor were there wanting many who made her
presents

of

numerous articles to please the eye

although her Spanish pride would have revol t ed

at the

ffer

pecuniary aid

Such was M adame

o ut

o f her window

on

when looking

B ri eno t ,

to the quay she had seen

,

P eterson and T om Graves with little H amm y

,

between them making anxious inquiries

bystanders who shook their heads as

unable

to

reply in the afrmative

B ri eno t,

N ow M adame

although no gossip yet possessed the

,

usual inquisitiveness
and longed

to

all E ve s daughters

of

and really there was

l
ome
excuse
f
or
it
the
nob
e
looking
;
s
-

a xen

know what it was that the two

seamen were a sking about

his ne

if

the

bo y ,

curls and full blue eyes

apparent seriousness o f the men and the

,

with
the
con

stant p a lsied negative that met their q uestions

M adame B

rieno t

cou ld not resist

it

she slip pe d

HAMILTO N KING

1 66

on her bonnet and armed with

dahle dimensions dangling

,

on

fan

her

o
f
,

formi

le ft arm she
,

sallied forth without however exciti ng suspicion

,

as to her real object j ust as the

,

s ea m en

and their

charge was approaching towards the door

N either P eterson

no r

T om Graves wou ld

probably have mustered up resolution enough

to address her h ad she not gazed upon the boy
with a smile which instantly
hearts

both

m ade

prize o f the

and P eterson removing his hat

,

with all the politeness

a F renchman inquired
,

whether she could direc t him to some person

with whom he migh t leave the
weeks till they sailed
,

a r on
g

for a few

T he wido looked a t the boy ,his co n tenance

u

pleased her and after

,

few I nqu i ries

sh e

invited

the m to her lodgings where she became mistress

,

of

his story as far as the second mate and the

'

boatsw a in thought proper to s tate the circum

stances connected with what they kne w o f his
history

H amilton seemed to make himsel f

very com for table with the

ba n ban s

which were

HAMI LTON KING

1 68

having ascertained that the writi ng des k

ta ined

a considerable

su m

con

o f money with securi

,

ties and papers o f value made no doubt that

,

she should very soon be visited by the right

claim a nt to the child
Days

eek s passed

and still madame

o n,

expectations were not realized ; but in the

,

meantime she had become attached to H amilton

,

whose play fulness cheated her

m any solitary

of

hours and who se ready attention to her

,

mands gratied her pride

o ne

c om

T hey very soon

began to understand each other

having no

fo r

the lad

ear him who could speak

E ng

lish was compelled to catch up the F rench in

,

sel f de fence and what with the wido w and her

-

factotu m together with the occasional visitors

,

H amilton became a tolerable procient in the

new tongu e

I t was shortly a fter

voyage

to

F ea gha n s

nsuccessful

Bordeaux that madame received letters

from

Saint Domingo in forming her o f the

m ise

the

cruel relative who had deprived

KIN G

HAMILTON

1 69

the m o f their estates and that he had

,

j ustice fo r past per sec u tion

left her his

a s an

act o f

sole heires s

to wealth and estates far superior to all that she

had lost ; but that her presence would be required
in the island to render her title to the property
perfectly clear

A t the same time she received

instructions to draw to any reasonable amount

,

upon a mercantile house

hich had received

extensive remittances on account

T he widow s

m ore

u a mm

ity

of

the estates

temper was far

tried by this accession o f fortune th ari it

'

had been by the deprivation

of

it ; she

aw

at

once the great debt o f gratitude that was due to

her many friends who
,

fo r

years had cherished

and com forted her under mis fort unes and

,

feared that her return s would

to express
t eo u s

in

no t

sh e

be adequate

a substantial manner the boun

,

feeling o f her heart

Whilst poo r she

,

ha d

but little to think of and still less anxiety ; but

,

she had suddenly become rich (fo r she had

ascertained the corr ectness o f every thing that

no w

had been communicated to her) cares and soli

,

V OL

II

1 70
c

HAMI LTO N

i t u de

KING

crowded upon her mind

scarcely nd interval

fo r

an

she could

those social enj oyments

which were so precious to her heart

P reparations for the voyage were p romptly

made and she

,

reclai m

h im

mm d

deter

if

no

o ne

previously to the p eriod

appeared to

the ship

sailing H amilton should accompany her and as

,

this was literally th e case the youngster was

,

nce more tossing on the billows as they ew

across the A tlantic

hi s ki nd

ment

nor was the time lost

patroness employed every leisure

in i nstructing h im

fo r

in her native language

which eventually became so nat u ral to the child

that he entirely abandoned th e E ngli sh as

,

comprehensible to those about him

in

A month s run with ne weather brought

the m to P ort
fro m

the ashes

B ri eno t

au
o

P ri nce then partially

,

an earthquake and M ada me

,

i mm ediately repaired to

estate situated in one

,

r I sm

parts o f this fertile island

h er

principal

the most delight ful

.

E very thing had

been rendered so clear in the disposal o f the pro

HA M ILTO N KIN G

1 72

fact few
,

of

the West I ndia islands were in a

worse state o f demoralization than San Domingo

T he whites lived in careless volupt u ousness

dulgi ng

in

in vice and immorality and the ne groes

imitating the example

their owners wer e

bound by no restraint except the fear o f

,

detec

tion w hich was sure to bring a heavy punish

,

ment inicted with remorseless cruelty

,

B ut there was also a third party

from the other two

d istinct

the free people o f colour

who looked upon the slaves with the same

un

measured feelings o f contempt and disdain that

they themselves ( the mulattoes ) experi e
nced
fro m the whites But the slaves were involved
.

in the grossest ignorance and wretchedly poor

,

whilst many o f the free people o f colour were

well educated and wealthy
nothing beyond the labour
whilst

t he

T he slaves kne

their own colony

leaders amongst the m ulattoes had

visited F rance and E ngland

where

having

plenty o f money at command they were wel

,

comed in polished society and their children

,

HAMILTO N KING
m i tted

to the best schools

1 73

fo r

instruction

Great indeed was the change on their return

,

to their island estates

nic a tio n

C ut o ff from all co mm u

with the whites who viewed them as a

,

debased and degraded caste they were deprived

,

a ll

participation in

th e g o v er nm ent

country for though they possessed some

,

their
f

the

best and most extensive plantations in the co lony

they were not considered eligible to the exercise

o f the franchise and were excluded from every
,

fce,

hatever its nature or description

N or were females exe m

pt for even M adame
,

B r ieno t

had the bar of exclu sion issued against

her from the moment she landed at P ort

P rince

au

and the lady who had been the delight

o f civi lized associations at Bordeaux was in

,

San Domingo shut out from all intercourse with

the whites as a being
,

fo r

she had the taint

veins

Still upon her

,

looked up
chief

to

far

below their notice

negro bl ood in her

ow n

domain she was

,

by the slaves as a sort

hilst the individuals

ho

of

feudal

were placed in

1 74

HAMILTO N KING

the same awkward circumsta nces as hersel f

placed great reliance

her sh rewd ne ss

on

lect and the clearness

of

h er

j udgment

i nte l

I t c ould not be supposed that whilst

di so r

was rapidly spreading itsel f t h rou gh

a ni z a t io n

F rance t h e
,

olonies co uld be d eter red

taking part in
tests
i m

an s

th e

'

th e

da y

fro m

controversies and even c o n

,

T he inuen c es

rep u blic

were becoming widely di ffused on the

F rench division o f San Domingo

but whilst

many white s contin u ed rm royalists to the

very last ga sp

the principal portion

white settlers had i mbibed the spirit

various clubs at P aris
each othe r

a nd w

people who knew

a nd

stea dily pursued t he ir

ere going

felt
ow n

the

the

ere arrayed aga i nst

T he mulattoes narrowly

the proceedin gs that

o n,

atched

and

as

their posi tion they

,

course

T h ey were

well a w are that neither in numerical strength

nor in personal courage they were
equal

to

their opponents

a nd

ay

therefo r e t hey

contente d themselves with making dem a nds upo n

H AMILTO N KIN G

1 76

they should be eligible to seats bot h

parochial and colonial assemblies
resisted by the whites
'

ho

in

the

T his was

fel t indignant
c o nsi

that persons who had hitherto been

dered as mere national property by the govern

ment and
,

no repute should at once

,

upon a level with themselves

on

he

placed

T he mulattoes

the other hand were resolutely bent

,

on Oh

taining and enj oying the conceded privilege and

,

fearing that their own strength was not

s u f

cient to accomplish the purpose they instigated

,

the slaves to revolt and thus similar scenes to

,

those witnessed in F rance threatened the colo

ni s ts o f

San Domingo

A t rst the slaves were unwilling to j oin

,

the m u lattoes for they feared that the change

,

o f masters would to them be productive o f

more inj ury than benet ; for the free people
o f colour were far more rigid and severe over
their slaves than the w hi tes

and in fact this

,

invariably occurred throu ghout the whole o f the

West I ndies

To incite them to revolt how

,

HAMILTO N KING

1 77

ever freedom and plunder were o ffered

,

it was

and

long before the temptation suc

no t

T he sla ves rose and devastation

c eeded

bloodshed,

and cruelty marked their progress

H aving been kept in a st a te

f barbarism ,
th e

without any ameli orating feeli ngs to so ften

savage feroci ty of the brute

in

their nature

they at once perpetrated crimes of the most

horr ible description la ying waste the planta
,

tions burning the houses and murdering the

,

whites while the fem al es were reserved to

,

fer the worst

slain

suf

debasement previously to being

H aving thus given a brief sketch

as connected with the history

events

the colony we
,

will again return to young H ammy whose name

,

had become

li
c i sed
g
a

into A mi ; and as no sur

name had ever been given (for no o ne in the

cutter no t even the child himsel f was a c
,

with it) his kind patroness ga v e

her o w n and thenceforward he was styled

u a nt e

h im

A mi de

B r ieno t

HAMILTON

K ING

Beauti fully as well as health fully situ a ted

,

on the summit

of

a lofty eminence was the

,

residence o f the wi dow having on the descent

,

near its ba se her rich plant a tion

,

Solitaire

T he building was light and elegan t each

through the

t r eles s ed

scorching ray s
o

of

work

the sun

v er a n

that crept

a nd

dh a ,

the sides was shaded by a handsome

bordered by owers and fruits

excluded the

w hilst

the cool air

heaven found a ready admission

H ere the

palmetto ou rished in all its gigantic gran

d eur amid the constant verdure
,

climate

a tropical

T he view to the so thward

m a nded

com

a prospect o f J a q u emel with its fer

,

tile plain and an extensive range over the

,

Carribean Sea mostly sleeping in its intense

,

blue with here and there a whi te sail

,

i
o ss
g
y

surface

rested

on the

P rince ,

le ft and
,

its

T o the northward the eye

,

town and bay o f P ort

with the island

L eogane ,

Gonaives to

with its extensive and

tile plai ns to the right

,

on

au

the

fer

T o the westward

1 80

HAMILTO N KING

H ere then young H ammy was located and a

,

man o f colou r

had been to E ur ope and was

ho

tolerably capable o f undertaking the task

came his instructor : not in

t he

be

character

'

tutor it is true
hibited

fo r

the laws

of

the colony pro

any but whites underta king such

an

o ffi ce and no white could be supposed to stoop

,

to the degradation
family
ma y

becoming a teacher in a

o f a person o f colour

But my reader

naturally conj ecture that as I have said the

,

wi do w retained evidences o f having formerly

been a beauty there could not have been much
,

darkness on her skin T he conj ecture is correct ;

.

s he

was remarkably fair

the colour was in the

blood which no removes however distant fro m

,

the rst could ever obliterate

,

ri fe to inj ure reputation

C al umny

ever

had reported H amilton

to be her son an d th is was pretty generally

,

believed not only amongst the planters but even

,

on

her

ow n

estates

was it m u c h to be

nor

wondered at when the truly

,

tenderness she

a t a ll

m aternal

care and

ti mes evinced towards

is ta ken into consideration

hi m

HAMILTON KI NG

181

T he youngster had an entire establishment to

himsel f : a groom
both sexes

an

a head nurse servants

it was no

hear a drawling negro voice

of

ncommon thing to

ex c la I m

Jean

and peka Saam to tell Jacques to call Quaco to

the young massa

hea ree

T o perform this Jean would probably pass

,

Jacques

or

Quaco in seeking

would have been entirely out

fo r

Sam but it

of

negro routine

to intimate One word to them except through

,

the proper messenger as desired

,

and thu s

Quaco who might have been summoned instant

,

ly ,

was usu al ly hal f an hour before he made his

W har ra

appearance with a
,

want

him

young massa

Quaco was an

ld

negro who had not only

,

visited several o f the other West I ndia islands

-

but his early days had been passed as a slave

amongst the E nglish in Jamaica ; he had also
been some time

in

E ngland with his former

,

master , where he might have remained a free

man ; but retu r ning to the island he was again a
,

HAMILTON KIN G

182

slave though his owner placed so much

,

hi m

dence in

that he made him captain o f o ne

his sloop bu ilt

!

which gave

droo g h er s ,

opportunity

c o n

h im

an

seeing much o f the other islands

n fortunately his vessel had been wrecked

,

T i bu r u n ,

Cape

of

and he alone escaped to the

shore where he was seized as a runaway slave

,

kept some time in conne ment and then sold to

,

a Spanish planter to pay the expenses I nthe

course o f time he was purchased hy the late pro
.

i
p

o f Solitaire

r eto r

and ultimately became

house steward at the residence

-

N ow thou g h Q ua c o could speak

m utilate

tha t i s ,

both Spanish and F rench

could

he had

chosen when any thing displeased him to grum

,

ble and to swear in E nglish Whether there was

.

any thing

an

i ti v e

af n

E nglish and grumbling

mouthed utterance

or

character between
whether the full

a hearty

ave
g

greater reli ef to the stomach than a mere

Sacre

it is hardly necessary here to di scuss

r
uaco
inva
iably
Q

sed the F rench languag e

HAMI L TON KIN G

1 84

T he negro bowed most politely as he uttered

A u plaisir madame
,

b u t there

a grimness

w as

look about his visage that plainly evinced he

was far from pleased H e then retired from the

.

room followed by H amilton

,

who overhea rd

Em

him muttering to himsel f

d a am

co w cu m

M on Dieu ! but dey ge t j olly

dis !
H e then shou ted M on

ber shin rascal l

fu m

fum

fo r

sieur Jacques ! ayez la bont de veni ici s il vou s

,

plait

'

3)

adding

In

a lower key

Yer daam

deb

bil babby for makee me missee tin k me no sabby

bery

A gai n h e sho u ted

ting for you

sieur Saam

d p ch ez

con sa ns dou te

vous donc

O nce

un

M on

brave gar

more his voice fell

cus you blac k libber for all day long !

M onsieur ! exclaimed Jacques cautiou sly

looking in at the doorway to ascertain the mood

o f the old man be fore he ventured to approach
,

within assailable distance

monsieur

ue

dites vous

Q ue dites vous monsieur repeated Quaco

,

spitefully well knowing

,

from

former

ex

er

HAMILTON KING

1 85

ence that Jacques was too wary to be caught

,

Que dites vous

d

t he

upon

v a nc e

arretez vous la

key face

in

lib

ad

young negro as he retreated

backwards ;
-

be

he reiterated whilst
,

bush

yer daa m mon

white libber nigger s

-

nigger

T his was quite enough

fo r

Jacques ; he was

well aware that the storm was rising and there

,

fore to use a nautical phrase he made a grand

,

stern boa rd

led from the

towards the igh t

dha

v er a n

steps that

to the garden below A t

.

this point Quac o made a sudde n spring to catc h

the youth previously to his descent and actuall y
,

chi eved his object at the very moment that

Sam had attained the summit in

hi s

ascent the

consequence was that J acques impelled by the

,

additional stimulus o f Quaco stumbled over

,

Sam and all three went rolling head over

,

h eels

to the bottom roaring and h al looing with all

,

their might T he altitude however was not very

.

great so that no inj ury beyond a thorough

,

shaking was su stai ned by the fall

,

But Quaco

1 86

KING

I IA M I LTO N

hough he could

let go

no t

clutches and

in his

had now got both culprits

t

thump the

to

o ne

other yet he knocked their heads together with

,

all his force exc laiming

,

yer daam

baj a in

em goat niggers
-

t ime M onsieur
,

M onsieu r

eh

Saa m

born

acq

do

hat

c ra a b

Yer

u es

r a s c al e

fo r

n y am

nebb er

suck

n o der

mind

no ? D un autre

Cu s you rogue hea r t for

hna n

tell you

ene

daam

singe ries eh P Darra den

l
a inta i m tiev in ,
g
p

fo r

M ettre quelque chose dans

votre te t e mon ami

nebber

Darr a for you

so

py

faire des

ye baang gall o ws
-

drinking coqui n me one

you

All the time Quaco was very foo lishly knock

ing their pates against each other with very little

,

e ffect

for

as a negro s head is the least

rable part o f his body

v u lne

the punishment was

sca rcely felt and the moment they escaped from

,

his clutches they testied their sense

,

changing their loud yells to

of

it by
,

c ntrollable

un o

laughter as Quaco reascen ded the steps down

,

which he h ad gone

so

much against his inclina

HAMI L T ON

1 88

the sound

KING

his native tongue however imper

,

spoken I t was the rst time he had heard

fec tly

it since he parted with

ld

T om Graves and in
,

an instant it revived associations and recollections

that had in a considerable measure faded away
,

T his it was that made him defend Quaco before

the

idow

fo r

there was now a link

hi m

tion that bound

to the old man

connec

and when

the latter complained o f his fatigue the kind

,

hearted lad immediately uttered in E nglish

,

Shall I get
Eh
o

ld

ou

some sangaree daddy P

Ga r a mer c i e,

h a r ra

dat P

shrieked the

man as he started back and his staring eyes

,

were xed upon the boy

ninny

fo r

missy peak
,

You F rench picka

me in buckra tongue

N o Quaco I am not F ren c h pickaninny as

,

you call me

mother

responded H amilton somewhat

,

nor is M ada me Br ieno t my parent

offended
he then

dded sorrow fully

never had a

Well dis baang

,

eb er

negro with evident deligh t

ting

a nd s

uttered the

atisfa c tion

HAMI L TO N KI N G

young massa pea k

Eh

, G

a ra mer c ie !

