The White Squadron. A novel, etc

Front matter

PRICE. ONE SHILLING. The White Squadron . / N( H El . BY T. C. HARBAUGBl DON ' JB! LSfilNG O ' ! ro 0 Court, ■'. r ne, W. C . ,md . C. Quick as a flash out earne the dagger, firmly gripped in CarineD'a hand.— Page 40. THE WHITE SQUADRON. A NOVEL. BY t. o. _h-a_.r.b^lXJGI-h:. COPYRIGHT. ALL BIGHTS RESERVED. LONDON : THE ALDINE PUBLISHING COMPANY, I, 2, & 3 Crown Court, Chancery Lane, W. C, and 10 Red Lion Court, Fleet Street, E. C. TO THE GALLANT SAILORS WHO UPHOLD THE HONOR OF OUR FLAG ALL OVER THE CIVILIZED WORLD, THIS STORY IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATEO BT -.M AUTHOR.

Preface

. Charles Nordhoff in his ' ■ Nine Years a Sailor, ' ' says that the popular idea of a seaman is one who spins yarns. This is, to some extent, a trnism which one accepts without cavil, but the American is no longer regarded as a mere story teller. He has other qualities which have secured for him fame and honor all over the world. The American sailor is distinctively a fighter. He shrinks from no contest, however great the odds appear against him, and the annals of our navy, teem with instances of individual daring, not necessary to enumerate here, from the days of the intrepid Hull to the present time. In the present romance, which is largely historical, we have aimed to bring to the front the proverbial heroism of the American tar. We have slightly enlarged upon what promised at one time to embroil two nations in a war, and the "Chilian Trouble," as it was termed, threatened to give our navy plenty to do in tropic waters.

The Valparaiso affair was brutal in its action and almost groundless in incentive. It did not last long, but it sent through the nerves of the American people a thrill which would have shotted onr cannon with the missiles of vengeance but for the good deeds of diplomacy. We have followed the historical events of that stormy period with painstaking care and have tried to show up the treachery of the Chilian and how it was met by the undaunted courage of the American sailors. When a lot of men of a foreign nation find themselves, through no fault of theirs, hemmed in and beset by a mob of bloodthirsty natives, they are apt to turn and fight for their honor. VI

PREFACE.

. It was so in the streets and on the plazas of Valparaiso that October day when the mob, augmenting all the time and becoming more and more tigerish in its work, assailed our men, driving them from pillar to post, assaulting them in the street cars, beating them back from tho houses where they tried to shelter themselves, and plunging into their backs the needle-pointed stiletto of the South American bandit. It is not to be wondered at that somn of our sailors turned and struck their assailants. It is not to be thought strange that they turned in the street and gave the cowardly ruffians blow for blow, and they were good blows, too. American tars are just like other people ; they can be struck on<-e too often. They will take a great deal, but they will also strike back. The author believes that the insults to our sailors by the Chilians called for more reparation than was finally accepted.

We could not, it is true, afford to go to war with a little power so far from us, but it would have taught the Chilians a needed lesson if the Baltimore had opened her broadsides on the haughty city, tingeing its stones with the blood of some of its desperadoes, and showing to the world that the United States is a country jealous of the rights of its hum blest citizens. But this was not done. Chili was slow to pay for the blot put upon our navy. Chili is generally «low in everything, but meantime some of the heroes of the Baltimore, as will be shown in the following pages, taught the bravos of Valparaiso needed lessons in courage and discipline. The reader will not find the romantio thread which runs through the following narrative in the Official Report of the Chilian Affair but he will find ther. in full, in cold, hard words, the truthful story of those exciting days when "Fighting Jack," and his friend Parker, of the Baltimore, were maintaining American independence and courage in the Vale of Paradise. The Author, CONTENTS. PAGE. Prologue 1

The Fight for the Palacio . 189

CHAPTER XXVIIL

In which Ends the Magic of Events .196

Prologue

. An American man-of-war lying in a foreign harbor is an inspiring sight with its great length and formidable aspect. It looks sometimes like a giaiit monster sleeping on the water with its watchful sailors here and there and its strict discipline. Everything is clean and snug above and below decks. Everything is neat and prim from the guns to the uniform of the men. One can see one's face reflected in the burnished railings below and in the brass mountings of the cannon. There is discipline everywhere, and from the humiMest seaman to the captain there is a spirit of cleanliness that charms the visitor. At all times the sailors on board a man-of-war or cruiser, as they are generally termed nowadays, reflect the stern dis cipline which prevails at all hours, from the earliest dawn to the coming on of night.

