The Cass County Sun (Linden, Tex.), Vol. 52, No. 19, Ed. 1 Tuesday, May 10, 1927 Page: 3 of 8
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THE CASS COUNTY SUN
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• CHAPTER I
—1 —•
The Affable 8tranger.
On the coast of New Jersey, some
twenty miles south of Barnegat, lies
the little village of Straltsmouth. To
the east'ard a promontory guards the
town from winter gales; but except for
this barrier yi a will see, to north and
south, nothing save barren sand-dunes,
stretching away for mile on mile,
bleak and untenanted, a very picture
of desolation. At intervals rotting
timbers, bordering the shore, tell
where some stout vessel has laid her
hones; but for the most part the dunes
He bare, a monotony of white and glis-
tening sand; the waves,- In the sum-
mertime, breaking gently on the shelv-
ing beach, but in winter tearing and
rending It with murderous rage, the
huge green rollers towering toward
the shore, to crash and thunder into
an avalanche of foam and flying spray.
Thus you may see that Straltsmouth
was, of necessity, an Isolated spot.
Eight miles to the north of us, (5edar
Inlet had grown, as we were forced to
admit. Into "quite a town," with
wharves and shipping, and o brisk
trade with many points in the inte-
rior. And, to the south of us. Norton's
Cove had flourished also, though we
remained what we had been for nearly
a hundred years, a peaceful fishing
hamlet with a dally routine as color-
ness and monotonous as the dunes
themselves.
Amid these quiet surroundings I was
born In the year seventeen hundred
and forty-nine. My father, like nine-
tenths of the citizens of Straitsmouth,
was a fisherman; an upright, God-fear-
ing man, not over large but sturdy and
strong. He was not blessed, I think,
with much Imagination, but was con-
tent to do his dally tasks as they came
to him, with his thoughts centered first
of all upon the weather, and after
that upon the affairs and fortunes of
the town. My mother, on the other
hand, must have been an unusual
woman, but my memories of her nre
faint and dreamlike, for she died when
I wai ten years old.
Alas! how many a lad must say, as
I So: "If my mother had only lived!"
Not that I am trying to excuse myself
in any way, but I think nothing could
have made more difference to me than
tier death, for It was the next nine
years which formed my habits and my
character. Fortunately, I met no
great temptations; but my father, a
heartbroken man, took little Interest
In me. with the natural result that I
did chiefly those things which I liked
to do. and omitted many others which
I should hove done. Thus, at the time
my story begins, I was in many re-
spects below the average for boys of
my age. For one thing, I was not a
good scholar, nor was I fleet of foot,
though I was large and strong, and at
wrestling could throw anybody in the
town. Yet since I hud followed shoot-
ng and fishing all my days, I had ac-
quired one accomplishment to a really
remarkable degree, namely, a deadly
accuracy In the use of firearms. I had
h splendid rifle, which had been my
grandfather's; It was of English make,
clasped and ornamented with silver,
and would speed a bullet true and
straight, with scarcely the deflection
of a hair's breadth from the mark.
I do not claim, of course, that I was
a marksman by Instinct; my progress
was one long course of experimenting,
and of profiting by my mistakes. First,
t 'mastered the art of shooting at a
stationary mark, trying charges of
different strength, and calculating, at
various distances, how much I should
allow for the drop of the bullet. Soon
110 squirrel, no matter how tall the
tree In which he sought refuge, was
safe from my aim; then wild ducks
swimming on the water out of reach
of my shotgun paid tribute to my
skill; and at last, nfter innumerable
failures, I began to acquire the really
difficult art of bringing down, with a
single bullet, wildfowl actually upon
the wing. Not, of course, that I could
do this at every attempt, but I suc-
ceeded often enough, at least, to prove
that It was no accident, while no one
else In the village could do It at all.
Here then, as nearly as I can draw
It, Is my picture at nineteen. A very
ordinary boy, hut absolutely healthy
snd normal, and not, I am glad to
think, mean or vicious In any way,
although I was fast reaching the age
when Instead of staying at home, I
liked to spend the spare hours In the
daytime at the wharf, which was the
loafing place for the town, and my
evenings at the tavern, where much
good ale was drank, and a great deal
tnore went on which was, I fear, less
wholesome than the ale. And with
this Introduction my story really be-
gins.