me

in

1 89

me

na tib

tongue

me so glad ! and the old man

not w ithstanding he had j ust been complaining

fatigue cu t a h undred fantastic ca pers abou t

,

the ante room

-

F rom that moment H amilton and the stewar d

were almost inseparable ; and though the only

'

recollections of the fo rm er s infa ntile years led hi m

back to the latter portion

M rs

'

f the

ones yet he remembered the ne tall old

,

gentleman who used to pat

,

hi m
r ia

s w ea t m ea t s ,

hi s

head and b ring

and the number of elegant car

and smart ladies who used to visit

es

nurse

time he w a s with

his

hi s

name he knew nothing

except that by which he had been cal led

Of

H ammy

n u nc ia tio n

ow n

now changed to

A mi

being nearly si milar

the

T he scenes o n

of

board the cutter together with some

,

actors particularly the

,

too

fresh

and

too

the
were

vivid to be easily forgotten

and whilst conversing with

r

N eptune

do g

ro

Q u aco many

ld

eminiscences wou ld cast their sun light e r their

-

HAMI L TO N KING

1 90

shadow over his mind

Of

his sister E llen

be

cherished the most distinct idea nor was N ed

,

Jones oblivious to his memory ; bu t his mind

was not su fciently matured

his days in the

world had been too few to allow

upon events that had occurred
Years rolled

o n

f his

reasoning

the convulsion commenced

that shook all social order to its basis and ulti

,

m ately

from

rested the F rench portion

the dominion o f F rance

f the

colony

M adame B rieno t

happy in her delight ful retirement had shunned

,

rather than courted society ;

nature and disposition

fo r

though her very

ere nourished by the

milk o f h uman kindness yet she could not

,

avoid feeling a distaste to the association with

mulattoes

hilst her heart swelled with a j u sti

able resentment a t the treatment she had received

from
no

the whites I t has been said that there can be

.

loneliness with a rened education

the arts
nio n sh i
c

h o ly

books

the sciences afford the sweetest compa

and driving away

enn u i

and melan

Yet what can compensate fo r that sacred

HA M ILT O N KIN G

1 92

returned to F rance but the distracted state of

,

that country offered no inducement whilst the

,

tenure

estates in the colony became every day

be

more and more precarious as the contests

,

tween the whites and the coloured people con

tin ned
C ul

O ften

were the delight ful plains o f the

de Sac stained with the blood o f the rival

parties and the smoke o f burning houses wasted

,

itsel f among the mountains

T o quit the colony

would nearly amount to a tacit resignation

of

all her property ; and though she had no relation

to whom she could bequeath whatever might be
disposable at her decease

yet her t houghts

reverted to her young p r otege as her heir and

,

she deemed it most prudent to remai n

present where she was

fo r

the

H istorical writers have expressed something

like wonder at the degree

of

apathy

hich

existed amongst the sla v es whilst the whites

,

and the

m u la toes

were contending in deadly

stri fe ; but it was not altogether apathy a

change o f masters from white to black would be

HAMILTO N KING
to

them only productive

of

1 93

g g
re

misery and

ter

sterner servitude and the more acute among

,

th em clearly foresaw that by keeping aloof they

wou ld therea fter be enabled to give weight to
either

o ne

party

their freedom

or

the other as the price

,

of

especially as the Britis h s q u a

dron occasionally paraded itsel f near the island

as i f desirou s o f gaining a footing on which to

,

plant the imperial ag

E ngland

H a milton frequently interrogated

u

pon the subj ect

ld

Q u aco

these quarrels as the foes

,

met and carried on their destructive warfare in

the plains beneath the m
from

but all he could glean

the steward was a mysterious shake

the head and

Em

daam rogue for cut

o ne

troat ; n em mi nd m a s sa when dey gone

a no der

dead dere be more roo m for we

,

Og e,

a native o f San Domingo who had been

,

educated in F rance a strict disciple o f the hate

ful Robespierre and for wh om the society
,

A mi des N o i r s

had purchased a lieutenant

colonel s co mmission in
V O L. I I

of

o ne

the Ger man

HAMILTO N KIN G

1 94

states to give
,

the forfeit
t he

h im

his

a military character paid

,

belliOn

re

by being broken

0 11

wheel a fter betraying his accomplices under

,

a promise that mercy should be extended to

wards him

T he man was hurried away to a

horrible death which he met with

,

d cowardice

an

T his breach

the impas sioned

feelings

of

of

u s il a ni mi t v

fait h

stirred

the mulattoes to

more deadly hatred and revenge ; for thoug h

they had been partially de feated yet they
,

lec ted

again in a formidable body

c ol

I t was s hortly after this that the slaves in

,

the north

encouraged by the mulattoes with

the promise
open revolt

f freedom ,

suddenly burst into

T he horrible details

ra pine

devastation and bloodshed which marked their

,

progress

/
,

wo uld shock humanity to peruse

E fforts were used to stay the r evolt

but the

whites were defeated and the victoriou s rebels

,

after losing thousands

of

their brethren mus

,

t ered i n

the plains o f the C ul de Sac with the

tention

of

making an attack on P ort

au

in

P rince

1 96

de

HAMILTO N KING

Sac was composed o f mulattoes who nding

,

that the negroes did no t j oin them contemplated

,

revenge
w

Several o f the neighbouring planters

hose estates had been devastated

to reach P ort
v

au

P rince and knew

,

with their families

shelter with M adame

tim e

ha d

no t

no t

where

to

Some o f these found

B r ieno t,

an d many

ho

had s tudiou sly a v oided all intercourse wit h the

w

i do w

on

account o f her creole blood were

,

no w

gl a d to solicit food to appease the cravings

hu nger
i nsults
t

heir
'

th e

B ut the generou s woman forgot her

in their distress and

,

no t

only supplied

ants but admitted them into her house

,

he steward

ha d

fo reseen the consequences

.

this hu m anity and procured arms to de fend

,

place should it be attacked

w
,

were n ight ly posted to give

proach

of

an enemy

otice o f the

cons ulted

on

a ll

H amilton was now in his

thirteenth yea r a bold resolute lad

,

hilst sentinels

hom Quaco

occasions and then followed

,

his o w n pl a ns in such a way

as

made it appear

th a t they emanated from the boy

HAMILTO N KIN G

197

do not think they wi ll attac k us

said

H amilton one evening to a ne little girl about

,

his o w n age the daughter o f one o f the planters ;

,

but i f they do E ulalie

,

the las t

defend

hat can

h ab big heart

alive

Y ou

and old head

no fo r suck a guava

but

ou

are all

ou

E m no nigger dere for my young massa

missy

returned Quaco angrily ;

ou

da n

him ski n

no

possible for tell who

da ddy in dis country

my young massa for

yourn

me b orn in E ngland

more fair

girl

are a lways speaking up for M onsieur

niggers alike and there s no believi ng

hi m

responded the steward ;

exclaimed the girl ;

do against such monsters

ou

j elly spoil him teet ; he bite hard for tr u e

A mi

to

returned the spoiled child

ou

N eber missy

ou

they will eat

I ll

P auvre petit

and

on t believe it Quaco
,

ou

3
,

screamed

tell me lies ; and i f you was at

Santa M artha my pa should give

whip !
,

t he

ou

the

H AMI L TO N K I NG

198

H e neher hab
missy

Ne m

whip a Santa M artha

he w hip

but checking himsel f from the as

too much
p

drily responded the steward

er i t

no der

wi t h which he had spoken he added

,

mind me massa E nglish for all dat

,

A re you E nglish now A mi P

,

girl petulantly
,

or

asked the

do you only say so b ecause

you don t want to obey me P

I am E nglish born in E ngland a t least

think so returned H amilton
but I will do

any t hi ng you wish

T hen

ou

are

answered the girl

y

ou

please d

or

request me to do

no t

feelings

you would only do what

'

or

E ul alie

honest pride
,

ha rr a
di m

ting

so metin

ma t

you tink now P

ith

in

eyes were lighted up

Darra E nglish all

darra country for me

,

hen I

with u nusual graticat ion

a bush or like

u ttered the boy

qui r ed Quaco as his

in

Dere missy

ober

a thorough true white

A nd I shall do what ple a ses me

serve you

neber

lib like crab

in a cane patch

E bery

good in E ngland ; and dere nig

HAMIL T O N KIN G

20 0

over him and he was going to fetch the hat

T an lily bit

when Quaco shouted in E nglish

,

massa me go for
,

him

cocoa nut case

appeared wit h the hat

re

which he presented to the youth

T hat s right

ol

and the

disdain ful black soon

baboon visage

exclaimed

H enri as he maliciously kicked the steward s

,

shins

Go get one plaster

T he rage

Q u aco was vented in words but

,

not so with H amilton

he

grasped the youth by

the collar and shook him vehemently whilst both

,

he and his sister seemed paralys ed by terror

You

are a guest under the roo f o f my bene

fa c t res s ,

exclaimed the excited lad

or I would

teach you what it is to feel pain yo ursel f by

,

inicting proper punishment

I

look ! pon

E h ! my

ou

H enceforwa r d

as a poltroon and a co w ard

G a ra mer c ie ,

massa

said Quaco ;

he no wonder for nigger volt and turn a

tio n spose get such u sage

IV ha t

is this noise

lady entering
,

th e

ev o u

H enri ,

exclaimed a

roo m in affright ;

ou

HAMILT O N K I N G

should re member
tha

20 1

are not at Santa M ar

ou

We know it and feel it

ma w m a ,

E ulalie as she ra n crying to her mother

,

did but j ust touch the old nigger

wanted to beat

him fo r

it

dra wled

H enri

an

Am i

T he lady s face reddened with anger as she

exclaimed
T he cruel brutes h ! my dear

children when shall we be in safety P

N ow touch me

if you

d are shouted H enri

wit h vindi ctive spite as he aimed another kick

,

at the steward ; but H amilton

w as

too

quick

fo r

him and darting forward he caught him by

,

th e

heel and sent

,

h im

sprawling

on

his back

N o thirsty tiger let loo se upon its prey could

pounce with greater fury than the lady did upo n
poor H amilton ; but the exertion ov erpowered
her animal spirits and she fell upon the oor
,

in

strong hysterics

E ulalie and her brother

indulged themselves in shrieking

M urder

bu t o ffered no assistance whatever to their fallen

mother

no r

did they indeed know what to do

K

H AMI L TO N

20 2

KING

as they had never been accustomed to think

to act for themselves ; but H amilton
down

tingly stooped

or

unh es i ta

and rendered what aid he

could whilst Q u aco ran to the sideboard

fo r

goble t o f water but by mistake snatched

decanter o f port wine which he emptied over

,

her face

T he screaming brought the lady s husba nd

ho ,

not having recovered

from

the horrible

spectacles he had wi tn essed was still u nder the

,

inuence

alarm and when he

,

sa w

his wi fe

prostrate and her dress apparently saturated

,

with blood and a negro kneeling over her

,

his

mind was instantly lled with terric im a ges :

darting forward he caught old Quaco by the
,

neck and threw

hi m

backward whilst the chil

,

dren came clinging round their father s knees

M urder ! murder
She i s i n a t said H amilton as he rose up
I ill h a sten to M adame Brien t and sum
m n the servants
T his he immediately per

still voc i ferating

o ,

'

1,

formed ,

at

the same ti me relat ing to the widow

204

HAMILTO N KI N G

who had eluded the vigila nce

watch

or ,

those upon the

what is more probable had contrived

,

to steal up during

th e

da y ,

and conceal them

selves amongst the trees T he negro at the gates

.

ha d

detected them and red and drew upon

,

himsel f a volley in return

All

now terror and dismay amongst the

w as

inmates

the hall
B ri eno t

in

the house who h u ddl ed together

,

in

a state o f distraction

M adame

was cool and collec ted as she vainly

,

strove to appease the minds

her guests and

,

urged the men to resistance whilst H amilton

,

collected all kinds

in their hands

own pistols :

offensive weapons to place

T o H enri he offered one o f his

bu t

the terried youth shrunk

:

back and clung round the neck

w

ho

his

shuddered and recoiled at the idea

E m daam

for J

ac

k so na pes

sieur A mi said Quaco in E nglish

,

me

her

ins tru

darling handling so dangerous a warlike

ment

massa no tan

fo r

coward M on
,

Ga r a m er c ie

darra piccaninny babby

HAMI LT O N KI NG

nigger sal hab him bum

p

o t.

by

20 5

for make pepper

9?

T he assailants approached ni gher to the dwell

ing when the domestic slaves each armed with
,

his musket and having th e whites amongst

,

them

took post in the bush

that screened

their huts fro m being seen from the residence

but as the results were o f a meritorio u s charac
ter they are cert ai nly deserving
,

chapter

of

fresh

C HAP TE R
F

TH E

re

i n de

m un t i n
o

residence o f the

VI

r u n,

bo y,

r un

Solitaire has already

been described as situated at the summit o f

an

eminence commanding a very extensive pano

,

rama

of

the surrounding country

A n articial

mound had been raised about the basement so

,

as to form a terrace
m ented with

on

each side tastefully orna

,

beauti ful tropical owers as well as

,

with the most delicate o f the prod uctions o f E u

rope whic h here found
,

genial temperature

Roses bloomed in rich perfection by the side

the magnolia ; and the parterre when seen at a

,

short distance resembled the multitudinous dyes

,

o f the rainbo w

KI N G

H A M I LTON

gunpowder rammed in as tight as possible

,

with a short fusee to each

Combustibles wer e

thickly strewn to ll up and an excellent train

,

laid

the whole o f the trench being agai n covered

over with

broke n

bottles pieces o f iron hoop

,

and such like missiles well stamped and rolled

,

down to give greater force to

an

explosion

H oles were also bored in the steps to some depth

and communications made with the chambers

which
each

er e loaded with two or three bullets

When the repo rts o f the

re

arm s announced

the attack upon the dwelling H amilton and

,

the steward carefully inspected

an

renewed

the trains ; and they also arranged the marble

gures along the

to p

o f the steps

a blue light a ffixed so as

to

'

pp

ea r

ach having
holding

it

in the hand Gunpowder and ligh t combustibles

were thickly strewed beneath so as to ignite the

,

lights as soon as the b laze asc ende

d
-

Ga r a mer c ie me,

m a ssa

said Quaco giving

a last look at his preparations

dem black

HAMILTON KI NG

20 9

nigger tink J u mbee sal hab chery

debbil fo r

see em

true

when he

o ne

T hey are close at hand Quac o

,

milton taking up his small rie

,

s a id

Ha

A way

a w ay old man ; get into the b u sh and don t let

,

a shot be red till

scheme

ou

see

effects o f

t he

o ur

You shall h a ve a good light Q uaco

resently
p

A n me massa tan here for daam bla a c k rascal

to kill P uttered Quaco imploringly

,

NO ,

no old man ; I shall lie down behi nd

,

this pedestal

returned H amilton

extended the train to it

P iddles ta l,

s ee ,

have

massa

said Quaco as he
,

looked at the spot where the youth was crouch

ing
In

E m pi ddles ta l

de bush

no keep

ou

from

de re

A nd this

was tr ue

desire to repel the

for
fo e,

H am ilton ,

in his eager

had forgotten that he

woul d be exposed to the re o f his friends

though partially screened from that
advancing enemy

You

of

the

are right Quaco

,

HA M ILT O N KIN G

21 0

responded he
done

but still something must be

I f I leave this the train cannot be red

,

and all

our

plans will be frustrated

close here ; I
man

ca n

hear them tread

point out my

s 1 t u a tio n

T hey

a re

Run old
,

to your party and

,

do not let a musket be presented till you see

me retreating into the house
stand P

Do you under

E ees

me massa
,

returned the steward still

lingering between affection for the youth and

fear

meeting the re v olters ;

orders good dis time

him

A shot

me do your
w

histled past

G a ra m er c ie !

spose me no dere ;
laid concealed

dem nigger ina bu sh re

and he ran to the party that
,

T he insurgen t leaders were surprised when

they met

WI th

no opposition

and began to

imagine that the house was deserted the inha

,

bita nt s

having escaped do w n the other side

the hill

G a tea u d,

the n egro chief

found

it

di fcult to repress his men from at once rushing

forwar d ,

and commencing the work

of

plunder

21 2

HA MILTO N

KING

their mere position ; but still every thing con

t in u e d

er
f
ectly
p

uiet
abou
t
t
h
e
house
q

The

main bo dy was now exposed and without shelter ;

but their dark skins mingled with the shades
,

the shrubbery in the back ground prevented

-

them fro m being discerned by the slaves in the

bush

H amilton however co ld clearly dis

t i ng u i s h

the whole ; and his young heart beat

tumultuously as he

them cautiously

sa w

vance and pour a volley into the house

,

balls

whistling fearfully

him some o f t hem

rIn

ad

the

on

each side and abo v e

In

against the pedestal

o f the statue behind which he laid concealed

A ush o f feverish excitement burned upon his

cheeks ; his small hands trembled as he anxiously

,

aited for the moment to re the train ; and a

sickening sensation crept u pon his heart as the

,

thought

of

failure crossed his mind

B ut very little time was allowed him to con

tin ne thus T he volley
.

