University of South Carolina Libraries
I The king ' i_ .honl >-U^J A NUvtL Uf AiYltKIV^AlN Lin ^rrrr' U2Y MAURICE Copsrtsht, 18PH and I*?; 1 CHAPTER IV. CONTINUED. r The writer of this story has become the owner of a curious and singularly interesting collection of papers, labeled "The Pearl River Records," and it is from these and from Dick Becket's stories that he has obtained the main facts in connection with Rev. Max Burns's sojourn in the region of Honey Island. The information is meaeer enouch touching the old man's motive; but this lack naturally came of his reticence aud caution in communicating with the people who treated him so kindly. Supplementing the tiddler's reminiscences and the "Records"?most of which have to do with the exploits of various outlaws, from Ratnoau, Lafitte, Murrell and Copelaud, down to Rube Burrow and Eugene Bunch?the recollections of Orlando Favre, a very old halfbreed Indian, who died some fifteen years ago, have been relied upon; but, after all, the facts are meager aud scattering. Indeed, what has already been told iu the present chapter caufl^pot be added to. The farther adveu^^^ures of Max Bums, iu so far as they j will be fouud of importance in this | story, will be looked for at another stage of our progress. We must now return to the bay of > Saint Louis, where we left Yasseur and Fairfax enduring as best they could a situation atouce awkward and trying in the extreme. To be bound and gaggod could be borne aftor a fashion, so long as the evil was enforced by an irresistible enemy; moreover, since every moment added tho torture of cruelly tight-drawn cords to wrists and ankles, the first part of the ordeal was inuoh milder than the latter part; bnt when it caute to lying prone, stiff and speechless while a great tire raged almost over them it was the unbearable that had to be borne; it was torture-too exasperatiug for even the temper of Fairfax. He too gave wty to violent '"paroxysms of silence,'' as he afterward expressed it. When Vasseur was at length released, he was too weak aud benumbed by the pressure of the bonds end by the exhaustive wrath-passion that lie had indulged in for his cuffs to do xunch harm; but he distributed both with unstinted liberality as he limped and hopped wildly about amongst the negroes. xac uouse anu ntwrij everjmiug m it were burned to ashes in an incredibly short time. Fairfax could not repress a smile when he found that bis traveling-bag containing his clothes had been saved, while his sketches and his weapons?his pistols nnd his gun, a rifle of great value? had been overlooked and left te be destroyed. As for Vasseur, his mind, what little of it was presently available, raged with the memory of his lost treasure of jewels, tie screamed iu French, he screeched in Italian, and through it all ran somethiug about having been betrayed and robbed by an individual who owed him an etertial debt of gratitude. All this, considering that the man was still in his night-clothes, of which a red night-cap was a most conspicuous garment, wonld hive been highly amusing at any other time; and even now, of ? + o w/wat if Has WAlT-illr fllmOSt I demoniacally, comical. Fairfax dressed himself forthwith, And then stood, with his hands in his pockets, staring at the scene, as' one does when one feels especially perplexed and helpless in the midst of sudden disaster. He turned quickly, however, when Vassenr came near. Tho little fellow could scarcely speak 1 intelligibly, and the froth of excitement was clotted ou his lips. "It was /at Piorre Rameau!" he cried, not forgetting to air his English even in this extremity. "Zat . villnine. zat robbaire! He steal j evaretiug! He bum my rnaiaon; he care off my propriety!" Usually it was not hard for Fairfax , to find words; but now he could frame ; no suitable comment on this occasion. He stool looking at his swarthy little host, and smiliug half mechanically, without moving his lips to make him a respouse. There was pathos