Oliver Optic

“ Roaming in the cane-brake, or sunning himself on a log like the juvenile alligators, while Master Archy took his walk, or even pulling the boat, was much more to his taste than rubbing down the horses and digging weeds out of the gravel walks in front of the mansion. The order to return, therefore, was a grievous disappointment to him; for the head gardener or the head groom would be sure to find a job for him that would last all day. ”

“ With the assistance of Quin, Cyd got the foresail in, though it was not without a deal of hard tugging, for the wind now blew a fierce gale. As soon as sail was thus reduced, the sheets of the jib and mainsail were secured, and the schooner lay down to her work, dashing through the water at a furious rate.
"We are all right now, Lily," said Dan. "Go into your cabin again, or you will be blown away."
"Were any of you hurt in the fight?" asked she, as loud as she could scream, for the wind howled fearfully through the rigging of the schooner.
"No, we are all well and hearty. ”

“ A splash in the water a hundred yards astern of the Isabel now attracted the attention of the party.
"Can't you help him?" repeated Lily, in trembling tones.
"It will not be safe for us to show ourselves, for the human bloodhounds are not far off."
"Do help him if you can. Save him from those terrible dogs!" pleaded Lily.
"He will swim to that island," said Dan. "Perhaps the dogs will not catch him."
"Yes, they will."
"Yes, dey will. Dey done leap in de water. Dar dey go!" added Cyd, as they listened to the splashes as the brutes sprang into the lake.
"Save him! Save him, Dan!" cried Lily. ”

“ Keeping as near the western shore of the lake as it was prudent to go, the boat glided gently over the tranquil waters.
In a couple of hours the Isabel reached the narrow outlet of the lake. Thus far, the south-westerly wind had enabled her to run with a free sheet; but at this point the course changed, and Dan found that he should be compelled to beat dead to windward in order to reach his destination. Then he wished he had not started; but up the creek he had been unable to determine from what direction the light breeze came, and had decided the question to the best of his ability. ”

“ But Dandy did little more than avoid the blows; he gave none, and received none.
"Come, stand up to it!" shouted Archy, who soon began to be disgusted with these tame proceedings. "Why don't you exert yourself?"
"I do, sir; I have done my best to ward off your blows," replied Dandy.
"I will give you something more to do, then," added Archy, and sprang to his game with redoubled vigor. ”

“ We'll have no captain here. We are not at sea, and we will all be equal. What we do will be for our own safety. I intend to keep my watch, and do my share of the work; so you needn't grumble, Cyd."
"Possifus! Cyd neber grubble in his life."
"You seem to think that I want to make you do more than your share."
"No, sar! I's tink you do more'n your share, Dan. Cyd ain't notin but a nigger, and you's almos' a gen'leman."
"Come, come, Cyd. I shall be angry if you talk in that way. I am just the same as the rest of you."
"Hossifus! Wha—wha—wha——"
"That'll do, Cyd." ”

“ As a story of exciting adventure, the writer hopes it will satisfy all his young readers; that they will love the gentle Lily, respect the manly independence of Dan, and smile at the oddities of Cyd; and that the book will confirm and [Pg 6] increase their love of liberty and their hatred of tyranny. If the young fugitives were resolute, even to shedding the blood of the slave-hunter, they had forgiving and Christian hearts, in which there was neither malice nor revenge; and in this respect, if in no other, they are worthy exemplars for the young and the old. ”

“ I can't manage a boat, but I think I can cook, and take care of the cabin, set the table, and do every thing that belongs to the women."
"I didn't mean to have you work, Lily," said Dan. "You have been a lady's-maid all your life, and never did any work."
[Pg 113] "Well, I know how; and I'm going to do my share. I should not feel right to live like a lady here. I mean to do all the work in the cabin, and the cooking too."
"No, Cyd and I will do that." ”

“ I am quite sure, if the young seignior had been compelled to hoe corn, pick cotton, or cut cane for a few hours every day, or even been forced to learn his lessons in geography, grammar, and history, he would have been a better boy, and a happier one.
Idleness is not only the parent of mischief, but it is the fruitful source of human misery. Master Archy, with every thing that ingenuity could devise and wealth purchase to employ his time, was one of the most unhappy young men in the country. ”

“ With every mile she advanced, the hopes of the fugitives grew stronger. Though Dandy alone knew the route by which they were to reach the land of freedom, they were conscious that any white man whom they might meet would arrest them as runaways. ”