been ans w ered

the assailants

ha d

no t

all rem a i ned in tranquil silence

till the insurgents fully satised that the pl a c e

,

HAMILTO N KING

21 3

defended,

w a s un

ea ra nc e

r u shed

for the steps

o f the marble gures deterred them

the moment fro m ascending

tinc tly

T he a p

fo r

fo r

they were dis

visible standing in spectre like attitude

-

to oppo se their way ; and negro superstition

gave them a character

of

supernatural horror

T he rebels came huddling thickly together over

the mine H amilton saw the period f r action
o

had arrived

I n an instant little st reams

,

hissing fi re were seen running

tions to the great terror
,

in

various

the insurgents

dir ec ~
.

combustibles beneath the gures ignited

b laz ed

T he
an

setting re to the blue lights that

,

cast a spectral hue upon the statues and threw

,

a s tro ng illumination
rounded them

frig ht arose from the a s sail

the very steps dealt out death amongst

them

every obj ect that sur

A wild cry

ants

on

he a r d

when suddenly a loud explosi on

and mangled bodies

and

limbs were tossed into the air whilst a

,

w as

shattered
des t r u c

tive re came stream i ng from every window

HAMILTO N KING

214

the house and every bush and tree in its

,

bo u rh oo d

nel g h

A s in most such cases those who

,

were in the rear not kno w ing what was going

,

on

in front pressed forward to ascertain and

,

thus became ex posed to their opponents till the

heaps o f dead and dying kept constantly accu
,

m u la ting

dresse d in a blue uni form richly

Ga tea u d,

embroidered

ith a scarlet sash

his waist ru shed

f the

ound round

the steps and caught sight

retreating H amilton at whom he presented

,

his ri e and red

T he boy fell and the giant

,

wavi ng his monstrou s cocked hat cheered

,

his men to the attack and boldly

,

without looking behind him

striving to crawl away

led

on

the way

H amilton

w as

hen the rebel chie f

approached with hi s rie cl ub bed to nish by

,

a blow what the shot had left incomplete

youth rai sed himsel f upon
again ; yet still he grasped
his hand

d,

an

o ne

h is

T he

knee bu t fell
,

piece rmly in

j u st as the butt o f his enemy was

swinging forward to descend upo n his head the

,

HAMILTO N KING

21 6

E nlevez moi mon ami

-

the same huskiness

H e tella

h im

li ft

Saam

M on sieur Jacques

a ce o
-

up

exclaimed

W h a r r a for him dead

do here peak

o s s i er

said H amilton in

tone and unable to move

me fo r

Quaco in great alarm

H ere M onsieur

me ?

where dem daam

club nose nigger gone P

Oh,

mon Dieu

mon Dieu

uttered

Ha

milton whose ideas had become bewildered from

,

the pain o f his wound and the stunning blow

he had received in the giant s fall

donnez

moi

Well

boire

the steward making

dere
u

fo r

true

ej aculated

his mind to run away ;

de d ead man wan t for drink

w

h a r ra

dis P

I,

Quaco P

said H amilt on in
,

E nglish and more in his own tone

,

have been asleep I think

,

o f me

me daddy

Wh ere am

to p

him debbil
,

Q uaco

of

voice

What is this

on

the

H a a ng

de

debbil !

more terried th an ever ;

bla im ed Quaco

ex

dis beat

bery

ting

HAMILTO N KING

H ere

bo y !

missy for

you all got P

A m a ra nthe

his voice as

of

he was beset

What ails you

he
in fernal spirits

by

ol

me

o ff

to be seen by

Me

be

man P sa id H amilton

ow

rascal

verily

I reme mber every thing n

where

and again he shouted over the

names at the top

liev ed

N a nc hy

Saam

me

P luto ! Jacques ! Wenus !

21 7

Take this rebel

and he struggled into view so as

t he

steward

Ga r a m er c ie !

me you ng massa

ex

claimed i he negro dimly comprehending how

,

the case stood

where
get

me look

you all dis time

fo r

dere,

hP

em nigger gone P

bery

de

H ow

H ere Saam J

where some

ac

debbil y o u

N ever mind where they are Quaco

,

H amilto n ,
-

impatiently ;
F r e nch

oss

ifer ,

turned the steward as

,

he

nance fro m the corpse

Dead

V OL

II

or

al ive

ith his weight

drew back with

ff

me

M onsieur A mi
he de a d man

said

roll this body

am almost su ffocated
H im

where

u es

re

re

p g
u

said H amilton vexed at

,

HA MIL T ON KIN G

218

the conduct

the man

you are an

not to release me from the incumbrance

at once

I will nev er

or

ea k

to

ld fool

Do it

agai n !

ou

Thus urged Quaco trie d with his foot to turn

,

the huge bo dy over but without avail ; and at

,

last hal f maddened and driven to

ex t rem i t

by

H amilton s revilings he stooped down and

,

with his u tmost strength turned the corpse face

,

upwards

Em

daa m nigger

for

true massa

'

99

exclaimed the steward contemptuously as the

,

colour

the skin

w as e

xposed to V iew

how

he come here

I killed him
and he fell
in the leg

on

said H am ilton

the top o f me as I l a id wounded

I fear Quaco it is broke

,

E m broke

nigger

fo r

break

he

dead now

hi

he gave the senseless body a kick

'

shrieked the steward ;

da t

leg broke P

i
l
q

u et v

leg

fo r

m?

mas s a

and

nem mind

massa get well again ?

N ow li ft me in you r arms Quaco and carry

,

me to my room
ing much p a in

said H amilton

w
,

ho

w as

su ffer

T he negro complied an d as
,

HAMILT O N K I NG

22 0

T he return
the fugitives
were

the p a rty who had

ursued
p

showed that but

inj ured

of

whilst the

fe w

of

number

the m
slain

of

amongst the insurgents was very great and

,

there could not be a doubt but they would be still

more disheartened when they heard
of

the fate

their brave and daring chie f whose li fe they

,

believed had hitherto been preserved by a charm

W elcome was the intelligen ce to M adame

'

B r ieno t

the intrepidity and courage which

young H amilton displayed

fallen

T he sword

the

chie f a superb richly mounted sabre

-

with all h is a ppointments were brought to the

,

youth

and placed at his disposal

and the

numero u s guests who occupied the building all

,

united in his praise

B ut the brave lad laid

on

his bed su ffering

,

great pain ; the ball had broken the small bone o f

his leg completely

in t w

o,

and passed out at the

opposite side to its entrance

Surgery

little cultivated in that district but

,

w as

set by the individual

ho

w as

t he

but

bone

doctored th e

HAMILTON
negroes aided by Quaco
,

ri enc e

in s u ch matters

KING
w

ho

the

22 1

had some

ex

i n a m m a tio n

sid ed and he was doing very well

,

su

T he repulse given to the rebels together with

,

the death

f Ga tea u d,

led to amicable arrang e

ments between the whites and

colour

P eace

was

fo r

t he

people

a time restored

but

of

wherever the eye turned nothing was to be seen

but plantations laid waste buildi ngs
d hundreds

an

ashes

in

reduced to misery and want

T he

Sa ntho na x , P o lv er el,

and

others arrived and it was not long before

th e

F rench commissioners

smouldering ame again burst forth and hosti

,

lities

were renewed

th e commi ssioners secretly

tampering with the negroe s to demand their

freedom

No r

approach

was this climax tardy in its

the slaves were declared free and

,

they embra c ed the boon to the most unlimited

extent

nature in its wildest state

of

T he

Code

Nai r had indeed been framed fo r their future

government ; but
amounted
whatever

to

the

negro idea

of

freedom

self will un fettered by any restrain t

-

T hey kne w nothing

of

codes

they

HA MILTON KING

22 2

had su ffered pe rsecution and were determined

,

to re taliate upon those w h o had inicted punish

ment

E very white man that did not escape

was murdered

the fe m ales were reserved

a less enviable doom before the seal

impressed upon their fate

fo r

f death

w as

A t the outset the slaves

on

Solitaire

ad

hered

most faith fully to their mistress ; but the force

example coupled with the declaration

of

of

entire freedom soon made them neglect their

,

ork and a li fe
,

o ffered
esta te
ful

wild and la w less plunder

strong an inducement to abandon the

to o

P arty

of

by party they quitted the delight

fe w

spot , a

only re m ai ning to cultivate the

'

pl a nt ain and fruit grounds

fo r

'

their own

sistence and to pass the residue

of

volupt u ousness and indolence

O f the

sla v es at the residence

of

M adame

their time

th e women left her

handed

fo r

she pleased

T hus

no r

b
in

domestic

B ri eno t ,

Q u aco and another or two remained

o

su

only

the whole

did they go empty

each without restraint took what

,

ituated

M adame

B rieno t found

it

HAMILTO N KIN G

2 24

human breast ; and the being

fro m the operations

ho

may su ffer

thy in fluence to day

-

will exercise thy unholy

sway to morrow

h im

the opportunity

should power afford

Sterne s negro had su ffered persecution and

,

learned mercy
and a gem

'

Doubtless the picture is pretty

pretty

because

imagin a tion rather t han reality

is unique

from

it paints

gem

fo r

it

I am getting an old man now

and through

m any

years

of

arduous service

I h ave almost invariably found that the most

severe commanders are those who came in
at the hawse holes
-

in other words were

or,

raised from before the mast ; and the greatest

cruelties

on

board a slave ship have been

-

practised by those negroes who have been

placed as overlookers

the rest

But to pro c e ed with my tale

through several weeks
stationary

on

of

H amilton

con finement remained

,

his bed ; and though he endured

great pai n and stiffness through the unchange

,

ableness

of

hi s position yet in the end

,

he

HAMILTO N KING
rea ped his reward
united
he

the

fractured

limb

became rm and in three months

an

able

w as

fo r

225

walk about W ith the aid

to

of

crutches which after two months more were

,

thrown
as

rm

side and in another he moved along

,

as ever

H is prowess at the Solitaire

had been talked

o f,

and applauded by the

colonists but remained unnoticed by the com

,

missioners

who viewed the widow and

belonging

to

at length

F rance

her with a j ealous eye

determined her to

a ll

which
fo r

embark

whither she had already remitted

ample funds to enable her to pass the residue

o

her day s in a ffluence

T hus determined she lost no time in put

,

ting her scheme into execution and Obtaining

,

a passage in a ves sel that was about to sail ;

her plate and valuables were sent aboard
be immediately landed again
to the coffers

of

H amilton

and Quaco embarked and the widow

the point

of

following ,
L

to

and consigned

the commissioners
,

w as

on

when she was suddenly

3

226

HAMILTO N K I NG

arrested
her

ow n

a nd

subsequently made prisoner in

house

whilst the v essel purc hased

her anchors and was soon und er a cloud

,

canvas

rounding Cape N icholas M ole

the angry feelings

and

pushing be tween San Domingo and C ub a

T he suddenness

their departure aroused

H amilton ; but

he

was

powerles s to act and to do the captain every

,

j u stice he warmly commi serated his situation

,

assured him that he had been compell ed

a nd

to put instantly to sea

o

by

being sunk

refusal

Quaco

w as

the service

under the penalty

the batteries in case

incon solable ;

he would have devoted

to

any

fo r

though

thing but his li fe

H amilton yet he was stro ngly

,

attached to his mistres s and he feare d some

,

thing fatal had happened

fact s

to

the captain a dishonest

ou t

hesitation

B i

fo r

the r eal

the case were unknown to all

w as

r eno t s

her

ma n,

placed whatever

No r

as he with
,

M adame

had been saved from the gr asp

the commissioners entirely at the dispo sal

of
o

HAMILTO N KIN G

22 8

sailers when close hauled and as the

of

was light she made but little way

m ost

point

of

ind

T he eastern

Cuba was dimly visible and all

,

seemed snug and safe ; when suddenly a bright

,

of

ash followed by the b ooming report

,

indicated the presence

of

a gun

a vessel on the weather

bow ; yet nothing could be seen to conrm s uch

idea

an

no sail li fted itself above the horizon

was there the slightest appearance

no r
o

any description

a craft

I t was a clap

th u nder

said the F rench

captain raising himsel f fro m the pain ful position

,

which he had been earnestly straining his

in

eyes ;

we shall have a tempest

E m no tunde r massa argued Quaco

,

ha d
a

st o od with

hi s

N ot thunder M r I vory ?
,

i f offended

had tak en ;
th

retorted the

with the liberty the negro

but I say

it

was thunder ; and

ere s a stor m brewing to

Wind w

ho

arms folded and looking

nxiously at H amilton

captain as

ho uld you know about thunder ?

ard

what

HAMILTON KING

Noting massa
,

responded the A frican

with a deep a ffectation

humility ;

nigger neher know noting

,

his shoulders

229

me poor

and he shrugged

What do you think it is Quaco P said

,

Ha

milton in English as the captain walked fo r

ward to give directions to his mate to make
,

preparations fo r resisting the expected gale

What me tink M onsie u r A mi ? responded

Quaco

h
a s,
p
p

me sabby noting

like massa captain

from

experience ;

E h me massa
tunder den
,

for

nonsense

w as

, o

it thunder

man
ou

not 9

or

h a r r a fo r y o u

ld

I know

the youth

b lie v e

T his is no time
m o ns tr a ted

ou

re

j udge

angry ? em no

answered the negro pettishly

,

we leab em daa m nigger on a hiland where

bla ac k

massa kill him

re i nto de
Y ou

fr y

rascal

fo r

om

out 0

de

pan no !
,

talk in riddles Quaco

,

sa id H amilton

as he rose impatiently and took a turn

,

on the quarter deck ;

-

tell me let it a lone

,

if y o u

or

two

don t choose to

HA M ILTO N KI N G

230

A nd what

do

you make

a ft,

the captain again coming

,

the negro

3
,

w as

it thunder

or

it now

said

and addressing

not P

H amilton stopped in his walk to listen to the

A frican s reply ; and was both surprised and

vexed when he heard him say

Yes massa

me tink him tunder spose ma ssa pleases

,

A y,

I knew that well eno ugh

aid the

captain in a more goo d humoured tone ;

-

to be

sure it was thunder though it sounded very

,

much like

t he

report

of

a gun

Bery much like a gun massa

,

negro with a sort

,

assented the

low chuckling laugh that

reached H amilton s ea rs though it passed

un

observed by the busy bustling captain

care fully scanning the aspect
Y ou

f the

ho

heavens

w as

are practising deception Q uaco

,

whispered H amilton

grily ;

an

hy

d o you

no t

give him your honest O pinion at once

Tan li ttly

bit saftly

m assa ,

negro in the same low tone ;

neher believe spose he

no s ee

em

he like

returned the
ew ,

We ha v e generally such intimations

said

23 2

HAMILT O N KIN G

heavy

un

was heard thoug h where the shot

Silence
d

o n ed

ea silv

ascertained

you coast

G u inea

devil

Do n t stand there but

go and lend the people a h and to make sail

fo r

E m sailor know best

steer

inquired the

doubtingly ; and then

,

young gentlem a n

turning to

I s that the fact

does yo u r servant under

stand the helm ?

fo r

said

H amilton he asked him

running

W hat ! can you

,

but spose massa like me

ake de tiller

dat massa

Quaco quietly ;

captain

re

the captain with anger and vexation

at being overreached

Remember

our lives

we are now

I believe he can steer answered the youth ;

he tells me he has been several years trading

amongst the islands

I will tru st him then

,

mourn fully
tance

to

'

went was not so

s

said the captain

every hand i s

us in this crisis

of

and

grea t impor
if

condescend to pull a rope with u s

vou will

HAMILTON KING

I am ready

do

to

assented the youth ;

rance
ling

and

ou

2 33

any thing you wish

only instruct my

igno

will nd me active and wil

F or th e present stand by the binnacle

,

returned the affrighted

and see that

m a n,

your servant keeps her head u ndeviatingly

to that point

the

s tu dn s els

directing
his
(

whilst I go forud and get

attention to it

the compass

her

on

H e looked out aba ft

to psel

Sacre ! there utters the schooner s

in the wind and

no w

it is as sti ff as a board

she is making sail and I fear

,

the shado w
Quaco

w e

a chance to escape

have not

quietly stationed himsel f

at the

tiller as the captain ran forward to encourage

.

