AN AMERICAN WAGER
Jack Wharton was not one of those men who mean something else than what
they say. His whole vocabulary was either "Yes" or "No," just as the
circumstances were. When Clary arrived at the harbor at seven o'clock,
she found a troop of giants awaiting her, who stood in line like
Prussian grenadiers. Wharton moved his hat, and said:
"You see, my lady, we are punctual."
"I did not expect anything else," Clary simply replied, "and please see
that my luggage is carefully brought on board--and nothing broken," she
added, as she cast a glance at the broad forms of the sailors.
Wharton promised to carry out her orders faithfully.
"Have you never had any adventures, captain?" she asked. "I should like
to know something about your wife."
"Mrs. Wharton is a pearl--she was a widow when I married her--"
"Ah!"
"Yes," continued Wharton, indifferently; "I ate up her first husband; he
was a splendid fellow."
Saying which he opened the carriage door and assisted the ladies on
board the boat. Clary, as she stood on deck, noticed a gold-colored flag
flying from a staff.
"What does the color of that flag mean?" she asked.
"Ah, my lady, as our commodore has gold blond hair, I permitted myself
to hoist up flags of the same color."
"Well, I must say," said Madame Caraman, "that beats Sir Walter
Raleigh's gallantry; you know he placed his gold-embroidered mantle in
the mud for Queen Elizabeth to walk upon."
At this moment a tall, lean figure as graceful as a mast loomed up on
deck.
"Mrs. Wharton," said the captain, proudly.
Clary and her governess shuddered as they looked at Mrs. Wharton.
The copper-colored face of the woman looked like the broken hilt of a
knife; her coal-black hair gleaming with oil was tied in a knot at the
back of her head; the large mouth did not hide the still larger yellow
teeth and the flat nose was bored with holes. Her ears were decorated
with three gold rings apiece. Her dress consisted of a dark red skirt,
fastened at the waist by a gold cord. Her decollete waist allowed the
brown skin to be perceived, and her flat feet were inclosed in
moccasins. Yet, in spite of Minnie Wharton's repulsive appearance, her
husband loved her.
As soon as Mrs. Wharton saw the two ladies she invited them, in a voice
which sounded like the croak of a raven, to her cabin. They were both
astonished when they entered it to find it a beautifully furnished
boudoir, whose silk hangings and bric-a-brac made it look more like a
parlor of the Faubourg St. Germain than a ship's cabin.
"The ladies will excuse me," said Minnie, "but the time was short and I
could do no better."
"You do not mean," exclaimed Clary, surprised, "that you did everything
during the night?"
"The captain did not get back until midnight, and I hurriedly purchased
the things in the stores of Marseilles."
Clary thought it was a tale out of the "Arabian Nights."
Wharton had thought it a question of honor to show the young lady that
she had not paid too dearly for the Crocodile, and had he been able to
take down the moon, he would have hung it as a night-lamp in her cabin.
The captain and his wife had scoured the shops of Marseilles at one in
the morning and bought all the things, paying dearly for them. The room
of Madame Caraman was also a model of neatness. Next to the bed stood a
small table, upon which was a silver service with a bottle of brandy on
it. Madame Caraman was delighted, and when her sense of smell detected
the fine quality of the brandy, she was almost moved to tears.
A head appeared in the doorway, and the captain said:
"My lady, the Ice Bird left ten minutes ago, and five minutes later the
Crocodile lifted anchor."
"Good, captain. You are sure of being able to over-take the Ice Bird?"
"Leave that to me, my lady."
The captain now thought that the time for dining had come, and invited
the ladies into a charming little room.
"Captain, you are a magician," exclaimed the young girl, laughing. "Such
a beautiful dining-room, and flowers too," she added, as she perceived a
huge bank of flowers.
"Oh, what lovely flowers," she exclaimed delightedly.
"Mrs. Wharton is the magician, my lady," replied the captain; "and now
please be seated."
"Directly," replied Clary laughing; "but first permit me to beg your
wife and yourself to join us."
Two more covers were placed on the table.
The breakfast was a substantial English meal, and consisted of tea,
coffee, eggs and ham. They were all tasty dishes. The conversation was
very lively until Mrs. Wharton arose and begged to be excused as she had
other duties to perform.