as well as comedy in the situation. The negroes, men, women and children, gathered in awe-struck groups to gaze on the fire, making their remarks in undertones, the women crying aud the little ones : clinging to the skirts of their mothers. J "Ah! Ze villaiue! Ze sconn'rel! ! Ze robbaire! Oh! Ah! Ah! Ahl My | jewels! My pretty jewels!" still : wailed Va9seur, after the house was j white ashes and the sun had come up , from the sea like a great round flower ^ * of flame. ".My precious stones! My beautiful cross! My money! Zey are all gone?gone! He took zern! Oh! Ze perfiiie vurrcbjnej' "When" Fairfax had pulled himself ; together sufficiently to consider the situation calmly, his first effort was toward reducing Vasseur to a rational state of mind, a task by uo means easy to accomplish. He succeeded in a measure at length, and whuu the poor little man had found some clothes and a pipe, the whole matter was talked over; and so it happened that Fairfax heard a strange story. Eight years prior to the robbery at Vassenr's, the two men, Vasseur and Itameau, had been comrades and equal [ OF :Y ISLAND DURING THE WAR CF 1S12, RTTT THOMPSON, ,y r.ettrt Eccner'i Son?. j saarers in tlie dangers and fho proGts | cf a daring piece of piracy done in the fjir East. In dividing the spoils, Vasseur gladly accepted a large quantity of jewels, some of them the personal properly or xtauiouu, in lieu of their value in money, his passion for precious stones controlling his greed for gold; but a goodly pile of money fell to his share also, and he abandoned the sea forthwith to settle himself on a plantation in Sau Domingo, whence, when disturbances came, he fled to his present abode on the beautiful bluffs of the bay of Saint Louis. Vassenr gave the details of his story 1 without reserve. He was boiliug over with indignation, and his passion made him recklessly communicative; indeed, ho was almost crazed, and seemed to find vent for his overcharge of nervous excitement iu laying bare the innermost secrets of his past experience. Under ordinary circumstances and in a normal mood, Fairfax most probably would have refused to bear these terrible confessions; and yet they were of a kind of enthrall the imagination of a young man, himself passionately fond of adventure; aud when he was told that the daring aud villainous not just perpetrated by the riders from Honey Island had beeu directed by Pierre Rameau in person, he felt that, no matter what had been Yasseur's crimes, the little man was justifiable in considering himself atrociously be- i trayed aud outraged by his former partner in felony. It was a revelation to Fairfax thus i to fiud himself the companion ami j { comrade in misfortune of a whilom ; I pirate; but, strange as it may seem, he ; I did not recoil from the discovery. ' j Doubtless he recognized it as a neces- ! sary part of the life around him; at all j events, he found a certain exhilara- ; tion possessing htm, and as he walked j up to the Veraon place that same | morning he could not cast oCf a sense j ! of the linktrhich connected him with j : some great chain of picturesque events i past, present and to come. "When he neared the house ho heard the noisy mocking-birds iu the -oaks and magnolias, and the first person he saw was Mile, Pauline Veruou i standing, tall, bright and beantiful, on the veranda under the vines. ; Something ia her form and face sent a teudor thrill through him, and iu a moment he was strangely happy, j Youth oasts out the evil spirit of misfortune so easily in the worse case; I and, after all, what had happened to j I Fairfax was no more than a stimulnt- J ; ing bit of experience in the rougher. current of the wild life into which he ' j had voluntarily thrown himself. He [ had seen Pierre Kameau in one of his j most picturesque attitudes, and tUo^ ! apparition was of itself worth all that! he had paid for it in submitting to the ; gag and to imminent danger of being j roasted alive. The artist within him