The trip to Louisville was uneventful, yet significant. As Norton
went aboard the boat, the captain touched his arm and whispered.
"Captain Norton?"
"Yes?"
"The lady----"
"Does not return with us, sir."
The captain stepped back and signed to his men. Of these there were
ten--all big, bearded men who kept silent for the whole trip, though
Duval tried to converse with them more than once. Nor did any
address Norton after he was aboard. Save for the captain's orders,
the trip was made in silence.
When they were rowing past the bluff behind which Red Hugh dwelt,
Norton searched the woods in vain for any sign of his friends, and
caught Duval's eye roving over the bluff as well. Buck Creek and
Salt River were passed without stoppage, and when Norton offered to
pay his passage, he was informed that it has been paid; Duval, a
little later, was taxed a dollar, which he paid promptly. At length
Sullivan's ferry swept by and Shippingsport hove in sight ahead.
Norton knew nothing of what had been going on in his absence, but
there were a large number of craft, both keel and flatboats, in the
Louisville harbour, while loading of freight was proceeding busily.
The skiff rowed in through the vessels to a wharf, and Norton saw a
small figure in scarlet breeches and fustian greatcoat waiting for
their landing. He leaped out with a cry of joy, and greeted Elisha
Ayres with a strong grip of the hand. The little schoolmaster
straightened his greasy wig, and turned to meet Duval with a low bow.
"Your servant, Mr. Duval!" he said, in his dry precise manner.
The lawyer bowed slightly, fastened his cold gaze on the pinched,
twinkling-eyed face of Ayres, and passed on without speaking. With a
chuckle, Ayres passed his arm under Norton's and turned.
"Come, Mr. Norton. Do not talk, if you please."
In no little wonder, Norton accommodated his step to that of the
other, and they walked through the little town toward Louisville.
Ayres placed no ban of silence upon his own tongue, however; he
chattered volubly, pointed out various objects of interest, and
paused at the top of the hill to turn Norton toward the harbour.
"Just to our right, Mr. Norton, is the Berthoud rope-walk--one of the
finest, I may say, in the United States. There is Mr. Berthoud's
residence just beyond us. Now from here we get a truly remarkable
view of the shipping; you will observe that a half-dozen keels are
being laden for New Orleans, under command of Commodore Peters. The
outside craft is the gunboat of Captain Nevitt, which carries a small
cannon. To the left you will see Captain Brookfield's horse-boat--a
most ingenious contrivance, sir."
At length Norton caught the drift of all this volubility, and gazed
at the "horse-boat" with no little interest. It was a large craft of
forty tons, with an ungainly gallery on the upper deck. On this, as
Ayres pointed out, six or seven horses worked a treadmill which in
turn worked the large side-paddles, over each gunwale. The boat was
a decided novelty, and as Brookfield had broken a number of paddles
on his trip up-river, she would be delayed from joining the fleet
under Peters and Nevitt, which was leaving in two days.
When Norton had finished his inspection, Ayres turned him toward the
city again and they proceeded on their way. Duval had disappeared.
Mindful of the rapidity with which things had happened to him on his
previous visit, Norton kept a watchful eye on the passers-by; he had
an uneasy sense of being watched, and perceived that an unduly large
proportion of the men were roughly dressed but excellently armed. It
seemed to him that Duval must have filled the town with his own men,
and things began to loom up darkly before him.
"These, sir, are the hanging gardens of Mr. Buttet"--and Ayres paused
as they reached the lower end of town, speaking in his usual
oratorical style and with a sweep of his hand toward the handsome
brick house to their left. "From here we gain an excellent view of
the river--one of the finest views in the United States, I may say,
sir. Yonder you perceive Jeffersonville in Indiana; a little to the
left, the magnificent falls of the Ohio. Beyond this, Clarksville
and the Silver Creek hills, with the forests and Rock Island
completing the panorama. And just ahead of us, sir, an interesting
episode is about to be enacted, if I mistake not."
