The Flamingo Feather by Kirk Munroe

K >> Kirk Munroe >> The Flamingo Feather

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12

They were indeed the ships of his own people, whom he had never dared
hope to meet again. There was the emblem of his own land, which, when
he had last beheld it, had been torn, amid sorrow and defeat, from
above the walls of Fort Caroline, to give place to the yellow ensign of
Spain.

When Rene had controlled his tumultuous feeling sufficiently to speak,
he gave orders for his warriors to proceed to the shell mound in the
midst of the marshes, on which he and Has-se had rested after their
flight from Fort Caroline, and there encamp and await his coming. His
own canoe he ordered to be directed, with all speed, towards the ships.

As he approached them closely, he saw that he was observed by many
curious eyes from their decks, and finally a hoarse voice commanded him
to halt and explain his presence there.

At his order, his men backed water so stoutly with their paddles that
the canoe rested motionless. Standing erect in it, Rene, speaking in
French, to the great surprise of those whom he addressed, and wearing a
bold air that sat well upon him, asked,

"Who commands here? and in which ship is he to be found?"

There was a slight stir on the quarter-deck of the ship nearest him;
and, from a group of gentlemen who occupied it, one, wearing a plumed
hat and a velvet mantle, from beneath which peeped the richly jewelled
hilt of his sword, stood forth and answered courteously,

"I, Dominique de Gourges, chevalier of France, am admiral here at thy
service. Who art thou, that while in savage guise yet speakest our
tongue as though born to it?"

"I am known as Ta-lah-lo-ko, and am chief of that western tribe of
Indians called Alachuas," answered Rene, who was not yet ready to
reveal his true identity. "If it suit thy convenience, I would have a
word with thee in private concerning important matters."

Upon this De Gourges invited his visitor to come on board the ship and
meet him in his own cabin, where he would with pleasure converse with
him.

As Rene stepped upon the quarter-deck, and passed through the group of
gentlemen who still occupied it, they regarded him with the liveliest
curiosity. It was not unmixed with admiration; for his tall and
handsome though slight figure was set off by a costume which, though
becoming to him and fashioned with the best of Indian art, was strange
to their civilized eyes.

The long tresses of his sunny hair were bound by a simple fillet, and
in them was twined the Flamingo Feather that proclaimed his rank. His
face was tanned by the burning suns of that country to a shade but
little lighter than that of his Indian companions, and after the custom
of the Alachuas he had added to it here and there a touch of war-paint.
From neck to feet he was clad in garments of fawn-skin, that fitted
like a glove to his person. These had been made soft as velvet by the
Indian process of curing, and were exquisitely embroidered and fringed.
Over his shoulders was flung a light mantle of feathers, woven of the
glistening plumage of many rare birds and fastened by a clasp of two
great pearls set in virgin gold. In his hand he bore a slender lance,
of which the shaft was of dark wood highly polished, and the tip was a
splinter of purest rock-crystal.

He crossed the quarter-deck, and descended to the admiral's cabin with
a proud and dignified bearing, as became his station, but which greatly
belied his feelings, for he was wellnigh overwhelmed by the joyful
emotions he experienced at being once more among his countrymen.

In the cabin he was most courteously received by De Gourges, and
invited to a seat; but before taking it he inquired with a trembling
voice,

"Oh, sir, know ye aught of a certain noble chevalier of France, by name
Rene de Laudonniere, and whether he be still alive or no?"

"Ay, that I do. He of whom thou speakest is not only alive, but is
well known to me. Not only that, but it is owing to his pitiful tale
of cruel wrong done to him and those with him in this country that I am
here at this present moment. But thou art overcome with emotion; what
had he to do with thee?"

Upon thus learning that his dearly beloved uncle had escaped, and was
yet alive, Rene had sunk into a seat, and buried his face in his hands.
In a moment he obtained mastery of himself, and looking up, answered,

"He was all and more to me than an own father; for I am his only
nephew, Rene de Veaux."

At the utterance of this name De Gourges sprang to his feet, and
regarding his visitor intently, exclaimed,

"What! Do I hear thee truly? Art thou indeed that Rene de Veaux so
bitterly mourned by the Chevalier Laudonniere, and not the savage thou
seemest? If so, there is the best part of my mission to this new world
accomplished by this meeting."