It was about four o'clock on an eve-
ning In late October, in the year sev-
enteen hundred and sixty-eight, when
I left the cottage, and as usual, with
rifle on shouder, bent my steps toward
the wharf. For the last two days 1
w
MFM
By ELLERY H. CLARK
Oopyrlsht ltlt by Bobb«-M rrlll Go.
WNU Servlc.
had been visiting my cousin at Cedar
Inlet, and I was thinking now of how
fine a place It really was, with its
stately houses, and Its shops, and the
stir and hustle of the wharves, with
the bark Eastern Star, loading for a
trip to the West Indies, and due to
sail on the following morning. That,
I reflected (without the faintest vision
of what the morrow held in store for
me) would be a glorious adventure
and In a vague way I began to picture
to myself what the West Indies were
like. Geography was a weak point
with me, and I think It must have
been India that was really uppermost
In my mind, for I remember that I
peopled the woods with elephants and
tigers, and the ocean with tall ves-
sels laden with treasure, keeping a
"There, Dick, Is What I'd Like for My
Dinner."
wary outlook for gentlemen of for-
tune flying the black flag. Hut If my
tigers and elephants were some dis-
tance from their native haunts, yet
my pirates were located with propri-
ety, for here was an Industry which
had existed for many years In the Car-
ibbean, and In spite of the marcli of
progress still flourished as handsome-
ly as of old.
I found the wharf almost deserted.
Aaron Parker, old anil silver-haired,
was, as usual, fishing at the end of
the pier, his long legs dangling over
the edge, his tin can, filled with halt,
by his side. Propped against a stan-
chion, close at hand, was his old, dis-
reputable-looking shotgun, and I soon
perceived that his thoughts were
equally divided between fishing und
gunning; for he turned at my ap-
proach and pointed out to sea to
where, perhaps a hundred and twenty-
five yards distant, n (lock of half a
dozen sea-ducks were swimming slow-
ly along, every now and again diving
In search of food. Towurd this little
flock, peaceful and unsuspecting,
Aaron was' casting longing eyes,
"There, nick, my boy," he said tnct-
fully, "Is what I'd like for tomorrow's
dinner. They've Just set my mouth
watering. A dozen times I've sturted
to get Into my boat, end scull down on
them, but I've tried that trick so often
that I know It's no use; they would
take wing before I got within range.
And I was saying to myself, 'Wouldn't
It be fine If Dick Lindsay should come
along nnd shoot me one with his rifle.'
And fhen I look up, nnd sure enough,
here you nre, JuBt In time. Itest your
rifle on the rail, Dick; wait till they
draw together a little, and I'll bet
you'll get me one."
I wns nbout to comply when the
sound of voices made me turn around,
and I saw two of the hunters of the
village, Isaac Holmes and William Og-
den, coming down toward the wharf,
rifles on shoulders, Isaac with a bunch
of gray squirrels In his hand. As they
Joined us, Aaron seemed to forget his
beloved sea-ducks for a moment, for
he Inquired eagerly, "Has your man
come back, William?"
Ogden shook his head. "No," ho an-
swered In a tone betraying some anxi-
ety, "and here It is almost Ave o'clock,
A little after noon, was what he said.
And yet he appeared to be an honest
man."
"What Is It all about, William?" I
asked. "What man art yon talking
otr
"Why," he explained, "day before
yesterday a stranger came to town
and said he wanted to hire a horse
and buggy for two or three days. He
said he would take good care of the
rig and would raturn today, probably
a little after noon. And I let him have
the white mare and the best buggy."
"I think you were foolish," I said
blnntly, "to trust a stranger like that."
"Well," Ogden defended, "he gave
me a fancy price, and paid half of It
down. After that I didn't exactly
want to say no, especially as he had
the money right In his hand, and had a
pleasant way with him besides. I
think he'll be back. What do you say,
Isaac? You saw him."