Norton, who was paying little heed to the view but much to what
passed around him, loosened his knife in its sheath; the "interesting
episode", he concluded swiftly, would be enacted by something better
than fists. Lounging on the board walk a dozen yards ahead, and
eyeing him with insolent and provocative glances, were two huge
rivermen. Both were idly whittling at small sticks, and Norton had
no doubt of their intent.
Fastening his eyes on the pair and already angered by their insolent
looks, he flung off Ayres's restraining hand and stepped forward.
Then, however, something very odd took place.
Swinging around the corner at which the two rivermen stood, came
three tow-clad farmers with a snatch of drunken song. One of them
lurched heavily against the nearer riverman, who shoved him away with
a snarling curse.
"Who--who you shovin'?" demanded the farmer thickly.
"Git out, ye drunken fool," snapped the big riverman angrily, his eye
was still on Norton. "Move on--we ain't got time to spend on ye."
"Whoop-ee!"--and the farmer gave vent to a wild howl of rage.
"Hurray fer Jefferson! Damn the Democrats! Shove me, will ye? I'll
learn ye! I'm a cross betwixt a streak of chain-lightning and a
bear-cat! I was sired by a thunderbolt an' riz by an alligator an' I
eats rattlers fer breakfast--whoop-ee!"
With which peroration he gave the riverman no chance for the usual
exchange of personal history, but with an astonishingly accurate blow
for a drunken man landed his right on the riverman's jaw. His two
companions instantly fell upon the second riverman and with a
whirlwind of blows and dust and flashing knives and yells, all five
drove out into the street and left the sidewalk clear.
"Come, sir"--and Norton felt Ayres pluck his arm. "They will lodge
the two men in jail, but we must not be detained as witnesses."
In a flash the real meaning of the scene broke upon the Louisianian,
and with a grunt he strode off beside Ayres. Something most amazing
must have happened in the city of Louisville, he thought. A week
previously, mention of Blacknose had been enough to get a man his
death; now, two members of the mysterious gang were openly assaulted
in the streets! His last view of the combat, through the gathering
crowd, showed one of the farmers perched on the body of a riverman
and industriously gouging for the eyes of his enemy in true border
fashion.
Five minutes later Norton found himself led toward a good-sized brick
house which stood back from the street amid spacious gardens. This,
announced Ayres, belonged to Mr. Tarascon, a prominent merchant, who
expected Norton as his guest. Comprehending dimly that the
schoolmaster must have moved with tremendous activity in his absence,
the Louisianian strode up the steps to be greeted quietly by a small
elderly Frenchman--no other than the owner of the place. He was
unmarried, it appeared, and when Norton addressed him in his own
tongue, he cried effusively that the house no longer belonged to him
but to his honoured guest. Moreover, the words were quite sincere.
The afternoon being practically over, Tarascon and Ayres accompanied
Norton to his room--a spacious bedroom on the ground floor, and there
left him with a darkie to attend his personal wants, and a great
variety of clothes to choose from. With a sigh of relief, Norton
bathed and discarded his buckskin for a plum-coloured suit; he was a
gentleman once more in place of a woods rover; and when he inspected
the cravat which the grinning darkie had adjusted, he could scarce
believe that at daybreak he had been sitting in a canoe with an
acknowledged Indian-slayer, rifle in hand. The day was far from
done, however. When he was dressed, the negro ted him through a dark
corridor to two rooms blazing with candles: one a dining-room of
gigantic size, the other an equally large music-room. Still blinking
at the lights, Norton found his hand gripped by Audubon and then
perceived that he had come into a gathering of men.
"Gentlemen, Captain John Norton!" announced Mr. Tarascon, and turned,
smiling. "Perhaps you had best introduce our friends piecemeal, Mr.
Audubon!"
A dozen men were present--Colonel Taylor, Rosier, Ayres, and others
of the Louisville merchants to whom Audubon introduced the
Louisianian. Colonel Boone had returned home to Missouri, while
Norton found that his friend, Zach Taylor, had been ordered to
Vincennes to join General Harrison; barely had he been made
acquainted with all there, however, when Colonel Taylor rose and with
a gesture obtained silence.
