VENDETTA

Evening Star, Issue 19776, 28 January 1928, Page 22

VENDETTA

A SHORT STORY [By Fusilier.] (Concluded.) After seeing to tho comfort and safety of the young girl now under his protection, Jules Valles returned to tho deck above to give orders to the officer he had deputed to tho position held by the deposed Abel Kull to keep a sharp lookout for signals, further informing him that he held him responsible ■ for the security of the prisoners, and hurried once more below. Having possessed himself of the ship’s papers and tho mass of confidential correspondence belonging to Luther Griggs, which the sudden capture of the barque had put into his hands, the young sailor sat for some time under the light of the swinging lamp, perusing this incriminating evidence against the captain of the Silver Stream. Selecting the most important papers, some of them of an official nature, which the shipper would most likely have destroyed later, ho tied them into a bundle and consigned them to the security, of one of tho cabin lockers for the time being, and taking a small silver whistle from his pocket ho placed it to his lips and sounded a peculiar call that was soon answered by one of the men. “Tell tho officer of tho watch to send up the signal,” commanded the Frenchman, as the man entered, “and call all our people to stand by to make sail. I will follow you directly,” he ended, as the man hurried away with the order to his subordinate.

Gathering up the pile of correspondence for which he had no more use, he cast it aside and spread out a chart, using tho instruments belonging to Griggs, close at hand, during his examination of it. After a few minutes survey he put it away in one of the lockers, and made his way above, and reached the poop just as the three flares forming the signal were sent up, casting their brilliant green rays over the surrounding waters. They had barely died out, making the darkness appear by contrast even denser than before, when far off they were answered by a similar signal, followed by tho same inipcncttable blackness

All the hands now roused up. The from out the darkness, the Frenchman to “round in the topsail-yard” was followed by the tramp of feet and the cries of excited men, as they manned tho braces and swung the great yards slowly round to the screech of the wind, as it forced its way into tho great space of canvas of tho main-top-sail, and bulged it outwards, heeling the graceful fabric over to the strain, until she raised her richly silver gilt figure head, casting off a cascade of water that fell with a great booming sound on tho forecastle head, as the Silver Stream once morn breasted the waters of the groat Gulf and sped onwards.

Giving orders to keep up an occasional flare in answer to the signals fro mnut the darkness, the Frenchman left the deck to the charge of his subordinate, and with further instructions “to be called when the answering ship was close to,” ho descended the companion way to secure a short respite below.

It Mas bright day when t lie noise nl voices and a great movement on the deck above awoke the young commander, some minutes before the messenger at his door announced the ship to be close bv.

Hastily dressing himself he reached the deck, to find a corvette, under tho colors of the Republic of South America, lying stationary a short distance away, her sails furled, and her smokestack emitting a volume of smoke that was rapidly dissipating to leeward. A number of her bluejackets wore silently taking their places in the quarter-boat, armed with cutlasses and revolvers, and the boatswain’s male with his shrill whistle could be plainly heard, piping away tlie boat as the falls were manned to lower away.

As tlie boat approached the barque the order was given to haul up the main-course and back the main-top-sail, and once more the vessfcl lay hereto; the accommodation ladder was put over, and soon the deck was iu possession of the man-of-war’s men; their cap ribbong denoting the corvette to he the Prcsidente Serrano. As soon as the officer in charge of the armed party caught sight of Jules Valles he hastened to him, and alter saluting, shook him warmly by the hand, and evidently by his animated gestures and speech, although both men conversed in Spanish, was inundating the Frenchman with questions relative to his late adventures. Captain Griggs was now brought on deck, lookig worn and haggard, and conducted to the boat alongside. Shortly afterwards he reached the deck of the Prcsidente Serrano, and was conducted below by a file of marines. Directly the boat returned Rosina, was carefully handed in by tho Frenchman ; and with the bundle of papers in his possession he soon gained tho quarter-deck of the corvette, a group of officers receiving the young girl as she reached the deck. “ Glad to see you safe back. Lieutenant Valles,” from the captain, as he grasped the hand of our hero, was sufficient to show his rank and what esteem he was held in aboard the cruiser,

