But being out of his element, his heart failed
him when he came into the wild wooded country, and he had been
skulking behind the trees when Joe espied him. He was a Frenchman.
I learned from him that some weeks before, his vessel had been
joined by an Englishman, who had proposed to his captain an
expedition to an estate some ten miles inland. The captain had been
at first reluctant to undertake the expedition; 'twas work for
landsmen, he said, not for sea dogs, and having heard rumors of a
buccaneer brig having been captured in that very cove by a horde of
negroes led by a white man, he was loath to leave his vessel. But
the Englishman had worked upon his fellow countrymen among the
buccaneers by tales of large sums of money lying in the house in
question; he had been steward of the estate, he said, and had been
forced to leave behind the hoard he had gathered, on being attacked
by a villainous enemy that coveted his wealth. But it was too
securely hidden to have been discovered by the interloper.
These compatriots of his had insisted on the captain holding a
council of the whole crew, at which the proposal was put to the
vote and carried; and the captain's last objections were overcome
by the promise of a quarter of the hidden money, the Englishman to
have a quarter, and the remainder to be divided among the crew.
My suspicion being so fully borne out, I forced the pace, for
though I foresaw a tough fight, my men were all sturdy fellows, who
were not like to feel any distress after a march of but ten miles.
Pages:
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392