"Mr. Norton"--and it was easy to see that the old border fighter felt
bitterly the shame of his words--"when you were here last, this town
was in a peculiar state, sir. As you are only too well aware, the
very name of Blacknose spread terror; men were murdered and property
destroyed almost with impunity; the secrecy of this gang of
river-pirates and its thorough organization seemed to hold us all
spellbound. I acknowledge it with shame, sir. Then, with your
coming, all this was changed."
As Colonel Dick paused, Norton felt himself the centre of attention.
He was himself too interested in what was coming to heed this,
however, and merely nodded.
"You had barely arrived, Mr. Norton, when an attempt was made upon
your life; a few hours later you were accused of a dastardly murder
and only the quick wit of Mr. Ayres threw the pursuers from your
track. We had given you up for lost, sir, when Mr. Audubon returned
to town and at once communicated with Mr. Ayres. The result, you see
here."
"I fancy I have seen the results before this," smiled Norton drily,
and told of the encounter he had witnessed in town. A quick nod
passed around.
"We can trust every man here," declared Audubon quietly but
impressively. "The grounds of this house are guarded by armed men,
Norton----"
"But how do you know _they_ can all be trusted?" demanded the
Louisianian keenly.
"Because, sir," spoke up Ayres, "Mr. Audubon and I enlisted them
personally. We went up-river and carefully selected only those who
had lost brothers or sons or fathers with the boats which have
vanished down the river. Every man of us here has sustained heavy
losses in property from the same cause. In short, sir, we have
raised a company of Regulators, with which to exterminate this
pestilent Blacknose gang."
Norton whistled to himself, eyeing the energetic little schoolmaster
in some admiration as the whole thing broke over his mind. So then,
they were fighting secrecy with secrecy, organization with
organization!
Now he understood a good deal which had mystified him--the words of
Kitty Grigg, the odd silence of his boatmen, the manner in which the
two bellicose rivermen had been disposed of. Ayres had been swift
and clever, also; by enlisting only the relatives of the men who had
disappeared with their boats, during the past two years, all
possibility of treachery was removed and the "Regulators" were
certain to be animated by a live hatred of Duval--but did they know
of Duval yet? Norton flung a quick glance around and found all
waiting for him to speak. "How many here know who Blacknose is,
Audubon?"
The words were like a shock; Norton needed no other answer to his
question than the startled questioning look which ran over the faces
in a flash.
"Only Ayres," returned the bird-lover, gravely. "It is a thing we
cannot prove definitely, and it would be much better to destroy the
whole gang at one blow. We will lay our suspicions before these
friends of ours to-night, and take counsel."
While Audubon was speaking, a white-haired negro flung back the
curtains which shut off the dining-room, and now announced dinner.
Mr. Tarascon rose.
"Then--you have ascertained something definite, Mr. Norton?"
"Yes. I may say that we have ascertained everything."
In the startled silence all grouped themselves about the long table,
Norton sitting between Tarascon and Ayres. Then, while the deft
silent negro slaves waited upon them and the long dinner was
discussed, Norton and Audubon related what they had overheard on the
bluff near the blazed cottonwood, the Louisianian adding the
conversation between Grigg and Duval that same morning.
Being wealthy and very hospitable in a land then noted for its
inhospitality, Mr. Tarascon had provided his best wines for the
occasion, both of French and Spanish. In consequence, certain honest
merchants, who were more accustomed to home distilled corn liquor,
drank wisely but too well of the rarer vintage; and no sooner had the
two friends finished their tale than the table leaped into wild
uproar.
For this, Norton was by no means sorry. The issue came squarely
forward; Was it possible that Charles Duval could be in alliance with
such a gang of thieves and pirates? To many of those present it was
hard of credence; and one estimable old merchant, who wore a high
black stock, a red peruke, and a coat cut in the fashion of the
nineties, arose and pounded the table in vinuous indignation.
