MR. C. AUGUSTUS EBÉNIER.
Squire Cleaves had brought out from the unwilling witness the fact that
he wanted, and Dock Vincent was put upon the stand. The learned counsel
adroitly conveyed the information that the witness had been convicted
of crime, and had served a term in the state prison--which, though it
did not exclude him from giving evidence, might affect his credibility.
This statement roused the ire of Dock, and he was cross and sullen,
which is a very bad state of mind to be in when subjected to the
torture of a skilful lawyer.
Dock described the manner in which he had assisted Mr. Fairfield in
finding his money. He had done all that an honest man and a good
neighbor should do to help a feeble old man; and it wasn't right for
"one-horse lawyers" to insult him.
"Do you consider yourself insulted, Captain Vincent?" asked the squire.
"Yes, sir; I do!"
"Have you been convicted of a crime?"
"What if I have? There was no justice in it," growled Dock.
"Have you served a term in the state prison?"
"If I have, it wasn't a fair thing; and a good many better men than you
or me have spent years in prison."
"Undoubtedly, but our best men don't usually graduate at the state
prison. You admit the facts as I stated them. Now, Captain Vincent, you
were employed by Mr. Fairfield in finding the money he lost."
"I said so; I was."
"Did you tell the constable he would find the bag on board of the
yacht?"
"No, sir; I did not."
"What did you tell him?"
"In my opinion, Levi stole that money. I didn't think so at first, but
his uncle convinced me he must have done it. I told the constable to
look for the money and the bags on board that vessel."
"Didn't you tell him he would find this bag in Levi's state-room?"
"No, sir; I did not."
"Didn't you tell him he might expect to find it there?"
"Perhaps I did; whether I did or not, I expected he would find it
there," answered Dock, casting a malicious glance at Levi.
"Why did you expect he would find it there?"
"Because I was satisfied Levi stole the money, and would use some of it
while he was gone on the cruise."
"Was that the only reason?"
"It was."
"Captain Vincent, do you know how that bag came in Levi's state-room?"
asked the lawyer, looking upon the floor, as though he considered the
question of little consequence.
"Yes, sir; I do."
"Please to state how it came there."
"Levi put it there."
"You are willing to swear that Levi put it there--are you?"
"Yes, sir; I am," replied Dock, promptly.
"Did you see him put it there?"
"Of course I didn't. I never was aboard of that yacht till this
morning."
"How can you swear that he put it there, then?"
"Because Constable Cooke found it there."
"Is that the only ground on which you swear Levi put it there himself?"
"That's ground enough."
"Answer my question, if you please."
"Yes, it is; and my belief that Levi robbed his uncle of his money."
"That will do; we shall give you the little end of the horn to crawl
out of before we get through," added Squire Cleaves.
Dock, sour and crabbed, sat down near the rocking-chair of Mr.
Fairfield; and Mr. Cæsar Augustus Ebénier, cabin steward of The Starry
Flag, Sr., was politely invited to take the stand. He appeared in his
best clothes, and his name, quality, and position on board of the yacht
were duly elicited by the magistrate.
"What do you know about the money or the bag?" asked Squire Saunders.
"I know all about it, your honor," replied the witness, with a radiant
smile.
"Who put them in the locker, where they were found?"
"I did, your honor."
"That nigger's been bribed to say that," interposed Dock, savagely.
"Who do you call a nigger?" demanded Mr. Cæsar Augustus Ebénier,
stepping briskly up to Dock, with his fists doubled up for use. "I
never was convicted of crime and sent to the state prison."
"Order!" called the justice.
Dock was the more disturbed of the two; but the constable quieted him,
while Mr. Watson patched up the wounded dignity of the cabin steward,
who was doubtless a much better man than Dock. He had formerly been the
body servant of a French gentleman in Louisiana, and he could read and
write, and spoke French fluently. He wrote his name "C. Augustus
Ebénier," and he insisted that his surname should be pronounced
A-ba-ne-a. He was a person of no little importance in his own
estimation, and had a southern negro's contempt for mean whites, of
whom Dock Vincent seemed to be the meanest specimen he had yet seen.
[Illustration: MR. C. AUGUSTUS EBÉNIER IS WRATHY.--Page 112.]
"Now, Mr. Ebony, we will proceed with this examination."
"A-ba-ne-a, if you please, your honor," suggested the witness, with the
politest of bows.
"I beg your pardon, Mr. Ebénier," said the justice, with a smile. "You
placed the bag and the money in the locker--did you?"
"I did, your honor; in the captain's locker: but I didn't comprehend
what was in the bag at the particular moment when it was in my
possession."
"Exactly so."