“ And now, having seen the young fugitives safely through all their trials and perplexities, and securely established in the enjoyment of those rights and privileges with which the great Creator had endowed them, we take leave of them, in the hope that the reign of Freedom will soon be extended to every part of our beloved country, and that the sons of toil shall no longer Watch and Wait for deliverance from the bonds of the slave-master. ”

“ Probably Lily was willing to talk of this subject to banish more painful thoughts from her mind, though it is not likely that she clearly comprehended the tactics of the skipper of the Isabel.
"Don't you think I had better call Cyd and Quin?" asked she, after she had again glanced at the position of the pursuing boat.
"No, let them sleep. We will not call them till it is necessary to do so," replied Dan.
"Do you think we can escape them?" asked she, anxiously.
"I cannot tell, Lily. I hope so. It depends entirely upon the wind. ”

“ If our space would permit us to record the daily life of the young fugitives while they remained in the swamp, it would, no doubt, be interesting to our readers; and for their sake, no less than for our own, we regret that our limits do not admit of this lengthened narrative. They had many trials from cold and storms, from high water in the bayous and low water in the casks, from alligators and buzzards; but they lived through it all. Lily was sick a fortnight, and Dan a week; their fuel gave out in the coldest of the weather; and an alligator bit off the heel of Cyd's boots ”

“ Lily was the first to wake and come on deck. In a whisper she told Quin to go to his berth, and permit her to keep the watch. At first he objected; but her persistence finally overcame his scruples, and he crept softly to his bunk in the forward cabin. In a [Pg 181] few moments he was sleeping as soundly as the rest. The two boys were physically incapable of going without their rest. They were growing, and to sit up all night, filled with anxiety and excitement, was more than they could bear without Nature's strongest protest. ”

“ Lily retired to the cabin, closed the door after her, and threw herself on her knees to pray for the safety of herself and her friends during the impending peril. In the mean time, Dan walked up and down the deck, with the gun in his hand, apparently looking in all directions for game. Just as the steamboat came within hailing distance of the Isabel, a couple of brant fortunately flew over, and Dan fired. His practice in the swamp had made him a very good marksman, and he was so lucky as to bring down one of the birds. ”

“ I don't want to destroy val'able property with this yere iron, but I must if you don't stop," continued the overseer, as he finished loading his gun.
"Perhaps I can destroy as much valuable property as you can," said Dan, as he took his fowling piece again.
"You must come with me. I know that nigger in the boat with you, and I reckon you belong to Colonel Raybone."
"I, you villain! How dare you insult me? I am a free white man."
"Perhaps you be, but you've been advertised enough to let any man in these yere parts know you. That nigger belongs to my neighbor. ”

“ Cyd—who has improved upon his former cognomen, and now calls himself Sidney Davidson—lives on board the Lily, a contented, happy man. He almost worships Dan and his wife, at whose house he is an occasional visitor.
They never heard anything from Colonel Raybone, or any of his family, perhaps because they made no inquiries. Certainly no efforts were ever made to reclaim the chattels. They had proved that they could take care of themselves, and that freedom was their true sphere of life. ”

“ Starting up with a spring, he bounded to the deck, where he found Cyd fast asleep upon the cushions of the standing room.
"Cyd!" exclaimed he, seizing the faithless sentinel by the collar. "Is this the way you keep watch?"
"Possifus!" ejaculated Cyd, as he sprang to his feet. "I done been asleep."
"Been asleep! I should think you had! Have you been snoring there all the afternoon?"
"No, sar! Dis chile hain't been asleep more'n two minutes—no, sar, nor more'n a minute and a half."
"Yes, you have; you have been asleep all the afternoon. You deserve to be a slave all the rest of your life!" ”

“ But the energy and firmness of Dan soon quieted their fears, and restored, in some measure, the confidence which had before prevailed in the camp.
[Pg 212] "We have defeated the slave-hunters twice, and we can do it again," said he, as he rose from his seat at the cabin table, around which, as Dan ate his supper, the party had considered their sad and perilous condition.
"It's terrible to think of poor Quin," said Lily. "He was so good and kind."
"And we have one arm less to assist in our defence. Don't cry any more, Lily. I'm afraid we haven't seen the worst of it yet." ”

“ But one thing was painfully evident to all on board of the schooner—that the boat was gaining upon her, and that the wind was gradually dying out. There was no hope for them except in their own right arms. They must fight for liberty, fight for the rights which they had boldly reässumed. Dan and Quin were fully determined upon this course, and if they could bring Cyd up to a sense of duty on this trying emergency, there would be some chance of success. ”