As Rene satisfied the other of his identity as the nephew of
Laudonniere, De Gourges embraced him warmly, and would have at once
proclaimed the joyful intelligence to those on deck; but the young man
begged of him to refrain from so doing for yet a short while, as there
was still much that he would say to him alone.

De Gourges consented to this, and Rene continued:

"Although I am Rene de Veaux, I am also Ta-lah-lo-ko, head chief of the
Alachua nation, and I have brought with me a party of chosen warriors
which I will place at thy service, if, perchance, thou canst make use
of them. Wilt thou not describe to me the nature of thy business in
these parts, and something of thy plans, and what has been already
accomplished?"

"That will I gladly, my noble savage," answered De Gourges, with a
smile, "and truly I could but lately have made a most excellent use of
these brave warriors of thine, whose service thou dost so promptly
tender."

Then the admiral gave Rene a brief history of his expedition, its
purpose and results, which was in effect as follows:

He himself had been a prisoner in Spanish dungeons, and had suffered as
a Spanish galley-slave. Upon making his escape and returning to his
own country, he had met his old friend, the Chevalier Laudonniere, and
learned from him of the terrible massacres of the Huguenots,
perpetrated by Menendez and the soldiers at San Augustin. Upon hearing
this tale of wrong and outrage, he had then and there determined to
devote his fortune and his life, if that should be necessary, to the
punishment of these same Spaniards, and to the rescue of such of his
countrymen as might have escaped with their lives, but who still
remained in the New World.

By selling his estates, he had obtained the means to fit out three
ships, and in them had induced a brave company of soldiers and seamen
to accompany him upon what he considered his holy mission.

Ten days before the coming of Rene he had arrived off San Augustin,
where the Spaniards, supposing his ships to be that of their own
nation, had fired a salute of welcome from the guns of their newly
erected fort.

As De Gourges deemed this place too strong for him to attack, and as he
only wished to recover that which had belonged to the French, he had
not tarried there, but had sailed northward to the River of May, the
name of which the Spaniards had changed to Rio de San Mateo.

He found its entrance guarded by two small forts, one on either side,
which Menendez had built after his capture of Fort Caroline. As the
French ships were of too great draught to cross the bar, De Gourges had
organized an expedition of small boats, and had carried these works,
one after another, by assault.

Having thus effected a landing, and being joined by a large body of
Indians, who had joyfully hailed him as a deliverer from Spanish
cruelties, he had marched to the attack of Fort San Mateo, by which
name Fort Caroline was now called.

Through a series of blunders on the part of its Spanish commandant he
had been able to capture this fort with comparative ease. By the aid
of powder and fire the walls of all these forts had been levelled with
the ground, and their total destruction effected.

Having thus accomplished the main objects of his expedition, De Gourges
had regained his ships, and sailed still farther northward, to the deep
harbor in which Rene had discovered him, and in which he was now
preparing for the homeward voyage.

"This," he said, in conclusion, "brings my narrative to the present
date, and my expedition to the place in which I am granted the great
blessing of a meeting with thee, my noble countryman, who art become at
the same time a noble savage."

Then in his turn Rene gave an account of his experiences at the
overthrow of Fort Caroline, his capture by the Seminoles, his rescue
from them, and his subsequent life and rise to power among the
Alachuas. To all of this De Gourges listened with breathless
attention; and when Rene had finished, he exclaimed,

"No knight of olden time had ever adventures more thrilling than these
of thine, and greatly do I envy thee thy brave record."

After this exchange of experiences the two emerged from the admiral's
cabin, where they had been so long closeted as to excite the liveliest
curiosity of those on deck. When Rene was made known to the officers
of De Gourges' command, he was most joyfully welcomed by them, as one
of whom they had heard brave things, and who was most worthy to command
their respect and esteem.

CHAPTER XIX

THE OLD WORLD ONCE MORE

The moment in which the Chevalier Dominique de Gourges embraced the
long-lost Rene de Veaux, and welcomed him as one who had been dead, but
had again come to life, was one of as sincere pleasure as he had ever
experienced. In his destruction of the Spaniards he had been filled
with a fierce joy; for, according to his view, he was performing an act
of solemn justice, and rendering the world a service in thus ridding it
of those whom he regarded only as murderers and pirates.

