one morning, a week after the tea-party, mr. and mrs. thornton and aunt clare went for a row on the water. they had two large baskets packed full to overflowing with something precious. they also took a stone jug and a coffee-pot. it looked like a picnic party. they were very merry, as if they expected to have a pleasant time; and yet, it may be that they had some idea of the danger into which they were about to run, for they did not take the baby with them.
there was no one in sight when they rowed away from the landing. this was strange; for usually there were half a dozen children, more or less, in that neighborhood. quite recently stories had been told about a band of pirates who had been seen prowling about the coast.[48] was it possible that these ruffians had anything to do with the children’s disappearance? mr. and mrs. thornton seemed, however, to have forgotten all about pirate stories, and they rowed merrily away.
“why, this might indeed be a desert island,” said aunt clare, as they rounded point after point with no sign of a house or a human being. they passed several little coves and cliffs, the bathing beach and the chasm, and presently they came in sight of a larger cove with a flat, stony beach. beyond this a rock extended out into the water like a platform. at the back rose a steep cliff, with a black cavity in the centre.
“there is the cave, up under that rock,” said mr. thornton, as the boat grated on the beach.
“oh, what a splendid place for a picnic!” cried aunt clare, jumping out lightly. “do be careful not to upset those baskets; i am dreadfully hungry already, and i don’t want to lose a mouthful of the delicious luncheon which mollie has prepared.”
[49]mr. thornton helped out his wife and pulled the empty boat up on the beach, where the tide could not wash it away. “now, then,” said he, “i’ll take the pail of lobsters and one of the baskets. mama, you can take the other basket. clare, will you carry the jug and the coffee-pot, please? forward, march! to the cave!”
aunt clare began to hum a tune, and they all marched along in time to it, carrying the luncheon carefully; but just as they were about to enter the cave there came a terrible sound,—a chorus of screams and shouts and shrill whistles,—and a band of fierce and desperate ruffians came rushing out of the cave where they had been hidden, surrounding the unfortunate picnickers.
these desperadoes were very dreadful to look at. they wore black masks covering all their faces except their eyes, and some of them had long, black beards. they carried swords and pistols, which they brandished in a very dangerous manner. one of them waved a fearful[50] black flag, with a skull and crossbones painted upon it.
“pirates!” gasped aunt clare. “we are lost!”
“pirates we are!” shouted the leader of the band, in a terrible voice. “what are you doing near our cave? i am bloody dick, and you are our prisoners. hand over your treasure and come along to our captain, bulldog bill. then we’ll see what will happen to you next!”
there was nothing to do but yield, for the pirates were eight to three. mr. and mrs. thornton quickly handed over their baskets and the pail,—aunt clare groaned when she saw these treasures seized by the pirates. then, after a struggle, she herself was forced to give up the jug and the coffee-pot. bloody dick and slippery joe, the biggest of the band, tied the hands of the prisoners with a piece of rope, while the others danced about shouting and screaming more like wild indians than like pirates.
“now come along!” growled bloody dick, “and step lively, or the captain will make you all walk the plank.”
“what’s ‘walk the plank’?” whispered one of the pirates in pigtails to another with long, yellow curls.
“charlie says that it is like the spring-board which the boys use in swimming,” answered the curly pirate. “but that doesn’t sound very terrible, does it?”
“no,” said the pigtailed one. “but perhaps there is something more.”
the procession marched up the rocks to the entrance of the cave, led by bloody dick, who held the end of the rope which bound all the prisoners together, while slippery joe guarded the rear. one by one the prisoners were pushed in, bent almost double, for the opening was low. but once inside, they found a high room, big enough to hold them all. it was shadowy but not very dark, for besides the door there was a hole which went up through the roof like a chimney.
[52]“oh, what a fine cave!” cried aunt clare, forgetting that she was a prisoner.
“sh!” warned bloody dick. kenneth looked so fierce in a tarpaulin hat and long rubber boots, with his belt stuck full of fourth-of-july pistols, that aunt clare almost trembled. “silence, till our captain speaks!” he commanded.
there was no captain in sight, but presently there was a sound of scratching, puffing, snorting in the chimney. the pirate captain, like santa claus, was coming down from the roof.
there was a slip and a rattle of stones, and with a thump he tumbled into the middle of the cave. it was not quite the entrance he had planned, and the first word of the chief was an “ow!” of pain. for a minute he did not rise, but sat rubbing some injured spot upon his person. then he reached for his sword, which he had lost in the fall, and sprang fiercely to his feet, a majestic figure (charlie was a tall boy for ten years).
the pirate chief wore a great slouch hat[53] pulled down over his mask, below which hung a beard of curly black wool. a yellow handkerchief was knotted about his throat. he wore a red sweater, with a skull and crossbones on the breast, fringed leggings, and his belt bristled with knives, daggers, and pistols, to say nothing of the huge tin sword which he brandished fiercely. he truly was a terrible figure. little jane trembled and clung close to sue when he hissed through his teeth:—
“well, my hearties, whom have we here? bulldog bill thirsts for vengeance and for gold!”
“captain,” said bloody dick, “these are land-lubbers who were coming to our cave. we have captured them and their treasure, which looks valuable. what shall we do with them?”
“let the prisoners die,” said the captain, in a blood-curdling voice. “let them walk the plank; but we will keep the treasure.”
with a scream aunt clare threw herself on her knees before the pirate captain. “oh,[54] good captain bulldog,” she said, “spare us! we are so young and innocent. one of us has a dear little baby at home who will feel so sad to lose us! take our treasure, if you will, but spare our lives. yonder coffee-pot is solid tin, and so are the knives and spoons. let such a prize content you!”
aunt clare pretended to cry so pitifully that the three smallest pirates began to boohoo with sympathy, until slippery dick whispered:—
“sh! you kids! she’s only pretending. don’t you know it’s all play?”
bulldog bill listened to the prisoner’s words, but shook his head. “it is not enough,” he said. “what will you do for us besides?”