The great monster frowning on the foreign city with its broadsides looks quite warlike lying in the harbor surrounded, perhaps, by the vessels of other nations, and visited now and then by the officers of the friendly ship. The harbor of Valparaiso is large and commodious. It stretches seaward, the great billows rolling high and bois terous, now and then rushing landward where they break on the Mole, the landing place of the boats that come ashore from the various vessels there. Over all falls the rays of a tropical sun, gilding the spars of tho ships, and sending back, as it were, the last beams of the descending luminary. Life on board the Baltimore, destined to play no unim portant part in the present story, did not differ from that on board the usual run of American cruisers. The Baltimore is the pride of the American navy, and she lies almost in the same spot where years and years ago the Essex, commanded by the gallant Porter, accepted the challenge of the British fleet, and going forth to engage it, covered himself and his ship with imperishable renown.

A few men neatly dressed are lounging on the upper deck of the Baltimore, which is the finest vessel of the White Squadron lying in the harbor of the Chilian city. Th day has been a dull one. The officers have given the men some latitude and there is talk of a gala day ashore in a short time. The grinning cannon'of the cruiser, polished until the sun throws back their wonderful brightness, look like brazen mirrors or iron looking-glasses, and the men, slipping here and there in their neat duck and conical caps, keep up the polishing process till the guns seem to call a halt. This goes on day after day. There is a monotony on board a man-of-war which is seldom varied, and but for fre quent trips ashore Jack finds his confinement irksome. Let us leave the deck of the Baltimore and go below. Let us descend the ladder and land in the heart of the great ship, and for a time stand beneath the tops of the waves.

Here, as on deck, everything betokens cleanliness. Men are seen lounging in different places engaged in games or reading. All are good-looking, manly men though all are not Americans. The crew of the Baltimore consists of men of undaunted courage and patriotism. They have not been recruited from the riffraff of the city, nor have the alleys been dragged to secure seamen for the pride of the American navy. Below the main deck stand a little group of sailors discuss ing the end of t^e revolution in Chili and the suicide of the unfortunate lialmaceda. They talk in an intelligent strain, laughi .(_, now and then as sailors will when in good humor, ans1 argue the political situation in Chili with a good deal of vim. An officer approaches the little group and all instantly salute. It is Captain Schley, the commander of the Baltimore, a thorough sailor and famous for celebrated cruises and important missions.

The salute shows the discipline that exists on the vessel, and for a moment the commander stops and converses with the men. There are no dreams of the scenes about to transpire on shore. The men of the White Squadron do not think of danger and look forward with pleasure to their next "out ing" with the Chilians. Sailors as a rule are superstitious, and the men on board the Baltimore are not exceptions to this rule. In one corner of the main room below deck two men are tossing a silver dollar to the ceiling and watching it eagerly as it descends. Both are rather young men. but both have seen service on the water. Their hands are tattooed with various devices common to seafaring life and they have all the actions of old salts. "Tails for ill luck, Jaok," says one of the pair. "W. shall have an unpleasant trip ashore.

There goes the blarsted dollar, rolling toward the wall, and the way it rolls, tottering like a tar agrog, shows that we shall have tough luck in the city. ' ' "Always a bird of ill omen, Tom," is the reply. "Ton remember how we tossed the coin when we lay underneath the Rock of Gibraltar and it turned tails for you then " "And didn't Spardeck Danny get a bumping when he ran against the Englishman on the hill?" Both men laughed and the coin was picked up and tossed ceilingward again. It was better luck this time, for it turned "heads," showing the burnished face of "Liberty," and Jaok laughed as he looked. "If we get into trouble Fighting Jaok will _.lp us out," he said, referring to the coin's fall. "He is saiu *. be a real giant when he is ashore, but " "Got into several brushes in Paris with his servant, Parker, I'm told, but in Russia they wanted to knont him."

"My word for it they wouldn't have done it without a fight," was tbe reply. "I know something of the man and his father. The old captain was a real hero of the sea. Wanted to lead one of the fireships up Mobile Bay, but Farragut put a stop to his ambition. Fighting Jack comes cf good stock, and if he wouldn't make love to so many pretty foreign women when ashore he'd get along better." "There, don't say that, boy. Give me his face and figure and see if I wouldn't be doing the same. " The afternoon drew to a close and the Baltimore became livelier than ever. There was a drill on her great deck, which was as clean as a new pin, and the usual inspection took place. The men were models of cleanliness and moved to and fro like machines, the offioers of the vessels looking on with pride. Overhead floats the flag of the vessel, the stars and stripes, and another ship of a foreign power, a trim little French frigate, dips her colors as she passes out.