It was, however, with far different feelings from these that he
welcomed his young countryman, and he felt that to bear him back to
France and restore him to the loving old man who had so long mourned
him as dead, would indeed be a triumph worth all the other results of
his expedition. He was not certain that Rene was disposed to give up
the honors of his present position and return with him to France and
civilization. Therefore, after he had introduced him to his officers,
it was with a tone of anxiety that he inquired what the young chief
purposed to do, now that the fighting was all over, and the services of
himself and his warriors were not needed.

"I propose to accompany thee to France, where I may once more embrace
him whom I hold most dear on earth an thou wilt take me," answered
Rene, promptly.

Concealing somewhat his joy at this answer, De Gourges said, "I will
take thee gladly, lad, an thou wilt go with us: but art thou prepared
to relinquish thy chieftainship of these Alachuas, and become once more
the plain citizen of a country where such rank is not recognized?"

"I would sooner be the humblest citizen of my own country, and dwell
among those of my own blood, than be a ruler among strangers, even
though they were the proudest nation of the earth," answered Rene, with
flashing eyes and a voice trembling with emotion. "Thou knowest what
it is to have a country; but dost thou know what it is to lose it,
without the hope of ever regaining it?"

"Ay, that do I. Did I not tell thee I had served in Spanish galleys?"

"And hadst thou served on a Spanish throne instead of in Spanish
galleys, with the same hopelessness of escape wouldst thou not have
hailed with gladness the chance of resigning it, upon condition of
regaining thy country?"

"Indeed I would! my dear friend, and thou art right. A man's country
and his own people are dearer to him than all the world besides. I did
thee a great wrong in doubting for a moment that thou wouldst not
relinquish all that thou hast gained in this new world, for the sake of
again rejoining those dear to thee in the old. So now let us away with
all speed; and ho, for the Old World once more!"

"Wilt thou, for my sake, delay thy departure for yet two days?" asked
Rene. "There be certain papers belonging to my uncle Laudonniere which
were removed by me to a place of safety upon the night of the capture
of Fort Caroline. If I can again find and recover them, I doubt not
but they will prove of value to him, and give him cause to welcome my
return with the greater joy."

"Take thou whatever time is necessary for thy business, and I will
await thy pleasure. If it so please thee I will accompany thee and thy
savages to the River of May, and visit once more the ruins of that
stronghold that the Spaniards boasted could not be captured by the half
of France. The ships shall go outside and meet us at the mouth of the
river."

Rene gladly agreed to this proposition, and De Gourges continued:

"As for making greater thy uncle's joy when he again beholds thee, I
doubt if that will be possible; for he will have no eyes nor thoughts
save for thyself. It may be, however, that these same papers will
prove of greatest value to him, for he is in sore straits for want of
evidence to make good certain claims. It is not forth-coming, and he
alleges that it was destroyed by the Spaniards when they captured Fort
Caroline. Be that as it may, he who should be loaded with honors and
riches now suffers obscurity and poverty, and perchance thou art the
very one who will bring him relief."

It only deepened Rene's love for his uncle to learn that he was in
trouble, and increased his desire to hasten to him. Thus it was with
the greatest impatience that he awaited the coming of the daylight,
that should enable them to go in search of the hidden papers.

The next morning Rene and De Gourges were rowed in one of the ship's
boats to the shell mound, where the war-party of Alachuas was encamped.
Here the boat was dismissed, and the French admiral was given a place
in the young chief's own canoe. He was highly delighted with this, to
him, novel mode of travelling, and was also greatly interested in the
grim Indian warriors by whom he was surrounded. Their unmistakable
devotion to their young chief touched him deeply, and he said to Rene,

"I know not if, after all, thou hast not found thy truest happiness in
this wilderness."

That night they encamped at the foot of the very bluff on which Rene
had been captured by the Seminoles. The next morning he and his
new-found friend, accompanied by Yah-chi-la-ne and E-chee, ascended the
river to the fort which had lately been the scene of such thrilling
events. Now, ruined and deserted, it was destined to be forever
abandoned to its own solitude.

Although it filled Rene with sadness to witness this ruin of what had
once been a home to him, and in the building of which he had taken such
pride, he had rather see it thus than restored to all its former glory,
but remaining in the shadow of the yellow banner of Spain.

