The Water-Witch; Or, the Skimmer of the Seas: A TaleCooper, James Fenimore
General
The Water-Witch; Or, the Skimmer of the Seas: A Tale
Cooper, James Fenimore
Sea stories
rough treatment of the people of the brigantine, over and above the
knocking on the head, and cutting of throats, that may be necessary to
take her. In this particular, you will take example by me, who, being
older, have more experience than most of you, and who, in all reason,
should better know when and where to show his manhood. Lay about you
like men, so long as the free-traders stand to their quarters—but
remember mercy, in the hour of victory! You will on no account enter
the cabins; on this head my orders are explicit, and I shall make no
more of throwing the man into the sea, who dares to transgress them,
than if he were a dead Frenchman; and, as we now clearly understand
each other, and know our duty so well, there remains no more than to do
it. I have said nothing of the prize-money, [a cheer] seeing you are
men that love the Queen and her honor, more than lucre, [a cheer]; but
this much I can safely promise, that there will be the usual division,
[a cheer] and as there is little doubt but the rogues have driven a
profitable trade, why the sum-total is likely to be no trifle.” [Three
hearty cheers.]
The report of a pistol from the barge, which was immediately followed
by a gun from the cruiser, whose shot came whistling between the masts
of the Water-Witch, was the signal to resort to the ordinary means of
victory. The master cheered, in his turn; and in a full, steady, and
deep voice, he gave the order to ‘pull away!’ At the same instant, the
barge and yawl were seen advancing towards the object of their common
attack, with a velocity that promised to bring the event to a speedy
issue.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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