J was complacently happy over the, whole affair. In truth, lie could not! ; have denied that the robber's face had J ' its fasciuation. Some day he would i paint it from memory, or mayhap he j might yet see those strange, terrible, i magnetic eyes again. Cn.VPTEPv V. A B3EAKKAST AT VEBNOX PLACE. ! I As Fairfax approached the veranda, j Mr. Vernon came out of the hall, booted as if for a ride; at the same: time a servant Jed a horse around) from the rear of the house. Father] aud daughter both smiled at the sight: of tho young man. and Mr. Vernon 1 1 _:.i. ? l. 1??,1 i WCICOIUUU 11IU1 Willi u uir.uj, louu < "Good morning," his voice ringiug j out pleasautly: "Glad to see yon, my boy?glad to j see you. Hope you slept well last night. It wiie a grand night for sound, refreshing sleep!" Fairfax lifted his hat and shook hands with them both. For the single moment that his fingers closed over those of Mile. Pauline he looked into her any but friendly eyes nud forgot all thut had passed during the night. "And how are they down at Vasseur's?" continued Mr. Vernon. "Is my little neighbor well?" He always spoke of Vasseur in the diminutive. The iuquiry caused Fairfax to start ? ?? ? ' Ul v. TL iftAa ?n .1A tiinnoif JAM pcrucpiiuijr. 11 nuo n muv uauoiuuu from the mood of the moment to a thought of what had come to pass daring the night. At first he had no words ready. Like an abashed boy, he stood looking now at Mile. Pauline and then at her father. There was little enough of shyness or hesitation in his nature; but somehow the qv.estian threw him into confusion. Just then tho subject called up was not welcome to him; it would have been so much pleasauter could he havo been left alone with Mille. Pauline to forget that there ever was a Yasseur. ! He hesitated but a moment, however, seeing that his change of countenauce J had stirred up some sort of uneasiness in the mind of Mr. Vernon, who had j observed it. "Vassenr was robbed last night," he bluntly said, "and his house was ' Domed." "Robbed! Burned!" exclaimed Mr. Vernon, who?o turn was was now to be taken by surprise. "What do you mean to say, Mr. Fairfax!" Mile. Pauline urew close to hot stalwart, shaggy father, and put an arm over his immense shoulder. The blood had left h*r face, so that it wag i" as a lily p;+a). It aiu not giro 1'uirias any pleasure to tell the story, Perhaps, being a very young man, ho was aware that his part in the affair had been neither heroic nor picturesque, and that be r.r:"t r.t best appear to Lave been ru easy victim to a bold assault. This ?.:i a. * ; was aii ?.\Huaiuuuj5 consciousness. Mr. Vcruou's brow grew dark as be listeuerl, and be combed bis beard with his fingers. "I will ride down and see Vcsseur," he said. "It may be that I can be of service to him. Go in, Mr. Fairfax; the ladies will ask you a thousand (juestions; T will return immediately." "But it is dreadful! It is dangerous! Yon will bo killed!" cried Paulino, clingiug to him, nervously, "Don't go, father! Please, don't." lie kissed her, laughing meantime to pooh-pooh her fears, then went down the steps and vaulted with a superb show of muscular energy into the saddle. Before he rode away, ho sat for a time stroking the glossy neck of his horse, while the groom fetched a pair of heavy holster pistols and hung them at the pommel of the saddle; then hi3 gun was also handed to him. Mrs. Vernon made her appearance at this point. She saw forthwith that sometning unusual had happened, and began to ask questions, growing excited as she proceeded. Tho groom stood listening with open mouth and roiling eyes. ' .Mr. Fairfax will tell you everything," said Mr. Vernon; "it's nothing so terrible, after all. The danger is past, if thore ever was any, and I'm only going down to console poor little Vusseur." "And, say, dear," he turned and added to his wife, after he had ridden to some distauce, "ask Mr. Fairfax to have some breakfast; I dor t think he has taken any this morning. I may return in