"I say hell keep his word," returned
Isaac comfortingly. "I'll venture he's
an honest man. Give him until sun-
down. If he doesn't come then,
why—" He broke off suddenly to lis-
ten, for Isaac had the sharpest ears of
any hunter in the town; "I'll be might-
ily mistaken—" he went on slowly;
then, shading his eyes with hts hand,
peered down the road, and cried In
sudden triumph, "Thought bo! There
he Is now!"
Around a turn concealed by trees
there appeared, sure enough, the fa-
miliar figure of the white mare with
the best buggy In tow. both evidently
In excellent condition. William has-
tened forward, with relief written
upon his face, and held the mare while
the stranger alighted.
"I fear I am late," he acknowledged
as he came forward, speaking to Wil-
liam, but as It seemed to me taking
us all In at a glance. He had n pleas-
ant voice and prepossessing manner;
his face was bronzed, as from expos-
ure to wind and sun, he had a pair of
bright and penetrating eyes, nnd al-
though he wns not tall, he possessed
an excellent brendth of shoulder and
looked In all respects like a man Who
could take care of himself without
help In the world.
He walked down the wharf as If
glad of a chance to stretch his limbs;
then all at once his eyes became r.'v-
efed on the sea. "There Is a pretty
sight," he said.
It was clear to me that If he were
not a sportsman he at least possessed
a sportsman's Instincts, for what had
attracted his attention wns a flock of
perhaps twenty white-wings, flying
close to the shore.
"They will decoy to the others," I
cried Instantly. "See If they don't"
And the next moment, as the birds
In the air perceived their companions
feeding peacefully below them, they
yielded, as I had predicted, to the so-
cial habits of their kind; and swing-
ing gracefully toward the water, they
set their wings, wheeled In a wide
half-circle, and splashing Into the
ocean, began what appeared to be an
amicable conversation with their hosts.
Aaron's Interest In his next dny's
dinner was revived. "There's your
chance, I)lck," he hegged. "You
couldn't miss one now."
The ducks, Indeed, as the two flocks
massed close together, offered a tempt-
ing mark. But Instead of shooting 1
turned.-with what for ine wns unusual
deference, to the Granger. I do not
think It wns politeness on my part, for
I was not overburdened with that
quality; hut rather that I had sense
enongh to see that this man. In spite
of his quiet dress and quiet mannt'r,
was, In some way difficult to explain,
distinctly above the rest of us; and
accordingly I did not feel at m.v ease
In attempting to display my skill be-
fore him. And so I sold, "Perhaps
this gentleman will try the shot."
He looked nt me rather approvingly,
I thought, and with a glance that
seemed to be taking stock of me. But
he declined tny offer with a smile. "I
thank yon," he answered, "but I nm
only a humble merchant. Of such
matters"—and with a gesture he indi-
cated the guns stacked against the
rail_«I am ignorant. If you wish to
insure the safety of the game, I will
shoot. But as our friend here seems
anxious to have one for dinner, I think
I had better not make the attempt."
He spoke as If he were telling the
truth, and yet, In some way that I
could not quite have explained, t felt
that he was not so ignorant as he ap-
peared—that he knew enough, if he
chose to admit It, about guns and rifles
and how to use them. But tills I could
not very well Bay, and Aaron was
quick to assent.
"That's well spoken, sir," he agreed.
"Now, Dick, something may frighten
them. Go ahead and shoot."
"All right," I agreed. "And Isaac
and William will flre, too. With three
bullets we ought to get at least one
duck."
But Aaron did not wish to run the
slightest chance of losing his dinner.
"No, Dick," he objected, "no disre-
spect to the others, but you're the boy
to do the shooting. They will lend
you their rifles; p#it them side of you,
and when you've fired your own piece
lay it down and give 'em two more
shots a* they go off. You'll do that
for an old man, won't you, boys?"
To my embarrassment, both Isaac
and William responded by doing at
Aaron suggested. The stranger eyed
ine curiously. "You seem to enjoy
quite a reputation," he observed; and
added, I thought a trifle mockingly,
"but a reputation has Its drawbacks.
It's not always easy to live up to it."
Somehow his words nettled me.