his people ; and H amilton placed himsel f as

directed

l ternately

his eye

directed to the

compass in the binnacle and the stranger that

w as

in hot pursuit

E m picaroon

fo r

tru e me massa
,

said

the A frican attending most rigidl y to his steer

,

HA M ILTO N KING

2 34
i ng ,

so that the card scarcely vibrated

ei ther side

of

lubber s point

neh er see de day

horse

hi m

A s fo r run away

come along bum

and dere go em tunder again

on

by

like

A bright flash was followed by a peculiar

whistling sound that passed close to H amilton
,

and the negro

an

then a lou d report

s uc

Quaco bobbed down his head as a

c eeded

tortoise draws his snou t under his shell and

,

the rst time the brig gave a sligh t yaw

are

fo r

You

keeping your course Q uaco said H a

milton angrily ;
either resig n the helm o r
no t

pay mor e attention

E es massa
,

wit h fright
pea k dere

answered the negro trembling

,

but you no hear de hurricane

and he tried to laugh

nigger sabby noting

It
w as

w as

E m poo r

pretty evident that the vessel in chase

making sail and unless a cruiser

,

or

some

miracle intervened it was equally certain that

,

the brig must fall into their hands ;

less the captain
,

an

nev er th e

d the crew bestirred them

2 36

HAMILTON KING

feeling

time

dem

E h how

nigger j ump darra

do not wish to recall the remembrance

that horrible ev ening

ing ;

sa id H amilton shudder

they brought it upon themselves ; whilst

these fellows will massacre u s in cool blood

cause we are defenceless

H ere massa
,

be

whispered the steward draw

,

ing something mysteriously fro m beneath his

w

aistcoat

here

i
c c a nni nn
p
y

he put into the hands

gun

fo r

you

and
of

the youth a brace

pistols presented to him by M adame

B r ieno t

I fear these will be useless Quaco said H a

milton shaking his head mourn fully ;

though

I would not W ish to die unresistingly like a

,

coward

E ber y

ting ob use some time

returned the negro

em black dog
no

A li,

or

h
a s
p
p

Spo se massa no shoot

,

he shoot em blue monkey

dis h a rd times

fo r

we
,

I wish I h ad my rie handy Quaco

the youth

oder

as recollections

forced

said

themse lves

HAMILTON KING
upon his m ind

F etch it

2 37

deck Old man

on

and we ll divide the pistols between us

steward went below and soon returned

T he

with the weapon which was carefu lly deposited

,

inside

f an

empty hen coop

-

What are you doing fo rud

shouted the
captain as he observed the m en ve y busily em
r

ployed about some unusual labour between the

two masts

T hey re going

to

get the long boat

-

answered the mate coming

,

ft

o u t,

to his superior ;

they re bent upon it and Hermann is at their

,

head

T hat must never be

exclaimed the cap

tain eagerly as a sickening fear ran cold to hi s

,

hea rt ;

the vessel must not shall not be

,

abandoned
Qua c o

G uinea addressing

take the helm and steer her steady

,

h ea r

H ere coast

ee

E es massa me hear em
,

taking hold
signed
keeta eye

ou

said the negro

the tiller which the captain

,

re

see me tick a j ib boom in a mus

~

and he tried to l a ugh

23 8

HAMILTO N KING
How

men ! what is all this P said the cap

tain as he went forward ;

,

you shipped

fo r

the vo yage ; will y o u desert your craft because

there may be danger in sight

The seame n remained passive

nutes

till H ermann

fo r

few m i

the boatswain

a t a ll

you sir
,

w e

Why loo k

robust gigantic S wede answered

,

shipped in L e Bon M ari to navi

gate her to Bordeaux all well and good and

,

w e

are ready to do

weather sea risks

,

ou r

and

duty against wind and

fair

dealing enemies ;

but to stop here with the certainty

,

tortured rst and have

wards is no par t o f the ship s articles

,

What then do you mean to do

It s
o fficer

being

9
.

inquired

I m still master here and must

and will be obeyed

throats cut after

our

the captain

no

m anner

of

use t rying to top the

returned H ermann with determination

,

We have consulted together beca u se it should

,

not be said by the ins u rers that

hand in

i t

ou

had any

and we mean to hoist the boat

o u t,

H A MILTON

240

boatswain rmly
,

own head

if

KIN G

I shall take it upon my

she is a friend we can come back

,

she is what you and I

if

again in sa fety ; but

assuredly believe her to be it will be

,

to shove

upon the

ff

s ta

wh en she s alongside

t
a c k les ,
y

T his is mutiny
a v oice
pistols

men

no use

sway away

sho u ted the captain

desperation

In

Boy bring me my
,

I will shoot the rst man who disobeys

T his is ran k mutiny

whispered Q u aco to H amilton

mi nute you see

em

bum

by

responded H er

mann rmly b u t respect fully

it is not mu tiny

but sel f preservation

w e

are willing to

ter any thing but rascally pirates

us no mercy
w as

h ea ting

fo r

on

not bringing to

to pieces

li ttly

tan

I t is not mutiny captain

-

N ow me massa take care piccaninny gun

,

enc o u n

ho

will shew

If

the brig

the rock s would you

,

have u s stick by her and be drowned whe n there

,

was a chance

getting sa fe ashore ?

Certainly not

ans w ered

the captain

HAMILTO N KING
promptly

no

suc h a thing
ferent ;
fear

an

at the bottom

it will be

no

idely

dif

there is no

will very soon be in

or

B ut the cases are

her going to pieces

S he

in his sense s could expect

the brig is not on the rocks

of

C uba

o ne

24 1

o ne o

the creeks o f

returned H ermann ;

use telling the kni fe not

to cut when you feel the sharp edge scraping

your throat

It s

sel f preservation
-

fo r

sel f preservation captain

-

and you can t blame us

H igh enough men ; haul ta u t

,

t he

yard tackles
-

But you are nding the longitude without

making proper calculations, urged the captain

when

ou

quit the brig she wi ll run into the

,

wind and catch aback

s ta ntl

soul

away

the schooner will

in

suspect the cause and will not su ffer a

,

f yo u

to escape as you cannot get

,

fa r

I ve thought f that returned the boat

swain
O ne m n must remain aboard to keep

her in her course

A nd
V OL

II

ho

do you expect will be so sel f

M

HAMILTO N KING

242

devoted ? asked the captain as an inkling

,

the other s meaning ashed acros s his mind

exclai med H erman n with a

Seldev o ted

laugh

captain
t

derision

of

N O no its

ou t

expect a shipmate

to

of

natur

do such a

to

hing ; but a dark skinned nigger who is

-

better than a superior

ou

so

rt

of

no

ourang outang
-

93

know
Y o u fo r

daam rascal

M onsieur

R a ngo o

interrupted Quaco una ble to suppress his

T ang

indignant feelings and instantly becoming fully

,

se nsibl e to the boatswain s intentions

R a ngoo

T ang ,

yousef

fo r

You

white libber

o ne

nigger

L et

h im

blow his squall out

said the

S w ede ; whilst H a milton s heart swelled almost

,

to bursting with rage at the horrible proposal

,

E ase

ff the

stays

lower away my lads

,

go

overhaul the stays

o

No w

f
,

all

th e

boats w ain

lower a w ay handsom ely

bear her

o ff

the side

let

Bear a hand and unhook the tackles

boys

continued

fo r

your traps

244

HA

steward

MILTO N KING

with seeming indi fference

see em country come dere ?

Y ou

pointing

the

to

schooner with his chin

spose you leab me

behind de helm go hard down an me tell em

for

tr u e

here he boat go

You will

swain in a tone
,

will you
o

exclaimed th e boat

impetuous a nger ; and return

ing from the gangway with a heavy handspi ke

in his hand

You ll split upon u s eh

then

by the holy father I shall stop your mouth

fore

be

we go and let the brig take her chan c e

,

H e raised the weapon

Captain have you los t all humani ty and
,

coura ge ? demanded H amilton

m anly

rushed before the tall and powerful S w ede

will not see my servant inj ured
of

the pistols Quaco

ing it added
,

be

he cocked one

h a d give n him ,

Stand back

as

and present

fellow

o ffer to

strike him and I will blo w your brains

,

out

O h very well ; very well young gentle

,

man

said the retreating boatswain awed by

,

the daring conduct

y

ou

of

the yo u th

P erhaps

would pre fer remaining with him

HAMILTO N KIN G
I f you

refuse to take him

certainly shall

245

in

the boa t I
,

responded H amilto n

been everything to me
not desert him now

he has

childhood and I

in

ill

O h no no no me massa sai d Qu a co in a

voice shaken by emotion ;

poor mi ssy in a hiland do

T ang

R a ng oo

at the Swede

g
for

fes ted

ery

'

3)

I f the

what

me

and he grinned sp itefully

alongside
said the

to

the gangway

T his i s folly

boatswain

sheer fool

we cannot delay
get into the bo at

to

I will throw him overboard ;

if

shall be betrayed ; and as die we must

w e

the rst to fall A nd after all what is it

,

one

for

sides being a nigger and

,

the sa fety
no t

of

the rest

w e

wil l

return and die aboard the brig but he shal l

.

he will not steer

the craft and keep her steady in her course

of

impatience began to be mani

black rascal attempts

sacrice

be

brea k her heart

T he capt a in walked forward

as sym p toms

me onl y poor nigger

go and leab Quaco

only

be

the
Be

suppo sed to have

HAMILTON KING

24 6

na t r al

un d ers tanding he has every chance

not being hurt

gentleman

I will

or

Will

ou

ith us young
,

not ?

abandon the negro

no t

responded

I will stay with

him at all haz a rds fo r I honestly tell y o u I
u t mo r e trust in him than I do in
ou
p
y
A s you please young man said the boat
H amilton with rmness ;
,

swain t u rning hastily towa rds the gangway ;

,

but

a ft ,

in s tantly running

again exclai med

H alloo what does t his mean ?

dropping rapidly astern
back

fo r

me

Captai n

the boat was

Sacre nomme ! put

By all the infernals but she s

mate

P aulo

will not hear m e and I am lost

,

Samson

o ff

they

H e threw him

sel f O n the deck grinding his teeth and ventin g

his wrath i n impr ecation s
,

W hen the cap tain wen t to the gangway to

quell

th e

denly

i mpatience

caught hol d

of

the men he
,

a nd

w as

sud

dragged in by the

mate ; and though at rst he appeared angr y

yet

in

his heart he rej oice d at the p rospect

HAMILTO N KING

2 48

C HA P TE R
She

di

r v et

f ll
o

On a s

VII

an a gl w ul d wh n th li g h tni ng
e

h im

ow

d n ill h e d ec k e c h arg d u p t
y im
da k an d
A nd h e p o t d i n k in th e f a min g b in e
ma dd nin g t am
W i th g u glin g un d an d th e m an f ne h d r e am
a fe a ful d eam

t
A nd plu ng eth o w
t h e v er b r
r

r s

s re

so

ar

H E R M A N N did not long retain his prostrate

position

on

he slowly raised himsel f

the deck

and as the light from the binnacle fell upon his

countenance it showed deep traces
,

H is courage

if

he ever had any

d espair

was entirely

evaporated ; his mental energies and his animal

spirits were completely subd u ed ; the strong man
seated hi m self by the companion and wept
,

And

no w

Quaco

said H amilton eyeing

the boatswai n with contempt

what

do y o u

HAMILTON KING
propose that we should do ?
aboard directly

249

enemie s will be

ou r

M e see em

massa

returned the black

with seeming carelessness as to the result ;

low

debbil wriggle

guinea gr ass

em

al ong like a snake in a

A y,

what

s ha

ll

do ?

w e

inquired the

S w ede in mourn ful accents and wringing hi s

,

hands in fearful anticipation

Em

fo r

nigger neh er sabby

returned Quaco

know noting

deliberately as he steadily
,

eyed the compass and then began

,

lo w

hum in a

to

tone
Me

an

In
J oh

nn y

Me

ose

ose

Well well
,

but we should

me

ol

of

ow n

bear malice
conciliation
m

man I

em s o

bo ot

to these seas and I

,

no t

swain in a tone

o e,

a p il t b at
m y d a ddy d a ddy

In

Oh !

s o oe

can
c m win d

o ld

Oh

me

I was wrong ;
said the boat
You a re used

not ; besides I con fes s

,

HAMILTO N KI NG

250

my thou ghts are bewildered : cannot

o

f some m eans o f g I V I ng

H ow he tink

a chance

us

R a ngoo

think

ou

T ang sabby noting

rej oined Quaco evidently enj oying the other s

,

R a ng oo

distress

Tang

how he skin him banana

no

for

tell em buckra

exclaimed the

Don t drive me desperate

S w ede in a hoarse voice ;

,

beat

in

s ef,
w

ow n

dead

am

man oeuvring and meant to play you a

,

scurvy trick

M assa put

him nger

in a split stick

he

returned the A frican with a low chuckle ;

,

hy

he no go dow n in a hold and creep in

,

em run spose he can

,

I should soon be discovered there

sented th e Swede with a shake
,

no

f his head

dis

no

that wi ll never do ; besides they might set

,

the brig

Em

no want

on

re

neber

fo r

do dat

light a b

buckra come
But

a s serted Quaco ;

ea c o n

to tell

h im

man

dey
-

war

they may scuttle her

persisted the

252

AMI L TO N KI N G

was presented withi n a foot

his head and he

,

t urned round and once more seat ed himsel f by

,

the companion muttering curses

,

Em

horse trough in a squall massa

-

the negro addressing the youth ;

,

dere g o

r a m erc ie

no der

de tunder

and

said
Ga

time more

Several brigh t ashes succeeded each other

fro m

the schooner ; but it was evident by the

,

reports that the g u ns were pointed broad away

,

from
w

the brig

a nd

l most

immedi ately a fter

ards loud yells and shrieks

the bre eze

ere borne upon

T he boatswai n almo st

t hr e w

hi s

enormous body forward to the bul w ark where

,

his look b ecame intently xed as he knelt with

,

his nec k extending over the quarter

arose another

ild cry

f despai r ;

A gain

whilst the

Swede gave way to the indulgence o f a demoniac

laugh ,

boat

bottom
th e

as he exclaimed

T hey ve seen the

they ve hit her and all will go

,

N ow

best you can

the brig

to

be

d man ,

ol

fo r

t o th e

let go the helm and do

,

yoursel f T hey will believe

.

wholly deserted let

the tiller

fo r

say

HAMILTON KIN G

253

Quaco hesitated to obey ;

and

young gentleman bear a hand and stow your

,

sel f away they will never believe that a sin gle

soul would remain behind
ag ain !

there go her guns

T he schooner had evidently discovered the

fugit i ves,
from

though they were no longer visible

the brig

nd h a d

taken the means already

described to destroy what they considered the

w

hole crew at one stroke

Quaco let go the

tiller as ordered and the brig deviated wildly

,

in her course yawing about without guidance

,

and without control

forward ,

T he boatswain ran hastily

and they saw no more

of

him

Quaco

advised H amilton to ascend to the main top and

-

lie close and snug whilst

,

according
the

ol

to

man

be

circumstances
an

shi fted

him sel f

fo r

T he youth bade

affectionate farewell

procured a powder horn

a nd

d h a v ing
'

an

some bullets he
,

slung his rie at his back and mounted the

,

rigging
to

When he reached

ascertain

if the

A frican

or

the t o p,

he looked

the Swede

ere to

25 4

AMILT O N KING

be seen but the deck Wa s deserted and the da rk

,

ness grew more dense and gloomy

T he breeze as
,

if

conscious that restraint

at an end pursue d its

,

ow n

w as

extravagant antics

with the brig driving her hither and thither in

,

sheer wantonness whilst the vessel like a play ful

,

colt unwilling to be caught and haltered seem

,

ed by her

entine

se

her pursuer

wake determined

bafe

to

But onward came the schooner

and to the eyes

H amilton there seemed

to

be

two lofty trees with t heir graceful foliage grow

,

ing upon an almost imperceptible sli p

so

strange

was

t he

land

comparison bet w een the

pirate s long low hu ll that scarcely rose abo ve

,

the level

the water and her tall aspiri ng

,

spars with their broad but l ight spread o f duck

,

Her deck was not brilliantly

illu mi na ted, b u t

there was su fc ient ligh t streaming from three o r

four
ceiv e

ship s lanterns to enable the youth

that she

tu rbed

w as

full

men

to

and

fr o

-s

ho , like

spirits th at troubled the deep

ing res tlessly

per

to

'

w ere

dis

mo v

HA MILT O N KING

25 6

ribald jest and the wrath fu l curse ascended

,

alo ft mingled with the crashing sounds o f break

,

ing open ca ses and cas ks

a nd,

as the work

proceeded it became evident that the marauders

,

were indulging their propensities

fo r

liquor to

an excess th at not only threatened the safety

the brig but even their
,

ow n

lives

of

T he Bon M ari had been brought

to

the w ind

with the main topsail to the mast and directly o n

-

her weather beam laid the schooner with but

-

little canvas abroad What had become

.

negro

the

the Swede H amilton could not conj ee

or

ture but he fervently hoped theyhad found

,

place

concealment where they might remai n

secure till the plunderers were wearied with

destruction and quitted the craft

T he boats

were engaged in removing stores provisions

,

and whatever

w as

onsidered valuable

schooner and the heart

,

at the apprehension

Of

to the

the youth sickened

that probably some one

might ascend to the top and discover h i m to the

,

demons

ho

would instantly hurl him into

the

HAMILTO N KING
ocean

o
r
,

th e

what was still more probable

torture be fore the n al act

if heavy feet

be

the tragedy

f
o

the rigging

were balanced on the rattlins and

,

grasped his rie determined to de fend him

,

self to the last

or else it
th

apply

Several times he felt the shaking

as

257

eboat
!

w as

but they either descended again

caused by some sudden transit to

pwards o f t w o hours had thus passed in ago

ni z ed

suspense ; the breeze continued to freshen

gradually backing round

sea

to

the north west ; the

-

getting u p and curling its head in anger

when all at once a loud shout was heard forward

w as

hich

In

quarter deck
-

s tr a tio n

fe w

minutes was borne

a ft

to

'

the

but what had caused the demo n

H amilton could not well discover ; yet

he thought he could distinguish amidst the de

,

of o

a v o ic e

j y
precatory mourn fulness was entr ea ting fo r mercy
moniac demonstrations

that in de
,

O h what a moment
,

found

w as

that

Could they have

the African or the Swede

,

would they

be tray his position ? were questions that he has

258
tily

HAMILTO N KING
p

from

ut

to

himsel f

the big round d rops oo z ed

as

his skin as ev idences o f his agony

,

But a

moment reectio nas sured hi m that the S w ede

had

no t

witn ess ed his ascent

dear as was

th e

love

betrayal could procure

and remembrances
fa r

the top and

to

li fe in Quaco yet his

,

him

no benecial result

the past cheered him

as it was possible in his situation

to

as

be

cheered that the negro would remain faith ful

,

A t length a pa r tia l lull in the storm o f human

voci feration and stri fe enabl ed Hamilton

hear

to

more distinctly and clearly the voice o f the boat

the

swain pleading fo r his li fe bu t

,

agai n soon drowned by the renewal

of

ords were

the Babel

like harangues and the shouts o f m urde rous and

,

i nfur iated passions

T he loo k

th e youth

w as

directed more intently t hrough his Observatory

and

di m

as his eye had become by agitation a nd

distress yet
,

no w

tha t the n umerous lights had

gathered round the seeming m l e

were tending towar ds

o ne

ce rned the gigantic

form

d their

rays

an

centre he clea rly dis

,

of

the Swed e as ,
,

HAMILTO N KING

260

his rie with a fearful eager ness and a tiger like

-

ferocity

w as

kindling in his heart

his sur

To

pri se however the negro was free whilst by

,

side stood the slight figure

the rest appeared to

h im !