lime to have coffee with you; but don't wait." Mrs. Veruon made a gesture of despair and began to cry hysterically. "I will not stay in this terrible place any longer!" she exclaimed witli vehemence. "We must go back to the city at once. Oh, but this is unbearable! Robbers down there?only a mile or so away! What if?if?whal if they had come here!" This was addressed to Mr. Veruon, but he did not hear; his horse was already galloping briskly away. The three, Mrs. Veruon, Pauline and Fairfax, stood looking after him until he had passed out of sight amid the fringe of trees along the bluff of the bay shore. What to them was a real ity, quite in keeping -with the time aud the place, must appear to us, al this distance aod with our surroundings, like an illustration torn from some old novel. Even in that day, however, when every inhabitant o! the gulf coast was more or lees familiar with lawlessness aud violence in their most picturesque forms, there was something startling in each new phase of the reckless life thai throbbed along the old Creole borders. It is impossible for men and wcmen to live in the midst of romance and not realize it in some degree. "He ought to have lived iu the days of Richard the Lionhearfc." said Fairfax, turning his gaze from where Mr. Vernou had disappeared in the wood to the pate faco of Pauline. "Ho would have been a knight of iron with that frame of his." He spoke lightly, more to break up the situation aud II II._ 1- i:~? 1 lr +1. i;uu l lie Jilli iun uatu iv inciuoci *ro than to give expression to the fancy of tho moment, suggested by the superb horsemanship just witnessed. "But the robbers! They will kill him!" insisted Mrs. Vernon. "He is going right to them!" "Xever fear, madam," said Fairfax with an assuring smi'e; "there isn't the slightest danger. Those gallant knights of the load are many miles from here at present. It appears they knew too much about Vasseur's treasure, and so planned a successful laid <11 it. 'llieie is 110 more uanger from them; they are gone." "lint we have jewels, too," said Mrs. Vernon with a quics look at Pauline, "i'hey might want our diamonds!" Fairfax laughed outright, and the ladies joined liiui timidly, as if under protest. "If X may speak of it," he said, "you are forgetting to make further mention of breakfast. I nru preposterously hungry after my night's adventures." "A thousand pardons!" exclaimed Mr3. Vernon. "Wo will go in at once." The appeal to her hospitality was with her, as it has always been with th9 Southern hostess, sufficient to drive almost anything else from her mind. Paulino led the way to tho breakfast-room, where the table was spread near a mile alcove in tlic soft light of vine-colored windows. Although he felt it necessary to bide from tho ladies every doubt ho might have as to their perfect security, lio found himself tingling with pleasure, to kuow that his presence gave them a sense of safety. It now seemed to him inexplicable that Mr. Vernon should have brought his wife aud daughter to this lonely and exposed place. If tho bay of Saint Louis is a secluded, dreamy, far-withdrawn spot even uow, what was it at the beginning of our century? "I shall insist on going back to our house in New Orleans at once," said Mrs.Vernon, as they took their places it the table, and she signaled for a servant. "I am uot williug to live here any longer." (to be coxtixued.) Small forks were not introduced nto use until the seventeenth cen;ury. I A PI0BUE8T 'One of Indiana's Use! " I Feel Like i , I ll I I | j| 1 (' !-??_?%>??^%>%/%/?^?/\^<t/\*l'?'WWVW^VW<'VW^'V^/V ' * [ | Mr. John W . Meng, .M Jefferson Ave., ! i Indiinapoiis Business College, writes: ( | "1 firmly believe that 1 nue my flat , ! and change of food und water wrough , j monthh I suffered with Indigestion an , ! the only thing to do was to give up tng | tunt to do. Seeing an aL of I*eruna a give it a trial, and used it faithfully ) troubles had a>l disappeared and I sc. ( of I'eruna in my grip all the time, an.i t keeps me in excellent health."