They were courteous enough, but In
his whole manner I seemed to read
disbelief—-a feeling that I was not
nearly such a marksman as my
friends made me out to be. And I de-
termined that if I ever drew a bead
straight in my life, I would do so now
"There's only one way to tell," 1
answered somewhat shortly; and with-
out In the least realizing how much,
In the futnre, was to depend upon thi
accuracy of my aim, I walked out t«
the end of the pier, and banishing all
thought of my audience from tny mind,
forthwith concentrated my energies on
the shot before me.
To begin with, I leaned the rifles of
Isaac and William against the rail,
where I could easily grasp them, and
then did not scruple to take advantage
of the added steadiness to be obtained
from shooting with a rest. I leveled
ray piece, waited until I had three big
black fellows In line, and carefully
noting the position of the rest of the
flock, pressed the trigger. Then, with-
out waiting to see the result of my
ahot, I put down my piece and seized
Isaac's rifle. It took a moment for the
thin cloud of smoke to dissolve, and
when It did I found, as I had expected,
that the frightened ducks were already
taking wing. They nre, however, In
comparison with a widgeon or a black
duck, slow flyers, and I had ample
time to focus on four birds close to-
gether, and to dlrert my aim, by allow-
ing the proper headway, at them.
Once more, without an Instant's de-
lay, I lnld down the second rifle,
grasjied hastily for the third, and
though, by this time, the ducks had
not only gained considerable speed,
but considerable distance as well, in.v
good angel stood by me and I dropped
a grny bird from the center of the
flock. Then, nnd then only, still hold-
ing the smoking rifle In my hond, I
looked, not without apprehension, to
see whether or not ray earlier shot?
had reached their mark. I shall
never forgot the sight that met my
gaze. There, an equal distance apart,
three birds, two blacks nnd a gray,
floated stone-dead on the quiet water.
I was the center of quite a demon-
stration. Anron. with a glorious din-
ner before his eyes, was naturally the
most delighted, but the stranger wns a
close second, nnd as If desirous of
making amends for his disbelief, com-
plimented me most handsomely on the
accuracy of my aim, and crowned the
occasion by Insisting that we should
all adj. "n to the tavern, where he
could complete his payment to Wil-
liam nnd at the same time, as he was
kind enough to phrase It, "drink a
health to ttie stralghtest-shootlng
young man he had met In many a day."
Naturally, we all accepted with uliic-
rlt.v, all of us, that Is, except Aaron,
who wns too Intent on retrieving Ms
coveted game to go with us at once,
but wlvo earnestly assured the stronger
that he would be with us directly and
would make an honest effort to dis-
pose of Ills fair share of the ale.
Once seated at the round table In
the tavern, with two or three of Its
regular patrons added to our group,
and with nn unlimited supply of ale
for all. It was not long before tongues
were wagging freely. The stranger
was a merchant, he told us, and admit-
ted that these were times when a
truder could make excellent profits,
provided he was willing to run some
risk. But—and he lowered his voice
and glanced apprehensively about hint
—he had heard—we must remember
that he wns but a simple merchant and
knew nothing of the sea—he had heard
lately much talk of villainous pirates
who were leaving their usual haunts
In the Caribbean, and working farther
and farther north, so that shipping
along the Atlantic seaboard was no
longer safe. And with this Introduc-
tion of the subject everyone began
talking In concert. Aaron, who had
deposited his sea-ducks In a corner
and was doing his utmost by Inroads
on the liquor to make up for lost time,
began to tell the stranger of "Bloody"
Carleton and his brig; Isaac was re-
counting horrid tales of the notorious
Starkey; and Anally some one, I
know not who, for by this time the
strong ale was humming in my ears,
mentioned the name of the Black Pan-
ther.
"Aye," cried the stranger, "what ot
this Black Panther? I have heard the
name more than once in the last few
weeks, and always It Is a different
story. I should be glad to learn tt*
truth."
(TO BB CONTINUED.) _____
Habit la an avery-daj affal
Oke KITCHEN
CABINET
H U<y. 1*47 «Vm 1di u iJiiiuii.
We have no Intellectual rlsrht to
be Ignorant when Information lies
at our hand, and we have no spfr-
Itual right to be weary when great
moral Issue* are at atake.—Agnes
Keppller.
EVERYDAY FOODS
The banana Is an everyday food, or
can be, for It Is always on the market.