“ We can't stand this long," said Dan, as he threw the Isabel up into the wind.
"Possifus!" yelled Cyd, above the howling of the tempest. "We all go to de bottom, for sartin."
"No, we won't; stand by, and work lively. Let go the peak halyards," replied he, as he cast off the throat halyards, on the other side. "Haul down the sail as fast as you can, Quin."
[Pg 166] With the jib still drawing full, the Isabel continued steadily on her course, while Dan and Cyd put a double reef in the mainsail, Quin standing at the helm in the mean time, and acting under the direction of the skipper. ”

“ Off with your gloves!"
"But only consider, sir, if any thing should happen. If I should hit you by accident——"
"Hit, then!" cried Archy, angrily, as he sprang forward, and planted a heavy blow upon the cheek of the body-servant before the latter had time to place himself in the attitude of defence, though he had thrown away his gloves in obedience to the mandate of his master.
For a few moments, Dandy defended himself from the impetuous assault of the young gentleman, who displayed a vigor and energy which he had never before exhibited. ”

“ He had learned that the bayou, which was the outlet of the waters of the swamp, was obstructed by fallen timber a short distance from the lake. As runaway slaves could not live in this desolate place, there had been no occasion to pursue them into its deep recesses.
The party on board the Isabel were very much fatigued by the labor and excitement of the night; and when the schooner was safely moored, Dan declared that nothing more should be done until the party had rested themselves. It was not yet daylight, and the boat was in a secure position.
"But we must not all go to sleep," added Dan. ”

“ The Anglo-Saxon blood in his veins boiled at the thought of such an indignity, and if he had not entertained a reasonable hope that he should escape the terrible shame and degradation which menaced him, he would certainly have taken to the swamp, and ended his days among the alligators and herons.
[Pg 52] There was no one on the pier when he landed; and leaving the crew to dispose of the boat, he walked with a heavy heart towards the mansion of the planter. ”

“ If the breeze should die out, of course we could make no progress at all."
"Do you think the wind will die out?" said she, nervously.
"I can't tell, Lily. I hope not, I pray not."
"Suppose it should die out, Dan?" added she, moving up nearer to the skipper.
"If we lose the wind there is nothing to prevent the boat from overtaking us at once." ”

“ It was impossible to penetrate the swamp without a boat, for the terra firma of the region consisted only of islands covered with trees, most of them surrounded by shallow and muddy waters. It is doubtful whether any human being had ever fully explored this extensive swamp; and Dan was confident that, [Pg 177] if he could succeed in making his way with the Isabel to a distance of two or three miles from the lake, his party would be free from intrusion, unless, indeed, the slave-hunters made a business of driving them from their covert. ”

“ If there was any danger I could call you."
"I don't mean to ask you to keep watch, or do any such work. It is not a woman's place."
"I mean to take my turn next time," said she, resolutely. "Now, Dan, I will get your supper. Cyd and I ate bread and butter, and drank cold water; but if you are going to sail the boat all night, you will want some tea."
"Thank you, Lily; you are very kind. I will get the tea myself."
"No, you shall not. I am not going to be idle all the time. I mean to do my share of the labor. If it isn't a woman's work to keep watch, it is to get tea ”

“ Running the boat up to the bank of the bayou, he ordered Cyd to make her fast to a tree on the shore.
"What's gwine to be done now, Dan?" asked Cyd, when he had obeyed the order.
"We shall follow the big river no farther. Now, I want to make Master Raybone think we have gone up that way, which leads to the Mississippi. I left some papers in my room, which will convince him that I intended to go that way. Now, Lily, we must leave you for a little while," added Dan, as he drew the bateau alongside. "We will not be gone more than an hour." ”

“ Fastened to the pier were several small boats, including a light wherry, and a four-oar race boat. Moored in the middle of the stream lay a large sail boat, in which the planter often made long trips for pleasure; for, by the network of rivers with which the bayou was connected, he could explore a vast tract of country, and even reach the Red River on the north, and the Gulf of Mexico on the south.
The family that dwelt in the "great house," as the negroes called the mansion, were Colonel Raybone, his wife, and two children. ”

“ He had nothing to do but amuse himself, and he had completely exhausted his slender ingenuity in devising new amusements.
"Stop her," said he, languidly, after the boat had gone about two miles.
Dandy obeyed the order without a question, and the Edith soon floated listlessly on the water, waiting the pleasure of her magnificent owner.
"Back to the pier," added Archy; and under the orders of her skilful coxswain, she was put about, and darted up the river on her return.
The shining ebony face of the great Athenian [Pg 25] philosopher's namesake looked glum and discontented. ”