This is the cus tomary sign of friendship between vessels of all nations and the stately Baltimore responds by dipping her own ensign. An American captain is not to be outdone iu courtesy, and as the Frenchman passes on the flag resumes its usual position and the inspection proceeds. There are awnings scattered all over the decks to keep off the heat of the tropical sun. It is very hot in Chilian waters and the American sailors have a hard time making themselves comfortable in their vessels. The Baltimore being a man-of-war her sides are iron of many inches thickness, and the sun beats down upon it with blazing power, rendering it as hot as if just taken from a foundry's furnace. But under the awnings rest the men who are not kept below by other pleasures or duties, and the officers, dressed as coolly as discipline will permit, walk hither and thither conversing or smoking.

All night there ia strict guard duty on board a man-of war. No military camp is guarded with more care than ij a vessel of a foreign country in strange harbors. True, there is no war cloud visible, but all the same the watches are changed at intervals and the keenest eye3 keep ward over the great cannon, and the men who rest in their hammocks. Day after day this life is unvaried. It may seem irksome to the landsman, but to the sailor it soon becomes second nature, and he would soon rust out if it were not kept up. It is the training school for active operations ; it trains him for the naval battle ; it fits him for the hot work to which the White Squadron may be called at any time, for in these days of Hotspurian nations war is liable to break out in strange places and empires quarrel over very small bones.

The men of the Baltimore can look ov<=r the water to the spires of Valparaiso. They can see the Mole and beyond it the Plaza soon to be reddened with American blood. They can look up and note the frowning guns of the cordon of forts that defend the city, and beyond these are the cerros or hills where the wealthy live. The men of the Baltimore have seen more than one foreign city. They have sailed in many seas and have trodden the streets of several foreign capitals. It is expected that leave will soon be granted for them to go ashore and inspect Valparaiso. Indeed, it is confiidently believed that Captain Schley will let them take the boats to-morrow and see the sights of the Chilian city. Captain Schley has intimated as much, though he may postpone the visit a day or two. As the day wanes and the sun sinks lower and lower shadows fall over the deck of the Baltimore and the scene changes.

The watch is also changed, the officers descend to their cabins for a spell, and no officer but a petty one is left on deck. Lower and lower sinks the sun. A boat from the nearest American vessel approaches the Baltimore and its petty officer comes on deck with a message for Captain Schley. This is a visit not unusual for the American captains often exchange messages, and while the officer is below the sailors on deck exchange words with the occupants of the captain's gig rocking gently on the water beneath tho Baltimore. Such is everyday life on board a man-of-war in a foreign ha.bor. It is but little varied, but now and then something occurs, such as a little breach of discipline, a drunken sailor or a scuffle between tars, and all these offenses are duly punished. The government on board the Baltimore is strict, but not cruel.

It is, as it should be, just, and it has helped to make the men just what they are : fearless fellows, ready at any time to spring to quarters to open on the enemy or to storm a fort. Let the sun sink from sight. Let it bid farewell to the scene we have described, for ere it has risen and sank many times there will be stirring scenes among the tars of the man-of-war, and the ensign that floats from the highest peak will have been insulted by a furious blood-seeking mob. In the following pages we shall describe the stirring events which have since become history, and the reader shall see the American sailor at his best, courageous and true to the splendid record of our invincible navy.

Chapter 1. Fighting Jack And The Bal Masque

It was the evening of the 15th of October 1891. A brilliant sun setting behind the lofty cerros of Val paraiso, Chili, threw its crimson beams over the bay dotted with the craft of many nations and kissed ere it departed for the night .he stars and strips floating from the peak of the American cruiser Baltimore. Valparaiso is called by the Chilians the "Vale of Para dise, ' ' though it does not very well deserve the name with its narrow, dingy streets, where cutthroats lurk at night ready with knife or cord to attack the unsuspecting. The sunset gun from one of the fifteen forts that guard the harbor and protect the city will soon sound, sending its reverberations over the •. ater, and the gay daughters of Chili will come forth habited in the costume of the coun try, with the manta, or national shawl, over their shapely shoulders.