"I was not precisely informed in regard to the nature of the contents
of the bag, which was agglomerated in a mass, and exceedingly heavy for
the bulk of the parcel, appearing to consist only of a portion of tow
cloth."
"Just so, Mr. Ebénier; we are fortunate in being able to understand
you."
"I beg your honor's pardon, but the initial E in my surname should be
pronounced like long a."
"Excuse me, monsieur," laughed the justice; "but my French is rather
rusty. Will you do me the favor to indicate in what manner the bag and
its contents came into your possession."
"With pleasure, your honor. Yesterday afternoon, just previous to
Captain Fairfield's going on shore----"
"Who?" asked Squire Saunders, who was not familiar with Levi's new
title.
"Captain Fairfield, your honor."
"You mean Levi?"
"No, your honor; far be it from me to commit the gross disrespect of
calling the captain of the yacht in which I sail by his Christian name.
Captain Levi Fairfield, your honor."
"Go on, then. I know whom you mean."
"Yesterday afternoon, just as Captain Fairfield was going on shore--I
disremember the precise time, but it was about five o'clock, post
meridian."
"That is sufficiently accurate, Mr. Ebénier. Do me the favor to
proceed."
"I beg your honor's pardon, but these interruptions have a tendency to
prevent me from following accurately and succinctly the thread of my
narrative."
The magistrate bowed, and laughed, as all in the room were doing except
Dock and Mr. Fairfield. The witness commenced his story again,
repeating everything he had said before; and the squire did not deem it
prudent to interrupt him again.
"I was located in a standing position near the entrance to the main
cabin; and your honor is aware that, in first-class yachts, the descent
commences in the standing-room, which in New York yachts is more
frequently called the cockpit. At a distance of not more than a quarter
of a marine league from our yacht lay a fishing schooner, which I was
informed by those who probably possessed an accurate knowledge of the
intended movements of the schooner, though I really could not now state
to your honor the names of the parties from whom I received this
intimation----"
"Not material," interposed the squire.
"The information I received may prove to be material, your honor. I was
credibly informed that the vessel intended to sail for the Grand Banks
or the coast of Labrador, I cannot now swear which, or, indeed, if it
was either of these localities. Possibly it was either, possibly it was
neither, or possibly it was both. I wish it particularly understood
that, under the solemnity of an oath, I do not state positively where
the vessel was going. Suffice it to say that she was going on a fishing
voyage; but whether for cod, haddock, mackerel, or halibut, or either,
or all, or a portion of these piscatorial inhabitants of the mighty
deep, I am entirely unable to say."
The court, counsel, and witnesses, with the exceptions before noted,
roared with laughter; and the cabin steward smiled complacently, as
though he was conscious of having made a point.
"I can only observe, under oath, that I was informed that the vessel
intended to depart in search of some of the numerous ichthyological
specimens that roam in finny herds through the boundless depths of the
sea--as soon as the tide turned."
"Excuse me, Mr. Ebénier, but what has all this to do with the money and
the bag?" asked the justice, choking down his laughter.
"I trust I shall be able to demonstrate, to the entire satisfaction of
your honor, that there is an intimate connection between these
circumstances and the suspicious articles discovered in the state-room
of Captain Fairfield."
"Go on, then. It is almost dinner time."
"A doray--an exceedingly anomalous craft to a resident of New York,
where I have had the honor to reside for several seasons--a doray----"
"You mean a dory--don't you?"
"I am really unable to pronounce the word according to any authorized
orthography, as it was never my good fortune to see the word in print.
I am not informed whether or not the acute accent is placed over the
final e."
"There is no e in the word. D-o-r-y."
"Ah, excuse me! It is not a French word, then, and it is quite proper
to call it a dory."
"Precisely so; and now, having settled this important point, that it is
a dory, and not a doray, will you inform the court where you got the
bag and the money?" said Squire Saunders, beginning to be a little
impatient.
But he might as well have attempted to make water run up hill as to
induce Mr. C. Augustus Ebénier to relate his story in any other than
his own way.
"A dory from the fishing vessel, about to depart on her voyage, paid a
visit of courtesy to the Starry Flag. The party which came in the dory
consisted of three persons, all of them fishermen, and all of them
young men. All, or a portion of them, were evidently personal friends
of the four worthy young men who collectively constitute the crew of
the yacht, of which I have the honor to be cabin steward. The persons
who came on board were not cabin visitors; I am not even aware that
they paid their respects to our excellent captain; but I feel compelled
to add that, while on board, they behaved with the utmost propriety. I
was located----"
"Avast there!" exclaimed the justice. "The court is adjourned till
after dinner. I hope the distinguished gentleman will be able to spin
out his yarn before bed time."