?John 1 > rif HE most common phases of summer [ i J. catarrh are catarrh of the stomach ; i and bowels. Prruua is a specific for sum- ; ] mer catarrh. ! < i Hon. Willis Brewer, Representative in ' Congress from Alabama, writes the follow- j ing letter to Dr. Hartman: House of Representatives, i j Washington, D. C. The Peruna Medicine Co., Columbus. 0.: j Gentlemen?"I have used one bottle of Peruna for lassitude, and I tike pleasure! 1 iGU/^Af^EEI^^URE^i^oll bcwe! troubles I blood, wind or. the stomach. bloated bowels, ft 1 pains after eating, liver trouble, sallow skin am 8 regularly you are sick. Constipation kills iron B starts chronic pilments and tone years of suffer R CASCARr.TO today, for yoa will never get wc right Take our ad"ice, start with Cascareta I rooney refunded. The genuine tablet atampei I booklet free. Address Sterling Remedy Compt j Natural Flavor Cottage= i Corned Beef == it righ Keep it in the house for emergencies?for sti you want something good and want it quiclr. S appetizing lunch is teady in an instant. j Libby, McNeill & Libby, Chii | health Insurance i ff When traveltog there's a heap of com- Va . fort in knowing thst ycu and ycurdear H , H ones are protected from accident ty jvi M insurance. ! More people become 11 then Injured. 1 H Are you protected from illness t You ES ' H tle?<y'd ** DOn t tra79' Wlth?ut a bot- M I Dr, Thachw's $ I Liver and Bleed Syrup ? ; u All it costs is 50 cents and It may save K2 ' ten times that in doctors' bills, besides 53 a you i-bscJute protection from m D Hi health. r. m Great for all Liver, Kidney Blood Si H Troubles. Ask your dru^rcrist. pn 3 25, 50 cents end $1.00 per Bottle. $S 1 8 11 00 sise contains mere than twice SO cj i k! Write our Consultation Department, f' H expieining symptoms, and receive tree fif ' B TMACHER MEDICINE CO., M < Chattanooga, Tenn. a * j ; M CHKCS WHERE AIL ItSl fAilS. UiJ U Best Cough hyrup, rat tea Cood. Ueo t**J r?J la time. 8oM bv drttggKa pH ? ' wjjfESSBsnamsgggp ? COLLEGE HAN. :ul Educators Says : i New Man." . X'VWW^^'WWWWVWWWWW.J * ir. uwif ^ ' l [ndianapoiis, Ind., State Representative of i health to Peruna. Constant travel t havoc, with mi/ ntomnch, and for d c itarrh of the ntomnch. I ielt that occupation, which 1 /clt very reluc :* a specific for catarrh I decided, to or six iceckt, when 1 found thai my enipd I ike a tteir mm. 1 have a bottle [ nrctiHl mally take a few doses which II'. Metig. n recommending it to those who need a rood remedy. As a tonic it is excellent, [n the short time I have us?d it is has lone me a great deal of good.''?Willis lirewer. If you do not derive prompt and satisfactory results from the use of Peruna, I'/rite at once to l)r. Hartman, giving a full statement of your case and he will be pleased to give you his valuab'le advice ;ratis. Address Dr. Hartman, President of The Hartman Sanitarium. Columbus. Ohio. CANDY jf . CATHARTIC i, appendicitis, biliousness, bad breath, tad s >ul month, headache, indigest;on, pimples, a d dizziness. When your bowels don't move 8 t peaple than all other diseases together. It | ing. No matter what ails you, start taking I 11 and stay well until you get your bowels today under absolute guarantee to cure or 8 i C C C. Never sold in bulk. Sample and 8 iny, Chicago or New York. joa > ruiiiit??w??aa?u?J si/ J == ke our choice corned beef, cook it and sear-on none by experts?better than is possible at When just richt we put it in cans to keep t until you want it. ppers, for sandwiches?for any time when limply tarn a key and the can is open. An r?a<fn Write lot our free booklet. "How L>a?U. to Make Good Things to Eat." I J 1 ybursfora < _ BROMi [ lUr tS old Evf. R-y CHURCHES SCHOOL HOUSES AND HOMES must have their avails tinted and decorated with ALABAST1NE, the only iurable wall coating, to insure health J and permanent satisfaction. Write for f :ull information and free suggestions by j )ur artists. Buy only