On board the Baltimore, in one of the cosy cabins attached to the cruiser, sit two men destined to play ho unimportant part in our stirring romance. One shows the unmistakable signs of an officer, for that he is though on detached duty. His features are fine and manly and his eyes beam with good nature. There is no young officer attached to the navy of the finited States better known than Jack Cowan, "Fighting Jack Cowan, " as he is often called. His six months' leave has enabled him to see a good deal of the world, and he has improved it. He has been to Russia and has traveled extensively in other parts of Europe, meeting with snch adven tures as one of his fearless nature would be likely to meet. During his trip he has been accompanied by the young man who is now with him on board the Baltimore— a hand some fellow named Guy Parker, who has seen a good deal of lifo on the water and who has been Jack's companion and valet for some time Jack Cowan is not formally attached to the Baltimore but Commander Schley has invited him to become his guest while the cruiser lies in the harbor of the Chilian city, and Jack has consented, hoping in the depths of his heart that something exciting will turn up to interest him.

He has been invited to the homes of the rich Chilians who live on the ccrros back of the city, and wherever he has been he has become a prime favorite. "We shall be off in ten minutes," said Jack, glancing at his watch and then out over the stretch of water which ends at the Mole. "I expect to pass a fine eveniug at the bal masque, and will see you at the Hotel Colon at, say, twelve. ' ' "Or a little later," replied Parker, a twinkle in his deep blue eyes. He knew his master very well, did Parker, for he had been with him long enough to know that when thrown into the society of ladies Jack was not the man to tear himself away. "I shall not remain later than that hour, " returned Cowan. "I have a lot of letters to write early in the morning and must be up betimes to perform that duty. ' ' "You don't anticipate any trouble, do you, Jack?"

"I do not, though the city is full of rumors that our sailors had best remain away. You remember tho Itata affair, where we seized a vessel some months ago bearing arms to the Congressionalists in Chili? Well, those people are now the Government and the Balmaccdists are under. I urderstand that our men have not been saluted while on TBE WEITE SQUADRON. 9 shore as they were before the Itata matter, but I do not think the Chilians will carry the joke any further than that." Parker hoped not, but at the same time he feared that there was bad blood in the city and expressed his opinion that it would be discovered before many days. Jack Cowan knew Valparaiso pretty well, for the Balti more had been in the harbor for some time, and he had made many visits ashore, becoming acquainted with the place fairly well, and could have picked his way through the darkest part of it after night.

A short time after this conversation a boat put off from the Baltimore, and Fighting Jack Cowan saluted Captain Schley as he sat down and turned his face toward the city. The faithful Parker was at his side and the two talked while they were rowed between a French and on English man-of-war. Night was settling down over water and hill, and the boat bearing the Americans reached the quay, where they sprang ashore. The Mole is a stately place, and not far away is the famous Prat monument in the Plaza. Beyond this lies the city proper, with its rambling streets and tall buildings, some of which were gayly painted, and nearly all of which have porticoes, especially the dwellings. Jack Cowan had that day received a pressing invitation to attend a grand bal masque given by a man who had made his millions in nitrate.

There are several of suoh people in Chili, and while they are not on the shoddy order they can look back to the time when they had but little of this world's goods, and when they dared not try to rap at a rich man's door. But now in Valparaiso they carry things with a high hand and play the tunes to which the society of the Chilian capital dances. The young American officer and his companion proceeded cityward from the Mole, and before long Jaok had dropped Parker at the Hotel Colon on the Calle de la Esmeralda. They parted with mutual good wishes, and Parker with a laugh reminded him not to overstay his time, and Jack replied that the brighest eyes in Valparaiso should not keep him later than midnight. Let. us follow the American. The palacio of Colonel South, the nitrate king, as ho is called, is situated on the Calle de Tubildad, a long street fringed with the elegant homes and gardens of the wealthier classes.

It is a great structure, built after the prevailing fashion in South American cities, and back of it and on each side extends a garden tropical and beautiful in every way. The bal masque is always in fashion in Valparaiso. It attracts the beauties of the Chilian city and with dancing and music the night passes merrily. The men are for the most part arrayed in gay garments and the women in their best, with the soft, fleece-like mania over their shoulders, which increases their voluptuous beauty, and lends to them a vivaciousness that captivates the sterner sex. Jack Cowan found th>a home of the nitrate king brilliantly lighted when he arrived. He was shown into a small room where he was attended by a servant who had arranged a lot of soft velvet masks on a marble-topped table. Jack knew that he was to assume one of them and made haste to do so.