Locating as nearly as might be that portion of the ruins beneath which
the tunnel had penetrated, Rene, and those with him, began a search of
the river-bank for its entrance. At length they discovered not a slab
of bark, such as had formerly covered the entrance, but a block of
stone, of such size that it required their united strength to remove
it. It was also of a color so closely resembling the surrounding soil
that, had they not been looking for some such thing, and been aware of
almost the exact spot in which to search, they would not have noticed
it.

The substitution of this slab of stone for the one of bark proved that
others had meddled with the passage since Rene last passed through it,
and also that these others were white men, probably Spaniards.
Nevertheless, though he greatly feared that the search would prove
fruitless, for those who had discovered the passage must also have
found its contents, Rene determined to keep on and explore it to the
end.

Lighting their way with torches, and with Rene in the lead, the party
entered the tunnel. De Gourges lamented that he had not known of its
existence sooner, in which case he would have used it as a mine, in
which to place powder and blow the walls of the fort about the ears of
the Spaniards.

When they reached the point at which Rene had left the books and
papers, they found that, even as he feared, they had been removed, so
that no trace of them remained. Rene bethought himself, however, of
the small iron box which he had buried in the earth at one side of the
tunnel. After thus burying it he had stopped the place again with
clay, and now he hoped that this box at least might have escaped
discovery. So they prodded the earthen wall of the tunnel for some
distance with their daggers, and at length the point of Rene's weapon
struck against metal. Here they dug, and directly he had recovered the
box much rusted, but still sound, in which he felt sure his uncle had
kept his most important papers.

While they had thus obtained all that they could now hope for in this
search, both Rene and De Gourges were anxious to explore the passage to
its extreme end, and so they continued on through it.

Of a sudden they found themselves in a place that had been so greatly
enlarged beyond the original limits of the tunnel that a score of men
might stand in it. By the light of their uplifted torches they saw,
piled one above another, from floor to roof, on two sides of this
little chamber, a number of chests, both of wood and iron, every one of
which was inscribed with the royal arms of Spain. So heavy were these
that two strong men could not lift one of them.

Instantly recognizing their character, De Gourges exclaimed,

"As I am a knight of France, thou art in luck, Rene de Veaux! Here
thou hast unwittingly stumbled upon a treasure-vault of these Spanish
usurers. If I mistake not, there is that contained within these chests
that will place thee on an equality with the wealthiest noble of
France."

"Nay," replied Rene, "it is not mine, but thine. To the conqueror
belong the spoils. But for thee, these chests and their contents,
whatever be their nature, would still remain with those who placed them
here."

"Not so," answered De Gourges; "I came not in search of spoil, but to
punish these insolent Spaniards for their many cruelties; and besides,
but for thee I should never have dreamed of the existence of this
passage. Thou alone didst possess its secret, and to thee alone
belongs whatever it contains."

"Well," said Rene, unwilling to discuss the matter further at that
time, "it may be that we are already counting unhatched fowls. Let us
first take measures to remove these chests to the ships and discover
their contents. After that we shall have ample time to define their
ownership ere ever we reach France."

The grave wisdom of this speech, proceeding as it did from one whom he
still regarded as a mere boy amused De Gourges greatly. He, however,
admitted that Rene was right, and that they were foolish to waste time
in fruitless discussion, that might be better occupied in making good
their escape from a place in which they might at any time be attacked
by the Spaniards from San Augustin.

By an unusually high tide the ships had been enabled to cross the bar,
and now lay inside the mouth of the river. So the coffers were removed
to them, though the labor of so doing was so great that it occupied the
remainder of the day. By sunset it had been accomplished; and
everything was in readiness for their final departure from the River of
May and the New World.

As the tide turned and flowed outward to the sea, the white sails of
the ships were loosened, and they were made ready to go out over the
bar with it. Then came an affecting scene of farewell between the
Alachuas, who were to be left behind, and their chief. One by one the
stern warriors came forward and kissed his hand, while he had for each
some kind word that would long be cherished in the memory of him to
whom it was spoken. He had loaded their canoes with all that they
could contain of presents, furnished by the generosity of De Gourges,
for themselves, and to be taken to that distant western country in
which he had left so many friends.