"Ah, my Minnie is a pearl," murmured Wharton, looking tenderly back at
her.
"You seem to be much attached to each other," said Clary, cordially.
"Oh, my lady, how could it be otherwise? We have not been separated from
each other since twenty years; we have common remembrances which we can
never forget."
"If I am not mistaken, you said before that Mrs. Wharton was a widow?"
"Yes, the widow of a Sioux."
"And did she belong to the same tribe?"
"Yes, my lady, but she is long since a Christian."
"And who was her husband?"
"A Sioux, poor Tu-Sam-Ba."
"And how did he die, you say?"
"I ate him up, my lady."
"Ah, really?"
"Yes," said Wharton, sorrowfully; "his wife and I ate him up, and
through this circumstance Minnie became a widow."
Natural as it seemed to the captain, Madame Caraman gazed in open
horror, and as soon as she could recover the use of her tongue, she
asked for explanations.
The captain was not loth to tell his story, and just as he was settling
himself comfortably in a chair, Clary exclaimed:
"Before you begin, captain, take a look at the yacht."
"I shall," said Wharton, "but you can rest easy and trust in the
Crocodile."
The captain disappeared, and Madame Caraman, turning to Clary, said:
"We have come among strange people."
"We had no other choice, and we might have fared worse."
"Well, I'm much obliged for the consolation--cannibals!"
Clary was silent. What could she have answered?
In about ten minutes the captain returned out of breath.
"Think of it," he said; "these stupid firemen have not put on enough
steam, and when I came on deck--"
"The Ice Bird was far away," interrupted Clary.
"I cannot deny it, but it will be all right."
"And your promise?"
"Ah, my lady, I would like to make you a wager."
"A wager?"
"Yes, that when we arrive at Bona, the Ice Bird will not be visible."
"Good."
"And now let me continue with the story of my marriage--"
"Oh, yes; I should like to know more about your wedding supper," said
Madame Caraman.
The captain lighted a cigar and began:
"In the first place, ladies, you must know that I have not always been
rich. I have not got a million yet, but I am in comfortable
circumstances, so to speak. Twenty-five years ago I had not a dollar in
the world. I did everything, but could not succeed in anything. In
November, 1825, I was absolutely penniless, and one of my comrades, Dick
Merton, who was as badly off as myself, made a proposition to me to go
to California. At that time California was still hardly explored.
"'I will go along,' I said, in answer to Dick's proposition.
"'You know the peril, Jack,' he replied. 'You might be in danger of
being captured by the Indians and eaten up.'
"At any other time, and under different circumstances, I might have
hesitated, but my position was a desperate one, and I accepted. The next
day, armed to the teeth, we started. We were eight when we started. When
we reached San Francisco only five of us were left. One was killed by
the bite of a snake, and the rest fell down the precipices of the Rocky
Mountains. At that time none of the comforts and luxuries to be found
there to-day existed. We worked with pick and axe, and stilled our
hunger with the wild animals we killed. Two weeks later trouble arose in
the camp. Some of our party maintained that we had chosen a bad place,
because the gold did not pan out as well as they had hoped. Others again
persisted in upholding the spot selected. The upshot of the matter was,
that we parted. I and two others remained, the rest departing in a
westerly direction.
"We built a block-house. It was situated under the shadow of a gigantic
cedar-tree and protected us from the wind and rain. All went along
swimmingly until one day I heard a yell of joy from Dick. I ran toward
him, and to my surprise I saw a vein of gold, which, at a superficial
calculation, must be worth a million dollars. We danced about for joy.
Very soon Osborne, our third companion, came. We returned to our hut,
and after drinking a large quantity of whiskey in honor of the event, we
went to bed. As usual, we were fully dressed with our weapons in our
hands ready for any emergency. How long I slept I do not know, but I was
suddenly awakened by a loud yell, which still rings in my ears. Starting
up, I looked around and beheld Osborne staring with wide-open mouth at
something which lay in a corner.
"'What is the matter?' I asked.
"Osborne did not reply, but pointed to a corner near the door. I looked
in the direction indicated, and by the dim light of the lamp saw to my
horror--a rattlesnake. I looked around for Dick; he was leaning against
the wall, his face ghastly pale. Before I was aware of it Dick had
kicked in the strong door. Osborne must have had the same idea for he
too rushed for the door. They both reached the threshold at the same
time.