“we will be your slaves,” said aunt clare. “we will prepare your dinner.”
still the captain shook his head. “can’t you do something else?” he asked.
aunt clare had an idea. “i will tell you a story,” she said.
“ha! that is good!” exclaimed the captain.[55] “you shall tell us a tale, but it must be one that we have never heard before. if you do this we will set you free.”
“give me time to think, and i will promise to tell you a tale which you never heard before,” said aunt clare.
“very good,” growled bulldog bill. “loose the prisoners’ bonds so that they can prepare our meal. but guard them well so that they cannot escape.”
bloody dick and slippery joe untied the prisoners’ hands, while the other pirates guarded the entrance of the cave.
“now, then,” said the pirate captain, “we are hungry. let us dine at once. prisoners, prepare the food!”
“it is too early for luncheon,” said mrs. thornton. but the pirates began to clamor. aunt clare sided with them.
“let them have their way,” she begged. “hungry pirates are very dangerous! besides, i confess that i am half starved myself.”
“well, then, we must have a fire,” said[56] mrs. thornton. “who will gather wood for the fire?”
“let the four youngest pirates do that,” said the captain. so jane, bill, bob, and rose went out to hunt for driftwood on the beach. presently they were running in and out like ants, bringing it by armfuls.
“we must have water,” said mrs. thornton. “who will go to the spring for it?”
“let me go,” said sue.
“no, the jug will be heavy. let slippery joe fetch the water,” commanded the captain. so slippery joe went forth. “we others will examine the treasure,” said the captain. the remaining four, charlie, kenneth, mary, and sue, sat down on the ground and began to unpack the baskets which had come in the boat. and as they unwrapped one after another of the good things, they smacked their lips and squealed with delight. they were so interested in the treasure that they forgot all about their prisoners. but suddenly they heard a shout from outside the cave:—
[57]“catch him! he’s running away!”
the pirates jumped to their feet. mrs. thornton was bending over the fire, doing things with the coffee-pot, and aunt clare was taking the lobsters to pieces. but mr. thornton had disappeared.
bulldog bill and his men rushed to the door echoing the shout of “catch him! catch him!” when they were outside they saw the four other pirates racing along the beach towards the spot where the runaway was disappearing over the top of the cliff. the whole band started in pursuit, leaving mama and aunt clare quite alone; so that these prisoners might have escaped, too, had they tried. but they were so interested in preparing dinner that they forgot all about it. just like women!
after a long time the pirates returned, flushed, panting, and tired, but without their prisoner.
“papa ran so fast we could not catch him,” explained rose to her mama. “he ran away into the woods, and we couldn’t find him. oh,[58] mama! i’m afraid now he won’t be here for dinner!” rose looked distressed.
“silence, burly ben!” said the captain sternly. “this is no fit talk for one of bulldog bill’s bloody band!—my! how good that cocoa smells! is dinner almost ready, aunt clare? i never was so hungry in my life. can’t i have just one little lobster claw to chew?”
aunt clare had not spread the tablecloth in the cave, for that would have been too dark and too crowded for every one to be comfortable. but the flat rock out in front of the cave made a fine table, with room for every one to sit cross-legged around it in pirate fashion. each person had a big, round scallop-shell for a plate, with a tin cup of cocoa beside it, and such a lovely luncheon was spread on the white cloth as the little prouts at least had never before seen. they all sat down together, prisoners and pirates, and the pirates forgot for a time that they were anything but hungry girls and boys.
[59]“it is too bad that papa isn’t here,” said mrs. thornton.
“too bad!” echoed kenneth and rose sorrowfully.
but before many minutes they heard a sound of some one scrambling down the cliff close by, and presently mr. thornton himself crept sheepishly up to the group.
“please, mr. pirate captain,” he said, “may i come back to dinner? when i ran away i forgot about aunt clare’s story. i don’t mind starving to death, as i came very near doing on this desert island, but i could not bear to lose the story. let me dine and hear the tale, then i will walk the plank gladly.”
“have you any ransom?” asked the pirate chief, taking a huge bite of sandwich.
mr. thornton slapped his pockets doubtfully. then his face brightened. “yes! i do happen to have one bit of treasure about me which you did not take away,” he said. “you forgot, i think, to go through my pockets.”
[60]he drew out a bag of peanuts and handed it to bulldog bill, then seized a sandwich in each hand. “fair exchange!” he cried. the children set up a shout of delight.
“it is a good treasure,” said bulldog bill approvingly, as he helped himself.
“i would have starved rather than eat them,” said mr. thornton, with a sad voice. “i bought them as a present for my innocent children at home. but since i have fallen into the power of this pirate crew you must do with them as you think best.”
now the pirates knew what it was best to do with peanuts; and they did it. when every one had eaten all he possibly could, the captain suddenly remembered that he was a pirate. he put on his tarpaulin hat, and seizing his sword, said sternly to aunt clare:—
“it is now time for the story. prisoner, begin; but beware how you tell us one which we have heard before. if it is a chestnut you shall die.”
“fierce captain,” said aunt clare, “did[61] you ever hear the tale called ‘the pirate hoard’?”
“no,” said captain bulldog, “i never did. has any one here ever heard this tale?” and every one answered, “no!”
“i thought not,” said aunt clare.
“very good,” said the captain; “go on with the story.”
and this is the story which aunt clare told.