in packages propsrly labeled "Alabastioe." ALABASTINE COMPANY, ! GRAND RAPIDS, MICH, and I OS Water Street, New York City So. 27. "?lc.V\*.7u? Thompson's Eye Water - p-tr 111J FOR WOMEN Much That Every Woman Desires to Know SjTII ill PnnnllllM InllAAII. HUUU1 Odiidiivc Hiuiocutic Cleansing And about the Care of the Skin, Scalp, Hair and Hands. Too much stress cannot be placed on the great value of Cuticara Soap, Olntmcnt and Resolvent In the antiseptic cleansing of the macoos surfaces and of the blood and circulating fluids, than affording pure, sweet and economical ; local and constitutional treatment for weakening ulcerations, inflammations, ! itchings, irritations, relaxations, displacements, pains and irregularities I peculiar to females. Hence the Cuti- -"g cura remedies have a wonderful influi once in restoring health, strength and beauty to weary women, who have been prematurely aged and Invalided by these distressing ailments, as well as J such sympathetic afflictions as anaemia, chlorosis, hysteria, nervousness and debility. Women from the very first have fully appreciated the purity and sweetness, the power to afford immediate relief, the certainty of speedy and permanent i cure, the absolute safely and great ! economy which have nmle the Cutlcura remedies the standard bkin cures and hnraonr remedies of the civilized world. Millions of the women use Cutlcum Soap, assisted by Cuticura Ointment, for preserving, purifyine and beautifying the skin, for oleausing the scalp of crusts, scales and dandruff, and the stopping of falling hair, for softening, whitening and soothing red, rough and 6ore hands, for annoying irritations, and ulcerative weaknesses, and for m:iny sanative, antiseptic purpose* j which readily suggest therns^lvjs, a? well as for all the purposes of the toilet*. bath end nursery. Sold lh mufhowt Hit world. CrHem* RMotant Jh?. (la form cf i hur..;*i? Cottrd Pfllt i5c. prrrU: of 91). Ulnf. r..nt, J?.. Soto. T<. IXpoU: r*<j i Pint, i Kurd, It I'm; lioMnn. 17 <'nlumbc*rifi^9R?l?'" l'v'trr Dnut ( hrm. Corp., Snl, I'ri prittort. Qt*"Srncl fur " A Hoo> for Witiw.'1 i nn>.i.KT.o TnfcnW I I M JV1T illxo lauuiw u & : Doctors find 1 IA good prescription I I For mankind. g aa ordinary occasion. The H family bottle {price CO cenlsj D contains a supply for a year. In Hot WeathoT g to keep the natural channels of the 1 biliousness, headaches, refreshes j the stomach, aids digestion, cools the f blood, dears the brain. Contains no \ narcotic or irritant drug. I Used by American Physici&CS I neatly Co years! ? | 1 SOr. and Si.Of). / At Druggists or by mail from \ The Tarrant Co., CURED Dropsy s, Removes all swelling ia S to 20 days ; efTjc'.s a permanent cure. t in 50to Co days, '.'rial treatment given free. Nothir.gcan be fairer Write Dr. H. H. Green's Son*> Socialists. Box R. Atlanta. 6a, ft/lNPCQ CURED WITHOUT" CUTTIW6, 11 n! f U L (1 A New Vegetable Remedy. wCure Guaranteed in Every Case Treated. NATIONAL CANCER MEDICINE COMPANY, Austell Building, Atlanta, tia. 1 Clear Head QSELTZER, r ?>rrtr wr* w~% rr* . Jr*' x-sJrCJC, '?- j Do You Want lour Money to i;ahx * 7% INTEREST PKU ANNUM f Write nao for i?riii*til?ra of a safe. secure i a vestmrnt purine sewn v?er rent, rn uoncaate of on* LuoJr.d dollar* or more, A'nrii rrfsrettc.-i>. M'. If. HOIitC. Si,r. , i'runn, well Drilling 3vi A. x ?&-& k ST. 3. II. Haftoi, of Rem, Mis*., writes as follows: "I will say that I have never ?e?n u Well DrlHliwr Machine that would eiinal the "Ohio" Machine for this j art of the country. It Is the fastest machtno In earth or rock fnat I ever seen, and I am wall pleased with It. I have had tio trouble with It ainca I s-artfd It." Parties wishing to In v klndof Well Machinery address .LOOM IK MACHINE 0O? Ttittn, Oldo. I HI!DC PAWnCD Absolntelv pa'n'eM. Ifo uun" IrslHtCl, tr.lfe No r>!n?c n No act Is. ?i ' s'oiigUlng o'is Writ* and state case tully and eet mvoolnt-it ml t rie* M tor a. cure. Dr. Scot i Mason.U *x V}, ~rj Krhige.V*. M i