"The door was too narrow to allow them both to pass; Dick seized
Osborne by the throat; a struggle ensued, and the next minute Osborne
sank to the ground with Dick's bowie-knife plunged up to the hilt in his
breast. The snake, aroused by the noise, sprang up and struck Dick a
deadly blow.
"In a moment he was in convulsions."
Wharton paused. The perspiration stood on his forehead and the muscles
of his lips twitched. Clary buried her face in her hands, and Madame
Caraman prevented herself from fainting by taking a glass of brandy.
"I beg your pardon, ladies," the captain proceeded, "but the memory of
that awful time overcame me. I am no coward, but the terrible sight
unmanned me. The rattlesnake looked at me with its hideous eyes. The
fear of death nerved me, and seizing my gun I discharged it full at the
monster and then lost consciousness. When I recovered next morning and
saw the dead bodies of Dick and Osborne I broke into tears."
"Captain," interrupted Clary, "your tale is so interesting that one is
apt to forget, but--"
"But what?" asked Wharton expectantly.
"I am anxious to know how many knots the Crocodile is making."
"Ah! I was not thinking of that. I am sure of my ship."
"So much the better; let us go on deck."
"And my story?"
"Can be continued later on; I am to know yet how the Indian's widow
became your wife."
Wharton preceded the ladies to the deck. He knew his ship and had no
fears. The weather was magnificent and the vessel's sails were swelled
by the breeze. Clary looked in every direction to catch a glimpse of the
Ice Bird, but could not see it.
"Captain, where is the Ice Bird?" she said, turning to Wharton.
"The Ice Bird? It's far behind. How could it compare in speed with the
Crocodile?"
"Are you sure of it?"
"Yes, my lady."
"Please ask one of the sailors!"
Wharton did so, and was astonished when he was told that the
"peanut-shell," as he called the Ice Bird, made twenty-three knots an
hour, whereas the Crocodile made only twelve. The long face he made at
this announcement caused Clary to burst into a loud laugh.
"You see it is folly to attempt to overtake the Count of Monte-Cristo,"
said Madame Caraman to Clary; "if you follow my advice, return to
Marseilles, where we can wait for news of the Ice Bird and--"
"Go back?" interrupted Clary. "Never!"
"But Monte-Cristo will arrive before us, and two hours after his arrival
at Bona he will be on his way to the desert, and you do not intend to
follow him there among the lions, tigers and jackals, do you?"
"Mamma Caraman, if you are afraid, you can go back to France," said
Clary, gently.
Captain Wharton now came back.
"Well," said Clary to him, "what's to be done?"
"We will overtake the Ice Bird, and all of us will be at your service
and not leave you until you discharge us yourself. Will that do?"
"Captain," said Clary, "I am afraid you are promising too much again."
"Oh, no; this time I am confident of success."
"But can you answer for your men?"
Wharton blew a whistle. All the crew appeared.
"Men," he said, turning to the sailors, "are you going to stand by me
and follow me wherever the ship goes?"
"Yes!" they cried in chorus.
"Are you satisfied, my lady?" asked the captain, triumphantly.
"Yes."
"Where are we to go?" asked the captain.
"To the interior of Africa, in fact in the neighborhood of the Sahara."
"Good, commodore," replied the captain.
"The captain," she said, turning to the men, "shall pay you whatever you
demand. All I ask of you is devotion."
"We swear it!" shouted the sailors, enthusiastically swinging their
caps.
Mrs. Wharton approached the young lady and said:
"Have you forgiven the captain, miss?"
"Long since, Mrs. Wharton," replied Clary, grasping her hand.
Clary and Madame Caraman withdrew to their boudoir.
"Don't you think it rather dangerous to be in the society of these
people?" asked Madame Caraman.
"Have no fear, Mamma Caraman; I answer for everything."
"One question more, dear child. What was the cause of your apparent
indifference to-day, when you heard that the Ice Bird had distanced the
Crocodile?"
Clary blushed deeply, and throwing her arms about Madame Caraman's
neck, whispered:
"I confess it did not surprise me. I did not wish to wound Monte-Cristo
by overtaking him."
"Monte-Cristo," murmured Madame Caraman; "ah, my darling, take care."