A way with

a man to

obedience

hom

shouted Quaco

in

the

I am a brother amongst yo u

Spanish tongue ;

ow e

his

your captain knows me well

L et h im

chief :

die the death

exclai m ed

he is a des er ter from

ou r

t he

cause and by
,

the laws which bind us together he is sentenced

,

do y o u not know Baptiste

L ights were instantly ash ed in his gory face

and the noise and the shouts

recognitio n rose

with terrible denunciations as the wretched

,

was d ragged

ft

Again his sonorous voice

ma n
w as

hear d above the con fusion that prevailed as he

,

implored them
ferociou sness

to

hear him ;

but

Quaco with a
,

approachi ng to insa nity

urged

them to instant execution A running noose was

.

made in

o ne

end

the peak down haul and

passed round the neck

the gigantic Swede

HAMILTO N KING
w

ho ,

26 1

exerting all his might burst his bonds and

,

stood erect as the rope became taut

the negro

in

G rasping
t he

his ar m s he hurled him into

,

ocean ; he was preparing to spring upon another

but he was lifted from his feet and his bo dy w a s

,

slowly swayed aloft H e raised his hands above

.

his head and supporting himsel f by them pre

,

still his altitude increased

vented strangulation

when making a sudden spring he caught hold

,

the gaff end clung round it with his legs till

getting hold o f the outer peak h alli ards he sat

of

astride the spar with his

A yell like th a t

fa ce

towards H amilton

a tortured spirit in the

bottomless pit escaped the Swede as he detected

,

the place

the youth s concealment ; he

about to descend into the top no doubt

,

purpose

of

fo r

w as

the

trying to purchase his own sa fety by

the sacrice

another

H amilton crouched

down with his rie pointed and his nger

,

the trigger when the corpulent body

,

Swede sprung into the air

the

ash and a re port

came from the deck and the next insta nt he

,

on

w as

HA MI L TO N KIN G

262

swinging with great velocity as h e hung

su s

pended by the neck

Again his hands clutched the rope and

,

minute o r
failing ,

tw

he held fast

fo r

but his strength was

his senses reeled and once more he fell

,

the noose tightening by his weight

A nother

his han ds reached the rope but

essay was made

he could not rai se himsel f ; his h uge frame

came convulsed

his hands fell

an

be

his arm s

convul sive contortions li fted

were drawn up

him by the neck and in a fe w minutes the Swede

,

was a corpse

T he ring o f the musket which bro ugh t down

the boatswain

w a s,

however

the pira tes answered by

,

o ne

the surprise

to

of

at some distance to

windward and a blue light and a rocket appris

-

ed the marauders that the approaching stranger

was most probably a ship
w as

war

no t

a moment

lost in regaining the schooner and H amil

,

ton began to breathe more freely as he saw her

,

make sail and reach a w ay upo n the larboard

tack

Still he would

no t s

tir till she faded away

HAMILTO N KING

264

of

lower the body

the S wede but when he called

,

to mind the prob a bility

from
be

its coming

in

board

which all his phy s ical powers would not

able to ej ect it he forbore and there it hung

,

oscillating fear fully in its vibration to the motion

o

the brig

T he fancied stranger continued to

approach shewing however an unnatural and

,

spectral like paleness through the gloom

A s it

neared the brig it kept expanding upon the sur

,

face

the waters

of

and its aspiring canvas

stretched into the very heavens till it had as

,

sumed a dimension that

th e

youth well knew

could belong to no ship th at had ever been built

by the hand
r ic

of

of

man

Still it came

on

speed spreading wider and wider

,

if a

artillery as
,

with ter
a

burst

thou sand pieces o f cannon had

been discharged at once roared upon the winds

,

and the whole horizon to windward wa s lighted

u

ith sheets o f vivid am e

to the rails
hurrica e
n

a s

he sh outed

H amilton clung
the hurri cane

the

the vessel caught the dreadful visi

tant as it bounded along in its maddened fury

HAMILTO N KIN G

2 65

she reeled to the blast and heeled over so that

,

the youth thought that his last hour

and his grave

w as

com e

w as

opening to receive him

He

looked up at the colossal form o f the boatswain

as it

it shot like an arrow from a

ing abyss beneath
outline was seen
it

rose

into the foam

F or an inst a nt it s dark
pon the white frot h

of

of

the
w as

the water as it topped t he

sea ; another mou ntain wave rose between

-

H amilton beh eld it no more

if

a heavy weight had been taken

it and the brig

and he felt as
from

bo w

pon a broken billow and

tossed partly out

foaming

acted upon by the storm and he saw

w as

ocea n

his breast

Still the tempest raged w ith greater

er c enes s ,

and meeting with more resistance from for w ard

than abaft the brig payed o ff and careered nearly
,

be fore it in wild impetuosity

know how to steer and
,

t reng th

if

H amilton did not

he had known hi s
,

would not have been adequate to the

task so that he w a s com pelled to remain utterly

inactive clinging to the companion which he had
,

V OL

II

HAMILTO N KIN G

266

been enabled to reach as the vessel rolled and

,

there he rem ai ned through that d ar k

night momentarily exp e cting death
,

d dreary

an

and perfectly tight

B u t the brig was nearly ne w

she was also an excellent sea boat and though

-

she shipped several hea v y seas nevertheless her

,

buoyancy prevailed ; and had there been a skil

fu l

hand at the helm and an occasional j og at

,

the pumps there was

,

in

reality nothing so very

alarming to an experienced mind in her condition

beyond the dismantled state

her spars and

sails to which however in the present case

,

H amilton most probably was indebted thus

fo r

his preservation

fa r

Day gradually broke upon the fearful scene

and as it shewe d mor e plainly to the youth the

vast extent

ra gi ng o cean by which he

surrounded so the prospect to him

,

w as

w as

more

cheerless and disheartening than when night

veiled

t he

waters

from

his sight

recollection brought something

of

And yet

a similar na

ture to his mental vision ; he had witnessed such

2 68

HAMILTO N KING

and speak kindly to him the beauti ful animal

,

in

the cutter and then suddenly it ashed u pon his

,

memory that N eptune had borne him

when
p

sinking in th e waters and saved his li fe ; eve n

,

the features

f F ea g ha n

to his mental vision as

,

out exterior Obj ects

w

were dimly sha dowed

'

he

closed his eyes to shut

and o h

how fer vently he

ish ed that the dog was with him

the loneliness

no w

to break

his condition !

of

Whilst th us i ndulging

in

reverie the brig

without guide without restraint

,

brought by the lee

a nd

w as

suddenly

a tremendou s wave li ft

ing its mighty head as if to crush the little craft

burst

with vengeance over her bows burying her

,

head many fee t beneath the oppressive load and

,

carr y ing away the bowsprit j u s t outside the

stem

T he crashing

the spar the roaring

,

the waters as they closed round the foremast

and dashed the s pr ay nearly to the very top

terried the affrighted H amilton ; yet he kne w

no t

where to y though a prayer sprang spon

,

t a neo u sly
of

peril

from

his heart

fo r

aid in this hour

HAMILTO N KING

2 69

The brig s truggled to free hersel f she rose

buoyant

the next wave and threw

on

her

bows as if in triumph that her adversary had not

prevailed ; but the foremast no longer had its sup
porting stay
solely

on

the weight

the stability

of

top hamper resting

-

the stick quivered

an instant and the next as the vessel s head

,

pointing to the skies

of

lessening spars

fell

t he

w as

fo r

w as

mast with its long line

,

h urled backwards and

,

with a crash over the quarter

from

whence

it rolled into the deep T he mainmast being left

.

standing withou t any balan ce before the Bon

,

M ari came steadily to the wind ; the wreck

masts and bowsprit by the vessel s dri ft

of

w as

thrown athwart the forefoot and broke the vio

,

lence
of

the waves though there

staving

in

T he body

the bows
o

w as

the hazard

water which carried away the

bowsprit rushed

a ft

as the ves sel rose ; but

H amilton promptly closed the door

the com

panion which being strong and rm resisted

,

the impetuous torrent thou gh m a ny tons went

,

HAMILTO N KING

27 0

down the hatchwa y s and th e cabin oor was all

,

aoat
w

T he youth

w
,

had placed himsel f

ho

ithin th e companion was drenched through

,

and his reason almost gave way as this last catas

tr o ph e

seemed but a prelude to his

ture

But in a short time every thing grew

mo re tranquil

the vessel

w as

nal

dep a r

comparatively

quiet as she rolled over the seas and thou gh

,

occasionally a wave broke over her yet it was

,

harmless in its e ffects and

fa r less

nature

T wo

other enemies now attacked the youth

h u nger and fatigue ; and

the departure
cabi n

terric in its

of

fo r

the rst time since

the pirates he descended to the

,

T he water had drained

deck and left it though wet

,

from

omparatively

com fortable as a shelter ; it i s true that the

ni t u r e

the
fu r

was bu sily engaged in rolling about

cording to the motion o f the brig

were the remnants

of

a nd

there

broken bottles shattered

,

cases empty trunks and scattered goods

,

ll

kinds

ac

in active hostility with each other

HAMILTO N KING

27 2

too sensible

what had occurred and his heart

,

h im

sank within

at the prospect which burst

upon his mental view

d

lie down
from

an

Still this was no time to

despair and therefore arousing

,

the leth a rgy that still weighed upon his

faculties ,

he quitted the s tate room and passed

-

through th e cabin (where the silence was thr il

lingly startling ) from whence he proceeded to
.

the deck
w as

T he gale was over

the setting sun

only a

fe w

horizon which
,

radia nt glory

degrees above the verge

w as

the

ligh ted up wi th a ood

of

the sea was going down though

,

it still continued in a long rolling swell which

,

rendered the brig very restless as she had no

,

thing aloft to steady her

H amilton looked anxiously a round under the

,

hope

discovering a sail but none could he

,

perceive though
,

be

discerned a hummock

land and what appeared a cluster

,

of

small is

lands under his lee the breakers dashing upon

,

the rocks and throwing up their hoary white

,

ness to an appalling height

T he atmosphere

HAMILTO N KING

273

was warm and clear ; the storm had subsided to

a light breeze and dreary as the loneliness
,

Of

the youth was he now began to cherish the love

,

f li fe

more ardently

Whilst dayli ght yet

re

mained he sought amongst the stores and found

,

O il and candles and food and as his parched

,

tongue was withering with thirst he no longer

,

hesitated

to

descend into the hold

fo r

water ;

but his inexperience prevented his ascertaining

which were the right casks nor could he ex
,

tract the

bu ng s

'

any and h e returned

,

to

the

cabin burnt with the fever o f excitement dou bly

,

severe from the privation

Suddenly he thought

the

m e s s pla c e
~

of

the

seamen which he instantly hastened to and here

,

he discovered a small cask securely lashed from

,

which the bung had been removed ; he thr u st

in his ngers
liquid

if

but they could

in ;

his heart palpitated

and,

applying it to his

as he drew it forth
tongu e

reach the

there was any ; he seized a strip of

wood and plunged it

,

no t

be

ascertained that it was vinegar T he

.

27 4

drop s

AMILTO N KI N G

that he contrived to extract were

t remely

refreshing

but still they could

ex

no t

satiate his thirst and once more he essayed to

,

search

fo r

the only element that could allay the

.

torture he was enduring

hand he again

w as

an

axe in his

ent into the hold and splitting

,

the upper staves

discovered

With

of

several cask s he at length

,

what he sought

and a cry

fo r ,

joy

uttered to which there came no response

T he youth laid himsel f down and applied his

,

mout h to the water

so

ea

er w a s

he to possess

his prize ; he drank long and deliciously

pure elem ent and then
,

fetching

of

the

several emp ty

j ars and bottles he lled them with the liqui d

and carried them away to the cabin

Some plantains that were suspended aba ft

o ffered him an excellent nutriment could he
,

contrive to make a re
pain and labour

be

and this after m u ch

,

accomplished in the cabo ose

some l inen which was ignited by

gunpowder from his pistol pieces o f tarred

by means

parcel ling rope yarn s

,

an

ultimately woo d
,

HAMILTO N KIN G

27 6

whatever covering he could procure and laid

,

for

himsel f do wn upon the deck

whilst he

could see the stars glittering above his head he

did not experience that entire desolation which

depressed his spirits in the gloom o f the captain s

state room

B ut he could

no t

hour after

sleep

hour he continued to retain his position ex c ept

,

fo r

few

minutes that he was employed in seeing

to his re or renewing the lighted candle in the

lantern and having completed his task he gave
,

an ardent gaze round the horizon

T owards mornin g however e x hau sted nature

,

gave way and sleep too k possession

,

ties

A t rst his drea m s

f his fa c a l

ere terri fying and

,

he frequently started up in alarm ; but calmer

feelings

stole over him

his slumbers were

a nd

then the visions

a soothing and pleasing

kind and he enj oyed a tranquil repose

,

whic h he was awoke by the roar

of

from

waters and
,

springing to his feet he found the brig close to

,

a ledge
ldly

rocks over which the waves were

,

breaking whilst within them was a small

,

HAMILTON KING
island

27 7

key (as they are called in the West

I ndies) rising in the highest part to about forty
feet from the level o f the ocean and looking like
or

a green oasis in the desert

I t was broad daylight and the vessel

w as

apidly hurrying into the boiling and roaring

vortex that threatened to rend her plank from

plank and scatt e r the fragments into shapeless
,

masses

H amilton beheld the dread ful spe

ctacle

with dismay
u

pon him

the pangs

death were already

f

though in the full enjoyment

health and v igo u r ; the horrible noise

of

the tur

bulent waters as they seemed eager to carry their

,

prey onwards to destruction

t ra s t ed

w as

with the stillness o n board the brig ; while

the smooth and tranquil surface

between the ledge
ea red

strangely con

despaired

of

the oce an

rocks and the islan d

of

like a haven

of

safety

ever reaching

hi c h the youth

E very swell bore the devoted vessel still nearer

to her doom and the
,

round her

s ea

birds came screaming

sometimes alighting on the rigging

HAMILTO N KING

27 8

and then ying away again as

remain

by

the fated craft

if

they feared to

H amilton gazed on

the island and its refuge seemed to moc k the

,

pangs his hea rt endured ; h e had no

t a tio n

of

quitting the brig alive yet

,

ex

ec

deemed

be

it right to use every effort that O ffered a proba

bility

f saving

himself ; he could not swim

thinking th a t some

a nd

the spars would become

detached when the vessel struck he determine d

,

to avail himsel f o f whatever might be nearest to

e ffect his purpose

N ot only the swell but the wind and the

,

current were acting as auxiliaries in hastening

the brig to the breakers ; she
few fathoms o f

now within a

w as

that ragi ng tumult

sh e

was sur

rounded by the hissing foam Of the recoil and for

,

a minute or tw o jr em a i ned stationary as i f in dread

o f what there was to follow
O nward rolled the
,

swell again and li fted her

,

the midst

on

its crest right into

the broken and bubbling waters

that toppled and rushed upon her deck

O nce

more she descended between the liquid moun

HAMILTO N KIN G

28 0

she was aoat fore

ta i ned,
c ee din

a nd a ft,

and the suc

wave carried her into smooth water

G reat

the deligh t and gratitude

w as

of

young

H amilton as even with his unpractised eye

,

be

perceived that the greatest danger was sur

mounted and he was no w in comparative safety ;
,

but still the brig was carried along by the cur

rent towards

than a quarter
it and stuck

point
of

the island and in less

,

an hour she w a s swept r ound

fast

in a small bay

here she

remained immoveable and not more than hal f

,

a dozen fathoms from the almost perpendicular

face o f

a cli ff that rose some

,

th e water ; the little ripple

of

th i r ty

feet

above

the stream washed

against her sid es as s he laid per fectly still and

'

xed except that a slight motion was occasion

,

lly felt as the swell rolled in

T he rst impulse

f the

youth was to get

on

shore ; but this was no easy matter as the wreck

,

of

spars had been torn away when crossing the

breakers and except

,

appeared to be

no

on

spot

on

one small ledge there

,

which a per son coul d

HAMILTO N KING
land

the hen coops were gone

28 1

there was no

thing on which he could oat and he was com

,

elled

to remain on bo ard but after what he had

escaped this did

,

no t

operate u pon his mind as

any great hardship and

,

endeavours

to

ving
i
g

his fruitless

q u it the brig he turned to with a

-

hearty good will to search fo r provisions and

those necessaries which were essenti al to prolong
-

existence
he soon
o

f its

H is re had been exti nguished but

re

lighted it ; he then cleared the cabin

lumber and restored it to something like

,

order T he pirates had helped themselves to most

.

the eatables and drinkables

an ample supply
formed

a pa rt

of

cu

i
ed
p

co ffee

the cargo as well as sugar and

,

excellent yams and

nor were preserves and pickles

wanting to give a zest to the food

delight fu lly

still he found

salt meat and bread

cotton ; there was a bag

some plantains

bu t

ne

T he da y was

as it progressed H amilton

oc

himsel f in various ways allowing no idle

m oments fo r

distressing rumination

A shi ft in the position

of

the vessel however

,

28 2
a

HAMILTON

KI N G

ttracted his attention and running upon deck

,

he found that the water

ha d

almost quitted the

brig so as to leave her nearly dry and

,

be

ascertained that she hung by the middle in the

,

cleft

j agged roc k

so a s

to

place her two ex

tremes nearly o n an equipoise which

,

o n o ne

on

side

ould inevitably cause her to descend

the other and be dashed to pieces

,

w a s,

if destroyed

she had grounded

on

T he fact

nearly the top

the

tide and now it had receded she was left almost

,

high and dry in the situation described

T he youth

no

sooner became aware

this

than he feared to move from amidships lest his

,

weight might cause the catastrophe he had so

much reason to dread ; and it was not till the
water rose and
,

be

supposed the danger

w as

passed by the vessel becoming buoyant that he

,

quitted the post he had occupied so many dreary

hours

But the knocking

o ff o f

the rudder had

made her leaky and the unnatural strai n from

,

hanging as she did upon the rock broke her

,

back ;

so

that by the heigh t

,

of

the ood whi ch

,

HAMILTO N KING

28 4

settl ed lo w er down

h o w fervently

but it hastened
land

fo r

did he pray

fo r

his petitions

dayligh t

The

r m

close to him ; but he was unable to

w as

reach it

no t

and could not continue

'

much longer together

Oh !