• Now that they are sold
by the pound, one gets
what Is puld for.
This fruit Is so well
liked that It Is a favorite
with most people. It la
not a favorite only be-
cause of Its delicate
flavor, but excels many
fruits In food value.
A simple little dessert which can be
quickly prepared Is made from two ot
three bananas put through a rlcer
adding a dash of lemon Juice and t
little sugar, not too much, or the des-
sert will be cloying. Stir In whipped
cream and have all well chilled. Serve
with cookies.
Mixed Fruit Salad.—Use one-half
cupful each of shredded pineapple,
chopped mts, orange pulp, grape
fruit pulp, halved maruschlno cherries,
and one and one-half cupfuls of diced
bouanns. Serve with any desired
dressing
Butterfly Salad.—Arrange slices of
pineapple cut Into halves on head let-
tuce, the curved side toward the cen-
ter, leaving a space between In which
to put the body of the butterfly—the
pineapple slices ore the wings. Make
a head of a green grape peeled, the
feelers of finely cut green pepper.
Decorate the wings with slices of
stuffed olives and pass the dressing
when serving.
Marquise Cake.—Cream one-fourth
cupful of butter, add three-fourths of
a cupful of powdered sugar, two eggs,
two bananas, one cupful of flour and
three teaspoonfuls of baking powder.
Crenm the butter with t -e sugar, add
the beaten eggs, then the mashed
pulp of the bananas snd then the
flour sifted with the baking powder.
Mix well and spread 'n lire* layer
tins, leaving the dough thinner In the
center. Buke twenty minutes.
Banana Croustades .— C u t stale
sponge cake Into two-Inch cubes, hol-
low out to form a box, butter and
brown lightly In the oven. Fill wltli
the following: Cook one-third cupful
of seedless raisins In orange Juice un-
til tender. Other fruit Juice may bn
used; cut four bananas into cubes and
add to the cooked raisins wlrh half it
cupful of sugar. Cover and cook until
thoroughly hot. shaking the dish to
keep the contents from scorching. Fill
the croustades with the fruit and pour
the sirup over the whole. Serve hot.
A Symphony of Soups.
On u chilly night in ony season of
the year a dish of hot soup Is much
enjoyed. If the
meal to follow Is
a substantial one,
the soup should be
light and merely
stimulating, with
but little nourish-
ment. If the meal
Is a light one, the
soup provided
should be a cream soup, bisque or a
chowder.
Mushroom Soup.—Cut Into dice one
and one-half cupfuls of fresh mush-
rooms. Stew until tender In u cupful
of beef stock, then add a quart of beef
stock, thicken with a tablespoonful of
flour rubbed smooth with a tablespoon-
ful of turner. Season with salt, pepper
and minced parsley.
Chicken Soup.—Crush the hones of
a chicken left from a roast, add any
leftover bits of meat, a stalk or two of
celery finely cut, a pinch of poultry
seasoning, suit and pepper, cover with
cold wuter and bring to the simmering
point. SlnuiThr for several hours,
strain and season to taste. Thicken
with butter and flour cooked together
nnd serve with a little cream added at
the last or a well-henteu egg stirred In
Just before serving.
Soup a la Clermont,—Take the up-
per crust of a loaf of French bread,
cut Into small pieces, remove the
crumbs and put Into a bowl with two
cupfuls of seasoned stock. Place In a
moderate oven for half an hour. Slice
four large onions, fry brown In two
tablespoonfnls of butter, drain and
boll for twenty minutes In beef stook
to cover for twenty minutes. Add the
onions nnd the bread to two quarts of
hot beef stock. Pour Into a tureen,
and serve with grated cheese.
Bean Soup.—Put Into a soup kettle
two cupfuls of baked beans, two cup-
fuls of canned tomatoes, nn onion
chopped fine and six cupfuls of cold
water. Simmer until the beans are
soft enough to rub through a sieve,
reheat, season and serve.
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Banger, J. E. A. & Erwin, W. L. The Cass County Sun (Linden, Tex.), Vol. 52, No. 19, Ed. 1 Tuesday, May 10, 1927, newspaper, May 10, 1927; Linden, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth340802/m1/3/: accessed July 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Atlanta Public Library.