So long as he remained in their sight Rene retained his costume as an
Indian chief, and in his hair gleamed the Flamingo Feather.

At length the anchors were lifted, and the stately ships moved slowly
down the broad river. As they drew away from the canoes in which, with
heavy hearts and sad faces, the motionless Indians watched the receding
form of their beloved young chief, of a sudden the banners of France
were flung to the breeze from each masthead, and a tremendous roar of
artillery gave voice to his final adieu.

Long after the ships had crossed the bar and left the coast, Rene,
still in his Indian dress, stood alone, his feelings respected by those
about him. With a swelling heart he watched the shores on which he had
suffered and enjoyed so much, and where his boyhood had been left, and
a noble manhood gained. As it finally disappeared in the gathering
darkness, he slowly turned and descended into the admiral's cabin.
When he again appeared he was at first unrecognized, for his Indian
costume had been exchanged for that of civilization, and the Flamingo
Feather was no longer to be seen in his hair.

The opening of the Spanish treasure-chests found in the underground
passage revealed their contents to be of astounding value, consisting
of jewels, gold coin, massive silver plate, and weapons of curious
design and great worth.

The tunnel had been discovered during the building of a house for the
Spanish commandant of the fort upon the site of that formerly occupied
by Laudonniere, and he had conceived the idea of constructing within it
his treasure-vault. The books and papers concealed there by Rene had
been taken forth and burned with great rejoicing; for they were
supposed to be filled with heretic magic and sorceries. Upon the
sudden capture of the fort by De Gourges there had been no time to
remove the treasure from its underground chamber, and the few Spaniards
who escaped and fled to San Augustin had left it, hoping to return and
recover it when the French should have departed.

After much discussion concerning it, De Gourges consented to accept of
it an amount sufficient to recompense him for the sum expended in
fitting out his expedition. It was, however, decreed by him and those
with him that the balance belonged to Rene de Veaux, and to none other.

Thus the lad, who had never in all his adventurous career dreamed of
acquiring worldly riches, neared his native land possessed of wealth so
great that it might be envied of princes.

The homeward voyage was quick and prosperous, and unmarked by incident
save their pursuit by a great Spanish fleet which they encountered in
the Bay of Biscay. This danger was escaped by their superior speed and
seamanship, and at length Rene de Veaux saw the spires and roofs of
that same seaport from which he had sailed for the New World, in
company with his Uncle Laudonniere, nearly four years before.

Tidings of their return, and some rumors of the brave doings of De
Gourges and those who sailed with him, had preceded them. So, as the
three ships sailed into the harbor with banners flying, sails
glistening like white clouds in the bright sunlight, and strains of
martial music issuing from them, the bells of the little town rang a
merry peal of welcome, and the quay was thronged with people in holiday
attire, eager to learn of their voyage to the New World.

A triumphal procession and fetes of various kinds had been arranged to
give honor to the victors; but Rene de Veaux was too anxious to reach
his uncle and be the first to take to him the tidings of his own safe
return, to care for these things. So he eluded those who would have
made a hero of him, and, travelling by post, made all speed towards
Paris.

In the same little unpretentious dwelling in which he had first greeted
his nephew years before, the old soldier, Rene de Laudonniere, sat one
chill autumn evening, musing beside a small fire. His surroundings
were poor, and his fine face was haggard and careworn. As he sat, in
his loneliness, his thoughts were in the New World, and with the brave
lad whom he had lost there.

His musings were interrupted by the entrance of an old servant, who was
none other than that Francois who served the family of De Veaux for so
many years, and who had now joined his poor fortunes with those of the
old chevalier. As he quietly opened the door, he announced:

"There is one without who would have speech with thee, but he refuses
to give his name."

"What manner of person is he?"

"As well as I may judge, he is young, tall, dark, and has the air of
being from foreign parts."

"Well, show him in. His presence will at least divert my mind from
sorrowful thoughts."

With a quick, firm tread, a young man entered the room and stood for a
moment silently regarding Laudonniere. The light from the fire was not
sufficient to disclose his features, and the other had no suspicion of
who he was. At the same time he felt strangely moved by the young
man's presence, and also remained silent, waiting for him to speak.

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12