T he heavens above were clear and

the beauti ful stars were sparkling in their bril

li a nc y ,
out

as if momentarily renewing and throwing

,

an effulgence that nothing could surpass ;

yet their b rightness could

forebodings

f H amilton

no t

illumine the dark

s mind

But the vessel

san k no lower ; the water again rose and day

,

light came in due time and shewed the youth

,

that the

gangways

es sel was evidently parting near her

Without losing an instant he set

,

to work ; and collecting handspikes pieces

,

of

plank and other materials that would oat he

,

constructed a sort
by

raft u pon the deck which

its dimensions promised not only

,

weight
o

b ut

to

bear his

also convey a tolerable proportion

his provender

H e smiled with satisfaction

HAMILTON KING

28 5

when his task was nished but the smile imme

dia tely

vanished when

fo r

the rst time it struck

,

him that he had no means

water

getting it into the

H ow he came to overlook so palpable

a matter must be left

there

dened him

w as

th e

to

heads

decision

iser

the fact ; and it almost mad

to think his time and ingenuity and

,

labou r had thus been thrown away

,

T he ood was nearly at its height

would soon be making and he
,

the ebb

no further

w as

ad v anced in his ineffectual efforts to reach the

land than when he rst commenced
ing his raft and collecting a
,

bag with a keg

,

fe w

Ab an don

eatables in a

water he resolutely deter

,

mined to try and cut away the mainmast With

.

out

a moment s delay his axe was swinging over

,

his head and severing the laniards o f the shro u ds

,

on the outward side

was clear

In

hal f an hour e very thing

H e then divi ded the stay and the

spring stay for w ard and coming a ft again

prepared to nish w h a t h e had begun
-

'

The

tide was ebbing fast

the water

w as

HAMILTO N KIN G

28 6

rapidly falling

the extremes o f the vessel al ready

began to descend

the pitchy seams acros s the

deck were opening wider and wider and every

,

stroke
as

if

fate

of

the axe upon the wood shook the brig

ith conv ulsive trembling at her anticipated

E xerting all his strength the youth drove

,

the axe into the mast and as he felt the keen

,

e dge enter a tremor

fo r

h im ;

an instant crept over

but it quickly passed away and he

,

newed his strokes with vigour though at

,

without much success

re

rst

A t length a yawning

gap was made and redoubling his e fforts he

,

p ersevered in cutting into it til l

t he

severed more than hal f way through

mast was

But this had been a wor k

was small and not over sharp

-

still much to effect

fec tly

upright

fo r ,

ti m e ; the axe
and there was

as the mast was per

there was no overbalancing

weight to hasten its down fall th ough H ami lto n

,

had repeatedly quitted its neighbourhood as

the groaning timbers
give indications

of

the brig appeared to

its descent

T he wate r was

HAMILTO N KING

288

G rown almost furious ith vexation H amil

w

to n

again swung his axe above his head ; but

this time it descended

the m a st

the starboard side

on

A crashing thundering sound

,

fo l

lowed ; sparks and scintillations were dancing

his eyes ; a ringing stunning blo w
,

had almost deprived him

on

in

the head

sensibility ; he felt

himsel f suddenly immersed in the water

a

of

then

gain he bre a thed the pure air ; but the horrible

noises th at continued at interval s utterly dis

tracted h is ideas ; and the sickness both in heart
,

and head induced

,

hi m

to believe that his brief

career was about to close

fo r

ever

I t was some ti m e before he could unclose his

eyes and when he di d he found himsel f lying
,

across the oating mast

S c arcely a vestige

of

the brig was to be seen ; but close to him was

the ra ft that he had made bearing his treasure
,

of

food

and fresh water secured upon its surface

whilst cask s and broken wreck we re continually

rising
j oy

to

be carried away by the current

h ich the sight

T he

the raft instilled into his

'

HAMILTON KING

28 9

hear t revived his wasted energies

H e hailed it

as an evidence that P rovidence had not deserted

him ; and in a

fe w

minutes he

I nv i gorated to take possession

to secure her alongside

of

w a s s u i c ientl

his prize and

,

the mast which was

,

held fast by the larboard sh rouds that were still

,

attached

V OL

to

II

the main c han n

els

29 0

HAMILTO N KI N G

C HAP T E R

TH E

V III

l i n t im p a t f b i d m t t h in k
ll l a m t la t i t u bl t i nk

HIS
He

o ve

es

ve

e a

or

ro

o s

rst impulse which operated in H amil

ton s heart when he knelt upon his raft was

,

gratitude
frail

fo r

deliverance ; he then pushed o ff his

vessel an d wit h a rough shaped pad dl e

-

endeavoured to make

fo r

the ledge as the only

,

spot that prom ised a place

current was
a

t oo

gainst and he
,

power ful
w as

of

landing ; but the

fo r hi m to

contend

swept away with a velocity

that he ha d never calculated upon T he lo w point

.

that formed o ne e xtreme o f the ba y was rounded

and he feared that he should be dri fted out to

sea : but by strenuou s exertions he succeeded in
gettin g into the eddy

and soon after w ards

reached a small cove wit h a at beach that

,

HAMILTO N KIN G

29 2

ly wanted a re to roast his plan tains and

On

make him sel f some co ffee

I ngenuity supplied this def ct

e

some

H e cha fed

the canvas till it became as soft and

downy as cotton

H e then collected the driest

wood he could nd (there was plenty on the

beach ) and with h is pistols which he still
,

retained about his person

i gnite

e endeavoured to

the material s he had heaped together B ut

.

the po w der w

as

damp and his powder horn toge

-

ther with his rie and some articles

,

and

e re

clothing

value had been deposited i n a chest

on

boar d the brig

w

of

fruit less ;

Fo r

a long time his efforts

at length

be

pressed all the

moisture that it was possibl e to rem ove from th e

gunpowder and forming it into a cone with a
,

fine

point

that

o ne

be

snapped the pistols over it hoping

,

spark amongst so

T his practice he continued

t

m any

fo r

might catch

several

m inutes,

ill his perseverance w a s at last re w arded ; a spark

se ttled on the a pex

the cone

th e

and threw up its fountai n o f re ;

powder hissed
the devil

HAMILTON

KI N G

29 3

by such name is it known amongst boys)

nobly perform ed its duty and the combustibl es
f
r
o
(

were

eedi lv

in ame

H amilton fared sumptuously that night and

,

then enveloping himsel f in t he sa il cloth he com

-

fo r

posed his limbs

in

ported
ness
fa r
an

rest and
,

his dreams to scenes

w as

soon trans

j oy and glad

of

H e fancied hims el f in a splendid m a nsion

exceeding any thing he had ever witnessed

it

w as

lighted up by stars that vied with

the heavenly orbs in the b rillian cy they di ffuse d

F orms bea uti ful

as

and

fr o ,

o ne

could not

s ee

led
fo r

hi m

angels were moving to and

,

by

th e

hand whose face he

glory and yet there was a so ft

,

dulcet voice that whispered

in his

ear and told

him it was his mother ; and she san sweet song s

g

of

j oy to the music

golde n harps

an

she

pressed his ngers with a fond endearing tender

'

ness inviting h un to j oin her but he cou ld

,

not

blance

Suddenly the scene changed the sem

,

be auty fad e d away

and he found

himsel f stretched on a rocky bed upon a wild

HAMILTO N KI NG

29 4

sea coast the wind howling over him and a

-

monster from the deep preparing

to

seize

him

as his prey ; he felt the rude grasp shaking

frame ;

him

hi s

he saw the creature s eyes glaring upon

terror unchained his faculties he awoke

,

and found it real

deav ou ring ,

Something was indeed

,

as he thought to lay hold

,

eu

Of

him ;

shock after shoc k followed ; he thre w the canvas

from

his head and two full ery orbs w ere peer

,

ing into his

denly

fo r

a moment and then were sud

,

ithdrawn H urriedly disentangling him

.

sel f fro m his coverings he sprang u pon his feet

clutched the monster by its claws put fort h his

,

strength in the encounter

a nd

after some severe

struggling he t u rned over upon its back

remar kably ne turtle

When daylig h t came the youth made his

m eal ,

and then set

out

With some di fculty

to wander over the island

be

attained the summit

and looked well round him in the distance but

,

no sail was in sigh t ; he then sought the bro w

o

the cli ff that hung over the bay where

t he

29 6
s

AM ILTO N KING

ever al small coves and inlets but no com muni

,

cation except by water with

nally wrecked

th e

bay where the

,

N u merous

brig

w as

ew

over the land as well as their more proper

element and the rock sh

,

ere

to

sea

birds

be distinctly

per c eived as they sought thei r s ustenance near

the bottom

All this promised plenty

provid ed he had the means

H e return ed

to

of

taking it

food ,

of

the place where he had slept

and industriously applied himsel f to r e m o delli ng

-

his raft

so

that in a

fe w

days he had constructed

a v ery res pect able vessel considering his me ans

,

and

at

the

o w

of

the tid e he found it oated ;

the plat for m he had laid swam high

,

suggested

out

few

the water and there only wanted a

ro v em ent s

of

im

which common sense and ingenuity

I n two days more she

w as

perfectly

rea d y and a sea man would not have hesitated in

,

attempting a voyage to San Domingo or

P orto

Rico running befo re th e wind and kno w ing

,

the direction in wh ich they la id

to n

w as

no

m
a
n
a
se

ince

his

B ut

H amil

arrival at the

HA M ILTO N KING

29 7

Solitaire down to the period in which he em

barked in L e Bon M ari he had never been on the
,

water and consequently was wholly ignorant

,

of

the most common steps necessary to a voyage

beyond wh at reason dictated

During the progress
his raft he had

m ade

times

day

v iz

visit the summi t

strange vessels

his labours in forming

it a constant maxim three

morning noon and evening to

,

of

the island and look

M ore than once

ou t

fo r

twice he

or

discerned a white sail upon the horizon and his

,

hopes

get ting away were revived but the

,

cra ft faded away in the distance and disappeared

H is rst essay

the raft was round

on

the

to

wreck but he could do no more than look abou t

,

him and procure some additional canvas

the main yard
-

an

from

as on his return he had

,

nearly missed the cove and dri fted

o ut

to

sea

he forbore repeating the experiment especially

,

as he was

no t

in immedi ate want

of

provisions

T he turtle had been a rich feast to him and the

,

shell served him

fo r

many purposes H e
.

w as

by

HAMILTO N KIN G

29 8

no means insensible to the e ffort that might be

m ade

to reach one

of

the larger isl a nds ; and

deep was his regret at the loss

Quaco whose
,

s t r ange mysterious conduct o ften excited his

surprise but conj ecture was wholly at fau lt as
,

to the cause

With the canvas and wha t spare spars

he

could collect he raised himsel f a tent beneath

,

the branches
eminence

trees about

of

o ne

third up the
hi s

and thither he removed

re

and provisions taking care that his

,

go

o u t,

as

he

was

fearful

if

that

aterials
m
did not

it did he

should not be able to religh t it and many

,

com forts would thereby be lost

fully

of

his

T hree weeks had elapsed since the day

wrec k and his stock

of

fresh

of

the

water had fear

dimin ished so as to dep r ess his spirits and

render

h im

melancholy

day by day

tin ned to witness its decrease

impatience he could not c ontrol

be

con

ith a restless
,

H our a fter

hour he felt his loneliness becoming more and

more oppressive

sleep forsook him and during

,

300

HAMILTON KIN G

fugitive

he cha se the supposed

be

gre w stronger as

the delusion

advanced and he had nearly

,

bee n precipitated into the sea when he sank

,

upon the verge

h a u s te d
v i v ed

the cli ff over the bay ex

,

and despairing

his fainting frame and he sat

,

that there were only a

death

T he cool breez e

it

few feet

an

re

dthought

betwee n him and

but a plunge from the cli ff and

w as

his misery would at once he ter ml na ted H e threw

.

the yet burning wood over and watched its fall

,

there was the brilliancy o f a moment

it was extinguished
of

his own fat e

fo r

ever

a nd

then

seemed a type

T here he continued

fo r

nearly an hour whe n

,

he observed a strange red glare

u

it

reected light

pon the ocean roun d the point t hat formed

o ne

extreme

the cove ;

a nd,

in

the silence

that prevailed he could hea r a hissing cracking

,

noise neither
,

of

B ut they aroused

fo r

which he could account

hi m from

his despondency by
,

creating excitement ; and with as much haste

,

as he could well employ he directed his course

,

HAMILTON KING
the tent

fo r

A s he neared th e spot in his des

,

cent wreaths
,

30 1

Of

smok e came curling above him

and red ames w ere seen like ery serpents dart

,

ing their si nuous

w a

into mid air

-

he

reached

the place to nd his tent his stores and the

s

o f bl azing ruin
trees
in
one
mass
g

rr o u ndi n

Rushing downwards with

i m pet tio si ty ,

in a

state bordering u pon madness he stood upon the

,

shore

of

the cove as o ffering the only refuge

,

But he re he could not long remain ; the

burnin g trees dried by the heat

communicated ra pidly to the rest and

,

the sun
,

as

their

trunks were dissevered the upper parts came

,

rolling do w n towards poor H amilton threatening

,

to destroy him till at last the place became

,

no longer tenable
ra ft and shoved
,

and he j umped upon his

o ff

from

the shore

I n his

hurry he had neglected all precaution to veer

away upon the rope which held
it

o ff,

he

w as

c o n a

but casting

instantly carried away by the tide

and swept out to sea

T he

it

ra t o n

w as

grand and aw ful

3 02

AMILTON KIN G

H amilton gazed upon it in despair as the cur

,

fa r

rent continued to carry him

ou t

into the

wide ocean ; an d lingering death by st a rvation

,

opened

to

hi s

V ICW

H e laid himsel f o n the

plat form groaning in bitterness o f heart ; and

,

whilst his

bark danced lightly over the

frail
.

waters his mind san k deeper and deeper into

,

despondency till nature gave way and he became

,

insensible

O n returning to consciousness it was broad

daylight and the island he had
,

expected to see was only a

,

him

ever more

fathoms from

fe w

the returning tide had brought him back

but with all his e fforts he cou ld

land

T he re

w as

no t

reach the

till raging when happily

he was enabled to catch hold

of

the main mast

-

in the bay to which he made fast and rode

,

in sa fety

H igh water came ; there was a gentle breeze

but the sun was pouring down his inten se rays

and the poo r youth w a s a lmo s t p eri s hing with thirst

H i s si ght began

to fail , a dizziness m a de his senses

30 4

H A M ILT O N KI NG

taken
d

it

of

was the noise

oars in thei r rowlocks

in another minute a boat

an

ell

m anned

rounded the point and pulled towards him

,

Well I
,

k ila te i f

c al

this don t bang Ken

ucky and Kentucky can bang the Stat es

,

exclaimed a voice with a nasal twang ; as the

,

speaker looked
wild ness
u

pon the youth

his de light

nable to utter a

from

h o raised

w as

ord

y ou,

ho ,

in the

extending hi s arms

Where are you

m a n,

young

continued

the individual as the boa t ranged alongside the

,

ra ft

M ay I never see Baltimore again but

it s a queer
hal f a shell

w a

er l

fo r

water
a

the love

parched

you re in like a mu scle with

Water

'

entreated H amilton

5?

m dy i ng perishing with thirst

,

H eaven give me drink

,

ea

A nd no wonder I guess
,

man in the boat ;

my idea

returned the

it s tarnation astonishing to

things that you ar nt roasted so near

the furnace that attracted us

ou t

of

our

w a

HA MILTON KING

Give the young

with the

s u n,

30 5

some water Benjy ; what

man

and what with the re

close he

so

must be almost ba r ba c u ed
.

Benj amin a negro immediately o beyed the

,

command and from a small breaker in the boat

,

be

poured the pure element into a wooden scoop

used

fo r

baling

H amilton would have grasped

banquet ,

at the promised

and his trembling

hands would prob ably have spilt it all but the

,

black perceiving the tremor said

,

bit massa buckra and let

,

him drink to he mout

A nything !

but

delay

h ! in

no der

h ea r ee

T an

lit tlee

enelm en

put

anything ! responded H amilton ;

mercy let me have it without

T he
yout h

egro held the scoop steadily and the

,

s w a llo w ed

the liquid wit h e a gerness

and th en demanded

more ;

given to him by the same hand

it was pro mptly

.