Leon Schiller, Abel Kull, and the crew of the Silver Stream were now set at liberty, and the barque was submitted to a systematic search by the bluejackets, assisted by the crew. Soon several cases of rifles and a great quantity of small-arm ammunition were discovered, carefully concealed in the places not occupied by the cotton, and were soon transferred to the ship of war. A court martial held that evening on the Presidents Serrano for the trial of Lather Griggs lasted well into the night. The evidence against the unfortunate captain left no doubt whatever on the members of the court that the Silver Stream, under his command, instigated by the political criminals of whom ho was the catspaw, had carried firms and ammunition to the rebel forces now in arms against the integrity of ( the republic. “Cq'ptain (iriggs,” spoke the president of the court, “ yon have had a fair trial, and. that in the presence of the officers of your own ship,” pointing to Leon Schiller and Abel Kull, seated near, as ho spoke. “It is not convenient,” went on the president, to bring yon to trial ashore, for the '‘papers secured by Lieutenant Valles convey the information that the armed ship now in the hands of the rebels is now on her way to a rendezvous with you in these waters to receive the arms and ammunition fropi your vessel, which w.e have palpable evidence that you were carrying.” “As the fortune of war may go against us in meeting her, and a meeting our professional honor enjoins upon us to bring about, it is necessary to terminate the proceedings of this court here assembled, and carry out the unpleasant duty of passing sentence.” At a sign from the 'president of the court,'Luther Griggs was marched out under an escort of a file of marines, to await the findings of the court. Within the hour he was marched back again, and faced the assembled members to hear his fate. •/‘Captain Griggs,” commenced the president, “as yon have admitted your guilt, and have been found guilty by the court here assembled,' and as you hold no naval or military rank whatever, the privilege.' of a tiring party will bo denied • you, and - you will bo

hanged from the yardarm of this ship at sunrise until you are dead, and may the Lord have mercy on your soul.” As ho finished speaking the marines standing on either side of Luther mere forced to hold him up, or he would have fallen to the deck, and the trembling man was led out to the quarters assigned to him for the short time ho had to live. News aboard ship soon spreads, and Lieutenant Valles, inquiring alter me wants of their fair guest, was not surprised at her knowledge of the result of the court martial. “It is well, Jules, dear, that I should not have that unhappy man’s blood on my conscience,” taking the young officer’s hand in hers as she spoke. “1 have unconsciously, perhaps, been the means of bringing him to justice. Without my influence with the society he would have escaped again, and have been a further menace to the stability of the Government of your adopted country. So good-night, dear Jules. 1 would prefer to bo alone at a time nncu a soul is shortly to •be launched into the presence of its Maker.” ' As the brilliant rays of the rising orb shot above the eastern horizon, a flash, followed by a single loud report, came from the battery of the Presidentc Serrano. The sound had scarcely ceased when the captain of the Silver Stream was run up to the fore yardarm of the corvette by strong, it not willing, arms. A couple of hours afterwards the body was lowered, sewn up in an old sail, and consigned to the deep, “ unknclled, uncoffinetl, and unsung.” , , Simultaneously with the report ot the gun, tht young Italian girl, drawino- a crucifix from her bosom, fell upon her knees in the privacy of her cabin, and prayed long and earnestly for the soul of the man who had murdered her brother. ... In that kneeling position Jules found her, Jong after Luther Griggs had paid the penalty of his crimes. The Silver Stream, with a prize crew aboard was sent in for adjudication to the nearest port of the Republic, and, despite her wish to remain near the man she loved, Rosina was sent away also, the nearness of the rebel ship of war known to be in those waters making it imperative that she should be sent to a place of safety. The sails of the barque had barely passed out of sight, when the smoke of a strange vessel, discovered earlier hv the look-outs of the corvette, proved on nearer approach to he the Independence making for the rendezvous to ship the expected arms and ammunition carried by the Silver Stream. What followed is naval history in the Republic. Yales Valbes fought the ship when his commander was struck down, and had the satisfaction of smiting the cruiser that had been a menace for some time to the stability of the Government of the Repubzlic. After the final overthrow of the revolutionists h. married the girl who had risked so much for him and the cause ho was engaged in. Jn New Orleans those ignorant of the wonderful origination of the Mafia are still wondering about the prolonged absence of tho captain of the Silver Stream; and a. great number of cases arc waiting to be shipped on the next ship leaving for Europe containing the huge sauna ns that were so. mysteriously delayed in their transit to the barque at the opening of our story. (The End.)