In a few moments he was mingling with the gay throngs that filled the spacious halls of the palacio, or roamed through the gardens glowing in the light of a thousand globes of brightness, brushing pretty women and hand men. More than one pair of dark eyes sought him out, and he was soon conversing with a bevy of girls whose sweet tones were captivating. More than once Jack thought of Parker at the Hotel Colon and wondered how he was passing the time. Ten, eleven o'clock sounded and the American thought of his promise. But he had been thrown into the company of a tail young girl who was very entertaining, and he could not tear himself away. She knew so much about Chili and its people, and Jack in return told her about his adventures in other parts of the world, all the time looking down into the lustrous eyes upturned to him and wondering if she were Colonel South 's beautiful ward whose fame had extended far beyond the oity.

All at once in the throng some one brushed Jack Cowan's arm and the next moment he felt something thrust into his hand. Glancing down he saw that it was a bit of folded paper, and with a smile he transferred it to his pocket. It was not the first time he had received notes at bal masques, and deeming this but an incident of the evening, and thinking that he would read it at the Hotel Colon, when he had rejoined Parker, he forgot the affair entirely. Jack had timed his exit well. He knew that it was not very far to the hotel, and that he could reach it after a brief walk of a few minutes. Therefore he tarried. Out in the splendid garden he walked with the fair damsels of Chili, or stopped to exchange courtesies with some sworded and be-sashed maskers who regarded him with eager eyes. ' ' The note, senor I read it, ' ' said a voice at his side, and Jack turned to see a little girl gliding away.

"Maybe it means something out of the ordinary," thought Fighting Jack Cowan, thinking of the note which he had put away. "I'll look at it for a change. " He managed to slip away from all observers a little while and in the corner of a fairy-like grotto he pulled it forth. A faint scent clung to it, telling that it had come from fair hands, and Jack opened it with a good deal of eagerness. It was written in Spanish and the ohirography was effeminate and perfect. "What's this? A warning?" exclaimed the young American. "By Jove 1 this is getting romantic. " TEE WHITE SQUADRON. 12 Then he bent toward the glass globe which afforded some light aud read as follows : "Lieutenant Jack Cowan, American: "If yon are not on board the Baltimore by eleven to-night your life will not be wurth the snuffing of a cathedral. taper.

Be warned in time and escape. A Friend. " It would be safe to say that Fighting Jack Cowan read this warning note more than once in tbe little retreat. He committed it to memory before he folded it again and restored it to his pocket, and when he looked up he fancied that he heard receding footsteps. Then he glanced at his watch and saw tbat it was impos sible for him to obey the warning, for it was now half-past eleven. "I wonder if I have been kept here on purpose, " thought Jack. " I have been delightfully entertained, but " He had passed from the grotto and saw a tall masker talking in low tones to another person similar masked. Those two men seemed to eye Jack savagely. He did not return thsj glances, but passed to the unmasking room. He resolved to quit the palacio at once, for he had promised Parker to join him at the hotel by twelve, which he could yet do.

He doffed his mask, leaving it on the table with some others and slipped through the house to the street. He was compelled to pass through a part of tho illuminated garden to readthe street, but no one detained him, and in a little while he found himself on his way back. He kept down the Calle de Tubildad, walking briskly, with all his senses on the alert for the note of warning was enough to render them so. In a few minutes he reached a winding street which offered a short cut to the Calle de la Esmeralda, and in another moment he had taken it. The street wa. narrow and contained a lot of two-story residences with the traditional portico, bnt Jack did not notice these. TBE WEITE SQUADRON. 13 He had proceeded halfway down the thoroughfare when he heard a quick, springy footstep. At the same time he turned and glancing up at the nearest portico caught sight of a woman there.

"Runl senor, run! He is at your heels!" screamed the woman, and that moment a figure leaped out from among the shadows of the pave. It came at Fighting Jack Cowan with the quickness of a tiger and he had but little time to choose. He had come ashore armed with nothing but his pocket knife, and in case of trouble would rely on his arms, which had gotten him out of more than on6 scrape ; therefore he braced himself to receive the attack. It came in an instant, and the American caught sight of a knife as it flashed for a moment before his eyes to the scream of the terrified creature on the balcony. But for once the young athlete of the American navy seemed to have reckoned without his host, for he was hurled aside and in another second he was being tumbled toward the nearest house by two men who seemed to possess the strength of giants.

"Quick! quick! To death with the. gringo !" hissed a voice full of enmity. Jack at that moment drew back and, wrenching himself loose, sent the speaker reeling away with a stunning blow under the right ear. Fighting Jack was in his element now.