Why I guess you must have been a pretty

,

long s pell without moi stening

said he

ho

had spoken first and

,

you ng man
w

ho

appeared

H A MILTO N KI NG

30 6

to

t o t he

be superior

you bee n here

c o ns w a

kila t e

'
91

s c iou s

to come

reiterated the ot her in

come now

m ust set u s all down

ou c al

long have

returned H amilton

j ust going the whole

eo u s

H ow

N early e weeks
N early v e weeks
amazement ;

rest

hog

m y lad ,

I guess ye re

in a tarnation outra

twaddy diddle and

fo r

na tr a l

born fools

T o m P epper

ou

if

over us

in

that fashion What ve weeks moored alongside

.

this here spar

in

a cockl e shell

Well

if

that s true there arn t no grits

N o I did
,

to n

no t

mean t hat

answered H amil

meant that it was ve week s since I was

wrecked here ; the greatest part

of

the time

have been upon the island and only quitted it

!

last nigh t to escape the ames

Wrecked

around
him
y

f the

craft now

splintered mast

repeated the man looking ear

nes tl
o

and where s the fra gments

I see nothing but this here

She is under water

returned

"
the youth

HA MILTO N

3 08

when one

ow n

the seamen in a tone o f respect but

,

yet with a consciousness

his

KING

opinion said
,

of

the superiority
fro m

the

co un try sir I m thinking and arn t

na t r a

a rm a c

i ty

ot

P ity

a lawyer on you

Z eeky ,

utter

the governor d idn t make

I reckon you d been as

fo r

muc h sought arter as

There s ship s gospel in that

other :

the

th e

ld

ow

larning to kno w the di ffer atwixt a

back and a
ed

of

F lunky

P rodigy

ld

ow

Kentuck , and he rode th ree thousand miles upo n

a single ash
ing horses

lightning without once chang

,

B ut come young man tell us all

,

about the wreck

H amilton briey in formed them

c u m s ta nc e,

from

the time

every cir

his leaving San

Domingo down to that moment and then

,

quired

ho

in

his deliverers were ?

I ve a notion young man said the indi

dual who had spoken rst

l
a c enc ,
p
y

it

h m

uc h

sel f com

I ve a notion you re pretty s u perb

in the eligibility O f your

c a lkila tio n s

about that

HAMILTON KIN G

309

aw ful smart place N ew York in the

Y o u nit ed

States Well I guess that s our loc ation

,

right

lick a way at on ce when we re at home

You belong to an A merican vessel then ?

,

said H amilton
s t ra nge
from

m ode

ho

had been surpris ed at their

address and puzzled to nd out

,

whence they h a d made their appearance

You re mighty near the mark and pretty

,

particularly correct returned t he

Z ee ky

arn t

man

he

I wonder considerably where he

got his larning

I guess I told you afore

kiel

fo r

that

w as

responded E ze

his real name

A ny one

that s m o o sic a l may see with hal f an eye that he

comes from the

ow

ld country

I s that true young m

,

son

part

of

ho

n,

appeared to be the

E ngland was

ou

enquired the per

o

i c er

cannot tell you

what

raised in

you mean to ask where I

If

w as

born I
,

returned H amilton becoming

,

somewhat impatient at t heir tediou sness :

b lieve however that E ngland is the place

e

of

HAMILTO N KING

3 10

my birth ; but I was brought up in F rance and

San Domingo

kiel

A mixture

of

breeds I reckon
,

cross atwixt a sal t cod and a

smart awful splash

sort

of

Dover

Go t

in a

i nquired the
f

you are

o ur

in

inspec tion in
o

with a

Well young man what do

rity

m a c ka r el,

the alligator

u niv a rsa l

no man s land atween both countries

said E ze

the Straits
o

addressing his superior ;

say to a trip

ou

boat to visit the governor ?

,

O i c er ,

o r,

mayhap by the seve

,

your notions you d rather squat where

,

I am ready to accompany you any where

said H amilton ;
that I can but g et away
I care not what I do f I have
fro m this

so

or

nothing but my labour to o ffer in ret u rn

attention or kindness I may receive

P retty

fo r

any

considerably smart o f you I reckon

,

returned the man with greater compla cency

,

ome into the

boat ,

young man

what cargo the brig had in P

You know

HAMILTO N KING

31 2

cove in which he had sheltered and where the

,

trees were still burning with fury

point was rounded and to wind w ard

,

laid a barque j ogging

,

ff

hoisted to recall the boat

alongside

fo r

the water w

f the

island

and on with a wheft

,

T hey

The other

as

ere very soon

as smooth as a mill

pon d and the rowers were strong sturdy men

,

well able to

m ake

element H am ilton
.

her y through the yielding

on
.

ascending to the deck was

,

introduced to a tall spare man wit h a rigid cast

,

countenance prominent eyes and high cheek

,

bones whilst his person was habited in the garb

,

th e

the primitive Quakers and

brim

his

hat sprea di ng over an enormous circle so as

,

early to merit the description

E zekiel

it given by

T ho u art welcome my young friend

,

said

he in a deliberate but pleasing tone and manner

,

as soo n as he had hea rd

P rovidence

f the

youth s

hath befriended thee

thou forgettest

no t

m indeed

the favour

di

saster ;

see that

most grateful

fo r

my deliver

HAMILTO N KING
ance sir
,

returned the youth

the tears rose

as

his eyes to testi fy his sincerity

to

313

T ho u hast been taken from the deep w aters

set in a sure place T hou needes t food
.

hungry is the command

,

fo r

may thy feet in future be

said the captain ;

weaknesses

of

H im

F eed the

ho

kno w s

ou r

he himself su ffered in the world

G o down to my cabin there thou wilt nd

sustenance Hector

a negro walked sedately

up

see that thou a ttendes t to his wants

Yea aun

w er

black

ily ,

me do em

soul good

id marrow

massa
ber y

and

ting

capta in

pure bread
!

th e

fo r

make him

L et his bo dy be rst cared

responded

fa a t

fo r ,

ordered the

then thou mayest feed him with the

o

the word

H amilton accompanied the negro i nto an

c ellent

cabin where every thing demanded

,

m i r a tio n fo r its

ex
a

peculiar neatness a nd cleanliness

and some cold boiled fo w l and ham with all the

,

necessary adj uncts were speedily placed

,

table

on

the

M assa eat like him prophet L iza

V OL

II

so

make

314

HAMILTO N KIN G

trong man again

h im
chol

said the negro in a melan

Da c a ppin gie em stone

drawl

s pose axe him fo r bread

gi ft to he

he

i
c a nni nn , fo r
p
y

our

sabby gie em good

hab h ea benly fader

Now H amilton had been instructed in the

,

fa itlf th a t i s ,

Catholic

he

had

been accustomed

to j oin in the devotions o f M ad ame B ri eno t : but

he was utterly ignorant o f all scriptural allusions
and having never before seen a member
S o c iety o f

the

F riends he could not help wondering

,

at the strangeness

of

the curious language

the captain s manner and

,

the negro H owever he

,

made no observations but sat down and enj oyed

,

a hearty meal which he moistened with some

,

delicious cool dripstone water

his repast he uttere d a

At

t he

Gr a ti a D a na,

close

of

d crossed

an

himsel f with much reverential respect

hich

action so please d the negro (w h o ha d never w it

nes sed any thing o f the kind be fore and kne w
,

no t

that such a thing

as

a Catholi c for m

f wor

shi p existed ) as to cau se his un feigned exclama

t

ions o f pleasure

M assa

t ea c h ee

dat

fo r

me some

no der

time

HAMILTO N KING

3 16

tance

the wreck and the work

the residue

ou t

dia tely

breaking

the b rig s cargo was imme

commenced and by the following ev en
o

ing all the wine a

nd

rum with nu merous stores ,

,

together with the splintered masts were sa fely

,

E benezer

stowed o n board the

of

N ew York

commande d by Captain N athan Wise

T he

was on the verge

the horizon
when the anchor o f the barque was tri p ped and
s un

her white sai ls glowed with the ruddy tints

A gentle bree z e car

the departing luminary

ried her clear

the still smoking island

an

her yards were squ a red as with the wind right

,

she proceeded

a ft ,

'

on

H amilton ,

Rico

inquired the captai n

as with arms folded he stood

,

a ft

atching the island as it faded from sight in the

twilight gloom

Will it please thee to impart

thy history and

,

if

it be convenient to thy

notions peradventure my counsel

,

P orto

A nd what dost thou mean to do with thy

sel f young friend

her voyage to

a very h umble essel

not be withheld

though that

divine favour

shall

HA M ILT O N KING

H amilton with tears

in his eyes at

th e

kindness

gratitude tremb ling

o

tone and manner

which mani fested the sincerity

e man unhesitatingly in formed

s a

31 7

the worthy

hi m

o f al

that
in

he knew concerning his early years and so

,

t ently

did his

bea rer

liste n that he never once

o ffered an interruption

The youth concluded

by acknowledging his inability to decide as to

what course it would be the ttest to pursue
and craved the advice

Of

his deliverer

thy tale doth sa vour somewhat o f the

V erily

marvellous young
,

m a n,

said the captain as he

,

gently laid his hand upon the youth s shoulder

But hast thou experienced the benign

ence arising from a conviction that

i n u

though

and mother forsake thee the L ord will

father
t

ake thee up ?

T his language was

ne w

and stran ge to

milton yet an imperfect comprehension

,

Ha
f

its

meaning came soothingly over his mind and he

,

felt t hat

it

w as

allied to kindness

I ca nnot

say that my father and mother did forsake me

uttered he ;

but I know that you have picked

HAMILTO N KING

31 8

me up and sa ved me from a horrible death and

,

I am ready to devote mysel f t your service

o

T hou sh al t not want a friend young man

,

hilst thou

s tr iv es t

N athan Wise
t heles s ,

to merit the good opinion

returned th e c a ptain ;

never

the friend I would have thee seek is

hat sticketh closer even than a brother

o ne

Thy

soul hath bee n accustomed to coarse fare and

,

therefore it is not seemly

prudent to place

no r

before thee dai nties which thou canst

I will think

of

thy case in the secret ch a mbers

my o w n thoughts and implore

fo r

which

P rovidence

it properly

value

no t

of

that guida nce

never denies to those

ho

a sk

When it is thy wish to retire to

thy rest do thou use thine

,

ow

pleasure

from

T her e had been very little cessation

la bour either night

day whilst

or

t h ey

co ntinu ed

at the island

a nd

H amilt on

ho

had toiled

un

wea riedly wit h the rest proted by the leave

,

given to retire to the

had prepared

fo r him

bed

The

place which H ector

n

with a lig ht re fresh ment

fo r

having advised him not

to

egro s upplied him

.

his s upper and

drink

too

much

HAMILTO N K ING

3 20

son

H ector

apples

fo r

gie

hi m

to m a c h

spoken are like

gold in pictures o f silver

royal prophet
Yea

tly

words

so

remarked the captain

a u n w eri l

word an

saith the

exclaimed the black

l
enn
p
y

seasoning

good an he say
,

our

me

fo r

do him

and the

fader,

negro crossed himsel f

T he acti o n did
quick eye

no t

altogether escape the

Captai n Wise but he made

,

observation as at the moment he

,

rehend
its
purport
p
two sides
w

the space

of

com

not

L i fting the Bible till its

ere perpendic u lar

hich the back

fo r

di d

no

the table

to

the book rested he held it

,

on

so

a minute whilst his lips moved

,

as if preferring some s ecret petition to the throne

of

to

grace ; he then suddenly su ffered the covers

y open till t hey laid at upon the table

when

t he

portion
sight

leaves were quiescent

f

fully

be

d,

an

scanned the

scripture which was pres ented to h is

believing that

P rovidence

had super

intended the a rrangement and appointed the par

tic u la r

As

passages

fo r

perusal

soon as he had nished he rose

from

his

HAMILTO N K IN G

32 1

Sea

d,

an

standing erect and motionless with his

hands clasped u p on his breast he clo s ed his

,

ey e
s and entered upon silent devotion

H ector

did the same every now and then opening

,

eye a little way to see

master had nished

the negro made it a rule al ways to be last ;

fo r

no r

i f his

o ne

did he brea k through it

no w

fo r

on

Captain

Wise resuming his se at the black still retained

his position

fo r t w

three minutes and then

o or

opening his hands wi th his right he made the

,

sign

of

the cross

W hat is it

of

hich thou art practising

inquired the c a ptain rather sternly

,

Who

taught thee such abomination which is a sign

,

of

the beast to degrade that which is holy

,

B o m my na t io n,

alarmed black ;
do so

excl a ime d

massa

th e

me no beast massa me only

,

and again he crossed himsel f

I am wrong to be angry with thee as thou

,

hast done it in thine ignorance

with more gentleness

Bu t

said the captain

w

ho

was it

in

structed thee H ector ?

,

H im

young mas sa dere in he bed pl a ce

-

3 22

HAMILTO N KIN G

answered the
den he make a

F ather

of

he

ne r p ;
c ro

sa

him prayer and

mercies I thank thee

,

cap tain earnestly and devoutly

thy holy

word hast taught me this night

value

of

the immortal soul

said the

to

consider the

T hou hast enabled

me to save this lad from the devouring element ;

oh

aid me to snatch his p recious so u l as a

b rand from

the burning

fo r

nothing is unholy o r

unclean which thou hast created in h uman form

H ector thou must not pra ctice such mummeries

,

M u mm elies ,

melies

saar ? what h e massa call mum

inquired the negro tossing his head

,

back and assu ming a look o f innocent ignorance

,

M ummeries H ector
,

ed

Captain Wise

ch urch

to

mummeries

Rome where the

,

l
e
p

T hey are offshoots

worldly grandeur and

ci

H im who when
,

lay his sacred head

no t
on

P ope

repeat
o

the

sits in his

as the humble dis

earth had not where
,

I must reason with the

youth Wh o has fou nd great favour in my eyes

,

H ast thou taken care H ec tor

,

that iron

b ound case which was brought fromt he wreck ?

3 24

HAMILTON KING

fo r

ca relessness to having a severe reprimand

fo r

drin ki ng

T hou

very heedless H ector

ar t

the capta in

returned

and wit h a conscience void

O ffenc e he quietly resigned himsel f to sleep

,

M e no sabby wh a t he massa mean by debbil

snare

cogitated the negro ;

again ;

pose me try em

and once more he crossed himsel f

de

Dat
drap

w a

y,

church

said he

rum

and a bumper
in

liquor named silently disappeared

s

tant

nappy
tlee

Bery good dat

,

or

h
a s
p
p

fo r

belly

to mix a stiff

no r

wester

who ha d the rst watch

formed

the

an

in

fo r

he ma s sa mate like a lit

hi m

me

no w

om fort

drop

c eeded

no de
r

me hab

no w

on

deck

and
fo r

be pro

the o fcer

H aving per

this preliminary operation he cautiously

,

ascended the

ompanion ladder

(the great

luxury o f cabin stairs w a s at that time unknown )

and assuming a grave aspect said
H ere
,

m a s sa Derrick
bil tu ff

dou gh me

fo r m esef,

peak he no goo d

cause

neber

touch de

h i m C a pta l n

fo r ki ngo m

deh

W ise

ome ; me tink

HAMILTO N KIN G
y

3 25

wanna trong drink to keep he eye open

ou

No

Well now H ector I ve a notion you ve j i st

,

c a lki la t ed

the thing to an

a ma

ra

h
p y,

returned

the mate as he received the glass and tasted the

,

I t s migh ty superb I reckon ; and

stu ff

them as says you an t the hand somest nigger

twixt here and Cape

considerable licking

C o d, de sa r v es

an t that it

a pretty

Z eeky

so f no u se denying a fact sir responded

the seaman ; but I m thinking I sho uld be

better able to j udge o f his beauty i f I could
It

see
him
through
i
s t sich a nother glass a s
j
y
that ere in your hand and th e more especially

o u nl

in regard
sich an

its being moonlight

of

et a rn a

l glo r i fero u s

not but what

co lour

it

to

ud

giv e

his cheeks ;

to my mi nd , he s good looking
-

enough as it i s ; but then d ye see M uster Der

,

rick i t
,

be a generous actio n

charitable actio n

t oo ,

the captain in his

out

m oo s i c a l

a tooth ful

and a

H ector and you know

charity hides a multitude

sarve me

or

discourses
of

sins

two o f the

sa ys

i
st
j

c r ea t u r .

to

3 26

HAMILTO N KI NG

T an you please massa Cheeky

,

the steward

debbil to

black

fo r

no

ou

member

have had me call you

ou

hite one ? returned the seaman ;

the matter o f that H ector

,

of

fo r

ld

a smut

un

white as hi s properest colour ; and I guess I

,

means a going to dispute

the p int with you j is t no w

P int
dat great deal
Cheeky

fo r

he enemy

teal em away

All s

fo r

land boards

But he

M assa

i n hi m

put mout

C a ppin

brain to

o ne

fo r

that H ector
,

returned

and I take it arter working to

kiel ;
foul

drink massa

o ne

replied the appeased negro

no good for hab rum too much

n
d
a

sea board s
-

fair

Ez e

w ind a r

weather and

sometimes equal retches and then a long

,

leg and a short

v e

u n

arter being

at

this I say
,

and forty years I don t much c a lkila te if

-

I d hal f a do z en

know y o u coast

ou

G uinea angels al ays gives the

arn t by no manner

fo r

though

sa

call me

ou

day P

exclaimed

Why wo uld

mou ths in my brains , but

cou ld mightily stand a glass

grog

fo r

each

3 28

H A MILTON K IN G

T he seaman received the beverage fro m his

hands and after holding the glass up
,

a hal f

fo r

minute between his eye and the moon as

,

test its strengt h by the depth

moved

huge bal l

of

i f to

colour he

re

tobacco f rom his cheek

which he stowed away in his j acket pocket

then giving the black a familiar

and

without

no d,

u tteri ng a single word he made but one gulp

,

the mixture and not

,

H augh

drop was left behind

at

said he as soon as the stu ff had

I m blest M r Derrick but in

disappeared ;

the true c a lkila tion 0 things that ere was a tar

,

nation good sti ff

but a gill

A nd

of

and j is t as a to t o grog
three parts rum no water

u m,

o u ght to be mixed
-

H ollands

to

uv

that was actually the case

mistaken a decanter

good

it a avour
fo r

H ector had

S c h eida m fo r

the

water bottle ; and E zekiel had swallowed nearly

tw
s

thirds

a pint

of

neat liquor

T he

teward guessed his mistake but said nothi n

g;
,

a nd

after bidding the mate and seaman

ight

good

carried the empty vessels below again

I!