"Gentlemen, I refuse to believe this monstrous concoction!" he roared
fervidly. "I have known Charles Duval for ten years, and I knew his
father before him. Our friend and esteemed neighbour Henry Clay, now
a member of Congress, knows him----"
"Yes, Clay knows him?" broke in a loud laugh from someone. "Clay
knocked him down in front of the courthouse at Lexington last
summer----"
"I refuse to believe it!" continued he of the black stock. "This
charge is not proven, my friends. I will go and bring Charles Duval
himself to deny it to your face----"
And shaking his fist, the angry old merchant shoved back his chair
and started for the door. Norton would have sprung up to check him,
but was restrained by Audubon's hand; the others glanced at one
another in wondering fear, bewildered. Were the merchant to carry
out his purpose, ruin was certain to fall upon them; yet Tarascon
only sat at the head of the table and smiled as he sipped his wine.
And, as the merchant flung open the door, it was seen to be guarded
by a tall tow-clad man and barred by a rifle.
"Sir--Mr. Tarascon--what means this!" spluttered the merchant,
turning.
"It means, sir, that my cellars are wide and my caution is wider,"
returned the host with only a veiled threat. He smiled very politely
but his eyes were keen as he glanced at the men who lined the table.
"Gentlemen," he went on quietly, "you can readily understand that
whether Mr. Norton and Mr. Audubon are correct or not in their
suspicions, no word of what we are about must come to Mr. Duval.
Each man of you here to-night is a gentleman; before you leave this
house, you pass me your words to that effect. Else, you do not
leave. It is very simple. We are going to stamp out this damnable
river piracy, and I promise you that every justice shall be done Mr.
Duval. Sir, pray return to your seat. Boy, fetch that Oporto I had
from New Orleans last fall."
Norton, watching, perceived that he had fallen among men of weight.
Tarascon was obeyed by the angry merchant, amid a grave silence, and
Colonel Taylor was the first to pledge his word to secrecy. One by
one the others followed suit, after which Elisha Ayres rose, pledged
Norton's health in his grandiloquent manner, and fell to discussing
the plan which he had already elaborated with Audubon.
This plan of action needed co-operation by the merchants there
gathered, and it was based upon Norton's own idea. Brookfield's
horse-boat was to be chartered and laden with a particularly valuable
cargo, in which lading each of the merchants should risk an equal
share. Brookfield himself was a man above suspicion, already
enrolled in Ayres's "Regulators", and willing to risk his craft in
the venture.
The boat would be another three weeks in lading, or perhaps less.
Thus ample time would be given Blacknose in which to learn of its
rich cargo and prepare an ambuscade. At Henderson the boat would
secretly pick up twenty of the "Regulators", who would stow
themselves below-decks in readiness for an attack.
Norton was to ship openly as a passenger, spreading abroad the report
that his visit to Louisville had been barren of results, and in the
meantime he was to remain as the guest of Tarascon in Louisville.
Ayres drily assured him that he would be well guarded. With her rich
cargo, the boat would be almost certain to be attacked; all that was
necessary was for a prisoner or two to be made, in which case they
would turn State's evidence and the rest of the gang could be hunted
down readily enough.
"Once we ascertain definitely who Blacknose is," said Audubon, "we
cut off the whole affair. Personally, I have no doubt of the matter;
but to those of you who cannot believe Duval guilty, I would
say--wait. This whole matter must be conducted with the greatest
secrecy; let no hint of it get to your slaves, for the gang no doubt
has many of our slaves in its pay."
"It's a good plan," stated Norton thoughtfully, frowning. "Almost
too good, my friends. We must not overplay our hand--do not say too
much about the rich cargo, for example. Duval, or Blacknose, is no
fool! The thing seems all cut and dried, and that is why I
fear--well, wait and see. When the time comes, we can show no mercy;
that gang is pitiless, more savage than the redskins, and from the
moment Brookfield's boat casts off her moorings at Shippingsport it
becomes a war to the knife. Well, gentlemen"--and with a smile he
rose, glass in hand--"for the rest of this evening let us cast care
aside, and so allow me to propose a toast to the gentleman whose wig
sets awry over a very excellent set of brains--Mr. Elisha Ayres,
gentlemen!"
And the toast was drunk standing, while the little schoolmaster
wriggled in huge delight and tried to straighten his greasy wig.
None the less, Norton remained thoughtful that evening--for he could
not forget the girl with gold-red hair whose hand had come to his
lips that day, and whose gage he wore inside his shirt.