C HA P TE R
We ll gh t

i th h im t

o ni
c

h
t
g

S H A KS P E A R E

I VE

le ft the good barque E benezer with her

ards nearly squared and with a pleasant breeze
u nnin
f
o r the island o f P orto Rico w here o n the
g
llo w ing day she anchored in St Juan ; and H a
I ilto n w a s strongly reminded o f th e scenery and
er tilit
o f San Domingo
n
H
is
wish
was
to
retur
y
O the latter place
fo r the purpose o f ascertaining
he fate o f his kind benefactress ; and as the barque
ould be detained several weeks he obt ai ned the
a nc tio n o f Captain Wise
w h o supplied him with
small sum o f money and procured him letters o f
ec o m m enda tio n to several persons in the Spanish
pital o f the troubled island whither a colonial
conveyed him and he was received with that
te c u lia r hospitality which is the characteristic o f
he Spanish colonists
O n this side o f the islan d
very thing was per fectly tranquil and the youth
o u nd a delight ful home in the family o f Don P edro
,

A l v arez w h o took hi m to his o w n residence a nd

insisted upon his remaining whilst be despatched
trusty em l s s a ry to ascert ai n the state o f P ort a u
P rince a nd its neigh bourhood and to Obtain what
ever other in formation could possibly be gathered
H amilton assented and no means were left u n
trie d to afford him every enj oyment ; but the a nxiet
o f h is mind preyed greatly upon his natural viva
city a nd h e wait ed rather impatiently fo r th
return o f th emessen ger At length his a ppr eh en
sions were relieved by the arrival o f the man w h
reporte d that a strong body o f negroes were lyin g
'

the C u l de Sac but that apparently every thin

w a s quiet
that he had entered the town unmolest
ed and had seen M adame B ri eno t w ho had beer
released from connement and w a s then r esidin
I n her o w n house in P ort a u P rince u nder the sur
v eilla nc e o f the authorities
She had wept with j o
w hen apprized that her young proteg
fo r whom
she cherished the strongest affection was so nea
her ; and the messenger was exhorted to u se hi
bes t endeavours to reunite them F o r this pu r po s
he had brought a plenti ful su pply o f money ; an
H ami lton wrote to Captain Wi se enclosing t he
a mount he had borrowed a nd expressing ferven t
in

3 32

HAMILTON KING

T o this arrangement H amilton readily gave 1

consent the colour mattered but little t o him
that he could but obt ai n the obj ect he h a d in v iex
he submitted to the process till every part o f 1
person that was li kely to be exposed was as bla
a s the ace o f spades
H is parting with Don F ed
and his family was with m u tual regret but ho
beat strong in his heart and the worthy Spani a
promised his cordial c o operation should it
deemed advisable fo r M ad am e B r ieno t to make
es cape through tha t part o f the island
T he sloop was ready and H amilton embark
amidst the best wishes o f his friends fo r suc oc
P leasa nt w a s the breeze and delight ful the day
she ran along the land and beauti ful w a s the pa
ra m ic s cenery o n the shore T he third evening t h
w ere between the isle o f Beata and the cape o f 1
same name and never was there a sunset more love
T he night was ne with but little wind a
except the negro at the helm the people w
stretched upo n the deck covered over by an awni
and sound asleep I t was too hot below and
milton brought up h is mattress and laid him s
down aba ft
A bout midnight th e sleepers were aroused by t
,

HAMILTO N KING

333

oise o f oars close to them but before they could

get on their legs , a boat clapped them alongside
and about a dozen men Well armed were instantly

o n the s loop s deck

Yo boy ! exclaimed a voice in E nglish ;

what ! all hands with your eyes buttoned u p ?
?
What craft is this
The helmsman promptly answered N on entend
w hilst
pas monsieur
the rest i n a state o f
alarm rubbed their eyes and said nothing

Well I m blo w d J em exclaimed another o f

the boarding party

if I haven t heard 0 this

here very cra ft a fore ; she s the N ong T ong P a w

a nd no mistake
T ake the helm J ohnson ordered the perso n
who s poke fi rst and who w a s habited in a British
naval uni form
P u c ka lo w the tiller and j ust
keep her out round the westermost point o f the
island T hen turning to the terri fied captain w ho
Where
no w made his appe a rance he demanded
a re you from and where are you bound to
J e non entend pas monsieur , returned the
man respectfully pulling o ff his hat and fully
sensible that his vessel would be made a p rize
J e non entend pas monsieur

3 34

HAMILTON K I NG

Scru b my ould tarry trowsers but there s a no

th er on em J em 1 said the seaman ;

t h ey v
nothing else but nong to ng paws in Johnny Cro
p

pea n s country !
,

"

Wh ere s that cargo 0 nigh t w e shipped o u t o

the pirate ? inquired the o fc er

H ere Coast
G uinea where are you ? A negro stepped pro mptl

up
H ere s some 0 your blood relations blacky

j ust ax em where they re come from and w h er

they are bound to ; and present my best civilities t
the skipper and say tha t I trust he w ill have th
condescension and politeness to favour me with
sigh t o f his papers Can you remember all that P
T he negro put the questions in F rench and hi
voice thrilled with strange sensations through H a
m ilton s h eart fo r it w a s Q uaco ; and without a

instant s consideration he sprung forward an

grasped his o ld intimate by the arm exclaiming it
E nglish
She I s a F rench sloop from the port 0
San Domingo bound round to P ort a u P rince
A nd now a good and law ful prize to his ma

s ship
f

the
sa
id
the
o
cer
es t
l
a s so w i sk
G
j y
y
,

'

laughing
But how s this young M ungo ? y o r
palaver E nglish like a native ! I s he one o f yo u
o w n begetting Q uaco P
,

to himself and endeavou r to pick up some

along shore
What say you my hearties F exclaimed be ad
the crew o f th e double banked pinnace
fteen in n umber and four marines ;
What s a
y ou to a bit o f a roving commission ? T his her
craft arn t never good fo r nothing whatsomever

there w ould n t not be a copper a man and s ixpenc

fo r the skipper if she was to be shared o u t to mo
ro w
which to my mind is a sin and a shame H o
somever as we have sustained such a loss as thi

here w hy I m thinking I ll make o u t an actin

order fo r mysel f c o nv a r ting her into a tender to hi
,

M ajesty s ship and sign my o w n warrant as maste

a nd commander
We ll j ust run quietly a lo ng sho r
and mayhap we may pick up summut worth ha v in
to make up fo r damages particularly in th e gro

line ; fo r what s hal f a pint o rum when yer bro ilin

your livers under a w er tic a l sun ? A ready asse
was yielded to the proposition
Well then
continued he hoist the boat s ensign an d pennan
j ust to go through the motions all ship shape a n
take her properly into the sarvi c e
T he order w a s complied with and thoug h in tl
darkn ess there was no possibility o f disting u ishin
,

wh a t they were the ensign and pennant were hoisted

whilst the master s mate made them a speech

N one on y o u said he knows what s pro

f
f
cer
to
do
when
he
bemeans
himsel
er es t fo r an o
p
to act all square by the li fts and braces o r hauls
dead upo n a wind to get the weather gage in a n
ar

c a tio n ; under sich circumstances as these here

gy

I ve deemed it right to take command o f this here

sloop and cruise again the enemy ; there s fteen

prime hands all picked men and four j ollies nine
teen in all ; with muskets ba go nets pistols and
c u tla sh es
plenty o f cartridges and a never s a v die
o fcer to lead you into action Do your duty lik e

brave sons 0 thunder and I m blest i f we don t

walk o ff with the island if so be as w e can t man

handle a ny other consarn There that s all I got to

say : no w haul down the pennant and conside r
yourselves in a man o f war

T he s t rangeness and drollery o f the man s man

ner tickled H amilton mightily though his coarse
ness displeased him T he seamen well u nders to o
his meaning and the boat being hauled u p on th
side away from the shore the course was al tered
and they stood i n fo r the land to get under the le
o f the Cape the wind (what there was ) being fr o m
,

'

V OL

II

good look

the north east

hal f the men lying down
amongst them Quaco
-

on

was kept

o ut

deck

to

sleep

one

an

A s soon as H amilton sa w the negrohad com for t

ably composed hims el f abaft he approached to hi
side and s itting down s oftly uttered his name ;

Ga ra m erc ie vvho dat pea kee me ? exclaimed t h

,

black , starting up i n affright

I t is I returned the youth in the same

tone
Do no t make a shouting and noise
.

10
0

is I M onsieur A mi B rieno t

Y o u liar fo r true
angrily responded t h
blac k ; y o u o ne debbil face runaway nigger sla be

man

it

where

t iev ee

dat
voice
?
y

N onsense non sen s e o ld man said H a milto

in a whisper
Do yo u remember L e B o n M a r

?
a nd the hurricane

G a r a m er c ie w h a r ra dis ? uttered the black i

terror
Y o u go for dead and J u m bee chan
ou

colour N o
N o Quaco I am still living no tw i th s ta ndin
your having basely deserted me answered t
youth
I was left oating alone o n the ocea
exposed to th eincessant h eat o f the s u n I w
w recked o n a n uninhabited island
where.1 ha

da

HAMILTO N KIN G

3 40

to treat hi s lower stanchions as y o u woul d

couple 0 monkey tails ?

O h oh ro ared Quaco em debbil lib der

massa E arwig ! he pea kee me so m u t o b c hery tin
and tella me
and the black stopped fo r he di
not like to mention his peccadilloes

Aye aye yere both o n y o u 0 t he same kidne

I dare be sworn answered the o fficer whose re

name w a s H errick though Quaco h ad transform e
it into E arwig
H ere Johnson take this blac
fellow alongside o f y o u and j ust larn h i m a litt

bit 0 good behaviour will y o u

What can y o u expect sir from a dark s kinne
nigger responded Jo hnson the coxswain
i

hard lines to be a po or higno r a nt kno w no thing

i th o u t
a c rea t ur without a soul an

gi z zard a nd to get monkey s

it in t
the bargain B ut come al o ng here Quaco and la

down alongside o my look o ut and no holy infa r n

shall mislest ye whilst J 0 3 J ohnson has you under h

lee
and it a rn t cle ar to me bu t na t r al ink s t inc
may lead you to smell o u t a good prize fo r u s yet
Q u aco did as he was desired and H amilton vex e

t the old man s st upidity a nd obstinacy reso lv e

a
as sec retl y as pos sibl e to cleanse him s elf o f th e i
-

'

HAMILTO N KI N G

34 1

purity which had become extre mely di sa greeable

F or t his purpose he went forward eagerly watched
by Quaco and having drawn a bucket o f water
he tried to wash the black o ff his face ; but the
saline quality o f the element prevented it from hav
ing more than a partial effect though a piece o f
coarse canvas with hard sc rubbing removed the
darker shades and in some places restored the
ori g i nal white
N or was Quaco the only o ne w ho eyed the mo
tions o f the supposed young negro the look o u t
ma n forward a s he sa t u po n the W indlass had
unknown by the youth narrowly observed his pr o
ceedin s as much from a superstitious dread as any
g
other cause and when he distinguished in the
coming light that the lad w a s turning white he could

contain himsel f no longer

Well I m blowed

said h e aloud if this arn t reg lar o u t and o u t u n

a scraper and a hand swab may take o ff a
na tr a l

but fo r a nigger to moult his skin

ship s paint

then I m bles s d if I knows what to make on it !

What s the matter J em

inquired the cox
swai n walking toward s the W indlass and followed
at a short distance by Quaco ; have y o u found a

couple 0 gould watches a nd don t know what to

,

'

3 42

H A M I LTO N

No

KING

re sponded the other its nothin

i n regard o w a tc h es thou gh any body may have m

share as li kes But j ust h aul your wind this Wa
,

no ,

o e,

did you ever see a nigger a moulting

Cause

o u didn t nev er see sich a thing you may see it no w

y
and he pointed t o the young ster
H amilton w a s not aware that any one had bee
looking at him and when he heard the observation
o f the seaman he ceased scrubbing
Johnson w h
had previously seen the youth as black as a th u nde
cloud was struck with asto nish ment a t w itnes s in
the pie bald countenance th at w a s no w presented
he stopped short as i f undecided h o w to act an
turned to Quaco But a new light seemed t o h a v

burst in and illumined the negro s min d he s prau

'

youngster by the arm ga z e

wist fully a nd earnestly in his face and then ex
claimed in j oyous glee
H e my massa fo r t rue
G a ra m er c ie me so gl a d d are him t a m M iss e
Johnson de massa fo r me dat me leab in a brig an
t ink he go dead

Well I m bles s d Joe i f this a rn t a rum g

any ho w and I shouldn t be sur prised i f the o n]

nu was to turn yell o w

exclaimed Jem ; all

got to say is that I hopes the devil s color arn

forward ,

ca u

h
h
t
e
t
g

HAMILTON K ING

O h no only a mistake my

boy ,

ret u rned t
n
under
t
g

coxswain soothingly
Yo
F rench ag instead o f the

fo r your o w n p a rticular colours w hy yo u v e b

sa iling under false ones that s all

I can explain every thing said the yout
,

whilst Quaco looked o n in dismay at the terr ib

ideas which John son had conj ured up in his min

I a m here as a passenger engaged o n a n impc

tan t duty which I tru st your o fcer w ill yet all o
me to full Y o n island has been my home f
twelve years
Sail ho ! exclaimed o ne o f the par ty and t
rest immediately gathered round h im to catch t l
direction o f the stranger and offer their c o nj ec t ur
as to what she was ; up sprang M r Herrick a
,

called fo r his glass which being brought to hi

fro m the boat he care fully and steadily xed h
gaze o n the obj ect and in a few minutes ( du ri r
which the most breathless attenti on had p rev a ile
,

be

pronounced it to be a topsail schooner j oggi n

o ff the land
,

P ose

mas sa E arwig pl eas e for make me see em

said Quaco respect fully touching the woolly ha
o n hi s forehead
me tell him at once w heder
,

H A M I LTO N

Oh

KING

3 45

doubt o yer cleverness in that way re

B ut
turned the master s mate contemptuou sly

d ye think nobody else besides yourself has got

r ec e tio ns about em to di s ki v er a b
f
lack
dog
rom
p
p

a blue monkey ? S he s a drogher a nd we ll c arry

her out with us if she s w o r tlr having and get

along side afore they can overhaul Ou r ma no v erer s
from the sh o re

E m no drogher w id a t opsel saar said the

negro w h o w a s fear fu l o f being captured under the

British ag and punished ; me tink em priba teer

po se massa E arwig please

Well then I don t please

exclaim ed the
master s mate a ngrily fo r though be strongly sus
ec ted the character o f the stran er
he
did
not
p
g
relish the idea that any o ne should be able to detect

what she actually was besides himsel f I f she arn t

a drogher she s a pilot boat

P r ha s him pilot boat
assented
Quaco
though
p
he well knew the contrary
My mas sa here know
fo r dat
Your master
w ho the devil may he be
scorn fully uttered the o fcer looking at H amilton

why who
fo r the rst time since his ablution ;
,

no

have

w e

ot

there young mungo

t r a ns m ig r ied

HAMIL TO N KING
by the pipers

what have
,

found

ou

cop pe

aboard fo r I never yet kne w a blac k fellow tu

white till he was boiled

,

I t is true sir said H a milton that when y

rst boarded us I w a s most certainly under

cloud

A cloud d ye call it ex c la ined the m aste

mate ; if it was o u nly a cloud it was about t
blackest I ever seed But what are you

F renchman I ll swear and if E nglish then I

blessed if there won t be a yard rope rove the ( 1

you trip your anchor o f li fe

H e w a s a passenger in the sloop sir said t

'

coxsw a in desirous o f making matters as s mooth

possible ; but with all due submission sir I

make bould to say that there is no pilot boat a

fo r thou
to my thinking the black fellow s right
Go d A lmighty has not given him the o nder s ta ndi
and larning as he has to the likes o f you and I n

yet there s a sort o f a kind of a in kstinc k abo ut hi

a s it u d be well to mind sometim es

When your a dw ic e is wante d I ll a x fo r it

Is
r es ponded the o fcer more testy th a n ever

she s a pilot boat o r summut o the sort (he w

satise dto the con t rary ) but may hap she may
,

3 48

KI NG

H A M I LTO N

sometimes perpetrating acts o f pira cy

c aused no surprise to Quaco to see her rapid ]
r a c t er ,

adv a ncing and shortly afterwards to hear the crac

o f a m usket
a nd the whistling o f a ball as it e
P ort a little and edge tow a rds t l
past him

rascal said the master s mate lay the sloop c lo

along side even to touching i f you can and I

drop round under his starn and grab him in n
ti me ; no w mind what you are about Quaco G
,

forud ,

youngster and it will be the best fo r y o u t

obey orders
T he master s mate then h urried into his bo a
,

the negro to shout Gla s so

appro priate pe riod fo r b o arding

is k y ,

at

th

M e no touch em dough muttered t he blac k

pose him j ump on de deck good by to Quaco an
me young massa
another mu sket w a s red
H a dere he come again

END OF V

P r mt ed b y J

L Co x
.

a nd

O L!

bONS.

L in c o ln a

M E

75 , G r

Fi lds

II

at

Qu

ee

S tr

ee

t,